Podcast Summary: "The Left is Violent (Part 2) | Change My Mind"

Podcast: Louder with Crowder
Host: Steven Crowder
Date: October 2, 2025
Theme:
A return to the "Change My Mind" format, Crowder sits on a campus with guests, discussing and debating the assertion: "The Left is Violent." Crowder argues that political violence in the U.S. is predominantly driven by the political left, exploring both statistical evidence and cultural observations. The episode features a series of in-depth, mostly civil conversations with participants of varying backgrounds and perspectives.

Main Discussions and Insights

Introduction and Context

• Minimal Prior Announcement: Due to safety concerns and past violent incidents during campus events, the return of Change My Mind was conducted discreetly, with significant security measures in place ([00:34]).
• Premise Clarified: Crowder emphasizes the goal is civil, productive discussions, not gotcha moments or "clips for dunks." The hope is genuine viewpoint change on either side ([03:41]).

Defining Political Violence ([04:01]–[05:30])

• Definition: Political violence is violence "committed in the name of or as a political means to an end."
  • Both Crowder and the first main guest (Jacob) agree that this includes targeted attacks for political reasons, not merely crimes committed by people who have political beliefs ([05:30]).
  • Example: An assault motivated by the victim's political identity is political violence; an apolitical crime is not.

Statistical Claims and Polls

• Crowder’s Claim: The left supports/reports significantly higher tolerance for political violence compared to the right.

  • Cites YouGov polls: "77% of self-identified conservatives said political violence is always unacceptable. Only 38% of leftists said the same—62% on the left answered political violence was 'somewhat to completely acceptable'" ([09:14]).
  • After the attempted assassination of Donald Trump, "over 60% of the left said it is somewhat to completely acceptable" ([09:38]).
  • These statistics are met with skepticism by guests, who express a desire to review sources directly (Crowder provides a QR code to poll sources, [10:38], [17:27]).

• Crowder’s Argument: The rhetoric and leadership of the left—them labeling the right as fascists, racists, etc.—fuel both actual violence and justification for it ([15:10], [12:17]).

  Notable Quote:
  “You can't have over 60% in poll after poll after poll supporting some kind of political violence. ... That needs to change for us to be able to find common ground. It needs to come from the left. The left needs to tone down the temperature and they need to take ownership and apologize and they haven't.” —Crowder, [24:14]

Discussion with Jacob ([03:40]–[30:27])

Key Topics:

• Jacob is skeptical of the idea that the majority of the left is violent, believing instead it's the work of "a very, very small isolated segment" ([07:33]).

• Crowder challenges this, arguing the polls demonstrate widespread acceptance of violence in the left’s base and the problem is systemic, not merely fringe ([08:01], [09:14]).

• Both agree more violence seems to be coming from the left at present, but Jacob insists condemnation should not target an entire ideological group ([17:28]).

• Role of Leadership: Crowder argues Democratic leadership is complicit by calling political opponents fascists and Hitlerian, thereby stoking justifications for violence ([15:08]).

• Solutions Agreed: Crowder calls for accountability, strong messaging against violence, policy change (particularly on crime and bail reform), and members of the left calling out their own ([24:09]–[30:27]).

  Notable Quote:
  "It's not enough to not condone political violence. You have to be championing that cause in your own ranks because we're not seeing it." —Crowder, [24:59]

Conversation with Connor ([30:27]–[55:54])

Key Topics:

• Connor, a self-identified Christian from San Francisco, agrees the left is currently responsible for more violence, but differentiates between left-wing individuals and the ideology as a whole ([31:19]).

• Discussion on "ruthless, lawful violence"—Crowder stresses the right must be prepared to lawfully and ruthlessly defend itself, drawing analogies to hockey enforcers and gun rights ([35:40]).

• Crowder laments a culture of passivity and cites examples from criminal justice (e.g., George Floyd, other repeat offenders) to criticize leftist "soft on crime" policies as enabling violence ([37:31], [41:46]).

• The conversation pivots to how Christian ideas of forgiveness and duty intersect with justifiable self-defense ([52:06]–[53:04]).

  Notable Quote:
  "The most dangerous man is one who's actively avoided violence and has been brought to his front door." —Crowder, [53:04]

Atticus: Cultural & Policy Roots ([55:54]–[66:09])

Key Topics:

• Atticus, a single father, asks about the roots of violence and cultural shifts within "white" America—expanding the topic to broader sociological and policy changes, including the welfare state and voting reforms ([59:19]–[60:54]).
• Criticism of modern left-leaning policies as "Marxist" and detrimental to traditional family structures, particularly the influence of "liberal white women" in education and policy.
• The importance of strong, present fathers and the cultural failure to teach women how to treat men ("Are women taught how to treat men? Most are not." —Crowder, [65:06]).
• Crowder supports equal accountability and restoring strong, traditional values.

Harrison: Violence as Policy, Not Only Action ([66:58]–[82:27])

Key Topics:

• Harrison challenges the framing of "The Left is Violent" as too simplistic, preferring to address the violence embedded in left-wing policies: abortion, transgender support, multiculturalism, and cancel culture ([68:05]).

• Argues leftist ideology is inherently anti-Christian and oriented toward replacing God with government ([69:40]).

• Both agree the right should stand firm, not be silenced by accusations of bigotry or violence, but respond with truth and legal self-defense ([76:36]–[79:23]).

• Debate over the possibility of real change without spiritual revival: Harrison argues only a Christian revival could reverse current trends ([80:06]).

  Notable Quotes:

  • "I'm not advocating that people go out into the streets and commit violence. I'm saying it's an inevitability unless what the left needed to do when Charlie Kirk was assassinated and they would have to do this within weeks is not only condemning his go. Whoa, whoa, whoa. We have labeled those in the right ... We need to tone it down. We need to do better." —Crowder, [76:59]
  • "Toleration of evil is the same as atheism." —Harrison, [79:41]
  • "If they say you can't do this, tone it down—where do I tone it down?" —Crowder, [79:36]

Memorable Moments & Quotes with Timestamps

• “[T]he conversation was highly productive.” —Crowder ([00:34])
• “Name me one member of the Democratic party in a national position of leadership…who hasn’t accused our side of being fascist, of comparing us to Hitler.” —Crowder ([00:00], repeated at [19:18])
• “If you’re convicted of a violent crime, then you should be convicted according to…whatever the state’s penal code is.” —Jacob ([28:21])
• “We need the left, these judges, these DA's, to go back to punishing crime.” —Crowder ([29:07])
• “I want them to be deathly afraid of coming into our group and assaulting our own. I feel like a shepherd…who didn’t do his best to protect his flock.” —Crowder ([37:02])
• "[T]he left wants you scared, dependent, dumb and numb." —Crowder ([45:24])
• “They don’t want America. They want something else. If you’re not entitled to protect your family and your own, that’s not American.” —Crowder ([47:04])
• “If everything is nuanced, and nothing is true, then we don’t know up from down.” —Crowder ([50:52])
• “The only way to tone it down further is silence…That’s the reason I’m back here.” —Crowder ([55:10])
• “Liberal white women are the worst. That’s why I have a Latina at home now.” —Crowder ([63:36])
• “We have labeled these people fascist, Nazis, racists, homophobe, sexist, transphobe, genocidist… And you know what? You can’t deal with a fascist at the ballot box.” —Crowder ([76:59])
• “The most dangerous man is one who’s actively avoided violence and has been brought to his front door.” —Crowder ([53:04])
• “Toleration of evil is the same as atheism.” —Harrison ([79:41])

Notable Segments & Timestamps

• Crowder’s Opening Challenge: “Name me one Democratic leader who hasn’t used fascist/Hitler rhetoric” ([00:00]; [19:18]).
• Discussion on Polls and Public Attitudes ([08:01]–[10:38]; [21:25]–[22:34])
• Personal Security Experiences and Rationale ([11:09]; [35:40])
• Rhetoric and Political Leaders’ Responsibility ([15:08]; [16:09])
• Crime & Justice System Critiques ([26:09]; [41:46])
• Defining and Addressing Solutions ([24:09]–[29:07]; [76:59]–[77:59])
• Christian Perspective & Duty to Protect ([52:06]–[53:04])
• Cultural Critique: Feminization, Welfare, Academia ([59:19]–[63:36])
• Policy Origins of Violence / "Inherent Violence" in Leftist Policy ([66:58]–[68:53]; [69:40])
• Christian Revival as the Only Solution ([80:06]–[82:15])

Tone and Style of Discussion

• Crowder maintains a combative yet respectful style, committed to open debate but unwavering in his convictions.
• Most guests are civil, inquisitive, and occasionally skeptical; there is a repeated motif of wanting better, more honest conversations.
• The overall mood is intense, at times personal and philosophical, with appeals to data, principle, and anecdote.

Conclusion & Takeaways

• Crowder contends that not only is political violence presently far more common from the left, but that the left's leaders and rhetoric actively encourage and excuse it.
• The episode repeatedly stresses that true change requires the left to take responsibility, leaders to condemn violence, and the justice system to enforce consequences for offenders.
• There is consensus with most guests that violence today is imbalanced toward the left, but disagreement as to the causes, the scope, and the best approach to stopping it.
• Crowder argues the only way to further "tone down" right-wing speech or self-defense at this point would be silence, and he refuses to yield ground ([55:10]; [79:36]).

Final Note from Crowder ([84:27]):

“Genuine, raw, unedited, unfiltered, non-performative conversations where ideas can be challenged, people can respectfully engage, and a conversation can take place. While we don’t have to compromise on our principles or frankly find common ground based on a lie, I think you can be respectful and still be bold. You can be civil and still be steadfast.”

For Listeners

This episode delivers a sharply opinionated but substantive exploration of left-wing violence claims in America, blending statistics, personal experiences, cultural criticism, and philosophical debate. Crowder’s approach is to force a reckoning on the issue, insisting that rhetoric matters and that silence in the face of escalating violence, or the pretense of neutrality, is no longer defensible. The guests, while mostly agreeing violence from the left is a problem, offer nuance on its scope and origin, and challenge Crowder to distinguish between the fringe and the mainstream left.