The Chauncey DeVega Show

Fatima Bhutto is an acclaimed journalist and novelist. She is the author of the novels The Runaways and The Shadow of the Crescent Moon. Her nonfiction works include New Kings of the World and Songs of Blood and Sword. Fatima Bhutto's new book is The Hour of the Wolf: A Memoir. Her essays and other work have been featured in New Statesman, The Daily Beast, The Guardian, and The Nation. Fatima's life has been shaped by political violence. She is the granddaughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the Pakistani prime minister arrested and executed in the 1970s. She is the niece of Benazir Bhutto, twice prime minister of Pakistan before being assassinated in 2007. Her father, Murtaza Bhutto, was killed when Fatima was just 14 years old. Fatima counsels that yes, this dystopic world is profoundly broken — but we need to find solace, community and strength from one another to make it a better place. She warns that ignoring injustice and evil only provides the illusion of temporary safety and that we must confront such dark forces even if it is terrifying and comes at a great cost. Fatima reflects on the ethics of bringing new life into such a broken world and the importance of healthy relationships, love, and community. Chauncey does some public thinking about why everything feels so much harder right now. The Age of Trump. The war and destruction in the Middle East. The Orwellian assault on reality and truth. And why we have no choice but to endure and soldier on. He ponders whether we are lost and spinning in the Twilight Zone and draws on Rod Serling's wisdom to find his way out. And he shares Fintan O'Toole's essential new essay on Donald Trump as the Mad King and his war against Iran. WHERE CAN YOU FIND ME? On Twitter: https://twitter.com/chaunceydevega On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chauncey.devega My email: [email protected] HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT THE CHAUNCEY DEVEGA SHOW? Via Paypal at ChaunceyDeVega.com: Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thechaunceydevegashow https://www.patreon.com/TheTruthReportPodcast

Jeffrey Stern is an award-winning journalist and the author of five books, including his latest, The Warhead: The Quest to Build the Perfect Weapon in the Age of Modern Warfare. His reporting has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, and The Atlantic. Stern shares his anger at how President Trump and Pete Hegseth are treating America's war with Iran as though it were a videogame or an action movie, rather than a matter of life and death. He reflects on his New York Times feature "From Arizona to Yemen: The Journey of an American Bomb," and what it means to know the real human beings who are killed and maimed when such weapons are used. Stern also explains why the engineers behind America's so-called "smart weapons" — the Paveway, the Tomahawk cruise missile, and other lethal technology — are not so easily caricatured as monsters. They see their work as saving lives and making the world safer. And Stern draws on his years as a war correspondent to offer hard-earned advice on maintaining our emotional health as we navigate the Age of Trump and this era of global tumult and dread. WHERE CAN YOU FIND ME? On Twitter: https://twitter.com/chaunceydevega On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chauncey.devega My email: [email protected] HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT THE CHAUNCEY DEVEGA SHOW? Via Paypal at ChaunceyDeVega.com: Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thechaunceydevegashow https://www.patreon.com/TheTruthReportPodcast

This special episode of The Chauncey DeVega Show honors the life and legacy of Robert Duvall, who recently transitioned to the next plane of existence at the age of 95. Duvall's extraordinary career includes unforgettable performances in The Godfather, Apocalypse Now, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Tender Mercies. His cult film classics include THX 1138, The Killer Elite, Colors, and Falling Down. Yet it was The Apostle — Duvall's passion project — that may stand as his most intimate and fearless work. In the film, he portrays Euliss F. "Sonny" Dewey, a Pentecostal preacher battling inner demons who, after committing murder, flees to Louisiana and reinvents himself as "The Apostle E.F.," and builds a multiracial church. Longtime listeners know the very special place "Bobby D" and The Apostle hold in the history of this show and in Chauncey's own life journey. For this celebration of life and remembrance, Chauncey is joined by the Rev. Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, President and CEO of Interfaith Alliance. A leading advocate for civil rights and religious freedom, they reflect on Duvall's embodiment of The Apostle E.F., the film's portrayal of charismatic Christian traditions, the power of faith, and its meditation(s) on the color line and our shared humanity and life journeys. Together, they consider the meaning of Chauncey DeVega's and The Apostle E.F.'s "holy ghost walks" — and how our bodies can become sites of freedom, resistance, and power in dark and oppressive times. On this episode of the podcast, Chauncey also shares his thoughts about Trump's war of choice against Iran, our political vertigo and the worsening disaster. WHERE CAN YOU FIND ME? On Twitter: https://twitter.com/chaunceydevega On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chauncey.devega My email: [email protected] HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT THE CHAUNCEY DEVEGA SHOW? Via Paypal at ChaunceyDeVega.com: Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thechaunceydevegashow

Steve Cash is Executive Director of The Steady State, a non-profit advocacy organization whose members are former senior national security officials. He explains the findings of the organization's new report, Accelerating Authoritarian Dynamics: Assessment of Democratic Decline. Its conclusion is dire: with Donald Trump's return to power, the country is rapidly sliding toward authoritarian rule. According to Steve Cash, the United States now faces its most serious internal threat since the Civil War, with at least a 50–50 chance that "free and fair" elections may not continue in the foreseeable future. Steve Cash also reflects on his long career navigating literal life-and-death situations, and shares some hard-earned wisdom about managing extreme stress, fear, and anxiety. WHERE CAN YOU FIND ME? On Twitter: https://twitter.com/chaunceydevega On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chauncey.devega My email: [email protected] HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT THE CHAUNCEY DEVEGA SHOW? Via Paypal at ChaunceyDeVega.com: Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thechaunceydevegashow

Heather McGhee is a leading expert in economic and social policy and the New York Times–bestselling author of The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together. A former president of the think tank Demos, McGhee is a frequent commentator on national affairs and now serves as chair of the board of Color of Change, the nation's largest online racial justice organization. McGhee explores one of the central tragedies of American life: how a majority of white Americans have historically chosen to "drain the public pool," both literally and metaphorically, rather than share it with Black and brown Americans. This zero-sum, winner-take-all politics has left the nation less prosperous, less safe, less humane, and concentrated extraordinary wealth and power in the hands of plutocrats while undermining the American Dream for everyone else. She also reflects on the enduring lessons of the Black Freedom Struggle for resisting authoritarianism and building a more inclusive and democratic future in the Age of Trump and beyond. In this special Martin Luther King Jr. Day episode, Chauncey shares Dr. King's sermon on navigating fear in dark and dangerous times. WHERE CAN YOU FIND ME? On Twitter: https://twitter.com/chaunceydevega On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chauncey.devega My email: [email protected] HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT THE CHAUNCEY DEVEGA SHOW? Via Paypal at ChaunceyDeVega.com: Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thechaunceydevegashow