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Know Your Enemy

Know Your Enemy

Matthew Sitman

William F Buckley, News, Right Wing, Conservatism, Society & Culture, Ronald Reagan, Conservative Movement, Politics, Leftists Look At Conservatism, Reactionaries, Socialists, History, National Review

4.72.2K Ratings

Overview

A leftist's guide to the conservative movement, one podcast episode at a time, with co-hosts Matthew Sitman and Sam Adler-Bell.

276 Episodes

Gerontocracy in America (w/ Sam Moyn)

Matt and Sam talk to Sam Moyn about his new book, Gerontocracy in America: How the Old Are Hoarding Power and Wealth—and What to Do About It.

Transcribed - Published: 20 July 2026

Why Patriotism [Teaser]

Matt and Sam talk more Lincoln and equality, and then: should the left be patriotic?

Transcribed - Published: 13 July 2026

Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words That Remade America

Matt and Sam discuss Garry Wills's Pulitzer Prize-winning book, Lincoln at Gettysburg: The Words That Remade America.

Transcribed - Published: 6 July 2026

The Left Ascendant in New York City [Teaser]

Matt and Sam break down the results from last week's Democratic primaries in NYC.

Transcribed - Published: 29 June 2026

Pope Leo XIV's 'Magnifica humanitas' (w/ Jack Hanson)

Matt and Sam are joined by Jack Hanson to discuss Pope Leo's first encyclical on human dignity in the time of artificial intelligence.

Transcribed - Published: 22 June 2026

Tucker Carlson and the Anti-Israel Right (w/ Peter Beinart) [Teaser]

Peter Beinart joins to discuss Tucker Carlson's newfound anti-Israel politics.

Transcribed - Published: 15 June 2026

Leo Strauss's Natural Right and History (w/ Matt Dinan)

Matt and Sam talk to Matt Dinan about Leo Strauss's 1953 book, Natural Right & History.

Transcribed - Published: 9 June 2026

Know Your Enemy, Live! (w/ Mike Duncan) [Teaser]

For KYE's first ever live show, Matt and Sam were joined by Mike Duncan, host of the Revolutions and History of Rome podcasts, to discuss how the right (and left) talk about American decline.

Transcribed - Published: 1 June 2026

Military Education and American Manhood (w/ Jasper Craven)

Matt and Sam talk to Jasper Craven about his new book, God Forgives, Brothers Don't: The Long March of Military Education and the Making of American Manhood.

Transcribed - Published: 26 May 2026

Even More Listener Questions, Answered [Teaser]

Matt and Sam answer even more listener questions about Straussianism, esoteric writing, prose style, Steely Dan, and more.

Transcribed - Published: 18 May 2026

The Seven Year Anniversary Mailbag Episode

Matt and Sam answer listener questions about post-Trump politics, the meaning of Zohran, the fate of liberalism, and more.

Transcribed - Published: 11 May 2026

Reasons To Believe [Teaser]

Matt and Sam have a personal, wide-ranging conversation about religious faith in our troubled times.

Transcribed - Published: 4 May 2026

Peter Thiel and the Antichrist

Matt and Sam discuss Peter Thiel's lectures on the Antichrist and what they reveal about both his politics and this political moment.

Transcribed - Published: 27 April 2026

The Pope and the President [Teaser]

Matt and Sam discuss Leo XIV approach to the papacy, President Trump's attacks on the first American pope, just war theory, and more.

Transcribed - Published: 17 April 2026

The Bund: Fighting Fascism, Fighting Zionism (w/ Molly Crabapple)

Molly Crabapple joins to discuss her new book, "Here Where We Live Is Our Country: The Story of the Jewish Bund."

Transcribed - Published: 10 April 2026

Misogyny, MAGA-style [Teaser]

Matt interviews Sam about his recent New York magazine article, "The Women Leaving the New Right," and MAGA-style misogyny.

Transcribed - Published: 1 April 2026

From Neocon to Never-Trump (w/ Bill Kristol)

Matt and Sam talk to Bill Kristol about his journey from neoconservative thought leader to anti-Trump "liberal."

Transcribed - Published: 23 March 2026

James Talarico and the Politics of Progressive Christianity [Teaser]

Matt and Sam discuss the Christian populism of James Talarico, Presbyterian seminarian and winner of the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate in Texas.

Transcribed - Published: 16 March 2026

Trump's War Against Iran (w/ Matt Duss)

Matt and Sam talk to Matt Duss, a leading foreign policy expert on the left, about the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran.

Transcribed - Published: 6 March 2026

Standing Athwart History, Yelling "Slop!" (w/ John Ganz) [Teaser]

Matt and Sam talk to John Ganz about rightwing intellectuals yet again being surprised the leopard is eating their face.

Transcribed - Published: 27 February 2026

Leaving MAGA Behind (w/ Pedro L. Gonzalez)

Matt and Sam talk to writer Pedro Gonzalez about his break with MAGA and the New Right.

Transcribed - Published: 23 February 2026

'Shattered Glass,' Journalism, & the End of History [Teaser]

Matt and Sam discuss the 2003 film, Shattered Glass, about disgraced New Republic writer and fabulist Stephen Glass.

Transcribed - Published: 16 February 2026

Tucker Carlson's Phases & Stages (w/ Jason Zengerle)

Matt and Sam talk to Jason Zengerle about his new book, Hated By All the Right People: Tucker Carlson and the Unraveling of the Conservative Mind.

Transcribed - Published: 9 February 2026

On the Ground in Minneapolis (w/ Lydia Polgreen) [Teaser]

Matt and Sam talk to Lydia Polgreen about her reporting from Minneapolis.

Transcribed - Published: 2 February 2026

The Donroe Doctrine (w/ David Adler & Matt Kirkegaard)

Matt and Sam discuss Venezuela, Greenland, and the "Donroe Doctrine" with the Progressive International's David Adler and Matt Kirkegaard.

Transcribed - Published: 26 January 2026

The Killing of Renee Good [Teaser]

Matt and Sam discuss the killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis, and the perilous times it exemplifies.

Transcribed - Published: 19 January 2026

January 6, Five Years Later (w/ Robert Draper)

Matt and Sam talk to Robert Draper about his reporting from the Capitol on January 6, 2021, and how the Republican Party "lost its mind" in the months that followed.

Transcribed - Published: 12 January 2026

Great Books and the AI Apocalypse (w/ Matt Dinan) [Teaser]

Matt and Sam talk to Matt Dinan about teaching, the AI apocalypse, and the state of our souls.

Transcribed - Published: 2 January 2026

UNLOCKED: Trump's Big, Beautiful Ballroom (w/ Kate Wagner)

We're unpaywalling our excellent conversation with Kate Wagner (of McMansion Hell) about Trump's White House ballroom project and the politics of architecture.

Transcribed - Published: 22 December 2025

What We Got Wrong (and Right) about the Right in 2025 [Teaser]

Matt and Sam look back at the American right in 2025—and offer predictions about the year ahead.

Transcribed - Published: 15 December 2025

One Podcast After Another (w/ Jesse Brenneman)

Matt and Sam are joined by KYE's intrepid producer, Jesse Brenneman, to discuss the recent film, One Battle After Another.

Transcribed - Published: 8 December 2025

On Friendship (w/ Andy Elrick)

Andrew Elrick interviews Matt and Sam about friendship and politics, conservative views of friendship, and how friendship shapes their podcast.

Transcribed - Published: 1 December 2025

The Furious Minds of MAGA (w/ Laura Field)

Matt and Sam talk to Laura Field about her new book, Furious Minds: The Making of the MAGA New Right.

Transcribed - Published: 24 November 2025

Trump's Big, Beautiful Ballroom (w/ Kate Wagner) [Teaser]

Matt and Sam talk to McMansion Hell's Kate Wagner about Trump's White House ballroom.

Transcribed - Published: 17 November 2025

Zohran, the Jews, and Reckoning with Gaza (w/ Peter Beinart)

Matt and Sam talk to Peter Beinart about Zohran and Islamophobia, Jews and anti-semitism, the genocide in Gaza, and more.

Transcribed - Published: 11 November 2025

Break Glass in Case of Emergency

Matt and Sam are very worried.

Transcribed - Published: 3 November 2025

Command + F + Hitler [Teaser]

Matt and Sam discuss the Young Republican Hitler group chat, Graham Platner, the No Kings rallies, and more.

Transcribed - Published: 24 October 2025

How Charles Murray (Almost) Predicted the Trump Era

Matt and Sam read Charles Murray's 2012 book, "Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960–2010."

Transcribed - Published: 15 October 2025

How To Give A Damn [Teaser]

Matt and Sam indulge in some rank punditry: on Zohran's campaign, Hegseth's pathetic speech to the generals, and ICE authoritarianism on the march.

Transcribed - Published: 6 October 2025

Death, Power, and the Charlie Kirk Memorial (w/ Pat Blanchfield)

Matt and Sam discuss the Charlie Kirk memorial service/MAGA rally with Pat Blanchfield.

Transcribed - Published: 29 September 2025

The Assassination of Charlie Kirk [Teaser]

Matt and Sam discuss the assassination of Charlie Kirk, and where they think we're heading in its wake.

Transcribed - Published: 19 September 2025

The Case for Democracy (w/ Osita Nwanevu)

Matt and Sam talk to Osita Nwanevu about his new book, The Right of the People: Democracy and the Case for a New American Founding.

Transcribed - Published: 12 September 2025

An Officer and a Spy (w/ John Ganz) [Teaser]

Matt and Sam discuss Roman Polanski's 2019 film about the Dreyfus affair, An Officer and a Spy, with John Ganz.

Transcribed - Published: 5 September 2025

Frank Meyer, Inventor of Conservatism (w/ Daniel J. Flynn)

Matt and Sam interview Dan Flynn about his extraordinary new biography of Communist-turned-National Review-editor Frank Meyer.

Transcribed - Published: 28 August 2025

The Christian Right's "Wild Faith" (w/ Talia Lavin) [Unlocked]

In light of James Dobson's death this week, we've unlocked Matt's conversation with Talia Lavin about her book, Wild Faith: How the Christian Right is Taking Over America.

Transcribed - Published: 23 August 2025

The Minority Voters Moving Right (w/ Daniel Martinez HoSang)

Matt and Sam talk with Daniel HoSang about the gains the GOP and Trump are making with racial minorities.

Transcribed - Published: 18 August 2025

From Armageddon to Zionism — More Listener Questions [Teaser]

Matt and Sam answer listener questions about Christian Zionism, Roy Cohn, and more.

Transcribed - Published: 11 August 2025

Has Trump 2.0 Been a Success So Far? — And Other Questions

Matt and Sam answer listener questions about Trump 2.0, Judaism and Catholicism, bourbon, literature, and more.

Transcribed - Published: 4 August 2025

Trump's Epstein Problem [Teaser]

A number of listeners wanted the KYE take on the Jeffrey Epstein story — here it is.

Transcribed - Published: 28 July 2025

How Republics End (w/ Mike Duncan) [Unlocked]

Mike Duncan (host of the "Revolutions" podcast) joins to discuss the conservative obsession with the fall of Rome — and the real lessons of Roman history.

Transcribed - Published: 18 July 2025

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