The Latest

Joe and Alex are joined by Greg Sargent of The Washington Post, author of "An Uncivil War" and the Plum Line blog. Greg joins for a somber conversation about the state of the GOP, including how low the bar has gotten in the Senate for Republicans to do the right thing. What does compromise look like in a world where pro-democracy Republicans are purged from the party? How do we hold the liars accountable while reaching out to those who were lied to? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe and Alex have had it with today's GOP, which refuses to investigate the attack on themselves Jan. 6, while continuing audits in states around the country, insisting the election was stolen. It's quite a statement when the most serious politician we discuss on today's show may be Matthew McConaughey. Then, a new poll shows Trump leading all '24 candidates by a huge margin -- but he's only getting 48% of Republican support. Joe wonders why a former president getting less than 50% of his own party is viewed as so dominant, and thinks he may not be as strong as we think. Finally, why Joe is for Matthew McConaughey running for Governor of Texas, no matter what he runs as. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Democracy Docket founder Marc Elias has been fighting GOP-led voter suppression efforts for years. In the process, he may be single-handedly saving our republic. He tells Joe and Alex the status of the fight for voter rights, the GOP's dangerous motivation to continue voter suppression, and how we can all help. How will the GOP's right to fritter away the right to vote play out, and can it actually work? Then, Joe and Alex break down Liz Cheney's ouster (and how Donald Trump called a Cheney a "Major Democrat"), 100 Republicans threatening to start a new party, and why she may be primed for a credible run for president. Marc's organization, Democracy Docket, is doing wonderful work -- follow along at this website: https://www.democracydocket.com/ New Republic article: https://newrepublic.com/article/162272/republican-voter-suppression-texas-democracy-reckoning Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

First, Joe and Alex break down a race that just took place in the El Paso area, where the Democrats squandered a chance to compete in a district Trump only won by 3 points. While that seat was not one Democrats needed to count on, it was an opportunity, and Joe is worried about Democrats losing focus. Speaking of losing focus, Democrats are already getting excited about Charlie Crist running against Fla. Gov. Ron DeSantis, and Conor Lamb potentially running for Senate in '22. Joe is excited about the rise of party stars, but is flashing warning signs now: if Lamb and Crist and Tim Ryan vacate their House seats, we're looking at committees led by Jim Jordan and Devin Nunes in 2022, and meaningless investigations into the Biden administration that jam the wheels of government. Finally, an update on the Liz Cheney/GOP fight, what it means for the party echoing the Big Lie in perpetuity, and a brief thought on Trump's ban from Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pres. Biden made history this week, addressing Congress for the first time with two women behind him. Joe and Alex break down the president's first address, plus the shift in conversation towards economic recovery, China and the end of trickle-down economics. Then, Joe and Alex touch on the redistricting news, and why some of it has a silver lining -- and some of it is devastating (89 NY'ers missing the Census costing a reliably blue state an electoral vote!) Plus, could Liz Cheney be a real contender for the GOP nomination for President? That's a pretty big shift from the Trump era. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe and Alex are joined by Katherine Stewart, author of Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism. (Buy it here) We're all wondering how evangelicals can back Donald Trump, who embodies traits so antithetical to Christian values, and there's no one better to discuss that than Katherine Stewart. She talks about the role of fear in motivating Christian Nationalists, the increasing divide between secular liberals and the Christian right, why the evangelicals are such an important electoral group, and what the future holds for the GOP and Christian politics. Then, Joe shares some memories of the late Walter Mondale, and gives an update on a big race for Operation 147. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we're talking to James Fletcher, director of the documentary "The Accidental President," which chronicled the 2016 election. His central question was: "How did we all miss it?" While we're mercifully past the Trump presidency, the film helps us understand just how dangerous a period we are in as 2022 approaches.  We also discuss whether there's a chance the people will see Trump or someone in his mold win the 2024 election and whether Joe Biden might be the most difficult president in history to run against.  You can watch James' documentary here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/movie/the-accidental-president/id1548613882 Jon Last's article on The Bulwark: https://thetriad.thebulwark.com/p/reading-the-republican-autopsy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

First, Joe Biden is pushing for another massive bill, this time to improve infrastructure in the country -- and it's overwhelmingly popular. Joe digs into some data that shows the Republicans are fighting an uphill battle against effective governance. Joe explains some of the under-discussed benefits of the infrastructure bill, and then why the GOP's constant obstructionism of any effort to govern may finally backfire. Then, we talk about Matt Gaetz and if the GOP voters will care about his alleged crimes. Has the collective GOP tolerance of bad behavior let up with Trump out of office? Finally, a listener question about who the "moderate" GOP candidate in 2024 will be has Joe thinking about 1992 and how the 2024 field could shake out. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe and Alex are joined by longtime friend Nicco Mele, who was the webmaster on the Dean 2004 campaign, and now is a thought leader in the digital political space. Nicco and Joe talk about how close the 2020 election truly was, and how close we came to a Trump validation and Senate/House sweep of the GOP. In reality, we were only a few thousand votes from catastrophe. They also touch on how Joe predicted Biden's ascent (much to Nicco's chagrin), the push for minority rule via voting restrictions in GOP states, why Republicans will nominate crazy candidates indefinitely, who the "mainstream media" truly is, loneliness and the power of politics as human connection, and how we regain trust with local media. Then, Joe and Nicco remember creating Dean's revolutionary internet-first messaging, and how it indirectly led to the rise of Trump and email fundraising. Nicco reminds us of the ways the Internet could bring us together the way it did in the Dean days. Subscribe to Nicco's substack here: https://nicco.substack.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

First, Joe and Alex talk about presidential approval rating, and how it's a key metric that can indicate what will happen in 2022, and whether the Democrats can actually implement the agenda they want. Thanks to Perry Bacon from 538 for inspiring us on this topic (see article link below). Then, the GOP is in serious danger of its constituency being replaced through demographic changes. Articles referenced in this episode: @perrybaconjr on approval rating: https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/why-democrats-in-congress-need-bidens-approval-rating-to-stay-in-the-mid-50s/ @RonBrownstein on demographic changes: https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/23/politics/voting-rights-republicans-bills-demographics/index.html NC exit poll data from WP: https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/interactive/2020/exit-polls/north-carolina-exit-polls/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Good news: we're back. Insane news: 2022 campaign season is underway. We'll be looking ahead to key races, starting today with one of 2022's most intriguing Senate races: Ohio. Rob Portman is retiring, and Joe thinks there may be an opportunity in Ohio for the Democrats while Republicans fight over the direction of the party. Then, Joe updates us about his new project targeting the GOP representatives who voted against the certification of the 2020 election. See the bottom of the show notes for a starter list of some of the reps we are hoping to compete against. Finally, a look at the fight going on about the filibuster -- what can the Biden administration do with a Republican caucus that seems only to be interested in obstruction? Here is a list of a few early targets for Operation 147: MIKE GARCIA -- CA-25 LAUREN BOEBERT -- CO-3 CARLOS GIMINEZ -- FL-26 MICHELLE FISCHBACK -- MN-7 MADISON CAWTHORN -- NC-11 NICOLE MALLIOTAKIS -- NY-11 STEPHANIE BICE -- OK-5 BURGESS OWENS -- UT-4 JIM HAGEDORN -- MN-1 DAVE SCHWEIKERT -- AZ-6 RICHARD HUDSON -- NC-8 SCOTT PERRY -- PA-10 BOB GOOD -- VA-5 DARRYL ISSA -- CA50 LEE ZELDEN  -- NY-1 TOM TIFFANY -- WI-7 ANDY BIGGS -- AZ-5 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fans of the show will remember how long Joe and Alex have discussed the issues the Democratic Party has had with winning critical statewide elections. There's no one better to talk about what we need to do to improve than Nicole Hobbs, co-founder of Every District. Nicole talks about three key improvements Every District is trying to make at the grassroots level, and Joe apologizes for inventing the "sky-is-falling" fundraising email in the Dean campaign. Plus, some fairly dire projections for the future of Congress based on redistricting, population trends and more... and what we can all do about it. Support Nicole and Every District at @Every_District and everydistrict.us. Then, Joe and Alex catch up on the latest impeachment news. What is the fallout here even though the Republicans are (willfully) unmoved by the Democrats' moving testimonies? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

First up this week, President Biden took a meeting with GOP Senators who want to compromise on the COVID relief package, but he seems to want to press forward with or without them. Who wins in the battle to look bipartisan — and is that what voters want?  Then, Marjorie Taylor Greene takes over our show as she has almost everything else, as Joe and Alex dig into the strategy behind the Republicans’ decision on whether to keep the freshman Congresswoman on the Education Committee. (We taped before a vote was finalized.) Furthermore, Democrats launched a $500k ad buy specifically tying House GOP members to QAnon… in February of 2021, about as far as possible away from the 2022 midterms. Does Joe like this new-look aggressive Democratic media strategy?  Plus, a new segment where Joe and Alex spotlight local races of great consequence begins this week -- there's a special election in the Virginia state legislature. Donate to Laurie Buchwald right here: https://www.buchwaldforsenate.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What better way to kick off Joe Biden's presidency than to have Republicans abandon their consciences before impeaching Donald Trump a second time! What's the fallout of the Republicans being forced to cling to Trump even after his loss? Then, the GOP has a massive advantage for the next decade due to their control over state legislatures. How we got here, and what we do about it. Finally, there aren't many people more equipped to discuss the democratization of the flow of money online than Joe Trippi. He goes into how the Dean campaign started raising money online, how it has parallels to the GameStop situation, and whether it's all worth it in the end. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We made it! Joe Biden is president. Joe and Alex talk about our 46th president's inaugural speech, and if "unity" is possible -- and why Joe Biden is the man to bring us closer to a healthier brand of politics than what we're accustomed to. (ie, one where the Republicans don't announce Articles of Impeachment on Day One. Then, how do the Democrats handle the power struggle in the Senate as the Republicans fight to hold on to some influence, and is it possible they could *gain* in 2022 instead of losing ground back? Finally, even though Donald Trump is out... how are we feeling about the way things are headed more generally? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What a ridiculous month. Joe and Alex are here to help you make sense of it all. First, the House has impeached the president for a second time, but the trial likely won't begin until Pres. Biden (that looks nice) is in office. What are the endgames for McConnell and the Republicans, and how does Biden want this to go? Then, Joe has said for years Trump would never truly go away. Well... what about now? This time next week, he'll be a disgraced former president without the ability to tweet. How does he maintain a hold on half the country -- or does he? Then, Jaime Harrison is expected to lead the DNC. What does this mean for the Democrats, a party that often is too concerned with winning federal elections and not the local, state-level ones that Republicans have wisely focused on for decades? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A lot has happened since Joe and Alex last convened. First, we address the violence incited by the president yesterday at the US Capitol, and how members of both parties responded -- and what it means from here. Could the GOP turn towards a new, less destructive agenda? Then, a reminder that the Democrats won BOTH runoffs in Georgia and the Senate Majority. What are the lessons from this stunning victory, and how does a Democratic Senate potentially guide Joe Biden's choices of where to start putting the country back together? Next, Pres.-Elect Biden nominated Merrick Garland for Attorney General, not (as we had hoped) Doug Jones. What does this final major appointment mean, and, most critically, how will Joe Biden govern? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joe and Alex quickly give us an update on early returns from GA -- almost 1 million votes are in! -- and what the early voting patterns mean (if anything). Nate Cohn's Twitter thread is linked here. Next, Mitch McConnell said it was time for the GOP to "turn the page" and accept President-Elect Biden as, well, President-Elect. Why now? How much weight does the relationship between Biden and McConnell play into this decision? Plus, what does it mean for actual governance -- and for 2022 Senate races? Then, Pete Buttigieg looks to be our next Secretary of Transportation. What does Joe make of this choice -- of all the departments, why Transportation? And what does this mean for the future of the Democratic party, now that hardly any of the so-called "stars" have been elevated to big Cabinet posts? Lastly, an audience question from a listener in South Dakota asks when the Democrats will get their act together and re-invest in rural states. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another week closer to the Senate runoffs -- another week where the Republicans are fighting each other, even after Trump went down to rally the faithful for the two candidates. What was the fallout? What is the likelihood one of the candidates on either side could run ahead of the other? And could Perdue take a hit for choosing to let Ossoff debate an empty podium? Next, the Electoral College will formally make Joe Biden the next president on Dec. 14 (Monday). Could that finally put a nail in this strange parallel universe Trump and his cohorts are inhabiting? Then, a listener question about why Democrats can't compete with the slogans and simple messaging of the Republicans. Finally, Joe and Alex address some rumors about a potential Cabinet appointment close to their hearts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices