California's next Governor will likely be Xavier Becerra – as a former California Attorney General, he has a record of suing Trump; but is also known to be a corporate-friendly Democrat. Still, with California's notoriously slow count, it is too soon to call. Meanwhile, the 35% Karen Bass has in the LA mayoral race, "reflects the lack of enthusiasm" among LA voters – Harold Meyerson comments. Also: Primaries in Iowa, New Jersey and elsewhere tested the strength of progressives in the party. Joh...
Jun 05, 2026•58 min
The big picture of national politics: Trump is not just sinking in the polls, he's accelerating into the most unpopular and toxic parts of his presidency. People are focused on the economy, they want the war in Iran finished – instead, Trump is pushing his billion-dollar ballroom and his slush fund to pay-off the white-supremacist insurrectionists – Harold Meyerson comments. Also: Trump’s Billion-Dollar Ballroom is a familiar kind of corruption, but his slush fund to pay the insurrectionists and...
May 29, 2026•1 hr 2 min
The primary elections results this week show the success of Trump's revenge campaign — and the limits of that campaign. Harold Meyerson comments. Also: History on the March: The American Historical Society has filed a lawsuit and a federal judge has ordered the Trump White House to comply with the Presidential Records Act. Next: State legislatures have a lot of power in America—the States Project focuses on expanding that. Daniel Squadron explains. His new book is T he Fourth Branch: How State G...
May 22, 2026•52 min
Last week was one of the roughest for Democrats since Trump won the election in 2024: The Supreme Court ended Black congressional representation in most of the South and opened the door to the creation of several more Republican House seats, and then the Virginia Supreme Court ruled that the state’s initiative that created four more Democratic House seats was invalid. Nevertheless, Trump is so unpopular that Democrats remain strong favorites to retake the House in November. Harold Meyerson comme...
May 15, 2026•48 min
Fifty-nine percent of Americans believe Trump does not have the mental sharpness necessary to lead the country; 55 percent think Trump does not have the physical health to serve as president; and 67 percent think Trump does not carefully consider important decisions – according to a new Washington Post/ABC News Ipsos poll. And, in a time when energy costs are soaring and many Americans are losing their healthcare, Trump continues to talk about his ballroom — with a $1 billion price tag of taxp...
May 08, 2026•46 min
What Democrats need to do to counter the Supreme Court abolishing Black congressional districts: Harold Meyerson comments on the continuing reapportionment wars and the upcoming elections. Also: John Nichols explains why Trump may never succeed at building any of his ICE prison camps, and how this Friday’s May Day strike is a test of our power to resist. Plus: MOCA’s “Monuments” show in LA critiques Confederate monuments that have been taken down in response to protests. Critic Christopher Knigh...
May 01, 2026•57 min
Trump’s support continues to decline on everything he does, especially the war with Iran. But as he becomes weaker, he becomes more dangerous. Harold Meyerson comments; he’s editor-at-large of The American Prospect. Also: We need an AI revolution that works for the people, not just the billionaires. That’s Ro Khanna’s “AI Manifesto.” He’s the member of Congress who represents Silicon Valley, and also a leader of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. His manifesto is the cover story in The Nation...
Apr 24, 2026•57 min
Trump's terrible week started Sunday when he attacked the Pope and then presented himself in an AI image as Jesus Christ; he then took control of the Strait of Hormuz, making sure that oil and gas prices continue to rise; and then Victor Orbán, Trump's MAGA ally in Hungary, lost his election to Peter Magyar – Harold Meyerson comments. Also: It’s been only a couple of weeks since the No Kings 3 protests, but we can see now how protest and resistance are changing in America: that one it wasn't jus...
Apr 17, 2026•59 min
The War in Iran: A lot of people on both sides are saying Iran won – that the Iranian regime has emerged stronger than it was before the war; while the US has emerged weaker, unable to force the surrender of a 4th-rate military, demonstrating our strategic ineptitude, and then there is the TACO factor, Trump Always Chickens Out – Harold Meyerson comments. Also: Minnesota changed everything: how Minnesota’s resistance to ICE provides a model and inspiration for a national pro-democracy movement. ...
Apr 10, 2026•58 min
Trump's failed Iran war speech, and his firing of Pam Bondi: a big week in Washington. Harold Meyerson comments. Plus: We’re still thinking about No Kings 3 day on Saturday: 8 million people. 3,300 events. ‘No Kings’ protests in almost every city and town in the country. 100 towns in Texas alone had No Kings protests! It was the largest single-day nonviolent protest in American history. John Nichols analyzes the possibilities for what comes next. Also: No one expected that revoking the constitut...
Apr 03, 2026•58 min
Trump's approval rating has hit an all-time low for a modern president. Jimmy Carter had the same rating on the economy – 29% – back in 1979. And what was happening in 1979? An oil embargo and revolution in Iran. Next: Trump is trying to limit voting by mail and SCOTUS will make a ruling soon. Harold Meyerson comments. Also: The No Kings 3 protests this Saturday are going to be big – maybe the biggest day of protest in American history. Leah Greenberg, co-founder and co-director of Indivisible, ...
Mar 27, 2026•58 min
Why is the US at war with Iran? "It's entirely a war based on Trump's whim and his apparent desire to do what Bibi Netanyahu has asked him to do". Next up: Elections in Illinois, where AIPAC, AI and Crypto money did not win. Harold Meyerson comments. Also: The Working Families Party is organizing voters not just to win a Democratic majority in Congress but for a movement election, a historic expansion of the electorate that includes a demand for significant change. Maurice Mitchell, the party’s ...
Mar 20, 2026•58 min
Tom Stevenson analyzes the latest news and long-term prospects of Trump's Iran war, for both Iran and the US. Tom is a contributing editor for the London Review of Books, where he writes about, among other things, politics in the Mideast. Also: what news are people getting these days, and where are they getting it? Especially the people we call “news avoidant” & “low information” voters – the ones we want to vote for Democrats in November: what are the big stories for them? Tara McGowan expl...
Mar 13, 2026•59 min
59% of Americans disapprove of the war in Iran, according to a CNN poll. Democrats offered a War Powers resolution that would have set some limits on Trump's war in Iran; it lost in the Senate on Wednesday with one Republican – Rand Paul – voting in favor. Harold Meyerson comments. Also: After Senate Democrats block the SAVE act, Trump is likely to declare a national security emergency – claiming China could interfere in the midterms – as a basis for restricting voting. David Cole comments; he’s...
Mar 06, 2026•58 min
Trump's State of the Union speech was the expected firehose of lies – and went on at an unprecedented length. Meanwhile, the foremost issue of concern on the minds of most Americans was the Epstein files. And, what did Trump say about the Epstein files during the speech? "Nada." The other issues of great concern are the actions of ICE. Again, Trump did not say anything about that either. So, what DID Trump talk about? Harold Meyerson comments. Also: In 1949 when Jackie Robinson appeared before H...
Feb 27, 2026•39 min
Trump, facing the wave of popular opposition to pretty much everything he’s doing, is working to block Democrats from voting in the midterms, and “election protection” has become a key part of the preparations underway from blue state attorneys general and from voting rights groups like the Brennan Center and the ACLU. Harold Meyerson explains. Also: A large proportion of slaves who escaped from slavery in the South escaped not on foot, but by boat. Marcus Rediker tells their story – his new boo...
Feb 20, 2026•47 min
Your Minnesota Moment: Today, ICE is pulling out of Minneapolis after a massive and sustained resistance movement – demonstrating that when you fight Trump you CAN win. Harold Meyerson comments. Also: The size and scale of the resistance to ICE in Minneapolis is too vast to fully comprehend. John Nichols has our report – he’s The Nation’s executive editor, and he’s just spent several days talking to the city’s leaders and activists. Plus: Democrats could win a Senate seat in Texas this November....
Feb 13, 2026•45 min
Congress is debating restrictions for ICE this week, we'll go into the funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security; it seems the real negotiations are not between the Democrats and the Republican senators, but between the Democrats and Trump. The "Big Beautiful Bill" provided an additional $75 billion to ICE last July so, if no funding deal is made next week, the Coast Guard and FEMA will be shut down while ICE will continue to operate. Harold Meyerson comments. Next: The Super Bowl is ...
Feb 06, 2026•58 min
Eyes on Minneapolis: three-quarters of Americans have seen all or some of the video of the murder of Alex Pretti. With this attention, we have the power to challenge ICE; where do we stand on the Democrats' bill proposing to enforce restrictions? Harold Meyerson comments. Next: The Nation nominates Minneapolis for the Nobel Peace Prize; the first time a city and its people have been nominated for the prize. Also: We have the power to rein in ICE and protect our neighbors, Leah Greenberg argues –...
Jan 30, 2026•57 min
Trump's first year has seen a collapse of support in DC and among voters nationwide, huge losses in the lower courts, and the rise of a massive opposition movement. Meanwhile, as Trump year two begins and the midterms approach, it's looking very good for the Democrats. Harold Meyerson comments. Also: The landscape of resistance in Minneapolis, John Nichols reports, includes surprisingly powerful and effective faith groups, plus unions, neighborhood mutual aid and community safety networks, ICE o...
Jan 23, 2026•57 min
As Trump’s support collapses, he has lashed out in two directions–sending an unprecedented number of ICE agents to Minneapolis, where one of them murdered Renee Good, and sending the military to Venezuela, where he says he has seized control of the oil industry. Harold Meyerson comments. Also: Twenty Minutes Without Trump: There’s a new TV series about how capitalism came to Communist China: 30 episodes made for Chinese TV by the great Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai, running now on the Criterio...
Jan 16, 2026•58 min
What is to be done about that ICE agent murdering a woman in Minneapolis, Renée Good, who was a peaceful legal observer trying to drive away from him? Homeland Security Secretary, Kristi Noem called the murder "self defense" – the mayor of Minneapolis, Jacob Frey said that was "bullshit" and to ICE he said, "Get the fuck out of Minneapolis" – and Minnesota Senator Tina Smith said to ICE "Leave us the fuck alone" – Harold Meyerson comments. Also: the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ordered the...
Jan 09, 2026•59 min
The year in politics: Harold Meyerson of The American Prospect comments on Trump’s collapsing support in 2025, and the rise of the resistance—in both the unprecedented national mobilizations culminating in the second No Kings Day, and the Democratic triumph in virtually all elections in 2025. Also: the year in court: David Cole, who stepped down this year as national legal director of the ACLU, reviews the 149 rulings against Trump in federal courts this past year, and the 21 times the Supreme C...
Jan 02, 2026•58 min
In June, Trump sent more than 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to occupy Los Angeles and terrorize the immigrant population. But by the end of July, almost all the Guard and the Marines were gone. Bill Gallegos explains how that happened and what other cities can learn from it. Also: From the archives: The Romans captured and killed Jesus because the revolutionary movement he launched challenged the most powerful empire the world had ever known: That’s what Reza Aslan says – his New Y...
Dec 26, 2025•58 min
Last week, the Indiana state legislature voted down Trump's redistricting demands that would've created more Republican seats in the House; now, four Republicans have joined the Democrats in forcing a vote on extending Obamacare subsidies, AND, 20 House Republicans are supporting the federal workers union — Trump's grip on the Republican party is slipping — Harold Meyerson comments. Also: Today, Friday, is the deadline for the Justice Department to turn over the Epstein files to Congress. But we...
Dec 19, 2025•32 min
In this week's special elections, a Democrat got elected mayor of Miami for the first time in almost 30 years — by a 19-point margin; and, even Trump country in Georgia is not safe from Democratic wins – Harold Meyerson comments. Also: How did we end up with Trump back in the White House? We got here in part because Republicans built a movement over several decades centered on what are called “the culture wars.” But there’s a long history behind the culture wars, going back at least a century to...
Dec 12, 2025•42 min
Trump on Wednesday declared that Democrats who say we are in an affordability crisis are "pulling a con job" – he said prices are "falling across the country, just about everything is down." But the statistics show the opposite, prices have NOT been falling; another key factor of affordability is stagnation of wages – Harold Meyerson comments. On Bob Dylan's earliest recordings "Through the Open Window: A bootleg Series vol. 18" – they start in 1956 when he was 15 years old up through 1963, his ...
Dec 05, 2025•43 min
Last Friday Marjorie Taylor Greene announced she was quitting after Trump excommunicated her from MAGA, while the same day Trump welcomed Zohran Mamdani to the White House with open arms and high praise. What’s going on with Trump? Harold Meyerson comments - he's editor at large of The American Prospect. Also: Alice Waters, the legendary founder of Chez Panisse in Berkeley, winner of the National Humanities Medal, awarded by Obama, talks about how to make school lunch delicious, affordable, orga...
Nov 28, 2025•59 min
On Wednesday night, Trump signed the bill requiring release of the Epstein Files; something he devoted all of his political power to preventing. What does this mean for Trump, for MAGA, and for the rest of us? Harold Meyerson comments. Also: After almost a year of Trump stonewalling about the Epstein files, Republicans in the House finally took a stand against him. More than a hundred Republican members were prepared to vote for releasing the files. Facing a dramatic defeat, on Sunday night Trum...
Nov 21, 2025•57 min
Last week ended with the Democrats triumphant after huge wins with voters across the country; then at the start of this week the Republicans were triumphant when eight Senate Democrats caved on the shutdown; but then, since Wednesday, Trump and the Republicans have been reeling since Democrats on the House oversight committee released devastating emails from the Epstein files – Harold Meyerson comments. Also: As mayor of New York City, Zohran Mamdani will be the first socialist in American histo...
Nov 14, 2025•58 min
