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The Tariffs We Want—Plus, Blocking Student Deportations

On this episode of Start Making Sense, Lori Wallach outlines a progressive trade policy, and Jameel Jaffer explains the AAUP legal challenge defending activist students.

Jon Wiener

April 9, 2025

People take part in a protest against the arrest and detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a green-card holder who played a role in pro-Palestinian protests by members of ICE, outside the Newark courthouse on March 27, 2025, in Newark, New Jersey. (Kena Betancur / VIEWpress/Corbis via Getty Images)

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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.

The Tariffs We Want, plus Blocking Student Deportations | Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

Trump’s tariffs are not really about trade, they’re a form of blackmail – but the alternative is not a return to the free trade policies introduced by Clinton and Obama. Lori Wallach of the Rethink Trade program at the American Economic Liberties Project explains what kind of tariffs we need, combined with government support for reindustrialization.

Also on this episode: A major lawsuit challenging Trump over his efforts to deport pro-Gaza campus activists has been brought by faculty members at their universities. Jameel Jaffer reports on the AAUP case; he's executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and a former deputy legal director of the ACLU.

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Trump’s tariffs are not really about trade, they’re a form of blackmail—but the alternative is not a return to the free-trade policies introduced by Clinton and Obama. Lori Wallach of the Rethink Trade program at the American Economic Liberties Project explains what kind of tariffs we need, when combined with government support for reindustrialization.

Also on this episode: A major lawsuit challenging Trump over his efforts to deport pro-Gaza campus activists has been brought by faculty members at their universities. Jameel Jaffer reports on the AAUP case; he’s executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University and a former deputy legal director of the ACLU.

Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe.

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.

Mamdani’s Socialism—and Us; plus Football and Concussions | Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

Zorhan Mamdani takes office in four weeks as the first socialist mayor of New York City. How should we understand the constraints he faces, without accepting those constraints? Bhaskar Sunkara has our analysis; he’s president of The Nation and author of ‘The Socialist Manifesto.’

Plus: Sports Talk on The Nation podcast! Of course Thanksgiving was a big weekend for football on TV – a weekend where millions of viewers got to see a festival of brain injuries — concussions after receiving blows to the head. Dave Zirin will comment – he's the long-time sports editor of The Nation and host of the Edge of Sports podcast.

Our Sponsors:* Check out Avocado Green Mattress: https://avocadogreenmattress.com

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

Subscribe to The Nation to Support all of our podcasts

Jon WienerTwitterJon Wiener is a contributing editor of The Nation and co-author (with Mike Davis) of Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties.


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