Trump Watch

The Trump impeachment proceedings have one big difference from Nixon's--the Republicans are not participating in drafting articles of impeachment. Rick Perlstein argues that, as a result, the Democrats should include all of Trump's high crimes--not just those that might win a few Republican votes. And we’ll also talk about one of our favorite writers, John le Carré – he has a new book out: 'Agent Running in the Field'--they're calling it his "Brexit book." It’s number five on the best seller list. He’s now 88 years old, he’s written twenty-six books, mostly about loyalty and betrayal, mostly during the Cold War – they’ve been published in over 50 countries and 40 languages. John Powers will comment-–he’s Critic-at-Large on “Fresh Air” with Terry Gross.

This week's impeachment hearings--esp. Gordon Sondland and Fiona Hill--leave the Republicans with no good arguments. Harold Meyerson comments, and takes up the question, why are they focusing exclusively on Ukraine when Trump has committed so many other crimes? Next up, Senator Sherrod Brown was reelected in Ohio by 7 points, a state Hillary lost by 8. We ask him: what are the lessons for 2020? Plus: Against Biden -- D.D. Guttenplan explains The Nation's "anti-endorsement" of the former vice-president.

Impeachment proceedings began yesterday--John Nichols comments; he has some doubts about "bribery" as a charge. Also: it’s an unhappy annversary: 100 years since the Palmer Raids. Adam Hochshild talks about deportations of people the government considered "undesirable" – in 1919--and also today. Also, Howard Rodman on his novel "The Great Eastern." Ricky Jay called it "A splendid and notable achievement."

This week we are one year away from the election where Donald Trump will be seeking four more years in power. He’ll be the first incumbent running for reelection after having been impeached –unless the Senate votes to remove him from office. Elie Mystal analyzes what it would take for that to happen. Also: Joe Biden may be the frontrunner, but he’s slipping, and big donors are pulling away from him. But do the so-called “moderates” in the party–-the Wall Street Democrats--have a Plan B? Jeet Heer will evaluate the possibilities—there are a lot of them, but none are very promising. Plus: Left politics can win in New York City and L.A. and San Francisco but what about Iowa and Ohio? Mike Lux says ‘Left Politics Can Win All Over the Country’ –he’s a longtime strategist for the progressive movement and Democratic candidates. And finally: Amy Wilentz reports on the recent street protests in Haiti, one of those countries about which Trump has made those disparaging remarks.

Christopher Leonard explains why the Koch Brothers did not want Trump to get the nomination - and how they got to be as wealthy, and politically active, as they are. His new book is "Kochland." Also: We all know Trump got famous on TV with The Apprentice – but how many of us ever watched The Apprentice? Reality TV was a key force in making Trump president. Tom Carson talks about “Audience of One” by James Poniewozik. Tom, a longtime writer on pop culture and politics, won two National Magazine Awards during his time as Esquire‘s “Screen” columnist; now he writes for BookForum. Pls: Ilhan Omar has endorsed Bernie for president – how does she deal with Trump’s vicious attacks? David Perry has spent the last few months with her in her Minneapolis district—he says he’s never seen a politician talk as little about themselves as she does in her town halls.

Trump says his favorite Supreme Court justice is Clarence Thomas – but Thomas is not a conventional right-wing thinker, Corey Robin says—he’s a conservative black nationalist. Corey’s new book is “The Enigma of Clarence Thomas.” Plus: The political promise of the abortion pill: Despite the fact that more than 75% of Americans favor Roe v. Wade, abortion rights face increasing jeopardy at the Supreme Court, and the right finally succeed at defunding Planned Parenthood. But there’s one immensely promising factor at work: abortion drugs, especially misoprostol, which is easily obtained on the Internet, despite the FDA’s attempts to prevent online pharmacies from selling them. Katha Pollitt will explain. Also: Our increasingly desperate president: even Fox News has become an inconsistent and unreliable defender of Trump’s actions. Sasha Abramsky will separate Trump’s efforts at distraction from the political reality he now faces.

Twelve Democrats debated for 3 hours on TV Tuesday night -- John Nichols says Bernie looked great--and Biden didn't. Also: The Supreme Court term began its fall term this week--and even though Brett Kavanaugh was confirmed at the start of last year’s court term, this year the Supremes’ decisions will be worse – a lot worse. Elie Mystal explains why—he’s the executive editor of Above the Law and a contributing writer for The Nation. Plus: a new episode of ‘The Children’s Hour’--stories about Ivanka, Jared, Don Junior, and little Eric. This week: who’s helping Dad fight impeachment? Amy Wilentz has our story.

Trump's base among white nationalists goes back to at least the Reagan era. The recent El Paso killings have been treated as an isolated event carried out by a loner. But the attacks in Charleston, Charlottesville, Christchurch, El Paso and elsewhere are connected; they are all part of the White Power movement, with roots going back to the 1970s. That’s what Kathleen Belew says -- she writes for the New York Times op-ed page, she teaches history at the University of Chicago, and she’s the author of the book “Bring the War Home: The White Power Movement and Paramilitary America,” it’s out now in paperback. Also: Your Minnesota moment:Trump comes to Minneapolis, home of Ilhan Omar, on Thursday night. Plus: The big question about impeachment is not the House -- there now seem to be enough votes there to pass at least one article of impeachment--the big question is about the Senate and whether some Republicans will abandon Trump. Former Republican Senator Jeff Flake says that at least 35 Republican senators

Could the Republican defense of Trump in the impeachment proceedings open the door to a watershed victory for Democrats across the board? Even before Nancy Pelosi finally agreed that it was time to begin impeachment proceedings, the Democrats’ prospects for a sweep of the 202 elections were good. That’s what Stan Greenberg says -- he’s a longtime pollster and adviser to Democratic presidents from Clinton to Obama. He’s also a bestselling author, with a new book out – it has the wonderful title 'R.I.P. G.O.P.' Also: Jeet Heer of The Nation magazine considers the Republicans’ defense of Trump – that Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden really was corrupt in his dealings in Ukraine, and that he really did influence his father’s work as vice president, and so Trump was right to ask the president of Ukraine for more information. Plus: historian Eric Foner talks about voter suppression and the right to vote, about who gets to be a citizen, what rights undocumented immigrants have, and about the history of mass incarcera

After months of resisting calls for impeachment, Nancy Pelosi has authorized beginning the proceedings--and the whistleblowers' complaint became public today -- it's devastating for Trump. John Nichols comments on the latest. Next up: Edward Snowden has published an new memoir called "Permanent Record" -- for comment we turn to DD Guttenplan, editor of The Nation, which has published an excerpt. Plus: What should day one of the post Trump era look like? We talk with David Dayen of the American Prospect about the things that the next president of the US could do on the first day in office without passing any new legislation. For more visit: https://prospect.org/day-one-agenda/using-presidential-power-executive-authority/

The Working Families Party has just endorsed Elizebeth Warren – not Bernie Sanders. For comment and analysis we turn to John Nichols, host of the Nation podcast “Next Left”. Next Up: Fifty-thousand auto workers went out on strike Sunday night against General Motors – we hear from Jane McAlevey, the new Strikes Correspondent at The Nation. Plus: The Tories and Boris v. the GOP and Trump: DD Guttenplan compares and contrasts the two parties.

How will the American war in Afghanistan end? Probably like the American war in Southeast Asia--that's what Andrew Bacevich says-- he's Professor Emeritus of International Relations and History at Boston University. Next up: A new labor law has passed in the state of California, requiring that gig workers at Uber, Lyft and elsewhere be classified as employees -- how big a deal is it? Harold Meyerson of the American Prospect explains. Also: Who is "Un-American"? We talk with David Maraniss, author of the new book, "A Good American Family: The Red Scare and My Father".

Democratic candidates debated climate change last night on CNN and we're especially interested in what the front-runner in the polls, Joe Biden, had to say; also, a new labor bill that could determine the future of the gig economy -- for comment, we turn to Harold Meyerson. Next up: Is Melania Trump a secret hero of the people--or an accomplice of evil? Amy Wilentz explains. Also: Sola means "peace" in Pashto; and SOLA (The School of Leadership, Afghanistan)is the first and only boarding school for girls in Kabul; we talk with the school's founder, Shabana Basij-Rasikh about the future of girls' education in Afghanistan after an American pullout. To find out more, visit https://www.sola-afghanistan.org

The Green New Deal and Unions; plus: Elizabeth Warren in Minnesota -- Harold Meyerson reports on labor opposition to fighting global warming--mostly in the building trades and a few other locals. Next: Trump is trailing badly in the polls--so how does he think he can win? Jeet Heer explains. Plus: Star Wars, Ghost Busters, Rocky and Dirty Harry -- we talk with J. Hoberman author of "Make My Day: Movie Culture in the Age of Reagan".

Aug 14, 3:00 PM If Bernie does NOT get the nomination, the Democratic Socialists of America will not endorse the Democrat who does. “Bernie or Bust” was what they decided at their recent convention – but is that a good idea? Harold Meyerson comments--he’s editor-at-large of The American Prospect and a regular contributor to the LA Times op-ed page. Also: Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted pedophile and accused sex trafficker - who surrounded himself with an elite network of political leaders, wannabe billionaire types, and even scientists – and who committed suicide. Katha Pollitt considers the people who have been named in court documents as having accepted invitations from Jeffrey Epstein and also had sex with the underage girls he provided. Plus: After the El Paso killings by a white nationalist--Tucker Carlson said on Fox news that white supremacy was “not a real problem in America.” He called it “a hoax, just like the Russia hoax.” John Nichols examines the history of white nationalism in recent America

Trump gets worse every week. Two years ago we had massive nationwide protest demonstrations -- so why don’t more people take it to the streets these days? Nation columnist Katha Pollitt has been thinking about that. Plus: last month was the 50th anniversary of Americans walking on the moon-what would it take to get a similar mobilization today of money & effort—and vision–-to combat climate change? D.D. Guttenplan comments – he’s editor of The Nation. Also: Fifteen Minutes without Trump – we want to take a brief break from Trump Talk, and instead,we want to talk about a trek in the Himalayas – would you call that taking a break from Trump? We spoke with Pico Iyer about Peter Mattheson’s exploration of suffering, impermanence, and beauty in his classic book The Snow Leopard -- it’s out now in paperback.

The best responses to Trump on the El Paso killings came from Beto O'Rourke: “He’s not tolerating violence, he’s inciting racism and violence in this country.” Joan Walsh, National Affairs Correspondent for The Nation, examines the mainstream media’s failures in covering Trump. Beto, of course, represented El Paso in Congress. Plus: Seymour Hersh—he’s won dozens of awards for his reporting on My Lai, Abu Graib, and CIA surveillance of the anti-war movement in the Nixon years. He’s also written a dozen books – the newest one is “Reporter: A Memoir”—it’s out now in paperback. And we’re still thinking about D.A. Pennebaker, the filmmaker who made "Don't Look Back," the amazing documentary about Bob Dylan's tour of England in 1965--it made film history for its striking cinema verite style. Pennebaker died on August first--we’ll listen to clips from an interview we did with him in 2001.

Trump’s target in the 2020 election will be immigrants, ‘The Other Americans’—that’s the title of the new novel by Laila Lalami. Her last novel, “The Moor’s Account,” won the American book award and was a Pulitzer finalist. She’s written for the New York Times, the Washington Post, Harper’s, and The Guardian, and she’s a columnist for The Nation. Plus: we talk about organizing to defeat Trump--about movement strategies and tactics, & political issues and campaigns. Our guest is Michael Walzer -- His new book is “Political Action: A practical guide to Movement politics.” Also: during the presidential campaign, Donald Trump often talked about an American soldier in Afghanistan who became the longest-held American POW since Vietnam. Trump said was quote “a dirty rotten traitor” who should be shot or thrown from a plane. He was talking about Bowe Bergdahl, that story is told in a new book, “American Cypher”--we’ll speak with the co-author, Michael Ames.

Democracy is not doing well these days – we have Trump, and Brexit, and a host of other examples. Astra Taylor has been thinking about that: she talks about the paradoxes of rule by the people, the many ways it’s being frustrated, and why it remains at the center of our hopes for the future. Her new book is “Democracy may not exist, but we’ll miss it when it’s gone.” Also: Trump will make hatred and fear of refugees and immigrants a central theme of his reelection campaign next year – and so we turn to Viet Nguyen – he’s a Pulitzer-prize winner and recipient of a MacArthur ‘Genius” grant – and he says “call me a refugee, not an immigrant.” His book “The Displaced,” featuring writing by refugees,is out now in paperback.

Racial anxiety was more important than economic anxiety in motivating Trump’s voters, Joy Reid of MSNBC argues. A key factor in Trump’s victory was nostalgia for a white, Christian America where men were still in charge. And of course Hillary fell short not only with male voters but with voters of color overall. Joy’s new book is The Man Who Sold America: Trump and the Unraveling of the American Story. Also: Jared Kushner’s Mideast Peace Plan, announced in Bahrain to an audience of billionaires and Gulf potentates, promised $50 billion in economic development funds to Palestinians—if they would abandon their aspirations for an independent state. Neither the Palestinians nor the Israelis participated in the conference. Amy Wilentz, a longtime contributing editor at The Nation, comments – she was Jerusalem correspondent for The New Yorker.