So That Happened

The government is on the verge of another shutdown, which is lots of fun for people who like political drama but less so for people who work in government, benefit from government services and think that Congress should be able to do its job.Then we travel to south america: Nicholas Casey from the NYT is here to tell us what the hunt for Venezuela’s most wanted man tells us about the political and economic crisis in the country.And the White House was employing a dude who couldn't get a full security clearance because he allegedly abused women, but the president is still there. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Republicans are helping President Donald Trump undermine an investigation into his campaign's collusion with the Russian government, revealing that Trump is now in full control of the GOP.Trump delivered his first State of the Union address, but I had a hard time hearing it because my dog kept barking at the TV for some reason. And you might have seen news stories about people getting thousand dollar bonuses because of the new tax law. These stories have been very misleading, and we can explain why. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The government's open, but where do we go from here? Democrats want legal status for 700,000 Dreamers, and they'll ultimately need President Donald Trump to make it happen. We talked to Michael Steel, a former aide to House Speaker John Boehner.American infrastructure is a mess, and in Orlando, it's hurting poor people of color. HuffPost's Julia Craven looked at the effect of unchecked highway construction on one neighborhood.And there have been major gerrymandering developments in Pennsylvania and voting rights developments in Florida. HuffPost's voting rights reporter Sam Levine will catch you up. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In this special dispatch, So That Happened takes a look at the Schumer Shutdown. Or was it the Trump shutdown? Did Dems cave? Or was this the best they could have hoped for? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The government might shut down this week and this is the ONLY podcast that can tell you HOW, WHY and also WHO to blame. We interviewed Congressman Ted Yoho, a conservative House Republican who definitely blames the Democrats. Republicans in Congress say text messages between two FBI agents have totally compromised the special investigation into Trump's campaign. What's more likely is that Republicans compromised the agents' marriages by exposing the affair they were having. And this week, the question of Trump's mental and physical stability reached its savage climax. Is the president crazy? We're the ONLY podcast that has the answer. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The government might shut down next week partly because Donald Trump refuses to help Dreamers without getting his wall or other policy changes -- Elise Foley reports from the Capitol.The Trump administration wants work requirements for medicaid, so we talked to health policy reporter Jonathan Cohn about dog whistles.The federal government stood aside as states legalized marijuana under the Obama administration, but Attorney General Jeff Sessions is changing THAT. Nick Wing explains how the Justice Department is re-asserting its authority on weed.And Jessica Schulberg reports that some clever lawyers are using Donald Trump's foolish statements to try to spring people from GITMO. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, America gained new insight into the fraught relationship between Donald Trump and his erstwhile white house strategist, Steve Bannon. It's like a Shakespearean drama, but just the parts where people insult and stab each other. SV Date joins to discuss.Then, Huffpost's Luke O'brien breaks down his reporting on Andrew Anglin, one of the principal propagandists of the alt-right neo-nazi white-nationalist whatever-you-want-to-call-it movement. It's a story that sheds light on extremism in america, and it provoked an angry and very personal backlash.Finally, Trump stepped up his long-established habit of tweeting ill-advised threats at nuclear-powered foreign leaders. Mike Fuchs from the Center for American Progress tells us whether it's time to start stocking up on canned food and hazmat suits. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Tax reform is a big deal, but Donald Trump's reshaping of the judicial branch of government might be his biggest achievement of 2017. Republicans say the estate tax hurts farms and small businesses and that Congresswoman Kristi Noem's story shows it -- but it doesn't, and I'll explain why. And if you like Bitcoin, well you're not gonna like our third segment. Unless Bitcoin has already crashed by the time you hear it. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Republicans Pass Sweeping Tax Plan, Still Working On Basic GovernanceThis week, Republicans succeeded in passing their tax bill. So what did Arthur have for lunch?Republicans won on taxes, but are looking shaky on children's health insurance, keeping the government open, and saving Dreamers from deportation. We talked to Adrian Reyna, a Dreamer who's been lobbying Congress about what might happen. And Zach Carter has a surprising amount of things to say about A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Season's greetings! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

There are whispers that Paul Ryan might resign -- we asked Matt Fuller why and when this could happen and who could be the next speaker. Accused child molester Roy Moore lost the Alabama Senate race this week. Jen Bendery tells us what she learned when she went there to talk to voters. And the government could be about to crack down on a popular herbal supplement, even though some people are using it to cope with opioid addition. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Al Franken is resigning, which we boldly predicted would happen! But what does it mean for partisan politics? The Supreme Court took up the Masterpiece Cake Shop case. Sam Baker from Axios tells us about the oral arguments. And Donald Trump declared that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel -- why the hell did he do that? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, the U.S. Senate stumbled forward on tax reform with a government shutdown looming around the corner. North Korea launched a missile that could theoretically reach Washington. We talked to Mike Fuchs, a foreign policy expert with the Center for American Progress, about whether we're all going to die. And men continued to be bad. Why are bad men being thrown out of their media jobs, but not their political ones? Marina Fang explains. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, Donald Trump pardoned some turkeys and endorsed Roy Moore. Then: long ago, legendary British economist John Maynard Keynes predicted that in the future, we would only work 15 hours a week. What happened to that? Former co-host and Keynes expert Zach Carter joins to discuss. Finally, what DOES one have to do to get hounded out of Washington in disgrace? According to Huffpost's Eliot Nelson, quite a lot. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Republicans are really moving their tax reform legislation -- does it have a chance of becoming law? We'll hear from Huffpost reporters Elise Foley, Arthur Delaney and SV Date.This week, men continued to be disgusting, especially a Republican Senate candidate in Alabama. Marina Fang and Jen Bendery help answer whether this is the beginning of the end of men. And there's going to be a new chairman of the Federal Reserve, which could dramatically affect your life -- Zach Carter and Daniel Marans explain. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Democrats crushed Republicans in off-year elections on Tuesday, delivering a resounding rebuke to President Donald Trump. Daniel Marans and Elise Foley join the show to talk about whether this is the beginning of the end of Trumpism.The crown prince of Saudi Arabia rounded up his political opponents -- Akbar Ahmed and Jessica Schulberg explain what it means for regional stability and what Jared Kushner might have had to do with it.And the latest mass shooting gave way to the latest frenzy of conspiracy theories -- Dana Liebelson and Paul Blumenthal break down the lies. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Republicans say their tax reform plan will massively benefit the middle class, but the most direct beneficiaries of their plan are corporations and wealthy individuals. The plan includes an expanded child tax credit, but the biggest changes to the credit actually benefit people with six figure incomes. Low-income tax payers get nothing. Also on the show this week: what comes next in a special prosecutor's probe of the Trump campaign -- maybe some obstruction of justice? And while most people aren't paying attention, Senate Republicans and the Trump administration are swiftly remaking the federal judiciary. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Two Senate Republicans denounced their party's leader this week, accusing President Donald Trump of "debasing" the United States and betraying its values. That doesn't mean the Republican agenda isn't going strong. The same day Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) denounced Trump on the Senate floor, he joined his Republican colleagues in overturning a new regulation that made it easier for consumers to join class action lawsuits over bank ripoffs. "Even the visual of it was plutocracy," Alexis Goldstein of Americans for Financial Reform told So That Happened. "Ben Sasse and Tom Cotton were actually dressed in tuxedos while the vote was going down."Former Rep. Reid Ribble (R-Wis.), who harshly criticized Trump all the way back in 2015, noted on the podcast that Republicans still agree with the president on policy. Ribble specifically cited Republican votes in favor of a tax overhaul that would add more than $1 trillion to the deficit. "When you look at the policy that Sen. Flake and Sen. [Bob] Corker are voting for, they're mostly in alignment with where the president is, but they feel that his rhetoric has gotten so divisive that they can't move forward with their agenda," Ribble said. "That's a tragedy." See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

During the campaign Donald Trump ridiculed Sen. John McCain for having been a prisoner of war in Vietnam and said he knew more than the generals about fighting terrorists. This week, he told a soldier's widow that her late husband, who'd been killed by ISIS militants, "knew what he was getting into." Trump hasn't shown a lot of respect for the military, and yet as President, he has surrounded himself with generals. It's all part of a pattern, says Richard Allen Smith, a former Army sergeant and Afghanistan war veteran. Trump views the military as something prestigious that he can co-opt. "It all comes back to submission," he says. "He wants everything and everyone to be under the purview of Trump.""Donald Trump doesn't consider himself a president the way we traditionally think about it... the way I think him and and his family consider the presidency is that this was a corporate takeover by the Trump Organization of the government of the United States." Also on the podcast: HuffPost reporters Igor Bobic and Jen Bendery explain what Congress is doing vis a vis Puerto Rico, while Jeffrey Young and Daniel Marans explain what's happening with Obamacare. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

President Donald Trump has been unhappy lately, according to his own tweets and reports that he "hates everyone in the White House" and is often "consumed by dark moods." HuffPost reporters S.V. Date and Jessica Schulberg join the show to talk about how Trump's whims could affect foreign policy -- especially the Iran deal he might undo. Facebook has gotten so powerful it could wind up getting regulated by the government, HuffPost's Paul Blumenthal reports in a segment with Julia Craven. And just what on earth was Trump talking about when he said the stock market is somehow reducing the debt? S.V. Date and Arthur Delaney try to figure it out. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called a press conference this week to insist that he believes President Donald Trump is "smart," because it had come out that Tillerson once called Trump a "moron." Tillerson's presser appeared to be the latest in a series of attempts by senior White House officials to assuage the feelings of the president, a man who insists that his cabinet secretaries praise him. Reporters Jessica Schulberg and S.V. Date assess how much of his own dignity Tillerson shredded. Then: reporters Julia Craven and Nick Wing discuss the political fallout of the Las Vegas massacre, and S.V. Date disagrees with host Arthur Delaney's contention that Republicans won't pass tax reform. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Earlier this year Donté Stallworth and three other former and current NFL football players spent three days lobbying Congress in favor of criminal justice reform. In other words, they did politics outside of football -- demonstrating that even as players continue to kneel during pregame anthems, there's a deeper commitment to policy than many people may realize. Stallworth joins the show to talk football and politics along with HuffPost reporter Travis Waldron. The Republican health care bill is officially dead, but HuffPost reporters Jeffrey Young and Igor Bobic explain what's next in the Trump administration's quest to kill the Affordable Care Act. And HuffPost reporters Jen Bendery and Jessica Schulberg explain the highly questionable port policy that is not helping hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico at all. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Republicans in the U.S. Senate have been unable to garner enough support within their own conference for their latest bill to repeal Obamacare. One way they could do it, though, is by adding special provisions to woo holdout senators -- like an amendment that would exempt the state of Alaska from the underlying bill's harsh provisions. The Intercept's Ryan Grim and HuffPost health care reporter Jeffrey Young discuss the absurd GOP health care agenda and unlikelihood of its enactment. President Trump says we might have to "totally destroy" North Korea -- wow, are we about to have another war? HuffPost reporters Marina Fang and Jessica Schulberg discuss the president's fiery speech to the United Nations. And how is it that the president's using party funds to pay personal legal expenses? HuffPost reporters Paul Blumenthal and Julia Craven explain why this is perfectly legal but still weird. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

President Donald Trump dined with Democrats repeatedly this week and on Wednesday night struck some sort of agreement with Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Nancy Pelosi to avoid the deportation of Dreamers -- immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. But how much can Trump really accomplish by cutting out Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress? For answers, "So That Happened" talks to HuffPost White House correspondent S.V. Date and D.C. bureau chief Amanda Terkel. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and 16 Senate Democrats introduced legislation to expand Medicare for all Americans -- a huge deal. We talk to HuffPost reporter Daniel Marans, who interviewed Sanders, and health policy expert Jeff Young about what happens next. And Equifax -- why does it exist and why aren't Democrats doing everything they possibly can to abolish it and other parasitic credit monitoring companies? We put the question to HuffPost reporters Zach Carter and Paul Blumenthal. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week President Trump struck a surprising deal with congressional Democrats to fund the government for only three months. The move was a slap in the face to Republicans but Trump reportedly raved about the news coverage. HuffPost White House Correspondent S.V. Date joins us to explain if there will be more of Trump collaborating with Democrats in the future. The Trump administration announced it will end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, an Obama initiative that spared hundreds of thousands of innocent kids from deportation. Trump himself then suggested he supported the original policy, so HuffPost immigration reporter Elise Foley is here to sort this out. And a sitting Democratic senator is on trial for corruption. HuffPost Politics reporter Igor Bobic explains the surprisingly sordid allegations. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In the wake of one of the worst storms in US history, Huffpost national reporter Roque Planas talks to Zach Young about what it was like to report from Houston during Hurricane Harvey and witness the destruction firsthand. Then, former Texas gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis talks about how Texans are responding to the storm -- and how the state's politics make a bigger-picture reckoning with the dangers of unchecked urban sprawl difficult. Finally, Huffpost reporters Marina Fang and Jessica Schulberg talk about Mexico's offer of disaster aid -- and our commander-in-chief's perplexing response to the biggest natural disaster of his young presidency. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

President Donald Trump read what he pretended was an excerpt of his own speech this week in order to claim he'd been wrongly criticized, except he omitted the part that caused all the criticism. You know, the part in which he excused white supremacists for domestic terrorism in Charlottesville. Journalist and former NFL veteran Donte Stallworth joined "So That Happaned," the HuffPost Politics podcast, to talk Trump and also the phenomenon of NFL players refusing to stand for the national anthem. In light of our head of state's friendliness with Nazis and the KKK, is there any reason to think football players won't continue to bend the knee? And why hasn't an NFL team signed Colin Kaepernick? Also, Trump finally a new Afghanistan policy of... more war. But how much more? We asked foreign policy correspondent Jessica Schulberg to explain what might happen and why. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

President Trump this week spoke of "very fine people" among the Nazis and Ku Klux Klanners who staged a violent protest that resulted in the deaths of three people on Saturday. Trump's comments drew cascades of condemnation, but we already knew he had white supremacist tendencies. Jamelle Bouie, the chief political correspondent for Slate.com, joins So That Happened to talk about what has really changed, and whether Nazis are now in a real position of power. Also, HuffPost reporter Christopher Mathias talks to Black Voices editor Lilly Workneh about what he saw reporting from the Charlottesville riot and Paul Blumenthal explains what's going on with Vice President Mike Pence's unprecedented fundraising campaign. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, we turn the show over to the New York office and HuffPost reporters Jeff Young and Sam Levine. First, they’re joined by our editor-in-chief Lydia Polgreen to talk about the HuffPost “Listen to America” bus tour. Starting in September a whole bunch of HuffPost reporters are going to be touring the country on a bus, starting in St. Louis, then heading through the South, up to the Midwest, over to Montana, down to Arizona, and finally back east to New Orleans. They’re going to be collecting interesting stories, they’ll have a mobile video studio, it’s going to be a fascinating project and Lydia is here to tell us all about it. Then, Sara Collins of the Commonwealth Fund talks with Jeff about why, in the midst of repeated attempts to repeal Obamacare, more and more Democrats are talking seriously about single-payer as an alternative to the present health care system. Finally, Sam and Jeff talk to Justin Levitt from Loyola Law School about the Department of Justice’s changing approach to voting rights in the Trump era. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, we take a little break from things that happened this week to head to Pasadena, California, for Politicon! Over the weekend, So That Happened producer Zach Young attended the "unconventional political convention" and talked with Symone Sanders, National Press Secretary for the Bernie Sanders campaign, and Austin Petersen, runner-up to Gary Johnson in last year's Libertarian presidential primary. As Cenk Uygur and Ben Shapiro debated loudly in the adjacent auditorium, we had an insightful conversation on what it was like to be part of an outsider presidential campaign in 2016 and what lessons that year holds for the future. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Donald Trump rose to power thanks in large part to his fame from having done a TV game show in which he ceremoniously "fired" contestants. Candidate Trump vowed to shake up Washington with this hard-hearted business persona, and yet faced with an attorney general he seems to want to fire, Trump can't do it. Bok bok! Republicans in the U.S. Senate are on the verge of finally repealing Obamacare, but they're not sure if they really want to go through with it after seven years of promises. The Intercept's Ryan Grim explains why they might chicken out. Bok bok bok! Then: Democrats rebranded their agenda as "A Better Deal." HuffPost's Daniel Marans explains what's in the deal and why Democrats' usual critics are surprisingly pleased. Finally, HuffPost White House correspondent S.V. Date joins us to explain why Trump wants to fire Attorney General Jeff Sessions and why he's afraid to follow through. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week on So That Happened: Zach Carter takes a break from book leave to return and host the show! He’s joined by ProPublica reporter Jesse Eisinger and Huffpost’s Alexander Kaufman to talk about why bankers never seem to go to jail. Then, Michelle Kuo stops by to talk about her book Reading With Patrick, a memoir about a teacher’s relationship with a gifted student who ends up jailed for murder. It's an exploration of race, class, justice, and coming of age in the South. Finally, Mike Konczal is back, this time to help Zach and Arthur celebrate the 7th birthday of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law. Will there be cake? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

For months, President Trump and his supporters said it was all just a political witch hunt, that his campaign had not colluded with the Russian government's interference in last year's presidential election. This week Donald Trump, Jr. revealed that he had, in fact, sought incriminating information on Hillary Clinton from a Russian government source. On this week's "So That Happened," HuffPost money-in-politics reporter Paul Blumenthal explains the several federal laws that Junior might have broken. Also, the Roosevelt Institute's Mike Konczal joins the podcast to explain a new policy from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that will allow credit card and other financial product customers to sue if they get ripped off -- unless Republicans in Congress stop the agency in its tracks. And nothing weird happened at the confirmation hearing for Christopher Wray, the totally normal career Justice Department official Trump nominated to replace the FBI director he weirdly fired. Is our Trumps learning? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Did CNN screw up this week by seemingly threatening to reveal the identity of a Reddit user who made a silly gif that President Trump tweeted? The Washington Examiner's Tim Carney says the episode represents the kind of media excess that gives rise to Anti-Anti-Trumpism, a sort-of movement animated by the belief that Trump's critics somehow lie more than Trump does. The Anti-Anti-Trump argument loses credibility, Carney says, the minute it serves as an excuse to avoid criticizing the president. Meanwhile, Trump's in Europe, possibly altering the United States' role in the world. HuffPost White House correspondent S.V. Date joined us to talk about whether everything is truly as terrible as it seems and whether Trump could make it worse with his offhand tweets. And HuffPost labor reporter Dave Jamieson explains the Trump administration's recent moves to undo Obama's effort to restore overtime pay for millions of workers. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Republicans in the U.S. Senate completely boofed their health care bill, so this week on "So That Happened" we discuss the politics of their failure as well as how the underlying policy could change when the zombie Senate bill rises from the dead next month. President Trump continues to seem completely unaware of what's in the legislation, and even resigned to its failure. And we also take a look at the increasing concentration of corporate power and the failure of both parties in the U.S. to stand up to monopolies. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Senate Republicans finally released their secret Obamacare repeal bill, so this week on "So That Happened" we explore the real possibility that this thing could actually pass and become law. We also take a look at Democrats' total fecklessness in special elections and the several high-profile acquittals of police officers who killed civilians for no good reason. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, we discuss the assassination attempt on members of Congress, which has left House Majority Whip Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) grievously injured. Fallout from the shooting included efforts to blame political opponents, as well as a familiar debate over whether it's appropriate to question permissive gun laws for gun violence, which it always is. Still, we have two important takeaways that hold true whether or not you like your society heavily armed: 1) Don't shoot people, and 2) Don't kill people. Also, HuffPost suffered a round of layoffs occasioned by the merger of our corporate parent with another company, and we lost So That Happened host Jason Linkins. We will miss him. We're very glad we organized and negotiated a contract that provided for a relatively generous severance, but layoffs still hurt. On this show, we say goodbye to our fearless host. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, the White House celebrated Infrastructure Week. Or at least, they wanted to, but couldn't because this week was James Comey-A-Go-Go in the Senate Intelligence Committee. Yes, the former FBI director debuted his testimony in front of an eager gaggle of Senators and he seemed pretty bent on making sure everyone knew that President Donald Trump was a serial liar. The White House struck back, accusing Comey of leaking privileged information and telling falsehoods of his own. Everyone in DC apparently went to a bar to watch these hearings on television, because we're a sad bunch of drunks. And that's Infrastructure Week. Congratulations to infrastructure. Meanwhile, if you can even remember where the country was a handful of days ago, you might remember last week's hullabaloo, President Trump's decision to exit the Paris Climate Accords. There was a lot of doomsaying in the wake of the decision, but there were also several renewed commitments made by other American politicians to... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, we're going in search of a Trump Doctrine. President Donald Trump has returned from his first lengthy trip abroad. You've heard the speeches, you saw the photos, you know about the orb. Now it's time to consider the ways Trump's dealings with our European allies and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia point to a coming shift in American foreign policy, and illustrate the way Trump wants to reshape the world and the United States role in it. Buckle up, it's gonna get bumpy. After looking beyond our borders, we'll then come home to Capitol Hill, where the lives of Republican legislators have continued to get more and more complicated, and more and more frustrating, as the ongoing Russia probes steal time away from shaping a legislative agenda. We'll also try to find out what Democratic lawmakers are up to while their counterparts are mired in all of Trump's melodrama. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, while President Donald Trump was away on foreign business, the wider world got a look at the latest White House budget proposals and the experience was like staring into a moral void. Broadly targeted for elimination: just about anything that offers assistance to the poor and vulnerable. Cashing in big time: rich income earners. There are education cuts that could decimate profitable research, new burdens on food stamp providers that could result in fewer in the market. Joining us to marvel at the pure draconian nature of it all is Alexis Goldstein from Americans for Financial Reform. Meanwhile, the murder of Seth Rich -- a young DC resident and Democratic National Committee staffer -- was a tragedy for those who knew him. But the internet's conspiracy swamps and right wing media outlets have teamed up to further traumatize Rich's family and friends. It's weaponized fake news, and it's perfectly emblematic of the surreal world that Donald Trump has both ushered in and... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, President Donald Trump had another one of those weeks where Donald Trump is president. By which I mean, total omnidirectional omnishambles. Building off the controversy of last week's controversial firing of James Comey, Trump revealed highly classified intelligence from a source in Syria to two high-ranking Russian officials, touching off yet another self-immolation. He's ended the week with more trouble from Comey, more indefensible deceptions, fewer allies willing to go to bat for him, and a newly appointed investigator nipping at his heels. We'll dive into the Trump black hole to try to rescue some light Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, fans of fixing the criminal justice system scored a major victory this week. Civil rights attorney and progressive-minded reformed Larry Krasner won the Democratic primary election for Philadelphia district attorney. It's a major shift in Philly, and it's also part of what seems to be a burgeoning trend of voters opting for reform champions at... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, Donald Trump fired James Comey. And that's been the implacable news event of the week, so much so that we are just going to surrender to it entirely. This single decision is the apotheosis of Trump. It has everything: a stumbled over decision that landed with a kersplat on the news-cycle, constantly shifting rationales that change by the hour, massive leaks from the White House, the usual concerns over temperament, and the unalterable impression that the White House is either strategically engineering a cover-up, or too impulsive to govern in a sane way. Or both! We even have White House press secretary Sean Spicer hiding among the bushes on the White House grounds. It's well and truly bonkers. We'll try to piece through the most troubling aspects of this decision, beginning with the implausible reason we've been told guided Trump's decision. Former Department of Justice spokesman joins our own Sam Stein, to offer an insider perspective on the matter. And we'll deal with the... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, the House of Representatives voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act and replace it with a bucket of garbage, placing the lives of some 24 million people at risk. Quite a spectacle really. We'll have fifteen minutes of flabbergasted gasping for you to enjoy. Meanwhile, for some reason we'll also talk about other things. For example, just how populist is the Trump White House going to get? The new head of the SEC will be Goldman Sachs' bailout lawyer, Jay Clayton, so it's sure not looking good for that whole "drain the swamp" project. But maybe we're wrong. Joining us to figure this out is our pal Alexis Goldstein from Americans for Financial Reform. Finally, Donald Trump is hoping to appoint Tennessee State Senator Mark Green to the position of Secretary of the Army. This is his second attempt to place someone in that job, and based upon Green's litany of bizarre statements and strange positions, there is a not insignificant chance that he'll need a third. With that in mind,... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, we've reached the end of Trump's first 100 days. How will it be remembered? In many ways, it's been like watching someone's body reject an organ transplant. Somehow, Trump has managed to hit the century mark at the threshold of a government shutdown fight with his own party. Nevertheless, some things never change, and 100 days into the Trump presidency we can report with confidence that everything remains really, really great for people who are really, really rich. Meanwhile, we are taking a look in at the mayoral race in Omaha, which would normally be a sleepy race focused mainly on things like potholes. But the Democratic nominee, Heath Mello, has become one of those totemic candidates in 2017 -- a test of post-2016 Democratic Party strength. And so Democrats made a big investment in raising his profile, only to discover that he was not with them on a key issue: reproductive rights. Finally, our guest today is Jonathan Taplin, a filmmaker and author who used to be a tour... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, President Donald Trump issued another one of his patented executive orders, this time endeavoring to bring jobs back to America through a "Buy American, Hire American" policy. Trump immediately went back out on the campaign trail to signal that great changes were now afoot in the land, but are they really? We've dug down into the details and discovered that it's a blend of activity masquerading as achievement. And guess what: it's a trend. Meanwhile, the conservative media universe played a big role in boosting Trump to the White House in 2016. But in 2017, there's a growing sense that the favor will not be returned in kind. This week, Fox News' top talent Bill O'Reilly was pushed out of a perch that was once pretty secure, owing to a litany of past sexual harrassment transgressions that finally came home to roost. Meanwhile, in Texas, Trump enthusiast Alex Jones is in the middle of a custody battle with his ex-wife, and Jones' legal counsel has asserted an interesting... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, THAT happened! Remember all that stuff about draining the swamp and taking down the Washington establishment? Well, President Trump talked to some guys from Goldman Sachs and has decided to be Jeb Bush instead. HuffPost reporter S.V. Date joins us to discuss the latest contours and convulsions of the Trump presidency. But some things never change, including The Democratic Party, which just blew a chance to pick up a House seat in deep-red Kansas. Party leaders -- they actually said this and appear to believe it -- they told reporters they thought the best way to win the election ... would be to not try to win. Amanda Terkel helps us break down why Democrats are still bad at politics. Speaking of bad, for-profit colleges exploit people desperate for higher education thanks partly to political rhetoric about how college is the only way to have a good life. We interviewed Virginia Commonwealth University Professor Tressie McMillan Cottom about her new book on the great college swindling of America's... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, we are joined by the host of MSNBC's "All In With Chris Hayes," who in case you haven't figured it out is named Chris Hayes. We'll be talking about his new book "A Colony In A Nation," which documents how white fear has led to America's frustratingly unjust two-tiered justice system -- where some get to live peacefully as citizens, and others get treated by the state as if they were under the bootheel of an occupying force. Meanwhile, have you been wondering how the next big world war would start? Well, wonder no more! It could all begin over the Baltic Sea, with a confrontation between an American spy plane and a Russian fighter jet, pushing the boundary of confrontation. But this isn't just some fantasy out of "Top Gun." The real story here is that all of the traditional mechanisms by which we've de-escalated conflict so many times in the past have deteriorated, and leaders on both sides who seem ill-equipped to lead the way back. The Huffington Post's David Wood joins us... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, Washington lawmakers began crawling out from under the wreckage of the failed American Health Care Act, better known as the bill that finally emerged from the GOP's seven-year effort to repeal and replace Obamacare. The bill largely foundered because of deep divides within the House Republican caucus, with House Speaker Paul Ryan and establishment leaders on one side, and the insurgent House Freedom Caucus on the other. But now, they have a common enemy at least, in the form of President Donald Trump -- who has spent the last week lashing out at both sides, raising an obvious question, where does everybody go from here? Meanwhile, this week the president unveiled his Executive Order on Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth, a measure that would roll back steps taken by his predecessor to reduce carbon emissions and keep America on track to hit its climate change targets. Trump has framed this endeavor as one that would end what he calls the "War on Coal," and... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, Neil Gorsuch made his confirmation hearing debut as Donald Trump's prospective Supreme Court nominee. And he came to DC with a long and concerning history of putting his finger on the scales of justice in favor of entrenched monopolies of money and power. What's really at stake here, is your money, and we're joined by law professor Zephyr Teachout, to explain what you stand to lose if Gorsuch is confirmed. Meanwhile, Donald Trump has promised to boost the military budget, bringing a considerable amount of your tax dollars into a Pentagon that already hardly wants for cash. But with all this money sluicing through the system, it might surprise you to learn how little of it makes it down to the grunts who do all the hard work, and whose lives are much more frequently on the line than Washington's dizzying array of defense contractors. We'll take a look at the working class military, with Pulitzer Prize winning journalist David Wood. Finally, we have a real cops and robbers... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, President Donald Trump moved forward on a number of policy fronts. He also moved backward on a number of policy fronts. Very typical week, to be honest. But we now have the first Trump budget, and as you might expect, it really does a number on several high profile domestic policy projects. We'll lay out where negotiations with Congress are likely to begin. We'll also bring you up to speed with the Congressional Budget Office's evaluation of Trumpcare (it wasn't good) and the how the president's second attempt at a Muslim travel ban became another hilarious self-own. Meanwhile, our guest today is Ganesh Sitaraman, an associate professor of law at Vanderbilt University, who's written a new book titled "The Crisis Of The Middle-Class Constitution." In it, he goes back to our nation's founding, uncovers our founders' belief in the necessity of a strong middle class. That's a belief that persisted for much of our history. But in recent decades, the vitality of the middle-class... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. This week, House Speaker Paul Ryan finally released the Republican alternative to Obamacare plan from the sanctum sanctorum in which he'd been keeping hidden, and as soon as it was seen by the light of day it became something everybody from across the political spectrum instantly hated. Still, Ryan say it's the plan he's been dreaming about. What does this plan do, and how will he get it passed? We'll try to figure it out. Meanwhile, we are less than a week away from the implementation of the second version of President Trump's executive order banning Muslim travel into the United States. This time out, the White House believes they've got something that will survive legal scrutiny. Whether the tweaks they've made will be sufficient is unknown. What may be more important, is how these orders continue to reveal this White House's ideological beliefs where the Muslim world is concerned. Finally, we really can't let this week pass without mentioning some more of Donald Trump's lonely... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

So, that happened. Well, how about that pivot, folks? Tuesday night, President Donald Trump gave a speech to a joint session of Congress and somehow the media managed to extract the idea that he'd finally undergone that transformation into a real live "presidentialness." And then, hours later, the Trump White House was once again plunged into their customary chaos, as reports emerged that Attorney General Jeff Sessions had meetings with members of the Russian government, facts that ran against testimoy he proffered during his confirmation hearings. Will the media ever learn? We'll try to paper train these puppies again. Meanwhile, the contest for the Commonwealth of Virginia's governor's mansion is one of the few really big electoral contests of 2017. In general, it's going to be test case for whether or not the Democratic Party can recover after their 2016 wipeout. But more specifically, this race is emerging as a proving ground for whether or not Democrats can fashion their own message of economic... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.