Episodes

  • Jonathan Karl: Vengeance Is Mine, Sayeth the President

    Jonathan Karl: Vengeance Is Mine, Sayeth the President
    Dec 1 2025
    John welcomes ABC News chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl to discuss his new book, “Retribution: Donald Trump and the Campaign That Changed America.” The author of three previous bestsellers about 45/47, Karl describes how Trump has – and hasn’t – changed in the 30-plus years since the two first met; how Trump's desire for vengeance against his political foes became the driving force of his 2024 campaign and has dominated his second term in office; and his complex love-hate relationship with the press (with Karl as a prime example). Karl also weighs in on how much sway Steve Bannon actually has with Trump, and Nancy Pelosi's behind-the-scenes role in ending Joe Biden’s reelection campaign. See all the ways bp is investing in America at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠bp.com/InvestingInAmerica⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ . To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 22 mins
  • Jonathan Freedland: The Traitor’s Circle (Live)

    Jonathan Freedland: The Traitor’s Circle (Live)
    Nov 28 2025
    In this special episode taped live onstage in New York, John interviews his pal Jonathan Freedland – Guardian political columnist and co-host of the Unholy podcast – about his new book, “The Traitor’s Circle: The True Story of a Secret Resistance Network in Nazi Germany – and the Spy Who Betrayed Them.” Freedland, the author of nine thrillers under the pen name Sam Bourne, describes how "The Traitor's Circle," like its predecessor “The Escape Artist,” marries rigorous research with the techniques of genre fiction to create a serious work of historical non-fiction that reads like an Agatha Christie mystery. The two also discuss how pop culture has processed the Holocaust, from “Shoah” to “The Odessa Files” and “Inglorious Bastards.” To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 20 mins
  • Stuart Stevens: Trumpism’s Pickett’s Charge & 2028’s Yawning Chasm

    Stuart Stevens: Trumpism’s Pickett’s Charge & 2028’s Yawning Chasm
    Nov 24 2025
    John welcomes former Republican consultant, Lincoln Project/Lincoln Square bigwig, and bestselling author Stuart Stevens back to the show to discuss Donald Trump’s sudden political senescence. Stevens discusses the emerging dynamics and incentives driving GOP congresspeople to break with Trump; the continued risks he poses to American interests at home and abroad, especially in connection with Ukraine; and the vast talent gap between the two parties when it comes to the 2028 presidential race—and the particular problem Republicans are facing in the form of a de facto frontrunner, J.D. Vance, whom Stevens sees as “super creepy.” To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 18 mins
  • Tim Miller: Fissures, Fault Lines & The Great MAGA Crackup

    Tim Miller: Fissures, Fault Lines & The Great MAGA Crackup
    Nov 21 2025
    John welcomes Tim Miller, host of The Bulwark Podcast, back to the show to discuss the signs this week that Donald Trump’s fabled base — and broader political coalition — may be starting to unravel. Tim dissects the two main stressors creating fissures within MAGA: Trump's efforts to deep six the Epstein files in the face of his coalition's concerns about pedophilia among the political and financial elite; and the normalization of anti-Semitism on the right as personified by Groyper godfather Nick Fuentes. Tim and John also wax lyrical about the band of this moment, Geese, and ponder the possibility of a previously unreported anatomical commonality between Trump and Epstein. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 25 mins
  • Pat Ryan: Epstein Portents, Off-Year Omens & DJT’s Lame Duckification

    Pat Ryan: Epstein Portents, Off-Year Omens & DJT’s Lame Duckification
    Nov 17 2025
    John welcomes Democratic congressman Pat Ryan—a 43-year-old West Point grad and Iraq War vet whose 14-point victory in his deep purple upstate New York district in 2024 elevated him to national rising-star status—to discuss the lessons of his party’s off-year election gains and signs that Donald Trump’s lame duck era is at hand. Ryan also explains his crusade to end the scourge of sports TV blackouts in the age of streaming, and why it’s not merely good policy and good politics, but the kind of effort that could help Democrats regain entry into the manosphere. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    58 mins
  • Carol Leonnig: Disarray & Debauchery at the DOJ

    Carol Leonnig: Disarray & Debauchery at the DOJ
    Nov 14 2025
    John welcomes four-time Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter Carol Leonnig to discuss her new book with Aaron C. Davis, “Injustice: How Politics and Fear Vanquished America’s Justice Department.” Leonnig, a 25-year Washington Post veteran now serving as a senior MSNBC correspondent, explains how Donald Trump’s first-term impairment of the DOJ, followed by Merrick Garland’s failure to meet the moment after January 6, not only let Trump evade legal accountability but set the stage for his radical second-term subversion of the department’s role and the rule of law itself. She also weighs in on Trump’s recent spate of pardons and maladroit handling of the Epstein files, as well her own scoop regarding Tom Homan and his cash-filled Cava bag. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • Chris Matthews: What Dems Today Can Learn From RFK (Sr, not Jr!)

    Chris Matthews: What Dems Today Can Learn From RFK (Sr, not Jr!)
    Nov 10 2025
    John welcomes the longtime host of Hardball—for 23 years on MSNBC, now on Substack—Chris Matthews to discuss his new book, "Lessons From Bobby: Ten Reasons Robert F. Kennedy Still Matters." The author of three previous bestsellers on the Kennedy clan, Matthews lays out the qualities that made RFK so special and today's Democrats should emulate as they seek to rebuild the party's national brand and majority status. He also assesses last week's election results, especially as they relate to next year's midterms and the nascent 2028 Democratic nomination contest. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • Presenting: Otherworld | Zaza

    Presenting: Otherworld | Zaza
    Nov 8 2025
    Otherworld tells real stories of people who have experienced something paranormal or unexplainable. Host Jack Wagner takes an open minded and journalistic approach to the subject matter and aims to uncover some of the biggest mysteries of the world and how people react to it. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    10 mins