The Making of Chuck Schumer
On this episode of The Time of Monsters, David Klion on the Senate minority leader’s revealing new book.

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By helping the Republicans pass a spending bill that made no compromises with the Democrats and extend Donald Trump’s power over the government, Chuck Schumer has made himself widely unpopular in his own party. Anger at Schumer is so intense that he had to cancel parts of his tour to promote his new book Antisemitism in America: A Warning. David Klion, Nation columnist and frequent guest on the podcast, reviewed this volume for The Baffler. He joins to podcast to discuss both the book and the making of Chuck Schumer.
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US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Democrat from New York, speaks during a news conference about the Trump administration’s tariffs and budget plans, at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on April 4, 2025.
(Brendan Smialowski / AFP via Getty Images)By helping the Republicans pass a spending bill that made no compromises with the Democrats and extended Donald Trump’s power over the government, Chuck Schumer has made himself widely unpopular in his own party. Anger at Schumer is so intense that he had to cancel parts of his tour to promote his new book Antisemitism in America: A Warning. David Klion, Nation columnist and frequent guest on the podcast, reviewed this volume for The Baffler. He joins the podcast to discuss both the book and the making of Chuck Schumer.
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Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.
Only a few years ago, European elites were patting themselves on the back for fending off the
tide of right-wing anti-system parties (often styled as populists). But recent polls in France,
Germany and the United Kingdom show that that the far right is once again gaining traction,
thanks in no small part centrist governments that have demoralized the population and
legitimized xenophobia. David Broder, author of Mussolini’s Grandchildren and European editor
of Jacobin, wrote a wide-ranging essay on this for The New York Times. I spoke to David about
both the dismal decisions of mainstream parties and also possible alternatives.
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