Off The Record With Paul Hodes

Neil Levesque oversees the Saint Anselm College Survey Center poll, one of the most respected polls in any swing state in the country.  Their newest survey shows an uptick in voter mood over the past two months, creating some hopeful signs for Democratic incumbents facing re-election, including in the most-watched Senate race in the country. So what's going on here, how much further do Dems need to go to pull things out in 2022, and what issues are driving the discussion heading into the summer? Neil and Matt break it all down. 

According to Jason Sattler, better known to his army of Twitter followers as @LOLGOP and a former columnist and member of the USA TODAY Board of Contributors, "Marjorie Taylor Greene could marry Hunter Biden, put her pronouns on her Twitter bio and give herself a real-time abortion on Tucker Carlson’s desk while wearing a rainbow-colored N95 mask – she’d still win." So why are Dems giving her opponent so much darn money?  This question, which he posed in a great article on The Editorial Board, provoked my own upcoming article on that site (subscribe free here) and today's conversation, which covers why Dems pick the wrong targets, what the role of social media is, whether Republicans have an in-built advantage, and what Democrats can do to win more and protect democracy better.  You can follow me on Twitter at @MattLRobison.

Matt catches up with Chris Hill, host of Motley Fool Money, and what's going on in business: an unsettled market that might be finding its footing, what the CODA Oscar win means for the big streamers, the future of Uber, and the wild story of what Fred Smith did for the shipping business.

In the summer of 2014, Washington Post Tehran correspondent Jason Rezaian and his wife were arrested and held as hostages in order for the Iranian government to be able to exert leverage in its negotiations with the US. Ultimately imprisoned for 544 days, 100 longer than the US hostages seized in 1979, Jason has since continued his reporting and analysis on similar cases, including in his book “Prisoner: My 544 Days in an Iranian Prison.” Recently, he teamed with producer Kate Woodsome to create the powerful short documentary film “Bring Them Home” about the family of American citizen Emad Shargi who is currently held hostage in Iran. Jason and Kate join us to tell us about the film and what the US government and all of us can do to bring Americans held overseas home.  If you want to learn more or provide resources for students about this issue, there is lesson plan and viewing guide available through the Pulitzer Center. If you want to write directly in support of Americans held overseas, go to the docu

Isaac Saul left a career writing for some of the biggest media outlets - including Time Magazine, Vox, and The New York Daily News - to found Tangle, an independent, ad-free, nonpartisan newsletter that has been recognized by The New York Times, Forbes, and Substack as one of the most successful political newsletters on the internet with over 35,000 daily readers. Tangle breaks out of the usual partisan mold by giving readers a summary and the strongest arguments from each side of an issue, along with straight-shooting analysis. So why is this model growing so quickly, and is this the future of news? Check out Tangle here (https://www.readtangle.com/?ref=beyond) and judge for yourself. 

In a rare host-only episode, Paul and Matt dive into what's going on with Dem's maneuvers to boot Iowa from the early presidential nominating process, and whether the entire system should be blown up.  Also, are we fighting a war against autocrats both abroad and at home?  Remembering colorful Congressman Don Young. And should we make Daylight Savings Time permanent?

What happens to people who were deeply enmeshed in politics once they move "beyond politics?" What perspective do they gain working in our government and political system that applies to the normie world, and how does living in the rest of the world change their perspective on politics? Cicely Simpson served as the Legislative Director for two Congressmen on Capitol Hill, and then became Executive Vice President of Public Affairs at the National Restaurant Association, where she was recognized by the newspaper The Hill as one of Top Lobbyists in America in 2015, 2016, and 2017. But now she's focused everything she's learned into becoming a public speaker, leadership coach, author of the new book "Pull Up Your C.H.A.I.R," podcaster, and Founder / CEO of Summit Public Affairs.

In 1989, Elaine Kamarck wrote a blunt wake-up call to Democrats, saying: “Too many Americans have come to see the party as inattentive to their economic interests, indifferent if not hostile to their moral sentiments, and ineffective in defense of their national security.” That missive helped steer the party back Presidential success. She has now published a widely circulated and much discussed follow-up called “The New Politics of Evasion: How Ignoring Swing Voters Could Reopen the Door for Donald Trump and Threaten American Democracy.” Elaine Kamarck is a contributing author for the Progressive Policy Institute, the Director of the Center for Effective Public Management at the Brookings Institution, and a Lecturer in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. 

Chris Hill, host of Motley Fool Money, the #1 stock investing radio show in America, explains why the down market won't be like March 2020 this time around.  Also, why is Disney+ adding a subscription with ads, and are baseball owners the dumbest business leaders in America?

Max Bergmann (@maxbergmann) is a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress and a former senior State Department official who is an expert on US-Europe-Russia relations. He takes us inside what is probably going on in the State Department, the White House, and other agencies right now as they make major decisions on issues like the Russian oil ban, no fly zone, and other moves to counter Russia in its war with Ukraine.  How does the process work, who does what, and how much more have government leaders worked out behind the scenes than they let on to the public?

Jim Clyburn is the Majority Whip in the United States House of Representatives, the third-ranking Democrat, and one of the top leaders of our country.  In 2020, his decision to endorse then-candidate Joe Biden was probably more responsible than any other single act for Biden winning the nomination, defeating Donald Trump, and saving America.  Congressman Clyburn takes us behind the scenes of that dramatic moment and through some other great stories that you've never heard before. 

In 2017 Congressman Steve Israel left Capitol Hill – unindicted and undefeated – at the very pinnacle of politics. He was one of the top ranking Democrats in Congress, widely respected, and on a path to even greater influence. President Bill Clinton called him “one of the most thoughtful Members of Congress.”  So why did he give it up? And how did the reality of Congressional fundraising factor in? By the way, if you like what you hear, Congressman Israel’s latest literary venture is his new bookstore in Oyster Bay, Long Island called Theodore’s. You can order a range of great books online, including the two satires he penned since leaving Congress. 

Why this war? Why now? And are there fractures behind the scenes within the Kremlin? Sean Carberry served as NPR’s international correspondent based in Kabul, Afghanistan after reporting for NPR from more than two dozen middle eastern and African countries.  He shares what top analysts are thinking about the state of the war in Ukraine, what his colleagues on the ground are focusing on right now, and what the future might hold. A crossover episode with the Beyond Politics Podcast. Photo by Max Kukurudziak on Unsplash

I recently wrote an article for Newsweek in which I pleaded with Democrats to refocus. When we lost the effort to save American democracy in the Senate at the beginning of the month, it was demoralizing. And Democrats shouldn't give up on the federal level. But there's a lot more to government and making change in America than the federal level. Earlier this month when the Ohio Supreme Court threw out the Republican legislature's ludicrously gerrymandered congressional maps, there was a lesson there...and if Democrats can pick their chins up and pause outrage-tweeting for a moment, they will see that the Ohio win didn't just fall out of the sky. It happened because Dems focused on overlooked, smaller, state and local races that make a huge difference in power. Democrats may not be able to pass a big, sweeping federal law to comprehensively stop all election abuses, or to fix all of our problems. But that doesn't mean they can't grit and grind their way to achieve many similar protections and advances in the s

Chris Hill of Motley Fool Money walks through how to think about (and how much to worry about) recent volatility, as well as the drops of some high performers, and the counterintuitive performance of the lodging industry.

Democratic political and media consultant Mark Bergman has a message for Democrats...we're right about a lot of things, including striving for equality, supporting working families on needs like child care, and following science on Covid. But the the voters are not seeing things the same way.  It's partly the message, partly the priorities we talk about, partly the brand of the entire party...and there's a healthy dose of distortion from right wing media. But the bottom line is, we're losing the middle, and we can't win elections in 2022 or 2024 with just our activist base, because the Republican base is even more fired up.  We need to appeal to persuadable working class voters again. The good news is that it ain't over yet. "That's why you play the whole ball game...the Cincinnati Bengals thought they were going to win the Super Bowl until the final two minutes," Mark says.  In this episode, Mark gives a dose of reality, but also some helpful pointers about how to fight back against the headwi

Matt joins legendary West Virginia radio broadcaster Howard Monroe to talk about why school issues - including mask mandates, closures, curriculum, "transparency," and critical race theory - have become such a huge focus in politics these days.  And are Republicans winning on these issues?

The agreement from gun manufacturer Remington to settle a civil court case brought by Sandy Hook families marks the first time a gun company in America has been held liable for a mass shooting.  The case revolved around the marketing campaign for the rifle used by the Newtown shooter and whether it targeted teenage boys and young adults through ad placement in violent video games. The fact that the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case could open the door to many more state-based lawsuits, while the settlement award could put financial pressure on other manufacturers across the industry. So is the $73 million settlement a turning point for gun reform efforts? We wanted to ask one of the top veterans of the gun reform advocacy community, Cliff Schecter, who has worked for Mike Bloomberg’s Mayors Against Illegal Guns, Everytown for Gun Safety, and the Brady Campaign, and has written widely about gun safety.  Photo by Bexar Arms on Unsplash

No...not that Michael Cohen.  This Michael Cohen is one of the most thoughtful, analytic, and interesting minds in the Republican Party. Mike has worked in politics for 25 years, primarily in polling, and he also teaches at Johns Hopkins University’s graduate communications program and has appeared on numerous media outlets.  He had the number one opinion piece in The Hill this weekend, making the case that Mike Pence should run for President.  He is "out" on the Republican Party right now.  So I asked him, what would it take to get him back in?  We also cover both parties' prospects for the midterms, his book "Modern Political Campaigns" and whether America is simply depressed. 

Dr. Roderick Graham is Associate Professor in Sociology & Criminal Justice at Old Dominion University who writes social critique through a sociological lens.  We tackle affirmative action, immigration, harm reduction centers, "hate launderers" and why America has become so culturally unhealthy. Make sure to check Rod out on YouTube, Twitter, Substack, and at The Editorial Board.