We're diving deep into some unexpected connections this week. What do a 425-year-old Shakespeare tragedy and James Gunn's new Superman movie have in common? More than you might think—especially regarding fathers, sons, and the weight of living up to impossible expectations.

We'll also mark the 100th anniversary of the Scopes trial verdict and explore how little (and how much) has changed since then. Spoiler alert: the fundamentalists now have their own political party and unlimited funding.

Plus, we're talking about what it means to be a good father in public life—from Obama to Biden to... well, let's just say the contrast is stark. And yes, we're absolutely here for Hunter Biden's recent truth-telling tour, much to the horror of certain political consultants who think Democrats should be nicer to anti-immigrant bigots.

Oh, and wait until you hear what Arkansas is doing with taxpayer money while ranking 43rd in education. It's not pretty.

Fair warning: this one gets into some heavy territory about character, legacy, and what happens when revenge meets redemption. But don't worry—Superman has a dog, and that makes everything better.

Not safe for work, recorded live from the Cornfield Resistance.

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• Email: proleftpodcast@gmail.com
• Website: proleftpod.com
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• Mail: The Professional Left, PO Box 9133, Springfield, Illinois, 62791

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We're mad as hell, and we're not going to take it anymore. After 15 years of ringing alarm bells about the Republican party's dangers to our democracy, we find ourselves in the midst of what we're calling "Stupid Watergate Summer" – and it's cooking now.

This week, we break down the eerie parallels between Nixon's original Watergate scandal and Trump's current pedophile coverup crisis. From mysteriously missing minutes in crucial evidence (sound familiar?) to panicked firings of key Justice Department officials, we're watching history rhyme in the most disturbing ways possible.

We explore how Trump's load-bearing lie – his promise to expose the "global pedophile ring" – is finally cracking under the weight of his own contradictions. When your entire political movement is built on fighting satanic pedophiles, what happens when you start covering for them instead?

Plus, we discuss the unprecedented blowback from Trump's own MAGA base, Elon Musk's social media meltdown over the Epstein files, and why this scandal has the potential to fracture the cult of personality that is modern Republicanism.

We also cover the week's news: hundreds of lawyers banding together against Emil Bove's judicial nomination, Trump's rambling speech about his uncle and the Unabomber, and Josh Hawley's pathetic attempt to roll back Medicaid cuts he just voted for.

Because when fascists are destroying democracy, the answer to every question is a noun, a verb, and Donald Trump's coverup of the Epstein Files.

Not safe for work. Recorded live from the Cornfield Resistance.

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• Email: proleftpodcast@gmail.com
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• Mail: The Professional Left, PO Box 9133, Springfield, Illinois, 62791

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This week we're celebrating Blue Gal's birthday while diving deep into Trump's latest meltdown over the Epstein files. We break down how the former reality TV star is now turning his trademark attack style on his own MAGA base as they demand answers about his promised disclosures that never materialized.

Remember: when MAGA tries to change the subject, there's only one question that matters - what about Trump covering up the Epstein files?

This podcast is not safe for work and is recorded live from the Cornfield Resistance.

LINK to last Saturday's Hal Sparks Live Show:

https://soundcloud.com/wcpt820/the-hal-sparks-radio-454722869?si=022584af77ee456eb2f00c2f630e215d&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

Stay in Touch!

• Email: proleftpodcast@gmail.com
• Website: proleftpod.com
• Support via Patreon: patreon.com/proleftpod
• Mail: The Professional Left, PO Box 9133, Springfield, Illinois, 62791

Support the show

Join us this week as we explore the slow-motion collapse of expertise and institutions in America through the lens of Isaac Asimov's classic science fiction story "Nightfall."

We examine how the MAGA mob's assault on knowledge mirrors the fictional planet Lagash, where civilization periodically burns itself down in fear of what it doesn't understand. We're witnessing a Cultural Revolution-style purge of expertise - except this time, the things being feared are lies manufactured by Fox News and demagogues.

Plus, Blue Gal reads driftglass's brilliant takedown of David Brooks' latest exercise in intellectual masturbation, where Brooks traces Trump support all the way back to ancient Athens to avoid the obvious conclusion that Republicans have simply chosen to embrace authoritarianism.

As always, we try to distinguish between weather and climate, between forest and trees - but right now there's just Nazi kudzu growing everywhere, getting louder and more dangerous by the day.

This podcast is not safe for work and is recorded live from the Cornfield Resistance.

LINK TO SATURDAY'S Hal Sparks Live Show tickets: https://heartlandsignal.com/halsparks-live-at-max-and-bennys-restaurant/

Stay in Touch!

• Email: proleftpodcast@gmail.com
• Website: proleftpod.com
• Support via Patreon: patreon.com/proleftpod
• Mail: The Professional Left, PO Box 9133, Springfield, Illinois, 62791

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We dive into the Republican party's latest identity crisis as their own media machine turns on itself. We explore how decades of conspiracy theories and manufactured outrage have created a base that demands their leaders deliver on impossible promises—and what happens when reality finally catches up.

We examine the MAGA movement's relationship with truth, the cult-like devotion that prevents accountability, and how certain recent developments have exposed the gears of the right-wing propaganda machine in real time. Plus, we tackle the persistent myth that America needs a "healthy two-party system" and why that thinking might be exactly backwards.

From the cornfield resistance, we're reworking classic theater for modern times—because sometimes the absurd is the only way to make sense of the absurd.

Stay in Touch!

• Email: proleftpodcast@gmail.com
• Website: proleftpod.com
• Support via Patreon: patreon.com/proleftpod
• Mail: The Professional Left, PO Box 9133, Springfield, Illinois, 62791

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We're visiting America in the ICU on her 249th birthday, hoping the old girl still has some fight left in her.

A sad day as Trump's disastrous bill passes the House. We are still fighting.

This week, we explore the dark matter of American politics - that invisible force that explains why so many voters can't see what's right in front of them. Spoiler alert: it's not really dark at all.

We examine the original No Kings manifesto and ask some pointed questions about which "dark matter" has trained so many Americans not to recognize real threats.

This isn't the time for half measures and tepid language. We're channeling some serious energy for what these times call for.

Episode 914 recorded live from the Cornfield Resistance for the week of July 4th, 2025 - Not safe for work

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• Email: proleftpodcast@gmail.com
• Website: proleftpod.com
• Support via Patreon: patreon.com/proleftpod
• Mail: The Professional Left, PO Box 9133, Springfield, Illinois, 62791

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Hat tip to John Fetter-Manchin (copyright Driftglass), we're grudgingly back from our beach vacation (okay, we never actually left the Cornfield Resistance) to bring you the political chaos that just won't quit.

This week, we dive into the summer breakup season hitting Washington hard. From senators throwing tantrums and storming out over Trump's latest budget disaster... to billionaire Twitter feuds that read like celebrity gossip... to Trump supporters getting a harsh reality check about what they actually voted for.

We'll also cover Trump's new fragrance line (yes, really), handwritten notes to the Fed in Sharpie, and why Las Vegas tourism is cratering while the dollar takes its worst nosedive since 1973.

Plus, we explore what happens when the MAGA movement starts eating its own, and Trump's ongoing mission to militarize American politics while politicizing the military.

Fair warning: It's not safe for work, but it is safe for your sanity. Probably.

Episode 913 recorded live from the Cornfield Resistance on July 1st, 2025

Stay in Touch!

• Email: proleftpodcast@gmail.com
• Website: proleftpod.com
• Support via Patreon: patreon.com/proleftpod
• Mail: The Professional Left, PO Box 9133, Springfield, Illinois, 62791

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We had severe technical difficulties with our audio with Charlie Pierce (thanks for your time, Charlie!) so that interview had to be scrapped.

But the show must go on! So this evening we recorded a podcast just the two of us.

Bluegal's opinion of Republicans has changed.

Someone FINALLY says, "Liberals were right all along," buuuuut...

Enjoy this more spontaneous-than-usual show.

Stay in Touch!

• Email: proleftpodcast@gmail.com
• Website: proleftpod.com
• Support via Patreon: patreon.com/proleftpod
• Mail: The Professional Left, PO Box 9133, Springfield, Illinois, 62791

Support the show