The Latest

The GOP convention next week will not be and cannot be treated as though it's a normal political convention. Mark Jacob explains.

When did journalist lose interest in calling out members of Congress for lying to their constituents?

Author and media expert Mark Jacob joined The Strategy Session to break down the media’s complicity in normalizing fascism. Democracy is falling off a cliff, and we need to demand the media call out the lies and the liars.

Robert McElvaine writes, "The American Experiment in self-government, freedom, equality, and the rule of law—is facing its greatest threat since the Enslavers’ Rebellion (aka Civil War) sixteen decades, or as Lincoln would put it, eight score years, ago." Can we avert disaster? McElvaine thinks that we can.

David Pepper: "When Trump denies that Project 2025 is his plan, don’t just laugh it off. Know his denial rests at the heart of the overall far-right game plan: seeking to impose on a polity an agenda that, at its core and stripped down to its basics, runs directly counter to the majority will of that polity."

The old Republican Party is dead. In this episode Rick Wilson welcomes special guest Governor Christie Todd Whitman, former governor of New Jersey, for a discussion on the current state and future of the Republican Party. They dive into the decline of the party’s principles, the rise of the Forward Party, and the impact of the Trump era on American democracy. The conversation touches on critical issues such as the erosion of the rule of law, the importance of civic education, and the repercussions of the Supreme Court’s decisions.

Rick Wilson speaks with Lauren Kunis, the Executive Director of VoteRiders, a national nonpartisan organization dedicated to voting rights. VoteRiders focuses on voter ID assistance, offering free direct help to eligible voters and running voter education programs across the country. With 38 states now enforcing voter ID laws, these regulations disproportionately impact underrepresented groups, including young people, Black and Hispanic voters, low-income individuals, and those with disabilities. VoteRiders aims to ensure that voter ID laws do not disenfranchise eligible voters and that everyone has access to the ballot box.

For those who don't speak Christian Nationalist, the deeper meaning and even more troubling agenda of Project 2025 is difficult to spot. Christian Nationalism-survivor Andra Watkins is fluent and reveals what every American must understand.

Joe and Alex discuss the fallout from last week's debate performance - and the fallout from one of the scariest Supreme Court rulings in recent memory. SCOTUS just sent a clear signal: this election matters even MORE now - so what does that mean for Democrats moving forward? Why Joe thinks that even though there are no easy answers - why Democrats can find optimism for the race in the fall and why yes, he'd still rather be us than them...

The front lines in the fight for our democracy is taking place at the state level with a battle for the integrity of a system on the brink. In this episode Rick welcomes Jena Griswold, the Secretary of State of Colorado, for an in-depth discussion about the current state of democracy in the United States. They explore the challenges and successes of election security, the rise of election denialism, and the impact of disinformation and deep fakes on the electoral process. Jena shares insights from her experience in overseeing Colorado's elections, highlighting the importance of maintaining a secure and accessible voting system. She also discusses the ongoing efforts to hold bad actors accountable and the resilience of the American people in defending democratic values.

Fox News was surprisingly subdued after Joe Biden’s disastrous debate performance. The day after the debates they interviewed white folks in diners where they blamed the First Lady Jill Biden for everything. An RNC spokesperson claimed the DNC has been hiding Biden’s cognitive decline for years. Fox News hosts glossed over Trump’s many lies and Rachel Campos-Duffy went off the deep end in many ways. There was also signs among the MAGA faithful that they are worried Trump won’t win the 2024 election.

Brian Daitzman shines a light on CNN's failure to call out our post-reality world split: "The uncomfortable truths about Trump—his incompetence, recklessness, inciting an insurrection, his criminal activities, and his actions as an adjudicated rapist—are effectively erased from the collective conscience, particularly among Trump’s MAGA base."

This is the second half of Juliet Jeske's comprehensive fact check of Trump’s statements during the presidential debate on CNN on 6/27/24.

This is the audio version of a comprehensive fact check of 53 lies Donald J. Trump told during the first presidential debate. Because there were so many I had to break it into two parts. This is Part One. Part Two will drop shortly. The written version, complete with hyperlinks to all sources, can be found at the Substack channel for Decoding Fox News. It is free for anyone to read.

The Right sees a small window remaining to permanently empower a white minority.

“With fear for our democracy, I dissent,” wrote Justice Sonia Sotomayor in her dissenting opinion in yesterday's terrible, horrible, no-good SCOTUS ruling on presidential immunity. So, we're wondering where the asterisks were in Chief Justice Robert's 2005 statement and Justice Alito's in 2006 below? It must be there somewhere because they have a big whopping exception for Donald Trump's lawlessness. Stuart, Joe, and special guest, former Biden-Harris Admin member, Gevin Reynolds done in.

The conversation between Rick Wilson and Nicholas Kristof covers a wide range of topics, including the state of American politics, social justice, democracy, rural-urban divide, and the role of media. They also discuss the challenges faced by rural communities, the impact of disinformation, and the need for a more nuanced and practical approach to governance. The conversation delves into the economic and social issues affecting different parts of the country, as well as the need for a more inclusive and solution-oriented approach to address these challenges.