The Al Franken Podcast

Episode: Ari Berman on Trump’s Plans to Steal the Midterms

Guest: Ari Berman (Mother Jones National Voting Correspondent)
Date: March 1, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, Al Franken is joined by Ari Berman, renowned elections reporter for Mother Jones, to dissect the mounting threats to democracy and election integrity ahead of the 2026 midterms. The conversation is set against the backdrop of escalating political tensions, war with Iran, and Donald Trump’s escalating efforts to cast doubt on elections—and, as Berman details, to exploit state-level machinery to clinch Republican victories. The discussion is rich, candid, and laced with humor, but heavy with warnings about unprecedented tactics being deployed to undermine fair elections.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Setting the Context: Trump, War, and Popularity (03:33)

• The episode opens with Franken decrying Trump’s newly announced war against Iran, highlighting his plummeting popularity and the broken campaign promises that have eroded public trust.
• Quote:

  “As I record, Trump has announced that we’re about to strike Iran. And as you hear this, he has... is calling for the Iranian people to take down the ayatollah and his regime.”
  — Al Franken (03:50)

2. State of the Union Address & Trump’s Campaigning from the Podium (06:17)

• Berman had to endure Trump's unusually combative and fact-averse State of the Union speech, calling out “disgraceful” lies, especially on immigrants and election fraud.
• Quote:

  “Just Trump basically making it into a campaign speech… he’s just talking like he’s on Newsmax for two hours.”
  — Ari Berman (07:51)

• They play a clip where Trump repeats the false claim that “foreign countries are paying the tariffs,” and lament that there was little protest from within Congress.

3. The ‘Ballot Seizure’ in Fulton County, Georgia (08:49)

• Discussion turns to the alarming recent raid to seize ballots in Fulton County—a move Berman identifies as setting a dangerous new precedent.
  • In 2020, such actions were considered off limits. Now they’re happening, with Trump loyalists in Georgia exploiting newly granted state power to oversee and even potentially take over local election administration.
• Quote:

  “There’s no good outcome to them taking the ballots… The thing that really worried me about the taking of ballots was it just showed how far they’re willing to go.”
  — Ari Berman (09:03)

4. The Immigrant Voting Myth and Voter Suppression Tactics (11:21)

• Berman meticulously debunks Republican claims that noncitizens voting is a widespread problem:
  • Utah found zero cases among 2.1 million voters; Georgia found 9 in 8.2 million; North Carolina found 7 in 7 million.
  • Emphasizes that these cases are almost always mistakes, not intentional fraud.
• Quote:

  “It just doesn’t make any logical sense why someone who comes here, documented or undocumented, would risk fines, prison, and deportation to cast a ballot. I mean, it doesn’t make any rational sense. And, of course, it’s not backed by the data, either.”
  — Ari Berman (13:17)

5. Talk of ICE at the Polls & The Politics of Intimidation (13:32)

• Franken and Berman play a Steve Bannon clip calling for ICE to “surround the polls.”
  • Berman explains that, legally, ICE cannot operate at polling places, but the threat of immigration enforcement alone can suppress turnout, especially among eligible voters in immigrant communities.
• Quote:

  “They don’t need to be at the polls to be able to suppress votes.”
  — Ari Berman (14:13)

6. Changing Latino Voting Patterns and Texas Redistricting (15:07)

• Recent polling shows Trump and the GOP losing ground with Latino voters in Texas, putting at risk the very districts they redrew to gain an advantage.
  • ICE’s deportations among Cuban Americans threaten to alienate a key block in Florida as well.

7. GOP State Takeover Threats and Legal Changes in Georgia (17:09)

• Georgia’s post-2020 law gave the state election board (now “MAGA majoritarian”) unprecedented oversight over up to four counties.
  • Berman worries about potential voter roll purges and reductions in polling access, especially in majority-Black Fulton County, home to 10% of the state’s population and key to Democratic success.

8. The Legal Landscape: Insurrection Act, Voting Rights Act, and Supreme Court Moves (24:06, 27:21)

• Could Trump invoke the Insurrection Act to use the military in elections? Berman doubts it would stand, thanks to the Constitution’s clear limits on federal election powers.
• Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act is under threat at the Supreme Court—if narrowed or struck down, several key majority-minority districts could be dismantled, potentially flipping up to 19 House seats.

9. The ‘Save America Act’ and the ‘Show Your Papers’ Voting Laws (32:44)

• The SAVE America Act would require proof of citizenship (passport or birth certificate) for voter registration and push voter ID requirements, along with a controversial provision to force states to turn over voter rolls to the Department of Homeland Security.
  • Berman highlights that this would inadvertently disenfranchise many Republican constituencies (married women with changed names, rural voters) and is premised on unsound data.

10. Voting Access: Elimination of Early Voting and Dropboxes (38:25)

• Trump and the right are pushing to confine voting to Election Day—a move even GOP strategists reject, knowing it would hurt their own voters.
  • Aggressive limits on dropboxes (e.g., one per county in massive Texas jurisdictions) are already having suppressive impacts.

11. Can Trump Use DOJ, FBI, or ICE to Sway Elections? (41:32)

• Berman stresses that, although Trump wants to use federal muscle, decentralization and legal checks make large-scale interference difficult. Still, the tactics are disruptive and exhaust trust in the electoral process.

12. Midterm Predictions and Redistricting Chessboard (45:23)

• Franken and Berman run through key Senate races: Georgia, Texas, Ohio, Alaska, Maine, and North Carolina. Georgia is surprisingly safe for Democrats, thanks to backlash against ballot seizures.
  • The redistricting arms race sees Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, California, Virginia, and Florida all engaged.
• Quote:

  “As Trump and his party look more likely to lose the midterms, the kind of insane schemes they draw up to try to influence the election are going to become crazier and crazier.”
  — Ari Berman (48:36)

13. Should Democrats Impeach Trump if They Win the House? (48:36–51:00)

• Discussion veers into the possibilities and perils of impeachment, citing emoluments and the magnitude of grift by the Trump family as potential grounds.
  • Berman emphasizes the value of restoring Congressional oversight regardless of impeachment.

14. Epstein Files and the Politics of Accountability (50:12–52:14)

• Disgust over selective scrutiny of the Clintons in the ongoing Epstein scandal, with suggestions that DOJ is withholding damaging records on more powerful Republicans, possibly including Trump.
• The episode ends on a somber note about the importance of oversight and investigations under a possible Democratic Congress.

Notable Quotes & Moments with Timestamps

• On new GOP tactics:

  “A lot of things that Trump was talked off the ledge with in 2020 are now happening.”
  — Ari Berman (09:03)

• On the danger of ballot seizures:

  “If they were to appoint someone… that would basically sideline the Democratic majority on the Fulton County election board and allow them to do things like close polling places, cut early voting locations, remove voters from the rolls.”
  — Ari Berman (17:59)

• On Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act:

  “If [the Supreme Court] were to find that this key part of the Voting Rights Act was unconstitutional, or just narrow it to the point of irrelevancy… that would allow Louisiana and other Southern states to redraw their districts in a way that would take away these majority minority districts that are held by Democrats.”
  — Ari Berman (27:46)

• Berman’s bottom line:

  “All you’re doing is killing your own voters in the process.”
  — Ari Berman (41:09)

• On the Republican base:

  “Republicans show up for Trump. I mean, Trump has a base, he has a MAGA base that will show up for him. And they don’t show up in midterms.”
  — Al Franken (37:34)

• On Trump’s obsession with power:

  “We’ve never seen someone that was so afraid of losing like Trump is right now… The practical consequences of this is going to define his last two years in office. Investigation after investigation after investigation…”
  — Ari Berman (52:45)

Important Segments and Timestamps

• [03:33] Trump’s Iran war, State of the Union, and electoral backdrop
• [07:51] Berman on Trump’s “Newsmax” campaign speech at SOTU
• [09:03] Ballot seizure in Fulton County and implications for democracy
• [11:21] Debunking the noncitizen voting fraud myth
• [13:32] Steve Bannon, ICE at polls, and the politics of intimidation
• [15:07] Shifting Latino vote and GOP redistricting dilemmas in Texas/Florida
• [17:09] State election board takeover strategies in Georgia
• [24:06] Insurrection Act and SCOTUS immunity for Trump
• [27:21] Future of Section 2 of Voting Rights Act & possible seat losses
• [32:44] The SAVE America Act and effects of draconian voting laws
• [38:25] Attacks on early voting and dropboxes
• [41:32] Trump’s attempts to wield DOJ, ICE, and the limits of federal power
• [45:23] 2026 midterm predictions and redistricting chessboard
• [48:36] Should Democrats impeach Trump? The oversight imperative
• [50:12] Epstein files, the Clintons, and the DOJ's selective pursuit

Tone and Style

The conversation maintains Al Franken’s characteristic dry wit and skepticism, with Ari Berman bringing a mix of urgency and detailed research. Both use humor to drive home the seriousness of the threats to American democracy, closing with an open call for vigilance, oversight, and restored accountability.

For listeners seeking an expert breakdown of current political maneuvering around U.S. elections, this episode serves as an engaging—and chilling—primer on just how far the rules are being bent, and what’s at stake this November.