Gaslit Nation

Apologies! Due to the blizzard, school closure, jury duty all in one week, the wrong file was published. Here is the correct one. Enjoy and see you at the salon on Monday. The ruling elite–from billionaires like Les Wexner to politicians who shared the "Lolita Express"–all knew. They claim to have been manipulated by serial pedophiles Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. They were complicit in a transnational crime syndicate that used human trafficking as a currency of power. What we can do now: Demand State Action: Call your Attorney General. Alex Acosta's slap-on-the-wrist federal deal is a sham–it was a cover-up. Demand that state-level cases be brought in New Mexico, Florida, New York, and Ohio–everywhere crimes were committed against over a thousand victims. Subpoena the Money: We need a total forensic audit of Epstein's wire transfers worth over a billion dollars. End the "Great Disillusionment": Our institutions failed because they were captured. We must be the light that shines into their darkness. History will remember those who stood up. It is our turn to be relentless, like those who came before us, until every co-conspirator is behind bars. This is an excerpt of this week's bonus show. To listen to the full episode, subscribe at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports our investigative journalism. Want to hear Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, exclusive Q&A sessions, our group chats, invites to live events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit! Show Notes: Book Launch: Mrs. Orwell by Andrea Chalupa in conversation with Nomiki Konst https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/ The State of the Union is Sadistic Elites on a Crime Spree https://www.gaslitnationpod.com/episodes-transcripts-20/2026/2/24/the-state-of-the-union-is-sadistic-elites-on-a-crime-spree @repilhan.bsky.social shouts at Trump during SOTU: "You have killed Americans." https://bsky.app/profile/jordanuhl.com/post/3mfnpqndvlk23 Susanna Ledesma Woody is a proud central Texan, a devoted mother of three, a respected public servant, and a passionate advocate for equity and opportunity. https://www.votesusanna.net/meet-susanna Dominique Azzollini is a lifelong Pike County resident, real estate professional, and community advocate running for State Representative to make Pike and Wayne Counties affordable, healthy, and full of opportunity again. https://www.azzolliniforpa.org/

The ruling elite–from billionaires like Les Wexner to politicians who shared the "Lolita Express"–all knew. They claim to have been manipulated by serial pedophiles Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. They were complicit in a transnational crime syndicate that used human trafficking as a currency of power. What we can do now: Demand State Action: Call your Attorney General. Alex Acosta's slap-on-the-wrist federal deal is a sham–it was a cover-up. Demand that state-level cases be brought in New Mexico, Florida, New York, and Ohio–everywhere crimes were committed against over a thousand victims. Subpoena the Money: We need a total forensic audit of Epstein's wire transfers worth over a billion dollars. End the "Great Disillusionment": Our institutions failed because they were captured. We must be the light that shines into their darkness. History will remember those who stood up. It is our turn to be relentless, like those who came before us, until every co-conspirator is behind bars. Want to hear Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, exclusive Q&A sessions, our group chats, invites to live events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit! Show Notes: The State of the Union is Sadistic Elites on a Crime Spree https://www.gaslitnationpod.com/episodes-transcripts-20/2026/2/24/the-state-of-the-union-is-sadistic-elites-on-a-crime-spree @repilhan.bsky.social shouts at Trump during SOTU: "You have killed Americans." https://bsky.app/profile/jordanuhl.com/post/3mfnpqndvlk23 Susanna Ledesma Woody is a proud central Texan, a devoted mother of three, a respected public servant, and a passionate advocate for equity and opportunity. https://www.votesusanna.net/meet-susanna Dominique Azzollini is a lifelong Pike County resident, real estate professional, and community advocate running for State Representative to make Pike and Wayne Counties affordable, healthy, and full of opportunity again. https://www.azzolliniforpa.org/

We are up against a transnational mafia, as Gaslit Nation has long warned, and the Epstein files expose it, despite the ongoing cover-up. This week, investigative journalist Dave Troy joins the show to connect the dots between Epstein, the Kremlin, and far-right operatives who have spent decades dismantling our democracy, including the Florida 2000 recount that ensured George W. Bush came to power. (Bush's administration gave Epstein an illegal "sweetheart deal," allowing him and Maxwell to continue their crime network, trafficking children to the ruling elite). "The U.S. government has been infiltrated by these networks for decades," Troy says. Epstein was not a lone wolf. He was deeply embedded in a transnational crime syndicate with ties extending to Russian intelligence and powerful oligarchs who are still trying to create a lawless "network state" where they can operate above the law. We also discuss the dangerous complacency of assuming our institutions will protect us, especially when the very people tasked with upholding the law, from the DOJ to high-profile attorneys, protect the shadow network. Their goal is to demoralize us with complexity. By tracing their connections, we can understand their playbook and fight back. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join on Patreon. Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon. Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon. Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect: join on Patreon. Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join: join on Patreon. Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group: join on Patreon. Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community

In 1945, U.S. Army psychiatrist Dr. Douglas Kelley arrived at Nuremberg with an hypothesis: the 22 top Nazi defendants, including Hermann Göring, the second most powerful man of the Third Reich, must share a unique psychosis. He was looking for a "Nazi mind virus" that could explain the Holocaust. As Jack El-Hai, author of The Nazi and the Psychiatrist, of which the new film, Nuremberg, starring Russell Crowe as Göring, is based, reveals in this week's Gaslit Nation, Dr. Kelley found something far more terrifying. There was no insanity. These men were clinically "normal." They were ambitious, hardworking, Type-A opportunists: the kind you might find in any corporate boardroom today. What made them willing to destroy half the population to rule the other half? Even Hitler, Dr. Kelley concluded, wasn't a "madman" but a paranoid hypochondriac whose fear of early death rushed him into strategic failures like the invasion of the Soviet Union. This finding is a warning for us now. If Nazism isn't a disease but a human choice, it can take root anywhere. El-Hai points to the "sophisticated propaganda" and the evolution of ICE tactics in Minneapolis, where he and his family live, as modern terror of the early Gestapo. How do we bring Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, Kristi Noem, and their lawless killers to justice in our own Nuremberg trials? We stop waiting for a savior. We document the abuses, we protect the vote, and as El-Hai urges, we "get in where we fit in" during this time of self-defense resistance. This essential history is a reminder that the face of evil is often disturbingly ordinary. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join on Patreon. Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon. Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon. Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect: join on Patreon. Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join: join on Patreon. Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group: join on Patreon.

Here's what you missed at last week's Gaslit Nation Salon. The full recording is available on Patreon.com/Gaslit. Gaslit Nation warned you in 2019 that Tulsi Gabbard was a Russian disinformation weapon, and now she is the Director of National Intelligence. The gatekeeper of American secrets is currently abusing her power to illegally intervene in our domestic elections, as seen in the recent federal raid on a Georgia election office. Trump's raid in Georgia, overseen by Gabbard and Kash Patel's FBI, goes beyond his Big Lie litigating the 2020 election. They're laying the groundwork to justify "security measures" to make it easier for GOP ratf*cking and voter suppression to steal our elections. Meanwhile, a whistleblower complaint reveals that Gabbard buried NSA intelligence regarding two foreign operatives discussing a compromised person in Trump's inner circle. Given the corruption spree in Trump's own inner circle, there's a long list of who this could be! As the reporting has confirmed, Gabbard is leading a cover-up. As predicted in last week's salon, it was Kushner who is at the center of an NSA intelligence report on two foreign operatives discussing someone close to Trump -- a report that Tulsi Gabbard, Director of National Intelligence, hid to protect the Trump family's corruption crime spree. A New York Times gift article is available here. Tulsi Gabbard is a national security threat. We must demand that our Secretaries of State protect our ballots from this administration's interference. Agonize then organize and socialize. The news cycle is designed to exhaust you, but you don't have to face the autocracy alone. We built a resilience community for truth-tellers, and we want you in it. Join us today at 4pm ET for our Gaslit Nation Salon, a space to strategize, vent, and connect with a community of listeners just as horrified as you. Find the link to join us by Zoom, wherever you are, at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports the show -- we could not make Gaslit Nation without you! Show Notes: Warnings from Syria on How to Stop Putin in Ukraine https://www.gaslitnationpod.com/episodes-transcripts-20/2022/3/9/warnings-from-syria?rq=mOUAZ

Happy Valentine's Day to the Gaslit Nation family. While the world distracts itself with candy-coated romance, we know the most consequential stories are often the most complicated. If you're in the mood for a love story, specifically, a toxic one that changed the course of history, I invite you to meet Eileen O'Shaughnessy in my graphic novel, Mrs. Orwell. Eileen was the brilliant, overlooked force who helped fuel the creation of her husband's most enduring works. Her life with Eric Blair (aka George Orwell) was a whirlwind of intellect, sacrifice, and revolutionary dysfunction. Pre-order Mrs. Orwell here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250877857/mrsorwell/ See you at the Gaslit Nation Salon on Monday at 4pm ET -- only on Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports our work here during these dangerous times.

In this week's bonus show, we break down the absolutely chilling congressional hearing where North Korean newscaster Pam Bondi shilled for an elite pedophile network. Under oath in Congress, Bondi dangled Wall Street profits as a bribe to look the other way on child trafficking. This rot goes deeper than Trump or Epstein. We are now living through the "Great Disillusionment," the moment we realize the "polite" elites are complicit and no one is coming to save us but ourselves. The only justice that has been achieved for Epstein's victims was because they, their advocates, a free press, and the people united to demand it. We the People forced the Epstein files to be released. This is just the beginning–the criminals can no longer hide in the dark. To hear our breakdown of the Epstein files with Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman on how to fight back, support independent journalism and subscribe. We are the light that will drive out their darkness, and we are going to get through this together. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes: Bondi confronted by protester while arriving at Capitol: "Bondi you are a disgrace to the American people! You protect pedophiles who systematically rape children!" https://bsky.app/profile/meidastouch.com/post/3melrpnsycc27 Massie And Bondi Have Shocking Fight As He Accuses Her Of Epstein Files 'Cover-Up' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgiW06lZrvc Cohen to Bondi: "You tried to investigate Ms. Good's widow and you tried to investigate Mr. Pretti. They were executed like Kristi Noem executed her dog." https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3melv5enofu2k Massie: "Here is an email that was sent by the victims' lawyers to the DOJ. It was a list of names not to release. What did the DOJ do with this email? They released it! Literally the worst thing you could do the survivors you did." https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3melykectvi2g Karl Bode: "Likely-historic photo by NBC News of all the Epstein victims asked to raise their hands if they've not yet been asked to meet with the DOJ as Bondi testifies in foreground" https://bsky.app/profile/karlbode.com/post/3mely4yvhis23 RASKIN: Will you create a joint task force of the DOJ and state officials and district attorneys to investigate the crimes that have taken place against these victims are more than 1,000 like them? BONDI: *arms folded* … https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3melz5te6pb2y Bondi is now just straight up ignoring questions from Democratic members https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3memakzpxvm2d Bondi crashes out over Epstein: "The Dow is over 50,000 dollars! I don't know why you're laughing. You're a great stock trader as I hear, Raskin. The Dow is over 50,000 right now. The S&P at almost 7,000, and the Nasdaq smashing records. That's what we should be talking about." https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3melualitx22u wow -- Bondi throws a fit in response to Nadler's question about how many of Epstein's co-conspirators, if any, she's investigating, aggressively pointing at him and yelling. The hearing then devolves into chaos and Raskin and Bondi start yelling at each other. https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3meltxcc4652h Kash Patel covers up for Trump and Epstein: https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3lz27h24wc626

As Gaslit Nation has long warned: our institutions are complicit. Nazis infiltrate police departments, protecting an elite pedophile ring–protected by the FBI and DOJ. What can the American people do in a time of elite criminal impunity? Enter antifa. As investigative reporter Christopher Mathias reveals in his new book To Catch a Fascist, the solution is self-reliance and tenacious research skills. As Mathias explains, antifa does exist, haunting Donald Trump's nightmares, and has been a force of resistance throughout American history. Antifa is part of a long tradition in America, composed of LGBTQ people, neurodivergent people, the working class, and other everyday Americans–operating in a hyper-localized decentralized network. Mathias details how activists have unmasked neo-Nazis through Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), infiltrating online and offline groups, hacking, posting "meet your local Nazi" fliers in communities, and citizen investigative journalism. One researcher read 60,000 tweets just to find a single biographical detail to out a Nazi hiding in the dark. As we'll cover in future episodes, antifa's strategies can also apply to outing Jeffrey Epstein's co-conspirators who think they can continue hiding from justice. Just as the NAACP's Walter White investigated lynchings in the 1920s when the police protected their friends in the Klan, citizen researchers can map the flight logs and financial ties of Trump and Epstein's friends. If the FBI and DOJ continue to protect billionaire lawlessness, we must create a social cost for corruption and predatory elites. If the Department of Justice won't unmask the villains, then it's up to us to do it. "We protect us" is the rallying cry of liberation movements, of neighbors helping neighbors against corruption and institutional failure that protects predators in power. As Gaslit Nation has long warned: it's up to us to save us. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join here. Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join here. Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join here. Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, available here. Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, available here. Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, available here. Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community

Our democracy has been hijacked by an elite pedophile ring–one that has always been operating in plain sight. This week, Andrea and Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman dig into the horror show of the recently released Epstein files. As students of Soviet history, we know the truth: what we know is horrific, but what has yet to be revealed is much worse. Did Epstein, Trump, and their friends kill for pleasure–how many of their victims were murdered or died by suicide? Who wrote Epstein an email about a torture video? Is that person in power, wielding influence over our lives? We also examine Epstein's freelance intelligence work, showing how he collected kompromat to consolidate power through elite capture, pollinating corruption through the transnational crime syndicate, especially the autocratic regimes of Russia and Israel. We lift up the voices of the survivors and their advocates who demand the full release of the Epstein Files. Despite a bipartisan Congressional act, only an estimated half of the six million files have been released. Convicted felon Donald Trump's former personal defense attorney, Todd Blanche, is the Deputy Attorney General, helping lead the cover-up. The only silver lining in this extreme darkness is that the truth is finally coming to light, and American society, especially the media who glamorized Epstein, are no longer able to ignore it. For our bonus episode this week, we answer your questions about the Epstein files, rising autocracy, and more. To listen to the bonus, subscribe to our Patreon at the Truth-Teller level ($5/month) or higher. We are extremely grateful to our listeners who are keeping us afloat during this difficult time. Every bit of support helps give us the freedom to tell the truth, so thank you again for making Gaslit Nation possible. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes: House of Trump, House of Putin The Untold Story of Donald Trump and the Russian Mafia https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/576474/house-of-trump-house-of-putin-by-craig-unger/ "Why I don't believe Jeffrey Epstein Killed Himself (Part 2). NEW: Epstein claimed he was being extorted in prison. A look at the incident and the mysterious note that Epstein slipped into a book inside his cell." https://bsky.app/profile/jkbjournalist.bsky.social/post/3mdln2ndegs2r DOJ Deletes Epstein Files Again — And They Directly Implicate Trump https://open.substack.com/pub/krassenstein/p/urgent-doj-deletes-epstein-files?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web 6 Women, Including Olivia Munn, Accuse Brett Ratner of Harassment or Misconduct https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/6-women-including-olivia-munn-accuse-brett-ratner-harassment-misconduct-1053679/ Documents declassified by the US Department of Justice name pedophile Epstein as the manager of Putin's fortune. https://ru.themoscowtimes.com/2026/02/01/vrassekrechennih-minyustom-ssha-dokumentah-pedofil-epshtein-nazivaetsya-upravlyayuschim-sostoyaniem-putina-a185967 We Tracked Every Visitor to Epstein Island | WIRED https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjPHq-Ez0nc Epstein frequently connected NY Giants co-owner Steve Tisch with women, emails show https://abcnews.go.com/US/epstein-frequently-connected-ny-giants-owner-steve-tisch/story?id=129735927 What 3 million new documents tell us about Trump's ties to Jeffrey Epstein https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/31/politics/new-documents-trump-epstein New Epstein files fail to quell outrage as advocates claim documents are being withheld https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/03/new-epstein-files-advocates-claim-documents-withheld US Commerce Secretary Lutnick planned Epstein island visit, emails...

We're going to talk about the Epstein Files, and what may be the new sex trafficking elite club of rapists... So stay tuned for Monday's Gaslit Nation Salon at 4pm ET. Oh, and Andrea ran into another fascist in New York City. That's two in one week! In this clip from last week's salon, she shares the story of living Dorothy Thompson's 1941 essay, "Who Goes Nazi?" The full recording is available on Patreon.com/Gaslit along with the link to join us this Monday. Agonize then organize and socialize. The news cycle is designed to exhaust you, but you don't have to face the autocracy alone. We built a resilience community for truth-tellers, and we want you in it. Join us today at 4pm ET for our Gaslit Nation Salon, a space to strategize, vent, and connect with a community of listeners just as horrified as you. Find the link to join us by Zoom, wherever you are, at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports the show -- we could not make Gaslit Nation without you! Photo image from The Economist. It features fascist art used by the Trump administration to promote recruitment for their tax-payer funded ethnic cleansing through the Department of Homeland Security: https://www.economist.com/insider/the-insider/the-ice-test-how-the-killing-of-two-citizens-in-minneapolis-will-shape-american-democracy

In the 1970s, Senator Frank Church, a Democrat from Idaho, stuck his neck out–unlike members of Congress today–to take on the real deep state–the FBI and CIA carrying out LSD mind-control experiments on Americans, terrorizing activists, and committing assassinations with the mafia, including against witnesses. The Church Committee Report, based on real Congressional investigations, not just performative show trials, shows us how to confront and dismantle the lawless, mass-murdering MAGA regime. Historians Matthew Guariglia, a senior policy analyst at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and Brian Hochman, the Hubert J. Cloke Endowed Director of the American Studies Program at Georgetown University, are out with the definitive account, The Church Committee Report: Revelations from the Bombshell 1970s Investigation into the National Security State. They walk us through the decades of U.S. presidents of both major parties allowing a surveillance state to expand, running dangerous operations against the American people. The most chilling legacy is not the cartoonish villainy of poison darts and imperial assassinations, but the insidious cruelty of undermining activists. So pay attention. Don't let anyone–even a well-meaning ally–weaponize purity tests to gatekeep the Fourth American Revolution. Stopping the MAGA threat requires all of us building together in coalition. Based on the Church Committee's own findings, we know exactly what tools the FBI and CIA use to dismantle movements. They have very specific, terrifyingly effective strategies to divide and conquer We the People. Here is what they do when they want to destroy a movement from the inside out: Snitch Jacketing: This is psychological warfare. They plant false information–maybe they leave a map or a weapon in an activist's car–specifically to make you think your friend is a police informant. They leverage paranoia to make us eat our own. Fabricated Dissent: They create fake zines, fake newsletters, and fake correspondence to manufacture feuds between groups. They want the anti-war movement fighting the labor movement so neither fights the state. The "Friendly" Infiltrator: Watch out for the guy who shows up out of nowhere with coffee and too many questions. They send plainclothes agents into our resilience communities to map our networks and identify leaders and how they operate. Entrapment: They find an "easy mark" in a group, push them toward violence, then arrest everyone for a plot the FBI invented. They manufacture terrorism. The "Suicide" Strategy: J. Edgar Hoover's FBI sent a letter to Martin Luther King Jr., threatening to expose his private life and pressuring him to kill himself. They try to break you psychologically so that you back down and disappear. According to historians Guariglia and Hochman, activists under siege were aware of the threats long before the Church Committee exposed them, and developed resilience strategies we can learn from today: Reject the "All-Powerful" Myth: Don't give a lawless regime a bigger shadow than it actually has–that is what they want: to live inside your head. When you start believing the government is an all-knowing, all-powerful shadow monster, you are doing their work for them. Paranoia is a tool of the oppressor. Build a Culture of Care: The only way snitch-jacketing works is if we don't know each other. Build deep, resilient relationships. When we take care of each other, their wedges don't work. Sousveillance (Watch from Below): Do not rely on police body cams; those tapes have a magical habit of being turned off when they're needed. Film everything. Control the narrative with your own evidence, eyes, and ears. Divest from Big Tech: Google, Amazon, and Apple are regime collaborators. We need to build our own infrastructure from high-tech mesh networks to low-tech zines. If you rely on the master's tools, they will shut you down, as we're seeing now with TikTok's mass-censorship under the new owners–MAGA...

Stephen Miller, Donald Trump, Kristi Noem, J.D. Vance, and the entire MAGA Klan murdered Alex Pretti. They sent Bovino into early retirement, but he must be arrested, along with his agents who shot 10 bullets into Pretti, an ICU nurse for the VA who spent his life helping others. Demand the impeachment of President Stephen Miller: force Trump to throw him under the bus, too. It's a start to the demands for justice. To honor Pretti and our work ahead, find time to grieve. We cannot power through this collective rage and anxiety without releasing it. Even the strong need to cry in the shower. If we don't sit with our grief, it will force you to. Grieving is an act of resistance. It changes you, and it plants the seeds of justice that we will use to build a better world together. To the people of Minnesota, you have created an American Maidan, standing strong against tyranny. Even Ukrainians, freezing in the cold from Russia bombing their electrical grids, see you, and are calling your movement a Maidan. To grow a real resistance, we share a message recorded by Annie, a Gaslit Nation listener in Minneapolis. Our victory is guaranteed because our enemies are cowards who hide behind masks. America has defeated the Klan before. We must fight with urgency in a generational struggle. Join the General Strike this Friday January 31st. Divest from the corporations funding the MAGA regime–look to Cut Off the Spigot to learn how. And most importantly, stand by each other. As the people of Minnesota showed us, singing "Stand by Me" in the face of fascism: we win through our culture of care. Tonight's episode will run as usual. It's an examination on how the Church Committee Report, which exposed the mass-murdering FBI and CIA, shows us how to overcome our mass-murdering state today. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes National General Strike (Jan 31–this Friday!): https://nationalshutdown.us/ Support Susanna Ledesma-Woody for Travis County Commissioner: https://www.votesusanna.net/ Minnesota Community Resources: https://minnesotanonprofits.org/community-resources-ice-operations Cut Off The Spigot (Divestment Resource): https://cutoffthespigot.com/ Shop The Hood (Small Business Alternatives): https://shopthehood.store/ Who Advertises On X (Boycott Resource): https://whoadvertiseson.org/ Yes, It's Fascism (Jonathan Rauch/Brookings): https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/yes-it-s-fascism/ar-AA1UWfO5?ocid=BingNewsSerp Misogyny Killed Alex Pretti: https://sharidunn.substack.com/p/misogyny-killed-alex-pretti?triedRedirect=true Letter to My Daughter: https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/letter-to-my-daughter/# Tad Stoermer Video Read by Gaslit Nation Listener Annie: https://www.threads.com/@tad.stoermer/post/DTKc0iDjjdn/media Intro Clip: https://bsky.app/profile/thetnholler.bsky.social/post/3md7q7guacc22 Outro Clip: https://bsky.app/profile/taylordahlin.com/post/3mdeijmip522z

Here's what you missed at last week's Gaslit Nation Salon: the full recording is available on Patreon.com/Gaslit. America's first revolution was against the British empire. The second American revolution was the Civil War to abolish slavery. The third revolution was for Civil Rights to dismantle the authoritarianism of the Jim Crow South. We're not getting out of this without a Fourth American Revolution. Agonize then organize and socialize. The news cycle is designed to exhaust you, but you don't have to face the autocracy alone. We built a resilience community for truth-tellers, and we want you in it. Join us today at 4pm ET for our Gaslit Nation Salon, a space to strategize, vent, and connect with a community of listeners just as horrified as you. Find the link to join us by Zoom, wherever you are, at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports the show -- we could not make Gaslit Nation without you!

The world's leading philosophers and psychologists were based in Germany and Austria during the rise of Hitler. They studied the darkest chapter of human history while trying to make sense of it and survive it themselves. Their teachings are an urgent alarm for us today: fascists seek endless conflict through domination, and it will never be enough. Drawing on George Orwell's analysis of Hitler, we see that while democracy offers the radical concept of "having a good time," fascism preys on a neurotic, broken need for "struggle, danger, and death." It is an addiction to conflict, often first learned in the childhood home, according to Erich Fromm, that views empathy not as a virtue, but as a target. Walter Benjamin, before losing his own life to suicide to avoid the concentration camps, pointed out that fascists seek pleasure in their own demise. It is the fleeting, hollow glee of a bully kicking over a sandcastle because he doesn't know how to build one. Joy is how we win. The hate-fueled fascist high is a non-renewable resource. It requires a constant supply of new enemies to sustain a house of cards built on lawlessness and corruption. True joy, born of community, love, and creation, is sustainable energy, even in the unlikeliest of places, as our heroes who came before us also showed us. Stay safe. Stay defiant. And find some joy today: it's the best revenge. For our bonus episode this week, we sit down for a special Self Care Q&A with Vatican reporter Colleen Dulle, author of Struck Down, Not Destroyed: Keeping the Faith as a Vatican Reporter! To listen to the bonus, subscribe to our Patreon at the Truth-Teller level or higher. We are extremely grateful to our listeners who are keeping us afloat during very difficult economic circumstances. Every bit of support helps give us the freedom to tell the truth, so thank you again for making Gaslit Nation possible! Show Notes: Help Bring 5-Year-Old Liam Home https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-bring-5yearold-liam-home?attribution_id=sl:0f9224c0-2c25-4831-a70f-1357729d5d8c&lang=en_US&ts=1769049480&utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp17_control&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link Part I of Our Conversation with Colleen Dulle: MAGA's Vatican Cold War: https://gaslitnation.libsyn.com/magas-vatican-cold-war A Recent Gaslit Nation Salon Excerpt Giving the Bigger Picture of U.S. China-Panic Chaos under Trump from the Pentagon's Perspective: https://gaslitnation.libsyn.com/stay-sane-with-us-join-the-gaslit-nation-salon "An observer arrested in South Minneapolis. Photo by Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune" https://bsky.app/profile/amreports.bsky.social/post/3mcxlw4ijx42p "Interesting scoop from Anna Giaritelli, who has good sources inside DHS. It suggests Noem and Lewandowski (seemingly still serving as a Special Government Employee despite having timed out months ago) are trying to push out the CBP Commissioner (former Border Patrol) because he's not harsh *enough.*" https://bsky.app/profile/reichlinmelnick.bsky.social/post/3mcyd34k2v225 Immigration officers assert sweeping power to enter homes without a judge's warrant, memo says https://apnews.com/article/ice-arrests-warrants-minneapolis-trump-00d0ab0338e82341fd91b160758aeb2d The Stolen Wealth of Slavery: A Case for Reparations https://www.gaslitnationpod.com/episodes-transcripts-20/2024/02/28/reparations-now 'That's Our Territory': Trump Uses Davos Speech to Push for Greenland https://time.com/7354005/trump-davos-speech-greenland/ You've Got to Read George Orwell's Review of 'Mein Kampf' https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a45897365/george-orwell-reviews-hitler-mein-kampf/ Police charge Trump campaign manager with assault https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/police-charge-trump-campaign-manager-with-assault#:~:text=Police%20in%20Jupiter%2C%20Florida%2C%20released,provided%20by%20Jupiter%2C%20Florida%20police. Ex-Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski accused of sexual...

Like the rest of us, Pope Leo, the first American Pope, is under siege by MAGA. We discuss MAGA's war on the "globalist," "culturally Marxist" Catholic Church with Colleen Dulle, Vatican reporter for America Magazine and author of Struck Down, Not Destroyed. Christian Nationalists have captured the White House, Congress, and Supreme Court. Now they are targeting the Holy See. We track the strategy from Steve Bannon's "gladiator school" for disinformation agents to recently converted Catholic JD Vance using his faith to justify mass deportations and ICE terror squads. MAGA has launched a financial boycott of the Catholic Church, provided safe haven and amplification for its biggest crackpots, while deploying dark-money disinformation and a Fox News-style Catholic press to target reformers. We also confront the Vatican's long history of abuse and gaslighting. We discuss the erasure of trans people and women leaders like Mary Magdalene, arguably the true first pope. We also look to what the first American pontiff, Pope Leo, will bring in this time of crisis, and whether he will continue Pope Francis's war on Opus Dei–the far-right human trafficking crime cult that gained prominence during Franco's dictatorship in Spain. Opus Dei has set up shop in Washington, DC, counting among its allies Vance and the Heritage Foundation's Kevin Roberts, architect of Project 2025. Note: This conversation was recorded on June 17, 2025. Look out for our bonus episode later this week on the latest hellscape headlines! Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community Show Notes: Struck Down, Not Destroyed: Colleen Dulle's new book on keeping the faith while covering the Vatican's crises https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/struck-down-not-destroyed-colleen-dulle/1146546457 Steve Bannon's "Gladiator School" Evicted: How the far-right strategist lost his fight to turn an 800-year-old monastery into a training ground for culture warriors https://news.artnet.com/art-world-archives/steve-bannons-school-far-right-nationalists-officially-evicted-800-year-old-italian-monastery-leased-2007256 The Problem with JD Vance's "Ordo Amoris": A theological breakdown of how Vance manipulates the teachings of St. Augustine to justify ICE terror https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2025/02/13/ordo-amoris-stephen-pope-vance-249926/ Project 2025 Architect Linked to Opus Dei: The Guardian reveals the deep ties between Kevin Roberts, the Heritage Foundation, and Opus Dei https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/26/kevin-roberts-project-2025-opus-dei MAGA Tries to Starve the Church: An investigation into "Peter's Pence" and how conservative groups are financially undermining the Church https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2019/12/12/vatican-misleading-donors-peters-pence-explained/ Gaslit Nation's Episode on Opus Dei:...

Here's what you missed at last week's Gaslit Nation Salon for our listeners on Patreon. Agonize then organize and socialize. The news cycle is designed to exhaust you, but you don't have to face the autocracy alone. We built a resilience community for truth-tellers, and we want you in it. Join us today at 4pm ET for our Gaslit Nation Salon, a space to strategize, vent, and connect with a community of listeners just as horrified as you. Find the link to join us by Zoom, wherever you are, at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports the show -- we could not make Gaslit Nation without you!

They shot a woman three times in the face. Now they want to send in the Insurrection Act. Why are they targeting Minnesota? The "Minnesota Miracle" showed how great our country could be: codified abortion rights, a trans refuge, free universal school meals. The Project 2025 agenda requires covering-up that progress works. We are watching history repeat. The crushing of "Red Vienna" by autocrat Chancellor Dollfuss in 1934 made Austria easier to invade by Hitler and the Nazis. The overthrow of a democratically elected labour government in the Spanish Civil War ushered in a dictatorship by a narcissist. Whenever progressive movements secure rights through legal means, fascists resort to illegal terror to crush those victories, desperate to hide that a better world is possible. As we honor Martin Luther King Jr. today, on his birthday, we must heed his warning: do not sleep through a revolution. While members of Congress "huddle" and wait for the courts, we demand they use every lever of power to protect the upcoming midterms. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join on Patreon. Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other:join on Patreon. Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other:join on Patreon. Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, join on Patreon. Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join,join on Patreon. Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, join on Patreon. Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community Show Notes: Gaslit Nation discussion of MLK Jr.'s memoir Stride Toward Freedom: https://gaslitnation.libsyn.com/build-baby-build-the-world-needs-your-light-teaser

They want you to be passive and quiet. But history tells a different story. We're joined by award-winning comic creator Ben Passmore, author of Black Arms to Hold You Up: A History of Black Resistance, to dig into the stories that history books, and Hollywood, whitewash: De-sanitizing Resistance: We discuss how films and media often strip away the political intellect of figures like the Black Liberation Army, reducing revolutionary struggle to nihilism. Community as Armor: Ben puts the focus on true resistance as mutual aid. From the Jane Collective organizing healthcare, to prisoners organizing even from solitary confinement, the most radical act is building a culture of care. The Trap of Online Activism: In an age of surveillance capitalism, Ben warns that we must move beyond the "power fantasy" of social media. Real solidarity happens offline, face-to-face, building trust that algorithms can't suppress. As MAGA's Supreme Leader expands the surveillance state through Peter Thiel's Big Brother Palantir and unleashes a KKK gestapo through ICE, we must learn from unfiltered history and understand what it actually takes to survive. January 15th is the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. The Civil Rights movement ushered in the Third American Revolution, defeating the authoritarianism of Jim Crow, which John Roberts' Supreme Court is bringing back. Listen to our episode on Stride Toward Freedom, the memoir by a young MLK Jr. after he captured the world's attention leading the successful Montgomery Bus Boycott. For more on resistance strategies, listen to our episode on Gene Sharp, author of From Dictatorship to Democracy, and our interview with his protege Jamila Raqib, the executive director of the Albert Einstein Institution: Fire in Our Peace: The Power of Nonviolent Resistance. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes: Watch: A sobbing mother calls 911 as federal agents force their way into her home to chase down a DoorDash driver who was just trying to deliver food. https://www.reddit.com/r/minnesota/comments/1q8vvwa/st_paul_mn_a_sobbing_resident_calls_911_as/?sort=old Trump Taps Palantir to Build a "Big Brother": How the administration is partnering with Peter Thiel's tech giant to monitor Americans. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/technology/trump-palantir-data-americans.html ACLU Investigates Police Use of Flock License Plate Surveillance: https://www.aclu.org/news/privacy-technology/flock-roundup Project 2025 Tracker: Monitoring the conservative policy blueprint and authoritarian roadmap. https://www.project2025.observer/en Want to Stop ICE? Go After Its Corporate Collaborators: A guide on how to target the businesses fueling the deportation machine. https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/ice-businesses-boycott-campaign/?fbclid=IwY2xjawPR1kdleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEezKLIFd9EZUL6g5uRoGAhj6cAItrut7MjpF8RislyssfXbo-V_-dZNqW2Fw4_aem_f4IvbocKBVROoBGqO-V_Kg Prairieland Defendants: Legal support and mutual aid for protesters. https://prairielanddefendants.com/ Police Accountability and Reform: An activist checklist for demanding transparency. https://activistchecklist.org/police/ The Singing Revolution: How music helped liberate the Baltic States from Soviet occupation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singing_Revolution Thomas Paine's Common Sense (1776): The full text of the pamphlet that sparked a revolution. https://loveman.sdsu.edu/docs/1776ThomasPaine.pdf "The Voice of Dust and Ash": A documentary film on resistance and silence. https://vimeo.com/753111135?fl=pl&fe=cm Man Up: The New Misogyny and the Rise of Violent Extremism. https://share.google/t85l3THA4XfvEEbNo Whistleblower...

The Russian Orthodox Church, a longtime arm of the Kremlin, is running an intelligence operation targeting MAGA's Christian nationalism, to help turn America into a dictatorship. This week's bonus show continues our conversation with Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman. She exposes a sweeping op by the Kremlin's church. You can read her investigation in the show notes. Russians, being white and Christian, get a pass that other terrorist regimes, like Iran, don't. We fact check their mind-hacking op, and also answer questions from Gaslit Nation listeners–like if Putin and Trump got in a fight, who would win? Whether it's MAGA, the Kremlin, or the regime in Iran that looks on the verge of collapse, it's the same mind-hack everywhere: confuse, divide, and exhaust. The antidote is clarity, which can only be maintained through self-care. This weekend, be sure to find some time in nature, and be gentle on yourselves and others. We're all in this together, and we will overcome. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes: Be sure to read Amanda Gorman's poem for Renee Good. It's here for those who don't have Instagram, where she originally posted it: https://bsky.app/profile/elizabethjacobs.bsky.social/post/3mbximyqaos23 Gil Duran on Thiel and Greenland: https://bsky.app/profile/gilduran.com/post/3mbx2lvjrec2h Russia's Orthodox Church and the Weaponization of Religion https://olgalautman.substack.com/p/insights-from-chapter-2-russias-orthodox?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email&triedRedirect=true

A statement from Gaslit Nation listener Annie in Minneapolis, Minnesota: Real Resistance I live in Minneapolis, 6 minutes from where Renee Good was shot and killed today by an ICE agent. I am 39, a white woman, with a 6 year old like Renee. I am on my neighborhood rapid response thread and on another morning it could easily have been me who was shot and killed. I feel grief, I feel rage, but I am also hopeful that her death will crack open something that needs to see the light of day. On Tuesday, dozens of people were brutally kidnapped and taken from their families, but there were no press conferences and no headlines. Today, all eyes are on ICE. Schools are canceled for the rest of the week. My manager wrote to say she understands if we need to take time off. It finally feels like the whole city is grieving in the way I have been for the past five weeks since ICE first began occupying Minneapolis, and the past five months since ICE first descended on Chicago. It feels like I can finally grieve openly. Politicians are taking the occupation more seriously. Governor Walz is talking about the national guard, Mayor Frey is talking about Minneapolis police officers protecting first amendment rights. There is so much the state and the city could be doing to assist and protect people at risk right now, but their opposition has been limited to press conferences, social media posts, and an ordinance that limits the use of city property by ICE. This is really different than playing an active role in protecting and supporting people. Actual resistance could look like tracking ICE apprehensions and accounting for all victims, running a support hotline for impacted families, providing legal aid to immigrants, tracking ICE locations and sharing this information with immigrants at risk, maintaining a list of ICE license plates, serving as constitutional observers during ICE stops, or even just lifting up the work of rapid response networks and encouraging residents to participate. None of this has been happening, and that probably won't change, but I now have a tiny bit of hope that it might. There's a recent video put out by Tad Stoermer, a historian of resistance movements, about the "loyal opposition" that puts words to how I have been feeling. He says, "When the opposition party treats an authoritarian regime as a normal political opponent, […] it doesn't just fail to resist, it just becomes a loyal opposition, [loyal to the system it is operating in.] […] It actively teaches people the wrong lessons about what resistance looks like. It […] tells everyone watching 'this is the only appropriate response. This is how serious people handle this situation.' And when 'this' is press releases, and podium speeches, and fundraising emails, and strongly worded social media posts endlessly about, I don't know, cost of living issues, while the regime is invading sovereign nations, announcing it will run them, threatening NATO and world stability in addition to our domestic stability, what people learn is that the situation might not in fact be that serious." He goes on to contrast this with real resistance, which includes developing organizing infrastructure, building parallel institutions, and building resistance networks. He uses the Underground Railroad as an example of real resistance, and talks about how the "loyal opposition" absorbs energy that could otherwise be used for building the resistance infrastructure that we need. Today, Jacob Frey told ICE to "get the f*ck out of Minneapolis," but he didn't say what he will do if they don't. We need to be thinking about resistance dynamics. When ICE does not get out of Minneapolis, what action will the City take? What actions are we taking to back up our demands? The phrase that keeps repeating in my head today is "Make repression backfire." Collectively, let's channel our grief and rage into making state repression backfire and building a real resistance movement that will allow us to...