The New Yorker: Politics And More

The journalist Michelle Lhooq joins Tyler Foggatt to discuss her reporting on ibogaine, a psychedelic that has recently been embraced by the right—including President Donald Trump. They talk about the movement to promote research into ibogaine as a treatment for mental illness; the unlikely coalition of drug advocates, Republican politicians, and the veterans who helped bring the drug into the political mainstream;  and Trump’s executive order expediting the F.D.A. approval of psychedelic therapies. They also discuss how the politics of psychedelics have shifted over the years, and whether the success of the ibogaine initiative could signal a broader shift toward the acceptance and legalization of more psychedelics and other drugs. This week’s reading: “Are Psychedelics Right-Wing Now?,” by Michelle Lhooq “The Delusions of John Roberts,” by Margaret Talbot “The Great Delegalization,” by Dara Lind “A.I. Is Now a Major Election Issue,” by Benjamin Wallace-Wells