Talking Feds

Harry talks with Bob Bauer, the most prominent Democratic political lawyer of the last generation, about his new book, “The Unraveling.” The book, analyzes the contributions of lawyers to the politics-as-blood-sport that is our inheritance from the last 40 years of national campaigns.

Susan Glasser, Charlie Sykes, & Jacob Weisberg contrast Harris’s vigor w/ Trump’s continued decline & read the sparse tea leaves.

Harry and Molly trade off political and legal questions in their latest mashup.

T minus 22 and the two campaigns are a study in contrasts. A great trio of political experts—Jon Alter, Mara Liasson, & Bob Shrum—joins Harry to piece it all together.

Harry talks with the ever-tenacious and insightful Marcy Wheeler, a.k.a. the empty wheel, and in a detailed 45-minute conversation, the two exchange and analyze the most important outstanding revelations in the brief and bear down on what the additional key points reveal about Smith’s case and the likely course of litigation ahead.

A great returning panel of Alisyn Camerota, David French, and Norm Ornstein joins Harry to discuss whether Trump's increasingly brazen lies move any voters into his column.

Harry talks with Michael Podhorzer, founder of the Analyst Institute and perhaps the foremost student in the country of the true utility and disutility of political polls. A rich discussion and an effective antidote to the “Mad Poll Disease” that so many of us have as the election approaches.

With five weeks to go before the election, Donald Trump seems content to double and redouble down on his appeal to the extreme elements of his base, including conspicuous racist and xenophobic undertones.

Harry sits down with Preet Bharara, former United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York and an encyclopedic source about tradition, culture, and current state of play at the Department of Justice.

A superb panel of Jason Kander, Josh Marshall, and Tara Setmayer joins Harry to take stock of a wild & weird week and consider where it leaves us w/ 6 weeks to go.

Harry sits down with Judge J. Michael Luttig, a leading conservative jurist and fierce critic of Donald Trump, the Republican Party, and the Supreme Court.

A fantastic roundtable of Susan Glasser, Molly Jong-Fast, and Jacob Weisberg join Harry to assess the debate and its aftermath; analyze each side’s subsequent moves and what they reveal, including Trump’s going full-out nasty; and discuss what each side needs to do going forward.

Talking Feds is excited to introduce a new conversation series: 1-on-1s with Harry Litman.

Harry, Keith Ellison, Katie Phang, and Ellen Rosenblum examine Kamala Harris’s work as district attorney and attorney general, the potential points of attack it provides to Donald Trump, and what it tells us about what kind of president she'd be.

An episode focusing entirely on the dynamic, exquisitely close presidential campaign in the wake of the DNC convention.

Welcome to the 300th episode of Talking Feds, coming to you live from the heart of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago!

Bill Kristol, Bob Shrum, and Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill join Harry to analyze what the ticket and party need to accomplish this week.

Things could be going better for Kamala Harris, but it is hard to see how; and a great roundtable of Jen Rubin, Tara Setmayer, and Charlie Sykes join Harry to analyze the week and what lies ahead.

Mara Liasson, Zerlina Maxwell, and Jacob Weisberg join Harry to consider whether Harris is riding a false crest and whether, as recent polls suggest, she has indeed brought the election back to a genuine tossup.

A terrific bipartisan roundtable of Jonah Goldberg, Ali Vitali and Rick Wilson analyzes how Harris ascended so quickly and whether the excitement at her candidacy is a sugar high or a bonafide reconfiguration of the election.

We are in the midst of a political maelstrom as intense, consequential, and unpredictable as very few in the nation’s history. Adding to the rapidly shifting landscape: the late-breaking news of Biden’s withdrawal from the 2024 race.

The tectonic shifts in the legal and political landscapes of the last 3 weeks have upended all prospect for legal accountability for Trump before the election, and the country is paying far less attention.

Susan Glasser, Jason Kander and Mike Podhozer join Harry to bear down hard on Biden’s prospects for survival and the likely alternative if Biden steps aside.

A great roundtable of Emily Bazelon, Melissa, Murray, & Steve Vladeck join Harry to come to grips with the cataclysmic series of final opinions in immunity, abortion, administrative law, and more.

The week had a tsunami like intensity that left abundant wreckage in its wake, both in the political and legal landscapes; and a fantastic roundtable of Andrea Mitchell, Charlie Sykes, and Jacob Weisberg bears down on what went awry and the unavoidable question—unthinkable one week ago—whether Biden needs to step aside.

In this episode, a great roundtable of Gloria Borger, Dahlia Lithwick, and Jen Rubin joins Harry to stare down the barrel of the most contentious battleground issues, w/ particular focus on the new & coming decisions from the Supreme Court.

A great Talking Feds panel of Susan Glasser, Jacob Weisberg, & Rick Wilson analyze Trump’s total capture of the party & what it portends for November.

MAGA nation launched a coordinated campaign this week against Trump’s felony convictions followed by a literal call to arms and a dark promise of retribution; a great roundtable of Bill Kristol, Congressman Ted Lieu, and Tara Setmayer considers the danger of the MAGA rhetoric.

With Trial’s convictions in NY state court behind us, it’s the perfect time for our quarterly close focus on the Department of Justice, by 3 stalwart friends of the podcast who know DOJ best – Katie Benner, Paul Fishman, & Amy Jeffress.

One last week of trial brings a final Talking Feds episode with a roundtable of great reporters who were among the few in the courtroom, Jon Alter, Maggie Haberman, and Hugo Lowell.

A stellar panel of Jason Kander, Carol Lee, and Congressman Eric Swalwell assesses the debates, Haley’s endorsement of Trump, & the swing-state polls.

Lots happening out there, but NY v. Trump remains the main event, and this week we again bring you a roundtable of all new prominent commentators–and all first time @talkingfedspod guests–who have been in and around the court the whole trial.

Another very special episode this week about the room where it’s happening with three commentators who were there — Jon Alter, Danny Cevallos, & Kristy Greenberg.

A week of pitched battles in court, campuses, and Congress; and three of the country’s most wise and respected voices — Zoe Lofgren, Norm Ornstein, and Michael Steele — join Harry to analyze the action.

We add a special episode this week to tackle the Supreme Court argument on immunity.

A special and singular episode on Trump’s trial, including 3 experts who spent the week as one of the few dozen people permitted to be inside the courtroom where Trump’s trial is happening.

Things finally got real this week--w/ a wealth of quick developments, inc the full jury chosen, punctuated by dramatic details: Trump’s meekly sitting down on the judge’s order, prospective jurors breaking out in tears from the pressure & anxiety of serving, the DA’s moving for criminal contempt v. Trump for 10 postings; & a lot more.

This episode marks a historic week, as the first ever criminal trial of a former President gets underway in Manhattan.

As the first-ever trial of a former President looks imminent & certain, an only-on-Talking-Feds roundtable of Molly Jong-Fast, Josh Marshall, & Sen Sheldon Whitehouse joins Harry to assess how the spectacle of Trump-in-the-chair will play on the campaign trail.

With the campaign underway in earnest, the question of whether Trump can be held accountable for his constitutional misconduct and alleged crimes becomes ever more paramount.

Rather than the standard 3-guest roundtable, we convened 12 of the most well-known TV commentators for a very lively and dynamic dialogue on the big developments in front of us and on the horizon.

Barbara Boxer, David French, & Jason Kander join Harry to compare and contrast 2024 w/ 2020; consider the American people’s apparent indifference to Trump’s insurrectionary conduct; analyze Biden’s reduced support among important constituencies; & assess the impact of the developments in the various criminal trials.

Robert Costa, Hugo Lowell, & Tara Setmayer join Harry to break down the pivotal events that brought us here – Trump’s rout of Haley on Super Tuesday and Biden’s rousing SOTU.

No court ruled for Donald Trump this week, yet he got several assists in his quest to delay and even evade accountability.

A week in which actors other than Donald Trump took center stage, and a great and super-savvy panel of Jonathan Alter, E.J. Dionne, and Sen. Heidi Heitkamp joins Harry to analyze the events & their implications.

Even by Trump standards, it was an extraordinarily explosive week, with the fireworks continuing into the live taping of the episode

Trump’s fortunes arrive at the doorstep of the Supreme Court in two huge cases that each could have a decisive impact on the presidential election.

An incisive and lively panel of political commentators and analysts joins Harry to dissect all the ‘would’ve, could’ve, should’ve’s’ of the past week in law and politics.

A stellar panel of political savants joins Harry to analyze where the Republican race now stands & the potential impact on the legal minefield that Trump navigated less than adroitly this week.

David Frum, Bill Kristol, and Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon join Harry to analyze Trump’s antics in Iowa & the E Jean Carroll defamation trial, before taking up a sleeper of a Supreme Court case that could have a massive impact on our everyday lives.

Donald Trump skipped Iowa in the final days before the nation’s 1st primary to remain in DC courtrooms and deliver his stump speech fueled by grievance, resentment, and vengeance.

In this all-new Talking Feds, a terrific panel—Jonathan Capehart, Sadie Gurman, and Jim Walden—join Harry to focus on the two big cases now on appeal and then take up the diminishing prospects for bipartisan action in Congress on immigration.

This week’s episode is a special discussion on a crisis in the U.S. that is as grave as it is underappreciated — loneliness.

In this special re-release of a Talking Feds episode that garnered significant attention, we begin by examining recent developments in the Fentanyl crisis before revisiting a conversation that is only more pertinent now than when we first released it over a year ago.

A week in which important pitched battles commenced, as explained and analyzed by a super-knowledgeable panel of Al Franken, Alexi McCammond, & Bob Shrum.

An episode with a somewhat longer vantage point than our normal fare, w/ a matching thoughtful panel of David French, Susan Glasser, & Jonah Goldberg.

It was a week of bombshell developments across a range of venues, & a stellar roundtable of Senator Heidi Heitkamp, Carol Lee, & Charlie Sykes joins Harry to take stock, even as the news continued to explode.

It’s our quarterly episode focusing on DOJ, and it coincides with a series of high-visibility cases—most but not all involving Trump—and the pivotal decisions they present for Garland, Smith, & Co.

It was a week in which Donald Trump & his party plunged to new rhetorical and physical lows, & a terrific roundtable of Alisyn Camerota, Kyle Cheney & Bill Kristol join Harry to consider the fallout.

Our semi-annual focus on economics with a stellar set of guests – Dean Baker, Paul Krugman, and Stephanie Ruhle – falls this week at the starkest of crossroads: economic news and bellwethers are stunningly good while American’s views of the state of the economy are stunningly bad.

It’s a week of stock-taking as well as explanation of the Trump developments on half a dozen separate fronts.

8 years after reports surfaced of strange and worrisome connections between Donald Trump the presidential candidate & Russia, we still don’t know the full story, a glaring gap in the history & understanding of the Trump era.

This episode explores what needs to be done to return to some semblance of healthy polity with the help of four distinguished panelists: Bill Kristol, Jason Kander, Jennifer Palmieri, and David French.

This episode focuses on law enforcement with three incisive commentators who know law enforcement inside and out: Frank Figliuzzi, Juliette Kayyem, Asha Rangappa, and Elie Honig.

Our periodic focus on US foreign policy, with a twist.

The country, the Senate, & CA lost one of its longest-serving and most distinguished public servants last week. Senator Dianne Feinstein—the first woman mayor of SF who became the longest serving female senator in history—had far too many important accomplishments to chronicle in an hour.

A great trio of Court commentators – Dahlia Lithwick, Mark Stern, and Steve Vladeck – join Harry to discuss the Court’s position and trajectory.

The first of a very special trio of episodes recorded live at the Texas Tribune Festival. Each episode explores the state of an institution of existential value to our democracy after eight years of Trump influence and assesses what needs to be done going forward to return to full health. This episode focuses on the journalism industry, with three of the most prominent and experienced members of the 4th estate: Katie Benner, Jacob Weisberg, and Columbia School of Journalism Dean Jelani Cobb. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It was a week of continuing hot action in the Trump prosecutions, combined major lawsuits not involving the former President. An awesome set of guests–Peter Baker, Erin Burnett, and Josh Marshall–join Harry to break it all down, starting with the odiferous indictment of Hunter Biden on rarely brought charges following a political outcry from House R’s. They then take up impeachment, McCarthy’s feckless week, Romney’s parting broadsides against the GOP, and the landmark antitrust case v Google. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

At the end of another explosive news week, another great group of thoughtful guests—Julia Ainsley, David Jolly, & Lisa Rubin—join Harry to talk through the biggest stories.

A great group of legal & political commentators - George Conway, Al Franken, and Melissa Murray - join Harry to break it all down, including Mark Meadows' high-risk testimony in support of moving his state charges to federal court & Judge Tanya Chutkan’s selection of a trial date in March 2024.

We pause our coverage of Trump’s burgeoning legal minefield and the related political landscape for a periodic close look at the current status & future prospects of the Russia-Ukraine War.

In this week’s @talkingfedspod, a stellar set of expert commentators—Carol Leonnig, Alexi McCammond, and Norm Ornstein—dives in to the law and the politics of Trump’s long list of legal calamaties.

In one of our signature series of first-cut nuts-and-bolts analyses of the indictments against Trump, two guests with in-depth knowledge of Georgia law and practice - Norm Eisen & Gwen Keyes Fleming - break down Fani Willis’ omnibus indictment against Donald Trump and 18 other defendants. They begin with a simplification of the basic RICO charge and then undertake a broad survey of the charges, the prospect for cooperators, how the case will be presented to a jury, the likely schedule, and more. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It was a week when Trump, through his lawyers, became acquainted with Judge Tanya Chutkan, who will preside over the most important of the criminal cases against him.

This week’s episode is a clear-eyed, sober exposition of the legal & factual claims Trump can be expected to bring in the 1/6 case.

The indictment of Donald Trump on charges growing out of multiple schemes to steal the election is the most important case in the history of the Department of Justice and probably the country.

While all eyes were focused on the courthouse in Washington DC, the DOJ and Jack Smith took us by surprise Friday afternoon with a superseding indictment against Trump + 2 defendants.

Our quarterly DOJ Report Card arrives in a very propitious week that began with the receipt by Donald Trump of a second target letter from DOJ, moved through a hearing and subsequent order in the Mar-A-Lago documents case, and ended with significant charges out of Michigan that underscore the need for Jack Smith to begin to share information.

The news that the Grand Jury recently heard testimony from Jared Kushner & Hope Hicks suggests that the feds are approaching an end-game for a new set of charges against Trump focused on the Big Lie and the series of post-election frauds, though their shape & timing remains opaque. The Mar-A-Lago case heads for the 1st important showdown and reveal of Judge Cannon’s bonafides. And the Republican clown car in Congress rolls on with a blockade of the defense bill & a grilling of the FBI director. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, Harry is joined by a fantastic panel of experts on law and politics–Laura Jarrett, Lisa Rubin, and Sadie Gurman–to decode new clues from Jack Smith on the trajectory of the federal investigation surrounding Donald Trump’s attempts to overturn the 2020 election, size up Trump and Nauta’s chances of a delaying the pending Mar-a-Lago trial, and take stock of the fallout from the Supreme Court’s bombshell term that came to a close just last week. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Three of the nation’s most respected Supreme Court commentators – Emily Bazelon, Dahlia Lithwick, and Melissa Murray – join Harry to analyze the landmark rulings in affirmative action, anti-discrimination law, and administrative law.

It was a week of high drama from the federal courthouse to the House floor, and Harry is joined by three top national commentators–Tim Miller, Charlie Savage, and Erin Burnett–to break it all down.

On a week that saw the first arrest of a former president by the government he ran, a stellar group of experts – Robert Costa, Norm Ornstein, and Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon – join Harry to break down the charges & Trump’s likely defenses before exploring the political fallout for the party & the voting public.

Convening immediately after the federal indictment of Donald Trump was unsealed, 3 of the country’s best-known authorities on Trump’s rule–Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, Hugo Powell, and Ali Vitali—join Harry to analyze the DOJ charges and assess their likely political consequences.

We’re in the midst of one of the weirdest political and legal seasons in U.S. history, and a great group of guests—Luke Broadwater, Jason Kander, & Jen Rubin, talks it through & breaks it down.

Kate Shaw, Steve Vladeck, and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse join Harry to discuss the Supreme Court’s current record-low standing and how it came about.

Several important showdowns building to a head, starting w/ the debt crisis, and Aaron Blake, David Gura, & Amna Nawaz join Harry to break them down.

We present a special topical episode this week featuring three of the most prominent and respected trial lawyers in the profession--Barry Berke, Leslie Caldwell, and Lisa Wayne.

This week’s episode is a special discussion on a crisis in the U.S. that is as grave as it is underappreciated.

It was a week when the gloves came off in several high-stakes and historic battles, and a great set of Washington insiders—Jon Alter, Carol Lee, and Norm Ornstein—break it all down.

It’s our periodic DOJ Report Card episode, in which 3 stalwart DOJ-experts provide an insider’s perspective on the goings-on at the Department.

It’s our periodic deep dive into the economy, with a killer group of commentators—Dean Baker, Paul Krugman, & Stephanie Ruhle.

The week was dominated a dramatic and somewhat surreal arraignment of former President Donald. A glum & glowering Trump pleaded not guilty then returned to Florida to trash the prosecution and judge. Meanwhile, other civil & criminal cases continued to close in around him. A terrific group of guest –Alisyn Camerota, Jason Kander, & Sam Stein–join Harry to analyze the political repercussions before moving on to the upcoming Fox defamation trial and the bare-knuckle tactics of the TN legislature. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Where were you when you learned Donald Trump had been indicted? A landmark in history, but even as it marked the crossing of a vital line for the rule of law, it brought both the legal and political system into new and very challenging territory.

Laura Coates, David Jolly, and Jen Rubin join Harry to analyze the legal nooses tightening around Donald Trump.

It was a week when things got real: Fromer President Donald Trump prepared to be arrested on charges in New York City, a first in US history; the DeSantis-Trump squabbling came suddenly to unnerve Ukraine and the EU and threaten the U.S’s future support; and China made a dramatic move to be a Middle East power broker, with implications throughout the region and world. A superb group of seasoned political commentators–Peter Baker, Bill Kristol, & Tara Setmayer–analyze the sobering developments. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It was a week when you could feel the vibrations of coming battles all over: the first ever indictment of a former President; Fox staring down the barrel of a jury trial in Dominion’s $1.6 billion defamation suit; the schism between R elites, who favor DeSantis, and immovable Trump supporters; & bitter struggles over abortion rights in several states. A superb group of guests-Laura Jarrett, Alicia Menendez, & Ashley Parker-joins Harry to break it all down and analyze the shape of things to come. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The unseemly political alliance between the MAGA right and Fox Corp. burst into plain view. Filings in a defamation suit showed Fox knowingly pushing the Big Lie and Speaker McCarthy hand-delivered to Tucker Carlson alone some 44,000 hours of security footage from Jan. 6. A terrific panel of savvy commentators–Sen Al Franken, Jon Alter, and Juliette Kayyem–work through the toxic implications and forecast the future state of play. And a sidebar from songwriter and musician Dan Wilson. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.