Liar Liar Pres for Hire

If there was a fundamental shift in the election dynamics this week, it wasn't perceptible at the surface level. A great returning panel of Alisyn Camerota, David French, and Norm Ornstein joins Harry to discuss whether Trump's increasingly brazen lies move any voters into his column. They then take up the VP debate & Vance's inability to concede that Trump lost in 2020; Harris's week, highlighted by a joint appearance w/ Liz Cheney; & finally the impact of the Jack Smith brief in the 1/6 case.

Harry speaks with Alisyn Camerota, David French, and Norm Ornstein

What Polls Get Wrong

Harry talks with Michael Podhorzer, founder of the Analyst Institute and perhaps the foremost student in the country of the true utility and disutility of political polls. Podhorzer explains the critical difference between two types of “undecided” voters the polls lump together – those (very very rare) votes still uncertain whom to vote for and those (much more common) voters who may or may not vote but know whom they would vote for. The difference has key implications for the state of the race, the best strategies for the campaign, and the right and wrong ways to interpret polls. The distinction also helps explain Trump’s steadfast refusal to expand or soften his autocratic extreme MAGA message. Podhorzer also explains the modeling he has done of the 2024 electorate based on vote history and behavior. A rich discussion and an effective antidote to the “Mad Poll Disease” that so many of us have as the election approaches.

Harry speaks with Michael Podhorzer

Donald Declining

With five weeks to go before the election, Donald Trump seems content to double and redouble down on his appeal to the extreme elements of his base, including conspicuous racist and xenophobic undertones. Kamala Harris spent the week laying out detailed economic policy proposals, facing the press, wooing rural and blue-collar voters, and burnishing her credentials as a potential Commander in Chief. A stellar roundtable of Jen Rubin, Stuart Stevens, & Ali Vitali joins Harry to break it all down.

Harry speaks with Jen Rubin, Stuart Stevens, & Ali Vitali

DOJ Insider with Preet Bharara

Harry sits down with Preet Bharara, former United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York and an encyclopedic source about tradition, culture, and current state of play at the Department of Justice. The two have a wide-ranging conversation touching on the threat of Project 2025 to DOJ in particular; the current state of morale, which suffered in the Trump years; fine points of strategy in the DOJ prosecutions of Trump; the Supreme Court’s impact on DOJ practice; and a lot more.

Harry speaks with Preet Bharara

What’s that you say, Mr. Robinson?

A superb panel of Jason Kander, Josh Marshall, and Tara Setmayer joins Harry to take stock of a wild & weird week and consider where it leaves us w/ 6 weeks to go. Harris logged two effective interviews, continued to headline boisterous rallies, and swamped Trump in fundraising. Trump continued to stir the pot about pet-eating in Springfield then at week’s end had to deal with fallout from news of ultra-gross online chatter by NC gov candidate Mark Robinson, whom Trump has praised extravagantly.

Harry speaks with Jason Kander, Josh Marshall, and Tara Setmayer

“There Is No Republican Party”

Recorded live at the Texas Tribune Festival

Harry sits down with Judge J. Michael Luttig, a leading conservative jurist and fierce critic of Donald Trump, the Republican Party, and the Supreme Court. Judge Luttig explains why Trump is the very menace to the Constitution that the Framers feared, and excoriates Republicans in Congress for enabling his authoritarian ambitions. The two move on to 3 pro-Trump Supreme Court decisions that Luttig disparages, singling out for special reproach the Court’s immunity decision, which Judge Luttig characterizes as an "abomination". It’s a hard-hitting, essential discussion with one of Trump’s most formidable conservative critics.

Harry speaks with Judge J. Michael Luttig

Talk about extreme!

The debate behind us, we are in the official 50-day homestretch of the presidential campaign. And although Kamala Harris dominated the debate, it’s not clear that it translates into a political edge in the election. A fantastic roundtable of Susan Glasser, Molly Jong-Fast, and Jacob Weisberg join Harry to assess the debate and its aftermath; analyze each side’s subsequent moves and what they reveal, including Trump’s going full-out nasty; and discuss what each side needs to do going forward.

Harry speaks with Susan Glasser, Molly Jong-Fast, and Jacob Weisberg

Kamala for the Prosecution (Live at the Texas Tribune Festival)

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

Harry speaks with Keith Ellison, Katie Phang, and Ellen Rosenblum

Next Question

An episode focusing entirely on the dynamic, exquisitely close presidential campaign in the wake of the DNC convention. Josh Marshall, Heather Cox Richardson, and Charlie Sykes join Harry to assess whether the convention gave Harris/Walz a lasting bump or just a temporary high; the ticket’s week on the campaign trail, including the CNN interview; more unwelcome headlines for the Trump team over Arlington cemetery & flip-flopping on abortion; plus some broader historical perspectives on the race.

Harry speaks with Josh Marshall, Heather Cox Richardson, and Charlie Sykes

300th Episode DNC Extravaganza!

Welcome to the 300th episode of Talking Feds, coming to you live from the heart of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago! Today’s show celebrates this milestone with an incredible roster of guests who will help us dissect the electric atmosphere and pivotal moments of this historic week. We’ve lined up exclusive interviews with some of the foremost figures in law and politics, providing you with an insider’s perspective straight from the convention floor.

Harry speaks with Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, Peter Baker, Jen Rubin, Senator Michael Bennet, Rep. Katherine Clark, AG Phil Weiser, and Rep. Jamie Raskin