Episodes
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Blue State Generals on the New Front Line
In the wake of the Dobbs decision overturning Roe v Wade, state Attorneys General around the country are grappling with a new landscape of abortion rights. Harry is joined by three of those state officials from blue states–AG Dana Nessel of Michigan, AG Aaron Ford of Nevada, & AG Phil Weiser of...
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The Horror! The Horror!
In "The Horror! The Horror!," Harry and 3 of the country's most prominent and knowledgeable commentators—Norm Eisen, Juliette Kayyem, and Matt Miller-- give a 360 º look at the January 6th Committee's hearing on the "187 minutes" during which former President Trump steadfastly refused to call a...
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Blood and Gasoline
A multi-threat, round-the-world episode. The Jan 6 hearings have chased foreign policy, especially the war in the Ukraine, from the headlines; but the brutal war slogs on, in ways that have distinct consequences for domestic politics. Natasha Bertrand, Frank Figliuzzi, & Fiona Hill join Harry to...
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Patsy Baloney and Every Crime Imaginable
At the end of a week of brutal news that began with another mass shooting in Highland Park IL, three of the sharpest commentators in the country and Talking Feds stalwarts – Laura Coates, Al Franken, and Norm Ornstein – join Harry to analyze the importance of the Cipollone interview before the J6...
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The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (and Amy Coney Barrett)
In the week ending one of the most consequential Supreme Court terms in American history, 3 of the country's most trenchant and prominent Court watchers – Dahlia Lithwick, Leah Litman, and Steve Vladeck – join Harry to assess the Term and what it portends for coming years. The 5 arch-conservative...
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This is (Trump's) America
At the tail end of a week as eventful and tumultuous as any in memory, a stellar group of guests – Katie Benner, Melissa Murray, and Jen Rubin – join Harry to assess the damage and consider what lies ahead. The group divides its discussion between the Supreme Court's radical landmark decision...
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"Hang Mike Pence!"
It was a week with two separate hearings in the January 6 Committee, one on the "Big Lie" and one on "Hang Mike Pence." Each felt like a full-length movie, crammed with new details and above all leaving no doubt that the 2 schemes were 100% bankrupt and everyone in the self-titled "Team Normal"…
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A Republic, If We Can Keep It
A special Talking Feds episode devoted entirely to a single topic, the much-anticipated initial hearing of the January 6 Committee. Representative Pramila Jayapal, Laura Jarrett, and Norm Eisen join Harry for a thorough look at perhaps the most important congressional hearing in at least 50…
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At History's Edge
A few days ahead of the most anticipated congressional hearings in 50 years or more, Harry welcomes Julie Zebrak, Josh Marshall, and Rep. Ted Lieu to preview the hearings, including the chief challenges for the January 6 committee. They then move to the rays of hope for change in federal gun...
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Guns and Butter
A special economics-focused episode. With the U.S. and world economy in the apparent doldrums, & fears of an inflation-driven recission gripping the globe, a top policymaker--Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi—and two world-class economists--Austan Goolsbee and Betsey Stevenson—join Harry to work...
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Mapping Violence
The country's bitter partisan divides played out this week at the highest stakes, and a trio of the most experienced and sage analysts in the country–Jon Alter, David Frum, and Norm Ornstein–join Harry to work through the implications. The group discusses in turn the work of the Jan 6 committee…
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DOJ: Here, There, and Everywhere
It's our every 3 months return-to-roots Talking Feds classic, with three of the country's most experienced and knowledgeable authorities on the Department of Justice. The group reads the tea leaves on the unfolding investigation of the political actors who may have conspired to overturn the…
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Alito's Torpedo
An in-depth conversation with three prominent legal and political commentators – Melissa Murray, Jane Mayer, and Jessica Levinson – about the Supreme Court's abortion case and the leaked Alito draft majority opinion. The group critiques the substance and tone of the draft and consider whether it...
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Russia, Through A Glass Darkly
Polls suggest that Russians overwhelmingly support the War of Russian Aggression. Is that really possible? Does it just reflect the extreme steps that the Putin government took to stifle dissent require pro-government media coverage? What are the real attitudes of the Russian people to the war…
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Ruthless Ambition Unmasked
3 guests who know the US political landscape like the backs of their hands—Dem Rep. Joaquin Castro, Rep Former Rep. David Jolly, and Dem Former Senator Barbara Boxer—join Harry to assess the political jockeying on the right, and particularly by Fla Gov DeSantis and Tex Gov Abbott to be the new...
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Refer, Regulate, Restrict
At the end of a week where the recent sharp divides in the country have never seemed clearer, three of the country's most knowledgeable and savvy commentators–Alisyn Camerota, George Conway, & Joe Lockhart—join Harry to assess the (fairly woeful) state of the Union. The group looks at the 1/6...
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Cooperation and Covert Operations
Aided by guests with rich national security expertise, we take two deep dives down to where the currents roil in the 1/6 investigations and the War of Russian Aggression. Frank Figliuzzi, Norm Ornstein, and Asha Rangappa join Harry to analyze the 1/6 committee's contempt referrals, the testimony…
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Current Events: Turning of the Tides?
It was a week of possible headway on many fronts: at home, in DOJ, which has broadened its investigation of the events leading to 1/6; the 1/6 Committee, which held 2 witnesses in contempt; the federal courts, which determined that Trump more probably than not had committed a crime. And in…
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Critical Republican Theory
After 18 hours of grueling testimony, Judge Ketanji Brown-Jackson appeared headed for narrow confirmation, but the week put on vivid display the degraded state of the confirmation process. Sen Al Franken, Aaron Blake, and Alexi McCammond join Harry to take apart the hearings and segue to states'...
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Mr. Zelensky Goes to Washington
In an eventful week featuring an address to Congress by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the passage of a 1.5 trillion spending bill, Harry is joined by three of the country's most prominent congressional reporters — CNN chief political correspondent Dana Bash, Jon Lemire of Politico…
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(Economic) Life During Wartime
This week we take a close look through an economic prism at the war and its effects in Russia and worldwide, joined by a terrific group of economic and political experts – Congressman Ro Khanna, Professor Justin Wolfers, and MSNBC anchor Stephanie Ruhle. The group evaluates the efficacy of the...
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Darkest Hour 2: Midnight in Kyiv
It was one of those rare weeks when events bring into outline the contours of a new order. The world looks altered after 10 days of brutal—and ferociously resisted—Russian aggression on Ukraine. A fantastic group of guests with deep knowledge of the domestic and international fronts–Erin Burnett...
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Rule of Law, Rule of Outlaws
After a week of near-constant breaking news, Harry is joined by Michael Schmidt, Katie Benner, and David Jolly to analyze the events unfolding on the domestic and global stages. They discuss the implications of Vladimir Putin's full-fledged invasion of Ukraine and the American response, Biden's...
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Facts, Feints, and the Fifth
A week of drama and uncertainty, as Russian troops amassed on the Ukranian border threatening—or feinting--imminent invasion; Congress and prosecutors brought forth more damaging information about Donald Trump, who was ordered at week's end to sit for a deposition in a civil fraud inquiry by the...
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DOJ: Inside the Insurrection Investigation
In our periodic return to our roots, Talking Feds checks in the Department of Justice for a close look at public developments and a scrutiny from the most experienced DOJ veterans of what lies behind them. New York Times DOJ reporter Katie Benner, & Paul Fishman & Andrew Weissman, both richly...
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A Tale of Two Tyrants
It was a week in which Vladimir Putin beat the drums of war in the Ukraine while Donald Trump beat the drums of domestic discord at home. Julia Ioffe, Greg Sargent, and Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon join Harry to talk about the new jaw-dropping revelations of Trump's post-election conduct and…
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Exit, Stage Center-Left
In the wake of the announcement of Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer's retirement, a superb panel–Laura Jarrett, Bill Kristol, & Senator (& Judiciary Committee Member) Sheldon Whitehouse–joins Harry to assess Breyer's legacy, chart out the politics of the coming confirmation process for the...
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Slidin' Biden and Hobbled Donald
The week marked a year in office for President Biden, and the pundit class pronounced him on the ropes. Meanwhile, the former President appeared imperiled from many directions; in particular, the Jan 6 committee pieced together new information tying him more directly to the insurrection. 3 of the...
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Talking Filibuster
It was a week of multiple aftershocks from the January 6 attack, and a fantastic panel – Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, Professor Larry Tribe, & Jonathan Alter – joins Harry to break it all down. The committee reached out to Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who called them illegitimate and refused to...
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Happy Anniversary. I want a divorce.
On the week marking the anniversary of the 1/6 attack on the Capital and record-breaking rates of viral spread, three stellar commentators join Harry to analyze the cataclysmic events and chart what comes next. David Fahrenthold, Juliette Kayyem, & Norm Ornstein reflect on the implications of the...
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Democratic Party 2022: Trouble Ahead, Trouble Behind
Our final offering of the year is another special episode this time on the prospects for the Democratic Party in 2022. A stellar panel of journalists and Democratic strategists–Stephanie Cutter, Joe Lockhart, and Josh Marshall–join Harry for a sober look at the party's uphill battle to avoid…
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Republican Party 2022: Party Over?
In the first of our 2 end-of-year special episodes, we look at the 2022 landscape for the Republican Party. A terrific trio of Republican party stalwarts & former officials–Bill Kristol, Michael Steele, & Governor Christie Todd Whitman–give a candid analysis of the grave threat to the Party & the...
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A Very Variant Christmas
3 of the country's most prominent journalists—David Frum, Jon Lemire, and Carol Leonnig—join Harry to break down a banner, and mainly glum, news week. They begin with the dramatic developments from the Jan. 6 committee, including the contempt referral for Mark Meadows. They then take up the…
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Economics 2021: Inflation Frustration
A special episode on the economic state of the union. On the day when the Consumer Price index recorded the highest rate of price inflation in nearly 40 years, a superb panel of economic experts–Atlantic writer Annie Lowrey, Washington Post columnist Catherine Rampell, and former Secretary of the...
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Supreme Court: Leaving Us No Choice
The Supreme Court argument in the Mississippi abortion case, already shaping up as the biggest of the Term, transformed during oral argument this week into the most important case of a generation, as it became clear that the new conservative majority was poised either to sharply restrict, or…
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Making Ends Meat: Farmers Get Raw Deal
In this special Thanksgiving episode, Harry is joined by a fantastic panel of experts – Senator Cory Booker, award-winning author Michael Pollan, and sustainable farming activist Leah Penniman – to discuss the country's deeply flawed farming and food production systems. The group breaks down the...
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Pelosi Talks, Rittenhouse Walks, Meadows Balks
The week ended with a thunderous 1-2 stroke of the passage in the House of the Build Back Better Bill, arguably the most significant piece of legislation in a generation, followed by the announcement of the across-the-board acquittals in the Kyle Rittenhouse case. An all-star panel comprising CNN...
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From the White House to the Big House to Rittenhouse
The Bannon indictment is the biggest game-changer in many months in the pursuit of the truth about various aspects of the Trump presidency. "From the White House to the Big House to Rittenhouse" features a stellar panel—Alisyn Camerota, Jen Rubin, & Rick Wilson-- to unpack the broader legal,...
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DOJ: Turning Up the Heat
Our quarterly review of goings-on at the Department of Justice, with seasoned DOJ stalwarts Katie Benner, Matt Miller, and Andrew Weissmann. The group analyzes the progress of the Jan 6 investigation and assesses the criticism the Department is attracting from all corners, including the federal...
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G20-20 Vision: Bringing the Good China to the Table
President Biden goes to Rome at a crucial juncture at home and a time of extraordinary challenge on the international front. He had hoped to carry with him the buoying victory of the passage of spending bills to bolster the country's claim as the world's leading democracy, but his efforts fell…
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Utter Contempt: Breaking Bannon
It was a week of push coming to shove, as a series of high-stakes disputes moved to an endgame with no clear picture of how they would come out. Talking Feds regulars Laura Coates, Matt Miller, and Senator Al Franken join Harry to work through what happens next in the referral of Steve Bannon to...
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Clark, Bannon and Trump: Lawsuit or Jumpsuit?
After a roaring start to his presidency that evoked comparisons to the New Deal and Great Society, President Biden finds himself at 45% approval ratings and with his signature transformative legislation stalling. A great group of Talking Feds regulars—Laura Jarrett, Joe Lockhart, and Phil...
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National Security: Beyond the Fringe
A special episode focusing on the growing and acute threat of domestic terrorism. After 20 years of reflexively looking at terrorism as a threat arising from faraway lands, the country is confronting a scourge of terrorists-predominantly far-right white supremacists — in the homeland. Three of…
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Courting Disaster
The Supreme Court starts its annual term this week at a hugely fraught moment for the court and the country, and with public confidence in the court's integrity near a historic low. This is the term when the new majority must lay its cards down in a series of blockbuster cases and reveal where…
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Build Back Better Bill: Biden on the Brink
Peter Baker, Alexi McCammond, and Congressman Ted Lieu join Harry to analyze a contentious week in Washington: liberal and moderate Democrats were at loggerheads on the two big-spending bills; Republicans and Democrats were at loggerheads over raising the debt ceiling; Congress and former…
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Totalled Recall: Masks, Mandates and Manchin
It was a week that put to the test the adage "As California Goes, So Goes the Nation," but with unclear results. CA Gov Gavin Newsom handily turned back a recall effort, which Biden ascribed to Newsom's COVID policies while others credited to the increasing unpopularity of Donald Trump. 3 of the...
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9/11, Texas, Covid… And how was your week?
The 20th anniversary of 9/11 finds the country down in the dumps about that milestone, with many highlighting lost opportunities to consolidate the U.S.'s position as the world's moral leader and new daunting challenges in combatting international and domestic terror. The DOJ entered forcefully...
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Texas Two Step (Backwards)
At the end of a week of turmoil from Afghanistan to Austin, Jon Alter, Matt Miller, and Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon join Harry to assess the damage and analyze the portents. The 4 begin with the Texas abortion statute that the Supreme Court refused to enjoin, and the possibility of effective...
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National Security Edition: National security edition: Facing the harsh difficulties of combating terror
This episode is devoted to the savage terrorist attack at the Kabul airport and its national security implications at home and abroad. Four leading national security experts — former FBI Assistant Director Frank Figliuzzi, former homeland security official Elizabeth Neumann, NBC News…
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You Beto Your Life
A special episode about the state of play for voting rights featuring Beto O'Rourke, Josh Marshall, and Laura Coates. We canvass the substantive and political landscape of federal legislation, including the For the People Act and the just-released John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which...
About this show
Talking Feds is a roundtable discussion that brings together prominent former government officials, journalists, and special guests for a dynamic and in-depth analysis of the most pressing questions in law and politics.