Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words
Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words

The COVID Truth The ‘Experts’ Didn’t Want to Hear, Academia’s DEI Fraud, and Open Borders | VDH

August 13, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

“I don't think the left believes that DEI works anymore. I don't think they believe that the Green New Deal works anymore. I don't think they believe that the COVID policies work anymore.” That is Victor Davis Hanson, speaking from his farm in California on an August evening in 2026, running through a list of failed progressive projects as if checking off items on a grocery receipt. The episode covers a remarkable amount of ground—a fabricated Cambridge professor, a Nobel laureate censored for telling the truth about COVID’s origins, a 49-foot dinghy carrying 230 migrants across the English Channel, and the crumbling credibility of the entire DEI apparatus—all held together by a single thread: the left’s addiction to narratives that collapse under scrutiny, and its willingness to destroy anyone who points that out.

The DEI Con and the Fabulist Professor

Continue reading the full summary in the app — free to try.

Read Full Summary →

Free • No credit card required

Listen to Audio Summary Open in App

What you'll learn

  • 1 (00:01) **COVID Truth Suppressed** - Victor Davis Hanson opens by recounting how early scientific dissent on COVID origins was silenced.
  • 2 (00:56) **Open and DEI Fraud** - The conversation pivots to the scandal of Cambridge professor Jason Arday, whose fabricated victimhood narrative exposed the rot in DEI hiring.
  • 3 (12:33) **The Omission: Legitimate Scholars Shut Out** - Hanson moves from the "act of commission" in DEI to the "act of omission," where qualified academics are ignored.
  • 4 (15:42) **Academic Mediocrity and Envy** - Hanson reflects on the pettiness and arrogance of left-wing academics who despise successful entrepreneurs.
  • 5 (20:18) **The Left's Double Standard on Anti-Semitism** - Hanson argues that the left harbors open anti-Semites while the right ostracizes its own for similar views.
  • 6 (25:36) **Property Theft and Marxist Envy** - The discussion turns to a New York City story of a left-wing activist who hasn't paid rent in four years, driving a Black landlord into bankruptcy.
  • 7 (29:07) **The University Debt Trap** - Hanson proposes a radical reform for universities to prevent student debt crises.

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Guests on this episode

Victor Davis Hanson

Show Notes

How were the scientists who criticized Fauci’s COVID mandates unfairly vilified in a way to keep them silent? 

On today’s edition of “Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words,” Victor Davis Hanson and Jack Fowler discuss certain scientists’ early warnings about school closures, lockdowns, vaccine mandates, and the broader costs of the COVID response, while explaining how Fauci suppressed dissent and concealed his involvement in COVID-related gain-of-function research in China.

The episode also dives into to Israel’s war against Hamas and the aftermath of October 7, covering Israel’s military response and how Hamas deliberately embeds its forces among civilians. They also discuss Democrat politicians attempting to rebrand themselves, the rise of socialism and anti-capitalist rhetoric, homelessness and crime in blue states, and the growing divide between elite progressive ideals and the realities facing ordinary Americans. 

Allegiance Gold - Visit http://protectwithvictor.com/ to learn about a special Liberty Offer.

Home Title Lock - visit http://www.HomeTitleLock.com and use promo code VICTOR to get a FREE Title History Report, PLUS, a FREE TRIAL of their Million Dollar TripleLock Protection

The Alliance for Secure AI - Visit http://www.secureainow.org Learn how we're working to mitigate risks and protect humanity in the advanced AI revolution.

The Heritage Guide to Historic Sites: Visit https://historicsites.heritage.org/ to start your adventure today

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words

More from this podcast

Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words →