Unpacking Platner
On today’s episode of Fighting Fascism, reflections on Graham Platner, the lessons of primary season, debates over “wokeness,” data centers, and what lies ahead in November.
The Nation Podcasts
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Unpacking Platner / Fighting Fascism
We said we'd talk about Graham Platner someday, and that day has arrived. We were all super excited about Platner. That excitement turned out to be misplaced. So what are the lessons we should draw from this saga? We also reflect back on the broader primary season, debate Woke 1, talk data centers, and look toward November, in this first just-us-cohosts-episode.
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Graham Platner on June 7, 2026, in Portland, Maine.
(Laura Brett / Getty Images)We said we’d talk about Graham Platner someday, and that day has arrived. We were all super excited about Platner. That excitement turned out to be misplaced. So what are the lessons we should draw from this saga? We also reflect back on the broader primary season, debate Woke 1, talk data centers, and look toward November, in this first just-us-cohosts-episode.
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The Nation Podcasts
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.
Does Staten Island Explain the Trump Age? w/ Ben Naddaff-Hafrey / Fighting Fascism
Staten Island is often referred to—by its inhabitants—as the Forgotten Borough of New York City. But who knew that in the 1990s, Staten Islanders literally tried to secede. Our guest this week, Ben Naddaff-Hafrey, is a journalist and senior producer for the Revisionist History podcast, and he’s created a brilliant new series called The Staten Island Problem that tells the history of this moment when New York City almost came apart.
Ben sees this story as an early example of the politics of resentment that dominates America today. To understand Staten Island is to understand the communities across our country that feel forgotten and disrespected, whose resentments Trump rode to power.
Oh, and obviously we also talk about how Staten Island—or Shaolin, as they call it—explains the Wu-Tang Clan, which totally fits perfectly well with the other themes and definitely isn’t just shoehorned in because it’s super interesting.
To get started on Ben’s series: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/revisionist-history/id1119389968?i=1000776007729
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