Robert Doar, the President of the American Enterprise Institute, joins host Rachael Bade to discuss how an institution long dedicated to promoting ideas such as free trade and strong American global leadership, is asserting itself in a Trump administration that often does not prioritize those views. In this episode, they discuss who in the White House is receptive to these values; how AEI is trying to influence an administration that’s fixated on podcasters and TikTokers — not conventional polic...
Apr 11, 2025•36 min
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is making some big shakeups at the Department of Health and Human Services — and Calley Means is one of his key strategists. In this episode, POLITICO White House Bureau Chief Dasha Burns sits down with Means to break down the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement, and how Secretary Kennedy is planning to channel its energy into policy goals. Dasha Burns is the White House Bureau Chief for POLITICO. Calley Means is special government employee at the Department of Healt...
Apr 04, 2025•39 min
Former Trump national security adviser John Bolton joins POLITICO's Rachael Bade to discuss the Signalgate controversy and the broader battle over who will define Donald Trump’s foreign policy — Reagan-era hawks or America First types and isolationists — and who might take the fall for this national security scandal. Rachael Bade is Capitol Bureau Chief and Senior Washington Correspondent for POLITICO. John Bolton is a former Trump White House national security adviser. Kara Tabor is a producer ...
Mar 28, 2025•29 min
White House deputy chief of staff James Blair is one of the most important people in politics you’ve never heard of — yet. On this week’s episode of Deep Dive, he talks with POLITICO Capitol Bureau Chief and Senior Washington Columnist Rachael Bade to pull back the curtain on how Trump 2.0 has managed to do so much in just two months; Susie Wiles’s style as chief of staff; the White House reaction to the latest Democratic dysfunction on Capitol Hill; the administration’s hope to ease tariff conc...
Mar 22, 2025•42 min
Chris LaCivita co-managed Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign. On this episode of Deep Dive, he’s sharing some of his secrets about Trump’s inner circle, as well as where he thinks Trump’s presidency is headed next. He joins POLITICO White House Bureau Chief Dasha Burns to discuss the truths about Project 2025 and Donald Trump; what actual power Elon Musk has; some spicy tidbits about Trump’s plans to redevelop Gaza and who he thinks will be the heir to the MAGA movement. Dasha Burns is the White House...
Mar 22, 2025•35 min
House Budget Committee ranking member Brendan Boyle (D-Pa.) joins the show to discuss how his Democratic colleagues should respond to California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s recent pivot on trans athletes in sports, President Donald Trump’s joint address to Congress, the looming government shutdown and the GOP’s possible cuts to Medicaid in reconciliation. Rachael Bade is Capitol Bureau Chief and Senior Washington Correspondent for POLITICO. Brendan Boyle is the Ranking Member of the House Budget Committ...
Mar 07, 2025•43 min
Trump’s rapid-fire approach to governing is shaking up Washington. But is he moving too fast for his own good? In this episode of Playbook Deep Dive, host Eugene Daniels talks with POLITICO’s senior Congress editor Mike DeBonis and West Wing Playbook co-author Sophia Cai to break down the risks of Trump’s high-speed strategy and what it means for the weeks ahead. Eugene Daniels is the Chief Playbook Correspondent for POLITICO. Mike DeBonis is the senior Congress editor for POLITICO. Sophia Cai i...
Feb 28, 2025•30 min
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has an independent streak and a big job leading the National Governors Association. Here’s what he’s telling fellow governors about when to work with Trump and when to oppose him, how he thinks that Trump is hurting himself, and what the first thing Elon Musk and DOGE should cut is. Eugene Daniels is a Playbook co-author for POLITICO. Jared Polis is the Governor of Colorado. Kara Tabor is a producer for POLITICO audio. Alex Keeney is a senior producer for POLITICO audio...
Feb 21, 2025•32 min
Where is the Democratic “resistance” for Trump’s second term? Chief Playbook Correspondent Eugene Daniels asks Rep. Jamie Raskin, a longtime nemesis of President Trump’s and the current House Judiciary Committee ranking member, why the Democrats have been slow to counter the president’s aggressive governing, and what the plan is going forward to rebuild the party and its message. Eugene Daniels is a Playbook co-author for POLITICO. Rep. Jamie Raskin is the Ranking Member of the House Judiciary C...
Feb 14, 2025•39 min
House Republicans are facing tough choices on reconciliation, party unity, and whether or not to look the other way when President Trump steps on their authority. In this episode, House GOP Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain gives the scoop on House leadership's hours-long meeting with the president on Thursday, and why she thinks that the House GOP is about to have a major breakthrough. Rachael Bade is a Playbook co-author for POLITICO. Lisa McClain is the Chair of the House Republican Conferen...
Feb 07, 2025•34 min
Trump has moved aggressively to define his second presidency. POLITICO’s top reporters have thoughts on where he’s going, and how Congress, Democrats and the courts may try to stop him. Eugene Daniels is a Playbook co-author for POLITICO. Rachael Bade is the Capitol Bureau Chief and Senior Washington Columnist for POLITICO. Ankush Khardori is a columnist and senior writer for POLITICO Magazine. Kara Tabor is a producer for POLITICO audio. Alex Keeney is a senior producer for POLITICO audio. Lear...
Jan 31, 2025•48 min
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is the longest serving current U.S. senator and currently chairs the Judiciary Committee, which will have purview over President Donald Trump’s immigration policy. He is also the former chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over tax policy — two big seats for the coming reconciliation bill. On this episode, Playbook’s Eugene Daniels checks in with Grassley about reconciliation; Trump’s brash talk about the FBI and DOJ, both of which he’ll h...
Jan 24, 2025•34 min
Ways & Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith joins the show to elaborate on his vision for reconciliation, how he’s working with the diverse factions within the GOP to achieve it and why he believes he will prevail in passing “one big beautiful bill” with major tax cuts. Eugene Daniels is a Playbook co-author for POLITICO. Jason Smith is the Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. Kara Tabor is a producer for POLITICO audio. Alex Keeney is a senior producer for POLITICO audio. Learn more abo...
Jan 17, 2025•33 min
Michael Froman — former U.S. Trade Representative, Deputy National Security Advisor and current president of the Council on Foreign Relations — joins Playbook co-author Eugene Daniels to discuss the state of affairs in the world that Trump is stepping into, how world leaders are watching and reacting to Trump’s every word and what he thinks Trump will do differently than Biden in global hot spots like Ukraine, Taiwan, Israel, and yes… Greenland. Eugene Daniels is a Playbook co-author for POLITIC...
Jan 10, 2025•32 min
Out with the old and in with the new or in the case of 2025, it’s back to the future with the return of Donald Trump to the White House. As America and her allies prepares for Trump 2.0, what can we be certain of in an increasingly unpredictable and fractious world? In the final episode of Power Play this year, host Anne McElvoy is joined by POLITICO's Global Editor-in-chief John Harris and Nicholas Vinocur, editor-at-large in POLITICO's Europe newsroom and author of Brussels Playbook. They chew...
Dec 27, 2024•26 min
One thing Donald Trump loves to say is that he knows how to make a deal. And even for our allies, sometimes the “Art of the Deal” can feel like a shakedown. Ask NATO about that, and you’ll get some nods. But lately, Canada is the ally that’s been caught in Trump’s line of sight. The president-elect has been trolling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on social media, calling him the “governor” of America’s “51st state,” and threatening to impose a 25 percent tariff on Canadian imports if they don’t s...
Dec 20, 2024•38 min
Donald Trump’s Washington is going to be packed with heavyweights from big business such as Elon Musk, Scott Bessent and Howard Lutnick. But the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which represents traditional business interests in D.C., has recently found itself estranged from its longtime allies in the Republican Party. On this episode of Playbook Deep Dive, the Chamber’s top lobbyist, former Rep. Rodney Davis, joins Playbook co-author Rachael Bade to discuss how the Chamber is winning back its swagger ...
Dec 13, 2024•40 min
Generational change. It’s been a hot topic for Democrats ever since Joe Biden announced he’d run for a second term, and it's been picking up steam this past week as House Democrats pushed aside aging ranking members on key committees in order to make room for some younger leaders. In this episode, Playbook co-author Eugene Daniels speaks with Rep. Jared Huffman, who is challenging for the top Democratic slot on the House Natural Resources Committee, about what and who is behind this generational...
Dec 06, 2024•36 min
Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) weighs in on President-elect Trump’s cabinet picks, the news of former Rep. Matt Gaetz’s withdrawal from attorney general consideration and his takes on some of the incoming president's most controversial ideas. Rachael Bade is a Playbook co-author for POLITICO. Kevin Cramer is the junior senator from North Dakota. Kara Tabor is a producer for POLITICO audio. Alex Keeney is a senior producer for POLITICO audio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adcho...
Nov 22, 2024•49 min
Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) opens up for the first time about his recent defeat, and what he thinks his experiences holding a senate seat in reliably red Ohio since 2006 can teach fellow Democrats attempting to redefine the party’s brand. Eugene Daniels is a Playbook co-author for POLITICO. Sherrod Brown is the senior senator from Ohio. Kara Tabor is a producer for POLITICO audio. Alex Keeney is a senior producer for POLITICO audio. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
Nov 15, 2024•29 min
Donald Trump is coming back to the White House. On this episode of Deep Dive, POLITICO’s top Trump-ologist, Meridith McGraw, and Playbook editor Mike DeBonis join host Rachael Bade to discuss how the next Trump presidency will defy our expectations. Included in this discussion: Who will be in Trump’s cabinet; who will lead the GOP on the Hill and can Trump really be sure that they’ll cooperate with him? On the Democratic side — how will they respond to their crushing defeat? And will they resist...
Nov 08, 2024•47 min
Top election forecasters Lakshya Jain (Split Ticket) and Logan Phillips (Race to the White House) join Playbook co-author Eugene Daniels to give their key insights and predictions for Tuesday. They discuss how to analyze early voting returns, who the remaining swing voters are, and why polls are more useful than most people give them credit for. Stay until the end, where they each share what one race that will be called early on Election Night that will signal to them who the next president is g...
Nov 01, 2024•45 min
Election Day is less than two weeks away. And Donald Trump has been employing an innovative strategy to keep Democrats’ — and an increasingly large number of Republicans’ — doubts about his fitness for office at bay. The former president has been burnishing his image on a nontraditional media spread of podcasts, golf outings, and shifts working at McDonald's. To understand Trump’s own thinking about the campaign, including the risks of this unorthodox strategy and the most recent indictments of ...
Oct 25, 2024•40 min
Trump, Harris, and the vast network of campaigns, Super PACs, and down ballot candidates operating alongside them are now on pace to spend $1 billion before election day in Pennsylvania. For the time being, it is the center of the political universe. On this episode of Deep Dive, Playbook co-author Eugene Daniels is joined by two local experts on the race: Philadelphia City Councilmember Isaiah Thomas, who is the Chair of Black Men for Harris Pennsylvania; and Charlie Gerow, a Trump surrogate, R...
Oct 18, 2024•43 min
The 2024 election. It’s a contest between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. But increasingly, it also looks like it’s girls versus boys. Playbook’s Rachael Bade caught up with Sarah Longwell, Executive Director of Republican Voters Against Trump, Publisher of The Bulwark, and Host of "The Focus Group" Podcast, to learn what is driving a record-setting gender gap this election cycle. Longwell has conducted hundreds of focus groups and knows intimately how voters, in their own words, are processing ...
Oct 11, 2024•49 min
Joining Playbook’s Eugene Daniels on this episode of Deep Dive are two pollsters who know how to find the signal in what has been a very noisy election. John Anzalone aka “Anzo,” was Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama’s pollster. And Greg Strimple is a veteran of John McCain, Chris Christie, Rick Perry, and John Cornyn’s campaigns. Together, they dissect why this election’s polling is so close despite all the crazy news; who the swing voters are that both Trump and Harris are spending ...
Oct 04, 2024•43 min
James Carville is one of the oldest and best known political strategists in America. He also is the subject of a new CNN documentary called “Winning is Everything, Stupid.” On this episode of Deep Dive, Carville talks with host Ryan Lizza about his outlook on the election, including why he’s not so sure that it’ll be a close race once the votes are counted; what he thinks Kamala Harris could learn from Trump’s huckster style; and why Carville has absolutely no remorse for voicing his complaint t...
Sep 27, 2024•39 min
Brian Fallon, senior communications adviser for Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign, joins Playbook’s Eugene Daniels to discuss the inner workings of the vice president’s campaign, including why her positions on the issues have shifted since 2019, when she’ll start opening up to the press and how her view of Trump differs from Biden’s. Ryan Lizza is a Playbook co-author for POLITICO. Brian Fallon is senior communications adviser for Harris for America. Kara Tabor is a producer for POLITICO audi...
Sep 20, 2024•44 min
Mike Murphy, the storied GOP strategist and co-host of the popular “Hacks On Tap” podcast, joins Deep Dive host and Playbook co-author Ryan Lizza to discuss Tuesday’s debate and why some very strong winds are still at Trump’s back; how Murphy would tweak Kamala Harris’s message; what might become of the Republican party after Trump and how he, Mike Murphy, almost killed JD Vance’s dream of being a senator back in 2017. Ryan Lizza is a Playbook co-author for POLITICO. Mike Murphy is a Republican ...
Sep 13, 2024•56 min
Everyone knows the Latino vote will be decisive in this presidential election year. But our guest today says most of what you know about Latino voters and how to win them over is wrong. Mike Madrid is a third-generation Mexican-American and one of the country’s leading political strategists when it comes to Latino voters. He was a senior operative for the California Republican Party who rubbed shoulders with the likes of George W. Bush and his generation of GOP officials. Madrid later got jaded ...
Sep 06, 2024•55 min
