It Could Happen Here

Journalist Carlos Berríos Polanco talks with James about how the United States acquired its inhabited overseas colonies, why the constitution doesn't fully apply there, and what it means as Trump says he wants to add new territories or states.
How to Hide an Empire: A History of the Greater United States by Daniel Immerwahr

Colonial Crucible: Empire in the Making of the Modern American State edited by Alfred W. McCoy and Francisco A. Scarano

The Anarchy of Empire in the Making of U.S. Culture by Amy Kaplan

https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/182/244/

https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/182/1/

https://theconversation.com/why-russia-gave-up-alaska-americas-gateway-to-the-arctic-74675?xid=PS_smithsonian

https://www.reuters.com/graphics/USA-CARIBBEAN/MILITARY-BUILDUP/egpbbnzyrpq/

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/17/magazine/venezuela-empires-colony.html

https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-us-state-trump-rodriguez-chavismo-silence-634203c885803b018ecd8ac012bb249d

https://time.com/article/2026/06/02/trump-annex-canada-51st-state-rhetoric-carney-us-partnership-message/

https://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/28/nyregion/new-light-on-old-fbi-fight-decades-of-surveillance-of-puerto-rican-groups.html

https://www.marxists.org/history/etol/newspape/atc/1685.html

https://theconversation.com/us-territories-have-a-voice-in-congress-but-no-vote-heres-why-283547

https://www.nminewsservice.com/cnmi-covenant-united-states-50th-anniversary-explainer-timeline/

https://apnews.com/article/american-samoa-voting-citizenship-alaska-trump-eda6c32ce0fcdca6edb22efac26e403d

https://elecciones2024.ceepur.org/Escrutinio_General_123/index.html#es/default/PLEBISCITO_Resumen.xml

https://documents.worldbank.org/en/publication/documents-reports/documentdetail/099257005212415735

https://www.doi.gov/oia/compacts-of-free-association

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/30/puerto-rico-independence-movement

https://time.com/7024574/puerto-rico-status-vote/

https://www.uog.edu/_resources/files/schools-and-colleges/college-of-liberal-arts-and-social-sciences/droessler_whose-pacific.pdf

https://juntasupervision.pr.gov/abril-y-mayo-2025/
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/21/trump-strait-of-hormuz-american-territory
https://edition.cnn.com/2026/08/20/politics/trump-iran-war-strait-of-hormuz
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:School_Begins_(Puck_Magazine_1-25-1899).jpg

Las carpetas: persecución política y derechos civiles en Puerto Rico by Ramón Bosque Pérez y Javier Colón Morera

Soldiers of the Nation: Military Service and Modern Puerto Rico, 1868-1952 by Harry Franqui-Rivera

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Weeks after more than 600 houses in Spokane burned, James talks to community members about how people prepared, cared for each other, and worried about migration enforcement during the fire evacuations.
Sources:
Aldo Leopold- A Sand County Almanac
https://www.instagram.com/p/DcBqjR6RdzJ/
Donation Links:
Spokane Immigrants Rights Coalition: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/sirc-community-fund
Spectrum running the Rainbow Relief Fund: https://spectrumcenterspokane.app.neoncrm.com/forms/donate
Colville Fund: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/cedar-fund-wildfire-recovery-campaign
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Investigative Journalist Kevin Foster discusses the bad economics of public investments in sports and how billionaires will try to rob your city
Sources:
https://www.forbes.com/profile/thomas-dundon/
https://www.currentaffairs.org/news/the-nbas-newest-cheapest-owner-shows-how-billionaires-ruin-sports
https://www.opb.org/article/2025/10/03/tom-dundon-blazers-subprime-loan/
https://archive.nytimes.com/dealbook.nytimes.com/2015/01/26/investment-riches-built-on-auto-loans-to-poor/#:~:text=Ms.,the%20loan%20with%20her%20daughter
https://www.youtube.com/live/UD8erzI72Fg
https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/shadow-bank-blue-owl-caps-021700097.html
https://wealth.blueowl.com/solutions/investment-strategy-real-assets-digital-infrastructure
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-02-04/blue-owl-fund-sells-warehouse-to-dhs-for-ice-mega-jail
https://youtu.be/3BqOjrFFNK0
https://pubs.aeaweb.org/doi/pdfplus/10.1257/jep.14.3.95
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ecin.12572
https://belkcollegeofbusiness.charlotte.edu/economic-working-papers/wp-content/uploads/sites/850/2012/10/wp2016-014.pdf
https://www.cfr.org/backgrounders/economics-hosting-olympic-games
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24131508_Mega-Events_The_effect_of_the_world's_biggest_sporting_events_on_local_regional_and_national_economies
https://econjwatch.org/file_download/222/2008-09-coateshumphreys-com.pdf
https://econjwatch.org/file_download/222/2008-09-coateshumphreys-com.pdf
https://media.clemson.edu/economics/data/sports/Stadiums%20and%20Econ%20Impact/Matheson-2019-Journal_of_Policy_Analysis_and_Management.pdf
https://www.blazersedge.com/trail-blazers-analysis/114957/portland-moda-center-portland-trail-blazers-arena-revenue-debate-sports-teams-city-revenue-taxes-deal
https://www.kjzz.org/business/2026-05-10/diversification-matters-glendale-says-desert-diamond-arena-is-thriving-post-hockey
https://www.kron4.com/news/bay-area/oakland-arena-coliseum-record-best-fiscal-year-of-all-time-after-sold-out-bad-bunny-k-pop-concerts/
https://oaklandside.org/2026/06/16/how-hot-is-the-oakland-arena-a-second-bidder-has-emerged-to-buy-it/
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/keyarena-turns-a-bigger-profit-than-it-ever-did-with-the-sonics/
https://journalistsresource.org/economics/sports-stadium-public-financing/
https://idahocapitalsun.com/2024/07/03/smith-entertainment-group-estimates-spending-525-million-remodeling-delta-center/
https://www.opb.org/article/2026/04/20/trail-blazers-moda-center-portland-basketball-sports/
https://www.ripcitynotripoff.com
https://weareripcity.org/#supporters
https://www.opb.org/article/2026/07/16/portland-councilors-release-draft-term-sheet-as-business-coalition-presses-for-public-moda-center-funding/
https://multnomah.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7145153/2026/03/25/nba-expansion-seattle-las-vegas/
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Margaret reads a story about a strange visitor by a civil rights activist and writer
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All of this week's episodes of It Could Happen Here put together in one large file.
How the United States Built its Colonial Empire, Pt. 1

The Dangers of Silica ft. Kim Kelly
How AI Companies are Monetizing Intimacy, Ft. Bridget Todd

Fighting for Incarcerated Workers

Executive Disorder: Iran Ceasefire Expires, Corrupt Military Contractors, Florida Election

You can now listen to all Cool Zone Media shows, 100% ad-free through the Cooler Zone Media subscription, available exclusively on Apple Podcasts. So, open your Apple Podcasts app, search for “Cooler Zone Media” and subscribe today!
Sources/Links:
How the United States Built its Colonial Empire, Pt. 1
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/23780231241274187
https://fortune.com/2026/07/27/hormuz-fertilizer-guano-islands-act-fertilizer-empire/
https://www.historynewsnetwork.org/article/navassa-island-the-uss-160-year-forgotten-tragedy
https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2017-09-26/almost-half-of-americans-dont-know-puerto-ricans-are-us-citizens-poll
https://www.doi.gov/oia/islands/politicatypes
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/30/puerto-rico-independence-movement
https://www.reuters.com/graphics/USA-CARIBBEAN/MILITARY-BUILDUP/egpbbnzyrpq/
https://www.nminewsservice.com/cnmi-covenant-united-states-50th-anniversary-explainer-timeline/
https://apnews.com/article/american-samoa-voting-citizenship-alaska-trump-eda6c32ce0fcdca6edb22efac26e403d
https://www.nminewsservice.com/cnmi-covenant-united-states-50th-anniversary-explainer-timeline/ https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/how-us-controls-iraqs-oil-revenues-2026-01-23/
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/17/magazine/venezuela-empires-colony.html
https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-us-state-trump-rodriguez-chavismo-silence-634203c885803b018ecd8ac012bb249d
https://time.com/article/2026/06/02/trump-annex-canada-51st-state-rhetoric-carney-us-partnership-message/
https://theconversation.com/us-territories-have-a-voice-in-congress-but-no-vote-heres-why-283547
https://www.usace.army.mil/Media/Fact-Sheets/Fact-Sheets-View/Article/4463352/154-the-longe
st-blackout-in-us-history-hurricane-maria/

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/trump-was-serious-about-trading-hurricane-stricken-puert
o-rico-greenland-n1237336

https://www.democracynow.org/2001/8/3/as_navy_pounds_vieques_with_largest
“Nationals” but not “Citizens”
https://www.aclu.org/news/voting-rights/nationals-but-not-citizens-how-the-u-s-denies-citizenship
-to-american-samoans
How AI Companies are Monetizing Intimacy, Ft. Bridget Todd
https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Love-at-First-Prompt/Bridget-Todd/9781668179826
Fighting for Incarcerated Workers
https://audrasrealthoughts.wordpress.com/
https://incarceratedworkers.org
https://www.instagram.com/incarceratedworkers/
https://www.jailhouselawyersspeak.com/new-page
Executive Disorder: Iran Ceasefire Expires, Corrupt Military Contractors, Florida Election
https://x.com/CBPCommissioner/status/2089395143136731579?s=20
https://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2026/08/19/korea-KOSPI-Korea-Stock-Index-fell-six-percent-steep-losses-chipmakers/2411787132055/
https://abcnews.com/Business/wireStory/shares-fall-asia-kospi-57-oil-prices-jump-135759997
https://x.com/atrupar/status/2089911556301550045?s=20
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mnd.234416/gov.uscourts.mnd.234416.212.3_3.pdf
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mnd.234416/gov.uscourts.mnd.234416.212.8_2.pdf
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.mnd.234416/gov.uscourts.mnd.234416.212.6_3.pdf
https://archive.ph/ZF3Y0#selection-4307.0-4307.372
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73489661/212/united-states-v-sant/
https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/117119807819944656
https://www.foxnews.com/world/trump-confirms-irgc-backchannel-calls-irans-white-flag-surrender
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/vessel-struck-by-unknown-projectile-strait-hormuz-crew-casualty-reported-ukmto-2026-08-18/
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/8/18/no-talks-with-iran-says-trump-as-us-president-stews-over-hormuz-deal
https://x.com/UK_MTO/status/2089719923295556095?s=20
https://x.com/UK_MTO
https://x.com/RudawEnglish/status/2089263666742931732?s=20
https://www.propublica.org/article/general-dynamics-artillery-factory-failed
https://www.upi.com/Archives/1983/11/30/General-Dynamics-Corps-alleged-proposal-to-sell-a-wrench/2171439016400/
https://time.com/archive/6710343/general-dynamics-under-fire/
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/18/us-iran-war-trump-hormuz-trump-ceasefire-expires-extension-.html
https://www.newsnationnow.com/world/us-iran-economic-strain-strait-of-hormuz-conflict/
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/18/business/strait-of-hormuz-ship-attack.html
https://archive.is/f4Ei8#selection-4447.0-4447.264
https://www.reuters.com/world/china/selling-grips-bond-markets-us-japan-inflation-fiscal-worries-take-hold-2026-08-18/
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/19/treasury-announces-upscaled-buyback-operation-for-longer-term-debt-sending-yields-lower.html
https://www.businessinsider.com/bond-market-warning-yields-hit-2007-record-2026-8
https://angienixon.com/ https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-primary-special-elections/florida-senate-results#democratic-primary https://www.nytimes.com/2026/08/18/us/politics/florida-democratic-senate-primary-results.html
https://x.com/LauraLoomer/status/2087282981593387046?s=20
https://x.com/genzforchange/status/2088252309243297868
https://x.com/genzforchange/status/2088037851086614842?s=20
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2026/08/15/democratic-socialists-progressives-tout-momentum-in-south-florida-skeptics-say-its-a-myth/
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