Why Postliberalism Failed

Thomas D. Howes & James M. Patterson

Why Postliberalism Failed is a podcast that critiques the recent rise of interest in Catholic integralism and rightwing authoritarianism. James M. Patterson (Ave Maria) and Thomas Howes (Princeton) take the listener through the logical fallacies, theological errors, historical disasters, and political violence that has defined various “postliberal” regimes—all of which failed. They also connect these discussions to the rapid rise of postliberal ideas into rightwing politics in America and elsewhere in the world.

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20 episodes
Avg 1 hr 9 min
English

Episodes 20

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S2 · E9
Oct 15, 2025 · 39 min
The Assassination of Charlie Kirk
James was very delayed in uploading this discussion that breaks from our usual subject area and format, but he decided that it was still worth uploading. Mind you, the original recording date was September 12, so the discussion is more about the initial response than the Late Night stuff or the Memorial Service.
S2 · E8
Oct 15, 2025 · 48 min
A Protestant Perspective with Joel Berry
Tom and James interview Joel Berry, Managing Editor of the Christian satire website Babylon Bee, about his experiences dealing with postliberalism and Christian Nationalism on the Protestant side of American politics.
S2 · E7
Sep 11, 2025 · 1 hr 8 min
The Kids Are Not Alright (with Victoria Holmes)
Tom and James talk to Victoria Holmes, who works on her own video series on Catholicism and politics here on YouTube.
S2 · E6
Aug 29, 2025 · 1 hr 25 min
Josef Tiso, Slovakia, and Collaboration
James and Tom talk about Father Josef Tiso, who was dictator of Slovakia during the Second World War. During those years, Slovakia was a client state of the Third Reich, and Tiso was a wily, ambitious Catholic priest who saw to the deaths of between 50,000 - 95,000 Jews until his hanging in 1946. Afterwards, Slovakia, like Croatia, managed to endure the worst of both worlds, first fascism and then communism.
S2 · E5
Aug 29, 2025 · 39 min
Against Deneen
Tom flies solo this week in our (late) video because James is taking care of a newborn and starting classes at a new university. We will be back together to talk soon, but we hope this is good enough to cover our bases for now!
S2 · E4
Aug 29, 2025 · 1 hr 13 min
Yes, Franco Was a Fascist Monster
After edgy social media poaster Pinesap debated the virtues of Francisco Franco in a debate with Mehdi Hasan, Franco Appreciation Content resurfaced. When Tom and James remarked on Franco's atrocities, we were once again visited with spurious claims about Franco's virtues as a pious Catholic leader who restored Spain. He was nothing of the sort, as Tom and James detail.
S2 · E3
Aug 29, 2025 · 1 hr 20 min
Ante Pavelic and the Independent State of Croatia
After several requests, Tom and I decided to do an episode on the worst example of postliberal governance, the Independent State of Croatia, operated by Ante Pavelic and the Ustase. It's a bit of a downer of an episode but important for people who take the rise of integralism and postliberalism seriously.
S2 · E1
Jul 29, 2025 · 1 hr
Catching Up
We review some of the major developments since we wrapped recording our first season. We cover the election of noted postliberal JD Vance to the Vice Presidency, the likely ouster of Viktor Orbán, the papacy of Pope Leo XIV, and other developments.
S2 · E2
Jul 29, 2025 · 1 hr 12 min
Vichy
Thomas was eager to talk about Vichy after having completed the section on Vichy in our book. Vichy is important because of how its brief existence illustrated the inhumanity of postliberal ideas within the right wing Catholic culture that had fostered them. We are a little harried because Thomas was on the road and James having no idea what day it was.
#18
Dec 23, 2024 · 1 hr 16 min
Dolfuss and Austrofascism with H. David Baer
Tom and James speak with Dr. H. David Baer (Texas Lutheran) about Englebert Dolfuss and the rise of Austrofascism of the 1930s and its influence on contemporary postliberals.
#17
Dec 23, 2024 · 1 hr 11 min
Is It In The Parishes? with Fr. Stephen Vrazel
Fr. Vrazel gives us a sense of how much postliberalism is part of the ordinary life of a parish and where he has or has not seen it crop up in Catholic circles he travels in.
#16
Nov 6, 2024 · 1 hr 13 min
What Weigel Gets Wrong
A recent episode of The Remnant featured its host, Jonah Goldberg, discussing contemporary political Catholicism with George Weigel.
#15
Oct 21, 2024 · 1 hr 20 min
God's Swiss Army Knife
This episode is about Fr. Martin Rhonheimer, one of the most important living theologians on the subject of human dignity, the common good, and democracy--although his work extends even beyond these subjects.
#14
Oct 17, 2024 · 1 hr 28 min
Americanism
James talks about the misconceptions around the heresy of "Americanism" and how Ven. Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen repurposed the term to defend a form of Catholic Republicanism.
#13
Oct 17, 2024 · 1 hr 24 min
The Social Contract with Paul DeHart
James interviews his friend Paul DeHart about his recent book The Social Contract in Ruins on U. of Missouri Press.
#9
Sep 19, 2024 · 1 hr 22 min
Immigration with Daniel Di Martino
In this episode, we speak with Daniel Di Martino about historical and contemporary postliberal policies on immigration and how they, combined with arguments for tariffs, would make working Americans considerably worse off.
#10
Sep 19, 2024 · 1 hr 7 min
Civil Rights with Dawn Eden Goldstein
In today's episode, we spend some time talking to Dr. Dawn Eden Goldstein about American Jesuit priest Father Louis J. Twomey and his contributions to the Civil Rights Movement. We also speak to her about Father Edward Dowling, another American Jesuits who dedicated his life to people with addictions, troubled marriages, and nervous disorders. Their examples provide an alternative vision for Catholicism in America that serves the stated ends of postliberalism but without all of the weird baggage.
#11
Sep 19, 2024 · 43 min
Francisco Franco, Part 1 (with Bonus Technical Difficulties!)
Today, James and Tom talk about the rhetorical role the still critically dead Spanish authoritarian Francisco Franco plays in contemporary postliberal discourse. Then, Tom's computer dies, and he had to record the ending by himself with the inclusion of possible copyright violations that will probably get this channel permanently demonetized.
#12
Sep 19, 2024 · 1 hr 3 min
Faith through Competition with Clara Piano
This week's episode features a flailing James and a locked in Thomas discussing the economics of religion with Ole Miss economics professor Clara Piano. She explains recent academic literature that posits the relatively weak faith of the Middle Ages and how religious competition through pluralism has led to stronger faith rather than state-imposed establishments.
#8
Aug 20, 2024 · 1 hr 35 min
What the Sigma? (Plínio Salgado and Brazilian Integralist Action)
In this week's episode, James talks about another example of a postliberal party that failed to secure a position within in government, the Brazilian Integralist Action Party. Plínio Salgado founded the party after a wealthy friend sponsored him to meet with Benito Mussolini in 1930.

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