On this episode of the Influence Continuum, I spoke with Craig Unger, an investigative journalist and the author of Den of Spies, which is described in his biography as “a real-life political thriller about how master spy William Casey put together a treasonous covert operation in 1980 that hijacked American foreign policy and stole the election for Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush.” Craig is also the author of six books on the Republican party’s assault on democracy, including American Kompromat: How the KGB Cultivated Donald Trump and Related Tales of Sex, Greed, Power, and Treachery. He has written for New York Magazine, The New Republic, The Washington Post, The Guardian, The New Yorker, The New York Times, Esquire, The Independent, and many others. “Initially, I think, it was very covert, as I show in this book. Everything was behind the scenes. With Trump today, it’s almost overt,” Craig said, noting Trump’s direct message in 2016 to Russia to retrieve Clinton’s emails. I noted The Wall Street Journal’s recent article citing Elon Musk’s relationship with Vladimir Putin and secret conversations. We then discussed the volumes of evidence supporting the idea that Trump was recruited as an asset for the KGB in the 1980s. This book is a well researched documented revealing of how American Democracy has been manipulated. Tragic and Americans wil now see what is brought to power. Eyes open and courageous resistance is required! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.