Podcast
Letters from an American
Hosted by HCR · EN
Heather Cox Richardson's narrated newsletter about the history behind today's politics.
128episodes
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D-Day
Jun 600:06:29Tap to summarizeJune 5, 2026In his June 5th, 1944 Fireside Chat, FDR let Americans know that Rome had fallen to Allied troops, He emphasized how troops from many nations had worked together to defeat the forces of fascism, And he warned that this was just the beginning of the path to victory, FDR knew, but did not tell his audience, that the Allies were on their way into France, That evening, General Dwight D Eisenhower’s order read that the eyes of the world were upon the Allies, and he assured the troops that they were on their way to victory, Eisenhower’s confidence disguised his appreciation of the risks of the operation, Eisenhower had written a letter, to be sent if the invasion failed, In the letter he took full responsibility and praised the members of the military, But the letter was never delivered as on June 6, 1944, in the largest amphibious invasion in military history, the Allies had successfully stormed the beaches of Normandy, Thousands died or were wounded, but the operation established an essential foothold in France.Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe
Transcribe →People are Paying Attention
Jun 500:12:34Tap to summarizeJune 4, 2026The Trump administration’s promise to dismantle the liberal consensus got him elected, but the effects of his plans are starting to be widely felt, Tariffs are destroying foreign markets for US agricultural products, The war on Iran is sending the price of fuel and fertilizer soaring, Secretary of Agriculture Brook Rollins was grilled by the House Agriculture Committee, New World screwworm, a parasite that had been eradicated is back after the Trump administration cut funding for control and prevention, Oil reserves are at their lowest level in 22 years, Many of the known funders for Trump’s ballroom have received lucrative contracts from the federal government, Democrats are calling out the corruption in the administration which siphons taxpayer money into the pockets of the wealthy, At a Texas rally for James Talarico the democratic candidate for governor, the crowd shouted “lock him up!"Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe
Transcribe →A Vast Grab for Power
Jun 400:13:42Tap to summarizeJune 3. 2026US Supreme Court allows Alabama to use a 2023 map that had been ruled as unconstitutional because it violates the Fourteenth Amendment and Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, As Trump deteriorates mentallly and physically Republican lawmakers and the administration try to grab as much power as possible, Promises of an end to the war on Iran fizzle and the economy is slowing as oil prices increase and credit card delinquencies reach new highs, Russell Vought proposes that OMB should have control over research grants, Trump signs order stripping civil service workers of protected status, And Trump nominates William Pulte as acting director of national intelligence, one of the most important positions in the government, Pulte has no experience in intelligence and his nomination threatens the renewal of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), Democrats and some Republicans are pushing back on Pulte's nomination, There has been pushback in the House where a resolution passed telling Trump to stop its strikes on Iran or get congressional approval and a measure that would aid Ukraine advanced, Trump did not react well.Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe
Transcribe →Destroying the Rule of Law
Jun 300:14:07Tap to summarizeJune 2, 2026Administration officials have repeatedly tried to limit access to detention centers across the country, Detainees at the Delaney Hall detention center in New Jersey start a hunger strike to protest dangerous conditions and the lack of access to the legal system, New Jersey’s attorney general is suing the GEO Group which operates Delaney Hall, The destruction of the rule of law at Delaney Hall is part of the larger effort by the Trump administration to destroy it across the country, The newly appointed acting director of national intelligence, who has no relevant expertise, is willing to use the government to persecute Trump’s perceived enemies, Trump’s slush fund will be dropped but the DOJ is not dropping the plan to provide tax amnesty to the Trumps, Secretary of Homeland Security refuses to commit to abide by court rulings, Former Border Patrol chief Gregory Bovino publicly embraces white nationalism, claiming that 100 million people in the US must be removed and going after government and elected officials.Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe
Transcribe →Trump is Looking for a Lifeline
Jun 200:12:44Tap to summarizeJune 1, 2026Trump is caught between demands to deliver on promises to keep Iran from developing nuclear capacity and to open the Strait of Hormuz as oil reserves continue to drop and oil prices in the US continue to rise, Return of Congress raises possibility that a war powers resolution will pass, As soon as details for a framework for ending the war in Iran are leaked to the media, Trump’s base complains and the negotiations fall apart, Trump is attacking Democrats and the judges who have been deciding against him in legal cases, Acts that were lined up to perform at Trump’s Freedom 250 celebration are cancelling, Iran says they are suspending negotiations with the US until Israel stops strikes on Lebanon, warning that they will close the Strait of Hormuz entirely, Trump posts wildly on social media, Trump professes to be bored with the negotiations with Iran,The Pentagon restricts access to its press office to all journalists. Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe
Transcribe →A Declaration of Conscience
Jun 100:08:39Tap to summarizeMay 31, 2026Margaret Chase Smith was elected represent Maine as a Republican in the House after her husband, who held that seat, died in 1940, Smith served three terms in the House and then was elected to the Senate in 1948, Anti-New Deal Republicans were insisting that the US government was sliding toward communism, Senator from Wisconsin, Joseph McCarthy, claimed he had a list of communists working for the State Department, McCarthy’s charges were unproven, but fellow Republicans did not protest, except for Senator Smith, On June 1, 1950, Smith made an eloquent speech in the Senate that bluntly challenged McCarthy, and condemned the leaders in her party who were supporting him and were making wild accusations, She wanted to see President Harry Truman replaced in the next election, but not with a Republican regime without integrity, Her speech presented a Declaration of Conscience to her party, She was largely ignored at the time, but four years later the Senate condemned McCarthy, Smith would be remembered for her courage, while McCarthy has gone down in history as a disgrace to the Senate and to the country. Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe
Transcribe →The Johnstown Flood
May 3100:09:53Tap to summarizeMay 30, 2026The members of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club were wealthy and influential, The Club took control of a Pennsylvania reservoir created by damming a river, and enjoyed it for sport, but it had no drainage system, Perched high above Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a factory town, members of the club gave little thought to the people living there, On May 31, 1889, the South Fork Dam failed in a torrential storm, 2,208 people died in the Johnstown Flood, the largest loss of civilian lives in the US to that time, The survivors who hoped to hold the members of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club accountable were disappointed, The four lawsuits that were launched against the club failed. Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe
Transcribe →As Trump Takes Hits, He Lashes Out
May 3000:12:40Tap to summarizeMay 29, 2026The war in Iran and the rising cost of living are costing Trump support, While there is talk of an agreement with Iran, there are no signs that it is real, Public opinion is causing support to dwindle for Trump’s wish to be on the face of a new $250 bill, Trump lost in court on changing the name of the Kennedy Center and on closing the center for two years, Trump’s plans for a Freedom 250 celebration are fizzling, too, The Department of Justice has been temporarily stopped from creating or operating Trump’s $1.776 billion slush fund, Thirty-five federal judges have asked US District Judge Williams to reopen the legal case that the Trumps brought against the IRS, Trump and his loyalists are taking other actions, some of which have the potential to have wide repercussions. Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe
Transcribe →Weaponizing the Department of Justice
May 3000:10:38Tap to summarizeMay 28, 2026Trump is treating the nation’s capital as his property, Trump is lashing out, filing suits against E. Jean Carroll and the Wall Street Journal, Grand juries as well as judges are losing faith in the Department of Justice, Trump appears to be focused on corrupt dealings that benefit him and his family, Thirty-five former federal judges have challenged the slush fund set up by Trump and his MAGA loyalists and the notion that they had reached a “settlement agreement” with the Department of Justice, The judges wrote: “… the parties’ settlement was not, and never will be, legally justified.”Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe
Transcribe →Trump's Politics as Dominance Sport
May 2800:13:49Tap to summarizeMay 27, 2026Backed by Trump, scandal-ridden Ken Paxton wins Texas primary against John Cornyn, UFC arena is being built on the White House lawn as Trump dominates the People’s House just as he is dominating the Republican Party, In the 1850s, enslavers similarly dominated the Democratic Party and forced through the Kansas Nebraska Act, Those opposed to the spread of slavery created a new alignment, Trump and his supporters are using culture war issues to try to cement their power, James Talarico may have an advantage in his campaign for Senate, given the corruption of the Trump administration, Administration is trying to keep its actions secret, In 1854, voters put anti-Nebraska candidates in office and would create a new political party. By 1859 the Republican party found a champion in Abraham Lincoln. Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe
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