PODCAST

The Lonely Liberal

Nick Zenkin

Hosted by Nick Zenkin, a podcast about the stress of American politics.

society & culture politics

All Episodes

27:46

Iran Stalemate, Orbán Falls, and Swalwell Implodes

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/04/12

Rick's out sick, so Nick is flying solo with a quick-hit roundup of the biggest stories of the week. Six weeks into the Iran war, Trump threatened to bomb power plants on Easter Sunday, Vance flew to Islamabad for peace talks and came home empty-handed, Israel killed 300+ in Lebanon in a single day, and the Pope told everyone to knock it off. Then Vance hopped over to Hungary to campaign for Trump's favorite authoritarian — and voters threw Orbán out anyway. Plus: Melania held a press conference

18:19

Did America Just Lose the Iran War?

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/04/08

Trump threatened to destroy an entire civilization. Iran held firm. Two hours before his own deadline, Trump blinked — and called it a victory. This week, Nick breaks down what actually happened with the Iran ceasefire: what's in the deal, how it compares to what Iran was offering the day before the war started, and why the country that pushed America into this war just bombed Beirut hours after the ceasefire was announced. Plus: why the only people who stopped a potential genocide weren't in

96:03

Bondi Fired, U.S. Jets Shot Down, Trump’s Easter...

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/04/06

Trump had one of the most chaotic weeks of his presidency — and that's saying something. He gave his first primetime address on the Iran war 33 days in, claiming total air dominance over a country that then shot down two of our jets within 48 hours. He fired his Attorney General for not being ruthless enough. He told a room full of Saudi investors that MBS better "be nice to him." And he dropped an f-bomb on Easter Sunday while threatening to bomb a country back to the stone ages. Oh, and NASA

18:32

How the U.S. Is Strangling Cuba

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/04/02

Cuba's power grid has collapsed. Hospitals are postponing surgeries. The government is telling people to cook with wood. And the United States is the reason.In this episode, Nick breaks down how Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign has effectively blockaded Cuba — cutting off its oil supply, intercepting tankers, and threatening any country that tries to help. It's the same playbook used on Venezuela, now applied 90 miles from Florida. And it's working, in the worst possible way. Plus: why Trump's

102:01

No Kings Protests, Iran Escalates, and TSA

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/03/29

The Iran war hits one month — and the numbers don't add up. Trump says the U.S. is "way ahead of schedule," but his own intelligence community says only a third of Iran's missiles have been destroyed. Fifteen Americans are dead, 300+ wounded, oil is at $112 a barrel, and the Strait of Hormuz is still closed. Meanwhile, Bannon says out loud that ICE at airports is a "test run" for the 2026 midterms, the DOJ is sharing voter data with DHS, and Trump's signature is going on the dollar bill for the

17:51

When Did Starting a War Last Actually Work?

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/03/25

Germany. Japan. Vietnam. Afghanistan. Iraq. Russia. Gaza. The country that starts a major war almost never wins it — and the pattern is so consistent it's basically a law of modern warfare. In this episode, Nick walks through the historical record, breaks down why aggressors keep failing, and then takes on the counterarguments head-on. What about Venezuela? What about Crimea? What about Gulf War 1? Spoiler: those examples don't hold up the way you think they do. And with Trump already eyeing Cuba as

94:07

Week of March 23rd: $200B Iran War Bill, Pearl...

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/03/22

It's week four of the Iran war, and the only thing Trump doesn't have is an exit strategy. This week Nick and Rick break down a stacked news cycle: the Pentagon is asking Congress for $200 billion to fund a war nobody authorized, Trump insulted Japan's Prime Minister to her face by joking about Pearl Harbor, and Attorney General Pam Bondi held a "briefing" on the Epstein files so evasive that Democrats walked out halfway through.Plus: the Pentagon quietly plans to keep the National Guard in DC

15:02

Five Things America Could Have Fixed Instead of This War

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/03/18

The U.S. has spent at least $12 billion on the Iran War in under three weeks. Trump’s Pentagon wants $50 billion more. Meanwhile: 15 million Americans just lost Medicaid. 4 million lost food stamps. 759 rural hospitals are about to close. This week, Nick runs the numbers — five things America could have paid for instead. The math is damning. America First? Here’s the receipts.

83:02

Trump Admits Putin Is Helping Iran and Doesn't Care

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/03/15

The Iran war is two weeks old and spinning out of control. Nick and Rick break down Iran's new supreme leader vowing to keep the Strait of Hormuz shut, the Pentagon confirming the U.S. struck an Iranian girls' school killing 165+ children, and the war's $11.3 billion price tag — in just six days. Plus: Trump says the war will end "when I feel it in my bones," admits Putin is probably helping Iran, and claims rising gas prices are actually good for you. Then: a Michigan synagogue attack linked

20:12

What Has the Iran War Actually Achieved?

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/03/11

The US entered the Iran war with four stated goals: destroy Iran's missile capabilities, destroy its navy, prevent a nuclear weapon, and defund its proxies. Two weeks in, let's actually check the scorecard. Gas prices are up 17%. The Strait of Hormuz — through which 20% of the world's oil flows — is effectively closed. Iran's new supreme leader is harder-line than the last one. And the nuclear deal? It's not just stalled. It's dead — possibly forever. We break down what the Iran war has actually

90:56

Trump's Iran War, Noem Out, and the Epstein Cover-Up

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/03/08

The United States is one week into a war with Iran, and things are already a mess. Nick and Rick break down everything you need to know: how we got here, what's actually happening on the ground, why oil prices are spiking and markets are tanking, and what Trump's "I guess" answer about attacks on American soil tells you about how seriously this administration is taking the consequences of a war it chose to start. They also cover the House and Senate's failed attempts to reassert congressional war

28:23

When Did Israel Become More Important Than NATO?

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/03/05

The U.S. is tariffing Canada, threatening NATO allies, and freezing foreign aid worldwide — but Israel gets exempted from every rule, $16 billion in arms since October 2023, and total unconditional support. Why? We break down the three engines powering America's most lopsided alliance: the Cold War logic that outlived the Cold War, a lobby machine that's made it politically career-ending to ask questions, and 44 million evangelical Christians who support Israel because they believe it'll trigger the

96:59

The U.S. is Now at War with Iran

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/03/01

The United States launched a huge joint military operation with Israel targeting Iran's nuclear program, reportedly killing Supreme Leader Khamenei, and Iran struck back hard. We break down how we got here, what it means, and why Trump was negotiating with Iran just days before the bombs dropped. Plus: Trump's State of the Union was full of whoppers; we fact-check the biggest ones. The Supreme Court struck down Trump's IEEPA tariffs in a 6-3 ruling, and Trump's response was... more tariffs. Bill

21:06

How Close Are We to War With Iran?

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/02/26

Trump said Operation Midnight Hammer completely and totally obliterated Iran's nuclear program. His own envoy now says Iran is a week away from bomb-making material. So which is it? Nick breaks down the full Iran story — from the 2018 JCPOA withdrawal that accelerated Iran's enrichment, to the strikes that may not have done what we were told, to Netanyahu's 30-year track record of claiming Iran is always "one week away," to the Democratic Party's stunning failure to mount a real opposition. If you

16:56

Voter Fraud is a Hoax and Trump Knows It

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/02/19

Everyone's heard the claims: millions of illegal votes, stolen elections, rampant mail-in fraud. But what does the actual evidence show? Today, we go through the data, and it turns out the Heritage Foundation spent years building a database to prove voter fraud is rampant, and independent researchers keep using that same database to prove it isn't. Then we look at what happens when the myth stops being talking points and starts running the government — from the SAVE America Act moving through the

92:46

Pam Bondi Embarrassed Herself at the Epstein Hearing

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/02/16

This week delivered one of the most explosive political moments in recent memory: At Pam Bondi's House testimony, photos revealed the Attorney General had a printout of Rep. Jayapal's Epstein file search history—raising serious questions about DOJ surveillance of Congress. When asked to apologize to the 11 Epstein survivors in the room, Bondi refused to turn around, calling it "theatrics."Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security shut down—sort of. While TSA agents, Coast Guard members, and

20:33

Top 5 Officials Who Shouldn’t Still Be in Office

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/02/12

What does it actually take to force a Cabinet official to resign? In this episode, I lay out the historical standards for accountability — then rank five current administration officials who, in my view, fail those standards. From DOJ transparency to public health governance, from classified handling to domestic terrorism rhetoric, this is a standards-based evaluation — not a partisan rant. Accountability isn’t radical. It’s normal. The question is whether we still believe in it.

84:58

Trump's Racist Obama Video & ICE at the Polls

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/02/08

Today’s episode is a snapshot of where U.S. politics is heading as the 2026 midterms come into focus. We start with Donald Trump saying he wants to “nationalize” the midterm elections and Steve Bannon openly calling for ICE to be sent to polling places — a threat that, even if it never happens, can still chill turnout through fear and intimidation.From there, we cover Trump boosting racist content depicting the Obamas as primates and refusing to apologize, plus the latest Epstein-related Oversight

15:45

Will Trump Nationalize the Midterms?

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/02/05

Trump keeps saying he wants to “nationalize” elections—and he’s now urging Republicans to “take over the voting” in multiple places ahead of the 2026 midterms. In today’s episode, I break down what that phrase actually means in a country where elections are run by states and local jurisdictions, why a president can’t simply seize election administration, and the more realistic ways federal power can still be used to pressure the system: investigations, funding leverage, and intimidation of local

71:06

Minnesota ICE Fallout: The Aftermath

The Lonely Liberal ·

2026/02/01

This week, the fallout from the Minnesota ICE shooting turns into a full-blown national political fight — not just over what happened, but over how the administration is trying to frame it. We break down the scramble to defend the killing of Alex Pretti, the flood of viral “context” clips (and why some may be unreliable or manipulated), and the internal shakeups as the Trump team tries to contain the damage.Then: Democrats spend the week warning they won’t fund ICE… and ultimately vote to avoid a

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