We’ve Got Issues

This week, Joshua Holland and Liz Preza talk about the ludicrous freakout over Rep. Joaquin Castro tweeting publicly available data about Trump's biggest contributors in his district -- and why transparency colliding with the right's deep-seated persecution complex is a threat to campaign finance rules.

This week, Joshua Holland and Elizabeth Preza discuss the latest Democratic debates and the right-wing framing used by debate moderators.

Then Joshua speaks to journalist David Neiwert about the growing threat of violent white nationalism.

This week, Joshua Holland and Elizabeth Preza ponder why Democrats seem afraid of their own collective shadow at a time when they're facing off against a historically unpopular president*.

This week, Joshua Holland and Liz Preza bring you some news that caught their eyes this week, and talk about Donald Trump's "Social Media Summit" featuring some of the more conspiratorial crackpots among the Twitter-famous right. 

This week, Joshua Holland and Elizabeth Preza are thrilled to launched the very first episode of We've Got Issues. Who knows--it may become a collector's item! 

First up, we talk about the fluid state of the early days of the Democratic presidential primaries with blogger and Salon columnist Heather "Digby" Parton. 

And then we catch up with Greg Sargent to talk about the political press's challenges--and failures--covering an erratic, lawless president who defies all of the conventions to which reporters and editors have become accustomed over the years. Greg writes The Washington Post's Plum Line Blog and is the author of An Uncivil War: Taking Back Our Democracy in an Age of Trumpian Disinformation and Thunderdome Politics. 

This week, we speak with The Washington Post's Greg Sargent about his new book, An Uncivil War: Taking Back Our Democracy in an Age of Trumpian Disinformation and Thunderdome Politics. (Our interview was so fascinating that we've invited Greg back on the show next week to continue the discussion.) 

Then we're joined by Elizabeth Rogers, a former judge and current host of the Humorless Rants podcast, to talk about the need for, and the potential shape of reforms of a Supreme Court facing a legitimacy crisis. 

Finally, we're joined by attorney and veteran civil rights activist Hanna Dershowitz, who tells us about her testimony this week in favor of legalizing cannabis before the New York State Assembly -- and where the debate over prohibition is likely to go.

Playlist: 
Alabama Shakes: "Hang Loose"
Los Enanitos Verdes: "Pasaré Por Ti"
Portugal: The Man: "So Young"
Beth Hart: "Bang Bang Boom Boom"

We have a really great lineup this week. 

First up is Dahlia Lithwick, a senior editor at Slate, who talks to us about the future of the Court now that Brett Kavanaugh has been confirmed, and what a dramatic loss of institutional legitimacy might mean going forward. 

Then we're joined by Ari Berman from Mother Jones. Berman, author of Give Us the Ballot: The Modern Struggle for Voting Rights in America, tells us what he fears the most in the voting rights arena as we approach the 2018 midterms, and also highlights some things that give him hope. 

Finally, we speak with Tufts political scientist Brian Schaffner, whose recent study found that expressions of hostile sexism have become a partisan issue. Schaffner explains how Trump's victory appears to have made his supporters more likely to say the quiet parts out loud. 

Playlist:
Junior Martin: "Police and Thieves"
King Crimson: "Man With an Open Heart"

This week, we're joined by People for the American Way Executive Vice President Marge Baker to talk about where we are in the gut-wrenching confirmation process for Brett Kavanaugh, Donald Trump's Supreme Court pick who faces charges of sexual assault and lying to Congress. 

Then we go back to the archive to put all of this into a larger context with an earlier interview with Johns Hopkins political scientist Steven Teles, author of The Rise of the Conservative Legal Movement: The Battle for Control of the Law, a seminal book on the conservative movement's long, well funded campaign to push the center of gravity in American courts to the right. 

Playlist:
Salt-n-Pepa: "Here We Come"
Queen Latifa: "U.N.I.T.Y"
Rocky Rivera: "Pussy Kills"

This week, we kick off the show with veteran journo David Cay Johnston, who has been covering Donald Trump since the 1980s. David helps us sort out what last week's raft of convictions, guilty pleas and revelations about members of Trump's inner circle being immunized by prosecutors can tell us about what's likely to come of all this. 

Then we're joined by Stephan Lewandowsky, chair in cognitive psychology at the University of Bristol, to talk about new data suggesting that a belief in creationism is linked to a greater tendency to buy into kooky conspiracy theories. 

Finally, we catch up with Cliff Albright, co-founder of the Black Voters Matter Fund, on a three-day bus tour he and his colleagues took through the Deep South to help register voters and support local community groups. You can find out more about the group or support their efforts here. 

Playlist:
George Ezra: "Shotgun"
Rancid: "Life Won't Wait"
Rolling Stones: "She Smiled Sweetly"
John Lurie National Orchestra: "Let's Get Ready to Rumba"