Anna Paulina Luna Wants Everything Disclosed

In an era defined by deep institutional distrust, a new trend within populist conservatism has emerged. It’s a sense that the federal government is keeping secrets and protecting the powerful at our expense. My guest this week is Representative Anna Paulina Luna, a conservative Republican from Florida who has quickly established herself as a political troublemaker. She’s challenging fellow lawmakers — Republicans and Democrats — on issues like sexual harassment and ethics, but she doesn’t see her campaign to clean up Congress as in tension with her allegiance to President Trump. Luna has focused her first years in Congress on exposing what she views as coverups, from the Epstein files to the assassination of John F. Kennedy and longstanding government secrecy around U.F.O.s.

• 00:00 - Intro
• 01:31 - Luna's politics: "Conservative with a streak of populism"
• 08:07 - From chaos to conservative influencer
• 16:17 - Critiquing the ethics of Congress
• 24:55 - Presidential ethics and the Epstein files
• 36:25 - The U.A.P. activity at Eglin Air Force Base
• 41:02 - The "mosaic" around the J.F.K. assassination
• 47:50 - U.A.P. evidence
• 54:30 - Whistleblower retribution and protections
• 57:57 - Secret programs: "A stronger dose of strangeness"

(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)

Thoughts? Email us at interestingtimes@nytimes.com. Please subscribe to our YouTube Channel, Interesting Times with Ross Douthat.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.