The Latest

This week: Joe backs up his big prediction last week and gets into exactly why Democrats should be optimistic about their chances in 2022. It's going to take some hard work from everyone -- but this is a winnable fight. Plus, the latest from Biden's Georgia trip and the push for the voting rights bill.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe and Alex discuss Joe Biden's huge speech on the anniversary of the Capitol insurrection, and what we can all do to protect our democracy. Then, what does the latest redistricting news mean for midterms? Trippi makes a huge bold prediction Democrats are going to like to hear.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2022 is on the horizon, but the Build Baack Better Bill will have to wait after Joe Manchin stopped it in its track. What's next for the president's signature bill? Plus, it's almost been a year since the Jan. 6 insurrection - what's the latest with the fight for democracy? And one piece of good, underreported news: Pres. Biden got 40 federal judges confirmed this year, and it was the most diverse group ever. We discuss the impact of that and how it should affect our grade for the president. Happy Holidays everyone, see you next year. Show Notes: Mother Jones - What If The Media Covered The War On Democracy Like An Actual War? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe and Alex discuss a potentially huge pivot in Senate priorities. All of a sudden is Build Back Better on the back burner? Then, what's going on with Mark Meadows' texts. Hint: don't put your treason in PowerPoint form. And Joe and Alex finally get to some of their favorite listener questions from the last few weeks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

First, Alex and Joe talk how important Joe Biden's Democracy Summit this week is going to be. With autocracy on the rise worldwide, we have to sound the alarm and get to work. Then, what's up with the latest round of poll numbers? Joe points out what's noise and what really matters (hint, it's mostly noise.) Finally, what's going on in Georgia? Brian Kemp is being challenged by someone to the right. And the Republican grift machine is much, much worse than you realize. Show Notes: Anne Applebaum - The Bad Guys Are Winning Barton Gelman - The Election That Could Break America Amanda Marcotte - Destroying Democracy Can Make You Very Rich Judd Legum - Trump's new media company is a $1.6 billion mirage Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe and Alex are back with plenty of news to cover. With SCOTUS hearing the latest challenge to Roe v. Wade, what are the electoral implications if the conservative Court overturns the landmark case? Then the latest news out of Georgia, where Stacey Abrams' big announcement will energize Democrats and make Georgia the center of the political world (again). Finally, what's the latest for 2024 as Trump launches a remake of the Apprentice to pick his potential running mate? And what do we make of the constant unflattering leaks about VP Harris? David Doak's tweet Jill Filipovic CNN Article  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Author and journalist Dave Pell joins the show to discuss his book, Please Scream Inside Your Heart, and the state of journalism and the news today. Dave is also the author of the NextDraft -- one of Joe's favorite newsletters that combines a comprehensive look at the news with a touch of humor. Joe and Alex talk to Dave about how we're supposed to process everything that seems like it's going on so fast -- and what we're all supposed to do about those feelings of impending doom. Next Draft Book: Please Scream Inside Your Heart: Breaking News and Nervous Breakdowns in the Year that Wouldn't End Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Veteran reporter Dave Weigel joins the show to discuss how Democrats can make strides in '22, starting with another run for Beto O'Rourke for Governor of Texas. How do we handicap that race as it stands now? Plus: Will Democrats get momentum back after a flat few months for Joe Biden? Can the infrastructure and Build Back Better proposals help move voters back into the Democratic column? And, finally, can Democrats finally win Texas? Check out Dave's Washington Post series The Trailer, including his latest here: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/11/16/trailer-democrats-say-build-back-better-can-save-them-does-their-data-back-that-up/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Yes, you heard it right, Infrastructure Week! President Joe Biden finally got his infrastructure bill passed. The question is, how good or bad is this for Democrats going into 2022? We talk about the implications for next year and how the GOP's recruitment struggles are good news for Democrats. Also: the January 6th committee has more subpoenas out -- who's next? This and more, all on That Trippi Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the Jan. 6 investigation in the House unfolds, historian and professor Ruth Ben-Ghiat joins the show to put America's authoritarian impulses in historical and global context. She contrasts Trump to historical autocrats, puts some of his skills and tendencies under the microscope, and helps diagnose the temperature of the movement in the country today. She offers some hopeful reasons for why Trump could fade in future elections, but also warnings about what has or hasn't been addressed since Jan. 6. Check out Ruth's Substack here: https://lucid.substack.com/ And buy her book, Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present, here: https://www.amazon.com/Strongmen-Mussolini-Present-Ruth-Ben-Ghiat/dp/0393868419/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=strongman+ruth+benghiat&qid=1636399469&sr=8-1 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe and Alex discuss why Joe’s actually feeling… okay about the elections? (At least in a historical context.) Make no mistake, this is a wake-up call for Democrats and we have a lot of work to do. So what’s the real problem here? We still have no counter to the Fox News outrage machine. How do we combat it and build a community to spread the word for democracy? And what is going on with eroding Democratic support among suburban voters? Finally, what's the biggest mistake we keep making as a party? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“It’s about digital, but it’s not about digital. Digital is the means.” Occasionally on That Trippi Show, we don’t talk politics but we welcome guests who we find have a unique, interesting perspective. This week we welcome Greek Minister of Digital Governance Kyriakos Pierrakakis to talk about the Greek government’s digital transformation connecting the government and the services it provides more easily to its citizens. How do you develop a portal for simple access to all government services in the middle of a pandemic that’s citizen-centric, not government-centric? And just as important, how do you get the users (citizens) to buy in? Listen to our discussion with the Minister now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do yourself a favor: Before listening, give Hunter Walker's bombshell article a read here: https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/exclusive-jan-6-organizers-met-congress-white-house-1245289/** Investigative journalist Hunter Walker comes on to discuss the stunning story published in Rolling Stone alleging members of Congress and White House staffers worked together to incite the infamous "protest" on Jan. 6. Walker details a "blanket pardon" allegedly dangled by Rep. Paul Gosar -- and whether Trump himself was aware of what was to come. Plus, the turning point of the whole "protest" on Jan. 6 -- which involved Trump himself. January 6th will be infamous in American history forever, but, as Walker says, the story is far from over. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe and Alex are back to talk about a ton of big news. Joe Manchin is dangling a possible defection to the GOP caucus if he doesn't get what he wants in the BBB bill. What options do the Dems have? Could he actually do it? And how do we move past the infighting?  Then, the governor's race in Virginia is going to be tight, mostly because the GOP candidate hasn't had to commit to Trumpism or moderate conservatism. Democrats must not take this one lightly -- imagine if a GOP governor had to certify election results in a contested state in '24.  Finally, the GOP is infighting as well -- Mitch McConnell has tried to focus Trump on the future instead of the Big Lie. Will Trump still turn out voters when he's not on the ticket? And how could the results of 2022 affect the prospects of Trump running for president in '24?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe welcomes Simon Rosenberg, president of NDN and the New Policy Institute. He's a Democratic campaign veteran who is both realistic and optimistic about the coalition Democrats must build to win in 2022. The discussion touches on how infighting among Democrats is becoming an obstacle for the president, and how the difficulty passing the overwhelmingly popular infrastructure bill has led to a decline in polls. But all is not as bleak as it seems. Joe, Simon and Alex have hope for the midterms and 2024, and Simon would still "rather be us than them." Memo: Time for the Dems to Come Together Volunteer to get out thee vote with VAA Turnout Project Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ralph Neas, prominent civil rights leader, joins Joe and Alex this week to discuss the power of coalition and strength in united numbers, specifically in human, constitutional, and civil rights. Ralph shares his insight on how the GOP could "turn back the clock" many decades and undo a lot of the important bipartisan, pro-democracy strides we have made. Election subversion and voter suppression threaten to disenfranchise millions of Americans and undermine our democracy. The Supreme Court Really Matters: Huffington Post Op-Ed Chronology: How the Arizona Senate Audit in Maricopa County Is an Assault on Voting Rights Response: The Truth Behind the Results of the Maricopa County Election Audit Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's episode of That Trippi Show, we make history. Our first repeat guest has big news: he's running for Lt. Governor in Texas! Matthew Dowd -- a former Republican, by the way -- has big plans to change the course of Texas' legislative powers. Democracy is the only way to stop the autocratic GOP, and the Democratic party is the vehicle we need to use to achieve it. Support Matthew's run here: https://www.dowdtexas.com/ Follow him on Twitter here https://twitter.com/matthewjdowd?s=20 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we're joined by Molly Jong-Fast, host of The New Abnormal podcast and Editor at Large at The Daily Beast. We start with her story on Gabby Petito which shook up the Internet this week, as she examined the coverage, the investigation, and the popularity of the case. Then, Joe and Alex ask Molly about the inter-party fight between Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump, which has the potential to spill into the primaries and maybe even provoke a nasty fight in the Senate. How can the GOP manage to win general elections when they have to move to the extreme right to win a primary? Finally, the discussion shifts to Texas, where Beto O'Rourke has reportedly decided to challenge Gov. Greg Abbott in the 2022 election for Governor. Could he actually unseat the Governor? Is Texas -- for real this time -- a place where Democrats could make some gains? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Journalist Judd Legum joins us this week for a fascinating show. First, Joe, Alex and Judd react to the overwhelming victory by Gov. Gavin Newsom in California's recall election. California isn't exactly a threat to go red anytime soon, but what lessons can be learned from what was once thought to be a fairly competitive race? Then, the conversation shifts towards the power of money in politics. Judd had some groundbreaking reporting earlier this year about how a small foundation essentially captured national attention by pushing a debate about Critical Race Theory into national consciousness. But money can be used for good too, especially when it comes to forcing companies to take a stance on political issues. Join Judd's Substack here: popular.info Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices