Shows / To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
You are not the crazy ones.
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Episodes
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
What Happened to Rudy Giuliani?
John Avlon is chair of Citizens Union, former editor-in-chief of The Daily Beast and former chief speechwriter for Mayor Rudy Giuliani. In this episode, he…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Can Trump Be Stopped? Actually, Yes.
Miles Taylor is a former DHS official during Trump's first term and the founder of Defiance.org. He joins Charlie to discuss how the administration's changes…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trump’s Bread and Circuses Moment
Former Congressman and children’s book author, Adam Kinzinger, joins Charlie to discuss the ridiculousness of the UFC Octagon project on the WH lawn, Megyn…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Should We Have Billionaires?
Justin Wolfers is a professor of economics at the University of Michigan and author of the Platypus Economics Substack. In this episode, he joins Charlie to…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
It’s the Corruption, Stupid
Phillips O'Brien is a historian and Professor of Strategic Studies at the University of St Andrews, Scotland. In this episode, he joins Charlie to discuss…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trump's Goon Squad Slush Fund
Nicholas Grossman, editor of Arc Digital and professor of international relations at the University of Illinois, joins Charlie to discuss the new levels of…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
The Ozymandias Phase of the Trump Presidency
Tim O'Brien, Senior Executive Editor at Bloomberg Opinion, joins Charlie to discuss the President's recent China visit, the poor state of American democracy…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
David Frum: Trump’s "America First" Is Actually "America Alone"
David Frum of The Atlantic joins Charlie to discuss Trump's China visit, his ignorance on oil and the global economy, and the Democrats' missteps heading into…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
How to Be a Dissident
On today’s episode, Charlie welcomes Gal Beckerman, a staff writer at The Atlantic and author of the book, “How to Be a Dissident.” The two walk through Gal’s…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Of Ballrooms, Blasphemy, and the Return of Abortion Politics
On today's 'To the Contrary" podcast, Charlie is joined by NYT contributor Molly Jong-Fast to discuss the latest developments: the GOP's billion dollar…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
From Comey to Kimmel: Trump’s War on Free Speech
On today’s episode, Charlie welcomes attorney, NYT Best-selling author and CEO of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), Greg Lukianoff…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
“The More Unpopular Trump Becomes, the More Extreme He’ll Get”
The New Yorker's Susan Glasser joins Charlie to discuss Trump's war on free speech and press freedom, US relations with Ukraine, Russia, and China, and Trump…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
The Real King Dings Our Fake King
Peter Wehner, a contributing writer at The Atlantic and a senior fellow at the Trinity Forum, joins Charlie to dissect King Charles' historic address to…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Anne Applebaum: Trump’s Authoritarian Aesthetics
The Atlantic's Anne Applebaum joins Charlie to discuss the fallout from the White House Correspondents' dinner, Victor Orbán's defeat, and why Trump wants to…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
“Kevin Warsh, You’re a Disgrace”
Economist Justin Wolfers joins Charlie to rage about Trump's Fed chair nominee. They also discuss the importance of Fed independence, prediction markets, and…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Kinzinger: How the Next President Can Erase Donald Trump
Former Congressman and now children’s book author, Adam Kinzinger, joins Charlie to discuss gerrymandering, the state of Congress, and what should the next…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
“What Did These People Think Would Happen?”
Tom Nichols, Atlantic staff writer and author of The Death of Expertise, joins Charlie to discuss the anti-vax movement, the continuing crisis with Iran, and…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
How Trump Took a Hatchet to America’s “Shining City”
On today’s episode, Charlie sits down with former Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, former Managing Editor of TIME, and author…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trump‘s DOJ: From Bad to Worse
Legal analyst and Talking Feds host, Harry Litman, joins Charlie to break down the Justice Department's efforts to vacate January 6 convictions for far-right…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
The Coalition We Need to Beat Trump: Lessons From Hungary
Ian Bassin is Co-founder and Executive director of Protect Democracy and a 2023 recipient of the MacArthur Genius Grant. He joins Charlie to discuss what are…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
The Strangest Week (Plus the Attack on Free Speech)
Sarah McLaughlin is a Senior Scholar of Global Expression at FIRE (Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression), and author of Authoritarians in the…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
“January 6th Reshaped My View of Legacy Media”
Scott MacFarlane recently left CBS News and joined Substack as well as MeidasTouch. In this episode, he tells Charlie about his transition from traditional to…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Yes, the Epstein Files Are Going to Rock the Midterms
Sarah Fitzpatrick is a staff writer at The Atlantic, where she covers national security and the Department of Justice. She joins Charlie to talk about why the…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trump's Easter Purge
New York Times Opinion writer David French joins Charlie to discuss the beginning of "the great Trump purge," which started with the firing of Pam Bondi but is…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trump's War Blunder
In this solo episode, Charlie answers listeners' questions on Trump's order on mail-in voting, the reports on Pete Hegseth's war stock, the future of NATO, and…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
“The Military Has Been a Little Bit Confused”
Retired Lieutenant General Mark Hertling served as commanding general of the U.S. Army in Europe during the Obama administration. In this episode, he tells…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
It’s Time to Admit It: We Have a Psychotic Government
Jonathan Rauch is a Brookings Institution Senior Fellow and a contributing writer at The Atlantic. In this episode, he makes the case that the Trump…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
“There’s No National Interest With Trump, Just Personal”
Phillips O'Brien is a historian and Professor of Strategic Studies at the University of St Andrews, Scotland. In this episode, he joins Charlie to discuss the…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Is Trump TACOing on Iran?
Former Congressman and Substack superstar, Adam Kinzinger, joins Charlie to discuss the economic implications of the Iran war, Trump's response to the death of…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
The "Wing Nut" Rise to Power
On today’s episode, Charlie welcomes author, journalist, political commentator and former Congressional candidate, John Avlon. The two discuss the stark…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
“I Phoned Donald Trump. He Answered...”
Ed Luce from the Financial Times joins Charlie to discuss his recent phone call with the president, Trump's obsession with the British Prime Minister, and…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trumpology and the Iran Quagmire
Trying to make sense of Trump's incoherent approach to war and peace with the New Yorker's Susan Glasser, one of the nation's foremost Trumpologists. Hosted on…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Iran War: It’s Not Just the Economy, Stupid
Economist Justin Wolfers joins Charlie to explain the impact of rising oil prices but also to remind us that there are much deeper questions that need to be…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trump’s Iran FUBAR
Molly Jong-Fast, host of the Fast Politics podcast and a contributing NYT Opinion writer, joins Charlie to discuss the miscalculations of the Iran war, the…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
The "Crude" Economic Reality of War in Iran
Author and Senior Editor of Arc Digital, Nicholas Grossman, joins Charlie to discuss the White House's "hype videos" concerning the War in Iran, the economic…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
All the Things That Didn’t Get Noem Fired (But Should Have)
In this solo episode, Charlie is recapping the long awaited firing of Homeland Security Secretary. He also answers the questions you sent us on a wide range of…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
The Government Can’t Keep Its War Story Straight
Josh Barro, co-host of Central Air and author of the Very Serious Substack, joins Charlie to discuss a wide range of political news: the Iran war, the Texas…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trump’s War of Choice
The Atlantic's Anne Applebaum joins Charlie to try to figure out why we're at war with Iran. Is it about Trump's friends and business partners in Gulf states…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trump and the Death of Shame
The Atlantic writer, Tom Nichols, joins Charlie to discuss the rise of extremist ideologies within the Republican Party, the Epstein files, and whether we're…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Democrats Need a Winning Formula
Voters have soured on Trump, but polls suggest they still have their doubts about Democrats. Long time Democratic strategist and president of The Searchlight…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
"Trump Uses Racism to Weaken American Democracy"
Jamil Smith, a columnist at The Guardian, and lecturer at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, joins Charlie to discuss the State of the Union…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
What’s the Matter with Lindsey Graham?
Former Congressman and now children’s book author, Adam Kinzinger, joins Charlie to discuss Lindsey Graham’s behavior at the Munich Security Conference, the…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Epstein Has Hijacked Trump’s Presidency
Tara Palmeri, host of The Tara Palmeri Show and the author of the newsletter “The Red Letter”, joins Charlie to discuss the latest on the Epstein scandal that…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trump Just Did Something No President Has Tried Since 1798
Susan Glasser of The New Yorker joins Charlie to talk about Trump's attempt to arrest and indict six sitting members of Congress, Marco Rubio in Munich, and…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
David Frum: Why Trump is Failing
David Frum of The Atlantic joins Charlie to break down the shifting public opinion on Trump, Pam Bondi’s congressional testimony, and how AI is changing us…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Jeff Bezos’ Murder of the Washington Post
Reporter Ashley Parker spent eight years at The Washington Post before joining The Atlantic. She’s been watching the recent moves by owner Jeff Bezos and the…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
When Viciousness Becomes a Virtue
Peter Wehner, a contributing writer at The Atlantic and a senior fellow at the Trinity Forum, joins Charlie to explain why some evangelicals see Trump as a…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
What’s With Rich People These Days?
Following Jeff Bezos's gutting of the Washington Post, economist Justin Wolfers joins Charlie to try to unpack billionaires' actions. Also, how's the American…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Why ICE Can’t Be "Fixed"
Garrett M. Graff, a contributing editor at WIRED and former editor of POLITICO Magazine, joins Charlie to try to answer that question. Also (not unrelated)…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Lincoln Warned Us About Trump
Legal analyst and Talking Feds host, Harry Litman, joins Charlie to talk about Trump shutting down Kennedy Center, the release of 5-year-old Liam Ramos, and…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Will Renee Good and Alex Pretti Ever Get Justice?
Kristy Greenberg, former Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York and a legal analyst for MS…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Why Trump's ICE Strategy Backfired
Mike Pesca, host of The Gist, joins Charlie to unpack how the administration’s “chaos is a ladder” approach to immigration enforcement is failing. Public…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Money, Lies, God, and State Sponsored Murder
Katherine Stewart, journalist and author of the book Money, Lies, and God joins Charlie to process the killing of Alex Pretti and share insights from her work…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
The Violent Occupation of an American City
New York Times Opinion writer David French joins Charlie to discuss the rising tensions in Minneapolis and Trump's newly formed "Board of Peace." Hosted on…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
MAGA Jesus Versus the Real Jesus
Peter Wehner, a contributing writer at The Atlantic and a senior fellow at the Trinity Forum, joins Charlie to discuss the latest DHS video and why many…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Revisiting the Nuremberg Trials
Charlie invites Joe Klein, political commentator and author of Primary Colors, to discuss the 1961 film Judgment at Nuremberg and the 2025 film Nuremberg, and…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
DHS to White Supremacists: We’ve Got Your Backs
Olivia Troye, a former DHS official who served under Trump during his first term, joins Charlie to talk about the week’s news and what’s been worrying her…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Trump’s Authoritarian Playbook
Jonathan Rauch, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and contributing writer at The Atlantic, joins Charlie to explain why he thinks Trump is following a…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Blue Screen of Hypocrisy
Miles Taylor, a former DHS official during Trump's first term, joins Charlie to dissect the administration's response to the ICE killing of Nicole Renee Good…
- To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
Nobody Is Coming to Save Us
In this episode, Charlie answers your questions about the ICE killing in Minneapolis, the Donroe Doctrine, and the psychological and physical burdens of living…