Why the Democratic Party Can't Get Out of Its Own Way

So... Is MAGA Actually Fascism?

Is Trump a fascist? Nick's guest says: wrong question. Dr. Eric Grube is a historian at Boston College who specializes in fascism, nationalism, and the far-right movements of interwar Europe — and he's back on the show six months after his last appearance to update his verdict. His answer has shifted: Trump isn't a fascist in the historical sense so much as a selfish egomaniac being driven by the Heritage Foundation's policy machine. But here's what Eric wants you to take away — fascism was never easy to categorize in the moment either. The bigger problem with forcing the label is that half the room shuts down the second you use it. So what do we actually call this? And does the name even matter if the machinery is already running?

Trump Threatens to Blow Up Oman, Paxton Wins Texas, and UFC at the White House

Trump threatened to "blow up" Oman over the Strait of Hormuz while a tentative Iran deal sits unsigned. Ken Paxton crushed John Cornyn in Texas — the first GOP senator ever primaried out — and immediately started attacking his Democratic opponent's testosterone levels. Federal courts blocked two Republican gerrymanders in Alabama and South Carolina, taking a chunk out of the GOP's redistricting math. Plus: government-wide NDAs for federal workers, the DOJ unmasking ICE critics on Reddit, and Trump wants his face on a $250 bill and the National Mall's horses covered in gold. Nick and Rick cover the week.

Why the Democratic Party Can't Get Out of Its Own Way

Last week the Democratic Party released its official autopsy of the 2024 election. 192 pages. No mention of Gaza. No mention of Biden's age. No mention of the debate. Not once. Nick breaks down what the document actually reveals — not about 2024, but about a Democratic establishment that preaches getting money out of politics while backing Cuomo over Mamdani, that cried about losing young men and then tried to cancel the one media figure reaching millions of them, and that tried to do exactly what MAGA Inc. does — pick winners, freeze out insurgents, enforce conformity — and lost to its own voters every time. Cassidy is gone. Massie is gone. Cornyn is gone today. Trump's machine works because it's aligned with its base. The Democratic establishment keeps failing for the same reason: it isn't.

Trump's $1.8B Slush Fund, Massie Ousted, Tulsi Resigns, and the DNC's 2024 Autopsy Disaster

Nick and Rick break down a chaotic week in American politics. They open on Trump's revenge tour: Trump-endorsed Ed Gallrein ousted Thomas Massie in the most expensive House primary in history ($32 million spent), Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth campaigned in-district against Massie in apparent violation of the Hatch Act, and Trump endorsed Ken Paxton over John Cornyn in the Texas Senate runoff. Then to the GOP response to Trump's $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund: Mitch McConnell called it "utterly stupid, morally wrong," Tillis called it "beyond the pale," Capitol Police officers sued to block it, and Senate Republicans went home for Memorial Day without passing the ICE funding bill — meaning Trump's own slush fund killed his own immigration agenda. Plus DNI Tulsi Gabbard resigned after contradicting Trump on Iran in sworn testimony — Reuters reported the White House forced her out hours after the official "husband's cancer" announcement. And the DNC autopsy disaster: Chair Ken Martin finally released the 2024 report after months of pressure, then publicly repudiated it in the same statement, fired the author the same day, and revealed the report didn't interview Biden, Harris, Walz, or most top aides — all while the RNC sits on $124 million in cash and the DNC is $17 million in debt. Also covered: Trump and Rubio raised the specter of military intervention in Cuba a day after charging 94-year-old Raúl Castro, and the Treasury subpoenaed Hasan Piker, CodePink's Medea Benjamin, and Ilhan Omar's daughter over their March Cuba trip; USCIS announced foreigners must now leave the US to apply for green cards, reversing 50+ years of policy; Trump claimed a Strait of Hormuz deal is "largely negotiated"; and Mayor Mamdani launched a Twitch show the same week the most prominent socialist on Twitch got federally subpoenaed. We close with Trump skipping Don Jr.'s wedding to Bettina Anderson at Mar-a-Lago, his DC triumphal arch design getting approved, and the AI executive order signing getting postponed because Trump "didn't like certain aspects" — days after his stock disclosure showed heavy AI-adjacent buys.

Trump's $1.8 Billion Slush Fund, Explained

Trump sued his own government for $10 billion, was about to lose in court, and settled with himself — walking away with a $1.8 billion taxpayer-funded fund he controls, a board he can fire, zero court oversight, and his personal IRS audit liability quietly erased on the side. Nick breaks down exactly what the Anti-Weaponization Fund is, who gets the money, who's running it, and why calling it a slush fund isn't a political attack — it's just reading the definition.