Chapo Trap House

Séamus joins us to talk about Trump’s proposed “Gaza peace plan” and what horrific policies it would actually entail in practice, as well as the Democratic Party’s desperate attempts to triangulate on the issue. We also wade into the increasing possibility of regime change in Venezuela as well as ICE’s pillaging of Chicago apartment buildings. On the lighter side, we talk about Bari Weiss being given the keys to CBS news and Tyler Cowen’s Humbert Humbert-esque ode to an AI actress. Follow @Turbulence_pod on X for updates about when Séamus’s pod drops. NEW MERCH IS OUT NOW! Go to https://chapotraphouse.store/ and buy a new hat or shirt, especially our great new “Carousel Club” design. AND be sure to pre-save the date of October 28 for Will and Hesse’s LIVE WATCH PARTY of Re-Animator! Tickets available now – use the promo code CHAPO20 for 20% off! https://checkout.stagepilot.com/collections/chapo-trap-house

Will interviews Los Angeles reporter Memo Torres, whose site L.A. TACO shifted from covering food and culture in the city to some of the most indispensable and horrific coverage of ICE raids available. Memo tells us about what happens to people when they get kidnapped, covering the horrors of fortress America, and practical advice for those who might find themselves in ICE’s crosshairs. Read more at L.A. TACO: https://lataco.com/  And follow Memo Torres on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/el_tragon_de_los_angeles/?hl=en

Greetings Horror Sickos, Listener, please light a circle of candles and begin to scrawl out the ancient sigils in salt, and begin the accursed chant … “Let’s All Go to the Lobby, Let’s All Go to the Lobby, and Grab Ourselves a Snack” That’s right! Spooky season is upon us and to inaugurate another edition of Ghoulvie Screamset Horrortober, Will Massacre and Hexa Deni are back with a selection of abominable and morally ruinous films. First up, in Return of the Living Dead (O’Bannon, 1985) an assortment of punks, working stiffs and slobs accidentally expose themselves to zombie gas and help bring out the nuclear bombing of Louisville, Kentucky in this documentary about a real thing that actually happened. This hilarious and goofball horror film asks two existentially terrifying questions: What if you could feel every second of being dead? And, do you want to PARTY???? Then in The Blob (Russell, 1988), a sci fi classic gets a grisly and unforgettable remake that features Kevin Dillon playing an motorcycle riding bad boy who smokes cigs, wears a leather jacket and has to save the small town that rejects him for being too cool from a giant blob that digests and dissolves everything in its path. This episode is free, but the rest of Ghoulvie Screamset Season 3 will be paywalled!

Like many things, there used to be a bipartisan consensus that in a disaster, you help as many people get through it as quickly and safely as possible. In the past 20+ years, though, we’ve seen a shift in how the right responds to climate catastrophes — including building out a robust selection of conspiracy theories from chemtrails to Flat Earth. Will Menaker from Chapo Trap House joins us to discuss right-wing conspiracy theories about the weather, the climate, and whether we’re living on a discworld. Our guest is Will Menaker, host of Chapo Trap House. Their Movie Mindset series returns in October for spooky season, and you can also buy their new Year Zero comic book here: https://badegg.co/products/year-zero-1. Want even more Panic World content? Like ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and access to our Discord? There’s still a week left to get your first month for just $0.50 by signing up for our Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/PanicWorld. Enter “PANICYEAR” at checkout for 90% the first month. And if you want to see this conversation on video, ⁠Panic World is now posting episodes to YouTube!

Zue Jernstedt joins us live from the Global Sumud Flotilla to talk to us about delivering aid to those in Gaza and weathering attacks from Israel.

It’s Chapo—in person! Will, Felix, and Brendan James of Blowback (formerly Chapo Trap House) gather at Will’s apartment to talk about Eric Adams dropping out of the NYC mayoral race. They then read a profile of Adam Jentleson and his new PAC, Searchlight, and its novel plan to win elections by pulling Democrats to the right. Also this episode: Pete Hegseth’s mysterious all-hands meeting, Trump finally releasing the files, and Peter Thiel’s obsession with the antichrist. And be sure to vote for American Prestige at the Signal Awards: https://vote.signalaward.com/PublicVoting?utm_campaign=signal4_finalists_finalistnotification_092325&utm_medium=email&utm_source=cio#/2025/shows/genre/news-politics And check out the new Blowback season! https://blowback.show/

Will Sommer of The Bulwark returns to Chapo to talk about the right’s reaction to the assassination of Charlie Kirk as well as his funeral proceedings in Arizona. We recap the Groyper War that preceded the assassination and the pressure it put on Kirk to move right, as well as the conspiracies surrounding his shooting. Was Israel involved? Why was there no exit wound? Did Charlie have a late-in-life conversion to Catholicism? And which faction of the right will be able to define the man’s legacy? Follow Will Sommer on Twitter/X: https://x.com/willsommer

In today’s two-parter, we start off with more coverage of the assassination of Charlie Kirk: what it means, possible motives, and the tidal wave of right-wing cancel culture it has wrought. Will then interviews journalist Pablo Torre of Pablo Torre Finds Out about recently unearthed collusion in the NFL, with a story that starts with Deshaun Watson and goes all the way up to the Carlyle Group and Hollywood pedophilia. What can a conflict between millionaire jocks and billionaire owners tell us about American labor relations? And why is Kawhi Leonard getting paid $28 million to plant trees? Subscribe to Pablo Torre Finds Out on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PabloTorreFindsOut And wherever you get your podcasts: https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/68b1d0ea993d10acb9c3fe4f And follow him on Twitter: https://x.com/pablotorre/

Chapo Senior Foreign Policy correspondent Derek Davison is back once again to talk about the escalating possibility of war in Venezuela. We discuss the recent strike on a Venezuelan boat by Trump and his newly-Christened Department of War, a botched raid into North Korea, our collapsing relationship with India, China’s SCO summit with Russia, and conflict on the Thai-Cambodia border. Plus: a Matt Christman prediction comes true… Find all of Derek’s foreign policy coverage at: www.foreignexchanges.news www.americanprestigepod.com

In 1998, the world was ruled by Rayman. You could not go anywhere without seeing Rayman street art. Thousands of children died attempting to cut their own limbs off and suspend them from midair. All that changed when Solid Snake was brought into the third dimension. Brendan and Felix kick off their journey through the greatest story ever told by surfacing onto Shadow Moses. This is where Solid Snake realized he could be more than just a paid killer, Meryl Silverburgh witnessed the ugly reality of war, Roy Campbell was promoted from uncle to father, and Liquid Snake didn’t actually achieve much of anything besides scoring some sunglasses off of a former member of his dad’s love triangle. Put on your sneaking suit, let some strange woman shoot some crap into your arm, and soak your cardboard boxes in urine. It’s time to fight your brother through various states of undress.

Alex is back for some speculation about the health of Donald Trump (after his disappearance) and Rudy Giuliani (after his “not targeted” car crash). Then we turn to the weird world of Democratic Party influencers and the dark-money group secretly funding their American Girl Doll memes. Finally, we chat a little about phones in schools and Adam Friedland’s interview with Richie Torres. Follow Alex on Twitter @Lowenaffchen Check out his show Fortune Kit: https://www.patreon.com/fortunekit And stream “Hotel California” by Bob Marley: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taTD0NPb8Do And listen to Felix’s new series about video games THE PLAYERS CLUB!

Zeteo’s Prem Thakker joins us for a look at Trump’s takeover of Washington D.C. We talk about the impetus for the takeover, what day-to-day life in occupied D.C. looks and feels like for its immigrant communities, and the Democratic Party’s impotent response. We then look more broadly at Trump’s Fortress America, ICE’s country-wide renditions, and the continuing case of Kilmar Ábrego García. Finally, we talk about the destruction of Nasser Hospital in Gaza and the Democratic Party’s flip-flopping on the term “genocide.” Follow Prem on X/Twitter: https://x.com/prem_thakker?lang=en And be sure to check out his work at Zeteo: https://zeteo.com/s/subtext-with-prem

Journalist and author Seth Harp returns to the pod to talk about his horrifying and expansive new book The Fort Bragg Cartel. We talk with Seth about America’s forever-war machine and the global drug empire it empowers, with a special focus on the case of Delta Force officer William Lavigne, who killed his best friend before turning up dead near Fort Bragg in a still-unsolved murder. We also discuss the rise of JSOC, the third Iraq War and its ongoing ramifications, the US military’s ties with the brutal Los Zetas cartel, and the eternal shadow war waged in the name of empire. Buy Seth’s book here (and give it 5 stars on Amazon!): https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/730414/the-fort-bragg-cartel-by-seth-harp/ And follow him on X at @sethharpesq

We begin by reading the last will and testament of Anas al-Sharif, a 28-year-old journalist for Al-Jazeera that was among those slain in Gaza by Israel yesterday. We then resume our Epstein coverage, including a look at his Manhattan lair and celebrity dinner guests. Then, two pieces on venture capitalists driven insane by The Computer and a story by Pamela Paul on conservative women…with careers? Stick around until the end for another Stroke of Genius and a special announcement from Chris. Pre-order Seth Harp’s book The Fort Bragg Cartel here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/730414/the-fort-bragg-cartel-by-seth-harp/  And check out his book launch with TrueAnon at the Bell House this Wednesday: https://www.ticketmaster.com/an-evening-with-trueanon-and-seth-brooklyn-new-york-08-13-2025/event/300062F5CD8E3E2D

Osita Nwanevu stops by to discuss his new book The Right of the People: Democracy and the Case for a New American Founding. Osita leads us through his case that American “democracy” as it currently stands isn’t that democratic at all. We discuss the real intentions of the founders, the actual American revolution of the Civil War, and the stalled re-founding of reconstruction. We also look at the potential for economic democracy, the political reforms needed to re-found the country, the problem of the judiciary, and the challenges of a new media environment to democratizing movements. Yes, today the wacky morning DJ actually does say democracy’s a joke. Pick up Osita’s book here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/704686/the-right-of-the-people-by-osita-nwanevu/ AND, we’ve secured ONE MORE WEEK to get your pre-order in for YEAR ZERO: A Chapo Trap House Comic Anthology at badegg.co/products/year-zero-1

Will welcomes comedian Eddie Pepitone to the show for a bonus interview. They rap on keeping comedy political, celebrity sell-outs, veganism, Bill Maher vs. Billy Joel, trying to calm the rage, and of course, being Just Kids From New York. Check out Eddie’s new special at: https://veeps.com/eddiepepitone It is your last day to pre-order YEAR ZERO: A Chapo Trap House Comic Anthology at badegg.co/products/year-zero-1!

Will & Felix discuss the dire starvation crisis now gripping Gaza, and the rapidly changing attitudes among certain political & media elites now that this has all apparently finally “gone too far.” We also try to keep up with Trump’s Epstein trouble as the President attempts to drown the whole thing off with old scandals and some showstopping showtunes. Please consider donating to Gaza relief through the Sameer Project: https://linktr.ee/thesameerproject And just three days left to pre-order YEAR ZERO: A Chapo Trap House Comic Anthology at badegg.co/products/year-zero-1

TWO WEEKS LEFT to pre-order YEAR ZERO: A Chapo Trap House Comic Anthology at badegg.co/products/year-zero-1 Journalist Jasper Nathaniel joins us to discuss his reporting on the West Bank and Israel’s second front in the war on Palestine. We look at the increasingly violent settler movement, Israel’s flagrant violation of international laws, the use of archaeological warfare in the region, and the constant ubiquitous violence that defines life for Palestinians living under Israeli occupation. And on the domestic front, we have an update on the good professor Davidai and his relationship to the august institution Columbia University. Follow Jasper’s Substack: https://substack.com/@infinitejaz Follow Jasper on Twitter: https://x.com/infinite__jaz?lang=en Follow Jasper on Insta: https://www.instagram.com/infinite_jaz/?hl=en

Alex back on the show today to look at the continuing fallout of Trump’s attempts to wash his hands of Epstein. From the baffled & betrayed Trump-curious internet trend-seekers, to the dyed-in-the-wool loyalists, the admin seems to have picked the absolute worst way to disarm this bomb. Plus: Greg Abbott makes a why-even-bother play to cover up Musk’s bribery, and Biden gives a why-even-bother explanation for his diminished capacity pardons. Pre-Order YEAR ZERO: A Chapo Trap House Comic Anthology at badegg.co/products/year-zero-1

Tim Faust returns to the show to look at the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and its dire consequences for American medicine. We discuss Medicaid as a load-bearing feature of our healthcare infrastructure, how this bill will affect millions of Americans using the program, and the potential ways forward in the wake of its evisceration. We also look at last week’s absolute omnishambles article on Zohran’s college admission, a perfect encapsulation of the Failing New York Times approach to just about everything. Pre-Order YEAR ZERO: A Chapo Trap House Comic Anthology at https://badegg.co/products/year-zero-1