Lever Time

The midterm elections are just days away, and despite populist candidates surging in popularity across the country, corporate Democrats continue to insist that “Romney Republicans” are the key swing voters Democrats need to court, not the working class. Could they be correct? Or next week, will voters prove yet again that corporate Democrats are out of step with average Americans, and that their days leading the Party are numbered?

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with former U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich to discuss how corporatization of the Democratic Party is on the ballot this year, why this could be the “last gasp election” for corporate Democrats, and which races next week will reveal the answers.

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Last month, U.S. Senate candidate Angie Nixon, a member of the Working Families Party and Democratic Socialists of America, spoke at the nation’s largest annual conference of Black political power and called out one of the event’s corporate sponsors. Lever columnist Morgan Harper attended the conference and noticed that Nixon was not alone — after years of quietly accepting corporate cash, some Black leaders are starting to push back against its influence. But will that shift in rhetoric help Democrats win at the polls, especially in a deep-red state like Florida, where millions are being spent to defeat Nixon?

Today on Lever Time, Morgan Harper sits down with Florida state Rep. Nixon (D) to discuss why she’s refusing corporate PAC money in her campaign against Sen. Ashley Moody (R-Fla.), Gov. Ron DeSantis’ hand-picked appointee; why she believes challenging corporations and billionaires is essential to building more political power for Black voters; and why she’s confident that working-class voters in Florida are ready for democratic socialism.

You can read Morgan Harper’s essay here and more Lever reporting about Angie Nixon here.

BIG NEWS: We’re thrilled to announce that Lever Time received a 2026 Signal Award in the Activism, Public Service & Social Impact category — and thanks to supporters like you, Lever Time also won the Listeners' Choice award. As thanks, we’re offering a one-time discount for paid subscriptions. Click here to get 50% off ad-free episodes for life.

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Conversations From The Frontlines is a show about how social change actually happens - not just the issues making headlines, but the people organizing on the ground and doing the work to create lasting change. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

With the midterms less than a month away, some pundits and polls suggest Democrats have the election in the bag. But is that really true? David Sirota travels to Minnesota to speak with someone who knows the danger of election complacency and overconfidence: Democratic Gov. Tim Walz.

Today on Lever Time, we’re airing David Sirota’s full conversation with Walz. They discuss the choices that led to a 2024 presidential defeat for the Democrats, from the party’s stance on the genocide in Gaza to Kamala Harris’s decision to campaign with Republican Liz Cheney. Ahead of the 2026 midterms, what can we learn from his experience? Does Walz believe the Democrats stand a chance? And what happens if the Democrats win and fail to deliver on their promises?

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Conversations From The Frontlines is a show about how social change actually happens - not just the issues making headlines, but the people organizing on the ground and doing the work to create lasting change. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Conversations From The Frontlines is a show about how social change actually happens - not just the issues making headlines, but the people organizing on the ground and doing the work to create lasting change. We hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Musk, a deep-dive investigative documentary about the world’s richest man, premieres this weekend, less than a month before the midterms. Maybe you haven’t heard about it — until recently, most major social media platforms declined to run paid promotions of the documentary’s trailer, citing rules on political content. What are Musk and Big Tech so afraid of?

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with the film’s creator, Academy Award-winning director Alex Gibney, to discuss the documentary’s shocking revelations. They explore Musk’s evolution from Democratic darling to Trump crony, his deadly approach to Tesla technology, his new U.S. government role planning the “future of war,” and his influence on the 2026 midterm elections.

We also have some big news: Lever Time has been named a finalist in the 2026 Signal Awards! But we need your help — please click on this link here and vote for Lever Time. It’s totally free and only takes a few minutes. The voting deadline is October 15. Thanks for all your support!

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Today we’re sharing a special episode from You Might Be Right, the chart-topping politics podcast from the Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs at the University of Tennessee. It was recently named a “must-listen” by both NPR and Spotify.

Each episode, former Tennessee Governors from both sides of the aisle Phil Bredesen and Bill Haslam tackle timely conversations about government and policy. At a time where mainstream news reverts to shouting matches, and most political commentary generates more heat than light, You Might Be Right is a great place for even-keeled conversations about tough topics.

Today, we’re sharing their recent episode where they decode the real forces driving voter behavior in 2026. From kitchen-table anxieties about affordability and health care to deepening fears about public safety, the Governors sit down with Republican pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson and Democratic pollster Anna Greenberg to unpack the data behind the headlines and reveal what candidates on both sides are getting right, and wrong, as they sprint toward Election Day.

For more episodes like this, make sure to follow You Might Be Right on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. And tell them we sent you.

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Anthropic’s leaked IPO documents show the company had a net loss of $42 billion in 2025 and still insists that its technology could pose a “catastrophic or existential risk to humanity.” It’s either the most honest risk disclosure or the most effective marketing scheme in corporate history. So which is it?

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota explores a few less obvious AI risks — cognitive surrender, pseudo-productivity, and “approval bombing” — with Cal Newport, author and computer science professor at Georgetown University. Newport has spent years cutting through technology hype. He says tech CEOs genuinely believe AI could end the world, but what if that never happens and we must learn to coexist? How do we live alongside this tech without destroying ourselves?

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California Attorney General Rob Bonta and 11 other Democratic attorneys general just settled their lawsuit blocking Paramount Skydance’s $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. The merger is now set to create one of the world’s largest media companies and put CNN and CBS News under the control of David Ellison, son of billionaire and Trump ally Larry Ellison. Bonta says the settlement is a victory — but what’s really in the deal’s fine print?

Today on Lever Time, Natalie Bettendorf sits down with former FTC Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya and antitrust legal expert Lee Hepner to explore what’s hiding in the merger settlement, why California Gov. Gavin Newsom “chickened out” on the matter, and what it all means for the future of our news and entertainment.

You can read more Lever reporting on the merger here.

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The AI apocalypse is here, but it’s not what you think. Last week, former Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon warned online that “the people building AI earnestly believe that it could kill us all by the end of the decade.”

The fallout sent shockwaves across the country — but how legitimate is Coxon’s warning? Should we fear AI agents going rogue and threatening humanity, or are these safety concerns a cover for something even more ominous on the horizon?

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with two of the most astute observers of this situation: tech critic Ed Zitron and Matt Stoller of the American Economic Liberties Project, to discuss why something feels off about this latest wave of AI panic.

Editor’s note: An uncut video of this interview was published earlier this week, exclusively to our paid subscribers. ⁠Upgrade now⁠ to gain full and early access to all The Lever has to offer.

Check out Zitron’s newsletter, Where’s Your Ed At, and his podcast, Better Offline.

Read Stoller’s essay about the recent AI panic and check out his newsletter, BIG.

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Registered Republicans outnumber Democrats almost two to one in Nebraska, and the few elected Democratic politicians in the state overwhelmingly lean conservative. But like the rest of the country, Nebraska is feeling the strain of soaring prices, data center buildouts, and Trump’s tariffs. Is the state ready for a change?

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota visits rural Nebraska to meet Dan Osborn, the former union president and political independent who is challenging Sen. Pete Ricketts, the Republican son of a billionaire, for his Senate seat. In a state where “Democrat” is a dirty word, could Osborn’s populist campaign become a blueprint for breaking free from a dysfunctional two-party system?

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Maine’s Sen. Susan Collins (R) has won five elections in a row, and a Democrat has not won a United States Senate seat in the state since 1988 — but polls suggest Mainers have reached a breaking point. They’re tired of corruption and inaction from establishment politicians in Washington, D.C., and they’re clamoring for change.

Troy Jackson, a fifth-generation logger who spent nearly two decades as a state legislator, says he’s ready to shake things up. After populist insurgent Graham Platner dropped out of the race in July, Maine’s Democratic Party tapped Jackson as its new candidate.

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with Jackson to ask: why haven’t Democrats won a U.S. Senate seat in Maine in 38 years? Why does Collins keep winning? What’s changed in Maine over the last three decades, and why does he believe he can finally topple the state’s longtime Republican senator?

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Earlier this month, a new Democratic machine scored a major victory in Connecticut. First-time congressional candidate Luke Bronin won his Democratic primary by a landslide, ousting 14-term progressive incumbent Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.). Bronin’s win is part of a larger, national push — funded by a secretive hedge fund manager — to elect more establishment-aligned Democrats. Who is this man pouring his millions into the fight?

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with Lever reporters Katya Schwenk and Luke Goldstein to unmask the man behind the machine. They discuss Schwenk and Goldstein’s recent hit article exploring how one billionaire Democratic donor is attempting to handpick corporate-friendly candidates and crush their most progressive opponents in this year’s midterms.

You can check out more of Katya Schwenk and Luke Goldstein’s reporting here:

•

How A Hedge Fund Billionaire Became The Democrats’ New Kingmaker

•

The Democratic Primary Operative With A Wall Street Side Gig

•

The New Democratic Machine – And The Billionaires Behind It

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This week on Lever Time, we’re featuring our newest episode of Master Plan: The Kingmakers.

In this episode, President Barack Obama vows to restore the rule of law after the War on Terror. But behind closed doors, his administration creates a new secret system that allows the president to decide who lives and who dies.

You can check out the full season of Master Plan: The Kingmakers here.

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Oliver Larkin spent a decade battling the Democratic Party’s campaign machine as an organizer for candidates like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Now, in Florida’s Aug. 18 primary, he’s a democratic socialist going up against Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) — who once called himself a “twice-appointed, Ron DeSantis Democrat.”

Moskowitz claims Larkin is running against him “solely on my religion.” He has also vastly outraised Larkin, thanks in part to support from AIPAC affiliates and pro-AI super PACs. But just this week, Larkin’s campaign reached the milestone of raising $1 million without the help of corporate money. Does this mean the insurgent has a shot?

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota speaks with Larkin about the antisemitism allegations, the Democratic Party’s corporate money problem, and why he thinks Democrats keep losing in Florida.

Want comprehensive 2026 midterm coverage? Check out The Lever’s new weekly newsletter, ⁠Midterm Madness⁠, for election updates, analysis, and more.

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Michigan just proved that money has its limits in elections. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed beat out establishment sweetheart Rep. Haley Stevens (D-Mich.) in what was likely the most expensive Democratic primary in U.S. history.

El-Sayed’s win was a major blow to the super PACs and shadowy nonprofits that spent tens of millions against him, but the story is far from over. AIPAC and its affiliates claimed five other victories around the country this week, and dark money groups are now training their sights on the general election in November.

Today on Lever Time, Natalie Bettendorf speaks with David Dayen, executive editor of The American Prospect, about Abdul El-Sayed’s landmark win in Michigan, the must-watch primary races ahead, and the bizarre new landscape of political campaigns. They discuss the pop-up and shell PACs, billionaire-backed nonprofits, paid influencers pushing political messages, and the surprising lack of federal oversight in the 2026 midterms.

Want comprehensive 2026 midterm coverage? Check out The Lever’s new weekly newsletter, Midterm Madness, for election updates, analysis, and more.

More Lever reporting on AIPAC and the money influencing this year’s midterms:

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The Pro-Israel Lobby’s Quiet Cash Shuffle

•

Inside The Israel Lobby’s New $90 Million War Chest

•

Operation AIPAC Fury

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Reed Galen was raised inside the Republican Party establishment, but in 2016, he left the party and later cofounded The Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump political action committee. Now he has a warning for the Democratic Party.

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with Galen to learn why the Democrats may be sleepwalking toward a dangerous point of no return.

Check out Reed’s Lever article, "Ignore Your Base, Lose Your Party."

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The Wisconsin Democratic primary for governor has gone haywire. Over the last week, Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez dropped out amid a campaign finance scandal, and a candidate who had suspended his campaign, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, rejoined the race — immediately nabbing an influential endorsement from Gov. Tony Evers. Meanwhile, state Rep. Francesca Hong, a democratic socialist, has surged in recent polls. Is this last-minute shakeup a coincidence, or part of a concerted effort to keep Hong from securing the nomination?

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota speaks with Hong, the candidate in the middle of it all. They discuss the opposition to her grassroots campaign, why she thinks her politics are better positioned to defeat Republicans, and why she believes the entire debate over “electability” misunderstands this political moment in the United States.

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Ten years ago this week, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) ended his first presidential run and endorsed Hillary Clinton. Now, his chief strategist says the primary process was rigged.

Today on Lever Time, David Sirota sits down with Tad Devine, longtime political consultant and chief strategist for Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign. Devine reveals why he believes the Democratic National Committee tilted the scales against Sanders, why his populist message has staying power, and why the biggest obstacle in future elections is the Democratic Party itself.

Check out Devine’s book, How The Democrats Screwed Bernie.

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