{"href":"https://api.simplecast.com/oembed?url=https%3A%2F%2Frealclearinvestigations.simplecast.com%2Fepisodes%2F115-NBgyVb3X","width":444,"version":"1.0","type":"rich","title":" California Dream Turns Nightmare with Susan Crabtree | RealClearInvestigations Podcast #115","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/69be5d4f-b498-44bc-b3b5-f614ce9a7957/1b5532e6-0915-475b-a74e-e52bdeb84f7e/rci_115_thumbnail_square_1080x1080.jpg","thumbnail_height":300,"provider_url":"https://simplecast.com","provider_name":"Simplecast","html":"","height":200,"description":"On this week’s episode of the RealClearInvestigations Podcast, RCI Editor J. Peder Zane and RCI Senior Reporter James Varney speak with RealClearPolitics reporter Susan Crabtree about her new book (co-authored with Jed McFatter) “Fool’s Gold: The Radicals, Con Artists, and Traitors Who Killed the California Dream and Now Threaten Us All.” \n\nIn our round-up of the week’s best investigative reporting, Zane and Varney discuss articles in the Washington Free Beacon and USA today on the federal indictment of the Southern Poverty Law Center stemming from its payment of some $3 million from 2014 to 2023 to members of the KKK, Aryan Nations, National Alliance, and other \"violent extremist\" groups who allegedly served as informants and a New York Times article about people who lost their jobs when the Trump administration shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development. \n\n00:00 Introduction to the Podcast and Guest\n01:07 Indictment of the Southern Poverty Law Center\n06:08 Critique of USAID and Its Impact\n11:11 Introduction to Susan Crabtree and Her Book\n13:59 California's Failed Policies and Their Consequences\n20:01 Media's Role in California's Issues\n22:49 California's Infrastructure and Union Influence\n24:30 Transforming Transportation in California\n26:20 The Homelessness Crisis: A Deep Dive\n29:10 The Role of NGOs and Nonprofits\n32:33 Corruption and Accountability in California\n36:26 Gavin Newsom's Ties to China\n42:25 The Future of California Politics\n"}