Did Trump Win Over Black Men or Did the Democrats Lose Them? with Astead Herndon

Conversations With Coleman

The Free Press

Philosophy, Society & Culture

4.8 • 2K Ratings

🗓️ 17 November 2025

⏱️ 63 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Today I sit down with journalist Astead Herndon, whose award-winning political reporting has appeared in The New York Times, on CNN, and now in Vox, where he serves as editorial director. Astead and I explore how President Donald Trump’s 2016 victory reshaped our own views of American politics. We disagree—cordially—about how much of Trump’s rise was driven by racism, and what that moment revealed about the country. From there, we discuss why more black voters have been moving to the right, and what that shift says about ideology, class, and generational change. We also dive into Astead’s take on New York City politics, including Zohran Mamdani’s victory, touching on debates over Israel and Palestine, and Mamdani’s pivot away from “Defund the Police” and his evolving stance on rent control. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Every once in a while, someone makes something that feels bigger.
0:04.2	Not another Hollywood reboot, but a story built on courage, faith, and meaning.
0:10.1	The DailyWire did just that with their new seven-part series, The Penn Dragon Cycle Rise of the Merlin.
0:16.9	Based on the book series by Stephen R. Lawhead, it's a retelling of the classic King Arthur
0:21.4	legend. The first official trailer just dropped and you should go check it out. In this world,
0:26.7	while pagan gods fall silent and empires collapse, one man's visions ignite a civilizational rebirth.
0:33.6	Merlin becomes the bridge between myth and history and shapes the destiny of kings.
0:38.4	The Penn Dragon cycle Rise of the Merlin premieres exclusively on Daily Wire Plus, January 22,
0:44.7	2006. Go watch the full trailer now at Dailywire.com. Welcome to another episode of conversations with
0:52.8	Coleman. My guest today is Astead Herndon.
0:56.8	Ested is a journalist who has focused on election coverage for the New York Times, as well as for CNN.
1:03.2	His journalism has won several awards, and he's recently joined Vox, where he is a podcast host and an editorial director. In this episode, we talk about
1:14.2	how Trump's win in 2016 shaped both of our political outlooks. We disagree on the extent to which
1:20.7	Trump's first win was motivated by racism. We talk about why black voters have been moving to the
1:26.6	right. We talk about Mamdani's recent victory in New York City.
1:31.1	We discuss his views on Israel, his pivot away from defund the police, his views on rent control, and much more.
1:39.1	So without further ado, Astead Herndon.
1:49.7	Thank you. do? Asted Herndon. What happens when education is built around conversation, not debate, when every student is
1:55.1	treated as a source of insight and community as a path to wisdom?
1:59.4	At St. John's College, students read the great books together,
2:02.9	from Plato and Aristotle to Wolf and De Bois,
2:05.9	discussing humanity's hardest questions in small seminars.
	...

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