Impolitic with John Heilemann

John is joined by Adam Pritzker and Daniel Squadron, co-founders of a pair of increasingly influential Democratic groups trying to cure what ails their party by looking WAY beyond Washington, D.C.—to the nation’s state legislatures. Pritzker and Squadron explain the genesis of the States Project, which they formed eight years ago and is already the largest Democratic donor to state legislative races (to the tune of $130 million in 2022 and 2024), and the just-launched States Forum, which is focused on germinating, cross-pollinating, and exporting state-level Democratic policy innovations to the national level; the degree to which the party’s brand is a drag on down ballot candidates; and why the party would do well to look to its deep bench of governors for its presidential nominee in 2028. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes David Remnick, editor of The New Yorker, and David Miliband, head of the International Rescue Committee, to discuss Israel’s war with Hamas and the humanitarian horror show unfolding in Gaza. Having just authored his fourth major reported piece on the conflict since October 7, 2023, Remnick explains Israel’s sense of “national euphoria” after the Twelve-Day War launched by Benjamin Netanyahu against Iran to cripple its nuclear capabilities—and why Israelis have largely ignored the devastation the campaign against Hamas has inflicted on Gaza and the political, diplomatic, and moral crises it has unleashed for the Jewish state. Miliband attests to the scale and severity of the food emergency in Gaza due to what seems to be a calculated starvation strategy embraced by Netanyahu to bring “total victory” against Hamas. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes legendary Democratic strategist Bob Shrum to discuss Donald Trump’s inability to extricate himself from the Jeffrey Epstein quagmire and the opportunity for Democrats to weave the story into a broader political narrative. The Los Angeles-based Shrum, who rose to prominence as Ted Kennedy’s speechwriter and played a central role on both Al Gore’s and John Kerry's presidential campaigns, also offers his take on his state’s governor, Gavin Newsom; his city’s mayor, Karen Bass; Texas state legislator and rising star James Talarico; and what it will take to make the Democratic Party great again. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes Maggie Haberman, New York Times White House Correspondent and author of the bestselling “Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump & The Breaking of America,” to discuss the ongoing Jeffrey Epstein imbroglio and why Trump has thus far been entirely unsuccessful in his efforts to stanch the bleeding from what may prove to be the most damaging of his many self-inflicted political wounds. Plus: Maggie’s take on Stephen Colbert’s cancellation, Jon Stewart’s defense of his friend and profane broadside against their shared corporate parent, and Bruce Springsteen as the most eloquent and powerful voice of the Trump 2.0 resistance. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes legendary former New York Timesman Todd Purdum to the show to discuss his new book, “Desi Arnaz: The Man Who Invented Television.” Purdum tells the story of Arnaz's rise to become the most powerful and influential Latino executive in Hollywood history: from his arrival in America as a Cuban refugee in the 1930s to his first taste of fame as a nightclub bandleader (and instigator of the Conga dance craze) in the 1940s; and from his culture-shifting roles as co-star (with his wife, Lucille Ball) of the country's most-watched TV show and cofounder of its most prolific TV production company in the 1950s to the raft of innovations he unleashed that gave birth to the rerun, the syndication market, and thus the business model on which the industry thrived for more than half a century. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes Democratic communications wizard Lis Smith—whose clients have run the gamut from Pete Buttigieg and Mallory McMorrow to Andrew Cuomo and Eliot Spitzer—to discuss the unprecedented political crisis Donald Trump is facing among his supporters over his handling of the Jeffrey Epstein case. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes Will Leitch—New York Magazine columnist, MLB.com national correspondent, and author of the acclaimed new novel “Lloyd McNeil’s Last Ride”—back to the show to discuss the mix of sports, culture, and politics that mingle on his journalistic playground. A year out from the next World Cup, Leitch weighs in on the Trump administration’s capacity to play host to players and fans from countless countries it regularly condemns; what the Thunder-Pacers NBA final says about the future of pro hoops; and why “Sinners” is the movie of year so far and Ryan Coogler is a flat-out genius. Leitch also discusses Lionsgate’s plans to turn his latest foray into fiction into a major motion picture, and why Jack Lemon would make the perfect Lloyd McNeil (if he weren’t dead, that is). To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes his bestie Nicolle Wallace, host of MSNBC’s Deadline White House, back to the show to discuss the intra-MAGA fallout from Donald Trump and Pam Bondi’s Trump failure to release the long-rumored list of Jeffrey Epstein’s clients; Nicolle’s new podcast, The Best People, and why its approach to politics is so different from than her daily TV show; and their shared enrapturement with the fourth season of The Bear. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes Andrew Sullivan—former editor of The New Republic, first-wave blogger, current Substacker, pioneering gay marriage advocate, #BritishGayCatholicConservative public intellectual, and controversy magnet for nearly 40 years—to discuss the Trump 2.0 era and Sullivan’s recent New York Times op-ed, “How the Gay Rights Movement Radicalized and Lost its Way.” Sullivan argues that Trump is less an aspiring dictator than a wannabe monarch; that, even so, his enthusiasm for state terror tactics is ominously authoritarian; and that the gay rights movement has gone astray with its embrace of the trans agenda. Sullivan also explains his adoration of Pet Shop Boys, and why “Being Boring” is their greatest song. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In a special July 4th weekend episode, John welcomes the country rock/indie folk/Americana musician Ben Kweller to talk about his remarkable new record, “Cover The Mirrors,” and the journey of love, loss, and recovery that inspired it. A musical prodigy who burst on the rock scene nearly 30 years ago a teenaged phenom, Kweller explains the role that music played in the wake of the death of his 16-year-old son Dorian in a freak car accident two years ago, carrying Ben from shock and grief through acceptance and back to something approximating the kind of joy that's long characterized his work—and resulting in a transcendent record that’s at once profoundly sad, sublimely beautiful, and deeply hopeful. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes Independent Senator Angus King of Maine and Democratic Congressman Jason Crow of Colorado to discuss the strategic and political fallout from America’s bombing of Iran. In back-to-back conversations, King and Crow—both members of the intelligence and armed services committees on their respective sides of Capitol Hill—contend that they have more questions than answers regarding the impact of U.S. air strikes on Iran’s nuclear program; raise red flags concerning the Trump administration’s politicization of intelligence; and critique the White House’s intention to curtail the sharing of classified material on matters of war and peace with Congress. King also offers his assessment of the Supreme Court’s ruling on nationwide injunctions and birthright citizenship, and Crow weighs in on Zohran Mamdani and the implications of his primary victory in New York City for the Democratic Party writ large. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John is joined by National Book Award and Pulitzer Prize winning author Ron Chernow to discuss his new, best-selling biography, “Mark Twain.” Chernow explains why Twain, whom he argues was America’s original political pundit, exerts a powerful and enduring hold on America’s imagination; why his insights and humor remain not just relevant today but timeless; and how Twain, in the course of his life, became “de-southernized.” Ron also reflects on how Percival Everett’s award-winning novel “James” is less a corrective to than an expansion of Twain’s “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” which, despite its copious use of the n-word, stands as perhaps the greatest of all anti-slavery novels. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes The Bulwark’s Tim Miller back to the pod to discuss the split in Donald Trump’s base over his military gambit in Iran, the New York Democratic mayoral race, and more. Tim digs into why the stars of MAGA media are at each other’s throats over Trump's Middle East moves; how the political fallout could impact the GOP nomination contest in 2028; and why all this is already proving torturous for J.D. Vance. Tim also explains why, despite the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the U.S., we mustn’t forget the deportees still stuck in a Venezuelan gulag—and how he set in motion the events that led to NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani weeping on camera last week. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John is joined by former C.I.A. and Pentagon chief of staff Jeremy Bash to discuss the decision facing Donald Trump about going to war with Iran. Bash explains the history of the Iranian nuclear program and where it likely stands today; what Israel’s dramatic new efforts to destroy it have and haven’t achieved; the intelligence, domestic political debate, and other factors Trump is weighing as he considers intervening; and the best and worst case scenarios if he does. Jeremy also offers view of the sidelining of Tulsi Gabbard after her bizarre bid to sway Trump by means of a slickly produced social media video. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John welcomes U.S. Naval War College professor emeritus and Atlantic staff writer Tom Nichols back to the pod to discuss the implications of Donald Trump’s militarization of law enforcement in Los Angeles and an array of related topics. Nichols argues that Trump’s mobilization of the National Guard and the Marines to deal with protests of his deportation policies in L.A. is a dry run, on favorable political turf, to acclimate Americans to the sight of troops in their cities and gauge public blowback; that his partisan speech at Fort Bragg—and the silence of the generals in reaction to it—was an “obscenity;" and that these events, along with his military parade in Washington, demonstrate that Trump sees the U.S. Armed Forces as his personal “toy soldiers.” Nichols also weighs in on Israel-Iran, Russia-Ukraine, and how Trump has effectively turned the U.S. into a bystander in both conflicts. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John is joined by former Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson to discuss President Trump’s deployment of National Guard and Marine Corps troops to Los Angeles in the face of protests of his immigration policies. Johnson explains how he would have assessed the situation in LA if he were still leading DHS; the dangers of tasking the U.S. military with domestic law enforcement; and his view of the forcible removal of California Senator Alex Padilla from a press conference held by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. Johnson also weighs in on the controversial deal struck by Paul, Weiss—the storied law firm from which Johnson will soon retire after 30-plus years as a partner—with the Trump administration after being threatened with a punitive executive order. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John is joined by journalist Karen Hao to discuss her new book, “Empire of AI: Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman's OpenAI,” and both the promise and the perils of the coming age of artificial intelligence. Hao explains how OpenAI went from being an altruistic nonprofit dedicated to ensuring that A.I. would “benefit all of humanity” to a burgeoning commercial colossus valued at north of $300 billion; how Altman wrested control of the company from his co-founder Elon Musk; why skepticism is warranted regarding the claims that superhuman A.I. is inevitable; and how that narrative, true or not, serves the economic and political interests of the cabal of tech bros who are A.I.’s most fervent boosters. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John is joined by former Department of Homeland Security chief of staff Miles Taylor to discuss the recent executive order by Donald Trump directing federal law enforcement agencies to investigate Taylor (for unnamed and unknown crimes) and his fledgling efforts to fight back. Taylor—who rose to prominence during Trump's first term with a New York Times op-ed and No. 1 bestselling book, written under the pen name Anonymous, that detailed a “quiet resistance” within the administration—describes the financial, professional, emotional impacts of being declared “guilty of treason” by Trump for no specified reason aside from having publicly criticized him; the legal countermeasures Taylor plans to undertake; and the wider political implications of his case. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John is joined by former CEO of UBS Americas and Democratic mega-donor Robert Wolf to discuss the exit of Elon Musk from the White House and Donald Trump’s latest economic-policy gyrations. The recipient of three presidential appointments from Barack Obama and one from Joe Biden, Wolf explains why Musk’s foray into government was always bound to end in tears; why Wall Street's TACO (Trump Always Chickens Out) meme perfectly captures the financial world’s view of the president's feckless approach to trade and tariffs; and why the state of the economy is even more precarious than it appears. Wolf also reflects on his own role in aiding and abetting Biden’s bid for reelection despite doubts about his ability to serve a second term. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John is joined by Parkland survivor, gun control activist, and embattled DNC vice chair David Hogg to discuss the controversies swirling around him and what his party needs to do to fix itself. Hogg explains the rationale behind his plan to spend $20 million through his Leaders We Deserve PAC to elect younger candidates who embrace a combative anti-MAGA stance; why that plan includes backing primary challenges to ossified, ineffective Democratic incumbents; and the ensuing rage among much of his party’s establishment, which he sees as fueling a campaign to oust him from DNC role and “destroy my reputation.” To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices