Talking Feds

We are living through what feels like unprecedentedly dark days, which can cause us to lose sight of context, history, and all the hard moments that the nation has faced before. This week, Harry turns to legendary Congressman Barney Frank for his perspective of the Trump era through a more long-term lens. Rep. Frank, who won landmark achievements on issues from banking reform to civil rights, speaks to Harry about what Democrats need to do now, his forthcoming book, and whether Donald Trump's outrages have any parallel in American history. The two spoke by phone, so this conversation will sound slightly different from most Talking Feds episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A trio of superb economic analysts—Paul Krugman, Stephanie Ruhle, and Justin Wolfers—join Harry to break down how Trump is reshaping the U.S. economy. They weigh in on how long the shutdown can go on without major economic consequences, where tariffs are beginning to bite, and the future shape of the AI spike.  Then, the whole panel joins in a big picture analysis of how Trump's trademark chaotic, self-serving approach—combined with his attacks on institutions, immigration, and the rule of law—risks tearing up the foundations of American prosperity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry speaks with Congressman Eric Swalwell about the surge of popular resistance to Trump shown in the “No Kings” rallies and what it means for the president's attempts to remake the country in his image. They tackle Democrats' progress in the shutdown fight, some hopeful signs from the courts, and Trump's latest efforts to weaponize the DOJ. Plus, Rep. Swalwell pitches Harry on a new, creative legal strategy Democratic AGs could use to hold federal officials and agents to account. And this episode has got a special baseball bonus: after his conversation with Swalwell, Harry calls up baseball reporter Ben Walker for a debrief on Shohei Ohtani's mind-boggling night for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry talks with a great set of Talking Feds stalwarts—Charlie Sykes, Ali Vitali, and Jacob Weisberg—to get a handle on the fast-changing politics of the shutdown, the worthiness of the case against John Bolton, and the new group chat scandal roiling the GOP. Why is Vice President J.D. Vance calling criticism of leaked racist messages by rising Republicans "pearl-clutching"? Is the indictment against John Bolton just another political prosecution? And are top Republicans gearing up to give into Democrats on healthcare to get the government reopened? Mentioned in this episode: Charlie's Substack: https://charliesykes.substack.com/ Ali's interview with Senate Leader John Thune: https://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/news/thune-msnbc-offered-democrats-vote-obamacare-subsidies-rcna237914 Politico's story revealing a Young Republicans groupchat: https://www.politico.com/news/2025/10/14/private-chat-among-young-gop-club-members-00592146 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Christopher Eisgruber, the long-time president of Princeton University, joins Harry to talk about his new book, Terms of Respect. Eisgruber argues that robust free speech is alive and well on college campuses, and that instances of actual defeat of free speech are far more rare than critics charge. The key to navigating internal strife and external pressure—Eisgruber tells Harry—lies not in an abstract appeal to free speech or equality principles but rather in civil norms of respect that seek to further a model of deliberative community. Mentioned in this episode: Eisgruber's book: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/christopher-l-eisgruber/terms-of-respect/9781541607453/ Eisgruber's recent articles in the Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/author/christopher-l-eisgruber/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Three top-notch journalists—Emily Bazelon, Susan Glasser, and Kristen Holmes—join Harry to analyze the stunning news of a ceasefire in Gaza, the indictment of New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Trump's latest attempts to put troops on city streets. Will Trump have the attention span to ensure his deal endures, and why did he lash out at Kristen for asking about it? Are judges finally starting to wake up to the administration's far-fetched declarations of emergencies? And what revelation about the James indictment shocked Harry most? Mentioned in this episode: Emily's reporting: https://www.nytimes.com/by/emily-bazelon  Susan's latest column:  https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-trumps-washington/trump-the-self-styled-president-of-peace-abroad-makes-war-at-homeKristen's reporting:  https://www.cnn.com/profiles/kristen-holmes-bioCNN's story about Lindsey Halligan not coordinating the James indictment with DOJ brass:  https://www.cnn.com/2025/10/10/politics/lindsey-halligan-no-coordinate-letitia-james-indictment-doj Judge Karin Immergut's ruling: https://www.portland.gov/federal/documents/10-4-2025-state-city-v-trump-temporary-restraining-order-granted/download Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Supreme Court expert, Strict Scrutiny star, and Obama White House alum Kate Shaw joins Harry to preview the new SCOTUS term. A steady stream of emergency rulings that mostly backed President's Trump power grab has set the tone for a new year at the court. Kate and Harry preview several of the upcoming blockbuster cases, especially those dealing with executive power and gay rights. They then broaden the conversation, discussing whether any precedent is safe from the conservative supermajority; whether legal reasoning really remains the basis of the court's decisions; and most important: whether there is any executive action so heinous that the court won't permit it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry pulls in a trio of political pros—former Senator Barbara Boxer, Jonathan Capehart, and Norm Ornstein—to assess the fight over the shutdown. Who will the public blame? How long will it last? They turn next to the stunning federal raid in Chicago, with agents busting down doors and snipers dropping in from helicopters. Does the action signal not just the abandonment of the 4th Amendment, but the arrival of an American gestapo? Finally, the trio decode Trump's speech to top military leaders, with its ominous call to use U.S. cities as "training grounds" for troops. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry turns to professor of medicine at Stanford, former Obama public policy official, and practicing primary care physician Dr. Kavita Patel to try to understand the Trump administration's feverish transformation of federal health policy. Dr. Patel explains Trump's warnings about tylenol, RFK Jr.'s plans for the CDC, and the costs of politicizing medicine. Dr. Patel offers a raw look at the reality of being a doctor amid these drastic changes, revealing details she's never before shared publicly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the wake of the shocking indictment of James Comey, Harry convenes DOJ veterans Paul Fishman and Mimi Rocah, plus political analyst Jonathan Alter, to discuss the seismic implications for the rule of law. The panel then breaks down the stunning details of the bribery scandal that's quickly enveloping immigration czar Tom Homan. The group ends with a turn toward some hopeful news: the return of Jimmy Kimmel to TV screens and the small respite it signals for freedom of speech. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this month's “Molly Harry Mashup,” Harry and Molly Jong-Fast break down the whirlwind of political and legal chaos under the current administration. From Trump's clash with Jimmy Kimmel and his obsession with the Nobel Peace Prize, to the unraveling of DOJ norms and the erosion of the Constitution, to the bizarro Trump vaccine claim, Molly and Harry cut through the noise to explain what's really happening in the political AND legal worlds—and why it matters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A week in which America suddenly came to look like classic autocratic regimes with the removal from TV of late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel, and more enforced exiles to come, for the simple sin of displeasing Trump. A trenchant panel of Bill Kristol and Juliette Kayyem take stock of this nightmarish development, as well as Trump's effort to destroy the independence of the Fed, and the increasingly checkered and controversial on-the-job performance of FBI director Kash Patel. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the latest conversation in the Talking San Diego series, Harry sits down with Harvard historian and New Yorker writer Jill Lepore in front of a live San Diego audience to discuss Lepore's important new book, “We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution.” The book contains revelations about the importance to the Framers of the Amendment process, which Lepore argues has become a dead letter since the failure of the proposed Equal RIghts Amendment.  In its stead various generations of Americans have looked to either political events or, more recently, the U.S. Supreme Court, to announce fundamental changes in our charter document, with significant consequences for the democracy  In her book, as in her conversation with Harry, Lepore challenges the Supreme Court's dominant doctrine of originalism; and she rallies Americans to be able to become more personally involved in repairing fundamental problems with the Constitution. The book was released for purchase Tuesday, September 16. This event was made possible by the generous support of the Prebys Foundation, which made it possible for local high school teachers and students to attend free of charge; by KPBS who have their own deep dive series on the American founding coming out in November in the form of a new Ken Burns series; and by Warwicks, our bookselling partners.  You can read more about Jill's book in the Atlantic and the New York Times.   Talk to you later Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the country reels from the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Harry welcomes a special all-Contrarian panel of George Conway, Norm Eisen, and Jen Rubin to grapple with the attack's aftershocks. Has the country taken a yet darker turn, with political violence now in the mix? Will Trump seek to institute a crackdown on his critics? And has Kash Patel's leadership weakened the FBI's ability to respond effectively and impartially to a rising tide of politically motivated attacks?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry talks to Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, an Illinois Democrat who's got a hand in a wide array of headline-grabbing initiatives on Capitol Hill. Representative Krishnamoorthi fills Harry in on what Trump has planned for Chicago, what Democrats are saying about a possible government shutdown, whether further Epstein disclosures are on the way, and why he thinks it's past time to ban members of Congress from trading stocks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Senator Heidi Heitkamp and CNN's Aaron Blake join Harry to break down a week that saw a series of sharp legal setbacks for the Trump administration and the return of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. Trump is working Congress to keep Epstein materials from the public eye, but the hydraulic push from victims may prove too much to ignore. Meanwhile Trump is making noises about his next targets for a military incursion despite a serious legal rebuff. And as a dismal new jobs report suggests, the economy may be cracking under the weight of the president's chaotic—and apparently illegal—tariffs. Mentioned in this episode: Aaron's reporting: ⁠ https://www.cnn.com/profiles/aaron-blake Judge Charles Breyer's ruling in the Posse Comitatus case: https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.450934/gov.uscourts.cand.450934.176.0_1.pdf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Senator Richard Blumenthal takes Harry through his bombshell report exposing the colossal waste generated by the ironically-named Department of Government Efficiency during its rampage through the federal government. Illegal firings, spoiled food aid, and the installation of Elon Musk's overpaid minions all came with a price—both in billions of dollars and in quality of government. Plus, the two former federal prosecutors talk about Trump's efforts to push unqualified loyalists into top law enforcement posts with or without Senate approval.  Mentioned in this episode:  Senate minority staff report on DOGE:   https://www.washingtonpost.com/documents/b256b202-ff01-48dc-a2d1-80b0e43fa87a.pdf Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest host Jonathan Alter convenes Peter Baker, Molly Jong-Fast, and Charlie Sykes to talk through Trump's latest lunge for unchecked power. The quartet dig into the week's flurry of controversial firings and the prospects for a long-promised, now long-overdue peace deal in Ukraine. They then put Trump's mafioso tactics under a microscope, investigating why they've worked so well, and what everyone can do to resist them.Mentioned in this episode:Jonathan's Substack: https://oldgoats.substack.com/Peter's reporting: https://www.nytimes.com/by/peter-baker#latestMolly's podcast: https://fastpoliticspod.com/Charlie's Substack: https://charliesykes.substack.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Veteran journalist Ruth Marcus takes Harry on a tour of Attorney General Pam Bondi's Justice Department. Drawing on months of reporting including candid interviews with top officials, Marcus reveals the department's frightening new view of itself and the costs of Bondi's revolutionary tactics. The pair end with a look at another American institution undergoing seismic change: the Washington Post, which Marcus left this year after a four decade tenure.Mentioned in this episode:Marcus' story about Bondi and the department: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/08/25/pam-bondi-profileMarcus' piece about leaving the Washington Post: https://www.newyorker.com/news/essay/why-ruth-marcus-left-the-washington-postMarcus' piece about her dog: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/my-dog-tank-was-a-precious-creature-that-saw-no-dividing-lines/2020/08/31/4880738e-eb99-11ea-b4bc-3a2098fc73d4_story.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A jam-packed discussion following hot on the dramatic news of the raid of John Bolton's home, the stunning scenes in a militarized D.C., and the latest escalation in the gerrymandering arms race. Talking Feds regulars Jason Kander, Norm Ornstein, and Tara Setmayer join Harry to break down how long Trump can sustain his flagrant campaign of weaponizing law enforcement and politicizing the military—as well as how long the country can endure it. Mentioned in this episode:  Jason's podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/majority-54/id1309354521   Norm's podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dsrs-words-matter/id1420216970  The Seneca Project: https://www.senecaproject.us/  Jason's brilliant 2016 ad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_S5s16Y1OA  Harry's substack about the detention of Texas legislator Nicole Collier: https://substack.com/@harrylitman/p-171582600  Video of Harry's interview with J.B. Pritzker: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUyF845Wk7k&  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has a message for Donald Trump: if you want to mess with my state, “you have to come through me.” In this wide-ranging sit-down, Pritzker reveals to Harry why he thinks the gerrymandering fight, ICE arrests, and troops in D.C. are all a blaring signal to Democrats that they need to finally fight the president on his own terms, no-holds-barred. They also discuss Pritzker's very personal reasons for going into public service, Trump's direct attacks on the governor, and a lot more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With a totally false picture of crime in D.C. as his pretense, Trump sought to turn the capital into a federal law enforcement enclave over local objections. Michael Podhorzer, Stuart Stevens, & Jacob Weisberg analyze Trump's move and what it means for the rest of the country. The panel then takes up the gerrymandering wars coming to a rolling boil in Texas & California, before ending with an in-depth discussion of whether some Democrats' new combative style is the right tonic for the party. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry talks with E. Jean Carroll about her harrowing but ebullient new book—”Not My Type”—which is a tour of her exceptional legal victories over Donald Trump. The pair go inside Carroll's triumphant legal strategy and talk through details from the trials—all brightly illustrated by Carroll's inspired and colorful turns of phrase. The conversation closes with a dive into a shared fascination with boxing and Carroll's urgent advice for what the rest of us can do to take on Trump. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It was the week when the Department of Justice fully embraced its new status as the corrupt, ruthless agent for Trump's endless retribution agenda. The president's lieutenants in the department launched a legal barrage against Trump foes like Barack Obama, Adam Schiff, and New York AG Letitia James. We chronicle the steep descent with 3 DOJ experts: Kristy Greenberg, Perry Stein, and Glenn Thrush. Rough but essential listening. Plus: a special sidebar on the beleaguered Voting Rights Act. Courtside with Kristy Greenberg: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@CourtsidewithKG/videos⁠ Glenn's reporting: ⁠https://www.nytimes.com/by/glenn-thrush⁠ Perry's reporting: ⁠https://www.washingtonpost.com/people/perry-stein/ ⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry talks with top election law expert Marc Elias about the efforts by Trump and Republicans across the country to stack the deck in their favor for the 2026 midterms. They delve into the effort in Texas to gerrymander five new seats for Republicans. They then turn to the Department of Justice's extraordinary effort to acquire information from state and local officials, and the specific dangers it poses. They close with some thoughts about what all of us can do to fight back. It's always timely to check in with Marc Elias, but particularly now with the first signs of danger for the midterms. Marc's articles at Democracy Docket: https://www.democracydocket.com/author/marc_elias/  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It was another week dominated by the Epstein scandal, which grew ever more murky.  A stellar only-on-Talking-Feds roundtable of Alisyn Camerota, Josh Marshall, and Asha Rangappa joins Harry to work through both the law and politics of Trump's efforts to disentangle himself.  The panel then moves on to apparent capitulation to Trump's shakedown by a series of universities including Harvard, the former poster child for resistance. We close with a quick look at the Alina Habba mess in New Jersey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry and Molly team up once again to swap burning questions about law and politics. The standout topic: Trump's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. Harry gives Molly the lowdown about the Justice Department's bizarre and deeply suspect dealings with Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell. Molly reads Harry the tea leaves on whether masses of young men — and even Fox News mastermind Rupert Murdoch — might be ready to ditch Trump. Lots more besides! Molly's piece in the Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/18/opinion/colbert-late-show-cbs-trump.html Molly's book: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/738849/how-to-lose-your-mother-by-molly-jong-fast/ Molly's podcast: https://fastpoliticspod.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It was the week when the Epstein scandal showed up in earnest and looked as if it would be staying for a while. Susan Glasser, Adam Klasfeld, and Bill Kristol join Harry to break down what is powering it and assess Trump's various efforts to shake himself free, including dispatching the Deputy AG to Florida to interview Epstein's co-conspirator, Ghislane Maxwell. But the week also brought key advances in Trump's totalitarian agenda, with successful shakedowns of prominent civic institutions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With just 5% of the world's population, the United States holds nearly 25% of its prisoners. In this one-on-one, NYU Law Professor Rachel Barkow joins Harry to discuss her new book Justice Abandoned, which reveals how a series of U.S. Supreme Court decisions helped enable the rise of mass incarceration. From pretrial detention to stop-and-frisk, Barkow explains how the Court's embrace of “law and order” politics quietly gutted constitutional protections—and how today's conservative majority could, ironically, be positioned to help reverse course. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Another scandal erupted for Trump this week, but this time it was MAGA up in arms over the Administration's doublespeak & failure to release the promised files involving Jeffrey Epstein. He also notched successes elsewhere, notably when Judiciary Committee Republicans unanimously approved his atrocious nomination of Emil Bove, and Congressional R's eliminated public funding for NPR & CPB. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry speaks with Representative Ro Khanna, who's spending the summer fighting Trump on a range of fronts, from the Big Beautiful Bill to the unauthorized bombing of Iran. Lately Rep. Khanna has flashed a maverick streak to go with his progressive bonafides. Can his "Benefits Over Billionaires" tour bring political punishment to Republicans who backed Medicaid cuts? Why is he standing up for professional gamblers? And how come a CA congressman is so excited about an NYC mayoral race? As always with Rep. Khanna—a several-time guest on Talking Feds—it's a discussion filled with thoughtful and provocative opinions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our latest Contrarian episode, with Norm Eisen, Michael Podhorzer, and Jennifer Rubin — each from the all-star cast of the dynamic new media venture. Republicans felt buyer's remorse as Americans learned the contents of their "Big Beautiful Bill." ICE, soon to be the country's biggest law enforcement agency, kept up its aggressive raids. And the DOJ sprinted toward the cliff's edge in its totalitarian activities. Plus Emil Bove, Justice Jackson, and a lot more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sometimes you just need a break from the relentless pace of legal and political developments and the enormous stakes they present for the future of the country. That's what this 1-on-1 is. Harry speaks with Henry Winkler, Hollywood icon for 50 years and among the most unspoiled, upbeat well-adjusted figures in a famously dyspeptic industry. Henry relates his crazy fun summer – featuring a one-on-one meeting with the Queen (not to mention Bruce Springsteen and Joni Mitchell)--and provides his strategies for staying zen and happy as the world and society seem sometimes to be collapsing around us. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's our annual end-of-term Supreme Court special episode, with a roundtable of three of the most eminent Court watchers in the country: Leah Litman, Melissa Murray, and Steven Vladeck. The nationwide injunction case capped off a conservative juggernaut of a term in which the 6 conservative justices expanded Executive power, contracted individual rights, augmented the Court's own power vis-a-vis lower courts, and pretty much had their way in all important cases. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry talks with Karim Sadjadpour, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and one of the country's foremost experts on Iran. Trump's strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities at least damaged their targets and a ceasefire is holding. But will the U.S. strikes force Iran to abandon its drive for a nuclear weapon, or just fuel its desperation? Should the U.S. fear reprisals? And what would it take to bring real, lasting change to Iran? Sadjadpour offers some answers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It was a week of legal, political, & military battles. Trump bombed Iran but with less definitive results than he had proclaimed, leaving next moves up in the air. A relative unknown stormed to victory in the NYC Dem primary, triggering widespread analysis of what if anything it showed about the state of the party. The Supreme Court ended its term with a series of 6-3 rulings. And Trump DOJ enforcer Emil Bove had a hearing for a judgeship amid widespread accusations of improper conduct at DOJ. Read Josh's post about Mamdani's Win: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/three-and-one-half-thoughts-on-mamdanis-big-big-win Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Recorded live at Talking San Diego, Senator Cory Booker charts the personal and political path that led him from the streets of Newark to the well of the Senate—and to the longest speech in congressional history. With urgency and candor, he reflects on what it means to watch democracy erode in real time, and why moral imagination is now a political necessity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The episode starts with a 20-minute discussion with War Powers expert Rich Bernstein about Saturday's bombing of Iran. From there we go to our Friday roundtable of Talking Feds stalwarts–Jason Kander, Norm Ornstein, & Jacob Weisberg. We focus on both the prospective bombing of Iran and the domestic use of force in CA & elsewhere. The court of appeals opinion green-lighting the federalization of the national guard in CA raises the prospect of an expansion to different big cities in blue states. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt joins Harry Litman to discuss his bestselling book "The Anxious Generation" and how the shift to smartphone-based childhood around 2012 triggered a mental health crisis—especially among liberal girls. Haidt explains his moral foundations theory, why Americans can't agree on basic facts anymore, and how social media created a "curse of Babel" that's undermining both democracy and child development. Plus: his four practical norms for rolling back the phone-based childhood and why we may be accidentally training kids for authoritarianism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A wild, turbulent, and ugly week. Trump used protests to his immigration operations in LA to declare a “rebellion” and federalize the national guard. A court decision rejecting the move was itself stayed, leaving the situation tense and tenuous. Sen. Padilla was roughed up and arrested when he tried to ask a question at a press conference. Meanwhile, the Administration brought Abrego-Garcia back only to charge him with crimes, and an effort to have Congress ratify DOGE cuts looked likely to fail. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry sits down with Michael Lewis—author of Moneyball and The Fifth Risk—to discuss Who Is Government?, his new book spotlighting the unsung public servants who quietly hold the country together. They trace the project's roots to Trump's chaotic transition, explore the GOP-led assault on federal expertise, and ask: Can the damage be undone? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It was a week in which events looked to be spinning out of control on multiple fronts. The bromance between Elon Musk and Donald Trump hit the rocks and broke to smithereens, with Musk by week's end calling for Trump's impeachment. The Big Beautiful Bill looked likewise to be at rough shoals, w/ several R's threatening to leave the fold. More courts ruled against the gov, especially in alien cases, and the gov reversed ground and brought Abrego Garcia home, only to charge him with federal crimes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A special recording from our Talking San Diego event with Rick Wilson. A longtime Republican strategist turned fierce Trump critic, Rick was among the first to sound the alarm on the threat Trump posed to American democracy. For nearly a decade, he's been relentless in his efforts to expose that threat—most memorably through a sharp, unflinching, and often darkly funny series of political ads that take aim at Trump and his enablers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Elon Musk Era of government came to an abrupt end as the architect of DOGE left the Administration, somewhat the worse for wear and tear. What remains in his wake of DOGE's slash-and-burn agenda is unclear. Sen Barbara Boxer, Mara Liasson, and Stuart Stevens join Harry to assess the Musk experiment. We then move on to Trump's no-holds-barred war against Harvard, and the damage it threatens for the school & American society as a whole. We then turn to the moving target of Trump's TACO tariffs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's the latest monthly Molly mashup where Molly Jong Fast of Fast Politics fires legal inquiries at Harry, and Harry counters with political questions.  The two trade vantage points on the Qatari "Palace in the Sky," with Harry explaining its illegality and Molly its political inanity. They move on to the pasting Trump is getting in the courts, and Molly's sense of his quickly declining popularity. Molly explains why Dems are likely to take the House in the midterms.  And both concur that as damaging as the first few months have been, his chance at actually replacing our constitutional democracy with an authoritarian state has passed him by.  Lots more besides! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A terrific round table of Alisyn Camerota, Bill Kristol, and Mike Podhorzer join Harry to analyze a week in which only a couple things went right for Trump this week, but they were big-ticket items. The House R's dragged the “big beautiful bill” over the finish line by a single vote. And the Supreme Court gave Trump a big victory that will permit him to fire leaders of certain important agencies without cause. But otherwise the courts forcefully rejected Trump's overreaching executive orders. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry sits down for the first time with Scott Galloway whose wide-ranging influential views encompass politics, psychology, marketing, and technology, to name just a few. They first discuss Galloway's thesis of the current crisis among young men.  Galloway lays out the manifold causes and cross-cutting effects, including eye-popping rates of substance abuse suicide and depression.  They then turn to the link between young men's hardships and disenchantment and the rise of Trump as a dark model of masculinity. That leads Galloway to a harsh critique of the Democratic party's marketing and agenda, and a specific postmortem of the 2024 election. From there, Galloway prescribes a series of proposals that he thinks Democrats should be offering in order to appeal to younger middle-class voters. And those are only the touchstones of a fast moving, provocative discussion chock full of Holloway's thoughts on sundry topics such as social media, the importance of peer groups, the tax code, and why young people should drink more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you like your presidential travel mixed with $B self-enrichment for Trump and sons, this is the week for you, guided by a terrific only-on-Talking Feds panel of Peter Baker, Tara Setmayer, & Jacob Weisberg. Trump makes for the Gulf States with bags open for booty before coming back to face the unraveling of his big beautiful bill of tax breaks for the wealthy funded by sacrifices in health & welfare for the rest of us. We end w/ the legal landscape and the DOA scheme to suspend habeas corpus. Read Harry's Substack on the "Palace in the Sky": https://harrylitman.substack.com/p/trumps-palace-in-sky-is-a-clear-constitutional Check out Talking San Diego: https://www.talkingsandiego.net/events Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Harry talks with Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen, who has been at the forefront of the efforts to keep attention on the nightmarish treatment of Kilmar Abrego-Garcia. Abrego-Garcia was pulled from the car he was driving and next thing he knew was in a notorious prison in El Salvador, the very place that a judge had ruled he could not be sent because of the risk of persecution. Senator Van Hollen went to El Salvador to meet with Abrego-Garcia. Abrego-Garcia has had no other communication with the outside world before or since. Senator Van Hollen discusses his reasons for going to El Salvador, previously undisclosed details of his meeting with Abrego-Garcia, the state of the war of public opinion about the case and Abrego-Garcia's fate, and the prospects for Abrego-Garcia's eventual return to his home and family in the United States.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It was a week that brought a series of stinging court defeats for Trump and his bevvy of executive orders, which have as a common theme the disregard of constitutional limits. Michael Scherer, Ali Vitali, and Charlie Sykes join Harry to consider whether Trump is adjusting his approach or just erratic. They break down Trump's recent legacy media blitz before moving to the inauspicious mess of his tariff policy. Finally, they take up the significance of the defeat of the Ed Martin nomination.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Harry talks at length with Leah Litman about her new book on the Supreme Court, “Lawless” The book is a funny but biting look at the Court's recent cases in a series of hot-button areas, including voting rights, abortion, and money in politics. Litman (no relation!) contends that the Court is driven mainly by the sentiments and political views of the Republican Party. The two Litmans explore her general approach to analyzing the Court as well as cases in several of the areas of focus on the book. They move at the end to Leah's ideas for constructing a better, more progressive Court and finish with thoughts about the prospect for the Court and country's falling off the cliff during Trump rule.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.