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PODCAST

Mallen Baker: Faultlines

"Dangerously reasonable" analysis on politics, science, and particularly the bit where they bump into each other. I aim to give an independent, fact-focused, non-ideological take on the issues that matter.

society & culture documentary

All Episodes

00:16:39

Flirting with Civil War: Trump’s Dangerous New Rhetoric

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/24

The mainstream media are downplaying Trump and Tulsi Gabbard's rhetoric on former President Obama and 'treason' over Russian influence on the 2016 election. But in the other news bubble, the MAGA crowd are absolutely convinced that Obama was criminal, they are demanding his arrest, and we seem a step closer to the executive pursuing political opponents and jailing them on trumped-up charges. Once that line is crossed, politics becomes a much more existential struggle, and an extremely dangerous line

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00:14:02

The Question Trump's DOJ Will Be Asking Ghislaine...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/23

Trump still can't get rid of the Epstein files obsession. Even though he is doing his best to distract the attention of his base with empty promises that former President Obama could be prosecuted for 'treason'. So now his Department of Justice has announced that it will carry out an interview with Epstein's partner Ghislaine Maxwell. And, in considering just what they might be seeking to achieve by that move, one obviously Trumpian answer springs into view. Is THIS Trump's secret plan to get out of

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00:14:06

Is Zelensky Going Too Far? Ukraine’s Democratic Dilemma

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/22

Zelensky's war-torn Ukraine is being accused by many, including the European Union, of authoritarian slide. This has come to a head recently with the vote to remove independence from key anti-corruption watchdogs, and to pursue prosecutions against a number of well known anti-corruption activists. But Ukraine is in the middle of an existential war, the like of which no democracy has endured since World War 2. Just how do we EXPECT that a modern democracy can fight such a war? Let's discuss.

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00:12:35

Trump’s DOJ Targets Obama – What Comes Next Is Dangerous

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/21

It was always predicted that Trump 2.0 would include a certain amount of payback - and that was particularly the case when he brought in unqualified loyalists to take up key positions in the intelligence services, the DOJ, and the FBI. Well, now it seems that the Trump Administration is looking to go after former President Obama, with an incoherent charge that he had the intelligence services make up reports on Russian election interference in order to undermine Trump's first term. This is where

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00:12:30

How Much Trouble Is Trump REALLY In?

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/19

We had gotten used to the idea that nothing stuck to Donald Trump. Previous politicians could be brought down by the slightest indiscretion, or fumble in the campaign. But Trump spoke offensively, had been shown to have behaved outrageously, and none of it stuck to him in the slightest. And none of it dented his confidence. But now he's on the back foot, playing serious defence. This time it's different, and it's worth looking at why that is. So let's discuss.

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00:09:31

Did Trump Get Stephen Colbert's Show Cancelled?

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/18

According to CBS, it was a purely financial decision. But then, that was always going to be the line because if it was actually what everybody thinks it looks like, it would hardly admit it. Just like they didn't admit that the $16 million court settlement to Trump was a bribe, and yet Trump himself tacitly acknowledged exactly that during one of his ramblings. So was it Trump that got one of his most effective critics silenced? Is it a one-off, or is he going to be targeting the others next. And

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00:10:21

Trump Just Admitted He’s Rigging the Next Election

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/17

Remember all that stuff about how Trump was sure the only way he could lose an election would be if there was fraud? Well, it seems he's coming round to rigging the elections - so long as it's done by his side. It's not that gerrymandering is new - but the idea that a US president would be co-ordinating the practice by his side across the country, keeping count of the extra House seats that might be won - that is a different level altogether. Let's discuss.

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00:12:32

How Trump Is Wrecking The MAGA Succession

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/16

When President Trump's second term started, the notable thing was just how far-reaching his actions were, just how norm-breaking and transgressive they were, and how little his supporters seemed to care. Suddenly, the story has changed. Now there have been three occasions where his MAGA base was divided because Trump did things that run counter to the emerging orthodoxy. What had seemed previously to be a pure cult of personality has turned into something with a much more ideological wing. And that

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00:17:17

Surviving Trump's Age Of Stupid

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/15

Trump came to power on the back of multiple disinformation campaigns and conspiracy theories. While there's some satisfying karma to see his administration being bitten back by one such conspiracy that MAGA promoted, the truth is that we now have a government that disparages expertise of all types, insists on dealing with other countries in profound ignorance of their outlook and position, and continues to weaponise disinformation. Is there any way back from this? Let's discuss.

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00:10:10

Trump’s ‘Big Threat’ To Putin – A 50 Day Deadline

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/14

President Trump had trailed a 'big announcement' on Ukraine and Russia coming today - and we even had Mark Rutte, the head of NATO in the White House for the occasion. And ... well, while it wasn't nothing, there are good reasons to think that Trump's threat of secondary tariffs (unspecified, but set at 100%) with a 50 day deadline - may not get the job done. But at least it means that America won't be actively undermining the defence of Ukraine any more, and that actually matters. So that's

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00:13:57

Trump Broke the World Order — He Won't Like What...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/13

Arguably, the world has been going through the five stages of grief since Trump came back to the Presidency six months ago. And with the latest actions to cut right across difficult negotiations to hand out more egregious tariff rates, it seems likely we've finally achieved at the final stage - acceptance. But not acceptance of Trump's terms. Not acceptance of Trump's view of the world order. More acceptance that now all the other countries have to rebuild the trade and security system specifically

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00:10:50

Will America Really Defend Taiwan?

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/12

Yesterday, it emerged that the Trump team has been asking its (former) allies Japan and Australia a very strange question - demanding clarity from them on a subject for which the US has a policy not to provide any such clarity. It is, of course, the question of what would they do should China invade Taiwan. But is it really asking? Or is it creating the impression of preparation as part of an operation to dissuade Xi Jinping from even considering doing such a thing ... at least until President Trump

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00:10:42

Trump's Word Means Nothing – Ask Canada and Vietnam

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/11

Canada thought it was making good progress in negotiations with the Trump team - then he announced even higher tariffs against it. Vietnam thought it had agreed a deal with a much lower tariff figure, but then Trump simply announced a higher one. The first countries through the gate are finding - and the rest of the world is noting - that nothing Trump or his team say can be trusted, that any deal can simply be changed at a whim, and this is not a serious process. So what does the world do about it

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00:11:37

Trump Uses Tariffs To Topple Brazil's Democracy

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/10

The US President just announced a massive 50% tariff on Brazil. Nothing to do with the usual excuses - trade deficits - the US has a trade surplus with Brazil. No, instead he is punishing the country for the fact that it is prosecuting former strong man authoritarian president Bolsonaro - one of the leaders Trump saw as 'one of us'. Why is it prosecuting him? Well, he denied the election result that he lost in 2022, and tried to instigate a coup. No idea why Trump might relate to such deeds. But

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00:11:46

Is Trump Finally Turning On Putin?

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/09

Trump has muttered, he has grumbled, he has occasionally threatened, but never has there been the slightest sign that he would actually take action of any sort against Vladimir Putin's Russia over its war against Ukraine. But now it suddenly seems as though that might be about to change. Not only did Trump ensure the weapons flow to Ukraine restarted, but he has strongly hinted his interest in endorsing the radical sanctions bill that has been drawn up for just this moment in Congress. If passed, it

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00:14:16

“We Don’t Want an Emperor” — World Slams Trump Tariff...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/08

Another day, another round of tariff dramas. Trump revealed the new tariff rates he was 'granting' to various countries via letter, along with a new deadline for those countries to come to a deal with him before the rates come into force. It's just another way of seeking to bully the world into agreeing to give one-sided deals to the most powerful country in the world, and to string out the process and the uncertainty, making the whole thing about one man. But while countries are jumping through

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00:16:21

The Real Reason the US and UK Political Systems Are...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/06

So Elon Musk is launching a new political party in the US. And former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is doing something similar in the UK, albeit with a very different political bent. And you're adding those to the existing UK 'upstart' party Reform UK, which is already doing extremely well in the polls. But wait ... aren't both of these countries famously and rigidly two party systems? Aren't third parties always doomed to obscurity, by dint of the brutal logic of the electoral system? Yes, that's the

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00:10:39

China Just Stunned Europe and Ukraine - ‘We Won’t Let...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/05

China has had a public line on Ukraine for the last three years - studied neutrality that didn't entirely fool anybody. Well, yesterday it blew that up with a frank admission to a top level delegation from the EU that left them astonished. Not for the reality of it, but for the fact that they would even admit it. Because they said yes - China will not allow Russia to be beaten in the Ukraine war. And the reason why not? Mostly, it has to do with Donald Trump. Let's discuss.

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00:14:59

How Free Speech Is Dying In Trump's America

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/04

For an administration that talks a lot about free speech, President Trump sure seems to sue a lot of news media companies for reporting on things he wishes they wouldn't. He also is suing a lot of social media companies. To all appearances, these are about chilling free speech, while also extorting significant sums of money for Trump's 'presidential library'. It's not even subtle, but we're getting to the stage now where it's starting to become normalised and accepted as a cost of doing business

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00:11:11

Trump Blindsides Allies, Stops Ukraine Weapons — Then...

Mallen Baker: Faultlines ·

2025/07/03

It came out of the blue, with all the NATO allies of Ukraine having thought they'd done a great job of keeping Trump on side at last week's NATO summit. Suddenly, they were learning that Trump had paused weapons already agreed to be sent to Ukraine. Not only that, but Trump was suddenly taking a direct call with Vladimir Putin to discuss all the possibilities of how they could work together. This in contrast with how he is ratcheting up the pressure on China, and increasingly demanding of the same

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540 results

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