Épisodes

  • Josh Shapiro's Game Plan
    Feb 19 2026
    In his first term as governor of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro has managed to sustain a 60% approval rating—including 30% of Trump voters—in a quintessential battleground state. How? Shapiro talks Harry through his bipartisan, pragmatic approach to governing, and how it can overcome Trump’s reckless, divisive style. He lays out a roadmap for countering the president's most abusive policies, even while respecting the "righteous frustration" that motivated his voters.And Governor Shapiro is coming to San Diego for a live, in-person conversation with Harry about his memoir. Get tickets here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-conversation-with-josh-shapiro-tickets-1983419713756 Mentioned in this episode: Evan Segal's essay about basketball star Connie Hawkins and Harry's parents: https://harrylitman.substack.com/p/a-tribute-to-my-parents-and-a-pittsburgh Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    31 min
  • Bad Bondi
    Feb 16 2026
    Talking Feds stalwarts Norm Ornstein, Tara Setmayer, and Charlie Sykes join Harry to review Pam Bondi's flailing theatrics before Congress as well as a raft of other embarrassments for the Trump administration. After panning the DOJ's determination to avoid transparency on Epstein, the group turns to the sudden federal retreat in Minnesota and a searing courtroom humiliation for Pete Hegseth. To close, they break down the stirrings of mutiny within Trump's party and the president's effort to rewrite election rules. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 h
  • Will the Supreme Court Betray the Constitution?
    Feb 12 2026
    Superstar SCOTUS expert Kate Shaw joins Harry to talk in broad strokes about the Supreme Court's performance during the first year of Trump 2.0 and about the pivotal cases on the horizon. Kate considers the Court’s rejection of parts of Trump’s agenda, and why that’s cold comfort given their subservience when it counts most. They dig into the breakdown and fault lines of the nine justices. Finally, they consider recent radical critiques that the Court needs to be torn down and replaced. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    36 min
  • Live from Princeton: A Contrarian Quartet
    Feb 9 2026
    Contrarian stalwarts Norm Eisen, Asha Rangappa, and Jen Rubin join Harry for a special episode filmed in front of a live audience at Princeton University. They begin with the cataclysmic fall of the Washington Post and what it shows about Trump's power to demolish even the most powerful civic institutions. From there, they turn to the deportation effort, which seems to be running itself into the ground, and Trump's latest noises about election interference. They end with some measured but forceful optimism for American democracy in 2026. A video version of this episode is available on YouTube. Mentioned in this episode: The Contrarian: ⁠https://contrarian.substack.com/ The Contrarian’s YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@ContrarianNews⁠ Democracy Defenders Fund: https://www.democracydefendersfund.org/⁠ Asha's Substack: https://asharangappa.substack.com/ Asha's podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/its-complicated/id1434320092 The New York Times piece on lawsuits against the administration: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/us/trump-administration-lawsuits.html⁠ Image credit: Sameer Khan, Fotobuddy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 h et 6 min
  • Trump's Reign of Terror in the Civil Rights Division
    Feb 5 2026
    Normally, after a controversial law enforcement shooting like that of Renee Good or Alex Pretti, the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division would quickly announce an investigation. Under Trump, however, there's still no investigation into Good's killing, and the Department announced it would examine Pretti's shooting only after days of immense pressure. Bill Yeomans, a 24-year veteran and former acting head of the Division, walks Harry through the ways that Trump has stifled, undermined, and perverted this crucial wing of the DOJ. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    37 min
  • Cracks in the ICE
    Feb 2 2026
    It was a tumultuous week on the streets and in the courts, with panelists Kristen Holmes, Juliette Kayyem, and Josh Marshall joining Harry to break it all down. ICE's reign of terror in Minnesota continues, even as top Trump officials sing a softer tune after nationwide outrage over the death of Alex Pretti. The panel marches through the latest fallout from Pretti's killing, as well as the newest attempts by the DOJ to advance Trump's agenda elsewhere, from the arrest of Don Lemon to the shocking raid on a Georgia election office. Mentioned in this episode: Kristen’s reporting: https://www.cnn.com/profiles/kristen-holmes-bio Juliette’s writing in the Atlantic: https://www.theatlantic.com/author/juliette-kayyem/ Josh’s analysis: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/author/josh_m Also, check out some big changes coming to the Talking Feds Substack: https://harrylitman.substack.com/p/big-changes-for-the-talking-feds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 h et 2 min
  • The Legacy of the Subway Vigilante
    Jan 29 2026
    Talking Feds stalwart Elliot Williams joins Harry to discuss his new book, Five Bullets. The pair turn to the blighted and crime-stricken New York of the 1980s to get at some of the unanswered questions from the case of Bernhard Goetz and why the five shots he fired at Black teenagers which made him—to so many Americans—a folk hero. What made it so hard for prosecutors to convict Goetz? What did his trial expose about the limits of what our justice system can offer? And why the lasting American fascination with the idea of a gunman taking the law into his own hands?Mentioned in this episode: Williams' book: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/768052/five-bullets-by-elliot-williams/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    39 min
  • "Are You F***ing Kidding Me?"
    Jan 26 2026
    As the killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis roils the country, Harry breaks down the fallout with Susan Glasser. Then, turning to the week's main discussion, three stellar journalists—Susan, Emily Bazelon, and Ruth Marcus—join Harry to break down Trump's assaults on the rule of law that made Pretti's death possible. From the corruption of the FBI and the carnage in Minnesota to Trump's escape from the prosecutions brought by Jack Smith, the trio engage in a wide-ranging discussion anchored in their in-depth reporting. Can the FBI withstand another year of Kash Patel's leadership? Is Jack Smith next on Trump's list of targets for reprisal? Finally, are the tragic events in Minnesota, as Susan says, Trump's most Trumpian accomplishment? Mentioned in this episode: Harry's Substack on the aftermath of Alex Pretti's death: https://harrylitman.substack.com/p/congress-must-act-now Susan's piece on Trump's actions in Minnesota: ⁠ https://www.newyorker.com/news/letter-from-trumps-washington/the-minnesota-war-zone-is-trumps-most-trumpian-accomplishment Emily's report on the FBI: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/01/22/magazine/trump-kash-patel-fbi-agents.html Ruth's piece on Jack Smith: ⁠ https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-lede/jack-smiths-closing-argument Ruth's profile of Pam Bondi: ⁠ https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/08/25/pam-bondi-profile Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 h et 18 min