Podcast
Politics Weekly America
Hosted by The Guardian · EN
Every Friday, Guardian columnist and former Washington correspondent, Jonathan Freedland, invites experts to help analyse the latest in American politics. From politicians to journalists covering the White House and beyond, Jonathan and his guests give listeners behind the scenes access to how the American political machine works. With a global network of over 900 journalists and five dedicated editions covering news in the US, UK, Australia, Europe, and beyond, the Guardian offers comprehensive reporting across every continent.
35episodes
Episodes
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Trump: the boy who cried ‘peace’ in the Middle East
1w ago00:21:36Tap to summarizeOn Saturday, Donald Trump said talks with Tehran were going well and an agreement to end the war was ‘largely negotiated’. On Sunday, the US launched strikes on Southern Iran. By Thursday, Donald Trump had circulated a draft peace agreement for the war with Iran among allies. This week, as the US-Iran deal remains in a precarious state, Jonathan Freedland speaks to Ali Vaez of the International Crisis Group about why Trump keeps changing his mind on what to do to end the war
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Stateside with Kai and Carter – Why the fight over abortion pills is only just beginning
2w ago00:42:35Tap to summarizeThe US supreme court has preserved nationwide access to mail-order abortion pills – for now. As Carter Sherman explains, the fight to protect this medication is far from over, as a nationwide, near-total abortion ban could be on the horizon. Carter speaks to Dr Angel Foster, co-founder of the Massachusetts Medication Abortion Access Project, who reveals how the legal battle over abortion pills has affected patients across the US – and what could happen next
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Trump’s new ‘slush fund’ for his pals
2w ago00:26:56Tap to summarizeThis week, Donald Trump dropped a personal $10bn lawsuit he had against the Internal Revenue Service in exchange for a so-called anti-weaponisation fund. The $1.8bn fund will be used to compensate those who think they have been unfairly investigated by the government in the past. This week, Jonathan Freedland speaks to the legal analyst Kristy Greenberg about why critics are calling this fund ‘corruption on steroids’
Transcribe →Introducing Stateside with Kai and Carter: Stacey Abrams on why gutting US Voting Rights Act is ‘evil’
3w ago00:35:39Tap to summarizeThe US supreme court demolished the 1965 Voting Rights Act when it ruled in Louisiana v Callais in April that states can’t consider race in redistricting. Southern states from Tennessee to Alabama have rushed to erase majority Black districts, sparking chaos for the midterm elections. Kai Wright talks with Stacey Abrams, voting rights activist and former Georgia house minority leader, about the fallout from the decision and why she thinks the way forward is still through engaging more voters to participate in democracy: ‘They have fractured communities and said we’re going to scatter these seeds. Our job is to grow.’
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Will Trump lose the Senate in the midterms?
3w ago00:27:40Tap to summarizeDemocrats think they can flip the Senate blue in November, and they’re hoping a group of interesting characters will help them do it. This week, Jonathan Freedland is joined by Jonathan Martin of Politico to discuss the chances of such an upset and what it would mean for the president to lose the upper chamber
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Does Trump basically own the US supreme court now?
May 800:27:13Tap to summarizeJonathan Freedland speaks to the law professor and author Leah Litman about the conservative-leaning court’s decisions this legislative session, cases to come and why some are arguing it is now a political institution, not a legal one
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Why do people believe the Trump assassination attempts are fake?
May 100:25:16Tap to summarizeA 31-year-old man has been charged with attempting to assassinate Donald Trump, after a thwarted attack at Saturday’s White House correspondents’ dinner. Immediately after this, conspiracy theories spread online that the assassination attempt was fake. This week, Jonathan Freedland speaks to Rachel Leingang about why conspiracy theories such as this about the US president are so prevalent
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The Trump purge: is the FBI’s Kash Patel next?
Apr 2400:28:21Tap to summarizeThree cabinet secretaries have left – or been pushed out – of the US administration since the start of March. Recent reporting suggests more could soon find themselves on the chopping block. Jonathan Freedland speaks to the MS NOW White House correspondent Laura Barrón-López about why Donald Trump is more ruthless in his second term
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Is blasphemy the last straw for Trump’s Maga base?
Apr 1700:28:35Tap to summarizeNo matter how much Donald Trump outrages his opponents, nothing ever seems to stick. But what about his own base? With controversies surrounding the Epstein files, his war on Iran, and now a ‘blasphemous’ post depicting the president as Jesus, could Maga finally be pulling away? Jonathan Freedland speaks to Rolling Stone’s Nikki McCann Ramírez about the string of scandals dogging Trump, the Maga big beasts biting the hand that fed them, and what happens when a personality cult loses its personality
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Could Trump be forced out of office?
Apr 1000:27:17Tap to summarizeThis week, despite securing a temporary ceasefire with Iran, there were calls from both the left and the right to invoke the 25th amendment of the US constitution to remove Donald Trump from office. Jonathan Freedland speaks to the Guardian’s Washington bureau chief, David Smith, about the various ways Congress could remove Trump from the White House
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