On this episode of The Nation Podcast, D.D. Guttenplan and Richard Kreitner talk about the centerpiece of our 160th anniversary issue.
Illustration by Brian Stauffer.
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 term “the nation”—as it refers to the country—has a relatively recent history in American political rhetoric. Until the Civil War, politicians more commonly used “the Union” or “the Republic.” That changed with Abraham Lincoln, who referenced “the nation” five times in his 1863 Gettysburg Address. Two years later, in July 1865, the first issue of our magazine was published.
For our 160th Anniversary issue, we called on fifty of our best writers and artists to depict the current national landscape: what’s being gutted, steamrolled, and eviscerated, and what some of us are doing to keep the national project afloat. Contributor Richard Kreitner joins us to discuss the monumental task of putting this issue together, the history and future of secession, and more.
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The term “the nation”—as it refers to the country—has a relatively recent history in American political rhetoric. Until the Civil War, politicians more commonly used “the Union” or “the Republic.” That changed with Abraham Lincoln, who referenced “the nation” five times in his 1863 Gettysburg Address. Two years later, in July 1865, the first issue of our magazine was published.
For our 160th anniversary issue, we called on fifty of our best writers and artists to depict the current national landscape: what’s being gutted, steamrolled, and eviscerated, and what some of us are doing to keep the national project afloat. Contributor Richard Kreitner joins us to discuss the monumental task of putting this issue together, the history and future of secession, and more.
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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.
In its heyday, the Bush Terminal industrial complex spanned several city blocks along Brooklyn’s waterfront and employed more than 35,000 people. Built by Irving Bush in the late nineteenth century, it was an "early intermodal shipping hub." Goods arrived by water and left by rail. Bananas, coffee, and cotton came in through doors on one side of the warehouses and were loaded onto trains on the other.
But after World War II, as trucks replaced rail and shipping patterns changed, the Terminal’s purpose faded and the vast complex slipped into disuse.
Today, Bush Terminal is again at the center of New York’s vision for urban reinvention— and a debate around development, displacement, and the future of work in the city.
Joining us on a deep dive into Bush Terminal is veteran architecture critic and writer Karrie Jacobs. Her essay, “On the Waterfront,” appears in our December issue of the Nation.
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D.D. GuttenplanTwitterD.D. Guttenplan is a special correspondent for The Nation and the host of The Nation Podcast. He served as editor of the magazine from 2019 to 2025 and, prior to that, as an editor at large and London correspondent. His books include American Radical: The Life and Times of I.F. Stone, The Nation: A Biography, and The Next Republic: The Rise of a New Radical Majority.
Richard KreitnerTwitterRichard Kreitner is a contributing writer and the author of Break It Up: Secession, Division, and the Secret History of America's Imperfect Union. His writings are at richardkreitner.com.