Know Your Enemy How Charles Murray (Almost) Predicted the Trump Era
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Oct 15, 2025 Dive into the complexities of Charles Murray's 'Coming Apart,' which explores the divide between America's cognitive elite and the working class. The hosts examine Murray's influences and career trajectory, highlighting how right-wing funding shaped his ideas. They take a quiz to reveal their cultural bubbles and critique Murray's moralistic prescriptions. Key discussions focus on the impact of socioeconomic changes that Trump capitalized on and the dangers of Murray's views on race and IQ. Ultimately, they advocate for democratic solutions to inequality.
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Cognitive Sorting Created New Class Divide
- Charles Murray argues a new cognitive elite and lower class among white Americans have diverged culturally and socially since 1960.
- He connects cognitive sorting with isolated elite communities and the erosion of common civic culture.
Teenage Cross-Burning Story Recounted
- Jason DeParle recounts Murray's teenage prank of burning a cross with friends, which Murray later called "incredibly dumb."
- The hosts use the story to question Murray's judgment and moral seriousness.
Right-Wing Funding Built Murray's Platform
- Murray's career shows how conservative funding networks create and elevate intellectuals into policy influence.
- Losing Ground converted controversial ideas into mainstream policy within a decade via think tanks and grants.
