Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes

Eric Zuleger is back on the show! He's the reporter and analyst behind The Under Report. He spent 10 days on the ground in Lebanon during active conflict, got clearances from the Lebanese Ministry of Information, the Lebanese Armed Forces, and Hezbollah itself, and just returned. This is his first extended conversation about what he actually saw.Grant and Eric open on Trump's election speech and what it looks like from a national security and information operations perspective. Eric's frame: there are three simultaneous information space operations happening right now, one from China, one from Russia, one from inside the White House, and the president is doing the work of America's adversaries for them. He breaks down exactly how Russian, Chinese, and Iranian information operations differ in their goals and tactics, including how China used Facebook groups to kill a rare earth processing plant in Texas without anyone knowing it was a Chinese operation.On Iran: Eric explains why the US has broken the fundamental post-1945 security bargain with its Gulf allies. The deal was: host our bases, gain protection. Instead, they became targets. Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE are now looking at Washington and asking what they're actually getting from this arrangement. Eric predicts the casualty numbers will keep climbing and explains why Iran has far more military capability than the US has publicly acknowledged.On Lebanon: what Beirut actually looks and feels like right now, the Israeli drone that appears every day between noon and two that the locals call "our least favorite aunt who never leaves," 1.2 million displaced people folded into the city's architecture, and the four distinct rings of Hezbollah support that Israeli and American policy collapses into one category. He stood in a shrine to Hassan Nasrallah during Ashura, surrounded by men weeping for their dead, and explains what gets lost when that becomes a 15-second news clip.0:00 America doesn't know what it's doing on the world stage anymore and a reporter just got back from Lebanon2:03 Albania update: 50 days of protests, the flamingos are still marching, and Eric just returned from 10 days in Lebanon2:42 Three simultaneous information operations: China, Russia, and the one happening from inside the White House4:00 What "claiming the real estate between your ears" actually means in information warfare6:36 China's self-own argument: Trump's election speech hands Beijing its best propaganda in years7:54 The bargain of democracy and why more people on both sides are saying "tear the whole thing down"9:50 Mile markers for democratic backsliding: we are a struggling democracy, not a failed state14:59 What voting looks like in Transnistria: a Kalashnikov in the booth, a free iPad for the right vote16:44 The president is doing the work of America's adversaries for them. There's no other way to see it.27:43 How Russian information operations actually work: the fire hose of falsehoods and leaving gaps for people to fill29:32 QAnon as Lovecraftian horror: why you never describe the monster29:49 Russia vs. China: completely different goals, completely different tactics in the information space32:00 How China killed a US rare earth processing plant in Texas using Facebook groups without anyone knowing33:26 The Iran war as a bug in the American operating system: how the post-1945 security bargain is breaking36:30 Gulf states as targets: Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE are asking what they're actually getting from US bases55:39 Four nuclear threats in five months: more than any president since Truman56:42 "Death to America" chants vs. American leadership threatening to erase countries: the double standard59:20 On the ground in Beirut: the Israeli drone that appears every day, 1.2 million displaced, and life folded into rubble1:04:06 The four rings of Hezbollah support and why collapsing them into one category is wrong and dangerous1:07:27 AI, bomb-making, and why the US military imagination is stuck in 1980s Afghanistan1:10:24 Inside the shrine to Hassan Nasrallah during Ashura: what gets lost in a 15-second news clip1:14:59 Eric's Lebanon reporting, the Next 90 Days forecast, and where to find The UnderreportThe Under ReportMake It Make Sense SubstackJoin the SaySo News App! SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The House of Representatives left for summer recess today. In their final 48 hours they passed three bills and sent them to the Senate.The continuing resolution: the government stays funded at current levels until December 4th, kicking the budget fight to just before the holidays, again. The stock trading ban: it bans members of Congress from buying stocks but not selling them, which is where the money is made, and Republicans slipped a federal voter ID mandate into the bill specifically to make Democrats vote against it. Thomas Massie said so publicly on Twitter. The war powers resolution: the House voted again to force Trump to get Congressional approval for the Iran war, with four Republicans crossing the aisle. The Senate version failed by three votes.On tariffs: the temporary tariffs expire at midnight Friday. Since Trump placed his original tariffs last March, Americans have paid more than $468 billion total, or $1,341 per person, through May alone. That number has grown since then and does not include the tens of billions in refunds the government has been forced to pay back to companies.The new round coming this weekend will hit 60 countries with tariffs of 10 to 12.5% on goods the US says were made using forced labor. Trump originally said the Canada tariffs were because of the wildfires. Then he changed the reason. Grant explains what the actual reason is, and why it involves a bridge in Detroit called the Gordie Howe Bridge.A new Fox News poll finds Democrats lead Republicans by 7 points on a generic ballot, lead on every major issue including immigration and the economy, and have an 11-point enthusiasm gap. The poll is from Fox News.Cheers to two years of Make It Make Sense! Independent journalism only works with your support, so thank you! The price is still $5/month, but that changes August 20th. Subscribe now to lock in $5/month or $50/year!mimsnewspod.substack.comCHAPTERS0:00 The House leaves for summer. Here's what they did in the last 48 hours.2:00 The continuing resolution: government funded until December 4th, shutdown fight delayed until holidays3:30 The stock trading ban that isn't: you can sell but not buy, and Republicans hid a voter ID mandate inside it5:30 Thomas Massie admits it publicly: the bill was designed to make Democrats vote against a stock trading ban7:00 The House war powers vote: four Republicans cross the aisle again, Senate version fails by three votes8:30 The new Fox News poll: Democrats lead by 7 points, lead on every issue, 11-point enthusiasm gap10:00 Mike Johnson breaks with the White House on Iran: what he said and why it matters11:30 SaySo News App 13:00 Tariffs expire at midnight Friday: what the temporary tariffs were and why they're ending14:30 $468 billion paid in tariffs since March: $1,341 per American man, woman, and child through May alone16:00 The Canada tariffs: Trump said it was the wildfires, then changed the reason on camera17:30 The real reason: the Gordie Howe Bridge in Detroit, and what Trump wants from Canada19:00 The new round: 60 countries, 10 to 12.5% tariffs, forced labor justification, Supreme Court workaround20:30 What this means for prices: the Fed says tariffs are driving inflation and there is no end in sightSaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Last weekend was the deadliest stretch of the Iran war in months. Three US service members were killed and one is still missing after strikes on US bases in Iraq and Jordan. The total US death toll is now 17, higher than the Afghanistan evacuation that nearly derailed the Biden presidency. The New York Times reported that the Pentagon had withheld nearly 100 casualties for weeks. The Wall Street Journal found that service members on the Jordan base were being housed in sheet metal prefabricated containers. Goldman Sachs now says oil could hit $120 a barrel.Trump, when asked about a peace plan, said the plan is to keep bombing.On the home front: DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin announced the department would go after alleged non-citizens on voter rolls using public voter data, then threatened state election officials who refuse to comply with federal election takeover efforts with prison time. The clock is August 4th, when the 90-day pre-election quiet period kicks in and states can no longer alter voter rolls.Grant also breaks down the New Jersey non-citizen voting story that broke today, what it actually shows (a vendor error affecting 6,600 people out of 4.2 million votes), and why Tom Homan said this week that ICE shooting unarmed immigrants who were not subjects of their investigations was intentional and that more are coming.This is the two-year anniversary episode of Make It Make Sense. In two years: three episodes a week, weekly original reporting, a civics project, culture essays, and interviews with the people actually shaping the stories. Go to MIMSNEWSPOD.SUBSTACK.COM to lock in your $5/mo price before the deal runs out! CHAPTERS:0:00 Two years of Make It Make Sense: what it took, and why the price is going up August 21st3:00 The deadliest weekend of the Iran war: three US service members killed, one still missing4:30 17 US soldiers dead: more than the Afghanistan evacuation that nearly ended Biden's presidency5:30 The Pentagon hid nearly 100 casualties for weeks. The Wall Street Journal found why the Jordan base was so vulnerable.7:00 Goldman Sachs: oil could hit $120 a barrel. The Strait of Hormuz is still closed.8:00 Trump's peace plan: keep bombing9:00 Hegseth in the Oval Office: Iran's military is 100% destroyed. So why are they still killing our soldiers?10:30 SAYSO NEWS APP12:00 DHS threatens to jail state election officials who refuse to hand over voter data13:30 The August 4th deadline: why the clock is running out on the administration's election interference options15:00 The SAVE system: how DOGE turned an immigration benefits database into a private data repository a federal judge banned17:00 The New Jersey non-citizen voting story: what actually happened, what it means, and what it doesn't19:00 400 votes out of 4.2 million: the math on whether a vendor error changes an election outcome20:30 ICE arrests at record levels: 1,474 per day, and Tom Homan says the shootings of unarmed immigrants were on purpose22:00 Sprint or marathon: is this escalation a news cycle or a strategy through November?Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Andrew Torrez is a lawyer and co-host of the legal podcast Law And Chaos who has spent his career watching the Roberts Court systematically reshape American law. His verdict after this term: John Roberts broke the Supreme Court from the inside, and the court is now best understood as a right-wing policy-making institution rather than a judicial one.Grant and Andrew go case by case through the most consequential term in a generation. Birthright citizenship: a five to four decision on a question that should have been nine to nothing, since the 14th Amendment says what it says. The VRA gerrymandering ruling: you can now draw a million computer-simulated maps of North Carolina and only one comes out 10-4 Republican by chance, but the Roberts Court said that's fine and then eliminated the legal mechanism for challenging it. The tariff case: Kavanaugh ruled against Trump but included a roadmap in his dissent for how to achieve the same tariffs through a different statute.They also get into the shadow docket, which went from a rare emergency tool to a routine practice under Roberts. Grant reads from an internal New York Times-obtained memo in which Roberts explicitly cajoled his colleagues to issue an emergency injunction against Obama-era clean power regulations because solar power plants, in Roberts' own words, are not built in a day.And they talk about what Congress could actually do about all of it: court expansion, term limits, and a constitutional provision called jurisdiction stripping that would let Congress tell the Supreme Court it cannot hear certain categories of cases at all. It has never been used. It is in the Constitution.CHAPTERS:0:00 Hot dogs, snowballs, and the Supreme Court2:45 This term in one sentence: the Roberts Court is a right-wing policy-making institution4:00 Birthright citizenship: a 5-4 decision on a question that should have been 9-0.6:00 How John Roberts broke the court from the inside, starting with the Michigan union dues case8:30 Scalia vs. Alito and Thomas: why originalism gave way to bad faith arguments and Charlie Kirk logic12:00 Kavanaugh's tariff opinion: ruled against Trump, then included a roadmap for getting the same result16:00 The Slaughter case: Trump fires independent agency heads, the Fed exception, and what Russ Vought gets now20:00 Louisiana v. Callais: the VRA is dead and Democrats have to overperform by 4 to 6 points just to win the House24:00 One million computer-simulated maps: the math that proved gerrymandering and the Roberts Court ignored it28:00 Grant reveals he almost became a political mapmaker. This is why he walked out of the room.30:00 Minority rule is the goal: how an unpopular party stays in power permanently33:00 Kavanaugh's "wrong statutory box" logic: it applies to shipping humans to torture camps but not Trump tariffs36:00 Senator Kavanaugh: why he keeps writing roadmaps for Trump from the bench40:00 The Roberts Court's shadow docket: from emergency tool to routine practice44:00 The leaked memo: Roberts writes "solar power plants are not built in a day" to block clean energy rules for coal46:00 Drawing a legal quarantine zone around the Roberts Court: why its precedents shouldn't count 48:00 How Congress can actually fix this: court expansion, term limits, and jurisdiction stripping50:00 Jurisdiction stripping explained: Congress can tell the Supreme Court it cannot hear certain cases at all53:00The shadow docket and a national emergency over elections: could this go to the Supreme Court this summer?57:00 Why district court judges — including Trump appointees — are still doing the hard work59:00 Kilmar Garcia, Guatemalan children, voter rolls in 13 states: what district courts are actually stoppingLAW AND CHAOS PODCASTPROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Tonight Trump is giving a national address about foreign interference in the 2020 election. Grant recorded this episode to get ahead of the lies before they air.Here's what is actually proven: In April 2021, the US Office of National Intelligence, compiled by intel officers Trump himself appointed,  found with a high degree of confidence that China did not attempt to influence the outcome of the 2020 election. The joint report from Trump's own Department of Justice and Homeland Security said they had no evidence of any foreign government compromising election infrastructure to manipulate results. John Ratcliffe, Trump's own Director of National Intelligence at the time, was briefed on that report and signed off on it. He will be standing next to Trump tonight.Trump is expected to claim China hacked voter rolls to manufacture mail-in ballots. For that to be true, the operation would have had to bypass the DHS, the FBI, the Pentagon, the CIA, the Cybersecurity Infrastructure and Security Agency Trump himself created in 2018, every state-level election safeguard, every local election safeguard, and every audit, including 60-plus court cases, not one of which was decided in Trump's favor.Grant also breaks down the real reason for the speech: the Save America Act, the August 4th voter roll deadline, the "People's Executive Order" that has been circulating in the White House since February, and what declaring a national emergency over the 2026 election would actually allow Trump to do.0:00 Trump is giving a national address tonight. Grant is getting ahead of the lies.2:00 What we know is coming: China, voter rolls, manufactured mail-in ballots, and Ratcliffe3:30 What Trump's own intelligence community actually found about China and the 2020 election5:00 The DOJ and DHS report: "We have no evidence" — written by Trump's own appointees6:30 Ratcliffe signed off on that report. Tonight he stands next to Trump claiming the opposite.7:30 Election Day is a symphony, not a guitar solo: why a China hack at scale is practically impossible9:00 Every layer the hack would have had to bypass — including the agency Trump created to stop exactly this10:30 60 court cases. Zero wins. Attorneys banned from practicing law for making these claims.12:00 Non-citizens on voter rolls: what the data actually shows vs. what Trump will claim13:30 Thomas Massie's question: if the fraud is that sophisticated, how did Republicans win everything?14:30 Sponsor: SaySo News16:00 The real reason for the speech: the Save America Act, the August 4th deadline, and the Senate17:30 The People's Executive Order: what declaring a national emergency over the 2026 election would actually do19:30 130 executive powers, military deployment, election seizure: the full scope of what's on the table21:00 Why it probably won't work: courts, logistics, and the fact that 95% of Americans want to vote22:30 Why Republicans told Politico they are "scared shitless" of what Trump is about to say23:30 Ruth Ben-Ghiat on what this is really about: a psychological need to prove 2020 never happened25:00 The real irony: tonight Trump will do the work of America's adversaries for them2021 National Intelligence Council Election Report2021 DOJ/DHS Joint Election ReportSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Senator Lindsey Graham died Sunday morning from an aortic dissection. He was 71. Grant's assessment of his legacy is honest: a foreign policy expert who never met a war he wouldn't support, a politician who publicly and privately knew what kind of man Trump was and chose loyalty anyway. Trump's eulogy was mostly about getting a bill passed. Grant plays it.With Graham gone, South Carolina's governor needed to appoint a replacement. Trump wanted Graham's sister, who has spent her career on the South Carolina Commission for the Blind and the state workforce development board. She was sworn in today. Republicans now have to find someone to run for Graham's seat in less than 120 days in a race that was already only three points ahead of the Democratic challenger.On Iran: Trump has formally rebranded the war as Operation Guardian of Hormuz and notified Congress of new hostilities. Legal experts Grant spoke with say this doesn't work. The war powers clock doesn't reset because you rename the operation. We are 106 days past the 30-day war Trump promised would never happen and well past the 90-day war powers deadline with no Congressional authorization.Trump also threatened a 20% toll on Strait of Hormuz shipping, which his own Secretary of State said three weeks ago would end 80 years of the world order and trigger a global economic collapse. He reversed it in 24 hours after his Middle Eastern allies talked him down. He is still threatening to blow up Pickaxe Mountain, an Iranian nuclear stronghold buried under 300 to 2,000 feet of solid granite. The US does not currently have a non-nuclear weapon capable of reaching it.And Grant ran the McConnell proof-of-life photo through reverse image search, AI detection software, error level analysis, and compression mapping. His conclusion: the photo is real. Mitch McConnell is alive.CHAPTERS0:00 Trump renamed the Iran war, wants to blow up a mountain, and Lindsey Graham is dead2:00 Operation Guardian of Hormuz: why renaming the war doesn't reset the war powers clock4:30 106 days in: the only legal path forward is Congress, which leaves for summer in 6 days6:00 The 20% Strait of Hormuz toll: what it would actually do to the global economy8:30 Rubio said this was a bad idea three weeks ago. Trump did it anyway. Then reversed it in 24 hours.10:00 Pickaxe Mountain: why Trump's threat to blow it up is either a nuclear threat or a bluff12:00 The math: leveling Pickaxe Mountain would require 1,600 times the force of the Hiroshima bomb13:30 Sponsor: SaySo News15:00 Lindsey Graham dies at 71: his legacy, his reversals, and what Trump said at his eulogy18:00 Graham's sister gets his Senate seat. The political world expected the lieutenant governor.20:00Who runs for Graham's seat in South Carolina with 120 days to go22:00 Mitch McConnell is alive. Grant ran the photo through every detector he has. Here's what he found.26:00 Why the McConnell conspiracy doesn't work: the number of people who would have to stay quiet28:00 Grant's journalism rule: don't believe a conspiracy when entropy is just as likelyThis episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

On July 4th, America's 250th birthday, the White House published a report on its own website calling the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History "un-American." The report, authored by the Domestic Policy Council, said the museum focuses too much on Black and Brown communities, immigrants, women, and LGBTQ Americans, and accused it of dividing the country.Marc Stein is the president of the Organization of American Historians, the nation's largest and most prestigious group of professional historians. He visited the museum in March. He also wrote the piece in Time Magazine about the federal assault on history that Grant's been covering on Substack all week.Grant and Marc go through what's actually in the Smithsonian report, including 1,200 words devoted to attacking land acknowledgements at museums, which the White House labels "anti-white and anti-American." They talk about what it means when a government decides to take history out of the hands of people who study it and replace it with what Marc calls "a singular triumphant mythology." They get into the bicentennial parallel, the last time America tried to rewrite itself at a milestone anniversary, and the specific, concrete work historians are doing right now to save what's being erased before it disappears permanently.CHAPTERS0:00 The White House called the Smithsonian un-American. On the 4th of July.3:43 Meet Marc Stein: president of the Organization of American Historians and author of Bicentennial4:09 What the "Saving America's History" report actually is: a hit piece published on the White House website5:15 The ideological agenda: erasing workers, immigrants, women, people of color, and LGBTQ history in favor of "great presidents and military victories"6:42 1,200 words on land acknowledgements: why the White House calls them "anti-white and anti-American"9:29 What Marc actually saw when he visited the museum in March: lowriders, Filipino immigrants, the All in the Family set9:41 "Bizarrely obsessed and delusionally paranoid": what's wrong with the report's methodology14:00 What's being lost right now: the specific historical materials disappearing from federal archives18:00 How the administration is using history to decide who belongs in America and who doesn't22:00 The accountability problem: what we lose when we can't understand where we've been27:00 What it means to erase LGBTQ history specifically — and what Out History is doing to preserve it30:43 The bicentennial parallel: Nixon called for open borders, Ford naturalized citizens at Monticello. Now compare that to US 250.33:38 How we fight back: the "We Want More History" campaign launching September 202636:25 Do Americans know this is happening? What Marc's inbox looks like this week.Organization of American HistoriansThe Federal Assault On History ReportBicentennial: A Revolutionary History of the 1970sOutHistoryPROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The ceasefire Trump called a once-in-a-generation peace deal is over. It lasted three weeks. Grant has bread on his counter that lasted longer.Trump declared the ceasefire officially over while at a NATO summit in Turkey, a meeting that did not go well for the United States by any measure. He threatened to cut off trade with Spain over NATO spending. He claimed the US once owned Greenland and gave it back, which is not how that happened. He called Ukrainian President Zelensky "Putin" on camera. Then, minutes later, he accused Japan of firing missiles at US troops... he meant Iran.He also left Turkey on the old Air Force One instead of the Qatari-gifted plane, which the Associated Press reports is not equipped with the same missile detection and countermeasure systems as the older jets. The transponder on Air Force One was also shut off near the Turkey-Iran border on the way in.On Iran: the ceasefire ended after the US launched airstrikes inside Iran during the 10-day funeral of the Ayatollah, breaking a specific promise made to Iranian negotiators. Iran responded by firing missiles into Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar. Israel used it as a green light to resume bombing in Lebanon. The Strait of Hormuz is closed again with 300-plus ships waiting. The US missile stockpile is still severely depleted and will take years to replenish.Trump announced all of this on a Wednesday, not a Friday, so the markets couldn't recover before the weekend. Oil shot up. The stock market tanked. Grant explains why that was uncharacteristic and what it might mean.CHAPTERS:0:00 The Iran ceasefire is over. It lasted three weeks.1:30 NATO explained: what it is, what the US pays, and why Trump thinks we're getting ripped off4:00 Trump threatens to cut off Spain over NATO spending — a country we have a trade surplus with and two military bases in6:30 Trump claims the US once owned Greenland and gave it back. That's not what happened.8:00 Trump calls Zelensky "Putin" on camera at NATO9:00 Trump accuses Japan of firing missiles at US troops. He meant Iran. They rhyme.10:30 Air Force One: why Trump flew home on the old plane and what the AP found about the Qatari jet's missing safety systems12:00 The transponder was shut off near the Turkey-Iran border. What that means.13:00 Sponsor break14:30 Why the ceasefire actually ended: airstrikes during the Ayatollah's funeral, a broken promise to Iranian negotiators16:00 Iran fires on Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar. Israel resumes bombing Lebanon. The domino effect.17:30 The Strait of Hormuz is closed again: 300+ ships waiting, US missile stockpile still depleted19:00 Why announcing this on a Wednesday — not a Friday — was a strategic mistake that cost Trump money20:30 The two unanswered questions: has Trump been secretly meeting with Iran, and was he even part of the negotiations?22:00 $1.2 billion in White House renovations and crews starting on the columns todayPROMO CODE:This episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

A New York Times/Sienna poll just found that for the first time, the key states needed to flip the Senate from Republican to Democrat are either Democratic leads or within the margin of error. North Carolina, Maine, Texas, Alaska, Iowa, and Ohio. If Democrats flip those seats and win the House as expected, the math for impeachment starts to work.Then everything started falling apart at once.The Democratic candidate in Maine was credibly accused of sexual assault, with corroborating text messages and therapist notes. He hadn't dropped out as of recording, but Grant explains why his video response was what you say when you're giving your party time to find a replacement, and they only have until July 13th.The Republican running in Texas, Ken Paxton, who was nearly impeached by his own party on 20 counts, spent the Fourth of July weekend in London with his mistress... while running a Christian conservative campaign... in Texas.In Michigan, Mallory McMorrow dropped out, leaving Abdul El-Sayed and Haley Stevens in a race that is now entirely about Israel and Gaza, and a lot of outside money is about to flood in.In Arizona, the DOJ opened a campaign finance investigation into Senator Ruben Gallego, that looks an awful lot like Trump's DOJ trying to force out a 2028 contender.And Mitch McConnell was found unconscious at his home on June 14th, required CPR, hasn't been seen since, and is being reported as brain dead. His staff says he's fine and having 20-minute policy conversations. So far, there's no real proof. On top of all of that, Trump is demanding $350 billion more for defense and trying to jam the Save America Act, the mail-in voting ban, into the bill through a budget process that most experts say is illegal.0:00 Trump fell asleep during his own fireworks show. Also the fireworks caused a Code Red air quality alert.2:00 The NYT/Sienna poll: for the first time the Senate is actually up for grabs3:30 What flipping the Senate would actually mean: confirmations, investigations, impeachment math4:30 Maine implodes: Graham Platner credibly accused of rape, text messages, therapist notes, and what his video response actually means7:30 Texas: Ken Paxton spent the Fourth of July in London with his mistress while running a Christian conservative Senate campaign10:00 Michigan: McMorrow drops out, El-Sayed vs. Stevens, and why this race is now entirely about Israel and Gaza13:00 SaySo News A p14:30 Arizona: the DOJ opens a campaign finance investigation into Ruben Gallego, and why the timing matters17:00 Where in the world is Mitch McConnell?: CPR, brain-dead reports, and 20-minute policy calls with no video proof20:00 Trump demands $350 billion more for defense and tries to jam the Save America Act in through reconciliation22:30 Why this is illegal, why senators are furious, and why the Senate is a political Mount Vesuvius right nowPROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

One week before America turns 250, Congress set aside money to celebrate the country. Trump's private organization, Freedom 250, is siphoning that money into a celebration that is increasingly about him. The Great American State Fair on the National Mall was supposed to open with a concert celebrating America. Musicians pulled out. It became a Trump rally. Trump said 45,000 people attended. The actual count was about 1,000, and many left early.There are now 50 to 100 foot banners of Trump's face next to the founding fathers across Washington DC. The Supreme Court is deciding whether Americans born on American soil are actually Americans. And the question Grant and his guest sit with for most of this conversation is: what does it mean when a president cannot separate himself from the country he leads?Karrin Anderson is a professor of political rhetoric at Colorado State University and an expert in authoritarian communication. She and Grant talk through what the centering of Trump in America's 250th celebration tells us about where we are, how democratic backsliding actually works in the 21st century (not through military coups, but through the slow institutional capture of universities, courts, and the press), why Watergate would be a minor footnote today, and what the founding actually has to teach us about this moment.This is a conversation for everyone who is holding complicated feelings about July 4th this year. Which is a lot of people.Karrin Anderson MAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACKCHAPTERS:0:00 Trump's 250th: a concert that became a rally, 1,000 people, and his face on 100-foot banners2:18 Meet Karen Anderson: professor of political rhetoric and expert in authoritarian communication2:52 Authoritarianism as a cult of personality: why Trump can't separate himself from the country he leads4:10 Freedom 250 vs. America 250: how a private organization is siphoning the congressional celebration5:09 What the Fourth of July has always meant — and why Trump's centering is a departure from 250 years of it7:23 Does authoritarian overreach get worse as a president gets weaker heading into midterms?7:54 The Republican Party is now the problem, not just Trump: why Congress could stop this and won't9:13 What happens to the Republican Party after Trump? JD Vance, the moderates who got driven out, and 202811:10 The most dangerous thing Trump did: not the authoritarianism, but proving how weak our norms were12:52 Why Watergate wouldn't matter today — and what that tells us about where we are14:36 Should Democrats impeach if they win the House? Karen's answer.20:28 Trump's legacy project: building structures, capturing universities, controlling what people learn23:33 The stuff you can undo vs. the stuff you can't: why the policy damage outlasts the statues24:37 How democratic backsliding actually works in the 21st century — not coups, but institutional capture26:21 The death of the American university: which colleges close first and what that does to their towns30:48 Were our institutions always this fragile, or was this administration just that aggressive?31:38 Red state universities flush with federal money, blue state universities hollowed out: the coming split35:49 How do we hold the line? What the founding actually teaches us about this moment.36:22 Karen's closing: Citizens working together is still what this experiment is built onPROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The most bipartisan housing bill in 40 years passed the House 358-32 and the Senate 85-5. Trump himself called it "the most comprehensive and consequential housing legislation in the history of our country" in a presidential proclamation two weeks ago. Republican leaders were mid-press conference, celebrating its passage, when Trump posted on Truth Social that the signing was off.A North Carolina congresswoman showed up to the signing ceremony to a room full of empty chairs because nobody told her.Trump killed the bill to hold it hostage until the Senate passes the Save America Act — a bill that would require proof of citizenship to vote, ban mail-in voting, and disenfranchise an estimated tens of millions of Americans including 69 million women who changed their last name when they got married, active duty military members who can't produce the right documents, and naturalized citizens serving in the armed forces right now.The Senate doesn't have the votes. So Trump went to Capitol Hill, told Speaker Johnson, "no one gives a shit about housing," then walked into a Senate lunch that was actually a screaming match. One senator stopped calling him Mr. President and started calling him "brother" in a confrontational tone. One Republican senator described it to reporters as "a fucking tantrum." The tantrum was mostly about the Senate's war powers vote against the Iran war, which senators then reversed overnight under pressure.The Supreme Court also issued major rulings today: asylum at the border is effectively over, temporary protected status for hundreds of thousands of Haitians and Syrians is ending, and people with disabilities in seven states can no longer bring a trusted helper to the polls. Birthright citizenship and the president's power to fire independent agency heads are still coming, now likely Monday.MAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACK ARTICLEPROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoCHAPTERS:Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

A convicted felon named JJ Cafaro, who runs a company called Greenwater Services, was awarded a no-bid $1.7 million contract to paint the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool "American flag blue." It ballooned to $16 million, took months instead of a week, the paint is peeling off the bottom, and the water turned bright green with algae.Trump's response was to blame vandals, threaten 10-year prison sentences, deploy the National Guard and ICE to one of America's most famous national monuments, and arrest a Swedish journalist and a US Olympic kayaker for reaching into the water, which is legal.The company that makes the paint used on the pool released a statement confirming the peeling is a product issue. A George Mason biologist tested the water and found the algae is just regular algae growth, possibly made worse because the dark blue paint is heating the water. There is no evidence of vandalism. None has been provided.Meanwhile, Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, the moment peace talks resumed, then opened it back up, proving exactly what critics said would happen once Iran gained joint control. A new CBS poll finds 69% of Americans don't think the Iran war was worth it. Trump threatened to kidnap Iranian negotiators on Fox News. And no one can explain what happened at Camp David over Father's Day weekend, where the only photo released was of a woman who is not one of Trump's daughters, captioned "great daughter."Rate and review wherever you listen. Share this with one person who needs it.CHAPTERS:0:00 The reflecting pool is green, the paint is peeling, and Trump says it's vandalism2:00 The no-bid contract: a convicted felon, a company called Greenwater Services, and $16 million4:30 Trump says the pool was cut open with a knife 350 feet long. Reporters went looking. It's not there.6:00 The paint company's own statement and why Pipeliner 5000 was probably the wrong product for this job7:30 The George Mason biologist, the algae test, and why the blue paint may be making it worse8:30 National Guard, ICE, and 10-year prison threats: how a bad paint job became an authoritarian moment9:30 A Swedish journalist and a US Olympic kayaker arrested for reaching into the water, which is legal11:00 SaySo News App Ad12:30 Iran closes the Strait of Hormuz the moment peace talks resume — then opens it back up14:00 Vance in Europe: what he said about the nuclear program and why it only gets us back to zero15:30 Trump on Fox News: "You won't even make it back to your country" — threatening to kidnap Iranian negotiators17:00 The new CBS poll: 69% say the war wasn't worth it, one in five think the deal is good for the US18:30 Trump's very strange Father's Day weekend at Camp David — and the photo of a woman who isn't his daughterPROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Two weeks before America turns 250, Grant sits down with NYU Law Professor Melissa Murray, co-host of the Strict Scrutiny podcast and one of the country's leading legal scholars, to talk about her brand new book: The US Constitution: A Comprehensive and Annotated Guide for the Modern Reader.The conversation covers what the framers actually got wrong (they were elitists who didn't trust ordinary people), what they got right (the structural checks that are still holding, barely), and what most Americans don't know about the Constitution because we stopped teaching it properly. Melissa makes the case that the Reconstruction Amendments, not the 1787 original, are the actual foundation of the multiracial democracy we're trying to preserve right now, and explains why the people who want you to stop teaching slavery also want you to stop knowing about those amendments.They also get into the Supreme Court's six-to-three supermajority, what it would actually take to fix it (court expansion, term limits, jurisdiction stripping), why the electoral college is the one amendment Melissa would wave a wand to remove, and what an ordinary college student with a library card did in 1992 to get the 27th Amendment ratified.This is a different kind of episode. Come for the civics. Stay for the hope.CHAPTERS:0:00 Why the Constitution feels stale... and why it isn't1:08 Meet Melissa Murray: NYU Law professor, Strict Scrutiny co-host, author of the new annotated Constitution2:38 How is the Constitution holding up right now?3:33 What the framers were actually afraid of: trauma, tyranny, and why they divided power the way they did5:35 Congress is on the couch: why the framers never anticipated two branches facilitating one branch's excesses7:30 What the framers got wrong: they didn't trust ordinary people, and they built that distrust into the structure8:52 How the Senate became popularly elected — and why it took the Gilded Age for people to get fed up enough to demand it10:42 The Constitution moves: how moments of rupture and trauma have driven every major amendment13:30 Red states and a constitutional convention: why that should scare you14:31 The Reconstruction Amendments are the real foundation of American democracy and why you weren't taught that16:11 The Constitution as owner's manual vs. flower care instructions — and why both might be right21:00 The Supreme Court's six-to-three supermajority and how Neil Gorsuch got there illegitimately25:00 Court reform: term limits, jurisdiction stripping, expansion — what's on the table31:44 How to actually strengthen the Constitution: statutes, turnout, and why doubling the electorate is possible36:37 Judicial interpretation as the main engine of constitutional change — and what to do about this court38:25 Why the Constitution is only 12 pages — and why Melissa's book is 30040:00 If you could add one amendment: get rid of the electoral college. Then DC statehood. Then Puerto Rico.MAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACKThe US Constitution: A Comprehensive and Annotated Guide for the Modern ReaderPROMO CODE:This episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Trump gave his longest speech since the State of the Union at a press conference in Paris, then flew to the Palace of Versailles to sign the Iran memorandum of understanding. For those keeping score at home: Versailles is where Germany signed its humiliating defeat at the end of World War I, the document widely credited with planting the seeds of World War II.The White House finally released the 14-section MOU. Grant goes through what's actually in it versus what JD Vance has been claiming on his wall-to-wall media tour. The short version: Iran keeps its enriched uranium stockpile, the Strait of Hormuz will now be jointly controlled by Iran and Oman (charging fees for access that used to be free), and the $300 billion reconstruction fund is in the document despite Trump calling it "entirely false."At $187 billion spent to reach this agreement, the deal is 144 times more expensive than the Obama Iran deal Trump ripped up in 2018, which cost $1.3 billion and achieved many of the same things.Then there's JD Vance, who has been the lead negotiator, the lead spokesperson, and is now being set up as the lead fall guy. If the deal collapses in the next 60 days, it's Vance who takes the blame. If it succeeds, Trump takes the glory. Grant breaks down why Trump privately mocks Vance, pits him against Rubio, and can't stand the idea of a successor, including how he felt about his own son.CHAPTERS:0:00 JD Vance's very bad week and the soft launch of his 2028 campaign1:30 Sponsor: SaySo News2:45 Trump's Paris speech: longest time on camera in months, and he struggled to finish it5:00 Why signing the MOU at the Palace of Versailles is a massive historical red flag6:30 What's actually in the 14-section MOU: blockade, forces, and de-mining 5,000 underwater mines8:00 Iran and Oman get joint control of the Strait — and the right to charge fees for access that used to be free9:30 The money: oil sanctions lifted immediately, assets unfrozen, and the $300 billion that Trump says isn't real but is in the document11:30 John Bolton's warning: how other countries are reading this agreement between the lines13:00 144 times more expensive than Obama's deal: the full cost breakdown14:30 The nuclear question: Iran keeps its uranium, inspectors return, and Trump's new position16:30 JD Vance's media blitz: every network, The View, the NYT, and a new book about his conversion to Catholicism18:00 Trump undercuts Vance on stage in Paris with the world watching19:30 Trump privately mocks Vance, polls his allies on Vance vs. Rubio, and calls him "cloying and weird"21:00 Why Trump can't tolerate a successor: Don Jr., MAGA, and the legacy obsession explained23:00 If the deal works, Trump gets the glory. If it fails, Vance gets the wolves.MAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACK: The Price Of PeacePROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just keep scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Over the weekend, on Trump's birthday, the US and Iran announced they'd reached a deal to end the war. The actual text has not been released. What we know so far is that this is a memorandum of understanding, not a signed treaty, and by no measure does any foreign policy expert consider that a real deal yet.The Strait of Hormuz, which 20% of the world's oil flows through, did not reopen immediately as promised. As of recording, only two ships have passed through and the US blockade remains. Iran would gain joint control over the strait with Oman, which intelligence officials are calling a bigger threat than a nuclear weapon, since it gives Iran an on off switch over global oil.There's no agreement on Iran's uranium stockpile, the centerpiece issue Trump has built his entire Iran policy around. Today in Switzerland, Trump suddenly started downplaying how much that uranium actually matters. His own Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, and CIA Director all told him in private meetings they don't think Iran is being fully truthful.Grant also breaks down the $24 billion in unfrozen assets, the $200 billion total cost of this war to Americans, why this could trigger the Senate's treaty approval process, and why Lindsey Graham just threw JD Vance under the bus on Twitter.Subscribe on Substack, Friday's interview with NYU law professor Melissa Murray on her new book about the Constitution drops this week.CHAPTERS:0:00 After 40 broken promises, is the Iran war actually over this time?1:30 Sponsor: SaySo News2:55 Trump's Saturday Truth Social post and an explicit threat to use nuclear weapons4:20 Sunday's announcement: why this is a memorandum of understanding, not a real deal5:40 The Strait of Hormuz still isn't open. Only two ships have passed through.7:00 Iran and Oman would jointly control the Strait. Why intelligence officials call this worse than a nuke.9:00 $24 billion unfrozen, $300 billion in possible reconstruction money, and JD Vance's PR problem11:00 The real cost: $200 billion spent by Americans on a war Congress never approved13:00 The nuclear question still isn't resolved, and today Trump started downplaying it15:00 Rubio, Hegseth, and Ratcliffe all told Trump in private they don't trust Iran on this16:30 Why Trump won't release the actual text of the agreement18:00 Hurdle one: Israel, Lebanon, and Netanyahu's promise to stay no matter what20:00 Hurdle two: the Senate's treaty approval clause and Lindsey Graham throwing JD Vance under the bus22:30 Hurdle three: 60 days is a long time, and what could still go wrong before this is signedMAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACKPROMO CODE:This episode is sponsored by SaySo. SaySo is a brand new news app built for people who actually want to be informed, not just kept scrolling. No outrage-chasing algorithm, no AI slop, just vetted creators delivering fact-driven coverage you can get through in a few minutes a day. I'm one of the early creators on the platform, posting there alongside others I trust. Check it out and download SaySoSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Barb McQuade spent her career as a US Attorney prosecuting organized crime, including the conviction of former Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick on extortion, bribery, and fraud charges. Trump later pardoned Kilpatrick. In her new book, The Fix, she argues the Trump administration is running the exact same playbook she spent her career prosecuting. Her words: "it's just crime."Grant and Barb walk through the parallels in detail. The kickback scheme that sent Kilpatrick's associates to prison looks a lot like the DOJ's immunity deal and slush fund. The pattern of inflicting pain until someone complies, then owning them permanently, is the same pattern Barb saw with extortion victims in Detroit and the same pattern she sees in how Trump dismissed the bribery case against Eric Adams in exchange for cooperation on immigration enforcement.But this isn't just a conversation about the problem. Barb has actual proposals: moving the US Marshal Service under the judicial branch so courts can enforce their own contempt orders, ranked choice voting to reduce the power of extremists in both parties, independent redistricting commissions like Michigan's, and term limits for Supreme Court justices that would prevent any single president from reshaping the court for a generation.0:00 An optimistic episode, finally: meet Barb McQuade, author of The Fix3:11 Why Barb calls this a "mob-style government" instead of authoritarianism6:39 "It's just crime": why this framing matters and how Peter Magyar used it to defeat Orban7:30 The Kwame Kilpatrick case: kickbacks, extortion, and the contractor who couldn't say no11:04 The Eric Adams parallel: dismissing a bribery case in exchange for loyalty12:17 Win by losing: how Trump flexes power even when courts block him14:00 The real fix: bolstering Congress as the check the founders intended17:00 Ranked choice voting and how Alaska elected Lisa Murkowski's independence19:30 Ending gerrymandering: Michigan's independent redistricting commission as the model21:30 Getting money out of politics: Michigan's utility contribution ballot measure25:12 Should Democrats expand the Supreme Court? Barb's answer: term limits instead28:51 A radical idea: moving the US Marshal Service under the judicial branch31:52 Does this collapse from the inside, or is Trump too big to fail?34:07 Where to find Barb's book and her podcast, Sisters in LawThe Fix: Saving America from the Corruption of a Mob-Style Government Make It Make Sense SubstackThis episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth. Summer nights and a chaotic news cycle are a rough combo — at least your sheets shouldn't make it worse. Cozy Earth's bamboo sheets and brushed bamboo pajamas are temperature-regulating, insanely soft, and built for actually sleeping cool. Use code MIMS25 at CozyEarth.com for 30% off — and when you do, you're also supporting the show.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

103 days into a war Donald Trump promised would never happen, the United States is striking targets inside Iran and along the Iranian coast for the third straight day. The Secretary of Defense announced the US would target bridges and power plants. Legal scholars say those strikes are unconstitutional. International law experts say targeting civilian infrastructure is a war crime.This morning, Trump announced the US would be taking Kharg Island, Iran's most important oil hub. Senator Patty Murray called it a quagmire. Iran's lead negotiator called it a quagmire. Military and constitutional scholars called the strikes illegal. Six hours later, Trump posted on Truth Social that the strikes were cancelled and a peace deal was done.Iran was not on the list of countries that approved the deal. Iran has not commented. This is the 39th time Trump has announced a peace deal is ready to be signed.Grant also breaks down why 265 ships are still stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, what it means that the US has drawn down its own oil reserves to historic lows, and what Mike Johnson said when asked whether Congress should authorize the war — and then ran away from the cameras.CHAPTERS:0:00 The US is back at war with Iran. Three days of strikes. Here's what changed.1:30 Sponsor: Cozy Earth3:00 The helicopter Iran shot down, the rescue, and the US airstrike response4:15 Why these strikes are unconstitutional: no Congressional authorization, no War Powers justification5:30 Mike Johnson asked if Congress should authorize the war. He ran away from the cameras.6:45 Senator Ron Johnson: Congress can't be trusted to know about its own wars8:00 Targeting power plants and bridges: why Hegseth's "on our terms" is an admission of war crimes9:30 The covert oil mission: 100 million barrels through the Strait, 265 ships still stranded11:00 Trump says "I love inflation." The White House spin vs. what oil executives are actually telling the administration.12:30 Kharg Island explained: why taking it means boots on the ground and a full-scale ground war14:00 55% of Americans oppose any invasion. Support for the war is now at minus 20.15:15 Six hours later: the invasion is off. Peace deal number 39 is announced. Iran wasn't consulted.16:45 103 days of a war Trump promised would never happen. No end in sight.PROMO CODESThis episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth. Summer nights and a chaotic news cycle are a rough combo — at least your sheets shouldn't make it worse. Cozy Earth's bamboo sheets and brushed bamboo pajamas are temperature-regulating, insanely soft, and built for actually sleeping cool. Use code MIMS25 at CozyEarth.com for 30% off — and when you do, you're also supporting the show.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

California held its primary last week. Six days later, votes were still being counted. That's normal. But Trump, Elon Musk, and Mike Johnson decided it was evidence of massive fraud, with zero evidence, which they have admitted publicly. Grant breaks down exactly why California's count takes as long as it does, why a Republican surge followed by a Democratic catch-up is just math and not a conspiracy, and why you should treat everything you're about to hear about the 2026 midterms through this same lens. Trump did this in 2020. It worked. He's doing it again.Then there's the president's health. At his NBC Meet the Press interview in Wisconsin, Trump struggled to stand up from his chair, wobbled, and reached out to grab journalist Kristen Welker to steady himself. At the NBA Finals in New York the same night, he was booed loudly at Madison Square Garden, told reporters the crowd reaction was "mostly cheers" of enthusiasm, and then appeared to nod off during the game, in an arena regularly hitting 90 decibels. In the stills, Grant reports, the drooping on the right side of Trump's face was visible again.And then, as Grant was recording, Iran shot down an American helicopter. The pilots were rescued. Trump vowed retaliation. The ceasefire, whatever it was, appears to be over again.0:00 Trump's 2026 midterm election denial playbook has already started — here's what to watch for1:05 The LA mayor's race: Spencer Pratt, Karen Bass, and why Republicans lost the runoff2:30 Elon Musk, Trump, and the "fraud" claim that a Trump-appointed US attorney debunked in 12 hours4:02 Why mail-in ballots cause a "surge" — and why it's just math, not fraud5:10 The "pig in a python" problem: why California's count takes six days6:20 Trump storms out of the NBC Meet the Press interview — the full exchange with Kristen Welker8:38 Mike Johnson: "It can't be proven, but everybody knows" — why this argument is designed to be unfalsifiable10:38 Why election denial works politically even when no one believes it11:40 Sponsor: Cozy Earth13:30 Breaking news: Iran shoots down an American helicopter, Trump vows retaliation14:36 Trump's health at the NBC interview: struggling to stand, reaching out to Welker to steady himself15:50 Standing rallies, seated press conferences, and a pattern Grant has been tracking for months17:00 Trump gets booed at the NBA Finals — then says the crowd was "mostly cheers" of enthusiasm17:51 Trump appears to nod off at Madison Square Garden — and the face drooping is back19:00 Why Grant keeps reporting on Trump's health even when the White House ignores itThings You Forgot From Civics ClassPROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth. Summer nights and a chaotic news cycle are a rough combo — at least your sheets shouldn't make it worse. Cozy Earth's bamboo sheets and brushed bamboo pajamas are temperature-regulating, insanely soft, and built for actually sleeping cool. Use code MIMS25 at CozyEarth.com for 30% off — and when you do, you're also supporting the show.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Zach Everson is the research director at Public Citizen and the head of their Trump Accountability Project. He is a former Forbes reporter who has spent a decade tracking how Donald Trump uses the presidency to make money. This term, he says, the scale is incomparable to the first.Forbes estimates Trump has made roughly $1.9 billion from crypto since being reelected. That includes the meme coin, the USD1 stable coin backed by a UAE-linked investment firm, and World Liberty Financial, which sold 49% of itself to the UAE's national security advisor days before Trump was inaugurated.Zach breaks down exactly how each product works, why the money flows to Trump even when the coins are essentially worthless, and why a $2 billion investment from a foreign government's financial arm into a product Trump controls is the most serious emoluments case no one is talking about.They also get into why this corruption isn't breaking through with the public the way it should, what it would actually take to stop a future president from doing the same thing, and why Zach says Trump has opened a Pandora's box that neither party has closed.CHAPTERS:0:00 Trump is using the presidency to make money in broad daylight. This is how.1:53 Meet Zach Everson: 10 years tracking Trump's business interests at Forbes and Public Citizen2:47 Why Zach left Mar-a-Lago visitor tracking behind and went all-in on crypto4:15 The difference between Trump's first and second term: from $100K ballroom rentals to billions6:38 How Trump went from "crypto is thin air" to making $1.9 billion from it7:10 The NFTs, World Liberty Financial, the meme coin, and the USD1 stable coin explained10:00 How the meme coin makes money even when it's worthless11:30 The UAE invested $2 billion into Trump's stable coin. Here's what they got in return.13:30 Forbes pegs Trump's crypto earnings at $1.9 billion since reelection15:00 Why crypto is the perfect influence-peddling vehicle: public blockchain, hidden identities16:00 85% of Trump's stable coin is held overseas. What that actually means.17:05 The emoluments clause, the UAE's national security advisor, and the case no one is bringing18:11 Sponsor: Cozy Earth19:47 How Trump's for-profit presidency escalated from a soap bar to billions in crypto22:15 Why the public stopped caring about Trump's corruption and what it would take to change that23:05 Don Jr. up sevenfold, Eric Trump worth $400 million: the children's cut25:34 Why the slush fund broke through when the crypto billions didn't27:04 How do we stop the next president from doing this? What guardrails could actually work?29:57 Wrap-up and where to find Zach's workLINKS: MAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACK PUBLIC CITIZENPROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth. Summer nights and a chaotic news cycle are a rough combo — at least your sheets shouldn't make it worse. Cozy Earth's bamboo sheets and brushed bamboo pajamas are temperature-regulating, insanely soft, and built for actually sleeping cool. Use code MIMS25 at CozyEarth.com for 30% off — and when you do, you're also supporting the show.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Trump went seven full days without a public appearance. When he resurfaced, it was first in a pre-taped podcast interview with a friendly outlet where he didn't look well, and then in an unscheduled Oval Office press conference where he struggled to follow questions, compared a flat reflecting pool to skyscrapers, and told Kaitlin Collins to smile more.That press conference also produced the clearest sign yet that the Iran conflict is not a ceasefire in any meaningful sense of the word. The US has now fired on six civilian merchant ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump couldn't say the word "ceasefire" when asked directly.Congress noticed. The House passed a war powers resolution to end the Iran conflict last night, with four Republicans crossing party lines. The Senate already passed its own version two weeks ago. What happens if Trump ignores both, and what it means for the midterms, is what Grant breaks down today.Also: Todd Blanche gets rewarded for protecting Trump's immunity deal with a nomination for Attorney General, the $1.8 billion slush fund is dead on paper but not really, and Sen. Lindsey Graham is already working on a replacement.Going Postal: The New USPS Rule To Surveil Your VotePROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth. Summer nights and a chaotic news cycle are a rough combo — at least your sheets shouldn't make it worse. Cozy Earth's bamboo sheets and brushed bamboo pajamas are temperature-regulating, insanely soft, and built for actually sleeping cool. Use code MIMS25 at CozyEarth.com for 30% off — and when you do, you're also supporting the show.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Two federal judges have now stepped in to freeze Trump's $1.8 billion anti-weaponization slush fund. One judge in Virginia halted all payouts. A judge in Miami reopened the entire IRS lawsuit after 35 former federal judges called the settlement a fraud on the court. The DOJ quietly backed down Monday and said it would comply.That means the Trump loyalists who were promised a payout for their loyalty are not getting one, at least for now. And the Republicans in the Senate are furious.Grant also breaks down the Bill Pulte appointment as acting DNI, why legal experts say it may be illegal, what the Iran ceasefire collapse actually means for oil prices this summer, and Trump's "I don't care" tell that one of his own biographers says is code for something specific.CHAPTERS0:00 Everything that went wrong for Trump this week1:52 Bill Pulte named acting DNI: who he is and why the appointment may be illegal4:08 How Pulte used housing agencies to go after Trump's political enemies6:00 Iran ceasefire collapse: what actually happened over the weekend8:13 What Trump's "I don't care" actually means, according to his biographer Michael Wolff8:40 Oil at $150 a barrel? Gas could hit $6 by Fourth of July11:00Sponsor: Cozy Earth12:37 The $1.8 billion slush fund explained: how a lawsuit against himself became an immunity deal15:00 Two judges freeze the slush fund: Virginia halts payouts, Miami reopens the IRS case17:09 The DOJ backs down, Trump loyalists get nothing, and Senate Republicans revolt19:00 The "wounded bear caucus": why a furious GOP Senate is Trump's biggest problem right nowTHINGS YOU FORGOT FROM CIVICS CLASSPROMO CODEThis episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth. Summer nights and a chaotic news cycle are a rough combo — at least your sheets shouldn't make it worse. Cozy Earth's bamboo sheets and brushed bamboo pajamas are temperature-regulating, insanely soft, and built for actually sleeping cool. Use code MIMS25 at CozyEarth.com for 30% off — and when you do, you're also supporting the show.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Steve Cash from The Steady State is back on the show this week. He spent his career as a prosecutor, CIA counterterrorism officer, and DHS intelligence official. He also lived and worked in countries run by authoritarian leaders. What he's watching happen in the United States right now looks familiar.In this conversation, Grant and Steve break down how "national security" has become the Trump administration's all-purpose justification for avoiding oversight, accountability, and logic. When everything is national security, Steve argues, nothing is.They also get into the other half of the story: the ballroom, the arch, the UFC cage going up on the White House lawn, the reflecting pool redesign, Trump Penn Station. What does it mean when a sitting president is spending war cabinet meetings talking about monument construction?Steve Cash is a co-founder of The Steady State, a national security organization made up of former intelligence, diplomatic, and defense officials. CHAPTERS:0:00 The ballroom, the bunker, and what Trump keeps giving away about White House security2:39 Dictator aesthetic: why authoritarian leaders always build monuments to themselves7:28 "Dictator chic" and the architecture of power from Saddam Hussein to Mar-a-Lago9:20 The UFC cage on the White House lawn and the logic of bread and circuses11:13 The juxtaposition: a national security bunker next to an open-air arena for 5,000 people13:35 Sebastian Gorka's counterterrorism strategy and labeling political opponents as terrorists16:00 When "national security threat" means anyone who disagrees with Trump17:39 The Soviet playbook: how making everything national security makes nothing national security19:11 Sponsor: Cozy Earth21:00 How do we trust national security assessments after Trump? Can it be rebuilt?22:13 Steve's Churchill analogy: we're still fighting on the beaches24:30 The six biggest national security threats in the next six months26:58 Trump's claim we don't need the Strait of Hormuz, Cuba, Venezuela, and a president who can't keep the wars straight28:18 Trump's health, his inability to track facts, and what it means when we can't trust any information30:08 How to fight back: get smart, find allies, embrace the risk, and hold fastLINKS:The Steady State: https://www.thesteadystate.orgSteady State Substack: https://steadystate1.substack.com/Subscribe on Substack: Mimsnewspod.substack.comSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

It's a grab bag episode, because everything is happening at once.Iran launched missiles at Kuwait AND drones near the Strait of Hormuz while reportedly agreeing to a 60-day ceasefire extension. Troops are massing in the Caribbean ready to invade Cuba. Trump's DOJ is investigating E. Jean Carroll, the woman he was found to have sexually assaulted in civil court and owes $91.6 million. DHS is reportedly planning to shut down 70% of international travel. And Trump skipped meeting the 14 service members wounded in the war he started, while he was in the same building.AND there's now a UFC cage match arena going up on the White House lawn.CHAPTERS00:00 Intro01:45 Iran "Ceasefire" — Violations & The New MOU Deal06:30 Cuba Invasion — Troops Are Ready10:00 Trump's Polls Hit Record Lows12:15 The Reflecting Pool Rant & Penn Station16:00 Trump Wants His Face on a $250 Bill19:30 The UFC Arena on the White House Lawn23:00 DOJ Targets E. Jean Carroll27:30 Trump Skipped the Wounded Soldiers at Walter Reed30:00 Wrap-UpThe Invisible Wall Is Being BuiltHow Does The Government Make Money? PROMO CODES: This episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth. Summer nights and a chaotic news cycle are a rough combo — at least your sheets shouldn't make it worse. Cozy Earth's bamboo sheets and brushed bamboo pajamas are temperature-regulating, insanely soft, and built for actually sleeping cool. Use code MIMS25 at CozyEarth.com for 30% off — and when you do, you're also supporting the show.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Trump spent the weekend claiming an Iran deal was basically done, just some last-minute details to iron out. Except that those "details" were Iran's entire nuclear program and the Strait of Hormuz. Then Qatar had to take over the negotiations. Then the deal wasn't a deal. Then bombs started falling again.Grant breaks down the full Iran saga, the not-deal-deal, the Abraham Accords demand that stunned Middle Eastern leaders into silence, the Atomic Energy Commission that hasn't existed since 1975, and what it all actually means for a war that isn't ending anytime soon.PLUS, Trump's 3rd visit to see a doctor in 13 months, and how he says it went. THEN: The Democratic Party's autopsy report was a disaster. Run for Something's Amanda Litman is back to explain exactly why, what it means for 2026 and beyond, and who (if anyone) should be leading the party right now.WHY AREN'T TERM LIMITS?PROMO CODE:This episode is sponsored by Cozy Earth. Summer nights and a chaotic news cycle are a rough combo — at least your sheets shouldn't make it worse. Cozy Earth's bamboo sheets and brushed bamboo pajamas are temperature-regulating, insanely soft, and built for actually sleeping cool. Use code MIMS25 at CozyEarth.com for 30% off — and when you do, you're also supporting the show.CHAPTERS:0:00 – Intro: The "done" deal that wasn't done2:45 – Iran negotiations fall apart in real time6:00 – Qatar takes over and the deal collapses9:30 – Trump demands 9 Muslim nations join the Abraham Accords13:00 – The Atomic Energy Commission gaffe (it closed in 1975)16:30 – US resumes bombing & the War Powers Act problem20:00 – Trump's 3rd physical in 13 months23:00 – Ad break24:30 – Interview: Amanda Litman on the Democratic autopsy disaster28:00 – What the DNC actually does (and why it matters)33:00 – Ken Martin and the failure of party leadership39:00 – Is there time to save the Democratic Party before 2026?44:00 – Who should replace Ken Martin?49:00 – Can Democrats rebuild trust with voters?53:00 – Wrap-upSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The Department of Justice has lost over 10,000 employees. The acting Attorney General, Todd Blanche, appears to be auditioning for the permanent job by doing whatever the President wants. The FBI Director, Kash Patel, has faced serious misconduct allegations, and nothing has been done about it. So what does it actually mean for the rest of us?Grant sits down with Stacey Young, founder of Justice Connection, an organization supporting current and former DOJ employees navigating this unprecedented moment, for a frank conversation about the $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund, the erosion of institutional trust, and what rebuilding the DOJ might actually look like. Chapters:0:00 – Intro: What's Happened to the DOJ2:20 – The $1.8 Billion "Slush Fund" — Most Corrupt Act Ever?4:33 – Jan. 6 Prosecutors React: "One Devastating Blow After Another"8:00 – 10,000+ DOJ Employees Gone: What That Actually Means12:00 – Lowering Standards & Begging People to Apply15:00 – Todd Blanche vs. Pam Bondi: Why It Got Worse18:44 – Ad: Ground News (40% Off)21:02 – Kash Patel and the FBI: A "Corrupt Clown" Running the Show26:00 – The Career Employees Still Showing Up Every Day29:00 – How to Rebuild the DOJ — and Who Needs to Be at the Table32:00 – How YOU Can Help Right Now33:24 – Wrap-Up & Substack PlugsJustice ConnectionPROMO CODES: The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to https://bit.ly/4dvTblK for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The Democratic Party just released its long-awaited autopsy of the 2024 Harris campaign, and it's not what voters were promised.The 192-page report has no executive summary, no conclusion, no sourcing, and is riddled with basic factual errors. The DNC itself won't endorse it. So what does it actually say, and why was it released at all?Today, Grant breaks down what's in the report, what's glaringly missing (hint: Gaza), and what this tells us about the Democratic Party six months out from the midterms.🔔 Subscribe so you don't miss new episodes — new videos drop weekly.CHAPTERS:0:00 Intro1:15 What an autopsy report is supposed to do3:00 What's wrong with this one6:30 What the report actually says10:45 The economy & messaging failures14:00 Immigration, climate & abortion17:20 The Israel/Gaza blackout20:10 Why Ken Martin is now under fire23:00 What this means for the midtermsPROMO CODES: The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to https://bit.ly/4dvTblK for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The ceasefire in the Iran War officially expires TODAY and the White House is searching for a loophole to restart military strikes without Congressional approval. Meanwhile, Trump's DOJ just created a $1.776 billion fund that shields the Trump family from IRS audits, forever, and could pay out taxpayer money to January 6th participants. Grant breaks it all down. CHAPTERS: 00:00 – Intro: Two Loopholes, One Episode 01:15 – Iran War Update: Day 80 & Ceasefire Expiration 04:30 – The Strait of Hormuz: What 452 Stuck Ships Means for Gas Prices 07:00 – Trump's Approval Ratings Hit Historic Lows 09:00 – Why Trump Called Off the Iran Strike (And Who Asked Him To) 13:45 – Trump's Middle East Business Deals Explained 17:00 – The DOJ's $1.776 Billion "Anti-Weaponization" Fund 21:30 – How Trump Blocked IRS Audits on His Family 25:00 – Is This Fund Even Legal? 28:30 – Why This Won't Sit Well with the American PublicMAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACKPROMO CODES: The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to https://bit.ly/4dvTblK for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

36 doctors, psychiatrists, and Nobel laureates just signed an open letter, now part of the official Congressional Record, saying Donald Trump's mental and physical decline makes him too dangerous to hold the nuclear codes. Grant sits down with Dr. Henry Abraham, one of the letter's lead authors and a former Harvard Medical School psychiatrist, to break down exactly what they're seeing, why they're speaking out now, and what it could mean for millions of lives.Why these doctors broke the "Goldwater Rule," and why they say they had no choiceThe specific symptoms they're tracking: tangential speech, rage, grandiose delusions, impaired impulse control, and manic late-night postingHow Trump's case compares to Biden's, and why the doctor says the Democrats "fooled us until they couldn't."The nuclear football problem: what happens when an impulsive president has unilateral launch authorityWhy the White House's cognitive test results are being hidden, and what that might meanRep. Jamie Raskin's bill to create an independent medical panel for 25th Amendment proceedingsWhat it would actually take to remove Trump from officeCHAPTERS:0:00 - Trump's Health Is a Clear and Present Danger2:27 - Intro: Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes3:06 - Meet Dr. Henry Abraham3:30 - How the Congressional Letter Came Together8:51 - "Where Were You With Biden?" — The Doctor Answers10:37 - Why Trump's Decline Looks Different Now12:27 - Breaking Down the Symptoms: The Full List14:16 - The Goldwater Rule — and Why They Broke It17:44 - The Most Alarming Symptom21:20 - Why Isn't This Movement Bigger?27:03 - Authoritarianism and Denying What You're Seeing29:15 - Three Physicals in One Year — What the White House Isn't Saying31:08 - The Cognitive Tests and What They're Hiding33:43 - Does the White House Doctor Have a Duty to Come Forward?34:48 - Impeachment, the 25th Amendment, and What Comes Next37:03 - The Raskin Bill: An Independent Medical Panel for Presidents39:06 - Closing ThoughtsLINKS: Doctors' Open LetterMake It Make Sense Substack: The President Is UnwellPROMO CODES: The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to https://bit.ly/4dvTblK for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Inflation just hit 3.8%, the highest in three years, and wages can't keep up. Gas is nearly $4.50 a gallon, groceries cost more than ever, and the war in Iran is in its 11th week with no end in sight. Today, Grant breaks down what the numbers actually mean for your wallet, why last week's "good" jobs report is more complicated than the headline, and what Trump is trying to do about it before summer.CHAPTERS1:45 — Gas prices & the real cost at the pump3:10 — Why wages aren't keeping up4:30 — The jobs report explained (it's not as good as it looked)6:00 — Trump's poll numbers on the economy7:20 — The war in Iran: week 11, Hegseth testifies9:15 — The Supreme Court vs. Trump's tariffs11:00 — The gas tax holiday: a flip-flop breakdown12:45 — Trump's trip to China and what it could changePROMO CODES:The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn’t also have to wonder if you’re only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side’s version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity.Go to https://bit.ly/4dvTblK for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Why is the Democratic Party so lost right now,  and is there actually a path forward?Former presidential campaign manager and Democratic strategist Maya Rupert joins Grant Hermes to break down the real state of the Democratic Party six months out from the 2026 midterms. We get into the DNC's 208-page playbook that says almost nothing about voters, why Chuck Schumer's days as leader are numbered, the devastating Louisiana v. Callais Supreme Court decision gutting the Voting Rights Act, and why Maya believes the answer to all of it starts with one word: authenticity.Maya's new book, The Real Ones, digs into why authenticity in politics is a concept weaponized against candidates of color and women — and what it actually should mean for voters, candidates, and the media covering them.LINKS:Make It Make Sense SubstackThe Real Ones PROMO CODE:The news is chaotic enough, you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to https://bit.ly/4dvTblK for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The White House is claiming a peace deal with Iran is close, but The deal on the table looks almost identical to the Obama-era agreement Trump tore up in 2018. Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio openly told the press that the administration doesn't feel bound by the War Powers Act, and one Republican congressman from Michigan is trying to force the issue with a new bill.We break down what's actually in the proposed Iran deal, why the legal authority for U.S. military operations is murky at best, and what new intelligence reports say about Iran's missile stockpiles and their ability to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed.Topics covered:- Iran peace talks and what's actually being offered- How the proposed deal compares to the 2018 Obama deal Trump scrapped- Rubio says the White House won't follow the War Powers Act- Rep. Tom Barrett's AUMF bill and what it means- Iran's missile stockpile is 70-75% intact, not 18% like Trump claimed- U.S. has burned through nearly half its critical missile stockpiles- Saudi Arabia suspended U.S. base access, here's whySubscribe for breakdowns of the news that actually matters.Full story + more at the Make It Make Sense Substack: The Company They KeepPromo Code:The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to https://bit.ly/4dvTblK for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The president told Congress the Iran war was "terminated." The Secretary of Defense says there's still a ceasefire. Then Trump called it a "mini-war" on camera. So... which is it?Today, Grant breaks down the War Powers Act deadline that forced Trump's hand, the new "Project Freedom" operation in the Strait of Hormuz, why gas just hit $4.50/gallon nationally, and what the polls say about where Americans actually stand.⏱ Chapters:00:00 Intro — Can't get the story straight01:20 The War Powers Act deadline explained04:10 What is "Project Freedom" actually?07:30 Iran fires on US ships — is the ceasefire over?10:15 $4.50 gas & the economic toll14:00 What the polls say (and why Trump won't believe them)17:30 What comes next📬 Subscribe to the Make It Make Sense Substack for the full Civics Class breakdown on redistricting: How Does Redistricting Work?🎙️ Make It Make Sense is a daily news explainer with Grant Hermes. New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday.PROMO CODE:The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to ground.news/mims for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

It's like Looksmaxxing but for gerrymandering. GERRYMAXXINGThe Supreme Court just finished what John Roberts started 45 years ago, gutting the Voting Rights Act. And the political earthquake it's about to cause will be felt in every state, in every race, all the way down to your school board. In this episode, Grant sits down with Dave Daley, author and senior fellow at FairVote, to break down the Supreme Court's ruling in Louisiana v. Callais, what it actually means for Black and Brown voters, and why this could lead to the largest reduction in minority representation in Congress since Reconstruction.They cover:What the Voting Rights Act actually required and what Justice Alito just replaced it withWhy the new "intent" standard is nearly impossible to meetThe "Gerrymaxxing" wave that's about to sweep the nation. Why competitive elections could drop to single digits out of 435 congressional seats by 2028What real fixes exist, and whether any of them are politically possibleWhat you can do right nowLINKS: Dave Daley at Fair Vote Dave's BooksRatfuckedUnriggedSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The Supreme Court just gutted the Voting Rights Act. Grant explains what that means for your vote, your district, and the next election. Plus: four massive government deadlines expire TONIGHT, Congress goes on recess, and we learn the truth about six Americans killed at a base in Kuwait with zero protection.Today's episode breaks down:The Supreme Court's ruling in Louisiana v. Callais and why it sets American elections back 45–65 yearsWhich Southern states are already redrawing district maps, and what that could mean for 12–14 House seatsWhy Chief Justice John Roberts has been working toward this moment since the Reagan administrationDHS funding finally passing, what it covers and what it doesn'tThe Farm Bill, FISA/Section 702, and what's still unresolved tonightThe Iran War Powers Act deadline: midnight tonight, and the House just went on recessThe $25 billion cost of the Iran war and a Pentagon hearing about six Americans killed at an unprotected basePROMO CODES: The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to ground.news/mims for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Someone tried to assassinate the President at the White House Correspondents' Dinner — and the political fallout may be almost as dangerous than the attack itself.On Saturday night, 31-year-old Cole Thomas Allen traveled from California to Washington D.C. with a shotgun and a handgun — on Amtrak — checked into the hotel where the dinner was being held, and opened fire. Grant breaks down everything we know about the shooter, the security failures that made it possible, and the deeply strange political machine that kicked into gear within hours of the attack.From the DOJ filing that reads like a Trump social media post, to senators suddenly demanding a taxpayer-funded White House ballroom, to the FCC going after Jimmy Kimmel for jokes he made before the shooting happened.LINKS: Politics is a lot right now. Make It Make Sense exists because you deserve clarity, not noise. But it only works with your support. Independent journalism that’s real reporting, not just hot takes, to cut through the chaos. Starting at $5/month.Make It Make Sense SubstackPROMO CODES: The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to ground.news/mims for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Can the U.S. government take away your citizenship? Increasingly, the answer is: they're trying.This week, Grant sits down with Irina Manta, professor of immigration and national security law at Hofstra University, author, podcaster, and naturalized citizen, to break down the Trump administration's growing push to denaturalize Americans — and what it means for the future of citizenship in this country.Between 1990 and 2017, only about 305 people lost their citizenship. The current administration wants to denaturalize 385 this year alone. This episode unpacks why, how, and what you can do about it.LINKS:Irina MantaDenaturalization's Missing LimitMake It Make Sense SubstackPROMO CODES: The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to ground.news/mims for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Trump extended the Iran ceasefire indefinitely, which is another way of saying he blinked. Again. Meanwhile, a new Pentagon assessment says the Strait of Hormuz won't reopen for six months AFTER the war ends, meaning high gas prices through the holidays. Trump's approval has dropped to 33%. Only 23% approve of his handling of the cost of living. And a Fox News poll found Americans now trust Democrats more on the economy, a reversal years in the making.Plus: Virginia voters approved a new congressional map that would give Democrats a 10-to-1 advantage in the state, and Republicans immediately sued. Grant breaks down what it means for the 2026 midterms and the ongoing gerrymandering war reshaping the House of Representatives right now.LINKS:https://mimsnewspod.substack.com/PROMO CODES:The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to ground.news/mims for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Trump got caught lying about Iran agreeing to US demands. The Wall Street Journal published a bombshell account of his erratic behavior behind closed doors. The US broke the ceasefire in the Strait of Hormuz days before peace talks. The Secretary of Labor resigned amid scandal. And The Atlantic reported that FBI Director Kash Patel is so frequently drunk that staff had to request breaching equipment to wake him up.It's a lot. Grant breaks it down.Subscribe to the Make It Make Sense Substack PROMO CODE: The news is chaotic enough — you shouldn't also have to wonder if you're only getting half the story. Ground News shows you how every outlet, left, right, and center, is covering the same event, so you can see the full picture instead of just one side's version of it. Their Blindspot feed even surfaces stories that are being ignored by one side of the political spectrum entirely. Less echo chamber. More clarity. Go to ground.news/mims for 40% off their best plan, the Vantage subscription.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The war in Iran may be ending, maybe, but the legal and moral reckoning is just beginning. Grant sits down with Oona Hathaway, Yale Law School professor and one of the country's foremost international law experts, to confront the questions most people aren't ready to ask: has the United States already violated the laws of war in Iran, and if so, what does that mean for America's place in the world once the fighting stops?In this episode:Why over 100 international lawyers say the war itself was illegal under the UN Charter and the U.S. ConstitutionWhat the strikes on schools, hospitals, and civilian infrastructure mean under the Geneva ConventionsWhether Trump's threats to destroy "an entire civilization" cross into genocide territoryHow America's allies are quietly building a world that doesn't depend on us anymoreWhy the consequences of breaking these norms don't end when the war does — and what accountability could actually look likeLINKS: MAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACKOONA HATHAWAYJUST SECURITYPROMO CODES: This episode is brought to you by Akila SunglassesDon’t get caught wearing last summer’s sunglasses this spring break. Akila offers great frames for every style, without the designer price tag. Use the code MIMS25 to get 10% off your entire order👉 Shop now: AKILA.laSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Congress came back from spring break, and in under 6 hours, two members resigned, two more could be next, and the balance of power in the House just got a lot less certain. In this episode, Eric Swalwell resigns amid sexual assault allegations from five women. Tony Gonzalez resigns after a staffer's suicide linked to a coercive relationship. Cory Mills faces stolen valor, weapons charges, and an assault allegation. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick hits 15 federal felony counts. We're breaking down what happened, why it matters, and what it means for the 2-vote Republican majority heading into NovemberPROMO CODES: This episode is brought to you by Akila SunglassesDon’t get caught wearing last summer’s sunglasses this spring break. Akila offers great frames for every style, without the designer price tag. Use the code MIMS25 to get 10% off your entire order👉 Shop now: AKILA.laSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The US tried to end the war in one day. It collapsed. Then things got significantly worse...and weirder.After 21 hours of failed peace talks in Pakistan, the Trump administration announced the US Navy would blockade the Strait of Hormuz. Conservatives called it genius. The math says otherwise.Grant breaks down exactly why the blockade won't lower your gas prices, why Venezuela can't save us, the humanitarian crisis unfolding on stranded ships, and what the IMF's global recession warning actually means for you. PLUS, Congress is back, and the start of the spring session came with bombshell news. Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

How Close Did We Actually Come? — Iran, The Peace Talks, and What Happens NextThe VP is on a plane to Pakistan. Peace talks are scheduled for Saturday in Islamabad as Iran comes in with better cards than it had before the war. Grant talks to Eric Czuleger from The Under Report back on the show to break down the most overwhelming week in recent memory; what actually happened, how close Tuesday really was to a nuclear war, and why the way this has played out may have made a nuclear Iran more likely, not less.They get into:Why the US position going into Saturday's talks is so difficultWhat "writing your opponent's victory speech" means for these negotiationsWhy are nuclear weapons everywhere more likely now than any time since the 1970sWhy the IRGC hardliners are now more in control than Iran's elected government.This is a freewheeling conversation, and they cover a lot of ground; it's worth it.LINKS:  MAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACK THE UNDER REPORT BY ERIC CZULEGERSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The Iran "ceasefire" lasted roughly three hours. The Strait of Hormuz is technically a toll road now. America might get a cut. And nobody can agree on what either side is even negotiating for. Grant breaks down everything that happened this week — the ceasefire announcement, why Israel blew it up, what Iran's 10-point plan actually says, and the honest scorecard after 38 days of war.Make It Make Sense SubstackPROMO CODES: This episode is brought to you by Akila SunglassesDon’t get caught wearing last summer’s sunglasses this spring break. Akila offers great frames for every style, without the designer price tag. Use the code MIMS25 to get 10% off your entire order👉 Shop now: AKILA.laSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Trump's deadline for Iran expires at 8PM ET tonight — and hours before it hits, he threatened to wipe out an entire civilization in a single night. Is the nuclear option actually on the table?Grant  breaks down Trump's escalating threats against Iran, what "wiping out a civilization" actually means under international law, the genocide definition in the Geneva Convention, and what signals suggest talks may still be happening behind closed doors.Topics covered:— Trump's Easter Sunday Truth Social post threatening Iranian power plants & bridges— Why bombing civilian infrastructure is a war crime under the Geneva Convention— The legal definition of genocide & why Trump's words meet the threshold— Republican reactions: Ron Johnson, Mike Lawler's CNN vs. Fox whiplash— JD Vance in Hungary, "Madman Theory," and the nuclear arms context— What signals suggest a deal may still be in play before tonight's deadlineMake It Make Sense SubstackPROMO CODES: This episode is brought to you by Akila SunglassesDon’t get caught wearing last summer’s sunglasses this spring break. Akila offers great frames for every style, without the designer price tag. Use the code MIMS25 to get 10% off your entire order👉 Shop now: AKILA.laSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

45% of Americans now call themselves independent — more than either party. So why does Congress look nothing like the country?Today Grant talks with Chad Peace of the Independent Voter Project about the hidden math behind our elections: how closed primaries, gerrymandering, and plurality voting let roughly 1–2% of the electorate pick your representative before most people even show up to vote.→ Why independent voters aren't "closet partisans" — they're structurally locked out→ The New Jersey primary that half the state can't vote in→ Why Alaska now has the gold standard of elections (and why Trump hates it)→ The one-sentence law Congress could pass tomorrow→ Why voter ID is 84% popular but never passes→ How we get from here to real reform LINKS:Independent Voter ProjectMake It Make Sense SubstackPROMO CODES:This episode is brought to you by Akila SunglassesDon’t get caught wearing last summer’s sunglasses this spring break. Akila offers great frames for every style, without the designer price tag. Use the code MIMS25 to get 10% off your entire order👉 Shop now: AKILA.laDisclosure: This episode contains paid sponsorship. All opinions are Grant’s own.#independentvoters #elections #democracy #votingrights #politics #primaryelections #rankedchoicevotingSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Trump gave a primetime national address about the Iran war — and the most important parts were what he didn't say. We break down the three things that got cut from the speech, why the markets tanked anyway, and why $7/gallon gas might hit by Memorial Day.Then: the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Trump v. Barbara — the case that could end birthright citizenship for the first time in 127 years. We explain what the administration is actually arguing, why they're citing a pro-segregation white supremacist, and what the justices signaled. Plus: Trump became the first sitting president to show up during a case. It didn't go how he thought it would.This week on Substack (paid): The new bills in Congress targeting citizenship — what they say, what experts are calling dangerous, and who they'd affect. → makeitmakesense.substack.comPROMO CODES: Make It Make Sense with Grant HermesSponsored by: Akila SunglassesThis episode is brought to you by Akila SunglassesDon’t get caught wearing last summer’s sunglasses this spring break. Akila offers great frames for every style, without the designer price tag. Use the code MIMS25 to get 10% off your entire order👉 Shop now: AKILA.laDisclosure: This episode contains paid sponsorship. All opinions are Grant’s own.Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

The longest government shutdown in US history drags on as Republicans in the House and Senate square off against each other before leaving for Spring Break without a deal to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Trump orders TSA agents to get back pay, except no one knows where the money is coming from or if it's legal. ICE may be a permanent fixture at airports. The war in Iran reaches the two-month mark as gas prices rise to $4/gallon and don't show any sign of coming down. Trump hints that he may just walk away from the war and leave the rest of the world to deal with Iran and a closed Strait of Hormuz, which threatens to send gas prices to $7/gallon by the summer.Buckle up.  Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Grant is joined by the Bipartisan Policy Center's Michael Thorning. Thorning is the director of structural democracy at the nonpartisan think tank and the lead writer of a brand new series called Congress at a Crossroads. He and Grant talk about why Congress is so broken, how it got here, and what can be done to fix it before it's too late. LINKS: Congress at a CrossroadsBipartisan Policy CenterPROMO CODES: Make It Make Sense with Grant HermesSponsored by: Akila SunglassesThis episode is brought to you by Akila SunglassesDon’t get caught wearing last summer’s sunglasses this spring break. Akila offers great frames for every style, without the designer price tag. Use the code MIMS25 to get 10% off your entire order👉 Shop now: AKILA.laSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Grant is joined by Liz Dye from the Law and Chaos Podcast to talk about the shenanigans coming from the Attorney General's office. AG Pam Bondi is trying to meddle with state bar associations so DOJ attorneys can't face discipline for doing things they would normally face discipline for. Liz explains how it all traces back to a guy named Ed Martin, one of the DOJ's hottest dumpster fires. PLUS, they talk about what doing this could mean for lawyers stuck trying to defend DHS, military lawyers thrown into civilian courts, and maybe follow through on Trump's election plans.LINKS: https://www.lawandchaospod.com/podcastPROMO CODES: Make It Make Sense with Grant HermesSponsored by: Facial in a Bottle by Love IndusThis episode is brought to you by Facial in a Bottle by Love Indus.You’re stressed. You’re reading the news. You’re probably not sleeping great. Your skin knows.Facial in a Bottle is a single product that does the work of a full professional facial — at home, in minutes. Clean ingredients, real results, no appointment required. No awkward small talk with a stranger touching your face. Just results.Use code MIMS25 at checkout for [X]% off your first order.👉 Shop now: www.LoveIndus.comSupport the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes

Grant gives an update on the war in Iran after a new report shows the US did in fact bomb a girls' school, Iran chooses to start deploying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, new US intel finds Trump has been lying about the Iraninan regime being weakened and a Senate briefing on the outlook of the war looks bleak. THEN, what does the FBI want with Arizona's election trash? The DOJ just took custody of records of a chaotically doomed audit from election deniers in 2020 that found not only was there no fraud and Joe Biden won, but he won by more than they thought, so what is the FBI doing? Grant explains why it's tied to the president's plans to undermine the midterms and he has the latest on the SAVE America Act in the Senate. It's a jam-packed episodeMAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSTACKPROMO CODES: Make It Make Sense with Grant HermesSponsored by: Facial in a Bottle by Love IndusThis episode is brought to you by Facial in a Bottle by Love Indus.You’re stressed. You’re reading the news. You’re probably not sleeping great. Your skin knows.Facial in a Bottle is a single product that does the work of a full professional facial — at home, in minutes. Clean ingredients, real results, no appointment required. No awkward small talk with a stranger touching your face. Just results.Use code MIMS25 at checkout for [X]% off your first order.👉 Shop now: www.LoveIndus.comDisclosure: This episode contains paid sponsorship. All opinions are Grant’s own. Support the showFollow along on social media SaySo: @GrantHermes X: @GrantHermesInsta: @Grant__HermesTiktok: Grant_Hermes