Episodes

Saturday Jul 18, 2020
Award Winning Author Talks New Book on How Newt Gingrich Helped Lead to Trump
Saturday Jul 18, 2020
Saturday Jul 18, 2020
Leslie begins the show with her 'Ripped from the Headlines' news segment.
Here are the stories she covers during the segment:
1. Oregon Public Broadcasting/The Washington Post: "Federal Law Enforcement Use Unmarked Vehicles To Grab Protesters Off Portland Streets"
2. The Daily Beast: "U.S. Shatters Coronavirus Record—Again—With 77,000 New Cases in One Day"
3. Forbes: "New IHME Model Projects More Than 224,000 Coronavirus Deaths In U.S. By Nov. 1"
4. The Sun Sentinel: "Nearly one-third of children tested for COVID in Florida are positive. Palm Beach County’s health director warns of risk of long-term damage"
Leslie is then joined by Julian Zelizer, the Malcolm Stevenson Forbes Professor of History and Public Affairs at Princeton University, and a CNN Political Analyst.
His previous books are "Fault Lines: A History of the United States Since 1974," and "The Fierce Urgency of Now: Lyndon Johnson, Congress, and the Battle for the Great Society," the winner of the D.B. Hardeman Prize for Best Book on Congress.
Zelizer has been awarded fellowships from the New York Historical Society, the Russell Sage Foundation, the Guggenheim Foundation, and New America.
During the interview, Leslie and Julian discuss his newly released book, "Burning Down the House: Newt Gingrich, the Fall of a Speaker, and the Rise of the New Republican Party."
Julian's Twitter handle is @JulianZelizer. (Here is a link where you can purchase the book: TinyURL.com/BuyBurningDownTheHouse)
You can watch this episode here on Twitter/Periscope: https://www.pscp.tv/w/1rmxPYBqwyQKN
Or here on Facebook Live: https://www.facebook.com/609932097/videos/10157988246252098/

Tuesday Jul 14, 2020
Tuesday Jul 14, 2020
Leslie is joined by Scott Paul, President of the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), a partnership established by some of America’s leading manufacturers and the United Steelworkers union.
For over a decade, Mr. Paul and AAM have worked to make American manufacturing a top-of-mind issue for voters and our national leaders through effective advocacy, innovative research, and a savvy public relations strategy.
The two discuss the new film “Working Man,” and how it shows that factory life is about much more than just factories.
They also talk about Joe Biden's newly proposed $400 Billion 'Buy America' procurement plan, as well as Senator Gary Peters' 'National Institute of Manufacturing Act.'
The website for AAM is AmericanManufacturing.org and their Twitter handle is @KeepItMadeInUSA. Scott Paul's handle is @ScottPaulAAM.

Tuesday Jul 14, 2020
Health Security Expert Discusses Criteria for Reopening Schools Safely
Tuesday Jul 14, 2020
Tuesday Jul 14, 2020
The guest host for today's show is Brad Bannon. Brad runs Bannon Communications Research, a polling, message development and media firm which helps labor unions, progressive issue groups and Democratic candidates win public affairs and political campaigns. His show, 'Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon,' airs every Monday from 3-4pm ET.
Brad is first joined by Dr. Jennifer Nuzzo, a Senior Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security and an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Health and Engineering, and the Department of Epidemiology, at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Tim is a Principle at 'Molecule,' a business and public affairs company, a former Democratic staffer, and a well known renewable energy expert. His Twitter handle is @greencrude.
Mark Grimaldi has been a progressive political activist for the past 12 years. He volunteered for the campaigns of President Obama (2008 and 2012), Senator Bernie Sanders (2016), and Secretary Hillary Clinton (2016). Mark is also involved in campaign finance reform efforts around the country, and philanthropic efforts for Cancer research. His Twitter handle is @MarkJGrimaldi.
Brad writes a column every Sunday on the 2020 Presidential race for 'The Hill.' He's on the National Journal's panel of political insiders and is a national political analyst for WGN TV and Radio in Chicago and KNX Radio in Los Angeles.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.
Watch a video broadcast of the show here: https://www.pscp.tv/w/1mrxmEjYoeLxy

Wednesday Jul 08, 2020
The DACA SCOTUS Decision and What Comes Next
Wednesday Jul 08, 2020
Wednesday Jul 08, 2020
Today's guest hosts are Edwith Theogene and Emily Leach, Organizing Director and Senior Press Associate for Generation Progress.
During today's episode, they discuss the recent ruling from the Supreme Court on the Trump administration’s decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (commonly known as DACA) back in 2017. On June 18th, the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 majority that the decision from the Trump administration was unlawful, which brought temporary relief and peace of mind to the 650,000 Dreamers who have been anxiously awaiting this decision for years. This win is a huge testament to the tireless work of Dreamers and young immigrant activists who have fought for this outcome.
But it is also a reminder of how far we still have to go to prevent people in this country from living with the constant threat of deportation. As we speak, the Trump administration is already putting plans in place to end the program again, and depending on the reasoning they use this time, they may ultimately be successful.
To talk with our guest hosts about this monumental decision, and what must be done right now to protect Dreamers and all undocumented people living in the United States, are Claudia Flores, the immigration campaign manager on the Center for American Progress’s Immigration team, and Juliana Macedo do Nascimento, the state and local policy manager at United We Dream.
Here are the Twitter handles for today's guests and their respective organizations: Claudia Flores - @claudsDC, Center for American Progress Immigration Campaign - @CAPImmigration, Juliana Macedo do Nascimento - @Juli_Nasciment0, United We Dream - @UnitedWeDream.
The website for Generation Progress is www.GenProgress.org and their Twitter Handle is @GenProgress. Edwith Theogene's handle is @WhoIsEdwith and Emily Leach's handle is @EmilyFLeach.

Monday Jul 06, 2020
Monday Jul 06, 2020
The guest host for today's show is Brad Bannon. Brad runs Bannon Communications Research, a polling, message development and media firm which helps labor unions, progressive issue groups and Democratic candidates win public affairs and political campaigns. His new show, 'Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon,' airs every Monday from 3-4pm ET.
Brad is first joined by Charlie Cook, Editor and Publisher of the 'Cook Political Report.' His Twitter handle is @CharlieCookDC.
During the second half of the show, Brad leads a political round-table with Tara Devlin and Mark Grimaldi. The roundtable discusses Senator Bernie Sanders' proposal to redistribute 10% of Pentagon spending to grant money for high-poverty areas of America. The grants would be for building public housing, community health centers, and schools; decontaminating drinking water; payroll for teachers, and prohibits the money from being spent on prisons.
They also debate whether Democrats should end the filibuster rule if they take control of the Senate.
Tara Devlin is a New York City-based comedian, writer, and founder of RepublicanDirtyTricks.com, also known as 'RDTdaily.' Tara's Twitter handle is @REALTaraDevlin and her Instagram handle is @Taradacktyl. Tara's unapologetically liberal weekly podcast, "TARABUSTER" is recorded LIVE every Saturday evening at 6PM eastern on the RDTdaily Facebook and Youtube channels and replayed starting Sunday at 6PM eastern on Progressive Voices, or any time on the Progressive Voices app. You can become a 'patron' of Tarabuster and RDTdaily at www.Patreon.com/TaraDevlin.
Mark Grimaldi has been a progressive political activist for the past 12 years. He volunteered for the campaigns of President Obama (2008 and 2012), Senator Bernie Sanders (2016), and Secretary Hillary Clinton (2016). Mark is also involved in campaign finance reform efforts around the country, and philanthropic efforts for Cancer research. His Twitter handle is @MarkJGrimaldi.
Brad writes a column every Sunday on the 2020 Presidential race for 'The Hill.' He's on the National Journal's panel of political insiders and is a national political analyst for WGN TV and Radio in Chicago and KNX Radio in Los Angeles.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.
Watch a video broadcast of the show here: https://www.pscp.tv/w/1BdxYnLaZXEKX

Tuesday Jun 30, 2020
Tuesday Jun 30, 2020
Leslie begins the show with her 'Ripped from the Headlines' news segment.
Here are the stories she covers during the segment:
1. AUDIO: Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert at the National Institutes of Health, warned that the U.S. could see 100,000 new coronavirus cases per day, while he was speaking at a Senate hearing today on COVID-19
2. CNN: "From pandering to Putin to abusing allies and ignoring his own advisers, Trump's phone calls alarm US officials" by Carl Bernstein (Investigative Journalist who helped break the Watergate scandal)
3. AXIOS: "European Union extends ban on U.S. travelers as borders reopen"
4. AXIOS: "Amy McGrath wins Kentucky Democratic Senate primary"
Leslie is then joined by Colonel Cedric Leighton, Founder and President of Cedric Leighton Associates, a strategic risk and leadership consultancy serving global companies and organizations. He founded the company in 2010, after serving in the US Air Force for 26 years as an Intelligence Officer and attaining the rank of Colonel.
They talk about the reported bounties that Russia offered to pay out to the Taliban in Afghanistan for the killing of American soldiers. Additionally, they discuss new reporting from the Associated Press that President Trump and top White House officials had been briefed on the bounties multiple times dating all the way back to March of 2019.
Leslie and Colonel Leighton also speculate as to why there has been no response by the Trump administration against Russia for the bounties, and what kind of message that sends to U.S. military members and their families.
Colonel Leighton's website is www.CedricLeighton.com and his Twitter handle is @CedricLeighton.

Monday Jun 29, 2020
SCOTUS Abortion Ruling; Russian Bounty On American Soldiers
Monday Jun 29, 2020
Monday Jun 29, 2020
The guest host for today's show is Brad Bannon. Brad runs Bannon Communications Research, a polling, message development and media firm which helps labor unions, progressive issue groups and Democratic candidates win public affairs and political campaigns. His new show, 'Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon,' airs every Monday from 3-4pm ET.
Brad is first joined by Paul Lisnek, a multi-Emmy, Cablefax, Telly and Beacon Award winning television host and analyst. Paul has been the political analyst for WGN-TV since 2008, appearing on all the station’s newscasts discussing political issues of the day. He is the host of Politics Tonight on CLTV, on which he interviews the leading political figures in the city, state and country, and also serves as a fill-in anchor. Paul has interviewed presidents, governors, senators, congressmen, local representatives and mayors too numerous to count over the last 25 years. His Twitter handle is @PaulLisnek.
Paul and Brad breakdown today's 5-4 Supreme Court decision striking down Louisiana's restrictive new abortion law, while also leaving Roe v. Wade intact. They also chat about whether Chief Justice John Roberts has become the 'swing-vote' that Justice Anthony Kennedy used to be known as before he retired, as well as how Justice Roberts may rule in the latest challenge to the Affordable Care Act. Then, Paul and Brad discuss the New York Times story that Russia offered bounties to the Taliban to kill American soldiers in Afghanistan, and that the Trump administration has known about it for three months and done nothing to respond.
During the second half of the show, Brad leads a political round-table with Bina Venkataraman and Mark Grimaldi. The roundtable discusses the 2020 presidential election, Vice President Biden's election strategy, the strength of the 'Black Lives Matter' movement, whether we have reason to be optimistic about the future of America, and how Facebook is finally heeding calls to stop allowing their platform to be used to spread hate.
Bina Venkataraman is the Editorial Page editor for 'the Boston Globe.' She is an MIT lecturer, a fellow at New America and the director of Global Policy Initiatives at the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT. Bina previously was a journalist for The New York Times and The Boston Globe, and served as senior adviser for climate change innovation in the Obama White House. She is the author of "The Optimist's Telescope: Thinking Ahead in a Reckless Age."
Her Twitter handle is @binajv.
Mark Grimaldi has been a progressive political activist for the past 12 years. He volunteered for the campaigns of President Obama (2008 and 2012), Senator Bernie Sanders (2016), and Secretary Hillary Clinton (2016). Mark is also involved in campaign finance reform efforts around the country, and philanthropic efforts for Cancer research. His Twitter handle is @MarkJGrimaldi.
Brad writes a column every Sunday on the 2020 Presidential race for 'The Hill.' He's on the National Journal's panel of political insiders and is a national political analyst for WGN TV and Radio in Chicago and KNX Radio in Los Angeles.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.
Watch a video broadcast of the show here: www.pscp.tv/w/1MYGNVaAXNXGw

Friday Jun 26, 2020
World Renowned Infectious Disease Doctor Talks Latest COVID-19 News
Friday Jun 26, 2020
Friday Jun 26, 2020
Leslie begins the show with her 'Ripped from the Headlines' news segment.
Here are the stories she covers during the segment:
1. THE GUARDIAN: "Pence hails 'truly remarkable progress' after US sees record new Covid-19 cases"
2. ASSOCIATED PRESS: "Despite pandemic, Trump administration urges end to ACA"
3. AXIOS: "America's workers still aren't protected from the coronavirus"
4. ABC NEWS: "Officials see pushback as more states, counties require people to wear masks in public"
Leslie is then joined by Dr. Bob Bollinger, the Raj and Kamla Gupta Professor of Infectious Diseases at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Bollinger holds joint appointments in International Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and in Community Public Health at the JH School of Nursing.
He is Founding Director of the Center for Clinical Global Health Education (CCGHE). Their website is main.ccghe.net and their Facebook page is Facebook.com/CCGHE.
Leslie asks the Doctor whether we know if those who have recovered from COVID-19, and have antibodies from it, can become reinfected.
Dr. Bollinger also details the efforts of the world medical community to develop a vaccine for COVID-19.
Also, here are some of the other the latest COVID-19 related news items that Leslie gets Dr. Bollinger's take on:
- Coronavirus cases trending upward in about half of U.S. states, including several reporting record-breaking daily new case counts this week, as the U.S. reported 39,972 daily cases of the virus yesterday, a new daily record
- Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stating that the actual number of infections is likely 10 times the number of reported cases, meaning that CDC officials estimate that 20 million Americans, or 6% of the nation's 331 million people, have actually been infected. This also means that the vast majority of the population remains susceptible to contracting COVID-19
- One day after pausing additional efforts to reopen Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday announced another round of restrictions, including closing bars and limiting restaurant occupancy. And in Florida, bars on Friday were prohibited from allowing alcohol consumption.
- Today Florida reported nearly 9,000 new coronavirus cases in 24 hours totaling 122,960 cases. The single-day confirmed cases increase was the most for any state since the pandemic began, and it is the 19th day in a row the state has hit a new average high. The median age of new cases is from people in their mid-30s.
- Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top infectious disease expert at the National Institutes of Health, told Congress on Tuesday that the next two weeks will be "critical" in how the country addresses the surge in states like Florida, Texas and Arizona.

Tuesday Jun 23, 2020
Tuesday Jun 23, 2020
The guest host for today's show is Brad Bannon. Brad runs Bannon Communications Research, a polling, message development and media firm which helps labor unions, progressive issue groups and Democratic candidates win public affairs and political campaigns. His new show, 'Deadline D.C. with Brad Bannon,' airs every Monday from 3-4pm ET.
Brad is first joined by Congressman Ro Khanna, who is serving his second term representing California’s 17th Congressional District, located in the heart of Silicon Valley. Representative Khanna sits on the House Budget, Armed Services, and Oversight and Reform committees and is first vice chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. He also serves as an Assistant Whip in the Democratic Caucus.
The two discuss the need for a new COVID-19 stimulus package that focuses more on financially disadvantaged Americans, as well as the 'Essential Workers Bill of Rights' that Rep. Khanna co-sponsored with Senator Elizabeth Warren.
Additionally, Brad talks with Rep. Khanna about policing reform, as well as the upcoming 2020 elections.
Rep. Khanna's website is Khanna.House.Gov and his handle on Twitter and Instagram is @RepRoKhanna.
During the second half of the show, Brad is joined by Ian Millhiser, a senior correspondent at Vox, where he focuses on the Supreme Court, the Constitution, and the decline of liberal democracy in the United States. Ian is the author of "Injustices: The Supreme Court's History of Comforting the Comfortable and Afflicting the Afflicted." His Twitter handle is @imillhiser.
Ian gives his expert analysis on last week's LGBTQ and DACA Supreme Court decisions, as well as what decisions can be expected from the court in the near future. He also gives a fascinating profile of Chief Justice John Roberts, who is likely to be the deciding vote on many upcoming cases.
Brad writes a column every Sunday on the 2020 Presidential race for 'The Hill.' He's on the National Journal's panel of political insiders and is a national political analyst for WGN TV and Radio in Chicago and KNX Radio in Los Angeles.
You can read Brad's columns at www.MuckRack.com/Brad-Bannon and watch his previous 'Deadline D.C.' broadcasts at www.Periscope.TV/BradBannon. His Twitter handle is @BradBannon.
Watch a video broadcast of this episode here: https://www.periscope.tv/w/1nAKEAPaknaKL

Friday Jun 19, 2020
Friday Jun 19, 2020
Leslie begins the show with her 'Ripped from the Headlines' news segment.
Here are the stories she covers during the segment:
1. AP: "Juneteenth: A day of joy and pain - and now national action"
2. CBS NEWS: "Louisville police detective will be fired over Breonna Taylor shooting"
3. AXIOS: "Trump warns protesters against coming to Tulsa rally"
4. USA TODAY: "Oklahoma coronavirus cases surge, hospitalizations rise ahead of Trump's Tulsa rally"
Leslie is then joined by two 'Dreamers,' Maria Praeli and Maria Morales, who were directly impacted by yesterday's DACA Supreme Court decision. The high court ruled that the Trump administration improperly ended the "Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals" program, AKA DACA, in 2017.
They discuss what yesterday's DACA Supreme Court victory means to them and their families, as well as President Trump saying that he'll renew his efforts to end DACA. They also talk about what others can do to help in the fight to protect Dreamers.
Maria Praeli is Government Relations Manager for FWD.us, a bipartisan political organization that is working to fix the failed immigration and criminal justice systems that have locked too many out of the American dream for too long.
Maria moved to the United States from Peru in 1999 when she was five years old to seek medical treatment for her sister, whose leg was amputated in a car accident.
Maria's work at FWD.us focuses on strengthening outreach efforts to elected officials, providing education and resources on immigration policy to congressional offices, and working on special projects related to Dreamers and TPS holders. After moving from Peru, Maria attended public schools in Connecticut before earning an associate’s degree in liberal arts from Gateway Community College, and then a bachelor’s degree in political science from Quinnipiac University, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude.
Her Twitter handle is @MariaPraeli, and the handle for FWD.us is @FWDus.
Maria Morales is a DACA recipient and Teacher at Denver Public Schools. At an early age, Maria knew she wanted to become a teacher. Now that her dream is a reality and the future of DACA is uncertain, Maria fears leaving the classroom and abandoning her students. She moved to the United States with her family when she was only 12 years old. Her family was seeking a better life filled with opportunities for her and her siblings. Maria grew up and attended college in Greenwood, South Carolina. Her DACA status prevented her from paying in-state tuition and teaching in South Carolina, but this did not deter her from continuing her education and pursuing her dream of becoming a teacher. After graduating college, Maria decided to join Teach For America and teach in Colorado. Maria loves the community she is serving, she has built strong relationships with families and students and for her home is here, where her students are.