Podcast / The Time of Monsters / Nov 26, 2023

Garry Wills and the Real Kennedy Curse

On this episode of The Time of Monsters, talking with Sam Adler-Bell and Matt Sitman about the toxic legacy of a famous family.

The Time of Monsters with Jeet Heer
The Time of Monsters with Jeet Heer

The Time of Monsters podcast features Nation national-affairs correspondent Jeet Heer’s signature blend of political culture and cultural politics. Each week, he’ll host in-depth conversations with urgent voices on the most pressing issues of our time.

Garry Wills and the Real Kennedy Curse
byThe Nation Company LLC

For this week's episode of The Time of Monsters, I’m doing a joint podcast with the crew from Know York Enemy (Sam Adler-Bell and Matt Sitman) talking about the legacy of the Kennedy family.

Our talk is based on our shared love for Garry Wills’ The Kennedy Imprisonment, a revelatory book about not just the Kennedy family but the nature of 'great man politics.'

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

American financier and ambassador Joseph Kennedy (right) sits on a couch with his son, future American President John F. Kennedy in 1938.

(Pictorial Parade / Getty Images)

For this week’s episode of The Time of Monsters, I’m doing a joint podcast with the crew from Know Your Enemy (Sam Adler-Bell and Matt Sitman) talking about the legacy of the Kennedy family.

Our talk is based on our shared love for Garry Wills’s The Kennedy Imprisonment, a revelatory book about not just the Kennedy family but also the nature of “great-man politics.”

This is an in-depth discussion that touches on many topics including the mainstreaming of Catholicism in the 1950s, the appeasement policies of the British ruling class in the 1930s, Cold War liberalism’s embrace of elitism, macho culture and misogyny, and mass movements as an alternative to great-man politics. 

Know Your Enemy is one of my favorite podcasts. I very much admire its mixture of scholarly knowledge and political urgency. It was a pleasure to join Sam and Matt for this discussion.

The Time of Monsters with Jeet Heer
The Time of Monsters with Jeet Heer

The Time of Monsters podcast features Nation national-affairs correspondent Jeet Heer’s signature blend of political culture and cultural politics. Each week, he’ll host in-depth conversations with urgent voices on the most pressing issues of our time.

Subscribe to The Nation to Support all of our podcasts

Jeet Heer

Jeet Heer is a national affairs correspondent for The Nation and host of the weekly Nation podcast, The Time of Monsters. He also pens the monthly column “Morbid Symptoms.” The author of In Love with Art: Francoise Mouly’s Adventures in Comics with Art Spiegelman (2013) and Sweet Lechery: Reviews, Essays and Profiles (2014), Heer has written for numerous publications, including The New Yorker, The Paris Review, Virginia Quarterly Review, The American Prospect, The GuardianThe New Republic, and The Boston Globe.

More from The Nation

A demonstrator holds a placard during a march against the implementation of digital ID cards, in central London on October 18, 2025.

Tech Refusal Has a Very Long History—With Thomas Dekeyser Tech Refusal Has a Very Long History—With Thomas Dekeyser

Paris Marx is joined by Thomas Dekeyser to explore how past movements that resisted technological change can reshape how we think about technology and progress today.

Paris Marx

Demonstrators rally during a protest against artificial intelligence outside Anthropic headquarters in San Francisco, California, on July 11, 2026.

The Need for Responsible AI—With Robert Wright The Need for Responsible AI—With Robert Wright

Robert Wright joins the show to examine AI’s promise and perils, from machine intelligence and automation to capitalism, climate, and global regulation.

Daniel Bessner and Derek Davison

Protesters attend a vigil for a man that was killed in a shooting involving ICE, on July 13, 2026, in Biddeford, Maine.

Trump’s Renewed War, More ICE Killings, and Teaching American History Trump’s Renewed War, More ICE Killings, and Teaching American History

On this episode of Start Making Sense, Harold Meyerson analyzes the week’s politics, and Beverly Gage explains Trump’s attacks on the Smithsonian.

Jon Wiener

Pope Leo XIV during a visit at the Maqam Echahid Martyrs' Monument in El Madania, near Algiers, on April 13, 2026.

Dope Popes—With Matt Sitman Dope Popes—With Matt Sitman

Matthew Sitman joins Fighting Fascism to discuss Pope Leo XIV’s first encyclical, the Catholic critique of Big Tech and inequality, and faith in contemporary politics.

Graham Platner, Democratic US Senate candidate for Maine, during a primary election night event at the Blue Hill YMCA in Maine on June 9, 2026.

Maine After Platner Maine After Platner

Eoin Higgins on finding a new candidate after a scandal.

Jeet Heer

US President Donald Trump poses with other heads of state prior to the North Atlantic Council meeting held at the 36th NATO Summit in Ankara, Turkey, on July 8, 2026.

The US-Iran Ceasefire Collapses, Hamas Dissolves Gaza’s Government, Sudan’s El-Obeid Braces for an RSF Assault The US-Iran Ceasefire Collapses, Hamas Dissolves Gaza’s Government, Sudan’s El-Obeid Braces for an RSF Assault

Danny and Derek break down the week’s global headlines, from NATO, Iran, and Gaza to Syria, Sudan, Ukraine, Latin America, and US strategy in the Pacific.

Daniel Bessner and Derek Davison

x