In this episode of The Lowdown, Nick Cohen talks with author and journalist Anne Applebaum about her recent essay in The Atlantic, which describes the current U.S. administration under Trump as an "empire of grift." Anne Applebaum explains that this administration has abandoned America's traditional role as a leader of democracies, instead promoting corruption, far-right ideologies, and imperialist policies both domestically and abroad. Canada's PM Mark Carney was among the first of prominent western leaders to publicly proselytise recognise the disturbing truth about the U.S. and propose a strategy to build a new order without such reliance on U.S. for our security.

She details how the administration seeks to manipulate elections and influence politics in allied democracies like the UK, Canada, and European countries, often aligning with far-right groups and using economic pressure. Anne discusses the ideological underpinnings, including the Great Replacement Theory, and the normalisation of breaking democratic taboos. Chillingly, she warns that even if Trump loses power, the ideas and networks driving this movement will persist, and she advised European countries to consider alternative security arrangements. The conversation also touched on the role of tech companies and cryptocurrency in funding and amplifying these movements. Anne concludes by emphasising the fundamental will to power motivating these actions, referencing George Orwell's insights on the appeal of authoritarianism.

Anne Applebaum @anneapplebaum @TheAtlantic and @SNFAgoraJHU is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of such brilliant best-selling histories as Gulag, Iron Curtain, Red Famine, Twilight of Democracy and now AUTOCRACY INC . Find her more often on http://wsocial.eu Warsaw, London, Washington linktr.ee/anneapplebaum . Her lates essay Empire of Grift is in the latest edition of The Atlantic.

Nick Cohen's @NichCohen4 regular Substack column Writing from London on politics and culture from the UK and beyond is must-read.

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In this Lowdown short, Nick Cohen discusses the influence of the crypto industry on politics, focusing on how crypto billionaires have been buying support from radical right politicians. He highlighted cases such as Christopher Harbourne and Ben Delo's large donations to Nigel Farage and his party, and Donald Trump's involvement in the crypto industry. Cohen criticises the lack of regulation in the crypto sector and its use by criminals and authoritarian regimes. He argued that honest industries do not need to buy political protection and called for more scrutiny of large political donations. Cohen also mentioned the need for Labour and other politicians to take a stronger stance against the anti-democratic forces funded by crypto interests.

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In his latest Lowdown podcast, Nick Cohen discusses the Kremlin's current Russian influence operations against and other countries in Europe with Luke Harding, Guardian foreign cortrespondent, and the author of "Betrayal: Trump, Putin, and A New Age of Conquest."

Luke explains how Russian intelligence has shifted its focus from left-wing groups to right-wing populist parties, particularly targeting figures like Nigel Farage and the Reform Party in the UK. Luke and Nick discuss how Russian agent recruitment of Ukrainian Ilya Bilyik to attack mosques in London was part of a broader pattern of destabilisation operations, including the firebombing of Keir Starmer's home. Luke detailed Trump's long-standing connections with Russia dating back to the 1970s, including Soviet surveillance of Trump and his family, and questioned whether Trump serves as a Russian asset given his consistent pro-Russian policies in office. Luke examines Putin's war strategy in Ukraine, noting how Russian casualties exceed 1 million while making minimal territorial gains, and he talks to Nick about how Putin's approach of waiting out Western resolve while supporting far-right parties in Europe represents a new form of imperial conquest. Luke expresses concern about the West's response to Russian influence operations and emphasises the need for democratic countries to maintain their values and alliances despite current challenges.

Luke Harding @Luke Harding68. Journalist @Guardian is.a fomrer foreign correspondent * Moscow correspondent for The Guardian, and a former New York Times best-selling author. His new book is Betrayal: Trump, Putin and The New Age of Conquest. His publisher is @FaberBooks

Nick Cohen's @NichCohen4 regular Substack column Writing from London on politics and culture from the UK and beyond is another must-read.

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Nick Cohen delves into the history of past political donations as he argues that the UK must do all it can not to be plunged into the brazen corruption of Donald Trump's crooked White House.

The controversial gift of £1 million to the Labour Party by former Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone produced an exception to a tobacco-advertising ban for Formula One. Uniquely among Western democracies, Britain also lets money purchase a seat in the legislature through peerages; the odds that such honours were coincidental were once put at winning the lottery jackpot five times running. Because big money in politics was never cleaned up, Cohen says, we now live in an age of extreme wealth in which sums that are rounding errors to crypto billionaires can buy an entire party.

CRYPTO-SLEAZE & REFORM

Nick says there is rightly deep concern over the unprecedented funds being showered on Reform by shadowy foreign-based: Christopher Harborne a main investor in the Tether stablecoin firm, has recently pledged £36 million, on top of an earlier £5 million personal gift to Farage, and earlier donations to Reform totalling £12million. The total amount to Reform and Farage would total a staggering £53 million! The Harborne £36 million is being matched by another crypto-billionaire, Ben Delo, co-founder and former chief executive of BitMEX. Delo pleaded guilty in 2023 to U.S. anti-corruption charges over failed anti-money-laundering controls and was later pardoned by Donald Trump. Farage, whom Nick Cohen calls Trump’s acolyte, then lobbies the Bank of England against a digital pound that would compete with his patrons’ products and presses for capital-gains-tax cuts on crypto. Both Harborne and Delo have indicated they will move back to the UK so their huge donations can be valid, and legally made under current UK electoral law.

Labour, despite a huge Commons majority, is not closing the loophole that currently allows foreign based donors to move to the UK in order to make a donation because it too lives off big money. An insider account of the 2024 campaign records Angela Rayner’s proposed ban on foreign donations being pulled after Labour’s then-biggest donor, Lord Ali, objected. Nick finds a mere foreign-donor ban inadequate anyway: money has no smell, and a gift from Thailand or Hong Kong does not become virtuous if the donor moves to Britain. He wants a hard cap on donations regardless of source—even if that hurts trade unions—plus more public funding of parties, building on existing Short Money. If a Labour government will not do that, he asks, what is the point of it?

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In this week's Lowdown podcast, Nick Cohen talks to author and leading Guardian columnist Rafael Behr about the interconnectedness of ultra-capitalism and reactionary right-wing forces in politics. They discuss how both radicalised elderly voters nostalgic for the past and wealthy tech billionaires like Elon Musk are supporting extreme right-wing movements, creating a more dangerous political landscape than the "cosy" narrative of just elderly voters being concerned about change. Rafael analyses the Labour Party's failure to adequately confront far-right threats, particularly noting how they treat extreme right-wing protests as legitimate political expression rather than addressing the underlying fascism. Raf and Nick discuss how figures like Nigel Farage have been able to manipulate both mainstream and extreme right-wing voters, and discuss the lack of strong pushback from both Labour and Conservative parties against far-right influences, including Russian interference and extreme positions on immigration. They conclude by discussing their concerns about the need for clearer red lines against fascism and whether Labour leader Andy Burnham would articulate a stronger response to these sinister aspects of an increasingly transnational radical right.

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Hundreds of anonymous men turn up at Dover dressed in black shirts and balaclavas; Reform leader and Brexit con artist Nigel Farage threatens to scrap the House of Lords, purge the civil service and judiciary and use emergency decrees to pass sinister legislation if he ever takes power; women hecklers are beaten with a crutch during a Farage conference speech and grabbed by their hair by thugs and dragged out of the hall - but the silence in the face of these outrages from the Labour government is deafening.

Nick Cohen says that Labour must take off its kid gloves in dealing with Farage and co and take on the forces of the radical right full on. Nick argues that Burnham cannot make the same mistake as Keir Starmer and flunk these crucial challenges to democracy and true British values for fear of upsetting voters who are currently attracted by Farage.

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In his latest Lowdown podcast, host Nick Cohen interviews economics and geopolitics commentator and columnist Simon Nixon about the UK's national debt crisis and broader economic challenges. Simon explains that while the UK faces significant debt sustainability concerns, the current high bond yields reflect primarily inflation expectations rather than immediate financial crisis.

Simon attributes the UK's inflation problem to being a price taker in global markets, energy price vulnerabilities, and Brexit's impact on supply chains. Simon argued that the UK's economic model shifted from efficiency-focused neoliberalism to a resilience-focused approach, noting that decades of prioritising efficiency over resilience left the country vulnerable to shocks in finance, energy, and infrastructure. Simon and Nick discusses potential solutions including a 2p income tax rise, with Simon suggesting this could address multiple challenges simultaneously, though he acknowledges the political constraints preventing such measures under current conditions. Simon and Nick also cover Andy Burnham's approach to addressing these issues, with Simon noting Burnham's correct analysis of neoliberalism's failures but expressing concern about the lack of concrete policy proposals beyond identifying problems.

Simon Nixon's Substack column Wealth of Nations is one of the best and most insightful reads on economics and finance. European political economy and geoeconomics. Previously chief Europe commentator @WSJ, chief leader writer @thetimes

Nick Cohen's regular Substack column Writing from London on politics and culture from the UK and beyond is another must-read.

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In his latest Lowdown podcast, Nick Cohen interviews Roland Smith, one of the few Brexit supporters who has publicly admitted the Brexit project was a mistake. Roland discusses how British right-wing politics has descended into a purity spiral since 2016, with no senior conservative politicians acknowledging failures in Brexit or austerity policies. He explains that right-wing figures genuinely believe they haven't gone far enough with their policies rather than admitting mistakes, and that the entire movement has been radicalised into extreme positions through an echo chamber effect. Roland and Nick discuss how journalists like Boris Johnson and Michael Gove led Brexit rather than proper politicians, how the Conservative Party has been pulled ever rightwards, and how no one can operate within right-wing circles and admit Brexit was wrong without losing their entire social network. They discuss how this radicalisation has cost the Conservatives traditional support in former strongholds, with seats like Chesham and Amersham switching to Liberal Democrats, yet the party continues moving in an extreme direction under leaders like Kemi Badenoch.

Roland Smith @rolandmcs is a Fellow of the Adam Smith Institute and author of "The Liberal Case for Leave", made the case for the EEA [European Economic Area] - a so-called "soft Brexit" which would have left the UK in the Single Market back in 2016. He has since publicly opposed the hard Brexit agreed by Boris Johnson's government. Roland also has his own regular Substack column, Soft Landing, that regularly explores the UK's troubled relationship with the EU

Nick Cohen's @NickCohen4 regular Substack column Writing from London on politics and culture from the UK and beyond is another must read

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