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\\u201cAccording to the Bipartisan Policy Center," "a recent study by the Concord Coalition disagrees," "One review of your budget by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget says." We\\u2019ve seen these seemingly benign Official Sounding sources hundreds of times\\u2014from presidential debates to 60 Minutes to countless articles in The Washington Post and The New York Times.

But what the average person can\\u2019t reasonably know is that these organizations\\u2014Bipartisan Policy Center, the Concord Coalition, Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, and PR projects like \\u201cThe Can Kicks Back\\u201d and \\u201cAmerica Speaks\\u201d\\u2014are all veiled front groups for a single, far-right billionaire whose entire life mission was to privatize social security, medicare and other entitlement programs under the auspices of fighting a so-called \\u201cdeficit timebomb.\\u201d For decades, a web of Pete Peterson-backed front groups\\u2014often funded in concert with other like minded billionaires\\u2014has used the faux neutrality of think tanks, institutes, and academia to launder "anti-deficit" messaging for American pundits, reporters, and politicians, entirely capturing the narrative around deficits and their alleged pending destruction of society as we know it.

This week, we explore the origins of Pete Peterson\\u2019s austerity propaganda machine, his web of influence, how he helped co-opt both conservative and liberal knowledge production, and how he and spent hundreds of millions of dollars to undermine what little liberal government the United States has left.

We are joined by David Dayen, executive editor of The American Prospect.