What does the dramatic collapse of talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump and J.D. Vance reveal about Trump's foreign policy, Vance's ideology, and the future trajectory of MAGA? Just asking questions.
James Pogue, who has written extensively about the American New Right and who predicted in 2022 that Vance would be "hugely influential in our politics in the coming years," joined the show to dissect the doomed televised negotiations between Zelenskyy and Trump, offer his insight about the vice president's aggressive interjection, and discuss why he thinks the rise of the online "dissident right" is poised to either fall apart or lead America into a "dark night of totalitarianism."
Sources referenced:
- Full meeting between President Trump, Vice President Vance, and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy in the Oval Office
- Government support to Ukraine by country, by the Kiel Institute
- Support to Ukraine: U.S. vs. Europe, by the Kiel Institute
- Ukraine support as a percentage of gross domestic product, by the Kiel Institute
- Estimated Ukraine-Russia casualties: 46,000 soldiers killed, 380,000 wounded, Zelenskyy tells NBC; 12,340 civilians killed, 27,836 wounded according to the United Nations; roughly 20,000 children deported to Russia, according to the Ukrainian "Children of War" portal; 172,000 Russian soldiers killed, 611,000 wounded, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies
- "Inside the New Right, Where Peter Thiel Is Placing His Biggest Bets," by James Pogue
- Defence Expenditure of NATO Countries (2014-2024)
Chapters
- 00:00:00 Intro
- 00:00:25 Contrasting Views on the Ukraine Conflict
- 00:05:53 The Burden of Support: Financial and Human Costs
- 00:14:01 Diplomacy vs. Continued Conflict: A Missed Opportunity?
- 00:21:17 Reassessing NATO's Role and MAGA's Shifting Foreign Policy
- 00:31:48 Regional Conflicts: Middle East and the Intervention Debate
- 00:36:18 The Trump-Zelensky Meeting and J.D. Vance's Intervention
- 00:48:02 Decoding J.D. Vance: Ambition and Worldview
- 00:52:11 The Rise of the New Right and its Influence
- 01:01:26 Navigating the "Weirdness" of MAGA: Appeal and Pitfalls
- 01:18:13 The Erosion of Norms and the Future of American Governance
- Producer: John Osterhoudt
The post James Pogue: What Ukraine Reveals About MAGA appeared first on Reason.com.
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