Happy Tuesday, Sam hosts journalist and academic Anne Nelson to discuss her new book, Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right. Sam and Nelson begin their interview with a play-by-play of how fundamentalist Evangelical Christians rallied behind Ronald Reagan during his the 1980 election and helped fuel his victory with a strong turnout in southern and southwestern states. Nelson also explains the foundational tenets of Christian Nationalism, and the role of “Biblical Inerrancy,” which states the word of God is in the text of the bible, in Christian Nationalists policy projects. Nelson’s book explores the history and impact of the Council for National Policy (CNP), the professional umbrella organization for the country’s most influential conservative organizations and activist groups. Nelson explains how the CNP brokered a deal with Trump in 2016, which involved adding Mike Pence as his running mate and establishing an Evangelical Advisory Board in Trump’s White House. Sam and Nelson conclude their discussion exploring the role of conservative media outlets like Salem Media, and their ability to fill the void where capital investors starved and killed local news organizations. 

And in the Fun Half: Mehdi Hasan gets the chance to remind CNN that Bernie is still leading across the first four democratic primaries, Mayor Pete moves the goalposts on his free college position, Michael Bennet dodges the free college question (and is still running for president), Sebastian Gorka wants to know if Charlie Kirk took a DNA test, Duncan Hunter is pleading guilty and we remember when he blamed his wife for the 60 campaign finance criminal charges against him, a Libertarian caller makes Sam’s day, TruNews’ “Jew Coup” and their White House Press Corps membership, plus your calls and IMs!

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