Jen is joined by author and veteran political consultant Stuart Stevens to take a journey through the evolution of the Republican party towards authoritarianism under Trump. They explain how it became dominated by white grievance and the religious right by forgoing policy solutions that could attract minorities, women, and young people in favor of conspiracy and control. Jen and Stuart believe it was possible because Republican party leaders capitulated to the MAGA movement for power and the hop...
Nov 08, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 26
Jen is joined by the co-founder of Protect Democracy Ian Bassin to explore the growing threat of authoritarianism at home and abroad by laying out the cultural, institutional, and personal forces that Trump and the MAGA Right are exploiting to undermine our democracy. They examine how times of uncertainty allow the siren song of the strong man to encourage voters to compromise on our national values, how the politicization of the SCOTUS is weakening the independence of the justice system, and wh...
Nov 01, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 25
Jen welcomes creator of The 1619 Project Nicole Hannah-Jones to illuminate how she has used the Black experience to revolutionize our understanding of our history across multiple mediums. While explaining her process, they discuss the power of the personal story to connect to the past, how The 1619 Project uses the collective to take back control of our past from elites and those in power. They also lay out how our country’s continuum of systemic injustice divides us, undermines our democracy, a...
Oct 25, 2023•55 min•Ep. 24
Jen is joined by legal maven and ethics expert Norm Eisen to review the pending cases against Trump and his associates. They discuss how he is his own worst enemy, why we should put our faith in the juries, the effect of his potential testimony, and the legal strategies he will likely use. Further, they examine the impact of the 2024 election, the evidence against him and his co-conspirators, and the results of the war on the rule of law that he and other Republicans continue to wage. Will an al...
Oct 18, 2023•55 min•Ep. 23
Jen is joined by the authors of “Tyranny of the Minority”, Professors Daniel Ziblatt and Steven Levitsky, to discuss how Republicans are wielding minority power to undermine our democracy. They explore the constitutional mechanisms enabling them, spanning the electoral college, unbalanced representation in the Senate, and the adoption of the filibuster. Then they lay out their proposals to fix things, including; removing constitutional protectionism, expanding popular representation, term limits...
Oct 11, 2023•51 min•Ep. 22
Jen is joined by Reed Galen and Rick Wilson of the Lincoln Project to discuss the fight to take down Trump. A fight they’ve waged since he revealed his authoritarian tendencies. They explain why he can’t be fought like a normal candidate, how the media gets played by conservatives, and argue that defeating him is a battle for democracy that goes beyond party divisions. Together, they explore how he fooled Republican voters, his use of vengeance while wielding power, the impact of his court cases...
Oct 04, 2023•56 min•Ep. 21
Jen is joined by Pulitzer Prize winning author Diane McWhorter to discuss the civil rights movement in the South that arose to defeat the fascistic alliance between industrialists, the wealthy, and their enforcers in the Klan. They lay out how Black activists, labor unions, and their allies put aside their differences to overcome them and make civil rights a national issue. During the conversation, they look at the internal dynamics of the civil rights movement, the role of Martin Luther King Jr...
Sep 27, 2023•1 hr•Ep. 20
Jen is joined by Rep. Jamie Raskin to lay out the case against Trump and examine the legal issues that should keep him out of the presidency. They cover the potential of Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to keep him out of office for his role in the January 6th insurrection, why his incitement against the election is not protected by the Constitution, and how he attacked our voting rights and pressured officials to break their oaths. They also discuss the bottom up legal strategy being used to pro...
Sep 20, 2023•57 min•Ep. 19
Jen is joined by master political strategist Simon Rosenberg to discuss why polling vastly overestimated the non-existent so-called Red Wave in 2022 and how the results of the special elections since then demonstrate that the electorate is continuing to punish Republicans. They explore how the Dobbs decision, Supreme Court radicalism, Trump and his party’s attempts to overturn the election, the possibility of a government shutdown, and their inability to moderate is giving democratic candidates ...
Sep 13, 2023•57 min•Ep. 18
Jen is joined by finance expert and human rights campaigner Bill Browder for an inside look at the corruption and oppression in Putin’s Russia that directly targeted Bill’s company and friends. In their conversation they cover Putin’s massive theft from businesses operating there, how he uses torture and violence against his political enemies, and why defeating him in Ukraine is essential to protecting freedom and democracy around the world. They also discuss how the bi-partisan Magnitsky Act is...
Sep 06, 2023•54 min•Ep. 17
Jen talks with champion of voting rights Marc Elias to review developments in the court cases facing Trump relating to aggressive actions by his lawyers, his threatening behavior, and the attempts to move Georgia cases to federal court. Then, they lay out the Republican war on voting rights through their efforts to influence elections by gerrymandering, the rogue legislatures like Alabama’s ignoring the courts, and attacking early voting. However; they find hope in the recent Wisconsin Supreme C...
Aug 30, 2023•59 min•Ep. 16
Jen is joined by Amb. Dennis Ross to explore the recent developments shaking up middle eastern politics. They cover the cross demographic and widespread protests in Israel against attempts by hard liners to take control of the judiciary and what it means for the country’s future. Then, they dive into Netanyahu’s efforts to create a breakthrough deal to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia, even though it might mean concessions to Palestine. If successful, it has the potential to solidify peace ...
Aug 23, 2023•53 min•Ep. 15
With Trump racking up another indictment in Georgia, Jen sits down with legal maven Rep. Dan Goldman to dive into the charges he faces. During their conversation they explore how RICO prosecutions work to bring down criminal enterprises and why it strengthens the possibility of conviction, and explain why the jury pool won’t be corrupted by politics or wild rhetoric from Donald. They also emphasize the need to ground the law in objective reality, and shut down comparisons to the Biden family– es...
Aug 16, 2023•54 min•Ep. 14
Jen welcomes NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen to discuss the modern media ecosystem and how the classic both sides approach and opinion free corporate coverage is failing us with repeated coverage centered on crisis. They also examine the pressures on journalists from institutions, and more importantly what it will take to fix things. Will re-establishing truths over savviness with a focus on transferring knowledge from a position of expertise be enough to tame the rising populist passions tha...
Aug 09, 2023•49 min•Ep. 13
Jen brings on legal maven and civil rights leader Maya Wiley to take on the continuing hold white grievance has over our politics, why its complaints are dangerous and misguided, and how it influences the Republican party. From there, they explore the pernicious leverage social media gives to outdated philosophies of hate, and how to fight back with our institutions and at the personal level. To do so, we might push for a culture of diversity, become civically engaged, live as agents of change i...
Aug 02, 2023•42 min•Ep. 12
Jen is joined by author and activist Fred Guttenberg to tackle the pressing need to address gun violence, how we can fight back, and what our government needs to do to protect the vulnerable. In their conversation they explore the obscene power of the NRA and the mythologies supporting weapons of war, how to construct a legal strategy that can start securing electoral and legislative wins, and the power of activism. They also share the reasons we should have for hope, and more importantly ask ho...
Jul 26, 2023•52 min•Ep. 11
Jen sits down with expert on authoritarianism Ruth Ben-Ghiat for a look at the mythic hold strongmen have on political systems around the world and how Trump took up that mantle here. They cover how he resurrected the spoils system, used divisive language to create a cult-like following, and his attempts to create disinformation that tears apart loyalty to anyone besides him. More importantly, they explore how deep the threat to democracy goes– and when our system is threatened, how can we fight...
Jul 19, 2023•47 min•Ep. 10
Jen has a conversation with author and expert on the rise of the radical religious right in recent years, Robert P. Jones. Together they look at the growing power and platforms held by White Christian Nationalists, the role they play in social division and Republican policies, and how Trump allowed the SCOTUS to become compromised by fundamentalists. They also break down how that message has fused with Protestant churches while continuing to celebrate the Old South– with a look to how we can bri...
Jul 12, 2023•49 min•Ep. 9
Jen is joined by author of “Newsroom Confidential” and media maven Margaret Sullivan for a deep dive into the current state of the 4th Estate. In their conversation, they discuss the growing dominance of right-wing framing and language on some of the most critical issues facing the country, and what to do when you’re tasked with covering the preposterous. Whether it’s related to the Donald or even science denialism, bothsides-ism is obscuring the facts and tearing the country apart. Is turning o...
Jul 05, 2023•47 min•Ep. 8
Following the anniversary of the despicable Dobbs decision by the SCOTUS, Jen is joined by author and former NARAL President Ilyse Hogue for a deep dive into the war on women’s rights. They discuss how far our country is set back by state government abortion laws, the role of right wing Christian Nationalism in weakening the agency of women by replacing justice with ideology, and how theocracy is rearing its ugly head once again. Will Democrats wake up and solve this crisis by seizing on the iss...
Jun 28, 2023•41 min•Ep. 7
Jen brings on recent White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain to explore the successes of President Biden and the challenges that he still faces. They dive into how his defense of democracy by giving primacy to the rule of law has its limitations, but hasn’t stopped him from strengthening NATO, producing jobs, passing a budget, and solving the problems left behind by Trump. Also discussed are the enduring strengths of Kamala Harris, how their administration is fighting against discrimination, and th...
Jun 21, 2023•37 min•Ep. 6
Jen is joined by legal expert, author and Slate senior editor, Dahlia Lithwick for a deep dive into the current state of our judicial system and what it means for all of us. In their conversation, they discuss how the Supreme Court has been undermining the public trust with its partisanship, disregard of precedent (and even Originalism!), and how the courts can’t be ignored so long as they have the power to constrain our rights and decide elections. Given the scope of the threat to our democrati...
Jun 14, 2023•51 min•Ep. 5
Jen is joined by co-founder and EVP for Public Affairs at Third Way Matt Bennett to lay out the destruction of moderation in our politics, the rise of extremism on the right, and the disastrous horse race approach of the media. Are they locking us into a Biden-Trump re-election battle that few people want? And if they are, is a third party something that could be dangerous to our democracy when the stakes are so high? They also cover how each side turns off people with messaging when they would ...
Jun 07, 2023•39 min•Ep. 4
Jen is joined by author, journalist, and political thought leader Matthew Dowd for an insider’s look at the sport-ification of media, and how it leads to political nihilism and rising extremism due to the both sides approach it uses. They also dive deep into the changes happening at CNN evidenced by Trump’s town hall, the shallow coverage of the difficulties Republicans created for the debt ceiling deal, and the tragic pretense of networks trying to be “unbiased”. Is journalism as a whole still ...
May 31, 2023•29 min•Ep. 3
In this inaugural episode, Jen welcomes legal expert and brilliant pundit George Conway for his insider view of E. Jean Carroll’s cases against Donald, the factors behind why she’s been successful so far, and to look at the system’s surprising defense of our democracy against him. George also shares how he introduced E. Jean to the lawyer behind her victory, and why Donald will keep losing based on his inability to keep his mouth shut. From there, they examine the psychology that drives Trump to...
May 24, 2023•41 min•Ep. 2
Trailer for Jen Rubin's Green Room
May 08, 2023•4 min•Ep. 1
