Lever Time

Latest Episodes:

Autoworkers Are Ready To Strike Aug 31, 2023

Show notes

On this week’s episode of Lever Time, producer Frank Cappello speaks with Labor Notes staff writer Luis Feliz Leon about why a potential autoworkers strike could be transformational for younger union members struggling under depressed wages and limited benefits.

Luis has been reporting on the ground about the ongoing contract negotiations between the United Auto Workers union and the “Big Three” automakers — Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis (formerly known as Chrysler). Last Friday, 150,000 autoworkers voted overwhelmingly to strike if a deal isn’t reached by the time their current contract expires on September 14. Under the new leadership of reformist president Shawn Fain, the union is ready to take action if their bold demands aren’t met.

In today’s interview, Frank and Luis break down everything you need to know about the ongoing negotiations. Luis offers his perspective on the union’s current strategy for exacting the best possible deal, and what a potential strike would mean for workers and the auto industry. He also breaks down how the union’s former leadership gave away major concessions during the Great Recession, and why a new union dynamic is long overdue.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

Links:

Fired-Up Auto Workers Are Ready to Battle the Big 3 (Labor Notes, 2023)
UAW Reformers Just Won Control of the Union. They Want to Turn It Into A Fighting Union. (Jacobin, 2023)
Will The Clean Energy Auto Economy Be Built On Factory Floors Riddled With Toxic Chemicals And Safety Hazards? (In These Times, 2023)

BONUS: On Monday’s bonus episode of Lever Time Premium, exclusively for The Lever’s supporting subscribers, we’ll be sharing David Sirota’s interview with economist Isabella Weber about monetary policy, inflation, and how we can use strategic price controls to rein in corporate profiteering.

If you’d like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.

If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar

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

The Deadliest Wildfire In 100 Years Aug 24, 2023

Show notes

On this week’s episode of Lever Time, Lever news editor Lucy Dean Stockton speaks with former Hawaii state representative and national director of the Green New Deal Network Kaniela Ing about the recent wildfires in Maui.

On August 8th, a wildfire swept through the historic city of Lahaina, reducing almost every building to ash and killing more than 100 people. Scores of Lahaina residents have lost their homes, and more than 800 people are still missing as emergency responders address the crisis. As the community reels from the tragedy, people are examining the complicated roles that colonialism, climate change, and private equity played in the disaster.

In today’s interview, Lucy speaks with Kaniela, a seventh-generation indigenous Hawaiian, about current conditions in Maui, how the island’s underserviced electrical infrastructure contributed to the disaster, and how the Lahaina community is looking to rebuild. They also discuss Maui County’s landmark climate lawsuit against Big Oil, which alleges that oil companies knowingly made the climate crisis worse by selling and burning fossil fuels.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

Links:

BONUS: On Monday's bonus episode of Lever Time Premium, exclusively for The Lever’s supporting subscribers, we’ll be sharing our interview with historian Harvey Kaye and progressive activist Alan Minsky about the unfinished business of FDR’s Economic Bill of Rights.

If you'd like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.

If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar

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

Montana’s Monumental Climate Win Aug 17, 2023

Show notes

On this week’s episode of Lever Time, Julia Rock and Frank Cappello speak with environmental lawyer Julia Olson to discuss a recent historic win for young climate activists who she represents in Montana.

This past Monday, a judge in Montana ruled that young people are entitled to a “clean and healthful” environment. The case, known as Held v. Montana, included 16 plaintiffs ages 5 to 22, who testified that the state government’s pro-fossil fuel policies were unconstitutional. Held v. Montana was the first of several youth-led U.S. climate lawsuits to make it to trial.

Olson is the executive director and lead counsel for Our Children’s Trust, a nonprofit public interest law firm that represents plaintiffs in a number of these youth-led state climate cases as well as in a federal lawsuit, Juliana v. United States. Julia and Frank spoke with Julia Olson about this historic win, how the case’s legal strategy can be applied across the country, and why the Biden administration is attempting to prevent other youth-led climate lawsuits from going to trial.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

Links:

Our Children’s Trust
‘Gamechanger’: Judge Rules In Favor Of Young Activists In US Climate Trial (The Guardian, 2023)
Biden DOJ: “No Constitutional Right To A Stable Climate” (The Lever, 2023)

If you'd like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.

If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar

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

How PragerU’s Propaganda Machine Infiltrated Florida’s Schools Aug 10, 2023

Show notes

On this week’s Lever Time, Audithosts and friends of the show Josh Olson and Dave Anthony are joined by journalist and media expert John Knefel to discuss how the conservative propaganda operation PragerU landed a major new partnership with Florida’s public schools.

PragerU produces short-form video content on politics, social issues, and history. The media organization’s stated goal is to “promote American values through the creative use of educational videos” and “[offer] a free alternative to the dominant left-wing ideology in culture, media, and education.”

In 2021 PragerU launched PragerU Kids, focused on “educational content for children.” Now PragerU has raised the stakes, as it was recently announced that PragerU Kids content has been approved as supplemental teaching material in Florida public schools — even though PragerU is not an accredited educational institution. Prager isn’t planning to stop there: They recently published an online petition to get their content into schools across the country.

Hosts Josh and Dave, who examined the rise of PragerU in the latest season of The Audit, sit down with John to discuss PragerU’s official entry into the American education system. They break down how PragerU managed to get approved in Florida, how their work plays into the larger conservative movement to capture public education and siphon taxpayer money to fund charter schools, and what parents can do to stop PragerU from indoctrinating children.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

Links:

The lessons Florida public school students will learn from PragerU Kids (Media Matters, 2023)
Florida’s conservative PragerU teaching texts labeled ‘indoctrination’ (Tampa Bay Times, 2023)
What It Means That Florida Will Allow Conservative PragerU Content in Schools (Time, 2023)

BONUS: On Monday's bonus episode of Lever Time Premium, exclusively for The Lever’s supporting subscribers, we published our recent live chat with Yale law professor Samuel Moyn where we examined whether or not Congress has the authority to regulate the Supreme Court and the troubling legacy of Chief Justice John Roberts.

If you'd like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.

If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar

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

Heat Is The Deadliest Type Of Weather Aug 03, 2023

Show notes

On this week’s episode of Lever Time, David Sirota is joined by Jeff Goodell, author of the new book The Heat Will Kill You First: Life and Death on a Scorched Planet, to discuss recent deadly heat waves and how they’re a prelude to dangers to come.

This past July was the hottest single month in recorded history. In the United States, temperatures rose above 120 degrees in several regions of the country, and ocean temperatures in parts of Florida reached 101 degrees, potentially shattering the world record for ocean heat.

It’s not just the temperature that’s rising. Over the past few months, there has also been an increase in heat-related deaths and hospitalizations, including for life-threatening burns people have suffered from falling onto scorching concrete.

Heat is the deadliest type of weather, each year killing on average more than twice as many people as tornadoes and hurricanes combined. Of course, the groups that most acutely suffer from extreme heat events tend to be the most vulnerable, like unhoused people, the elderly, and those with pre-existing medical conditions.

To examine these problems, Sirota sits down with Goodell, a climate journalist and bestselling author. Together they break down which regions of the country will experience the most severe heat in the future, the limitations of air conditioning as a potential solution, our new geologic era, and how our concept of summer is set to drastically change from fun to survival.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

Links:

The Heat Will Kill You First: Life and Death on a Scorched Planet (Hachette Books, 2023)
The Anthropocene began in 1950s, scientists say (NPR, 2023)

BONUS: This past Monday’s bonus episode of Lever Time Premium, exclusively for The Lever’s supporting subscribers, featured David’s interview with political economist and economic geographer Brett Christophers, author of the new book Our Lives In Their Portfolios: Why Asset Managers Own The World.

If you’d like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.

If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar

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

The Great Bank Robbery Of 2023 Jul 27, 2023

Show notes

On today’s Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with law professor and policy advocate Robert Hockett and former FDIC attorney Todd Phillips, to explain “The Great Bank Robbery of 2023” — a financial grift that very well could be impacting you. The three explore how this complicated bank swindle has become so prevalent, what federal regulators could do to stop it, and how consumers like you can protect yourself from the scam.

The grift goes like this: When you deposit your money at a bank, they should pay you interest for your money. That’s because they make money off of it: Banks lend out your deposits for mortgages and small business loans, or deposit money with the Federal Reserve — all of which generate a much higher interest rate return for the banks. The difference is profit.

Until recently, banks would pass along increased interest on these efforts to its customers. But over the last two years, as the Federal Reserve has hiked interest rates to combat inflation, banks haven’t been sharing the wealth.

Today, the gap between the profit banks generate by lending out those deposits and what they pay their customers is the largest it’s ever been: On average, banks are paying its depositors 0.4% interest, while reaping anywhere from 5 to 7 percent interest via lending. This has resulted in one of the largest upward wealth transfers in the modern economy, from customers to bank executives.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

Links:

The Great Bank Robbery of 2023 (The Lever, 2023)
BofA profit surges on interest income, surprise investment banking gain (Reuters, 2023)
TreasuryDirect.gov

BONUS: Monday's bonus episode of Lever Time Premium, exclusively for The Lever’s supporting subscribers, featured our interview with climate scientist Dr. Andrew Pershing about “attribution science” — a new technique that can pinpoint how manmade climate change influences extreme weather events.

If you'd like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.

If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar

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

The Do-Or-Die Stakes Of The Hollywood Strikes Jul 20, 2023

Show notes

On this week’s Lever Time, David Sirota is joined by The Bear writer and Writers Guild of America (WGA) union member Alex O’Keefe to discuss the stakes of the current Hollywood strike. The WGA has been on strike since early May after failing to secure a contract with the country’s major film and television producers. This past week, SAG-AFTRA, the union representing film and TV actors, joined the strike after failing to secure their own contract, putting Hollywood on standstill for the first time since 1960.

Over the last decade, the economy of Hollywood has been completely upended by the advent of streaming services like Netflix, as well as the consolidation of major entertainment companies such as the merger of Warner Bros. and Discovery. This has led to a “content arms race” as companies have competed to amass their own libraries of movies and TV shows. The result has been a shift to faster and cheaper film productions, which have adversely affected almost all of Hollywood’s workers.

In the face of such rapid changes, David speaks with Alex about what the WGA and SAG-AFTRA are demanding from the studios. This includes increased pay for shorter production schedules, residual payments for content on streaming platforms, and protections against AI programs taking over their jobs. The two discuss what’s at stake if workers’ demands aren’t met, and whether or not the unions are being “unrealistic,” as Disney CEO Bob Iger recently put it.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

Links:

LEVER WEEKLY: What Workers Are Up Against (The Lever, 2023)
SAG actors', writers' strikes bring revolution to Hollywood (LA Times, 2023)
Hollywood Studios’ WGA Strike Endgame Is To Let Writers Go Broke Before Resuming Talks In Fall (Deadline, 2023)

If you'd like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.

If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar

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

Deconstructed Podcast: An Inflation Solution That Doesn’t Screw Workers Jul 18, 2023

Show notes

Today, we’re sharing an episode of the podcast Deconstructed from our friends over at The Intercept, an award-winning investigative news organization.

Centrist and right-wing economists continue to advocate for laying off workers and engineering a recession to address inflation. But why not set price controls instead? This week on Deconstructed, host Ryan Grim is joined by James K. Galbraith, a professor of government and business relations at the University of Texas at Austin. Galbraith has an extensive history of working in government, including as executive director of the Joint Economic Committee of the U.S. Congress and an economist for the House Banking Committee.

Galbraith and Grim discuss the implementation of price controls by the U.S. government and how such measures bring down prices. They also explore how the Biden administration could expand its price control efforts, and how Galbraith’s father — economist and politician John Kenneth Galbraith — was instrumental in setting price controls during World War II.

If you like Lever Time with David Sirota, be sure to check out Deconstructed on all podcast platforms and subscribe.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

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

The Stealth Supreme Court Rulings No One Is Talking About Jul 13, 2023

Show notes

On this week’s episode of Lever Time, David Sirota is joined by law professor Stephen Vladeck, author of the new book, The Shadow Docket: How the Supreme Court Uses Stealth Rulings to Amass Power and Undermine the Republic.

The Supreme Court has received a lot of attention in the last several years for its extreme rulings on matters such as abortion rights, environmental regulations, and affirmative action. But there’s another very important court procedure that doesn’t receive nearly as much attention: the aptly named “shadow docket.”

These are the cases that occur outside of the court’s regular docket and usually involve urgent matters, such as requests for emergency stays, injunctions, and other types of temporary relief. These cases are often decided through brief orders, meaning without oral arguments, full written opinions, or even disclosing how the justices voted. But in recent years, the court has increasingly used the shadow docket to effectively leapfrog over the appeals court system on major decisions, sometimes with devastating effects.

David and Stephen dive deep into the shadow docket’s history, how it continues to undermine the Supreme Court’s credibility, and how most of these decisions are not based on any kind of legal rationale or precedent.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

Links:

The Shadow Docket: How the Supreme Court Uses Stealth Rulings to Amass Power and Undermine the Republic (Hachette Book Group, 2023)
Supreme Court “Shadow Docket” Under Review by U.S. House of Representatives (American Bar Association, 2021)

BONUS: This past Monday’s bonus episode of Lever Time Premium, exclusively for The Lever’s supporting subscribers, featured David’s interview with media critic Norman Solomon about his new book, War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine.

If you’d like access to Lever Time Premium, which includes extended interviews and bonus content, head over to LeverNews.com to become a supporting subscriber.

If you’d like to leave a tip for The Lever, click the following link. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. levernews.com/tipjar

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

Deconstructed Podcast: Inside Joe Manchin's Rise, Alliances, and Potential Presidential Ambitions Jul 06, 2023

Show notes

Today, we’re sharing an episode of the podcast Deconstructed from our friends over at The Intercept, an award-winning investigative news organization.

In this episode, Daniel Boguslaw, a politics reporter for The Intercept, interviews Senator Joe Manchin’s (D-W.Va.) former political advisor Scott Sears. Boguslaw tells the story of Manchin’s rise in West Virginia politics, his strategic alliance with powerful business interests, and explains how the Senator ended up with such power over the Democratic legislative agenda.

In recent months, Manchin has been noncommittal when asked about a presidential run. Meanwhile, No Labels, a centrist political organization funded by dark money donors, is looking to run a split ticket featuring one Republican and one Democrat — and Manchin is considered one of the likely candidates. Sears helped Manchin secure political wins across the state before switching parties and throwing his support behind Donald Trump.

If you like Lever Time with David Sirota, be sure to check out Deconstructed on all podcast platforms and subscribe.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

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

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected