Best Roosevelt Institute Podcasts (2025)

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 179: Out of the Darkness (Guest: Frank Trentmann) 1:16:22

2M ago1:16:22

1:16:22

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Frank Trentmann, professor of history at Birkbeck, University of London, to discuss his latest book, Out of the Darkness: The Germans, 1942–2022. They chat about how a nation whose past has been marked by mass murder, a people who cheered Adolf Hitler, reinvented themselves, and by how much. Get the book here: ht…

1
Ascent to Power: How Truman Emerged from Roosevelt's Shadow and Remade the World (Guest: David L. Roll) 1:04:29

3M ago1:04:29

1:04:29

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by David L. Roll, founder of the Lex Mundi Pro Bono Foundation, to discuss his latest book, Ascent to Power: How Truman Emerged from Roosevelt's Shadow and Remade the World. They chat about Truman’s struggles to emerge as president in his own right after his accidental ascension to the office and how Truman’s decisi…

1
Brought Forth on This Continent: Abraham Lincoln and American Immigration (Guest: Harold Holzer) 1:12:55

3M ago1:12:55

1:12:55

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Harold Holzer, director of the Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute at Hunter College, to discuss his latest book, Brought Forth on This Continent: Abraham Lincoln and American Immigration. They chat about the immigration situation in the United States in the 30 years leading up the Civil War, how immigrants f…

1
Kent State: An American Tragedy (Guest: Brian VanDeMark) 1:15:17

4M ago1:15:17

1:15:17

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Brian VanDeMark, professor of history at the United States Naval Academy, to discuss his latest book, Kent State: An American Tragedy. They chat about the context of the divided cultural landscape of America during the Vietnam War and heightened popular anxieties around the country, how the shootings came to take…

1
Mirrors of Greatness: Churchill and the Leaders Who Shaped Him (Guest: David Reynolds) 1:14:26

4M ago1:14:26

1:14:26

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by David Reynolds, emeritus professor of international history at Christ’s College, Cambridge University, to discuss his latest book, Mirrors of Greatness: Churchill and the Leaders Who Shaped Him. They reevaluate Churchill’s life by viewing it through the eyes of his allies and adversaries like Hitler, Mussolini, S…

1
Serpent in Eden: Foreign Meddling and Partisan Politics in James Madison's America (Guest: Tyson Reeder) 1:07:24

4M ago1:07:24

1:07:24

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Tyson Reeder, assistant professor of history at Brigham Young University, to discuss his new book, Serpent in Eden: Foreign Meddling and Partisan Politics in James Madison's America. They chat about the espionage, shadow diplomacy, foreign scheming, and domestic backstabbing in the formative years of the American…

1
Righteous Strife: How Warring Religious Nationalists Forged Lincoln's Union (Guest: Richard Carwardine) 1:21:15

4M ago1:21:15

1:21:15

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Richard Carwardine, Emeritus Rhodes Professor of American History and Distinguished Fellow of the Rothermere American Institute at Oxford University, to discuss his new book, Righteous Strife: How Warring Religious Nationalists Forged Lincoln's Union. They chat about how the tensions surrounding the moral quandar…

1
Bob Dylan: Prophet Without God (Guest: Jeffrey Edward Green) 1:18:03

6M ago1:18:03

1:18:03

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Jeffrey Edward Green, Professor of Political Science and Director of the Andrea Mitchell Center for the Study of Democracy at the University of Pennsylvania, to discuss his new book, Bob Dylan: Prophet Without God. They chat about how Green sees Dylan as a modern-day prophet, but a prophet of diremption rather th…

1
American Covenant: How the Constitution Unified Our Nation―and Could Again (Guest: Yuval Levin) 1:05:28

6M ago1:05:28

1:05:28

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Yuval Levin, the director of Social, Cultural, and Constitutional Studies at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), where he also holds the Beth and Ravenel Curry Chair in Public Policy, to discuss his new book, American Covenant: How the Constitution Unified Our Nation―and Could Again. They chat about the Cons…

1
The Extinction of Experience (Guest: Christine Rosen) 1:04:34

6M ago1:04:34

1:04:34

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Christine Rosen, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and media commentary columnist at Commentary, to discuss her new book, The Extinction of Experience: Being Human in a Disembodied World. They chat about how digital technologies offer novelty and convenience, but also transform our sense of self …

1
A Great and Good Man: Rare, First-Hand Accounts and Observations of Abraham Lincoln (Guest: Jonathan W. White) 56:42

6M ago56:42

56:42

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Jonathan W. White, professor of American Studies at Christopher Newport University, to discuss his new book, co-authored with William J. Griffing, A Great and Good Man: Rare, First-Hand Accounts and Observations of Abraham Lincoln. They chat about the excerpts of the more than 200 previously unpublished accounts …

1
How Economics Explains the World (Guest: Andrew Leigh) 56:59

6M ago56:59

56:59

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Andrew Leigh, Assistant Minister for Competition, Charities, Treasury and Employment, and Federal Member for Fenner in the Australian Parliament, to discuss his book How Economics Explains the World: A Short History of Humanity. They chat about how ingenuity, greed, and desire for betterment have determined our p…

1
Thomas Jefferson and the Fight against Slavery (Guest: Cara Rogers Stevens) 1:12:16

7M ago1:12:16

1:12:16

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Cara Rogers Stevens, associate professor of history at Ashland University, to discuss her book Thomas Jefferson and the Fight against Slavery. They chat about the evolution of Jefferson’s views on race and slavery, his legislative attempts to put the practice on a pathway to extinction in Virginia beginning in th…

1
Why War? (Guest: Richard Overy) 54:03

7M ago54:03

54:03

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by renowned historian Richard Overy to discuss his new book, Why War? They chat about why has war been such a consistent presence throughout the human past, and indeed in the human present, and what are the major drivers and motivations for war, how each has contributed to organized conflict, and whether humanity wi…

1
A Voice in Their Own Destiny: Reagan, Thatcher, and Public Diplomacy in the Nuclear 1980s (Guest: Anthony Eames) 1:13:38

7M ago1:13:38

1:13:38

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Anthony Eames, director of scholarly initiatives at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute, non-resident fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, and professorial lecturer at the Elliott School of International Affairs at The George Washington University, to discuss his new book, A Voice …

1
To Run the World: The Kremlin's Cold War Bid for Global Power (Guest: Sergey Radchenko) 1:15:07

8M ago1:15:07

1:15:07

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Sergey Radchenko, Wilson E. Schmidt Distinguished Professor at the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, to discuss his new book, To Run the World: The Kremlin's Cold War Bid for Global Power. They chat about how the Soviet struggle with the Un…

1
Reds: The Tragedy of American Communism (Guest: Maurice Isserman) 1:01:36

8M ago1:01:36

1:01:36

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Maurice Isserman, Publius Virgilius Rogers Professor of American History at Hamilton College, to discuss his new book, Reds: The Tragedy of American Communism. They chat about the deeply contradictory nature of the history of the Communist Party USA, the history of the American far left, and how the Bolshevik Rev…

1
To Overthrow the World: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Communism (Guest: Sean McMeekin) 1:06:02

8M ago1:06:02

1:06:02

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Sean McMeekin, Francis Flournoy Professor of European History and Culture at Bard College, to discuss his new book, To Overthrow the World: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Communism. They chat about the evolution of Communism from a seductive ideal of a classless society into the ruling doctrine of tyrannical regim…

1
The Gulf War: George H. W. Bush and American Grand Strategy in the Post-Cold War Era (Guest: Spencer D. Bakich) 1:35:17

8M ago1:35:17

1:35:17

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Spencer D. Bakich, Professor of International Studies and Director of the National Security Program at the Virginia Military Institute, and Senior Fellow at the University of Virginia's Miller Center, to discuss his new book, The Gulf War: George H. W. Bush and American Grand Strategy in the Post-Cold War Era. Th…

1
The Power and the Money: The Epic Clashes Between Commanders in Chief and Titans of Industry (Guest: Tevi Troy) 55:04

9M ago55:04

55:04

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Tevi Troy, Senior Fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center, Senior Scholar at Yeshiva University’s Straus Center, and a Visiting Fellow at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, to discuss his new book, The Power and the Money: The Epic Clashes Between Commanders in Chief and Titans of Industry. They chat …

1
The Eastern Front: A History of the Great War, 1914-1918 (Guest: Nick Lloyd) 1:15:46

9M ago1:15:46

1:15:46

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Nick Lloyd, Professor of Modern Warfare at King’s College London, to discuss his new book, The Eastern Front: A History of the Great War, 1914-1918. They chat about the scale of the conflict, how the most radical aspect of the struggle in the east was that the violence was not confined to combatants, and how the …

1
The Light of Battle: Eisenhower, D-Day, and the Birth of the American Superpower(Guest: Michel Paradis) 1:11:31

9M ago1:11:31

1:11:31

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Michel Paradis, fellow at the Center on National Security and the National Institute for Military Justice and lecture in law at Columbia Law School, to discuss his new book, The Light of Battle: Eisenhower, D-Day, and the Birth of the American Superpower. They chat about how Eisenhower’s rise both reflected and w…

1
Collisions: The Origins of the War in Ukraine and the New Global Instability (Guest: Michael Kimmage) 1:06:08

9M ago1:06:08

1:06:08

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Michael Kimmage, Professor of History at the Catholic University of America and non-resident Senior Associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, to discuss his new book, Collisions: The Origins of the War in Ukraine and the New Global Instability. They chat about the origins of the war, how it…

1
A Wonderful Career in Crime (Guest: Frank W. Garmon Jr.) 1:09:42

9M ago1:09:42

1:09:42

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Frank W. Garmon Jr., assistant professor of American studies at Christopher Newport University, to discuss his new book, A Wonderful Career in Crime: Charles Cowlam’s Masquerades in the Civil War Era and Gilded Age. They chat Cowlam’s career as convict, spy, detective, congressional candidate, adventurer, con art…

1
Democracy and Solidarity: On the Cultural Roots of America's Political Crisis 1:22:32

10M ago1:22:32

1:22:32

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by James Davison Hunter, LaBrosse-Levinson Distinguished Professor of Religion, Culture and Social Theory and Executive Director of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture at the University of Virginia, to discuss his new book, Democracy and Solidarity: On the Cultural Roots of America's Political Crisis. They…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 156: The Hollow Parties (Guest: Sam Rosenfeld) 1:22:08

10M ago1:22:08

1:22:08

In Episode 154 of Ill Literacy, Tim Benson talks with Sam Rosenfeld, co-author of The Hollow Parties: The Many Pasts and Disordered Present of American Party Politics. Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Sam Rosenfeld, Associate Professor of Political Science and Director, Public Affairs and Policy Research Initiative at Colgate University, to disc…

1
We May Dominate the World: Ambition, Anxiety, and the Rise of the American Colossus (Guest: Sean A. Mirski) 1:19:47

10M ago1:19:47

1:19:47

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Sean A. Mirski, Visiting Scholar at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, to discuss his new book, We May Dominate the World: Ambition, Anxiety, and the Rise of the American Colossus. They discuss how the United States became a regional hegemon in the century following the Civil War, which no other great…

1
An Unholy Traffic: Slave Trading in the Civil War South (Guest: Robert K.D. Colby 1:22:35

11M ago1:22:35

1:22:35

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Robert K.D. Colby, Assistant Professor of History at the University of Mississippi, to discuss his new book, An Unholy Traffic: Slave Trading in the Civil War South. They discuss how Southerners made the internal slave trade a cornerstone of Confederate society, a bulwark of the Rebel economy, and a central part …

1
Who Is Big Brother? A Reader’s Guide to George Orwell (Guest: D.J. Taylor) 1:11:14

11M ago1:11:14

1:11:14

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by award-winning novelist, critic, and biographer D.J. Taylor to discuss his new book, Who Is Big Brother? A Reader’s Guide to George Orwell. They discuss Orwell’s books, life and thought, including his conflicted relationship with religion to his competing anti-imperialism and fascination with empire. They also dis…

1
Democracy's Resilience to Populism's Threat (Guest: Kurt Weyland) 1:03:04

11M ago1:03:04

1:03:04

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Kurt Weyland, Mike Hogg Professor in Liberal Arts at the University of Texas at Austin, to discuss his new book, Democracy's Resilience to Populism's Threat: Countering Global Alarmism. They discuss how populist leaders can only destroy democracy under special, restrictive conditions, which many never face. They …

1
Germany in the World: A Global History, 1500-2000 (Guest: David Blackbourn) 1:41:32

11M ago1:41:32

1:41:32

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by David Blackbourn, Cornelius Vanderbilt Distinguished Chair of History Emeritus at Vanderbilt University, to discuss his new book, Germany in the World: A Global History, 1500-2000. They discuss the existence of a distinctly German presence in the world centuries before its unification. They also chat about German…

1
Hitler’s Panzer Generals (Guest: David Stahel) 1:41:27

11M ago1:41:27

1:41:27

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by David Stahel, senior lecturer in history at the University of New South Wales, to discuss his new book, Hitler's Panzer Generals: Guderian, Hoepner, Reinhardt and Schmidt Unguarded. They discuss the significance of the unpublished wartime correspondence of these generals and what it reveals about their personalit…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 147: Colonialism (Guest: Nigel Biggar) 1:28:41

12M ago1:28:41

1:28:41

In Episode 147 of Ill Literacy, Tim Benson talks with Nigel Biggar, author ofColonialism: A Moral Reckoning. Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Nigel Biggar, Emeritus Regius Professor of Moral and Pastoral Theology at the University of Oxford, to discuss his new book, Colonialism: A Moral Reckoning. They discuss whether the British Empire was driv…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 146: Arabella (Guest: Scott Walter) 58:12

12M ago58:12

58:12

In Episode 146 of Ill Literacy, Tim Benson talks with Scott Walter, author ofArabella: The Dark Money Network of Leftist Billionaires Secretly Transforming America. Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Scott Walter, president of the capital Research Center, to discuss his new book, Arabella: The Dark Money Network of Leftist Billionaires Secretly Tr…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 145: The Myth of Left and Right (Guest: Hyrum Lewis) 1:18:07

12M ago1:18:07

1:18:07

In Episode 145 of Ill Literacy, Tim Benson talks with Hyrum Lewis, co-author ofThe Myth of Left and Right: How the Political Spectrum Misleads and Harms America. Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Hyrum Lewis, associate professor of history at Brigham Young University-Idaho, to discuss his new book (co-authored with his brother, Verlan), The Myth …

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 144: The Ecology of Nations (Guest: John M. Owen IV) 1:13:35

12M ago1:13:35

1:13:35

In Episode 144 of Ill Literacy, Tim Benson talks with John M. Owen IV, author ofThe Ecology of Nations: American Democracy in a Fragile World Order. Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by John M. Owen IV, Ambassador Henry J. and Mrs. Marion R. Taylor Professor of Politics, and a Senior Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies in Culture and the Mi…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 143: The Middle Kingdoms (Guest: Martyn Rady) 1:13:34

1y ago1:13:34

1:13:34

In Episode 143 of Ill Literacy, Tim Benson talks with Martyn Rady, author ofThe Middle Kingdoms: A New History of Central Europe. Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Martyn Rady, Masaryk Professor Emeritus of Central European History at University College London, to discuss his new book, The Middle Kingdoms: A New History of Central Europe. They ch…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 142: To The End of the Earth (Guest: John C. McManus) 1:20:06

1y ago1:20:06

1:20:06

In Episode 142 of Ill Literacy, Tim Benson talks with John C. McManus, author ofTo the End of the Earth: The US Army and the Downfall of Japan, 1945. Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by John C. McManus, Curators’ Distinguished Professor of U.S. military history at Missouri University of Science and Technology, to discuss his new book, To the End of…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 141: Christendom (Guest: Peter Heather) 1:08:06

1y ago1:08:06

1:08:06

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Peter Heather, chair of medieval history at King's College, London, to discuss his new book, Christendom: The Triumph of a Religion, AD 300-1300. They chat about how a small sect of isolated and intensely committed congregations became a mass movement centrally directed from Rome, the Church’s chameleonlike capac…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 140: Founding Partisans (Guest: H.W. Brands) 1:11:59

1y ago1:11:59

1:11:59

Heartland’s Tim Benson is once again joined by friend of the podcast H.W. Brands, the Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History at the University of Texas at Austin, to discuss his new book, Founding Partisans: Hamilton, Madison, Jefferson, Adams and the Brawling Birth of American Politics. They chat about how, while the Framers viewed political parties…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 140: The Collaborators (Guest: Ian Buruma) 1:00:22

1y ago1:00:22

1:00:22

The Heartland Institute's Tim Benson is joined by Ian Buruma, Paul W. Williams Professor of Human Rights and Journalism at Bard College, to discuss his new book, The Collaborators: Three Stories of Deception and Survival in World War II. They chat about the backstory behind the three subjects of the book—Felix Kersten, Yoshiko Kawashima, and Friedr…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 139: On Great Fields (Guest: Ronald C. White) 1:25:10

1y ago1:25:10

1:25:10

In Episode 139 of Ill Literacy, Tim Benson talks with Ronald C. White, author ofOn Great Fields: The Life and Unlikely Heroism of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by return guest Ronald C. White, senior fellow at the Trinity Forum, to discuss his new book, On Great Fields: The Life and Unlikely Heroism of Joshua Lawrenc…

1
The House of Dudley: A New History of Tudor England (Guest: Joanne Paul) 1:19:29

1y ago1:19:29

1:19:29

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Joanne Paul, Senior Lecturer in Early Modern History at the University of Sussex, to discuss her new book, The House of Dudley: A New History of Tudor England. They chat about who were the Dudleys, how they gained prominence, then lost it all, then gained prominence once again, and then finally lost it all again.…

1
Oscar Hammerstein II and the Invention of the Musical (Guest: Laurie Winer) 1:24:23

1y ago1:24:23

1:24:23

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Laurie Winer, founding editor of the Los Angeles Review of Books, to discuss her new book, Oscar Hammerstein II and the Invention of the Musical. They chat about why Winer believes Hammerstein more than anyone else invented the musical. They also discuss his relationship with collaborators Jerome Kern and Richard…

1
The World That Wasn't: Henry Wallace and the Fate of the American Century (Guest: Benn Steil) 1:21:33

1y ago1:21:33

1:21:33

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Benn Steil, senior fellow and director of international economics at the Council on Foreign Relations, to discuss his new book, The World That Wasn't: Henry Wallace and the Fate of the American Century. They discuss Wallace’s brilliance as a geneticist, his odd obsession with mysticism, and his naivete toward the…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 135: The Race to Zero (Guest: Paul H. Tice) 1:13:11

1y ago1:13:11

1:13:11

In Episode 134 of Ill Literacy, Tim Benson talks with Paul H. Tice, author of The Race to Zero: How ESG Investing Will Crater the Global Financial System. Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Paul H. Tice, retired Wall-Streeter and adjunct professor of finance at New York University’s Stern School of Business, to discuss his new book, The Race to Ze…

1
Ill Literacy, Episode 134: Drums & Demons (Guest: Joel Selvin) 1:28:48

1y ago1:28:48

1:28:48

In Episode 133 of Ill Literacy, Tim Benson talks with Joel Selvin, author ofDrums & Demons: The Tragic Journey of Jim Gordon. Heartland’s Tim Benson is once again joined by Joel Selvin, long-time rock critic at the San Francisco Chronicle, to discuss his new book, Drums & Demons: The Tragic Journey of Jim Gordon. They chat about why Selvin thinks G…

1
Beyond the Wall: A History of East Germany (Guest: Katja Hoyer) 1:30:40

1y ago1:30:40

1:30:40

Heartland’s Tim Benson is once again joined by Katja Hoyer, research fellow at King’s College London, to discuss her new book, Beyond the Wall: A History of East Germany. They chat about the political, social, and cultural landscape that existed in East Germany, the oppressions and hardships implemented and placed on the East German population by t…

1
Klan War: Ulysses S. Grant and the Battle to Save Reconstruction (Guest: Fergus M. Bordewich) 1:30:25

1+ y ago1:30:25

1:30:25

Heartland’s Tim Benson is once again joined by Fergus M. Bordewich to discuss his new book, Klan War: Ulysses S. Grant and the Battle to Save Reconstruction. They chat about the formation of the Ku Klux Klan and the terroristic violence they committed against both new freed blacks and white Republicans, and how Grant and a Republican Congress went …

1
My Day with Abe Lincoln (Guest: Jonathan W. White) 45:50

1+ y ago45:50

45:50

Heartland’s Tim Benson is once again joined by Jonathan W. White, professor of American Studies at Christopher Newport University and winner of the 2023 Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize, to discuss his new children’s book, My Day with Abe Lincoln. They chat about why he wanted to write a children’s book, where he drew his inspiration from, and whether …

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