Mike Breen is the President and CEO of Human Rights First. He’s been on the ground in Ukraine documenting Russian war crimes, and he joins us from Kyiv. 

Human Rights First is an organization that defends human rights and democracy around the globe. They’ve been active in Ukraine since the annexation of Crimea in 2014, and now after Russia’s invasion, have provided technical and logistical support, training, and other aid. They’ve issued dozens of reports and commentaries, and work to hold Russian leaders and war criminals accountable. 

Mike served in the US Army, deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan. He also co-founded the International Refugee Assistance Project, a global legal aid and advocacy organization that fights for the right of refugees to freely move and have a path towards lasting refuge.

To support Human Rights First and the people of Ukraine, visit humanrightsfirst.org.

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Former Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan talks about the quality of American life, divisions within both parties, and how American culture has made a turn for the worse over the last few decades.

Tim spent 20 years in the House of Representatives, rising to a prominent leadership position. He ran for president in 2020, and recently lost a tough Senate race during the 2022 Midterms.

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Brett Jones served as a Navy SEAL during ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’. He was forcefully outed, and was subjected to an interrogation and investigation about his sexuality. He fought back, and was given the opportunity to continue to serve as a SEAL, but he left in fear of further discrimination. 

Brett continued to serve in the CIA, but was the victim of vicious harassment. He’s spent the last three years as a police officer in Alabama, where he lives with his husband and son. 

In Pride: The Story of the First Openly Gay Navy SEAL, Brett tells his life story, from being kicked out of his house for being gay, to the intense Navy SEAL training, to almost being ousted from the SEALs. 

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Former leading Republican Bill Kristol discusses media echo chambers and anti-democratic enablers within the Republican Party

Bill served in two presidential administrations and founded The Weekly Standard, an influential conservative magazine. After leaving the Republican Party, he helped launch Defending Democracy Together, an organization created by Republicans with the goal of preserving democratic institutions. He also is the host of Conversations with Bill Kristol, a video and podcast series.

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Will Sommer is a political reporter for The Daily Beast and host of the podcast Fever Dreams. His new book, Trust the Plan, details QAnon’s journey into the mainstream, the threat it poses to democracy, and how we can reach out to those who have embraced the conspiracy.

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Former Navy SEAL and founder of Veterans for Responsible Leadership Dr. Dan Barkhuff discusses the relationship between toxic masculinity and gun culture.

Dan is a former Navy SEAL with multiple combat deployments. After returning home, he attended Harvard Medical School and became an Emergency Medicine doctor at the University of Vermont.

Dan is a conservative, but was appalled by Trump’s comments and messages during the 2016 election. Dan did not vote for Trump in that election, but decided to give him a chance. After a year of the Trump Presidency, Dan said Trump was “worse than I thought he would be—and I thought he was going to be terrible.” In response, Dan created Veterans for Responsible Leadership, an organization that is dedicated to holding public officials accountable and helping to defeat candidates like Trump. 

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Lucas Kunce talks about his run against Josh Hawley for the 2024 Missouri Senate Seat. 

Lucas is a Marine Corps veteran who served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, and eventually went on to become an international negotiations officer at the Pentagon. He ran for Missouri’s open Senate seat in 2022, but lost the primary to multi-millionaire Trudy Busch Valentine after her last-minute entrance into the race. She went on to lose the general by 13 points.

Lucas believes he’s the right person to take on Josh Hawley, who he refers to as a “Corporate, Country Club Republican.” Lucas is running a populist campaign that focuses on taking power out of the hands of corporate monopolies, and putting it back in the hands of working people. He refuses to take corporate donations, and instead is completely funded by small-dollar grassroots donors. 

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Joe Walsh represented Illinois’ 8th district in the house from 2011 to 2013, and ran against Trump in the 2020 presidential race. He hosts the podcast White Flag with Joe Walsh and has been increasingly critical of the extremism within his former party, as well as the part he played in stoking that extremism. 

You can find Joe on Twitter at @WalshFreedom.

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Dr. Rachel Kleinfeld discusses political violence, the possibility of a Civil War, and extremism. 

Rachel is an expert on democracy, security, and international relations. She’s currently a senior fellow in Carnegie’s Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program, where she regularly briefs the governments of the United States and allied democracies on issues of conflict, the rule of law, and policing and security sector reform. Her most recent book, A Savage Order, examines ‘why democracies are crippled by extreme violence and how they can regain security.’

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Historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat describes the similarities between current authoritarian movements and those of the past.

Ruth is a historian who specializes in authoritarianism and propaganda. She’s a professor of History and Italian Studies, as well as an MSNBC Opinion Columnist and frequent guest commentator on CNN, MSNBC, and other media channels.

Her most recent book, cv-May-2021.pdf">Strongmen: From Mussolini to the Present, examines how authoritarians use propaganda, virility, corruption, and violence to stay in power, and how they can be opposed. 

Ruth also authored Fascist Modernities, about how Mussolini presented fascism as a unique solution to his people, and Italian Fascism’s Empire Cinema, about the propaganda films created in Mussolini’s Italy.

If you’d like to hear more from Ruth, you can subscribe to her weekly newsletter Lucid for free. Also, make sure to check out her website, ruthbenghiat.com, and follow her on Twitter @ruthbenghiat.

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