Useful Idiots
Useful Idiots with Katie Halper and Aaron Maté
Dennis Kucinich On Literally Knocking Down A Door To Win His Race + Hunter Biden Loves His Penis & the N-Word
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Dennis Kucinich On Literally Knocking Down A Door To Win His Race + Hunter Biden Loves His Penis & the N-Word

We sit down with former Ohio congressman and presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich to discuss his new book The Division of Light and Power.

Click here for the extended interview.

“Protest with a guitar? Not this candidate.”

This, written about a 21-year-old city council candidate with hippy sensibilities and a drive to help the underdog: Dennis Kucinich. Since that article in 1967, Kucinich served 16 years as the US house rep from Ohio, gained national fame in his two presidential bids, and was vindicated by the Washington Post as the future of American politics.

Now, Kucinich is out with a new book The Division of Light and Power, which shares stories of his early days in politics as a 23-year-old city councilman and later mayor in Cleveland, Ohio (read Matt’s full book review here). What he saw was a corrupt and bent system. So his career became a crusade against it.

In his first unsuccessful council run, he realized the incumbent never lost because he took care of people, giving favors to powerful donors and making sure his influential constituents were kept happy. ‘So,’ thought Kucinich, ‘that’s what I’ll do.’

But taking care of people for Dennis meant helping normal Clevelanders who, like his own family, couldn’t pay the rent, couldn’t keep the lights on, couldn’t feed their kids. He helped these people and they noticed. And he won.

Whether against cheating vote-counters, corrupt utility companies, war-mongering presidents, or racist legislation, Dennis Kucinich’s political career has been a constant battle against immorality and a fight for the helpless.

Kucinich describes how his life is echoed by the sound of coins clinking on a white metal table as his parents counted pennies to pay the rent. By the time he was 17, he lived in 21 different places, including a few cars. All this only built the man he is and “translated into the necessity of standing up for economic justice for people who are struggling.”

That, plus music, theatre, and ripping off doors in this Useful Idiots interview.

Meanwhile, we accept credit for the Breaking Points’ #usefulidiotsbump, read Hunter Biden’s drug-feuled texts about his tanned penis and love of the N-word, call out Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s attempt to imprison migrant children, and sell an invisible Kurt Loder sculpture for thousands.

All this, and more, on this week’s Useful Idiots.

Useful Idiots
Useful Idiots with Katie Halper and Aaron Maté
Useful Idiots is an informative and irreverent politics podcast with journalist Aaron Maté and podcaster/writer Katie Halper. Episodes feature on-the-road coverage of the 2020 campaign and exclusive interviews, with humor, commentary and dissection of the politics news of the week. Join Katie and Aaron as they examine important stories that have slipped through the cracks and what the media got wrong – and laugh about whatever is left to laugh about.