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Erwin Chemerinsky on the Trump Indictment, Plus Katha Pollitt on Barbie

On this episode of Start Making Sense, the prosecution strategy against Trump, and the reasons for the success of this year's biggest blockbuster.

Jon Wiener

August 10, 2023

A demonstrator stands outside the Barrett Prettyman Courthouse in Washington, D.C., on August 1, 2023, the day of former president Donald Trump’s indictment related to his efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election.(Stefani Reynolds / AFP via Getty Images)

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Erwin Chemerinsky on The Trump Indictment, plus Katha Pollitt on “Barbie” | Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

Should Trump have been charged with incitement of insurrection, or at least violence? What’s the line between free speech and incitement? If Trump sincerely believed he’d won the election, can he still be prosecuted for conspiracy? Erwin Chemerinsky explains – he’s dean of the law school at UC Berkeley.

Also: What’s bad about Barbie the doll, and what’s good about “Barbie” the movie—Katha Pollitt comments.

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Should Trump have been charged with incitement of insurrection, or at least violence? What’s the line between free speech and incitement? If Trump sincerely believed he’d won the election, can he still be prosecuted for conspiracy? On this episode of the Start Making Sense podcast, the dean of UC Berkeley’s school of law, Erwin Chemerinsky joins to discuss.

Also on this episode: What’s bad about Barbie the doll, and what’s good about Barbie the movie? Nation correspondent Katha Pollitt comments.

The Nation Podcasts

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.

Elon Musk’s First Political Contributions of 2025; plus The History of Culture Wars | Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

The first big election of 2025 will be in Wisconsin, which elects a new Supreme Court Justice on April 1. Elon Musk is spending hundreds of millions in that race. That’s both a threat, and an opportunity for Democrats. On this episode of Start Making Sense, John Nichols will comment.

Also: How did we end up with Trump back in the White House? We got here in part because Republicans built a movement over several decades centered on what are called “the culture wars.” But there’s a long history behind the culture wars, going back at least a century to the Scopes Trial, in 1925, about teaching evolution. It’s still an issue today. Adam Hochschild is on the show to explain.

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Jon WienerTwitterJon Wiener is a contributing editor of The Nation and co-author (with Mike Davis) of Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties.


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