Know Your Enemy

In this episode, we're pleased to welcome back historian Kim Phillips-Fein, one of the truly outstanding observers of the right, past and present, working today, for a conversation about her new book, Country of Lords: Neo-Aristocrats, Social Darwinists, Tech Utopians, and the Long Fight Against Equality in America. It makes for a companion episode of sorts to our recent discussions on Lincoln and the Declaration of Independence, but this time about those who rejected equality: proponents of slavery, biological racists (in various forms), captains of industry, and more, from the American founding through today's tech billionaires like Peter Thiel. 

Listen: Bob Dylan, "My Back Pages"

Listen Again: "The History of the History of the Right (w/ Kim Phillips-Fein)," Know Your Enemy, Jan 18, 2024

Sources:

Kim Phillips-Fein, Country of Lords: Neo-Aristocrats, Social Darwinists, Tech Utopians, and the Long Fight against Equality in America (2026)

— Fear City: New York’s Fiscal Crisis and the Rise of Austerity Politics (2017)

— Invisible Hands: The Businessmen's Crusade Against the New Deal (2009)

Steven Hahn, Illiberal America: A History (2024)

Richard Hofstadter, The American Political Tradition: And the Men Who Made It (1948)

Louis Hartz, The Liberal Tradition in America: An Interpretation of American Political Thought Since the Revolution (1955)

...and don't forget to subscribe to Know Your Enemy on Patreon for access to all of our bonus episodes!

Listen to the rest of this premium episode by subscribing at patreon.com/knowyourenemy.

What is going on with the right? Why are they so mad at each other? What accounts for their apparent malaise? Why are they arguing about the price of burritos? Is anyone qualified to replace Ross Douthat at the NY Times? How is Reihan Salam's Manhattan Institute gearing up to combat Mayor Zohran Mamdani? Will it work? And why is Chris Rufo suddenly so worried about the far-right fever swamp, which he did so much to cultivate? 

Matt and Sam check in with their favorite enemies — and find them wanting.

This episode was edited and produced by the great Colin Wambsgans (Jesse is on vacation).

Sources:

Ezra Klein interview with Chris Rufo, New York Times, June 30, 2026

Rufo & Lomez, "Trump Won...Now the Online Right Is Falling Apart," BlazeTV, Jul 28, 2026

Eliza Shapiro & Nicholas Fandos, "Can This Man Stop the Mamdani Agenda? Reihan Salam Loves New York. He Loves the Free Market. And He’s Very Worried," New York Times, July 29, 2026

Sohrab Ahmari, "Trump Was the Never the One," UnHerd, Mar 19, 2026.

Natalie Allison & Isaac Arnsdorf, "Trump Privately Tells Donors to Back Vance While Publicly Keeping 2028 Open," Washington Post, Aug 6, 2026

Dan Adler, "Tucker Carlson Threw Down the Post-MAGA Gauntlet. Can He Actually Build a Movement?" Vanity Fair, Aug 6, 2026

Amos Barshad, "Tucker Carlson: 'I'll I Have Is the Power to Talk and Be Heard,’" Columbia Journalism Review, July 1, 2026

Brendan Rascius, "MTG and Tucker Carlson Announce New ‘Movement’ in Photo Packed with MAGA Renegades," The Independent, Aug 1, 2026

Russ Buettner, "Trump Crypto Took $100 Million From a Businessman With Red Flags," NYTimes, Aug 9, 2026

Christopher Hitchens & Christopher Caldwell, eds., Left Hooks, Right Crosses: A Decade of Political Writing (2002)

Reihan Salam & Ross Douthat, Grand New Party: How Republicans can Win the Working Class and Save The American Dream (2008)

This episode begins by noting the proximity of two of the most significant events of the twentieth century, one archaeological, the other political: the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947 and the founding of the modern State of Israel in 1948. What do they have to do with each other? A lot, it turns out, at least when it comes to archaeology's role in Israeli nationalism, from justifying their claim to "Judea and Samaria" to using the legal and bureaucratic aspects of protecting "heritage sites" as a way to seize territory to the draw for Christian Zionists of Israel's supposed stewardship of "the Holy Land." Throughout the conversation, we draw on our guest Jasper Nathaniel's years of reporting on these matters, and especially his heroic work documenting the brutality of Israeli settlers — and their enablers— in the West Bank.

Support Jasper's essential work by subscribing to Infinite Jaz.

Listen: Johnny Cash, The Holy Land (1968)

Sources:

Jasper Nathaniel, "In Ruins​: Archaeological Warfare in the West Bank," The Drift, Dec 16, 2024

— "Israel's Archaeological Apartheid: An Update," Dec 19, 2025

Rachel Poser, "Common Ground: The Politics of Archaeology in Jerusalem," Harper's, Sept 2019

Bezalel Smotrich, "Israel's Decisive Plan," 2017

James Genn, "'Grandpa, Look What We Found': Huckabee Family Uncovers Ancient Coins in West Bank Caves," The Jerusalem Post, Jan 6, 2026

Gary Rendsburg, "The Dead Sea Scrolls," Great Courses lecture series, July 2013

...and don't forget to subscribe to Know Your Enemy on Patreon for access to all of our bonus episodes!

This episode originally aired June 15, 2026 on Patreon — we're unlocking it for the rest of you. 

Author and Jewish Currents editor-at-large Peter Beinart returns to "Know Your Enemy" to discuss Tucker Carlson's newfound anti-Israel politics, their connection to his broader nationalist project, and how the left should think about right-wing anti-zionism.

Sources:

Peter Beinart, "What Tucker Carlson Means When He Talks About Israel," New York Times, April 28, 2026

— "Progressives Must Not Give Tucker Carlson a Pass," The Beinart Notebook, May 11, 2026

— Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza: A Reckoning, (2025)

Daniel G. Hummel, The Rise and Fall of Dispensationalism (2023)

"Tyler Oliveira: Exposing Somali Welfare Abuse, Republican Hypocrisy & the Group You Can’t Criticize," The Tucker Carlson Show, May 8, 2026

Will Alden, "The Many Equivocations of Curt Mills," Jewish Currents, April 16, 2026.

Listen to the rest of this premium episode by subscribing at patreon.com/knowyourenemy.

Matt and Sam are joined by their great friend Dorothy Fortenberry to discuss the debacle of Graham Platner: the Maine Democratic Senate nominee who was forced to drop out amid allegations of rape. We compare notes about our evolving estimations of Platner, his appeal, and his scandals; uncover the gendered fantasies involved in his rise and fall; and game out what lessons can be learned from this experience — for the left and for the Democratic Party.

Dorothy is an essayist, playwright, and TV writer/producer, including four seasons on “The Handmaid’s Tale.” In previous appearances, she's discussed #Resistance moms, art and climate change, and Trump's women-hating cabinet. A new show she worked on, “Nocturne,” is coming out on Apple TV in October.

This episode was edited and produced by Colin Wambsgans (Jesse is on vacation).

Further reading:

Jessica Piper & Adam Wren, "Woman who dated Graham Platner says he sexually assaulted her," Politico, July 6, 2026.

Katie Gluck & Lisa Lerer, "Several Women Who Dated Graham Platner Recall 'Unsettling' Behavior," NYTimes, June 4, 2026.

Lisa Lerer, Katie Gluck, & Michael Kruse, "‘A Slow-Rolling Disaster’: Inside the Implosion of the Platner Campaign," NYTimes, Jul 8, 2026.

Will Steakin & Chris Sommerfeldt, "‘Professional malpractice’: The Platner fallout engulfs the operatives who made him," Politico, July 7, 2026.

Dorothy Fortenberry, "Can’t Fight This Feeling Anymore," Commonweal, Nov 5, 2020.

— "One of Those Serious Women," Commonweal, Apr 29, 2019.

Moira Donegan, "Why was the pundit class so quick do defend Graham Platner," The Guardian, Jul 10, 2026.

Rebecca Traister, "What Women Saw in Graham Platner," New York Magazine, July 9, 2026.