So That Happened

The government is on the verge of another shutdown, which is lots of fun for people who like political drama but less so for people who work in government, benefit from government services and think that Congress should be able to do its job.

Then we travel to south america: Nicholas Casey from the NYT is here to tell us what the hunt for Venezuela’s most wanted man tells us about the political and economic crisis in the country.

And the White House was employing a dude who couldn't get a full security clearance because he allegedly abused women, but the president is still there.

 

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Republicans are helping President Donald Trump undermine an investigation into his campaign's collusion with the Russian government, revealing that Trump is now in full control of the GOP.

Trump delivered his first State of the Union address, but I had a hard time hearing it because my dog kept barking at the TV for some reason.

And you might have seen news stories about people getting thousand dollar bonuses because of the new tax law. These stories have been very misleading, and we can explain why.

 

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The government's open, but where do we go from here? Democrats want legal status for 700,000 Dreamers, and they'll ultimately need President Donald Trump to make it happen. We talked to Michael Steel, a former aide to House Speaker John Boehner.

American infrastructure is a mess, and in Orlando, it's hurting poor people of color. HuffPost's Julia Craven looked at the effect of unchecked highway construction on one neighborhood.

And there have been major gerrymandering developments in Pennsylvania and voting rights developments in Florida. HuffPost's voting rights reporter Sam Levine will catch you up.

 

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In this special dispatch, So That Happened takes a look at the Schumer Shutdown. Or was it the Trump shutdown? Did Dems cave? Or was this the best they could have hoped for?

 

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The government might shut down this week and this is the ONLY podcast that can tell you HOW, WHY and also WHO to blame. We interviewed Congressman Ted Yoho, a conservative House Republican who definitely blames the Democrats.  

Republicans in Congress say text messages between two FBI agents have totally compromised the special investigation into Trump's campaign. What's more likely is that Republicans compromised the agents' marriages by exposing the affair they were having.

And this week, the question of Trump's mental and physical stability reached its savage climax. Is the president crazy? We're the ONLY podcast that has the answer.

 

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The government might shut down next week partly because Donald Trump refuses to help Dreamers without getting his wall or other policy changes -- Elise Foley reports from the Capitol.

The Trump administration wants work requirements for medicaid, so we talked to health policy reporter Jonathan Cohn about dog whistles.

The federal government stood aside as states legalized marijuana under the Obama administration, but Attorney General Jeff Sessions is changing THAT. Nick Wing explains how the Justice Department is re-asserting its authority on weed.

And Jessica Schulberg reports that some clever lawyers are using Donald Trump's foolish statements to try to spring people from GITMO.

 

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This week, America gained new insight into the fraught relationship between Donald Trump and his erstwhile white house strategist, Steve Bannon. It's like a Shakespearean drama, but just the parts where people insult and stab each other. SV Date joins to discuss.

Then, Huffpost's Luke O'brien breaks down his reporting on Andrew Anglin, one of the principal propagandists of the alt-right neo-nazi white-nationalist whatever-you-want-to-call-it movement. It's a story that sheds light on extremism in america, and it provoked an angry and very personal backlash.

Finally, Trump stepped up his long-established habit of tweeting ill-advised threats at nuclear-powered foreign leaders. Mike Fuchs from the Center for American Progress tells us whether it's time to start stocking up on canned food and hazmat suits.

 

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Tax reform is a big deal, but Donald Trump's reshaping of the judicial branch of government might be his biggest achievement of 2017. 

Republicans say the estate tax hurts farms and small businesses and that Congresswoman Kristi Noem's story shows it -- but it doesn't, and I'll explain why. 

And if you like Bitcoin, well you're not gonna like our third segment. Unless Bitcoin has already crashed by the time you hear it. 

 

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Republicans Pass Sweeping Tax Plan, Still Working On Basic Governance

This week, Republicans succeeded in passing their tax bill. So what did Arthur have for lunch?

Republicans won on taxes, but are looking shaky on children's health insurance, keeping the government open, and saving Dreamers from deportation. We talked to Adrian Reyna, a Dreamer who's been lobbying Congress about what might happen. 

And Zach Carter has a surprising amount of things to say about A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Season's greetings! 

 

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There are whispers that Paul Ryan might resign -- we asked Matt Fuller why and when this could happen and who could be the next speaker. 

Accused child molester Roy Moore lost the Alabama Senate race this week. Jen Bendery tells us what she learned when she went there to talk to voters. 

And the government could be about to crack down on a popular herbal supplement, even though some people are using it to cope with opioid addition. 

 

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Al Franken is resigning, which we boldly predicted would happen! But what does it mean for partisan politics? 

The Supreme Court took up the Masterpiece Cake Shop case. Sam Baker from Axios tells us about the oral arguments. 

And Donald Trump declared that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel -- why the hell did he do that?

 

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This week, the U.S. Senate stumbled forward on tax reform with a government shutdown looming around the corner. 

North Korea launched a missile that could theoretically reach Washington. We talked to Mike Fuchs, a foreign policy expert with the Center for American Progress, about whether we're all going to die. 

And men continued to be bad. Why are bad men being thrown out of their media jobs, but not their political ones? Marina Fang explains. 

 

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This week, Donald Trump pardoned some turkeys and endorsed Roy Moore. Then: long ago, legendary British economist John Maynard Keynes predicted that in the future, we would only work 15 hours a week. What happened to that? Former co-host and Keynes expert Zach Carter joins to discuss. Finally, what DOES one have to do to get hounded out of Washington in disgrace? According to Huffpost's Eliot Nelson, quite a lot.

 

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Republicans are really moving their tax reform legislation -- does it have a chance of becoming law? We'll hear from Huffpost reporters Elise Foley, Arthur Delaney and SV Date.

This week, men continued to be disgusting, especially a Republican Senate candidate in Alabama. Marina Fang and Jen Bendery help answer whether this is the beginning of the end of men. 

And there's going to be a new chairman of the Federal Reserve, which could dramatically affect your life -- Zach Carter and Daniel Marans explain.

 

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Democrats crushed Republicans in off-year elections on Tuesday, delivering a resounding rebuke to President Donald Trump. Daniel Marans and Elise Foley join the show to talk about whether this is the beginning of the end of Trumpism.

The crown prince of Saudi Arabia rounded up his political opponents -- Akbar Ahmed and Jessica Schulberg explain what it means for regional stability and what Jared Kushner might have had to do with it.

And the latest mass shooting gave way to the latest frenzy of conspiracy theories -- Dana Liebelson and Paul Blumenthal break down the lies.

 

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Republicans say their tax reform plan will massively benefit the middle class, but the most direct beneficiaries of their plan are corporations and wealthy individuals. The plan includes an expanded child tax credit, but the biggest changes to the credit actually benefit people with six figure incomes. Low-income tax payers get nothing. 

Also on the show this week: what comes next in a special prosecutor's probe of the Trump campaign -- maybe some obstruction of justice? And while most people aren't paying attention, Senate Republicans and the Trump administration are swiftly remaking the federal judiciary. 

 

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Two Senate Republicans denounced their party's leader this week, accusing President Donald Trump of "debasing" the United States and betraying its values. 

That doesn't mean the Republican agenda isn't going strong. The same day Sen. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) denounced Trump on the Senate floor, he joined his Republican colleagues in overturning a new regulation that made it easier for consumers to join class action lawsuits over bank ripoffs. 

"Even the visual of it was plutocracy," Alexis Goldstein of Americans for Financial Reform told So That Happened. "Ben Sasse and Tom Cotton were actually dressed in tuxedos while the vote was going down."

Former Rep. Reid Ribble (R-Wis.), who harshly criticized Trump all the way back in 2015, noted on the podcast that Republicans still agree with the president on policy. Ribble specifically cited Republican votes in favor of a tax overhaul that would add more than $1 trillion to the deficit. 

"When you look at the policy that Sen. Flake and Sen. [Bob] Corker are voting for, they're mostly in alignment with where the president is, but they feel that his rhetoric has gotten so divisive that they can't move forward with their agenda," Ribble said. "That's a tragedy." 

 

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During the campaign Donald Trump ridiculed Sen. John McCain for having been a prisoner of war in Vietnam and said he knew more than the generals about fighting terrorists. This week, he told a soldier's widow that her late husband, who'd been killed by ISIS militants, "knew what he was getting into."  

Trump hasn't shown a lot of respect for the military, and yet as President, he has surrounded himself with generals. It's all part of a pattern, says Richard Allen Smith, a former Army sergeant and Afghanistan war veteran. Trump views the military as something prestigious that he can co-opt. "It all comes back to submission," he says. "He wants everything and everyone to be under the purview of Trump."

"Donald Trump doesn't consider himself a president the way we traditionally think about it... the way I think him and and his family consider the presidency is that this was a corporate takeover by the Trump Organization of the government of the United States." 

Also on the podcast: HuffPost reporters Igor Bobic and Jen Bendery explain what Congress is doing vis a vis Puerto Rico, while Jeffrey Young and Daniel Marans explain what's happening with Obamacare. 

 

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President Donald Trump has been unhappy lately, according to his own tweets and reports that he "hates everyone in the White House" and is often "consumed by dark moods." HuffPost reporters S.V. Date and Jessica Schulberg join the show to talk about how Trump's whims could affect foreign policy -- especially the Iran deal he might undo. Facebook has gotten so powerful it could wind up getting regulated by the government, HuffPost's Paul Blumenthal reports in a segment with Julia Craven. And just what on earth was Trump talking about when he said the stock market is somehow reducing the debt? S.V. Date and Arthur Delaney try to figure it out.  

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Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called a press conference this week to insist that he believes President Donald Trump is "smart," because it had come out that Tillerson once called Trump a "moron." Tillerson's presser appeared to be the latest in a series of attempts by senior White House officials to assuage the feelings of the president, a man who insists that his cabinet secretaries praise him. Reporters Jessica Schulberg and S.V. Date assess how much of his own dignity Tillerson shredded. Then: reporters Julia Craven and Nick Wing discuss the political fallout of the Las Vegas massacre, and S.V. Date disagrees with host Arthur Delaney's contention that Republicans won't pass tax reform.  

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Earlier this year Donté Stallworth and three other former and current NFL football players spent three days lobbying Congress in favor of criminal justice reform. In other words, they did politics outside of football -- demonstrating that even as players continue to kneel during pregame anthems, there's a deeper commitment to policy than many people may realize. Stallworth joins the show to talk football and politics along with HuffPost reporter Travis Waldron. The Republican health care bill is officially dead, but HuffPost reporters Jeffrey Young and Igor Bobic explain what's next in the Trump administration's quest to kill the Affordable Care Act. And HuffPost reporters Jen Bendery and Jessica Schulberg explain the highly questionable port policy that is not helping hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico at all.  

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Republicans in the U.S. Senate have been unable to garner enough support within their own conference for their latest bill to repeal Obamacare. One way they could do it, though, is by adding special provisions to woo holdout senators -- like an amendment that would exempt the state of Alaska from the underlying bill's harsh provisions. The Intercept's Ryan Grim and HuffPost health care reporter Jeffrey Young discuss the absurd GOP health care agenda and unlikelihood of its enactment. President Trump says we might have to "totally destroy" North Korea -- wow, are we about to have another war? HuffPost reporters Marina Fang and Jessica Schulberg discuss the president's fiery speech to the United Nations. And how is it that the president's using party funds to pay personal legal expenses? HuffPost reporters Paul Blumenthal and Julia Craven explain why this is perfectly legal but still weird.  

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President Donald Trump dined with Democrats repeatedly this week and on Wednesday night struck some sort of agreement with Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Nancy Pelosi to avoid the deportation of Dreamers -- immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. But how much can Trump really accomplish by cutting out Republicans, who control both chambers of Congress? For answers, "So That Happened" talks to HuffPost White House correspondent S.V. Date and D.C. bureau chief Amanda Terkel. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and 16 Senate Democrats introduced legislation to expand Medicare for all Americans -- a huge deal. We talk to HuffPost reporter Daniel Marans, who interviewed Sanders, and health policy expert Jeff Young about what happens next. And Equifax -- why does it exist and why aren't Democrats doing everything they possibly can to abolish it and other parasitic credit monitoring companies? We put the question to HuffPost reporters Zach Carter and Paul Blumenthal.  

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This week President Trump struck a surprising deal with congressional Democrats to fund the government for only three months. The move was a slap in the face to Republicans but Trump reportedly raved about the news coverage. HuffPost White House Correspondent S.V. Date joins us to explain if there will be more of Trump collaborating with Democrats in the future. The Trump administration announced it will end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, an Obama initiative that spared hundreds of thousands of innocent kids from deportation. Trump himself then suggested he supported the original policy, so HuffPost immigration reporter Elise Foley is here to sort this out. And a sitting Democratic senator is on trial for corruption. HuffPost Politics reporter Igor Bobic explains the surprisingly sordid allegations.  

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In the wake of one of the worst storms in US history, Huffpost national reporter Roque Planas talks to Zach Young about what it was like to report from Houston during Hurricane Harvey and witness the destruction firsthand. Then, former Texas gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis talks about how Texans are responding to the storm -- and how the state's politics make a bigger-picture reckoning with the dangers of unchecked urban sprawl difficult. Finally, Huffpost reporters Marina Fang and Jessica Schulberg talk about Mexico's offer of disaster aid -- and our commander-in-chief's perplexing response to the biggest natural disaster of his young presidency.  

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President Donald Trump read what he pretended was an excerpt of his own speech this week in order to claim he'd been wrongly criticized, except he omitted the part that caused all the criticism. You know, the part in which he excused white supremacists for domestic terrorism in Charlottesville. Journalist and former NFL veteran Donte Stallworth joined "So That Happaned," the HuffPost Politics podcast, to talk Trump and also the phenomenon of NFL players refusing to stand for the national anthem. In light of our head of state's friendliness with Nazis and the KKK, is there any reason to think football players won't continue to bend the knee? And why hasn't an NFL team signed Colin Kaepernick? Also, Trump finally a new Afghanistan policy of... more war. But how much more? We asked foreign policy correspondent Jessica Schulberg to explain what might happen and why.  

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President Trump this week spoke of "very fine people" among the Nazis and Ku Klux Klanners who staged a violent protest that resulted in the deaths of three people on Saturday. Trump's comments drew cascades of condemnation, but we already knew he had white supremacist tendencies. Jamelle Bouie, the chief political correspondent for Slate.com, joins So That Happened to talk about what has really changed, and whether Nazis are now in a real position of power. Also, HuffPost reporter Christopher Mathias talks to Black Voices editor Lilly Workneh about what he saw reporting from the Charlottesville riot and Paul Blumenthal explains what's going on with Vice President Mike Pence's unprecedented fundraising campaign.  

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This week, we turn the show over to the New York office and HuffPost reporters Jeff Young and Sam Levine. First, they’re joined by our editor-in-chief Lydia Polgreen to talk about the HuffPost “Listen to America” bus tour. Starting in September a whole bunch of HuffPost reporters are going to be touring the country on a bus, starting in St. Louis, then heading through the South, up to the Midwest, over to Montana, down to Arizona, and finally back east to New Orleans. They’re going to be collecting interesting stories, they’ll have a mobile video studio, it’s going to be a fascinating project and Lydia is here to tell us all about it. Then, Sara Collins of the Commonwealth Fund talks with Jeff about why, in the midst of repeated attempts to repeal Obamacare, more and more Democrats are talking seriously about single-payer as an alternative to the present health care system. Finally, Sam and Jeff talk to Justin Levitt from Loyola Law School about the Department of Justice’s changing approach to voting rights in the Trump era.  

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This week, we take a little break from things that happened this week to head to Pasadena, California, for Politicon! Over the weekend, So That Happened producer Zach Young attended the "unconventional political convention" and talked with Symone Sanders, National Press Secretary for the Bernie Sanders campaign, and Austin Petersen, runner-up to Gary Johnson in last year's Libertarian presidential primary. As Cenk Uygur and Ben Shapiro debated loudly in the adjacent auditorium, we had an insightful conversation on what it was like to be part of an outsider presidential campaign in 2016 and what lessons that year holds for the future.  

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Donald Trump rose to power thanks in large part to his fame from having done a TV game show in which he ceremoniously "fired" contestants. Candidate Trump vowed to shake up Washington with this hard-hearted business persona, and yet faced with an attorney general he seems to want to fire, Trump can't do it. Bok bok! Republicans in the U.S. Senate are on the verge of finally repealing Obamacare, but they're not sure if they really want to go through with it after seven years of promises. The Intercept's Ryan Grim explains why they might chicken out. Bok bok bok! Then: Democrats rebranded their agenda as "A Better Deal." HuffPost's Daniel Marans explains what's in the deal and why Democrats' usual critics are surprisingly pleased. Finally, HuffPost White House correspondent S.V. Date joins us to explain why Trump wants to fire Attorney General Jeff Sessions and why he's afraid to follow through.  

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This week on So That Happened: Zach Carter takes a break from book leave to return and host the show! He’s joined by ProPublica reporter Jesse Eisinger and Huffpost’s Alexander Kaufman to talk about why bankers never seem to go to jail. Then, Michelle Kuo stops by to talk about her book Reading With Patrick, a memoir about a teacher’s relationship with a gifted student who ends up jailed for murder. It's an exploration of race, class, justice, and coming of age in the South. Finally, Mike Konczal is back, this time to help Zach and Arthur celebrate the 7th birthday of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law. Will there be cake?  

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For months, President Trump and his supporters said it was all just a political witch hunt, that his campaign had not colluded with the Russian government's interference in last year's presidential election. This week Donald Trump, Jr. revealed that he had, in fact, sought incriminating information on Hillary Clinton from a Russian government source. On this week's "So That Happened," HuffPost money-in-politics reporter Paul Blumenthal explains the several federal laws that Junior might have broken. Also, the Roosevelt Institute's Mike Konczal joins the podcast to explain a new policy from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that will allow credit card and other financial product customers to sue if they get ripped off -- unless Republicans in Congress stop the agency in its tracks. And nothing weird happened at the confirmation hearing for Christopher Wray, the totally normal career Justice Department official Trump nominated to replace the FBI director he weirdly fired. Is our Trumps learning?  

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Did CNN screw up this week by seemingly threatening to reveal the identity of a Reddit user who made a silly gif that President Trump tweeted? The Washington Examiner's Tim Carney says the episode represents the kind of media excess that gives rise to Anti-Anti-Trumpism, a sort-of movement animated by the belief that Trump's critics somehow lie more than Trump does. The Anti-Anti-Trump argument loses credibility, Carney says, the minute it serves as an excuse to avoid criticizing the president. Meanwhile, Trump's in Europe, possibly altering the United States' role in the world. HuffPost White House correspondent S.V. Date joined us to talk about whether everything is truly as terrible as it seems and whether Trump could make it worse with his offhand tweets. And HuffPost labor reporter Dave Jamieson explains the Trump administration's recent moves to undo Obama's effort to restore overtime pay for millions of workers.  

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Republicans in the U.S. Senate completely boofed their health care bill, so this week on "So That Happened" we discuss the politics of their failure as well as how the underlying policy could change when the zombie Senate bill rises from the dead next month. President Trump continues to seem completely unaware of what's in the legislation, and even resigned to its failure. And we also take a look at the increasing concentration of corporate power and the failure of both parties in the U.S. to stand up to monopolies.  

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Senate Republicans finally released their secret Obamacare repeal bill, so this week on "So That Happened" we explore the real possibility that this thing could actually pass and become law. We also take a look at Democrats' total fecklessness in special elections and the several high-profile acquittals of police officers who killed civilians for no good reason.  

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So, that happened. This week, we discuss the assassination attempt on members of Congress, which has left House Majority Whip Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) grievously injured. Fallout from the shooting included efforts to blame political opponents, as well as a familiar debate over whether it's appropriate to question permissive gun laws for gun violence, which it always is. Still, we have two important takeaways that hold true whether or not you like your society heavily armed: 1) Don't shoot people, and 2) Don't kill people. Also, HuffPost suffered a round of layoffs occasioned by the merger of our corporate parent with another company, and we lost So That Happened host Jason Linkins. We will miss him. We're very glad we organized and negotiated a contract that provided for a relatively generous severance, but layoffs still hurt. On this show, we say goodbye to our fearless host.  

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So, that happened. This week, the White House celebrated Infrastructure Week. Or at least, they wanted to, but couldn't because this week was James Comey-A-Go-Go in the Senate Intelligence Committee. Yes, the former FBI director debuted his testimony in front of an eager gaggle of Senators and he seemed pretty bent on making sure everyone knew that President Donald Trump was a serial liar. The White House struck back, accusing Comey of leaking privileged information and telling falsehoods of his own. Everyone in DC apparently went to a bar to watch these hearings on television, because we're a sad bunch of drunks. And that's Infrastructure Week. Congratulations to infrastructure. Meanwhile, if you can even remember where the country was a handful of days ago, you might remember last week's hullabaloo, President Trump's decision to exit the Paris Climate Accords. There was a lot of doomsaying in the wake of the decision, but there were also several renewed commitments made by other American politicians to...  

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So, that happened. This week, we're going in search of a Trump Doctrine. President Donald Trump has returned from his first lengthy trip abroad. You've heard the speeches, you saw the photos, you know about the orb. Now it's time to consider the ways Trump's dealings with our European allies and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia point to a coming shift in American foreign policy, and illustrate the way Trump wants to reshape the world and the United States role in it. Buckle up, it's gonna get bumpy. After looking beyond our borders, we'll then come home to Capitol Hill, where the lives of Republican legislators have continued to get more and more complicated, and more and more frustrating, as the ongoing Russia probes steal time away from shaping a legislative agenda. We'll also try to find out what Democratic lawmakers are up to while their counterparts are mired in all of Trump's melodrama.  

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So, that happened. This week, while President Donald Trump was away on foreign business, the wider world got a look at the latest White House budget proposals and the experience was like staring into a moral void. Broadly targeted for elimination: just about anything that offers assistance to the poor and vulnerable. Cashing in big time: rich income earners. There are education cuts that could decimate profitable research, new burdens on food stamp providers that could result in fewer in the market. Joining us to marvel at the pure draconian nature of it all is Alexis Goldstein from Americans for Financial Reform. Meanwhile, the murder of Seth Rich -- a young DC resident and Democratic National Committee staffer -- was a tragedy for those who knew him. But the internet's conspiracy swamps and right wing media outlets have teamed up to further traumatize Rich's family and friends. It's weaponized fake news, and it's perfectly emblematic of the surreal world that Donald Trump has both ushered in and...  

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So, that happened. This week, President Donald Trump had another one of those weeks where Donald Trump is president. By which I mean, total omnidirectional omnishambles. Building off the controversy of last week's controversial firing of James Comey, Trump revealed highly classified intelligence from a source in Syria to two high-ranking Russian officials, touching off yet another self-immolation. He's ended the week with more trouble from Comey, more indefensible deceptions, fewer allies willing to go to bat for him, and a newly appointed investigator nipping at his heels. We'll dive into the Trump black hole to try to rescue some light Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, fans of fixing the criminal justice system scored a major victory this week. Civil rights attorney and progressive-minded reformed Larry Krasner won the Democratic primary election for Philadelphia district attorney. It's a major shift in Philly, and it's also part of what seems to be a burgeoning trend of voters opting for reform champions at...  

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So, that happened. This week, Donald Trump fired James Comey. And that's been the implacable news event of the week, so much so that we are just going to surrender to it entirely. This single decision is the apotheosis of Trump. It has everything: a stumbled over decision that landed with a kersplat on the news-cycle, constantly shifting rationales that change by the hour, massive leaks from the White House, the usual concerns over temperament, and the unalterable impression that the White House is either strategically engineering a cover-up, or too impulsive to govern in a sane way. Or both! We even have White House press secretary Sean Spicer hiding among the bushes on the White House grounds. It's well and truly bonkers. We'll try to piece through the most troubling aspects of this decision, beginning with the implausible reason we've been told guided Trump's decision. Former Department of Justice spokesman joins our own Sam Stein, to offer an insider perspective on the matter. And we'll deal with the...  

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So, that happened. This week, the House of Representatives voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act and replace it with a bucket of garbage, placing the lives of some 24 million people at risk. Quite a spectacle really. We'll have fifteen minutes of flabbergasted gasping for you to enjoy. Meanwhile, for some reason we'll also talk about other things. For example, just how populist is the Trump White House going to get? The new head of the SEC will be Goldman Sachs' bailout lawyer, Jay Clayton, so it's sure not looking good for that whole "drain the swamp" project. But maybe we're wrong. Joining us to figure this out is our pal Alexis Goldstein from Americans for Financial Reform. Finally, Donald Trump is hoping to appoint Tennessee State Senator Mark Green to the position of Secretary of the Army. This is his second attempt to place someone in that job, and based upon Green's litany of bizarre statements and strange positions, there is a not insignificant chance that he'll need a third. With that in mind,...  

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So, that happened. This week, we've reached the end of Trump's first 100 days. How will it be remembered? In many ways, it's been like watching someone's body reject an organ transplant. Somehow, Trump has managed to hit the century mark at the threshold of a government shutdown fight with his own party. Nevertheless, some things never change, and 100 days into the Trump presidency we can report with confidence that everything remains really, really great for people who are really, really rich. Meanwhile, we are taking a look in at the mayoral race in Omaha, which would normally be a sleepy race focused mainly on things like potholes. But the Democratic nominee, Heath Mello, has become one of those totemic candidates in 2017 -- a test of post-2016 Democratic Party strength. And so Democrats made a big investment in raising his profile, only to discover that he was not with them on a key issue: reproductive rights. Finally, our guest today is Jonathan Taplin, a filmmaker and author who used to be a tour...  

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So, that happened. This week, President Donald Trump issued another one of his patented executive orders, this time endeavoring to bring jobs back to America through a "Buy American, Hire American" policy. Trump immediately went back out on the campaign trail to signal that great changes were now afoot in the land, but are they really? We've dug down into the details and discovered that it's a blend of activity masquerading as achievement. And guess what: it's a trend. Meanwhile, the conservative media universe played a big role in boosting Trump to the White House in 2016. But in 2017, there's a growing sense that the favor will not be returned in kind. This week, Fox News' top talent Bill O'Reilly was pushed out of a perch that was once pretty secure, owing to a litany of past sexual harrassment transgressions that finally came home to roost. Meanwhile, in Texas, Trump enthusiast Alex Jones is in the middle of a custody battle with his ex-wife, and Jones' legal counsel has asserted an interesting...  

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So, THAT happened! Remember all that stuff about draining the swamp and taking down the Washington establishment? Well, President Trump talked to some guys from Goldman Sachs and has decided to be Jeb Bush instead. HuffPost reporter S.V. Date joins us to discuss the latest contours and convulsions of the Trump presidency. But some things never change, including The Democratic Party, which just blew a chance to pick up a House seat in deep-red Kansas. Party leaders -- they actually said this and appear to believe it -- they told reporters they thought the best way to win the election ... would be to not try to win. Amanda Terkel helps us break down why Democrats are still bad at politics. Speaking of bad, for-profit colleges exploit people desperate for higher education thanks partly to political rhetoric about how college is the only way to have a good life. We interviewed Virginia Commonwealth University Professor Tressie McMillan Cottom about her new book on the great college swindling of America's...  

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So, that happened. This week, we are joined by the host of MSNBC's "All In With Chris Hayes," who in case you haven't figured it out is named Chris Hayes. We'll be talking about his new book "A Colony In A Nation," which documents how white fear has led to America's frustratingly unjust two-tiered justice system -- where some get to live peacefully as citizens, and others get treated by the state as if they were under the bootheel of an occupying force. Meanwhile, have you been wondering how the next big world war would start? Well, wonder no more! It could all begin over the Baltic Sea, with a confrontation between an American spy plane and a Russian fighter jet, pushing the boundary of confrontation. But this isn't just some fantasy out of "Top Gun." The real story here is that all of the traditional mechanisms by which we've de-escalated conflict so many times in the past have deteriorated, and leaders on both sides who seem ill-equipped to lead the way back. The Huffington Post's David Wood joins us...  

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So, that happened. This week, Washington lawmakers began crawling out from under the wreckage of the failed American Health Care Act, better known as the bill that finally emerged from the GOP's seven-year effort to repeal and replace Obamacare. The bill largely foundered because of deep divides within the House Republican caucus, with House Speaker Paul Ryan and establishment leaders on one side, and the insurgent House Freedom Caucus on the other. But now, they have a common enemy at least, in the form of President Donald Trump -- who has spent the last week lashing out at both sides, raising an obvious question, where does everybody go from here? Meanwhile, this week the president unveiled his Executive Order on Promoting Energy Independence and Economic Growth, a measure that would roll back steps taken by his predecessor to reduce carbon emissions and keep America on track to hit its climate change targets. Trump has framed this endeavor as one that would end what he calls the "War on Coal," and...  

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So, that happened. This week, Neil Gorsuch made his confirmation hearing debut as Donald Trump's prospective Supreme Court nominee. And he came to DC with a long and concerning history of putting his finger on the scales of justice in favor of entrenched monopolies of money and power. What's really at stake here, is your money, and we're joined by law professor Zephyr Teachout, to explain what you stand to lose if Gorsuch is confirmed. Meanwhile, Donald Trump has promised to boost the military budget, bringing a considerable amount of your tax dollars into a Pentagon that already hardly wants for cash. But with all this money sluicing through the system, it might surprise you to learn how little of it makes it down to the grunts who do all the hard work, and whose lives are much more frequently on the line than Washington's dizzying array of defense contractors. We'll take a look at the working class military, with Pulitzer Prize winning journalist David Wood. Finally, we have a real cops and robbers...  

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So, that happened. This week, President Donald Trump moved forward on a number of policy fronts. He also moved backward on a number of policy fronts. Very typical week, to be honest. But we now have the first Trump budget, and as you might expect, it really does a number on several high profile domestic policy projects. We'll lay out where negotiations with Congress are likely to begin. We'll also bring you up to speed with the Congressional Budget Office's evaluation of Trumpcare (it wasn't good) and the how the president's second attempt at a Muslim travel ban became another hilarious self-own. Meanwhile, our guest today is Ganesh Sitaraman, an associate professor of law at Vanderbilt University, who's written a new book titled "The Crisis Of The Middle-Class Constitution." In it, he goes back to our nation's founding, uncovers our founders' belief in the necessity of a strong middle class. That's a belief that persisted for much of our history. But in recent decades, the vitality of the middle-class...  

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So, that happened. This week, House Speaker Paul Ryan finally released the Republican alternative to Obamacare plan from the sanctum sanctorum in which he'd been keeping hidden, and as soon as it was seen by the light of day it became something everybody from across the political spectrum instantly hated. Still, Ryan say it's the plan he's been dreaming about. What does this plan do, and how will he get it passed? We'll try to figure it out. Meanwhile, we are less than a week away from the implementation of the second version of President Trump's executive order banning Muslim travel into the United States. This time out, the White House believes they've got something that will survive legal scrutiny. Whether the tweaks they've made will be sufficient is unknown. What may be more important, is how these orders continue to reveal this White House's ideological beliefs where the Muslim world is concerned. Finally, we really can't let this week pass without mentioning some more of Donald Trump's lonely...  

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So, that happened. Well, how about that pivot, folks? Tuesday night, President Donald Trump gave a speech to a joint session of Congress and somehow the media managed to extract the idea that he'd finally undergone that transformation into a real live "presidentialness." And then, hours later, the Trump White House was once again plunged into their customary chaos, as reports emerged that Attorney General Jeff Sessions had meetings with members of the Russian government, facts that ran against testimoy he proffered during his confirmation hearings. Will the media ever learn? We'll try to paper train these puppies again. Meanwhile, the contest for the Commonwealth of Virginia's governor's mansion is one of the few really big electoral contests of 2017. In general, it's going to be test case for whether or not the Democratic Party can recover after their 2016 wipeout. But more specifically, this race is emerging as a proving ground for whether or not Democrats can fashion their own message of economic...  

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So, that happened. Every week we talk about how insane it can be to simply live in America. This week, we're going to help you do something about it, by welcoming journalist and author James Poulos to the show. James' new book, THE ART OF BEING FREE, looks back at Alexis de Tocqueville's masterwork, DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA, and pulls from its pages some wisdom about how each of us can confront the challenges of love, sex, loss, and this crazy-making, frustrating, wonderful nation that is our predicament and birthright. Yes, for a brief mad moment, we're going to try out this "optimism" thing we've heard so much about. Meanwhile, we've got politics as well. It seems like only eight years ago that the Affordable Care Act was galvanizing town hall protests all across the country, birthing new political movements. Well, it's happening again, only this time all the players are reversed and President Obama's landmark health care bill's defenders are the ones getting into lawmakers' grills. We'll talk about this...  

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So, that happened. It's been a truly FUBAR week for the Trump administration, who this week accepted the resignation of national security adviser Michael Flynn in the wake of an unfolding investigation into Flynn's contacts with Russian officials, whether or not he told the truth about them, and the extent to which entanglements with the Russian government can be found throughout Trump's political organization. Add to that the recurring theme of a quiet war between the White House and the intelligence community, and the worries only get wider. But how alarmed should we be? We'll try to find out. Meanwhile, one of the more interesting things about Trump advisor Steve Bannon is that when he talks about the 2008 financial crisis he can sound...well, a little like us, to be honest. At least, up to a point. But there is an observable point at which our points of view diverge. One person who has noticed this is journalist and author Thomas Frank, who joins us today to talk about it. Finally, as the Democrats...  

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This week, Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren tried to read a letter penned by Coretta Scott King and an objecting Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell decided that she should the maximum amount of attention she could possibly receive by silencing her on the floor of the Senate. Smooth move, Ex-Lax, for out of this dust-up, a new slogan of resistance was born. Meanwhile, you've probably noticed that Donald Trump's White House is the leakiest one in memory, and this week, the Huffington Post told the story of the President making oddball late-night calls and complaining about the quality of Air Force One handtowels. But hey, should you be concerned by all of this? Well, the people who keep leaking stories like this clearly are. Finally, as you may have heard, one of the more potent members of Trump's inner-circle is former Breitbart News' media maven Steve Bannon, who is a different sort of conservative than your standard issue Beltway Republican. One way in which he differs? He's a full-on...  

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So, that happened. This week, something interesting started to occur. The Democrats...started listening to their base. After a weekend in which demonstrated erupted at major airports in protest of President Donald Trump's Muslim travel ban, Democrats in Washington have suddenly found some steel, standing with their supporters in the street and withdrawing a more readily offered rubber stamp in the Senate confirmation hearings. Can they possibly keep this up? Meanwhile, we need to talk about that executive order itself. Talk about a Friday news dump -- the Trump White House's directives, which initially barred refugees, travelers, and legal permanent residents alike from entering -- or re-entering -- the country caused disorder and chaos across the country, all of which the Trump administration is pretending to have not noticed. We will break down what we know, and what might come next. Finally, the new president had the opportunity to dip his toe in a fetid pond left behind by his predecessor -- the...  

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So, that happened. This week, the wider world was introduced to Donald Trump's press secretary Sean Spicer, who christened his tenure in the White House Briefing Room with several days of big league lying. Now, this may not be Spicer's choice -- White House insiders have turned out by the dozens to tell multiple newspapers about how Trump's first week has been a tumultuous mess, with Trump lashing out at numerous petty slights. Spicer has been tasked with offering up forceful responses, to nonsensical complaints. And we have a highlight reel to share with all of you. Meanwhile, Trump has been taking numerous steps to begin the implementation of his policy preferences, including several geared toward the fulfillment of promises he's made about immigration. Naturally, that wall he wants to build, at taxpayer expense, has taken center stage. But there have, in this first week been some curious omissions and at least one surprising addition to his plans, all of which we will break down for you. Finally, as...  

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So, that happened. This week, the parade of cabinet appointments continued in the Senate, as Trump's nominees continued to try to strut their stuff under what was often withering questioning from Senate Democrats. There should be little doubt that all of these people are going to be confirmed but it has to be said -- in another era, some of what these folks said during these hearings would have gotten them bounced from consideration. Welcome to the new normal, which is the old abnormal. Meanwhile, this week, the Huffington Post hosted a debate between seven candidates who are vying to lead the Democratic National Committee. At issue: who's doing the best coming to terms with the Democratic Party's catastrophic 2016, what reforms are coming to the committee to make their process fairer, and who has the best vision for the party's future. It was...what's the word? Oh, yes: disappointing. Very disappointing. Finally, the battle over Obamacare continues to, moderately simmer, I guess? The desire to repeal...  

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So, that happened. So, everything happened! This was one of those weeks where the worst thing you could say is that the news wouldn't get any crazier. By mid-day on Tuesday, we were pretty convinced the most bonkers story was going to be the anti-vaccine alliance that president-elect Donald Trump forged with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. By the end of the day, however, CNN and Buzzfeed were breaking different aspects of a troubling intelligence community report that the Kremlin had compromising material on the president-elect. We'll break down the details, but I'll warn you, there is nothing good to be said about this. Meanwhile, late Wednesday night, the U.S. Senate cast a series of procedural votes that have been hailed as the first move in eventually scuttling the Affordable Care Act. Not necessarily a surprise, mind you, the Republican Party have long been threatening to repeal and replace the bill. But after taking this first move, what are Republican lawmakers going to do next. As it turns out, even they...  

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So, that happened. Happy New Year everyone. On January 18th the Huffington Post will be hosting a debate between the declared candidates for the chair of the Democratic National Committee. The way things are shaping up, it's looking like the top contenders will be Minnesota Congressman Keith Ellison and Obama Labor Secretary Tom Perez. We'll continue to dig down into the distinctions between the two men and explain what's at stake. Meanwhile, incoming President Donald Trump has made a lot of promises about keeping the United States out of pointless military conflicts. But in Yemen, which has become a destructive proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran, Trump is inheriting quite the quagmire. It's been almost a year since he's had anything substantive to say about Yemen, so I guess we're going to be warning him that he'd better stop tweeting and start thinking about this. Finally, we're going to spend a little time on the legacy of outgoing President Barack Obama, with an eye on his judicial legacy -- the...  

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This week, we are bidding farewell to to an old year and welcoming in a new one, because we are slaves to artificial constructs like calendars. But since this is a time for New Years' resolutions, we'll offer one up: let's try to do less moral grandstanding in 2017. And to explain why that's bad, we welcome University of Michigan post-doctoral research fellow Justin Tosi to the show. Meanwhile, with all the talk of an incoming administration, we sometimes forget that our politics are primarily shaped by figures who've actually been in town for a while. One in particular is our sometimes-reluctant Speaker of the House Paul Ryan. Not too long ago, Ryan was the de facto standard-bearer of conservative politics, but there's been a lot of changes lately. What does his future look like? We'll dig down into the Ryanology to find out. Finally, you the funny thing about unaccountable executive power is that once it's unleashed, it's hard to stuff it back in the box from which it came. Now, America's drone war...  

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Happy holidays, friends! This week, we have a special treat for everyone -- we're welcoming back the authors of our four favorite books of 2016 to celebrate their accomplishments and hopefully convince you that if you need last-minute or late gifts for people you love, you couldn't do better than these reads. With us today: David Dayen, author of CHAIN OF TITLE; Thomas Frank, author of LISTEN, LIBERAL; Sarah Jaffe, the author of NECESSARY TROUBLE; and our own Eliot Nelson, who wrote THE BELTWAY BIBLE. Do you want some more festive? Well we have got some more festive. Oregon Representative Earl Blumenauer is with us today, with an important Christmas message: fruit cake doesn't have to suck. It really doesn't! And Congressman Blumenauer should know because he has perfected a fine fruitcake recipe, and he's using his baking skills to give back to his community. Finally, I guess we wouldn't really be "on brand" if we didn't give you guys some bad news, so...what have we got? Oh, yeah, here's a real kick in...  

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This week, we bring you a Democratic party autopsy, of sorts. But it's not likely to be the one sanctioned by the Democratic National Committee. And in fact, much of it was written before the election took place, and written by our guest, author Thomas Frank, whose 2016 book, "LISTEN LIBERAL" now, in many ways seem prophetic. But speaking of the Democratic National Committee, their future is now up in the air and it won't be settled until a new leader for the organization is chosen. And the way it's shaking out, the race to run the DNC could come down to Minnesota Representative Keith Ellison and outgoing Labor Secretary Tom Perez who, on the surface, don't appear to be all that different. So what's all the shouting about? We'll take a deeper look. Meanwhile, the Cabinet of president-elect Donald Trump is taking shape and it's looking more and more like an exercise in irony, as the candidate who ran against elites continues to populate his administration with people who will, if anything, be even more...  

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President-elect Donald Trump doesn't just use his phone for tweeting. Apparently, he's also taking and making frequent calls with other world leaders. And hey, it's good to get to know other people. But there is some concern that Trump's communications abroad are being done off-the-cuff, without the benefit of briefing from the foreign policy community. And in a couple of examples, his mere phonecalls have had the potential to undo long-standing foreign policy goals and alliances. So, should this worry us? We're going to find out. Meanwhile, Republicans in Congress are already making plans to fulfill one of their longstanding goals -- the dissolution of Obamacare. But there's a catch: right now, the GOP doesn't have a plan in place to serve as a replacement. It's been sort of an ongoing thing with them, actually. So with the chance to repeal looming, Republicans are looking to pull off a maneuver called "repeal and delay" -- that is, if they convince everyone in their caucus to go along with it. Finally,...  

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Over the course of the presidential campaign, president-elect Donald Trump was quick to make elaborate promises to working class Americans, promising to do away with Washington's business as usual, usher in an era of tough dealmaking, and revive the country's moribund manufacturing sector. Three weeks after the election, Trump has earned himself something of a win in the area, with a claim to having saved a thousand jobs at Carrier from going to Mexico. But how different from the status quo was this Carrier deal. Joining us to walk us through it is Scott Paul, the president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing. Meanwhile, while we're sorting through whether or not Trump's first foray into working-class populism is sustainable or not, we're going to be taking a look at how he's proceeding in his efforts to, as he says, "drain the swamp" in Washington. It's a noble goal, to be sure, but it's hard to look at the way his cabinet is shaping up and see a lot of hope. What's so different about Trump's...  

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It's Thanksgiving week, and by the time you hear this podcast, President Barack Obama will have already performed his ceremonial turkey pardoning duties. But here in the last few months of his presidency, Obama will have more acts of mercy on his mind as he heads for the exits. Today we'll discuss presidential pardons and commutations, and whether or not Obama will fulfill an ambitious clemency plan. Meanwhile, as Trump mulls the activities he'll pursue at the beginning of his presidency, attention has turned to his infrastructure proposals, which are typically the sort of thing that could earn him a lot of bipartisan buy-in. But is Trump's plan on the level, or is it just another con? Joining us to discuss the matter is journalist and author David Dayen Finally, Congressional Democrats are still at sixes and sevens, nursing their electoral wounds, girding themselves for a lame duck session, and planning for the years ahead. We'll catch you up with what Democrats are thinking about up on Capitol Hill...  

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So *that* happened, Donald Trump is now President-elect of the United States. With this somewhat unexpected victory, the So That Happened team takes a deep dive into the messy transition process for Trump, and questions what will happen to the Affordable Care Act, and the future of America's foreign policy.  

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Welcome to our official 2016 post-mortem. Emphasis on the mortem. So, let's remember my first rule of political thermodynamics: an object in fucked-up motion tends to stay in fucked-up motion until a force sufficient to the task arrests it. That force did not materialize in this election. We'll try to get started down the path to explaining why that is. Meanwhile, the polling industry spent the bulk of election night coming to the numbing realization that the mechanics of their enterprise need to be newly recalibrated. We are joined once again by HuffPost Pollster's Ariel Edwards-Levy who will endeavor to explain what went so badly wrong. Additionally, for every winner there is a loser -- in this case Hillary Clinton, who's political fortunes rose and fell in dramatic fortunes over the course of an evening. We'll take a look at the remarkable circumstances that led to her having to concede this election, and what can be drawn from a speech she never anticipated having to give. Finally, it's not too soon...  

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We have finally come to the end of this election cycle. It was too long and mostly terrible. And we're probably kidding ourselves that everything is going to be fine just because it's over. But let's end it anyway. At this point, you probably want to know what's going to happen in a few days time. You're probably looking to polling experts for certainty. One of our in-house polling experts is here to help. Keep calm. Look at the polling aggregate. And remember that there is always a margin of error. Meanwhile, you have probably been wondering just what is going on over at the FBI ever since its director, James Comey, announced that the agency was pursuing a new and not-totally clear angle on the Clinton email scandal, despite longstanding Bureau traditions of keeping the hell out of the way of electoral politics. Former Justice Department official Matt Miller joins us to discuss Comey's decision to politicize the FBI by injecting the agency into our lives at this late date. It's not all 2016, thank God....  

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This week, with the election winding down, Donald Trump is running out of creative ways to spend Republican money on himself. But the wily old grifter has still got it, and now people who thought they were donating to a presidential campaign have actually bought copies of the Art Of The Deal. We'll take a look at Trump's ability to rook gullible Republican donors. Meanwhile, the media has been having a debate about Trump's voter base. On one side you have people who believe it's entirely driven by racial resentment. On the other, you have those who insist it's all rooted in economic anxiety. But what if the real problem is that we've all just taken sides in a dumb debate? Joining us to travel to a middle ground is University of Connecticut history professor James Kwak. Additionally, the 2016 election cycle has been a real boon for the factchecking industry. Interest in fact-checking among readers is seemingly at an all-time high. And thanks to Donald Trump, there is a never-ending supply of material. And...  

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This week, the season of debates has finally ended, with Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and her Republican counterpart Donald Trump doing battle in Las Vegas, Nevada. And the emerging headline from the final head-to-head tilt is that Donald Trump doesn't seem to be planning for a peaceful transition of power, refusing to promise to accept the result of the election. That shouldn't pose a threat to our democracy at all, right? Well, for all the attention that Trump gets whenever he goes out of his way to deform our democratic norms, it's worth asking ourselves how our civic foundation has come to be so rickety that a glorified reality-teevee huckster can so readily endanger it. Joining us to discuss whether or not there was some notable rot in our foundations that we should have noted much sooner is Rolling Stone columnist and author Matt Taibbi. Finally, for all you history dorks out there, we have a special treat for you today, author and historian John Cooper Miller, Jr. is on the show...  

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This week, with the help of WikiLeaks, we've finally gotten some real insight into Hillary Clinton's famous speeches to Wall Street elites, and you'll probably be shocked to learn that many of the policies she happily advocated in those circles are a little bit different from the economic agenda she's pitching now. We can't be sure, but it seems that Clinton is some sort of centrist? But the big question is whether or not Clinton might be pulled from these positions as the tide of conventional wisdom is changes. And speaking of those changing tides, last week, Jason Furman, the chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers gave a speech in which he all put rejected the deficit-hawk consensus that President Barack Obama and most mainstream Democrats had embraced during Obama's first term in office. In its place, Furman advocated for a new view of fiscal policy and its application, and Furman is going to join us today to discuss it further. Finally, as Republican legislators abandon Donald Trump in...  

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This week, it's all about hot vice-president on vice-president action, as largely forgotten white guys Mike Pence and Tim Kaine laced them up in Farmville, Virginia. Who won? Who lost? Will it matter in the end? Surely our thoughts will be worth the zero dollars you paid for them, but we will offer them to you, humbly, anyway. Plus we'll set up this weekend's presidential debate between the two people that American actually cares about. Meanwhile, it is possible that things could get worse for Wells Fargo? Weeks after getting beat up in the press for massively defrauding their own customers, the beleaguered bank is getting savaged by Wall Street analysts, shedding business partners, and trying to satisfy critics by clawing back compensation from executives. Plus, did you hear about all the military veterans that the bank has mistakenly tossed out of their homes? Alexis Goldstein from Americans for Financial Reform joins us to discuss whether we should just burn this bank down to the rafters. Finally...  

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If there's been one issue that has animated the presidential race this year, it's got to be the future of trade. The Obama administration's efforts to get the Trans-Pacific Partnership in place have been met with resistance. The issue has been central to Donald Trump's pitch to the middle class. Hillary Clinton, somewhat recently and conveniently, has also come out against the TPP. So, great. But here's a question: anyone have any new ideas? As it happens, yes, Jared Bernstein of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has a new paper out that promises a progressive approach to globalization. He joins us to discuss it. Meanwhile, do you feel that the media has given short shrift to Hillary Clinton's actual policies? Well, we have some good news: the Huffington Post's own Jonathan Cohn recently spent some time in Brooklyn at Clinton's HQ, and discovered that it has a nougaty, wonkish center that's not only the hub of Clinton's campaign effort, but an engine that's reshaping the Democratic Party's whole...  

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I don't know if you've noticed this, but when people talk about how it came to pass that Donald Trump is the presidential nominee of a major political party and looking more and more like he could win, one group that often gets the blame is...well, us. The media. Has the press become the brilliant ally of democracy's gravedigger? Joining us to sort through this is the New Republic's Brian Beutler. Meanwhile, we return to the matter of Wells Fargo bank, who face huge fines for having feathered their bottom line on the backs of a massive scam perpetrated against their customers. This week, Wells Fargo head John Stumpf was called before Congress to answer for his bank's malfeasances, and while there were the expected pyrotechnics from Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, there were also helpless shrugs from other parties. We're joined by Slate Columnist Haleine Olen to discuss the matter. Finally, are we headed toward yet another government shutdown? Probably not. Hopefully not! But once again, Congress...  

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This week, we have a bank dork treat for everyone as we are joined by author and historian Eric Rauchway, to talk about his most recent book, "The Moneymakers" and how FDR getting our currency off the gold standard is the gold standard of economic policy. Meanwhile, a bill that would allow the victims of terrorism to sue the states that sponsor such acts has passed the House and is on the way to the president's desk, where it is sure to be vetoed. However, this bill has such broad and bipartisan support that we may be on the verge of a first-ever Congressional override of an Obama veto. How did the White House end up here? We'll lay it out. Finally, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has levied a huge fine on Wells Fargo bank, after it was revealed that thousands of Well Fargo employees were routinely, and purposefully, charging their customers bogus fees. It was a dumb and venal scam that we're all glad was caught out by the CFPB. But can a hefty fine cure a diseased corporate culture?  

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Summer vacation is over, school's back in session. and the long hard march to Election Day is the only thing filling our days. Fortunately, we are sharing this journey with one of our favorite guests, MTV News' Ana Marie Cox. She joins us today to talk about the renewed focus on Donald Trump's shady dealings with Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, and how the Bondi story serves as unique platform to discuss the way the media has treated both the Trump and the Clinton campaigns over the past year. Meanwhile, in case you've forgotten, America is still facing a Zika crisis, especially in the Gulf Coast states, where mosquitoes carrying the virus have established a foothold. You may also recall that we have this thing called "Congress" that is supposed to provide the means by which the Zika crisis is averted. Well, once again, Congress has managed to cock up their response. We'll break down the Zika week that was, and the solutions that aren't coming. Finally, we return this week to our previous coverage of...  

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This week, joining us in the studio we have documentary filmmaker Steve Mims, whose latest movie, "Starving The Beast," details an ongoing crisis in public higher education. After decades of funding cuts, our great public universities are finding themselves increasingly vulnerable to the whims of agenda-setting politicians and post-crash "disruptors" who are angling to redefine these universities' missions and curricula -- leaving them as shadows of their former selves. The movie is coming soon to a theater near you, hopefully it gets there before the emergency it describes. Meanwhile, are capitalism and democracy headed for some kind of nasty break-up? That's the provocative contention of influential British economist Martin Wolf, who recently took to the pages of the Economist to suggest that the pace of globalization may be pushing us to make a choice. Given the state of our politics, where cash rules everything around us, it could be that this choice is already being made for us. Finally, they say...  

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This week, we have got the latest storm and stress from the 2016 presidential race. The Associated Press rocked the Clinton campaign's world after they released a report detailing new concerns about the Clinton Foundation, alleging that foundation donors got better access and treatment from Hillary Clinton's State Department. Clinton's defenders have pointed to the fact that the AP failed to prove any evidence of quid pro quo. We're here to remind you that this is exactly what a defender of the Supreme Court's Citizen United decision would say. Over in the Trump campaign, they are working hard at the pivot they've promised to make for months, and the most interesting thing that's emerged is that on the reality-television host's signature issue -- his draconian approach to immigration -- Trump no longer seems to know what he either believes or says. Did Donald Trump mean it when he said his Republican rivals were soft on immigration? And if so, why does he suddenly seem to prefer the immigration policies...  

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This week, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump opted to shake-up his campaign for what seems like the twenty-third time. Paul Manafort, who was the campaign's manager -- and who was thought to be a force toward professionalizing the wayward effort -- is out. His replacement, Steve Bannon of Breitbart News, heralds a shift toward allowing Trump to fully fly his freak flag. Hopefully this is amusing to the aliens who watch over us. Meanwhile, in an effort to contend more substantively with Trump, we're going to wade into what's turning out to be a hot media debate -- are his followers fueled by racial animus, or by economic anxiety? And to that end, we have a rather interesting interview for you, with Republican lobbyist who thinks that a Clinton presidency would be much better for the GOP than a Trump presidency. This lobbyist wishes to remain anonymous, for obvious reasons, so you'll get to enjoy our first foray into digital voice alteration! Finally, we turn to Obamacare, which faced some bad...  

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This week, we are going long on the politics of protest and the short term legacies of movements that have become an essential part of the public discourse. First up, we welcome journalist and author Sarah Jaffe to the program to discuss her forthcoming book, "Necessary Trouble: Americans In Revolt," which documents everything she has learned about the various protest movements that have emerged in post-crash America after spending years in the field with them. Meanwhile, we are marking the two-year anniversary of the killing of Michael Brown and the protest movement that emerged shortly thereafter, to consider what effect they've had in changing the conversation on the criminal justice system in Ferguson, Baltimore, and beyond. Finally, we are pleased to welcome Zephyr Teachout back to the show, now officially the Democratic party nominee for the House of Representatives in New York's 19th district. After a long career in taking on big issues like government corruption and economic justice, we'll ask...  

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This week, we are happy to have one of our old Huffington Post colleagues on the show for the first time: author and journalist Marc Lamont Hill. Marc has new book out called "Nobody," in which he traces America's state-sanctioned war on its most vulnerable citizens, from Ferguson, Missouri to Flint, Michigan and beyond. He joins us to talk about how much America has learned about itself since Michael Brown was killed, and whether or not forces are emerging that might achieve a more perfect union. Meanwhile, the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro have kicked off, and if you're enjoying watching the competition from the comfort of your own home, you may want to think about doing everything you can to prevent where you live from becoming a host city for the games because it's becoming increasingly clear that when the Olympics come to town, people lose their homes. Maybe the Olympics are just bad for us? Finally, we are marking a sad chapter in history this week, the two-year anniversary of the genocide of...  

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We are coming to you this week from both Washington, DC and from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the host city of the Democratic National Convention. The big issue of the week has been about unifying the party after a bruising primary fight between Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton and the man she dispatched, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. But while Sanders' supporters have, to some extent, made peace with Clinton's nomination, one issue has emerged that they've refused to back down on -- the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. We'll discuss how the TPP seized all this attention, and we'll speak to Sanders' supporters about where they'll take their movement next. Of course, the Democratic National Convention kicked off under a black cloud, and we're not talking about the intermittent downpours that have drenched the attendees. Emails hacked from the servers of the Democratic National Committee were published by Wikileaks ahead of the Democrats' confab, causing enough embarrassment that DNC Chairwoman...  

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We are coming to you this week from both the nation's capital and from Cleveland, Ohio, the host city of the Republican National Convention, where amid the chaos, there has been one consistent refrain from the gathered delegates -- that Hillary Clinton should be locked up. Interestingly enough, not every party elder has been enthusiastic about the "Hillary for prison" meme, and there's a good reason why -- it originates well outside the party with the Alex Jones/Infowars conspiracy theory set, who have been ubiquitous on the streets of Cleveland. We'll catch up with the agitators who have put their stamp, for better or for worse, on the campaign rhetoric. We'll also hear from California Democratic Representative Xavier Becerra, for his thoughts on the Republican message. The other big issue in Cleveland has been the forging of party unity -- a goal of every convention that's proven to be difficult to bring about in Cleveland. Wednesday night, those efforts took a big hit after Texas Senator Ted Cruz took...  

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It was just over a year ago that a Texas woman named Sandra Bland died, under mysterious circumstances, while being held in jail after being arrested at a routine traffic stop. Among the many unanswered questions was this: how often does this sort of thing happen? Well, in one of the most exhaustive investigations the Huffington Post has ever undertaken, we scoured the public records to find out how many people have died in jail in the year since Sandra Bland's death. And what we discovered was staggering. The lead reporters on this story join us today. Meanwhile, this week, Vermont Independent Senator Bernie Sanders bestowed his endorsement upon Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. But while there's now a larger unity among the broader Democratic base, it was a bitter moment for Sanders' diehard supporters. We're joined by one such diehard, Tim Black, the host of the Tim Black Show, who'll give us an idea about the future of Sanders' movement and what, if anything, Clinton can do to win him over. Finally...  

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This week's podcast seems to have a common theme: accountability. In the biggest political news story of the week, the FBI has concluded their investigation into the matter of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's email server, and have decided no indictment is in order. But the report from FBI head James Comey was nevertheless quite scathing. It's a black cloud that could hang over Clinton's presidential candidacy, but the black cloud hanging over our politics seems to be that political elites just seem to get off easier than the rest of us. Meanwhile, in the biggest international story of the week, after an exhaustive inquest officials in the UK have released the Chilcot Report -- an epic length documentation of their nation's involvement in the Iraq War, and a damning one at that, cataloguing the bad intelligence that drew Britain into the conflict and the poor planning that occurred afterwards. It's a report that could well impact the United Kingdom's already fraught politics, but beyond the...  

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This week, an awful terrorist attack in Istanbul seemed to trigger less than the usual amount of Facebook sympathy, but the same amount of enthusiasm for torture from Donald Trump. Democratic congressional candidate Zephyr Teachout cruised to victory in the New York primary election -- will the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee get her back in the general? We'll ask Zephyr Teachout herself. Congress took off on recess without doing anything significant on gun control -- have Democrats missed their window? And why doesn't anyone ever talk about the number one type of gun death? We'll ask Democratic Senator Chris Murphy. Finally, what's the deal with everyone loving Alexander Hamilton so much? Historian William Hogeland joins us to explain why Hamilton is SO overrated.  

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This week, Democratic members of the House Of Representatives staged a sit-in in the chamber to try to force House leadership to allow a vote on a pair of gun safety measures. But one proposal -- to use the so-called terrorist "no fly list" as a screener for gun ownership, comes encrusted in controversy. We're joined by one of Democratic legislators at the center of this story, Texas Congressman Beto O'Rourke, to talk about what they hope to achieve and where things go from here. Meanwhile, a lot of ink has been spilled about GOP nominee Donald Trump's various rancid statements. But this week, we've learned more about a larger problem -- the candidate's inability to mount a professional campaign. Joining us to lend his insight into the weaknesses of Trump's campaign is veteran GOP digital strategist Patrick Ruffini. And is it possible for the Clinton campaign to become overconfident and complacent running against Trump? We'll put the question to the Center for American Progress' Daniella Leger. Next up...  

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This week on the podcast, we reflect on the Pulse nightclub terrorist attack that left 49 dead and dozens more wounded. We talk about the LGBT community, gun reform, and what if anything can be done to prevent another mass shooting. We also sit down with Green Party presidential candidate, Dr. Jill Stein. She lays out her platform for us, and explains why she's unlike Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders.  

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This week, the primary season finally came to a merciful, and historic end, with Hillary Clinton reeling off series of decisive primary victories one day after the AP reported that she'd earn the backing of a sufficient number of superdelegates to take her to the nomination. Now comes the tricky part: Clinton has to forge a path forward in a way that integrates the durable legacy left behind by her opponent, Bernie Sanders. We'll commemorate the beginning of what will be a very interesting challenge for the Democratic standardbearer. Meanwhile, on the other side of the docket, Donald Trump has found his own support with Republican elites eroding badly, days after he'd earned the endorsement of House Speaker Paul Ryan. Trump's problem may be the fact that the general election season brings a higher intensity of scrutiny than he's ever faced in his career. But Trump's saving grace may be the fact that with so much to scrutinize, how will any of it stick. Maybe too much of a bad thing is a good...  

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This week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has published new rules that would govern the super-scammy payday lending industry, in the hopes that new oversight will lead to fewer people falling victim to the industry's predations. Alexis Goldstein from Americans For Financial Reform joins us to evaluate whether the Bureau's recommendations have real teeth. Meanwhile, in New Jersey, we've had the first child born in the continental United States with Zika virus-related microcephaly. This largely symbolic event gives us another opportunity to examine the halting and insufficient way Congress has thus far approached the threat of a wide-spread Zika outbreak and the increasingly desperate warnings from public health professionals about the costs of inaction. Mosquito season, we remind you, is fast approaching. Speaking of public health, the lead water crisis in Flint, Michigan did grievous harm to the public's trust in institutions that badly failed in their mission. But there's lately been a new...  

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This week, as Donald Trump celebrated winning the GOP nomination, he also earned himself a new antagonist -- Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren. After spending the bulk of the primary season cautiously straddling the line between the candidacies of Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton, Warren has gone on the attack against the reality-television host, and has rattled him in ways that the Clinton campaign has not. Is it time for Clinton to name her as her running mate? We'll make the argument. Meanwhile, we have some beyond the Beltway stories for you this week. In the Commonwealth of Virginia, Governor Terry McAuliffe has given hundreds of thousands of ex-felons who have paid their debt to society the opportunity to vote. But Republicans in Virginia are suing to reverse McAuliffe's executive order. It's all touched off a mad dash to get people registered. We'll take a look at that effort and the partisan lines that have been drawn. In addition, every year, scores of people come to the United States...  

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This week, a fracas at the Nevada state Democratic convention in Las Vegas has rent divisions between the Hillary and Bernie camps newly asunder, leading the media to speculate about whether Sanders will ever be able to unify the party again. But what if this media narrative has it overrated? What if they've got it backwards? Wouldn't be the first time! Meanwhile, Congress is taking their best shot at dealing with multiple crises at the moment. Up on Capitol Hill, legislators are proceeding in relatively swift and bipartisan fashion to address America's opiate addiction crisis, optimistic that they'll have a law signed soon. Joining us to talk about these goings on is Wisconsin Representative Reid Ribble. Shaping up more slowly is Congress' response to the Puerto Rico debt crisis. The island territory could miss a two billion dollar payment in July, creating the dire need for a loan restructuring plan before the problem deepens. Our own Laura Barron-Lopez has been covering this story from San Juan to...  

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This week, GOP nominee Donald Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan sat down for a meeting that the media has been hyping as something on the level of the Yalta Conference, if the Yalta Conference was about domesticating an insane, doll-handed white supremacist. But unifying the party won't be easy: there remains a subset of conservatives that's not given up on stopping Trump's ascension. Joining to talk about what the "NeverTrump" movement plans to do is one of its chief organizers, Republican consultant Liz Mair. Meanwhile, North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory's quest to demonize transgendered residents of the Tar Heel state has entered a new stage, in which the Federal government threatens to withhold federal money from the state on the grounds that they've enshrined unconstitutional discrimination as a state practice, and the state answers back with a legal claim of their own. Who is suing who and why and how and good lord why is any of this happening and has everyone forgotten it's 2016 and we're all...  

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This week, New York Magazine's Andrew Sullivan penned an alarming missive to America, contending that our presumed-to-be stable democracy is ripe for an authoritarian takeover. Wondering is he had anyone particular in mind? Well, we're going to find out, because he's joining us to talk about it today. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court is currently hearing an appeal from former Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell, who was convicted on corruption charges back in 2014, on one of the most open and shut cases of cash for favors we can ever remember. So why does the Supreme Court seem inclined to take his side? We'll talk about the case that could destroy our already meager protections against government corruption with author and House candidate Zephyr Teachout. Finally, we continue our coverage of the Flint lead water crisis by talking to Michigan Representative Dan Kildee, who this week maintained that what's been going on in the beleaguered city should continue to be a paramount concern of all Americans. We'll...  

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This week, someone in the 2016 campaign did something crazy and unprecedented. And for once, it's not something that reality-television star Donald Trump did. I mean, okay, he offered up his fair share of deep weirdness, don't get me wrong, but for once, he was bested in the arena of inexplicableness by his rival Ted Cruz, who...named Carly Fiorina as his running mate. Did he vet Fiorina? Does he understand that he's not winning the nomination? Is his campaign now just an act of live action role-playing? We'll try to figure this out. Meanwhile, you may have noticed that in American politics, a lot of people lie. You may have also noticed that a lot of people get caught lying, and yet somehow retain the public status to simply continue lying. It's almost as if lying were an industry unto itself right? Well, joining us this week to confirm this thesis is Ari Rabin-Havt, fellow at People For The American Way and author of a new book, Lies Incorporated: the World of Post-Truth politics. Finally, the lead...  

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This week, we are taking a look at the possibility -- THE POSSIBILITY! -- that maybe -- MAYBE -- Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is not going to win the Democratic primary. We know how difficult this prospect is for some people to face. We are being gentle. But as it is one, of many possibilities, we're going to ponder what's next for the movement he's engendered and the issues they've elucidated in the event that Sanders' revolution has to start somewhere other than the Oval Office. MTV News' Ana Marie Cox joins us in discussion. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama traveled to Saudi Arabia to meet with our best frenemies in the war on terror. Our diplomatic relationship with the Kingdom, which is awkward on its best days, has been considerably strained of late, and adding to the tension is a bipartisan bill in the Senate, supported by both Democratic candidates, that would allow victims of terrorist attacks to sue states that sponsor terrorism. It's a bill Obama has threated to veto, and its very existence...  

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This week, Democratic candidates Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton took to the debate stage in Brooklyn, in what might be the final debate of the Democratic primary. The setting is key: New York State has loomed as a delegate-heavy prize to the two candidates, both of whom claim the state as their own turf. We will deliver a full after-action report of the proceedings. Meanwhile, we bring you the best in bank dorkery. We're joined by progressive Democrat and U.S. House of Representatives candidate Zephyr Teachout, who is channeling FDR with her plan to break up big cable monopolies. And speaking of breaking things up, Alexis Goldstein of Americans for Financial reform is here to discuss the frightening new announcement from the Federal Reserve that five big U.S. banks are officially too big to fail. Dum-dum-dum. Finally, in previous podcasts, Wisconsin Representative and friend of the podcast Reid Ribble has announced that he'll be retiring after this term. But before he goes, he wants to sidle up to...  

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One week after a sheaf of leaked documents fingered Unaoil as a hothouse of global corruption, we get the Panama Papers -- a massive document dump that reveals the extent to which Panama has been used as a tax haven for the world's plutocrats, and the many global leaders who've been swift to stash their cash offshore. Meanwhile, six years ago an explosion at Massey Energy's Upper Big Branch mine in West Virginia claimed the lives of 29 coal miners. This week, a court has rendered a sentence on Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship's involvement in a conspiracy to systematically flout safety regulations. His punishment: one year in jail. If that seems deeply screwed up to you, we'll help you nurture your outrage. Finally, with every passing week on the campaign trail, resolution seems further away, and tensions keep getting racheted up. We'll discuss the New York Daily News interview that caught Bernie Sanders up in a hot sack of nonsense. Plus, Wisconsin Congressman Marc Pocan joins us to talk about how his...  

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This week, documents obtained by Fairfax Media, have exposed energy contractor Unaoil as an almost comical practitioner of corporate graft, bribing their way across the developing world on behalf of well-known Western corporations. We'll break down the story. Meanwhile, in some better news for major U.S. corporations, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal defied his party this week in vetoing a religious freedom bill that would have enshrined legal discrimination against the LGBTQ community. Finally, what is it like to fall into the burning ring of fire produced by Donald Trump's legion of social media fans? Our own Christina Wilkie found out for herself firsthand, and has some of the vile details to share with us.  

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This week we witnessed an awful terrorist attack in Brussels, so we'll ask what that means for America's foreign policy. Is Donald Trump a fascist? Kind of, but we asked a history professor and it turns out he may be closer to Jefferson Davis than Benito Mussolini. Also, Bernie Sanders is still running for president, even though it's hopeless. We'll explain why.  

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This week, President Barack Obama picked Judge Merrick Garland to fill Antonin Scalia's vacant seat on the Supreme Court. But who is Merrick Garland, and why? Answers are coming. Meanwhile, is the Democratic Party still the party of the working class and the little guy? Our guest, Thomas Frank, says this is not the case, and he joins us to talk about it. Finally, Wisconsin Representative Reid Ribble is back with us, talking about his plans to travel to Cuba with President Obama.  

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This week, the intensity of the 2016 campaign season ratched up another hundred notches or so. On the Democratic side, a surprise win in Michigan from Bernie Sanders flummoxed the pollsters, boosted the Vermont Senator's chances, and put the Clinton campaign back into arrears. But as life bloomed anew for Sanders, on the Republican side, Florida Senator Marco Rubio looked to be headed to his end, with only one debate left to alter his fortunes in Florida. Full coverage of these races are on the way. Meanwhile, the Flint water crisis has shone a despairing light on what life is like in poorer cities, and the infrastructural problems that need fixing across the nation. But now that the Michigan primary is over and Flint is no longer a campaign talking point, are we poised to forget about our nation's lead pipe problem just as attention is cresting? Finally, the biggest threat to reproductive freedoms in two decades is currently before the Supreme Court, and it comes in the form of some restrictions on...  

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This week, we had a Tuesday that some would say was far more super than most other Tuesdays, as voters in eleven states took to the polls to weigh in on who should be the presidential nominees. But beyond the winners and losers, what we learned from Super Tuesday is that big realignments are afoot for both the Republicans and the Democrats. Meanwhile, we put a spotlight on the War on Terror this week. Joining us is Amal Alderat, whose father and brother, both Libyan-American businessmen, were detained by the United Arab Emirates in 2014, jailed, and brutally tortured. Our big question: Why are two Americans being tortured by a US ally, and what does this portend for our ongoing strategy in Libya? Finally, we welcome comedian Anthony Atamaniuk who has been touring the country with James Adomian as the two men offer the nation their take on a Trump vs. Bernie debate. We'll talk about what inspired Tony to take up the task of imitating Donald Trump, and his very real fears of a Trump presidency.  

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This week, one of President Barack Obama's oldest campaign promises -- his pledge to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility -- is back in the news after the Pentagon put forth the latest version of a plan to finally fulfill this commitment. Meanwhile, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder is coming to Washington to testify about the Flint Water Crisis. We'll talk to one member of that committee about the extent to which Snyder is himself culpable for the poisoning of Flint's citizens. Finally, Alexis Goldstein joins us to talk about a great new plan from DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schutlz that would gut a new rule from Elizabeth Warren's consumer financial protection bureau that would regulate the predators in the payday loan business.  

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This week, the passing of Supreme Court Justice has created yet another opportunity for a gigantic political meltdown between President Barack Obama and his opponents in the Senate, as well as a new round of talking points for candidates on the campaign trail. We'll explain where battle lines have been drawn and what's likely to happen next. Meanwhile, our guest this week is Maryland State Senator and law professor Jamie Raskin, who's gotten into the crowded Democratic primary to replace Representative Chris Van Hollen in Maryland's 8th District. He'll make his case for why he belongs getting the nomination over some well funded, but less experienced opponents. Finally, we've been talking on this show about the dangers to the economy posed by Too Big To Fail banks, and we have some good news to report: our overwhelmingly sound arguments have convinced former bailout czar and current president of the Minneapolis Fed Neel Kashkari to join us. This was pretty unexpected, but now we're gonna gloat.  

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This week, the 2016 campaign went to New Hampshire for the Granite State's first in the nation primaries, and after all the hoopla, we ended up with the blowout wins for Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders that the polls predicted. Meanwhile, payday lenders are scammy, terrible scourge on this earth, preying on the poor in order to profit from consuming their incomes in a cycle of indebtedness. But in the state of Mississippi, there's new hope for everyone who'd like to see these predators brought to heel. Finally, we circle back to another big story -- the Flint lead-water crisis. This time we're talking about something positive: specifically how Flint's residents and local activists may actually achieve something that's been lacking in other similar lead water crises around the country -- namely, accountability.  

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This week, Zephyr Teachout wants in! The Fordham law professor has set her sights on New York's 19th District's House seat. Meanwhile, Reid Ribble wants out! The reform-minded Wisconsin Republican announced that he'd be retiring from the House at the end of the year. We'll chat him up about the 2016 scene, his plans for his last year, and what he hopes life after government is like. And Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy joins us to talk about reforming the U.S. relationship with the brutal and warlike regime in Saudi Arabia. Finally, the presidential race has finished its sojourn in Iowa, and the moveable feast moves on to New Hampshire. We'll discuss everything we learned about voters and the numbers.  

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So, that happened. This week, we have interviews galore. First up, Hollywood Director Adam McKay. Next up, award-winning author and Atlantic reporter-slash-essayist Ta-Nehisi Coates is on hand to offer his perspective on about reparations, Reconstruction, and the Democratic primary. Finally, Florida Representative and Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz has drawn an opponent in her Democratic primary. We talk to her challenger, Tim Canova. You can listen to our show at itunes.com/panoply or itunes.com/sothathappened or by searching for "so that happened" on stitcher.  

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So, that happened. The water crisis in Flint, Michigan has reached a fever pitch, as 2016 candidates weigh in and various emergency declarations get made. We're going to step away from the sideshow this week and attempt to figure out how all of this actually came to pass. Joining us to discuss this is a man who was there when the fateful decisions got made, former Flint City Councilman Josh Freeman. Meanwhile, we are mere days away from the Iowa Caucus, and across this land, the geek show is in full effect. The GOP is slowly starting to cotton to the notion that they may have to accept Donald Trump, even as he uses Sarah Palin to rub their faces in their failings. And the Democratic side of the ledger has taken a veer into edgy chaos as well. We go searching for constants in a race where the norms have slipped and the scripts have flipped. Finally, Washington DC played host to the U.S. Conference of Mayors this week, and the scene was more electric than usual. Flint's lead pipes, Baltimore's inequality...  

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So, that happened. Another GOP debate is in the books, as the remnants of the Establishment do battle to preserve their bid against the firebrands currently dominating the race. And what of those two firebrands? Will Donald Trump successfully paint Ted Cruz as...Canadian? Your Huffington Post team is in full effect with post-debate analysis Meanwhile, as a wise man once said, every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end. Or something. The point is, President Barack Obama delivered his final State Of The Union this week, and like all States of the Union, it was mostly pageantry. What's the point of these things anyway? We'll talk to one camera shy member of Congress, our pal Wisconsin Representative Reid Ribble, about what these addresses are like when you're in the midst of them. Finally, here's a phrase you might have heard if you'd been tuning in to the Democratic debates: "reinstall Glass Steagall." Is this some home repair tip, where you take your plastic Steagal out and put in a glass...  

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This week, President Barack Obama has kicked off 2016 by issuing a new set of executive actions intended to reduce the number of people who end up as casualties to America's gun culture. But it's an open question as to how significant, and how lasting, these orders will be. Joining us to discuss this is Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy. Meanwhile, out on the 2016 campaign trail, Hillary Clinton has launched some hot broadsides against Bernie Sanders' Wall Street policies. Which is...very strange? It's not where Sanders is vulnerable and, if I recall correctly, Clinton is routing Sanders in most of the primary polls. So why make these attacks at all? We will try to figure it out. Finally, for food stamps beneficiaries, 2016 could be a troublesome year, as Congressional desire to kick people out of the program continues to run a few miles ahead of where the economic recovery really is. Now, hundreds of thousands of Americans face a new year of unexpected and unnecessary food insecurity. We'll talk with one...  

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This week, it's time to bid farewell to an old year and move on to a new one. And in a few short months, at last, we'll have the Iowa Caucus -- you know, when the story we spent all of 2015 talking about finally starts. Some things don't change, though: the GOP, with Donald Trump, is having a hot mic moment. But is this a dark cloud or a silver lining? Joining us to discuss is our friend Ana Marie Cox of the Daily Beast and the New York Times and the Brouhaha podcast.Meanwhile, you know who else has a lot of unfinished business here at the end of the year? Congress, who continues to leave an absurd number of judicial vacancies unfilled. What, this again? Ahh, but it gets even dumber -- remember how we're at war with ISIS? If you answered yes, could you maybe run for office? Finally, what other burning questions do we have about the coming year? Did Wall Street leave us any money? Will a grand jury ever indict a police officer? Will Zach Carter move out of his tent into a real apartment? Finally we can...  

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This week, it's Christmas, and we're celebrating the holidays by talking about our favorite Christmas movies, and adding a lot of silly economic and political wonkery. What do our Christmas entertainments teach us about our life and times? Let's find out. Meanwhile, in America, you can't have Christmas without also having a war on Christmas. So how did this year's war go? Here to discuss everything from blood red Starbucks cups to the Lifetime Channel's quick shots of false Yuletide hope is comedy writer and reporter Katla McGlynn. Finally, you know what the best gift we received all year was? A government agency not shot through with grotesque regulatory capture. Our pal Alexis Goldstein joins us to discuss what a mitzvah the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has been.  

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This week, the Mayor of Flint, Michigan declared a state of emergency over the amount of lead that's been in the city's drinking water. But why did it take so long? Joining us to talk about it is the woman who's been beating the drum about this emergency for months, Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha. Meanwhile, for months, political observers have been struggling to understand what it is about Donald Trump that has made him so appealing. Well, for once we're going right to the source -- a self-professed Trump admirer who appreciates the Donald's message -- even if he's not yet ready to actually cast a vote for him. Finally, we got debates! The GOP candidates met out in Las Vegas to talk National Security this week. We'll break down who helped their own cause, and who's headed for the exits. Also, there's another Democratic debate coming up…on a Saturday night. Do the Democrats even want people to watch?  

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This week, Donald Trump said some crazy stuff -- but what does it matter? How to solve a problem like Donald Trump? We've got guests who'll do their best to answer just that including Wisconsin Republican Congressman Rep. Reid Ribble (R-Wisc), and writer and podcaster Ana Marie Cox. Meanwhile, Democrats Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders seem to want to have a serious debate over the future of the Democratic party. So why doesn't the Democratic party want anyone to watch? Can Clinton's plan to rein in Wall Street immunize her against the charges that she's under their thumb. Also: Martin O'Malley will be there. Finally, Congress needs to pass an omnibus funding bill to keep the government from shutting down -- again. Last time we did this, some big banks used the leverage to make off with some of your money and paid no price for the extortion. So guess what's happening this time, just guess!  

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This week, we live through the horrors of two mass shootings -- one in Colorado Springs, one in San Bernadino. We'll fight this battle of broken records with our August 28 interview with Senator Chris Murphy. In hopeful news, world leaders have assembled in Paris to discuss the next steps to combat climate change, and observers are coming away feeling fairly optimistic about what's unfolding. And closer to home, a few lawmakers have hit upon one of those small ideas that make a big difference -- a way to help working class parents make ends meet by providing them with diapers, a product that poor parents spend an astonishing portion of their income procuring. Joining us to discuss this is Representative Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) Meanwhile, in Washington, a big winner has emerged in the fight to pass a highway funding bill and, naturally, it's an obscure bank with enough lobbying clout to get key lawmakers to just hand it money. Finally, the ostensible mayor of Chicago, Rahm Emanuel, is presiding over the...  

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This week, it's Thanksgiving, and we've got a diverse array of guests around our table. Here to join us to talk about his biennial budgeting reform proposal, Wisconsin Representative Reed Ribble. And giving us a lesson in how to get along with everyone at Thanksgiving dinner is the host of the Brouhaha podcast, our pal Ana Marie Cox. Meanwhile, by the time you hear this, it will be Black Friday. Do you remember when Black Friday didn't use to start on Thanksgiving Day? We'll talk about the backlash that's beginning to brew behind the retail industry's most evil invention.Finally, it's becoming more and more clear that Donald Trump intends to make angry, racist, lying the centerpiece of his campaign. Now, a group of Republicans have ordered the Code Red, forming one of those shady dark money organizations just to stop Trump. But what if RNC's Chair Reince Priebus' worst fear is realized, and Trump runs as a third party candidate?  

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It's been a week since a cell of European ISIS-supporting death cultists launched a horrific attack on the city of Paris. None of us would be here were it not for France, we are going to try to do right by them. But why have so many American politicians chosen this moment to demonize the most defenseless people on the planet, refugees from war-torn Syria? We'll talk about this with Massacusetts Representative Jim McGovern. Meanwhile, what do the terrorists of the so-called Islamic State hope to gain by attacking Parisiens? As it turns out, there's something very specific that they hope to destroy called the "Grayzone of coexistence." So what does that mean? We shall explain as best we can.Finally, while the world's been watching Paris, your Congresscritters have moved a law through the House of Representatives that would make it easier for auto dealers to practice racial discrimination in the issuance of car loans. And guess what? This passed with massive bipartisan support. It's the latest chapter in a...  

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This week, students at the University of Missouri, angry about the school's indifference to racist incidents on campus, forced the resignation of the anthropomorphic shrug emoticon that had managed to become the school’s president. What next? Meanwhile, in Milwaukee, the GOP met for their fourth debate and, it didn't end in tears and angry remonstrations like the last debate -- but are we any closer to a candidate? Finally, it was a big week for the Fight for $15 movement, with their fast food strike earning them a place at the GOP debate. It wasn't a good week for those who want to close Guantanamo Bay prison, with Congress once again throwing barriers in front of one of President Obama's oldest campaign promises. We'll figure out what happens next.  

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This week, the GOP candidates, furious at the rough treatment they received at the hands of CNBC, rebelled against the debate process. The first casualty of all this nonsense was a debate scheduled to take place on Telemundo. It's just one of a series of slights suffered by the Latino community so far this election cycle. Meanwhile, if you've ever applied for a job, you've seen the box on the application, asking you to detail any history of criminal conviction. This week, President Obama ordered Federal agencies to remove that from their forms, joining a growing, bipartisan movement to "ban the box.”Finally, the 2015 election is over and in Kentucky the big loser wasn't Democratic Gubernatorial nominee Jack Conway -- though he did lose. Rather, it was the thousands of poor Kentuckians who now might lose their health insurance as a result of Republican Matt Bevin's ascension. Will this finally be the moment Democrats realize that they are functionally dead as a party at state-level? Probably not!  

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This week, the GOP met in Colorado for their third debate, and once again we were struck by how many of them there are! So many candidates, plus Jim Gilmore, the human asterisk. Will this be the debate that finally begins the winnowing? Meanwhile, Congress has actually agreed to a budget deal. At least in principle. Will there be no crises? Will Paul Ryan's sweet Speaker deal get a LOT sweeter? Or will Rand Paul unleash the power of the filibuster to defeat comity? Finally, Elizabeth Warren just embarrassed Wall Street AGAIN, this time with a new report detailing the extent to which bad financial advisors get lavish vacations as a reward for steering clients into terrible investments. At the rate she's going, America may not have a grifter-sector of the economy left for anyone to make money.  

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This week, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced that they were going to reanimate a zombie deregulation plan from the pre-financial crisis Bush administration, that could tip the balance of power away from Main Street. Meanwhile, imagine a place where a liberal party could declare forthrightly that they were going to run temporary deficits to facilitate infrastructure upgrades, and have the entire country reward this radical honesty with a landslide vote. That nation is Canada, they've just had an election, and it took less than three months to boot! Finally, it's been a week of upheaval in American politics as Joe Biden opts to not run for President, and Paul Ryan offers to serve as the Speaker of the House, provided he gets some free stuff from the Federal Government first.  

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This week, the Intercept published new information on our drone assassination program, gleaned from a trove of secret documents, which include new details on how targets are selected, and how well we do at hitting those targets. Also, the Democratic candidates for president have had their first primary debate of the season. Now that we've had time to reflect on it, we're going to confront our own conventional wisdom and see if what we said that night still stands up. Who won the debate? It may have been someone that never appeared on the stage—it’s not Joe Biden. Finally, the manufacturers of Miller and the makers of Budweiser have agreed to a merger that would create the biggest beer company in the world. But is bigger best, or even better? Rep. Pete DeFazio (D-OR) joins us to roll out the barrel on behalf of America's small brewers.  

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This week, we bombed some folks. Specifically, a Doctors Without Border hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan. President Barack Obama finally came out with an apology, but why the hell did this happen in the first place? Meanwhile, you've heard of the Benghazi Committee, you might know about the Planned Parenthood Committee, but what if we had a Congressional committee focused on reducing gun violence in America? Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA) joins us and explains. Finally, if you've watched any televised sports or televised anything -- you may be aware of the existence of Draft Kings and Fan Duel. Is the sudden ubiquity of big money fantasy sports making you question reality as well?  

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This week, Donald Trump provided us with some evidence that he might really be a serious candidate by doing something that a serious candidate would do -- release a tax plan claiming to benefit some people when it really benefits others. Meanwhile, this week, the House Oversight Committee erupted into furor over Planned Parenthood, staging an all-day marathon of angry blather. Are we headed for a government shutdown over this? We'll talk to Rep. Reed Ribble (R- Wisc.) who wants to defund the organization but doesn't want to shut down the government over it. Also, Elizabeth Warren is not running for president, but she's still putting fools on blast on your behalf and her latest takedown really illuminates how this entire town is basically built on a foundation of cheap, chummy corruption.  

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This week, Pope Francis comes to the United States, driving around in his Fiat, paying President Obama a visit, and taking his act to a joint session of Congress for a round of grand-master level thought leadering. Much of the focus in the lead up to his DC visit concerned what he's had to say on the environment and immigration. We'll talk about what he said to lawmakers, and the extent to which he might change people's minds on those issues. Meanwhile, politicians just want to rock! But what happens when the artists that write and perform their favorite songs find out that their work is being played at political rallies? In the case of some Republican presidential hopefuls, it has not been ending well. Joining us to offer his perspective is musician and songwriter Ted Leo. Finally, one person who won't have to worry about the songs being played at his political rallies anymore is Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) who this week announced that he was quitting the presidential race after 70 days. We ask what...  

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This week, the 278 candidates vying for the Republican nomination gathered in the seamiest of valleys to debate one another. Or, sorry, deal with Donald Trump. New York Times magazine's Ana Marie Cox joins us for some debate post-game analysis. Meanwhile, Washington DC is bracing for a visit from Pope Francis, coming to America at a time in which his message about income inequality is resonating -- especially among liberals. The Washington Examiner's Tim Carney helps us get jesuitical. Finally, speaking of odd intersections of politics and religion, presidential aspirant Sen. Bernie Sanders (I - Vt) brought his very liberal campaign the evangelical college Liberty University. Was Sanders preaching to the unconvertible, or was there an real opportunity for connection? Fusion's news director Kevin Roose helps explain the significance of this event.  

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This week Congress is set to return from Labor Day weekend, and once again we find ourselves staring down the prospect of government shutdown. Connecticut Representative Rosa DeLauro joins us to explain the next coming chapter of political dysfunction. Meanwhile, it's starting to look more and more as if the Iran deal is here to stay. But just because the deal is nearly done, that doesn't mean opponents have any plan to retreat. We discuss the shape of Iran hawkery to come. Finally, if you listen to some of the public pronouncements of several Democratic presidential candidates, you'll hear many talk a good game about criminal justice reform. What you won't hear is any reckoning of the ghosts of votes pasts and the actions that have spurred the need for reform in the first place. We say: Not so fast you guys.  

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This week we examine the legacy of President Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, which has just secured its political survival in the Senate. Also Congress is coming back after August recess which means the government is probably going to shut down. We also talk to Sec. Tom Vilsack about problems facing the national school lunch program. Meanwhile, in 2016 land, Donald Trump is still running for president and Hillary Clinton has an incredibly stupid e-mail scandal on her hands.  

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This week, the shocking murder of two television journalists in Virginia forced us to confront the fact that America only seems to be good at producing mass shooting tragedies. Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy joins us to see whether Congress has finally reached the point of attempting to solve this problem. Meanwhile, Donald Trump is doing everything he can to alienate every last Latino voter. Will his flamboyant hostility accrue to the eventual GOP nominee? Joining us is NPR's Latino USA digital media director Julio Ricardo Varela to answer just that. Finally, as Joe Biden mulls getting into the 2016 race, he's taking meetings with Sen. Elizabeth Warren. We’ll take a trip down memory lane to 2005 when Biden and Warren sat on opposite sides of a bankruptcy bill that would change the game for Main Street. Plus we about stock market swings and the battle to defend ancient culture from ISIS!  

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This week, we learned about the High-Value Detainee Interrogation Group, an interagency outfit set up to bring the nation's most elite interrogators to fight terror. But what we've learned kind of calls the entire"elite" thing into question. Meanwhile, a group Northwestern University football players snapped the ball to the National Labor Relations Board, hoping that the NLRB would run a play that would get student athletes closer to real labor rights. Unfortunately, the NLRB chose to punted. And that's not all, folks. We've got news you can use about the pet food industry and how hard it is to find safe food for Fido. Plus, we take a dip into the 2016 race, ponder Marco Rubio's passing ability, and well, talk about Donald Trump.  

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This week, Bernie Sanders had what might have been a dream week as a presidential candidate, drawing bigger crowds than anyone in the presidential race. But Sanders was also subjected to a Black Lives Matter protest. Can Sanders' new racial justice platform win them over? Also, we talked to Wesley Lowery of the Washington Post and HuffPost's own Ryan Reilly about the absurd criminal charges filed against them for being journalists covering Ferguson. And Lawrence Lessig just joined the 2016 Democratic field! But he doesn't actually want to be president, also just call him Larry.  

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This week, we cover the wild wonders of the first Republican Presidential debates. We hate to say it, but Donald Trump won. Carly Fiorina also won, because there were actually two debates. Everyone else landed somewhere between meh and oops-I-lost-my-donors. Much like Clarissa, we explain it all. Also, someone give Sen. Lindsey Graham a hug. Please.  

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On this week's podcast, we game out the survival strategy for the seventeen GOP candidates who hope to succeed in August's debate, check in on the progress Congress has made on the highway funding bill, and note the irony of Phil Gramm returning to DC to testify against Dodd-Frank.  

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On this week's podcast, we look back on Elizabeth Warren ripping apart a rip-off artist from Primerica, break down the latest effort to pass a highway funding bill, and explain why a former NSA chief is talking to a bunch of fruit growers.  

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This week we talk to Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) about austerity in Greece and banking regulations at home, break down the latest attack on Planned Parenthood, and examine the way unlimited money is wrecking the RNC's hopes for an orderly primary season.  

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This week we examine the austerity battles in Greece, break down the latest stage of the Iran nuclear talks, and we get a real world account of what happens when Congress cuts off your access to food. Plus, the Daily Caller's Tucker Carlson is a huge Grateful Dead fan, who knew? He joins us to talk about it.  

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On this week's podcast, Dana Liebelson joins us to discuss her recent exposé of the prison system in Michigan, where children -- commingled with adult criminals -- are being broken, not rehabilitated. Plus: we discuss last week's marriage equality ruling, this week's new overtime regulation, and we talk to Laura Bassett about England's heartbreaking loss in the Women's World Cup.  

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This week we hear from Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) about his bill to pursue police demilitarization, discuss the confederate flag and the aftermath of the Emanuel AME church shooting in Charleston, debrief on the Supreme Court's ruling on Obamacare subsidies and find out why the state of Florida actually banished one of its residents.  

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On this week's podcast, we talk to Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) about how he would get things done as president, discover the joys of hearing a magic trick delivered by Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI), chat with Rep. Keith Ellison about the fast track trade bill's life after death and finally, we get the details on a bill preventing U.S. ground troops in the fight against the Islamic State.  

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This week we asked Senator Eilzabeth Warren (D-Mass.) if Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan Should be fired (she didn't say no), discuss strategic defaulting on student loan debt, and get the scoop from Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) on the latest fast track vote in Congress.  

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On this week's podcast, we get excited about some sporting updates, get the lowdown on newly passed USA Freedom Act and discuss why Senator Elizabeth Warren isn't happy with SEC Chairwoman Mary Jo White.  

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This week we discuss how and why FIFA officials were arrested over a wide array of corruption charges, how crowded the 2016 GOP presidential field is getting and finally how the House is hoping to keep countries with oppressive labor and human trafficking records party to the President's already controversial fast track free trade bill. Guests: HuffPost Reporters Zach Carter, Arthur Delaney, Laura Barron Lopez and Ryan Grim  

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This week we look into legislation passed in Texas restricting access to abortions for minors, compare and contrast federal legislation aimed at curbing what food stamps can buy with the fact that Congress want us to give them more money and we conclude our conversation from last week on Seymour Hersh's controversial claims about the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden.  

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This week we'll take a look at a trade deal that's so contentious, President Barack Obama is finding himself at odds with congressional leaders in his own party. We'll reflect on the tragic Amtrak train accident that left eight people dead, and discuss what role infrastructure funding can play in preventing this from happening again. Then, we'll discuss Seymour Hersh's new piece, which has become the center of a lot of criticism. Should his article be dismissed, or should it encourage other reporters to reopen the story around the death of Osama bin Laden?  

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This week we take a look into some of the backstory explaining Baltimore's issues with inequality in the wake of protests after Freddie Gray's death, get the scoop on arguments heard this week in the Supreme Court's landmark case on same sex marriage and explore some of the complexities surrounding campaign finance laws and Hillary Clinton's run for president.  

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This week we look at one Washington State community in which the battle for a $15 dollar minimum wage has been won, discuss the latest developments in the political battle over the Trans Pacific Partnership, and discuss the 2016 election by talking about how much we hate the 2016 election.  

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This week, Hillary Clinton launched her campaign, but didn't order sofritas at Chipotle, the House of Representatives voted to offer upwards of 250 billion dollars in handouts to needy, filthy rich Americans and a man flew a gyrocopter onto the U.S. Capitol lawn to get us to talk about campaign finance reform.  

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This week, we discuss the fall out from the Columbia Journalism Review report on Rolling Stone Magazine’s “A Rape On Campus” story, Rand Paul’s campaign strategy of talking down to reporters, and why Democrats have been obscuring their positions in support of more deregulations for big banks.  

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Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (R) one-upped Indiana Gov. Mike Pence (R) over the handling of controversial religious freedom legislation, there's a new hope for millions of Americans living on the ragged edge of homelessness, and since April Fool's Day was this week, we explore the dark side of all the foolery. This week's episode features: Arthur Delaney, HuffPost Senior Reporter Jen Bendery, HuffPost White House Correspondent  

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This week, the 2016 race welcomed Ted Cruz to the GOP scrum after the Texas Senator made his presidential ambitions clear to a literally captive audience of Liberty University students. He's been immediately anointed as a long shot, but is he really? Meanwhile, there are other places in the world besides America. How are things going there, and what does it mean for us? We'll talk about elections in Israel, unrest in Yemen, and -- I hesitate to even say this aloud -- a potentially hopeful turn in Afghanistan, graveyard of empires. Finally, as if you needed something even more surreal and complicated in your lives, we're going to talk about seigniorage, the minting of dollar coins, the minting of platinum coins, the eternally ephemeral nature of the concept of money, and -- strangely enough -- whether or not Europeans are terrible people.  

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This week, the GOP released their budget proposals and it's good news if you like massive cuts in discretionary spending and a bloated defense budget. We'll detail the broad strokes of a funding fantasia that probably won't pass and will likely lead to some new apocalyptic showdown. Meanwhile, Illinois Congressman Aaron Schock is resigning his seat, after the public disclosure of his "Downton Abbey" themed office inspired reporters to investigate the numerous ways Schock was spending taxpayer money. But is this the best we can do when it comes to fighting government corruption? Sadly, yes. Finally, Starbucks has decided to take on race relations in America by asking their baristas to lead a national conversation about it. Are they getting paid more? Will the coffee taste better? What is a caramel flan latte, exactly? We have three white dudes on hand to talk about this, so sit back and listen to us make a sad, blundering hash of unformed thoughts and unintended microaggressions out of this topic.  

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This week, Iranian leaders got a letter, authored by Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton and signed by 46 other Republican Senators, in which a clear message was sent. That message? "No one should ever take the United States of America at their word." Why did this have to happen? We're joined by HuffPost national security reporter Jessica Schulberg to figure that out. Meanwhile, letters of an unseen, electronic variety are also in the news this week, as presumptive Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton spoke publicly for the first time about the email flap that's embroiled her nascent campaign. It's one big weird own-goal, and the soccer metaphors do not end there. Finally, someone at the Federal Reserve spilled a secret to wealthy investors. Someone else at the Federal Reserve tried to find out who that was. Then everyone found out that the Federal Reserve was trying to find this out. And Congress would like to know why they've not been apprised about any of this. Will this bolster those who say the...  

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This week, let's talk about you. What kind of stuff you like to read on this site, and how do we provide it when Congress takes off a day early to avoid a snow storm? Senior Politics Editor Paige Lavender explains.  Meanwhile, the Supreme Court took up a challenge to Obamacare. If you like your health insurance, will you get to keep it? We talked to health care reporter Jeff Young about how nine people in robes could become the Affordable Care Act's final death panel.  Finally, you might have heard that Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) doesn't know whether President Barack Obama is a Christian, but did you know Walker dealt a major blow to labor unions this week? Labor reporter Dave Jamieson tells us all about it.  

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This week, the Republican-led House Agriculture Committee began what they termed as a "top to bottom" review of the federal food stamp program. In a surprising twist, however, the Committee's new management struck a soft and empathetic tone towards a government program they'd previously demonized. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama and Senator Elizabeth Warren are teaming up on a plan to bring more security to retirees by making it harder for fly-by-night financial advisors to screw their clients for their own personal gain. But why did dozens of Democrats sign a letter, opposing this idea? Finally, the 2016 invisible primary continues, and the big winner this week, we are told, is Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. We'll explain why so many people are telling us that. We'll also remind you that it is February of 2015, because sometimes it seems we forget that.  

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This week, the fight over President Barack Obama's immigration policies returns to the halls of Congress, with opponents of the President's executive actions threatening to cease funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Is this a smart idea? Of course not. But we'll talk about it as if it might make sense to someone. Meanwhile, potential Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush went through the ancient campaign ritual of giving a foreign policy philosophy speech, to prove that he cares about foreign policy, and ancient rituals. Did you notice that Jeb Bush has the same last name as another president with a foreign policy? Because this was the week that every political reporter finally noticed this. Finally, Elizabeth Warren has been having what we are told are world-historical chit-chats with people like former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and current Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen. What do these meetings augur? Well, none of us were present at the meetings, so we'll do what media experts...  

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This week, America's ongoing battle with ISIS reached a new stage, specifically that stage where the President asks Congress if its okay with them that he started an ongoing battle with ISIS. Meanwhile, closer to home we have governors behaving badly -- Sam Brownback wants gays to experience workplace discrimination. Scott Walker isn't sure he has the guts to talk about middle school science. And have you heard about all the nonsense that brought about the resignation of Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber? Finally, famous media people are leaving their famous media jobs. But did they jump, or were they pushed?  

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This week, the early stages of the 2016 presidential election collided headlong with the phenomenon of vaccine denialism, with two candidates ending up in intensive care for foot-in-mouth disease. Meanwhile, the Obama budget is out, and from the looks of it, it seems the president wants to swing for the fences on infrastructure. early-childhood care, and increased federal spending. But did he notice that Congress is controlled by the GOP? Finally, this was a big week for Downton Abbey-inspired Congressional interior decoration scandals.  

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This week, we learned that President Barack Obama is really upset with our coverage of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. So he's not gonna like what we're about to do, which is talk about the fact that the one part of his agenda Congress might sign on to is the trade deal every liberal hates. Meanwhile, the Koch brothers announced they have budgeted a cool $889 million for the 2016 elections. To put it in perspective, if you stacked $889 million one by one on a table, we would knock you over the head and steal as much as we could. Finally, it's Super Bowl weekend. What time is the Super Bowl? We don't answer that question. But we do talk about all the hilarious goings-on from media week in Arizona.  

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This week, President Barack Obama delivered his sixth State Of The Union Address before a joint session of Congress now completely controlled by his opposition. In that speech, the most newsworthy moment came when the President urged a focus on what he called "middle-class economics." The quick, hot take was that by doing so, Obama was opening a new round of combat with Republicans. Finally, once the pageantry of the State Of The Union had faded, Congress returned to their typical State Of Disarray.  

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This week, the 2016 race was roiled by the announcement that former GOP nominee and 2012 loser Mitt Romney was, against all logic, getting his band back together to mount yet another run for the White House. This has baffled everyone, including the Huffington Post's Amanda Terkel, who joins us to form a chorus of confused noises. Elsewhere, the past few weeks has seen the age-old battle between Wall Street and Main Street re-enjoined with American taxpayers facing the prospect of the Volcker Rule getting delayed. But the spines of the Democratic minority have suddenly stiffened. We'll talk about why with Zach Carter and Arthur Delaney. Finally, President Barack Obama is pitching a plan to reform paid family leave for Federal workers. We'll discuss the implications of the plan, and its potential to spur similar reforms elsewhere.  

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This week, radical militants from a pseudo-Islamic death cult murdered twelve members of the staff of French satire magazine Charlie Hebdo in their Paris office, ending any hope we had that 2015 would be a respite from 2014's garbage and misery. Meanwhile, the new year has ushered in a new Congress -- so far bringing us the same old stories: a leadership fight with John Boehner, a rift over budget policy, and the perennial question, "Can our government govern." Finally, the 2016 race is now officially underway, and right off the bar we have one of those silly, unserious rows between two rivals. Is there any chance that we might actually raise the bar in this election? L-O-L.  

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This week, President Barack Obama announced that the United States would make an effort to normalize relations with Cuba, ending a decade long policy of distance that had been surprisingly effective in doing nothing in particular. We'll talk about the new plan, and who is hopping mad about it. Meanwhile, a Seth Rogen-James Franco comedy has been cancelled, because North Korea apparently now dictates what movies we watch in our spare time? How did something so simple get so out of hand? And finally, we're taking a look back at 2014: a great year for garbage monsters. What are our least favorite things about the past year? Well, this is going to take a while.  

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So That Happened, Episode 13: The CIA Torture Report Was A Chronicle Of Depravity And Incompetence This week, the Senate's report on CIA torture was released into the wild, and while the redactions were thick, it nevertheless read as a thoroughgoing chronicle of depravity and incompetence that will, at the very least, ruin hummus forever. National security reporter Ali Watkins is here to walk us through the report. Meanwhile, last week we introduced you to the CROMNIBUS -- the lame-duck budget bill that needed to be passed to keep the government working. This week, legislators got lathered up about a Wall Street poison pill that came along with the bill, leading to new fractures and strange alliances that could come to define the legislative fights ahead. And speaking of the CROMNIBUS, the bill also contained language that may scuttle the efforts of the District of Columbia to decriminalize weed. It's another blow to a group of Americans who have never had fair representation in Congress.  

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This week, hard on the heels of the Ferguson grand jury decision, a grand jury in New York City returns no indictment on the police officer who choked Eric Garner to death on the streets of Staten Island. Can the cops be stopped before they kill again? Meanwhile, America's first brush with an Ebola outbreak has been resolved, but President Barack Obama wants to do more to prevent the next one. Will Congress come through, or has interest with Ebola faded now that it's no longer a sexy, midterm election issue? And finally, we would like to introduce a new work to your political lexicon: CROMNIBUS. We'll tell you what a cromnibus is, and how it could totally screw up your life.  

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This week, after several months of "will-he-or-won't he" wonderings, President Barack Obama went ahead on his own and issued new executive actions to fill the space where a comprehensive immigration reform bill should be. We'll sort this out with HuffPost immigration reporter Elise Foley. Meanwhile, the Senate came one vote shy of approving the Keystone XL pipeline -- all because Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) got the notion that willing the pipeline into existence might rescue her all-but-doomed re-election prospects. HuffPost environmental reporter Kate Sheppard is here with her observations on this strange week in the life of the Keystone debate. Finally, have you heard about this CIA torture report? This long-awaited investigation of the troubled period in the War On Terror was supposed to be nearing its release. But that's now in doubt as legislators and the White House fight over redactions. We'll find out what secrets we can with HuffPost's national security reporter Ali Watkins.  

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So, that happened: This week, President Barack Obama announced his full-throated support for "net neutrality," a term that basically means "don't let Comcast turn the Internet into a dystopian mess" -- unless you're Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and then you think it's "Obamacare for the Internet." Speaking of, this weekend marks the beginning of another period of Obamacare enrollment. Health care reporter Jeff Young joins the podcast to tell consumers -- old and new -- what they need to know about buying insurance from the health care exchanges. Finally, we'll talk about the latest threat to the Affordable Care Act: a daffy legal case that threatens to end the subsidies that Obamacare customers are using to -- you know -- continue staying alive.  

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So that happened: And we mean this literally just happened. The 2014 midterm elections are in the books, and for the Democratic party, it was one big coast-to-coast Red Wedding. "Drinking and Talking" host Sam Stein joins the podcast to pick through the wreckage and answer some questions: What are the next two years going to be like? What can Democrats learn from this historic waxing? And can they manage to flip this script in 2016?  

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So that... is about to happen: Tuesday, November 4th is Election day, and we've enlisted Huff Post Pollster's own Mark Blumenthal to set the table. We'll talk about the marquee event of Election Night -- which party will end up control the Senate -- is shaping up. Mark will let us know whether and how the polls we've been paying attention to are wrong. Most importantly, we'll discuss the reasons why we may not actually know the results of the election by the time election night ends.  

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