Skullduggery

In the Pantheon of American conspiracy theories, the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy is the gift that keeps on giving. For nearly 60 years it has been dissected and debated by partisans of countless conspiracy theories. So what does the newly released material on the matter show? And what are they still keeping secret? We talk to two leading experts on the subject, former New York Times reporter Phil Shenon and former Washington Post Reporter Jeff Morley. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of the podcast, we sit down with Ron Deibert, who runs the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab, to discuss the “mercenary spyware” industry - and its proclivity for providing “almost god-like” spyware programs to governments who’ve been proven to use them to surveil “opposition politicians, human rights activists, journalists, academics, embassy workers, and political dissidents. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The violent insurrection at the Capitol last year was a sobering day for American democracy, and yet many people thought that - at the very least - it would break the fever that had overcome the Republican Party and push it to separate itself from Trump and move on from his repeated lies with respect to “the big steal.” That is not what happened - instead, the past two years represented a pivot point between “this is not normal “ and “this is dangerous and not going away” as we’ve all been witness to GOP taking the “plunge deeper into a Trumpian cult of compulsive dissembling and conspiracy mongering,” falling “hostage to the party’s most fevered extremists” as “the usual partisan differences [have given] way to an existential call to arms.” So writes journalist Robert Draper in his recently published “Weapons of Mass Delusion: When the Republican Party Lost its Mind,” an account of how a “new breed” of Republicans - the likes of Marjorie Taylor Greene, Paul Gosar, Matt Gaetz, Lauren Boebert, and Madison Cawthorn - far from moving on from Trump, have taken the “politics of hysteria” to even greater extremes. Through his extraordinarily intrepid cross-country reporting, Draper chronicles the ascent of these faces of the “new GOP” among the Republican base and within Congress, rendering unforgettable portraits of how “Greene and her ilk” came hold such sway over the GOP, shaping its terms of engagement to an extent that the GOP establishment - likes of Kevin McCarthy - would only begrudgingly admit. On this episode of the podcast, we sit down with Draper to talk about just how the GOP has, as he says, “lost its mind.” See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

“I have been accused of having obstructed the war. I admit it. I abhor war. I would oppose the war if I stood alone. I believe in free speech, in war as well as in peace.” So said Eugene Debs on September 12th, 1918 to members of a jury tasked with deciding whether he had, as prosecutors argued, during a speech given a few weeks earlier to a crowd of socialists attempted “to promote insubordination [in the military]” and “propagate obstruction to the [military] draft.” Debs - a socialist, political activist, trade unionist, one of the founding members of, among many leftist groups, the Socialist Party of America - would be convicted of and handed a lengthy prison sentence for violating the Espionage Act, pushed through Congress the year prior by former President Woodrow Wilson - just after the United States entered into the war in Europe. Upon signing the Act - which made criminal dissent against the war - into law, Wilson, at once, began to use it to go after opposition to the establishment - communists, socialists, trade unionists - and continued to do so even after the war had ended. This is just one of the many subjects of American Midnight, journalist and historian Adam Hochschild's recent book, in which he examines a period during which the United States saw a swell of patriotic frenzy and political repression that makes McCarthyism look almost subtle by comparison - 1917-21. On this episode of “Buried Treasure,” we sit down with Hochschild to look back on this all too often unremembered period that gave birth to the Espionage Act - some of the “darkest years of the republic” in which the government and political establishment weren’t at all opposed to blatantly illiberal approaches to achieving their desired outcomes. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

“Every so often over the past quarter-century, analysts have predicted that Iran was on the cusp of major change. They always turned out to be wrong. Now, unrest is engulfing the country yet again.” So writes Jason Rezeian in a recent piece for the Washington Post about the threats the Iranian government is facing, what people are saying - and why this time could be different. For the past three months, Iran has been rocked by protests prompted by the death of a young woman - Mahsa Amini - while in the custody of Iran’s “morality police” for the alleged crime of wearing an improper hijab. Images of Amini - bruised and on life support - spread on social media, and her name has become the latest rallying cry in what have been largely women-powered protests against the government’s repression and misogyny. It has been estimated by human rights organisations that - over the course of the protests - hundreds have died, thousands have been injured, and yet thousands more detained - upwards of 18,000 people. Rezaian, the global opinions writer for the Washington Post, served as the Post’s bureau chief in Tehran from 2012 to mid 2015, before he was arrested and convicted on bogus espionage charges and held in an Iranian prison for a year and half before being released in early 2016 as a part of a prisoner exchange with the United States. Rezaian joins us to discuss the protests, Iran’s worsening relations with the West, and what he thinks the future holds for the Islamic republic See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Attorney General Merrick Garland on Friday announced what amounts to a legal bombshell in the two most high profile investigations being carried out by his department. He's appointing a Special Council to oversee the ongoing probes into whether Donald Trump illegally sought to overturn the results of the 2020 Presidential Election. And whether he violated federal law by taking classified documents from the White House and then refused to turn them over in response to a court approved subpoena. Garland named Jack Smith, a career department prosecutor who once headed the Justice Department's Integrity Section to the job of determining Trump should be prosecuted. And yet Garland still has ultimate power to approve or reject whatever Smith decides. What does this move mean for Trump's future and the integrity of the Justice Department? We talk to Michael Zeldin, a former career prosecutor and Independent Council himself. And then we check in with Sarah Leah Whitson, executive director of the human rights group D.A.W.N. about the State Department's controversial decision to recommend shielding Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman from a lawsuit. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Donald Trump on Tuesday night announced to no one’s surprise that he will once again run for President. By Trumpian standards he seemed subdued as he described America’s decent into war, crime, and economic catastrophe ever since he left the White House twenty-two long months ago and Joe Biden took office. And yet the timing seemed curious. And to many Republicans infuriating. The party had just suffered un-expecting setbacks in the midterms. Once again losing the Senate and it seems just barely taking back the House as Trump endorsed candidates fell by the wayside one by one. And if that wasn’t enough, GOP leaders were still determined to eek out a win in a Georgia run-off and are desperate to have him stay out of the headlines. How much of a threat to Republicans stability and future success as Trump’s candidacy? We talk to Yahoo News correspondent Alex Nazaryan who was at Mar-a-Lago for the big announcement. And then we check in with Molly Jong-Fast, a popular liberal podcaster and social media influencer about what she makes of Trump’s candidacy and the unexpected midterm results. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Even while still reeling from their disappointing performance in Tuesday's election, Republicans are bracing for more turmoil, as they prepare to likely take over the House of Representatives with the thinest of majorities. Instead of celebrating the election results as he had expected, House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy is now facing serious unrest within his ranks, threatening his prospects of taking the gavel from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi when the new congress convenes Jan. 3rd. And even if he does ultimately prevail, how much power will McCarthy actually have? And what should we expect from a Republican controlled House in which the hard-right Freedom Caucus has new power. We talk to one of the reporters most plugged in to the House GOP Caucus, Juliegrace Brufke of The Washington Examiner. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

For weeks the conventional wisdom in Washington couldn't have been clearer. There was a red wave coming that would sweep Republicans to a historic victory. Winning back control of the US House by wide margin and potentially control of the Senate as well. But then the voters spoke and the conventional wisdom of the pollsters and pundits was wrong once again. As we sit on Wednesday the GOP seems likely to win control of the House after all, but by an exceedingly fine margin that could prove a nightmare for presumptive speaker Kevin McCarthy. And the Senate seems that it could once again depend on the results of a run-off in Georgia where the party's Donald Trump backed candidate Hershel Walker will have huge challenges in his hopes of unseating incumbent Democrat Senator Raphael Warnock. What do the election results say about what passes for the conventional wisdom in American politics? And what do they mean for a 2024 Presidential contest that could well begin as early as next week. We talk to Yahoo News Political Reporter Andrew Romano and Washington Post columnist Matt Bai. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When Vivian Schiller signed on as a Senior Executive at Twitter in 2013, she was excited to be joining a company that seemed poised to remake the world. It was a heavy time for the social media start-up. Just a few years early, it had been messages on Twitter that connected Democracy activists throughout the Middle East leading to a revolutionary moment known as the Arab Spring. But Schiller soon became disillusioned and has long since left the company. In the years since, Twitter was increasingly hi-jacked by purveyors of hate and disinformation, fouling democracy instead of spreading it. Now, billionaire Elon Musk has taken over twitter, fired half its workforce, and signaled plans to revise if not roll back the content moderation policies that lead the company to kick Donald Trump off the platform for spreading election lies. We talk to Vivian Schiller about what we should make of the Musk takeover and what it portends for the future of Twitter, social media, and American Democracy. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, thunderous explosions rocked the Ukrainian Capitol of Kiev, as Russian forces unleashed another blistering attack of cruise missiles on the city and other regions throughout the country. The attacks targeted energy facilities and other critical infrastructure, cutting off the water supply for 80% of Kiev's residents. It was yet another reminder that despite recent gains by Ukrainians on the battlefield the brutal war that Russia launched last February shows no signs of abating, even as the risks of escalation seem to grow by the day. Is there any hope for diplomacy? Or is the world stuck watching a bloody stalemate in a conflict that has no end in sight? We talk to the CIA former top Russia analyst, George Beebe. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

There may be no institution in American more consequential or divisive than the United States Supreme Court. Under the leadership of Justice John Roberts, the court has upended campaign finance laws, undermined the 1965 voting rights act, affirmed a previously unrecognized constitutional right to gun ownership, and this year embolden by its new 6-3 conservative majority struck down the constitutional right to abortion. Decisions that have had a profound impact on our politics, not to mention the daily lives of millions of Americans. But there is more coming up. This coming Monday, on Halloween, the Supreme Court will revisit another politically charged issue. Should affirmative action continue to play a role in college admissions? And coming soon, Senator Lindsay Graham have to testify in a Fulton County investigation into Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election. We discuss with two longterm court watchers, Leah Litman a Law Professor at the University of Michigan and Jess Bravin of the Wall Street Journal. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A few month ago, Democrats were upbeat, believing fervently that they had a decent chance of beating the historical odds and retaining the control of the United States congress. The Supreme Court Dobbs decision overturning Roe v Wade had energized women across the country, while President Biden scored some major legislative successes. Most notably a climate change bill, that they a bit deceptively labeled, the Inflation Reduction Act. But today, with the midterms less than two weeks away, a new gloom hangs over the party's prospects. The polls consistently show rising prices, the economy, and crime to be the dominant issues preoccupying voters, playing to the GOP advantage. Where do things now stand? We talk to Democratic pollster Mark Mellman to get his state-by-state breakdown. And then we check in with Republican consultant Brian Robinson on two showcase races in Georgia. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

"We don't have a client, we weren't here to move some legislative agenda item. We were here to kick the s**t out of Donald Trump." That's from veteran political consultant Rick Wilson talking in a new five part documentary about the groundbreaking SuperPac he and a handful of other Republican consultants founded called The Lincoln Project. The group raised nearly 90 million dollars during the 2020 election, using the cash to create devastating attack ads hammering Donald Trump and his MAGA allies. As election day approached two years ago, The Lincoln Project was getting tons of attention, and Wilson and his confederates were congratulating themselves on their ability to use their attack dog skills to stop the threat to democracy posed by the then President. But how effective really was The Lincoln Project? The documentary now airing on Showtime takes an unblinking look at the controversies surrounding the group and brings up important questions about what they say about the state of modern politics. We talk to the film makers Karim Amer and Fisher Stevens. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

With three weeks before the midterms, the outlook for control of the US Senate and possibly even the House, remains as it's been for some time. A jump ball in which either party can yet prevail. But there is little doubt that there is growing anxiety among Democrats, with inflation, gas prices, and crime, consistently ranking as the top concern among voters, outranking the fallout from January 6th or the alarming number of Republicans running for office who still endorse Donald Trump's election denying nonsense. But are Democrats talking about the right issues? And crafting their messages in ways that connect with that segment of the electorate that actually determines the outcome of elections. veteran Democratic consultant Lis Smith says no, and she's got some advice for them in her new book, "Any Given Tuesday: A Political Love Story." We talk to her about how she sees the midterms and what she's learned as a female advisor to a parade of Democrats from John Edwards to Elliott Spitzer to Andrew Cuomo, all of whom have had problems over their relationships to women. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Liz Cheney, Wyoming's Congresswoman, revealed the January 6th Committee's final card at yesterday's hearing. Subpoena to Donald Trump to testify and to provide documents about his role in the events that lead to the attack on the US Capitol. It was a surprise move by the panel at the end of its final public hearing in which it revealed some new details about alarming intelligence warnings to the secret service about the potential for violence that day, as well as compelling footage that day as Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer huddled about how to get to the business of the day certifying Joe Biden's victory in the Presidential election back on track. The hearing, like all the earlier ones, got gavel to gavel coverage on cable TV and played big in major newspapers across the country, but it hasn't moved the needle it terms of public opinion. And just as important, hasn't brought the Justice Department any closer to bringing criminal charges to against the former President. We discuss with Matt Miller, former Chief of Public Affairs of the Justice Department under Democratic Attorney General Eric Holder. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

President Biden in an exchange with CNN's Jake Tapper, vowed there will be consequences for Saudi Arabia in light of their decision to join with Russia in cutting back oil production, a move guaranteed to help Vladimir Putin and his war with Ukraine, while at the same time, jacking up gas prices for American consumers. The Saudi move jolted the White House, coming barely three months after Biden famously fist-bumped the country's de facto ruler Mohammed Bin Salma, the very same Crown Prince, who according to US intelligence, approved the operation that brutally murdered Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi. But what should those consequences for the Saudis actually be? Biden didn't say. But one Senator, who has been one of the most outspoken on the issue is Connecticut's Chris Murphy, a member of the Senate's Foreign Relations Committee. We talk to him about the US-Saudi relationship and the war in Ukraine as well as this week's nearly billion dollar verdict against conspiracy theorist Alex Jones for his lies about the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It may have been the biggest investigative scoop of this year's election. This week, The Daily Beast reported that Herschel Walker, the Republican candidate for the US Senate in Georgia and a staunch opponent of abortion rights, paid for a girlfriend's abortion in 2009 - sighting documents that included a receipt from the abortion clinic, an image of a seven hundred dollar check from Walker, and a "Get Well" card signed by the former football star. Walker immediately denied the story. And insisted that he had no idea who the accuser was. But then The Daily Beast followed up with an equally astonishing story, that the woman was actually the mother of one of his children. What prompted the woman, still anonymous, to come forward now? And what impact will this have on one of the most important Senate races in the country? We talk to The Daily Beast reporter who broke the story, Roger Sollenberger, and Yahoo News' own Jon Ward. And then we chat with Slate's Dahlia Lithwick about the new Supreme Court term and her new book, Lady Justice. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It may be the most pressing question facing the world at this perilous moment. Is Vladimir Putin bluffing or not when he threatens to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine? Nuclear weapons analyst Joe Cirincione says we need to take the Russian president seriously. "We should believe Putin that this is not a bluff," he writes in a recent op ed in The Washington Post. In fact Cirincione points out, Russian military doctrine has been transformed under Putin's leadership. Where once it called for the use of nukes only when the very existence of the Russian Federation was under threat, it now contemplates their use in response to quote, "large scale aggression utilizing conventional weapons in situations critical to the national security." A big difference to say the least. And one more alarming now than ever given that Putin has declared the eastern regions on Ukraine sovereign Russian territory. What might a Russian nuclear attack in Ukraine look like? And what would and should be the United States and NATO's response? We talk to Cirincione and game out the ever more frightening possibilities. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The election of Donald Trump six long years ago began an unimaginable period of time in our history, when the United States was lead for the first time by a President who neither knew or subscribed to the fundamental tenants of our Constitution. And frequently acted to undermine them. So write Peter Baker and Susan Glasser in their new book, The Divider. It maybe the most comprehensive account yet of Trump's presidency. The zig-zags in policy, the clashes and in-fighting among his aides, the incessant attempts to use the power of his office, not to advance policies in the national interest, but to benefit his own personal and political interests. We talk to Baker and Glasser about what they've learned, including their account of Trump's still puzzling relationship with a scary autocrat very much dominating the world stage, Russian President Vladimir Putin. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.