Alexis Coe is a presidential historian and a fellow at New America, where she is thinking about the presidency in anticipation of America's 250th. She is the award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of You Never Forget Your First: A Biography of George of Washington and Alice+Freda Forever: A Murder in Memphis. She frequently appears on CNN, MSNBC, CBS, History, BBC, and PBS, and has been featured in and published by most major publications, including the New Yorker, the New York Times, ...
Feb 05, 20240•Ep. 163
Anthony “The Mooch” Scaramucci is the founder and managing partner of global investment firm SkyBridge and founder and chairman of SALT, a global thought leadership forum and venture studio. He’s also an author, hosts the OPEN BOOK podcast, and is best known for the 11 roller-coaster days he served in the Trump White House as Communications Director. As a former insider, Mooch never fails to provide astute and unique insights into Donald "The Orange Maniac" Trump's deranged dictatorial mindset a...
Feb 03, 20240•Ep. 162
Pamela Paul is an Opinion columnist for The New York Times. For nine years, she was the editor of The New York Times Book Review and oversaw all books coverage at The New York Times. She was also the longtime host of the weekly Book Review podcast. She is the author and editor of 8 books including The Starter Marriage and the Future of Matrimony, Pornified, Parenting, Inc. and the picture book Rectangle Time. She’s a former contributor to Time and former correspondent for The Economist, and has ...
Jan 31, 20240•Ep. 161
Ruth Ben-Ghiat is Professor of History at New York University. She writes about fascism, authoritarianism, and propaganda. She is the recipient of Guggenheim and other fellowships; an advisor to Protect Democracy; an MSNBC opinion columnist and television commentator; and publishes Lucid, a newsletter on threats to democracy. Her latest book, Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present looks at how illiberal leaders use propaganda, corruption, violence, and machismo - and how they can be defeated. This ...
Jan 28, 20240•Ep. 160
Frank Rich is a journalist, author, and television producer. A writer-at-large for New York magazine, he was previously chief drama critic and an OpEd columnist for the New York Times. He executive produced the long-running HBO series Succession and Veep as well as the limited series White House Plumbers and the documentaries Six by Sondheim and Becoming Mike Nichols. Frank's books include The Greatest Story Ever Sold: The Decline and Fall of Truth from 9/11 to Katrina and the memoir Ghost Light...
Jan 25, 20240•Ep. 159
Edie Falco is a television, film and stage actor whose roles on HBO's Oz, Showtime's Nurse Jackie and the iconic HBO series The Sopranos have earned her multiple Emmy, Golden Globe, and SAG Awards. She currently stars in the hit Peacock series Bupkis as Pete Davidson's mother. Her Broadway credits include the Tony Award-winning play Sideman, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair De Lune, ‘Night Mother, and The House of Blue Leaves, for which she received a Tony Award Nomination. Off-Broadway she’s app...
Jan 23, 20240•Ep. 158
Jasmine Crockett is an attorney, former member of the Texas House of Representatives and currently serves as the US Representative for Texas’s 30th Congressional District, which covers much of the city of Dallas and parts of Dallas and Tarrant counties. She is a member of the House Oversight and Agriculture Committees. Rep. Crockett is back in THE BACK ROOM discussing her home state's draconian abortion and immigration laws, the chaos and dysfunction of the Republican House Crazy Caucus, the Tru...
Jan 20, 20240•Ep. 157
Caitlin Keating is a New York City based filmmaker, journalist, and co-founder of Wise Fool Films. She produced 'Take Care of Maya' ,which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and released on Netflix last year. She previously spent over a decade as a reporter and writer at People magazine, having covered hundreds of exclusve human interest and crime stories across the country. She also hosted People's first episodic human interest series, and has contributed to The New York Times, among many o...
Jan 18, 20240•Ep. 156
Over 25 years in comedy, Gary Gulman has established himself as an eminent performer and peerless writer whom the New York Times said is “finally being recognized as one of the country’s strongest comedians.” He’s made five TV specials, including the critically-acclaimed new stand-up special for MAX, Born on 3rd Base. He recently released his memoir, Misfit: Growing Up Awkward in the 80’s…and can also be seen in the 2019 international blockbuster Joker and the Hulu comedy series Life & Beth,...
Jan 15, 20240•Ep. 155
James Kirchick is a journalist, historian, columnist for Tablet magazine, writer at large for Air Mail, and the author of the NYT bestseller, SECRET CITY: The Hidden History of Gay Washington. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, the Atlantic, the New York Review of Books, New York and Rolling Stone among others. He’s a frequent speaker at colleges and universities across America and at venues including the National ...
Jan 13, 20240•Ep. 154
Tina Nguyen is a national correspondent for Puck, covering the world of Donald Trump and the American right. Previously, she was a White House reporter for Politico, a staff reporter for Vanity Fair Hive, and an editor at Mediaite….and was nominated for a James Beard Award for her coverage of the restaurant industry while working at The Braiser. She is the author of the new book The MAGA Diaries: My Surreal Adventures Inside the Right-Wing (And How I Got Out), an explosive, first-person account ...
Jan 09, 20240•Ep. 153
Michael J. Gerhardt is the Burton Craige Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the Scholar in Residence at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, and the foremost scholar on impeachment in the United States. He is one of only two legal scholars to testify in three different presidential impeachment hearings and served as Special Counsel to the Presiding Officer in Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial. He is the author of six bo...
Jan 06, 20240•Ep. 152
Jo Carducci, also known as "JoJo From Jerz", is a mom living in the Jersey suburbs who, in the wake of the 2016 election, was looking for an outlet to share her frustrations and fears about Donald Trump, so she joined Twitter (X). And she hasn’t looked back since. What once was a sounding board to vent with like-minded people, has turned into a full-time commitment to standing up for democracy and against tyranny in her signature snark and sass. You can find her on all the socials, at http://Pat...
Jan 02, 20240•Ep. 151
Michael Cohen is the former personal attorney for Donald Trump and served for years as an executive in the Trump Organization. He is host of the Mea Culpa With Michael Cohen podcast and co-host of Political Beatdown with Michael Cohen and Ben Meiselas podcast, and is a 2x NYT best-selling author. His latest book is “Revenge: How Donald Trump Weaponized the US Department of Justice Against His Critics. He’s also Principal of crisis management firm Crisis-X. Michael's back in The Back Room helping...
Dec 30, 2023•59 min•Ep. 150
Jonathan Karl is the chief Washington correspondent for ABC News, co- anchor of This Week and the author of the just released NY Times best-selling book TIRED OF WINNING: Donald Trump and the End of the Grand Old Party. He's covered every major beat in Washington, DC, and reported from the White House under four presidents and fourteen press secretaries. He's also a former president of the White House Correspondents’ Association. His prior books, Front Row at the Trump Show and Betrayal: The Fin...
Dec 26, 20230•Ep. 149
Michael Steele is the former Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairman, former Lt. Governor of Maryland, MSNBC political analyst and host of the Michael Steele Podcast. Join us for this insightful, entertaining chat about Trump and his 14th Amendment and immunity cases; the ongoing threats from Trumpism; the slow death of the GOP; RNC chair Ronna McDaniel's failure, and how he'd fix that broken organization; Joe Biden, Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis, Liz Cheney and the 2024 presidential election; ...
Dec 23, 20230•Ep. 148
Naysa Woomer served as the former Communications Director for the now former and disgraced, indicted U.S. Congressman George Santos. She’s a Republican communications advisor who previously worked for former Massachusetts Gov Charlie Baker, the Republican Party of Massachusetts and Reps. Ryan Costello (PA), Thomas Massie (KY) & Tim Huelskamp (KS). She’s made various media appearances on MSNBC's The Beat with Ari Melber, CNN This Morning & with CNN’s Jim Acosta. Join us for a fun, fascina...
Dec 19, 20230•Ep. 147
Elie Honig is an attorney and CNN senior legal analyst and the bestselling author of Hatchet Man and this year's book Untouchable: How Powerful People Get Away With It. He’s a former assistant United States attorney for the Southern District of New York. He also hosts podcasts and writes for CAFE and Vox Media. Elie's back in The Back Room helping unpack the week's legal developments regarding Donald Trump, Rudy Giuliani and the Texas abortion case. Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAnd...
Dec 16, 20230•Ep. 146
Rep. Ritchie Torres, at 25, became New York City's youngest elected official, and the first openly LGBTQ person elected in the Bronx. He currently represents New York’s 15th Congressional District and is a member of the Financial Services Committee and the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the U.S. and the Chinese Communist Party. Rep. Torres' life personifies the true American success story. It's an inspirational narrative of overcoming socioeconomic, health/mental health an...
Dec 13, 20230•Ep. 145
Rep. Dean Phillips is a third-term Democratic Congressman from Minnesota’s 3rd District and is running for president against Joe Biden. He serves on the House Foreign Affairs and Small Business Committees, and the Subcommittee on the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia. Known for his bipartisan approach to governing, he is a current member of the House Problem Solvers Caucus and served as vice chair. We discuss his childhood and background, his early inspirations, his business success, hi...
Dec 11, 20230•Ep. 144
Tom Nichols is an author, staff writer at The Atlantic, and an expert on international security issues who taught national security affairs for 25 years at the U.S. Naval War College, as well as at the Harvard Extension School, Dartmouth College, and Georgetown University. He is the author of several books on Russia, the Cold War, and international politics. His most recent book is Our Own Worst Enemy: The Assault From Within on Modern Democracy. Tom joins me for an insightful, compelling conver...
Dec 09, 20230•Ep. 143
Chris Cuomo is host of the nightly news show "Cuomo" on NewsNation and The Chris Cuomo Project podcast. Join us for this insightful, entertaining chat as Chris and I discuss what's good, bad and ugly in the world, including his thoughts on the Jets, Knicks, Taylor Swift, Public Enemy, The Beatles and more! Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhin...
Dec 05, 20230•Ep. 142
Dr. Alexander Vindman is a retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel who most recently served on the National Security Council. He was thrust into the national spotlight in October 2019 when he testified before Congress during former president Donald Trump's first impeachment hearing. He is currently a senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute, and leads the national security think tank, the Institute for Informed American Leadership. He’s an executive board member for the Renew Democracy Initiat...
Dec 02, 20230•Ep. 141
Zelda Roland is the Founding Director of the Yale Prison Education Initiative at Dwight Hall, which brings access to Yale classes and other campus programming to incarcerated students in Connecticut. A Yale alumna (BA 08, PhD16), she also serves as the inaugural director of University of New Haven’s Prison Education Program and its partnership with YPEI, through which incarcerated students earn degrees in prison and receive support when released from confinement. She is a Lecturer in Yale’s Educ...
Nov 30, 20230•Ep. 140
Bess Freedman is CEO of Brown Harris Stevens, one of the largest privately held real estate companies in the United States. She draws upon her law background and passion for helping people to drive change within the company and the larger real estate industry. She’s declared Juneteenth a company-wide holiday, made Election Day a paid day off, partnered with the Human Rights Campaign in support of legislation protecting rights of the LGBTQ+ community, and provides travel expenses for employees se...
Nov 28, 20230•Ep. 139
Miles Taylor is a national security expert who served in the Trump administration as chief of staff at the US Department of Homeland Security, where he published an “Anonymous” essay in The New York Times, blowing the whistle on presidential misconduct. He later published the #1 national bestseller A Warning, revealed himself to be the author, and launched a campaign of ex-officials to oppose Donald Trump’s reelection. He’s worked as an advisor in the George W. Bush administration, on Capitol Hi...
Nov 25, 20230•Ep. 138
Kevin Krim is President and CEO at EDO, the TV outcomes company, a leading platform measuring predictive behaviors driven by Convergent TV advertising, and co-founded over 8 years ago with actor and filmmaker Edward Norton and Daniel Nadler. Prior to EDO, Kevin was the General Manager & SVP of CNBC Digital and previously held leadership positions at Bloomberg, Yahoo, and LookSmart, and began his career with McKinsey & Co. He is the co-founder and chairman of the non-profit Lulu & Leo...
Nov 22, 20230•Ep. 137
Julianna Margulies is an Emmy, Golden Globe, and Screen Actors Guild Award winner currently starring as Laura Peterson on Apple TV+'s The Morning Show. She previously starred as Alicia Florrick on the long-running hit CBS show The Good Wife, which she also produced, and was one of the original cast members of ER. More recently, Julianna’s starred on critically acclaimed series including Billions and The Hot Zone...and is the author of her memoir, Sunshine Girl: An Unexpected Life. She’s been inv...
Nov 21, 2023•43 min•Ep. 136
Mark Chiusano covered George Santos as a columnist and editorial writer at New York Newsday. His new book, "The Fabulist: The Lying, Hustling, Grifting, Stealing, and Very American Legend of George Santos", comes out November 28th. Join us for this insightful, entertaining chat about wild and wacky world of George Santos! Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @...
Nov 20, 20230•Ep. 135
John Fugelsang is a Drama League nominated actor, comedian, and broadcaster who hosts the acclaimed "Tell Me Everything" series on SiriusXM. He's been a regular on CNN, MSNBC, FOX News and hosted "Viewpoint" on Current TV. He’s sold out theaters across the country with Stephanie Miller, Hal Sparks and Aisha Tyler on The Sexy Liberal Comedy Tour. He was also the co-host of 'America's Funniest Home Videos' for 2 seasons. And his acting credits include 'CSI,' Becker,' 'Coyote Ugly,’ 'The Girl On Th...
Nov 15, 20230•Ep. 134
