Lever Time

Perhaps the key to understanding modern American politics isn't an academic think tank report, but instead rambunctious cult classic films, like Caddyshack and Animal House, that pit low-status underdogs against high-status bluebloods, preps, and jocks. In an essay for Politico, author Dan Brooks argues that movies like these hardwired Americans to root for the rude, rule-breaking outsiders over the buttoned-up establishment, and it’s shaping how people vote. 

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with Brooks to discuss how the “slobs versus snobs” movie trope can be a metaphor for American political parties, why candidates like Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner may be finding traction with voters, and whether Democrats can ever rewrite their role in this story. Read Brooks’ essay here.

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Hawaii just enacted a groundbreaking law challenging Citizens United, the Supreme Court decision that unleashed unlimited corporate spending in elections. It’s a major victory against big money’s grip on democracy — but powerful interests are already gearing up for a legal showdown.

On today’s Lever Time, David Sirota speaks with Hawaii state Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole, one of the law’s architects, about how the measure works, why Hawaii is leading the fight against Citizens United, and why reformers believe they finally have a path to victory.

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Everyone knows Jeffrey Epstein as a sex trafficker who died in 2019. But Epstein’s story goes further back than most people realize — and includes surprising links to the Iran-Contra scandal of the 1980s.

Today on Lever Time, producer Natalie Bettendorf speaks with Drop Site News journalist Murtaza Hussain about his investigation into Epstein's ties to Iran-Contra and how Epstein built his wealth and connections in the shadows of public power. 

Listen to “President Rambo,” our episode of Master Plan about the Iran-Contra scandal.

Read Murtaza’s full investigation on Drop Site News.


Check out Dylan Gottlieb’s book Yuppies.

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It’s primary season, and powerful political forces within the Democratic Party are stomping into local races, trying to pick winners and losers. Today on Lever Time, we’re diving into The Lever’s exclusive investigation that exposed billionaires and party operatives pulling strings behind the scenes. 

Then, David Sirota sits down with two Democratic candidates, Randy Villegas from California and Matt Dunlap from Maine, who are running in hotly contested races that will likely decide control of Congress — and who are now facing opposition from House Democrats’ big-money machine.

Click here to read Luke Goldstein and Katya Schwenk’s investigation into political action committees like Majority Democrats and The Bench.

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Despite recent claims from President Donald Trump that the war in Iran has “terminated,” hundreds of ships are still stranded in the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, and the ceasefire has never fully taken hold. Meanwhile, gas prices keep climbing, shortages are spreading, and economic uncertainty is growing. Is this really Trump’s “best plan ever?” 

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with Daniel Bessner and Derek Davison, hosts of the foreign policy and global affairs podcast American Prestige. They examine the deeper meaning and long-term consequences of Trump’s war in Iran — including the Republican Party’s internal divisions over U.S. foreign policy, the role of Israel and China in the conflict, whether high gas prices are the new normal, and why, despite everything, they’re hopeful about our future.

You can check out the American Prestige podcast here.

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