254 - The Yale US-China Forum: Slavoj Žižek, Richard Wolff, Yannis Varoufakis, Robin Visser, Yascha Mounk, Pei Wang, Daniel Mattingly
Robinson's PodcastShow Notes
In this special episode, Robinson and Karl Zheng Wang co-host at the Yale US-China Forum. Return guests from the show include Slavoj Žižek, Richard Wolff, and Yascha Mounk. Slavoj Žižek is international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at the University of London, visiting professor at New York University, and a senior researcher at the University of Ljubljana’s Department of Philosophy. Richard Wolff is Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a visiting professor at The New School, where he works on economics in the Marxist tradition. Yascha Mounk is a Professor of the Practice of International Affairs at Johns Hopkins University. He is also a Contributing Editor at the Atlantic, a Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, and the host of The Good Fight podcast. Yannis Varoufakis is a Greek economist and politician, and current Secretary-General of the Democracy in Europe Movement 2025. Robin Visser is Professor in the Department of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she researches modern Chinese and Sinophone literatures, urban cultural studies, and environmental studies. Pei Wang is Professor in the Chinese History and Culture Program at the University of Hong Kong, where she specializes in comparative philosophy, psychoanalysis, and more. Daniel Mattingly is Professor in the Department of Political Science at Yale University, where he studies the domestic and international politics of authoritarian regimes, with a focus on China.
OUTLINE 00:00:00 Introduction 00:01:46 The Future of Europe and China 00:10:40 There Is No Such Thing as Trade Wars, They Are All Class Wars 00:15:50 How Wall Street’s Failures Fueled the Rise of Tech 00:20:02 Why Is There a New Cold War Between the US and China? 00:27:18 Why the United States Is Abandoning Democracy and Why China is Yannis Varoufakis’s Only Hope 00:29:26 Richard Wolff to Yannis Varoufakis: Are We Heading Toward Nuclear War with China? 00:35:58 How Class WARFARE Shaped the World Superpowers CLIP 00:41:01 Is China Capitalism’s Final Form? 00:52:03 Is There Any Way that China and the United Stated Could Avert Conflict? 00:59:16 Varoufakis to Wolff: Is a Tariff Hail Mary Trump’s Only Remaining Option? 01:03:39 Daniel Mattingly on China’s Sociopolitical Organization 01:08:39 How Does Xi Jinping Talk About Socialism? 01:13:47 Yascha Mounk on US-China Competition 01:22:36 Philosophy, Socialism, and Capitalism 01:48:40 Pei Wang on the Hero and Father in US-China Competition 01:54:31 Hero and Father Archetypes in Politics
Robinson’s Website: http://robinsonerhardt.com
Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University.
More from Robinson's Podcast
Support the Show: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsxwneBx6apV1mQ7CbWKfXQ/join
Support the Show: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsxwneBx6apV1mQ7CbWKfXQ/join Richard Wolff is Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and co-founder of Democracy at Work. Cornel West holds the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Chair at Union Theological Seminary. Norman Finkelstein is a political scientist and author who received his PhD in politics from Princeton University. In this episode, Richard, Cornel, Norman, and Robinson discuss the crisis of the American left and whether it can rebuild its political power. More particularly, they discuss Zohran Mamdani’s compromises, Cornel’s warning that he could become another Barack Obama, and their disagreements over working with Tucker Carlson. They also discuss Donald Trump and American decline, Bernie Sanders and class politics, Cornel’s break with Jill Stein and the Green Party, immigration, Gaza, and where to draw moral lines when building political coalitions. Their recent books include Richard’s Understanding Capitalism (Democracy at Work, 2024), Cornel’s Truth Matters, coauthored with Robert P. George (Post Hill Press, 2025), and Norman’s Gaza’s Gravediggers: An Inquiry into Corruption in High Places (OR Books, 2026). Richard’s Website: https://www.rdwolff.com/ Understanding Capitalism: https://www.democracyatwork.info/understanding_capitalism Cornel’s Website: https://www.cornelwest.com/ Truth Matters: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Truth-Matters/Robert-P-George/9798888451700 Norman’s Website: https://www.normanfinkelstein.com/ Gaza’s Gravediggers: https://www.orbooks.com/catalog/gazas-gravediggers/ OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 01:06 What Do Elections Actually Change? 05:47 How Enthusiasm Turned Into Disappointment for Zohran Mamdani 09:36 The Deep Denial in the United States 14:11 Is Another New Deal Still Possible? 17:27 The Repression of American Colonialism 23:49 Is America’s Decline Irreversible? 30:25 Cornel West on Bernie, Mamdani, and Colonialism 42:12 America Fears Socialism—But for How Long? 44:36 Neoliberalism Is a Curse on Socialism 49:06 Jill Stein and Why Cornel West Left the Green Party 52:15 Bernie Sanders and the Holocaust 59:52 Is Tucker Carlson Dangerous for the Left? 1:06:53 Can Immigration Be Fixed? 1:11:04 How Capitalism Destroyed Itself in Germany 1:15:21 Do Blacks Have Legitimate Complaints About Immigrants? 1:19:23 International Relations 1:21:04 Biden, Obama, and Red Lines 1:25:09 What If Our Heroes Were Racist? 1:27:27 Will the Rest of Us Ever Be Prosperous Again? 1:42:29 Who Is Pumping Denial Down America’s Throat? 1:48:55 John Stuart Mill on Truth 1:50:34 Rick’s Biggest Mistake in Life 1:57:00 Cornel’s Biggest Mistake in Life 2:01:49 The Academy Caved to Biden, Trump, and Israel Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University, where he is also a JD candidate in the Law School.
Support the Show: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsxwneBx6apV1mQ7CbWKfXQ/join Robert Pape is Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago and director of the Chicago Project on Security and Threats. In this episode, Robert and Robinson discuss why the Iran war has become an escalation trap for Donald Trump, the United States, and Israel. More particularly, they talk about Pape’s argument that the war has strengthened Iran while weakening America’s regional position, Iran’s leverage over the Strait of Hormuz, and how cheap drones and precision weapons are changing the balance of military power. They also discuss how the 2026 midterms could prolong escalation, the limits of predicting war, how AI could make political assassinations easier, and the risks of weapons operating without human oversight. Robert’s latest book is Our Own Worst Enemies: America in the Age of Violent Populism (The New Press, 2026). Robert’s Substack (Prof Robert Pape): https://professorrobertpape.substack.com/ Robert’s Substack (Escalation Trap): https://escalationtrap.substack.com/ Robert’s YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ProfRobertPape Our Own Worst Enemies: https://thenewpress.org/books/our-own-worst-enemies/ OUTLINE 00:00 Introduction 00:45 Why the Iran War Is Nowhere Near Over 08:08 How Iran Can Defy a Superpower 15:22 How Cheap Drones Changed the Balance of Power 20:31 Is America Building Weapons for the Wrong War? 29:00 Why War Experts Must Risk Being Wrong 40:25 Has Pape Been Wrong About Iran? 45:33 How Time Shifts the Balance of Power 51:23 Why the 2026 Midterms May Prolong the Iran War 55:16 How a Leader’s Health Can Change a War 1:01:40 How Assassinations and Elections Can Upend the World 1:05:28 Is AI Making Iran’s Attacks More Deadly? 1:07:38 Could AI Make Assassinations Easier? 1:13:36 Could Hezbollah Shut Down Israel’s Ports? 1:18:25 When Weapons Act Without Human Control Robinson Erhardt researches symbolic logic and the foundations of mathematics at Stanford University, where he is also a JD candidate in the Law School.
Rick Wilson is a political strategist, author, and co-founder of The Lincoln Project. After decades working in Republican politics, he became a prominent conservative critic of Donald Trump. In this episode, Rick and Robinson discuss the Republican Party Rick believes Trump has destroyed, America’s changing position in the world, and the struggle to defeat Trumpism. More particularly, they talk about the GOP’s competing factions, Trump’s relationships with Benjamin Netanyahu and Vladimir Putin, and American policy toward Iran and Venezuela. They also discuss divisions among Democrats, Bernie Sanders and the progressive left, Abdul El-Sayed and James Talarico, the influence of podcasts and social media, and the prospects for the 2026 and 2028 elections. Rick’s books include Running Against the Devil (Forum Books, 2020).
Anne Applebaum is a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and staff writer at The Atlantic. Her work focuses on authoritarianism, democracy, and the history of Central and Eastern Europe. In this episode, Anne and Robinson discuss corruption, foreign policy, and the threat of autocracy in Donald Trump’s America. More particularly, they talk about Anne’s assessment of unprecedented corruption, Trump’s relationship with Vladimir Putin, and Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff’s involvement in diplomacy and business negotiations. They also discuss China’s mass surveillance system, the power of tech companies to suppress political campaigns, retaliation against political opponents, and whether the 2026 elections can slow America’s democratic decline. Anne’s recent book is Autocracy, Inc.: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World (Doubleday, 2024).