It’s Hump Day! Sam speaks with Daniel Poppen, member of the union organizing committee at the Trader Joe’s location in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago, to discuss the staff’s decision to file for a union election. Then, he speaks with , founder of the , author of the  newsletter, and co-host of  podcast, to discuss his recent NLRB filing against Steven Crowder. First, Sam reacts to State Dept. spokesperson Matthew Miller refusing to answer the Associated Press's Matt Lee's question about why they've been unable to verify whether Israel struck an Iranian diplomatic target in Syria. Then, Sam's joined by Dan Poppen as they take us through the steps that led the Trader Joe's North Center location in Chicago to vote for a union election. Dan discusses some of the issues that have been facing Trader Joe's workers, the inspiration they've received from other unionizing Trader Joe's locations around the country, and what they can anticipate going forward after the vote totals are finalized. Then, Sam is joined by Matt Bruenig to discuss his representation of Jared Monroe, AKA "Not Gay Jared", the former "Louder With Crowder" employee, who has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Steven Crowder and the company. Bruenig outlines the main pillars that constitute the NLRB complaint, and provides some context to Jared's experience while working for Steven Crowder, what that entailed, and what they're hoping to achieve as the complaint is arbitrated and decided upon. And in the Fun Half, Sam reacts to Google employees demonstrating and conducting sit-ins against Google's work with Israel in their New York and California offices. He and Matt then check in on Speaker Johnson's tightrope walk, attempting to pass a supplemental foreign aid bill, which his far-right faction doesn't want. Johnson, who's now referring to him as a "wartime Speaker", is losing soldiers as an outline has been revealed, with Pennsylvania Rep. Scott Perry complaining that there's no border funding in the legislation (it was in another bill that Perry and his cohort didn't support). On the other end, former Kevin McCarthy confidant Rep. Garret Graves asks the all-important question: "What are Republicans getting" from this supplemental? And now, Speaker Johnson is only being offered tepid support from former President Trump, who is now willing to wait and see what happens to him with the motion to vacate looming over his head. Sam and Matt then turn to Trump's hush money trial, with Trump attorney and spokesperson Alina Habba telling Fox's Martha McCallum that Trump will be regarded like *wait for it* Nelson Mandela if he were to be put in jail for violating his gag order. Sam covers the recent Politico scoop of comedian Rob Schneider tanking a performance in front of Senate Republicans and their staffers, before diving into Trump's recent rally this weekend where he heard chants of "Genocide Joe!", to which he responded in part by saying: "You're not wrong". And, finally, Sam and Matt step into Dave Rubin's corner, where Rubin discusses his concerns about his inability to "arbitrage" the divide between the left and the right. Then, they check in on Dave's conversation with Will Cain from last week, where Dave tries his absolute hardest to take shots at Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens while *trying his absolute hardest* not to actually take shots at Tucker Carlson or Candace Owens. Plus, your IM's! Find out more about Trader Joe's union efforts here:&nbsp;https://traderjoesunited.org/ Check out NLRB Edge here:&nbsp;https://www.nlrbedge.com/ Find out more about the People's Policy Project here:&nbsp;https://www.peoplespolicyproject.org/ Check out "The Bruenigs" here:&nbsp;https://www.patreon.com/thebruenigs Become a member at&nbsp;JoinTheMajorityReport.com:&nbsp;https://fans.fm/majority/join Check out Seder's Seeds here!:&nbsp; ; use coupon code APRIL and get 42% off anything on the site until April 21st!; ALSO, if...

3319 - Chicago Trader Joe's Vote For Union Election; NLRB Action Against Crowder w/ Daniel Poppen, Matt Bruenig

It's Casual Friday! Emma speaks with political commentator  to round up the week in news. Then she speaks with comedian !&nbsp;First, Emma runs through updates on the brutal assault on Emory students and faculty protesting genocide and cop-city by the Atlanta police, mass arrests of anti-war protesters on college campuses across the US, Israel’s imminent invasion of Rafah, US troops’ presence in Chad, Trump’s legal woes, Net Neutrality, the climate crisis, and new anti-trans legislation out of Tennessee, before parsing through some rather telling comments from the ongoing Supreme Court case about Trump’s potential immunity as President, with representation going as far as to make space for immunity over extra-judicial assassinations. Owen Jones then joins, as he and Emma reflect on the last seven months of constant scenes of devastation and genocide coming out of Gaza, and the mainstream media’s heart-wrenching insistence on downplaying the horror, denying the deaths, and running cover for Israel’s project of ethnic cleansing under the guise of victimhood. Expanding on this, Jones and Emma explore how the severe repression and propaganda from mainstream Western political institutions is seeing an en-masse public awakening to the genocide of Gaza, and the Western elites’ violent commitment to controlling the discourse, with supposed “liberal democracies” from the US to the EU and UK defaming anti-zionist Jews and anti-semites and uplifting actual racists and Jew-haters as legitimate actors. After parsing through the absurdity of the media’s insistence on ignoring the obvious rhetoric and policy that has shaped Israel’s approach to this entire war, Owen steps back to look to the role of the UK in particular, with the Labor Party’s step back from the coalition of Jeremy Corbin at the end of the last decade, and committing itself fully to Israel’s agenda of dehumanization and hasbara. Wrapping up, Jones walks Emma through the performative cruelty of the UK’s Tory government’s ongoing illegal and immoral deportation scheme for asylum seekers. Kate Willet also joins, as she and Emma discuss the repression of left-wing beliefs in the supposedly “liberal” entertainment industry, and the growing trend of the industry’s support for right-wing reactionary comics. Kate and the MR Team explore the attempt to present left-wing comedy as hyper-politicized and right-wing comedy as almost de-politicized, before wrapping up by touching on the difficulty of escaping the self-censorship pushed on women and lefties when it comes to speaking out about politics. And in the Fun Half: Emma previews new allegations about Kristi Noam’s killer personality, watch Briahna Joy Gray refuse to back down from Rising Co-Host Robby Soave’s fascist criticism of student protests, reflects on the greater failure of the US media amid this crackdown on free speech, and listen to Donald Trump attempt to frame these non-violent protests as worse than Charlottesville. Shawn Hannity’s Blonde and blue-eyed guest waxes about the severity of the ongoing “illegal occupation” of Pal– I mean– of college campuses by students who pay tuition to be there, and the MR Crew discusses the media’s reproduction of genocidal propaganda, plus, your calls and IMs! Follow Owen on Twitter here:&nbsp;https://twitter.com/OwenJones84 Follow Kate on Twitter here:&nbsp;https://twitter.com/katewillett Check out Kate's comedy special "Loopholes" here!:&nbsp;https://www.comedydynamics.com/catalog/kate-willett-loopholes/ Donate to college campus bail funds across the country if you can!:&nbsp;https://campusbailfunds.com/ Become a member at&nbsp;JoinTheMajorityReport.com:&nbsp;https://fans.fm/majority/join Check out Seder's Seeds here!:&nbsp;&nbsp;ALSO, if you have pictures of your Seder's Seeds, send them here!:&nbsp;hello@sedersseeds.com Check out this GoFundMe in support of Mohammad Aldaghma's niece in Gaza, who has Down Syndrome:&nbsp; Check...

3326 - Casual Friday! w/ Owen Jones & Kate Willett

Jodi Dean on her Verso column, "Palestine Speaks for Everyone." Following the interview, we hear feedback from listeners like you.

Check out Jodi's column here: https://www.versobooks.com/blogs/news/palestine-speaks-for-everyone

Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access weekly bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell

Palestine Speaks for Everyone / Jodi Dean

Jodi Dean on her Verso column, "Palestine Speaks for Everyone." 

Check out Jodi's column here: https://www.versobooks.com/blogs/news/palestine-speaks-for-everyone

Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access weekly bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell

Happy Monday! Sam is back from vacation! He and Emma speak with , national voting rights correspondent at , to discuss his recent book &nbsp;First, Sam and Emma run through updates on Israel’s imminent invasion of Rafah (in the wake of weeks of bombing), Israeli officials’ fears of ICC arrest warrants, the absurd debate over university student activism and whether silencing free speech is the true free speech, Mike Johnson’s speakership, presidential polling, the UAW, and Kristi Noam’s screwing of the pooch, before parsing deeper through the insane response from University administrators at Columbia, Emory, and Ohio State, threatening their students with eviction, violence, and more in the face of protests. Ari Berman then joins, as he, Sam, and Emma touch on his history reporting on voting rights with MR, and how “Minority Rule” serves as a culmination of his reporting on modern-day efforts at the GOP’s undemocratic takeover and how they play into an ever-shifting battle between democracy and elite rule. Stepping back, Berman looks to America’s inception and the central role the US Constitution played in bolstering the US’ constraints on popular rule, with institutions like the Senate, Supreme Court, and Electoral College all serving to act as checks to the people’s power of democracy and federalism. Moving forward, Abe walks Sam and Emma through some of the major periods of democratic progress and (largely racist) backlash in US history, including reconstruction’s shift towards a multi-racial democracy and the following minoritarian overthrow in the South that established Jim Crow rule, and the major progress made under the Civil Rights Movement&nbsp;– which saw a variety of voting-right legislation passed over the 1970s – and the GOP’s reaction that we’re still dealing with today. Parsing deeper into this latter era, Berman looks at the role played by folks like Pat Buchanan in pushing the GOP back toward their project of minoritarian rule, establishing the blueprint of the GOP’s takeover of the undemocratic institutions of US politics and the establishment of a network of think tanks and foundations to shape the generations to come. After an extensive conversation on how the politics (and normalization) of Pat Buchanan paved the way for a Donald Trump presidency, grounded in culture war and white resentment, and how the GOP’s takeover of Wisconsin politics at the outset of the 2010s provided an easy laboratory for anti-democratic policy, Berman wraps up the interview with a plea for the Democratic Party to recognize and strategize against these institutional threats to US democracy, and how refusing to do so paves the way for the likes of Donald Trump. And in the Fun Half: Sam and Emma parse through Kristi Noam’s big swing at the Vice Presidency – and the bodies she left in her wake – watch JD Vance continue to represent his cuckstituency, and bask in Hasan’s evisceration of a British genocide apologist. Morning Joe has flashbacks to his pro-Vietnam War days, Atrios tackles the hypocrisy of the “look what you made me do,” response to protestors, and Dave Rubin doesn’t see the issue in his criticism of marginalized groups' support for Palestine. Bill Barr explains why the socialist agenda of climate change and education standards is a much bigger threat to Democracy than the GOP’s attempt to undermine voting rights and elections, and Charlie Kirk’s failures not not get pwnd by “children” continue, plus, your calls and IMs! Check out Ari's book here:&nbsp;https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374600211/minorityrule Become a member at&nbsp;JoinTheMajorityReport.com:&nbsp;https://fans.fm/majority/join Check out Seder's Seeds here!:&nbsp;&nbsp;ALSO, if you have pictures of your Seder's Seeds, send them here!:&nbsp;hello@sedersseeds.com Check out this GoFundMe in support of Mohammad Aldaghma's niece in Gaza, who has Down Syndrome:&nbsp; Check out the "Repair Gaza" campaign...

3327 - "Minority Rule": The Right-Wing Attack On The Will Of The People w/ Ari Berman

The Anti-Palestinian Racism Research Group's Jess Ghannam, who is co-author of the just-released "Anti-Palestinian Racism Survey Preliminary Report," joins This Is Hell! to discuss anti-Palestinian racism and its effects in the United States. Following the interview, we will hear some fresh "Rotten History" and a listener email.

Check out the report here: https://medium.com/@aprresearchgroup/anti-palestinian-racism-survey-preliminary-report-april-2024-11cfed327d85

Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access weekly bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell

Anti-Palestinian Racism Is Today's Accepted Racism / Jess Ghannam

The Anti-Palestinian Racism Research Group's Jess Ghannam, who is co-author of the just-released "Anti-Palestinian Racism Survey Preliminary Report," joins This Is Hell! to discuss anti-Palestinian racism and its effects in the United States. 

Check out the report here: https://medium.com/@aprresearchgroup/anti-palestinian-racism-survey-preliminary-report-april-2024-11cfed327d85

Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access weekly bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell

It's News Day Tuesday! Sam and Emma speak with Peter Shamshiri, or&nbsp;&nbsp;on Twitter, co-host of  &amp; the&nbsp;, to discuss the recent oral argumentsat the Supreme Court.&nbsp;First, Sam and Emma run through updates on Israel’s pre-October 7th war crimes, student anti-war encampments on campuses across the US, Trump’s legal woes and presidential hopes, gender-affirming care in Virginia, RFK’s ballot access, and New York’s Congressional special election, before parsing deeper into Israel’s continuing ethnic cleansing of Gaza, with an invasion of Rafah imminent amid falling bombs, and look into the lies behind Israel’s supposed hostage “negotiations.” Peter Shamshiri then joins, first looking to Grants Pass v. Johnson, the SCOTUS case tackling an Oregon municipality’s criminalization of sleeping outdoors in an attempt to initiate police crackdowns on homelessness, discussing the precedent of Martin v. Boise – requiring adequate shelter beds for the unhoused population before the criminalization of “camping” – that this case is attempting to overturn, and framing it within the context of the 8th Amendment’s prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment. After further contextualizing this case within the West Coast’s ongoing crusade against the houseless, and tackling how a Court desperate to undermine the 8th Amendment is likely to handle it, Shamshiri turns to Idaho and Moyle v. United States, and the Supreme Court’s impending decision on whether the US Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act requiring necessary care in life-threatening situations should override Idaho’s stringent abortion ban (it should). Next, Peter, Sam, and Emma parse through Starbucks v. McKinney, Starbucks’ challenge to the NLRB’s lower standards for court injunctions, allowing them to rush to prevent potential unfair labor practices while they assess the situation, and what the Supreme Court’s likely anti-labor decision will mean for the future of the NLRB, before wrapping up with a conversation on the “novel” case around Donald Trump’s presidential immunity, and what dwindling faith in the Supreme Court means for the American legal profession. And in the Fun Half: Sam and Emma discuss the unsurprising trend in violent crime along the border and the absurd refusal of the media to acknowledge its sensationalist presentation of the crime and border crisis, January 6th developments, and watch an Israeli Spokesperson fight for his life when confronted with Israel’s own bogus claims. Nancy Pelosi joins Joe Biden in doing everything she can do to get Trump reelected, Henry from Cincinnati explores the recent anti-war protests at OSU and the harrowingly regular presence of snipers on campus. A caller walks through the situation of his friend stuck in Gaza, what’s being done to organize his escape and how you can help, Josh from Chicago discusses the anti-Semitic assumption of dual loyalty (to Tottenham), the MR Crew tackles the lies about the supposed consensus around Zionism in Jewish communities, and Jerry Seinfeld finally locks in on a reactionary pivot after two decades of career decline, plus, your calls and IMs! Follow Peter on Twitter here:&nbsp;https://twitter.com/The_Law_Boy Check out the 5-4 Podcast here:&nbsp;https://www.patreon.com/fivefourpod Check out If Books Could Kill here:&nbsp;https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/if-books-could-kill/id1651876897 Become a member at&nbsp;JoinTheMajorityReport.com:&nbsp;https://fans.fm/majority/join Check out Seder's Seeds here!:&nbsp;&nbsp;ALSO, if you have pictures of your Seder's Seeds, send them here!:&nbsp;hello@sedersseeds.com Check out this GoFundMe in support of Mohammed Nasrallah, whose family is trying to leave Gaza for Egypt:&nbsp;https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-mohammed-nasserallah-and-family-go-to-egypt Check out this GoFundMe in support of Mohammad Aldaghma's niece in Gaza, who has Down Syndrome:&nbsp; Check out the "Repair Gaza" campaign...

3328 - Trump Immunity, Abortion Rights Assault, NLRB Attack

It's Hump Day! Sam speaks with Tyler Vasseur, letter carrier and shop steward in the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC), Branch 9, to discuss his recent piece in Labor Notes entitled  Then, Sam speaks with , executive editor at , to discuss his recent piece outlining the new FTC rule regarding non-compete clauses, co-authored with .&nbsp;First, Sam runs through updates on escalating violence by police and Zionists against anti-war protesters, Netanyahu’s imminent invasion of Rafah, the Federal Reserve, Biden drug policy, state abortion bans, New York’s special election for Congress, Johnson and Johnson’s talc settlement, and labor rights, before watching Mike Johnson and Marjorie Taylor Greene trade shots ahead of a potential motion to vacate the Speakership. Tyler Vasseur then joined, first outlining NALC’s union structure and role as one of four postal unions, before exploring the progressive division between the unions – including the desynchronization of their contracts –&nbsp; under the US’ shift into neoliberalism at the end of the 20th Century. Expanding on this, Vasseur explores the concept of “open bargaining,” and what it would mean in terms of activating and mobilizing NALC’s base of workers, as well as creating a much more transparent negotiating process. After walking through the major forces driving NALC members’ attempt at reform, and touching on the major roles of the US pre-funding mandate for the USPS and the 2008 Financial crisis in crippling industry wages, Tyler wraps up with the inspiring factor of the ongoing union renaissance in the US, and how this project has already begun to reshape organizing efforts within NALC. David Dayen and Sam then look to the absurd evolution of the “non-compete” contract clause, first popularized as a tool to prevent the spread of company secrets among executives, and now used to constrain some 30 million workers in industries from dog grooming to fast food. After expanding on the expansive chunk of our economy crippled by non-compete clauses, David walks us through the ongoing legal battle to overturn the bipartisan ban, how the legacy of Antonin Scalia looms large over this topic, and why the Supreme Court’s bogus “Major Questions” Doctrine is central to these arguments. After expanding on the likely evolution of this court battle, Dayen wraps up with a brief update on Live Nation’s attempt to court DC insiders with some help from the free (but evidently not priceless) press. And in the Fun Half: Sam parses through yesterday’s mass escalation of violence against anti-war student protesters on college campuses across the US, with the NYPD sending a SWAT team to infiltrate the Student occupation of Harold Hall, and police in LA allowing a pro-Israel violent mob assault UCLA protesters, also expanding on the absurd and constant attempts to completely misrepresent these campus protests and the student activists behind them. Jose from Houston calls in with some updates on union business in the transport industry, Marcus from Huntington Beach explores the MAGA takeover of his local government and how to push back, Charlie Kirk shames Zionists for not thinking their grand Jewish conspiracy would come back around to hurt them, and Cory from Florida shares his experiences with the constraints of non-compete clauses. Dave Rubin floats his theory on the jihadists behind public health, and Paul Bet David admonishes a Columbia Student for not knowing NYU’s investment portfolio, in his leadup to platforming George Soros conspiracy, plus, your calls and IMs! Check out Tyler's piece here:&nbsp;https://labornotes.org/blogs/2024/04/momentum-open-bargaining-grows-letter-carriers Check out the Zoom registration link for the next "Build a Fighting NALC" meeting on Sunday, June 2 at Noon central (10:00 am Pacific, 1:00 pm Eastern):&nbsp;https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcvceCtqzkqH9zau2xxvNmzfBcO62V-4FfM#/registration Check out all...

3329 - Mail Carrier Rebellion; The War Over The FTC & The Republican House Fissure w/ Tyler Vasseur, David Dayen

Correspondent Brian Mier on the Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting article, “‘I Knew They Had Fabricated a False Narrative’: An Interview with Estela Aranha on 'Twitter Files Brazil.'” Estela Aranha is former secretary of digital rights in the Brazilian Justice Ministry. "The Moment of Truth" with Jeff Dorchen follows the interview. We also announce this week's best answer to the Question from Hell!

Check out Brian's interview with Estala Aranha here: https://fair.org/home/i-knew-they-had-fabricated-a-false-narrative/

Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access weekly bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell

Musk, Greenwald, et al. Campaign Against Brazilian Democracy / Brian Mier

Correspondent Brian Mier on the Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting article, “‘I Knew They Had Fabricated a False Narrative’: An Interview with Estela Aranha on 'Twitter Files Brazil.'” Estela Aranha is former secretary of digital rights in the Brazilian Justice Ministry. 

Check out Brian's interview with Estala Aranha here: https://fair.org/home/i-knew-they-had-fabricated-a-false-narrative/

Help keep This Is Hell! completely listener supported and access weekly bonus episodes by subscribing to our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thisishell

Finally, American politics for the non-brain dead or knuckle draggers. The Majority Report is a smart political podcast hosted by Sam Seder. This daily show features long form interviews of authors, economists, journalists, comedians and politicians. If you want thoughtful and entertaining analysis of policy and politics, you have found it. Winner Best Political Podcast 2014, 2013, 2012 & 2011. Live show daily at www.majority.fm

3319 - Chicago Trader Joe's Vote For Union Election; NLRB Action Against Crowder w/ Daniel Poppen, Matt Bruenig

Majority Report

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