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Antisemitism and Free Speech—Plus, Farewell to Musk

On this episode of Start Making Sense, David Cole explains why universities must resist Elise Stefanik, and David Nasaw comments on the end of the White House bromance.

Jon Wiener

May 14, 2025

Representative Elise Stefanik (R-NY) listens as President Donald Trump speaks at his first cabinet meeting of his second term at the White House on Wednesday, February 26, 2025, in Washington, DC.(Jabin Botsford / The Washington Post via Getty Images)

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Antisemitism and Free Speech, plus Farewell to Musk | Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

What obligations do colleges and universities have to protect students from antisemitism and Islamophobia? What obligations do they have to let students speak freely about issues they care about? David Cole just testified before Congress about that—he’s the former National Legal Director of the ACLU, and The Nation’s legal affairs correspondent.

 Also: Trump’s partnership in Washington with his biggest donor, Elon Musk, is coming to an end. The richest man in the world, who made the biggest campaign contribution in history, is going home the clear loser in this affair. Historian David Nasaw comments.

 

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What obligations do colleges and universities have to protect students from antisemitism and Islamophobia? What obligations do they have to let students speak freely about issues they care about? David Cole just testified before Congress about that—he’s the former national legal director of the ACLU, and The Nation’s legal affairs correspondent.

Also on this episode: Trump’s partnership in Washington with his biggest donor, Elon Musk, is coming to an end. The richest man in the world, who made the biggest campaign contribution in history, is going home the clear loser in this affair. Historian David Nasaw comments.

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.

What Explains Epstein’s Friends? Plus, Crossword Politics | Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

Ths coming Friday is the deadline for the Justice Department to turn over the Epstein files to Congress. But we already know the key fact about Epstein’s famous friends–they didn’t care that he had hired a 14-year-old girl for sex—and gone to jail for it. But why was that? Katha Pollitt comments.

Also: the hidden politics of the New York Times crossword puzzle: Natan Last explains; his new book is Across the Universe: the Past, Present, and Future of the Crossword Puzzle.

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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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