Some of the conspiracy theories now gripping American politics contend that Joe Biden was executed and replaced by a clone and that John F. Kennedy, Jr., faked his death and will one day return to slay Trump’s enemies. But who is susceptible to them, and what makes them so politically potent?

Investigating the historical roots of our peculiar brand of political paranoia, Arthur Goldwag joins us for a special online-only program to make sense of the senseless and, in so doing, uncover three uncomfortable truths: that it is older than Trumpism and will outlast it; that theocratic authoritarianism is as hardwired in our American heritage as the principles of the Enlightenment; and that the fear that our system is “rigged” is not altogether unfounded. He explored these matters in his surprising and critical examination of America’s paranoid style in his book The Politics of Fear, which sheds new light on the age-old question: What exactly are we so afraid of?

Don’t miss this exploration of the bizarre and dangerous conspiracies that have roiled America over the past decade and captured the minds of so many Americans.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices