Send us a text Mike Nellis is the founder of Authentic, a digital fundraising firm that's raised over $1 billion for it's clients including Kamala Harris, Adam Schiff and numerous Governors, Senators, and high profile organizations. He was also a Senior Advisor to Kamala Harris 2020 presidential campaign, the co-founder of White Dudes for Harris in the 2024 presidential campaign, and an active thinker and leader on how progressive politics has to evolve in a changing world. IN THIS EPISODE Gr...

Send us a text Congressman Mike Quigley is in his 9th term representing Chicago's North Side and Lakefront as a Democrat in the House. He made waves last year after the first presidential debate as one of the first elected Democrats to publicly urge President Biden to step aside as the party's nominee. In this conversation, we talk through what led him to speak out, the reaction from the White House and his colleagues, and why he believes it's an important conversation for the party to have n...

Send us a text Frank Lavin served under Presidents Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush in positions as varied as personnel, national security, international trade negotiations, Ambassador to Singapore, among others. In this conversation, we discuss his 8+ years in the Reagan White House from 1981-1989 - which is chronicled in his recent book Inside the Reagan White House. In the Reagan White House, he wore several different hats, was in hundreds of meetings with President Reagan, wor...

Send us a text Patrick McHugh, co-founder of Gambit Strategies, was the Executive Director of Priorities USA in 2020 as the main super PAC allied with the Biden Presidential campaign. Prior to that, he had stints at the DSCC and working in the opp research department on major Democratic campaigns. In this conversation, we explore Patrick's roots in opposition research, his experiences running big organizations and on the campaign trail, and mine his deep expertise on emerging trends and best ...

Send us a text Catching up this week with return guest Dr. Michael Cohen, who just released a new edition of his book Modern Political Campaigns this month. He studied under iconic pollster Bill Hamilton as a student, worked in the trenches in Republican campaigns, spent time at Gallup, apprenticed under renowned GOP pollster Tony Fabrizio and worked with famed Dem strategist Mark Penn when Michael was an in-house pollster at Microsoft. Along the way, Michael started his own firm (Cohen Resea...

Send us a text Pat Leahy is a giant of the US Senate...the first Democrat elected to the Senate from Vermont...the third longest serving Senator in US history...the Senate President Pro Tem...Chair of Appropriations, Agriculture, and Judiciary...and 8 terms in the US Senate. In this conversation, we talk his roots in small town Vermont, overcoming the state's deep Republican roots in a 1974 upset, entering the Senate in his mid 30s, and his favorite stories, lessons, and proudest moments from...

Send us a text Yoav Attias is a documentary filmmaker whose projects include Brick City chronicling the inner-workings of Newark, NJ under then-Mayor Cory Booker and CNN's Chicagoland featuring then-mayor Rahm Emanuel. His most recent role is as Director on the new documentary film Fault Lines - which examines the issue of affordable housing in American cities through the prism of several storylines in San Francisco where the housing crisis is especially acute. In this conversation, Yoav talk...

Send us a text Karen Deflippi is launching Versus Media Group, after nearly 20 years in politics - including running campaigns, being a House Chief of Staff on the Hill, senior positions at Emilys List and the DCCC, and her current role as a media consultant for Democratic candidates and progressives causes. In this conversation she talks her path in politics from a Catholic family in swing Western PA to helping run some of the most impactful political organizations in the country and now put...

Send us a text Taegan Goddard is the founder and editor of Political Wire, one of the most widely-read political news sites over the last 25+ years. He created Political Wire in the late 1990s after stints as a Senate staffer on Capitol Hill and several years in state government in his home state of Connecticut. In this conversation, he talks his own development as a rabid political junkie, setting out early goals in the public and private sector, both encouraging and disheartening stints in ...

Dr. Larry Spinelli has worn numerous hats in and around politics...Hill staffer, senior positions in the federal bureaucracy, political science professor, historian and author. His new book is Watergate's Unexpected Hero, about the life of the incredibly impactful New Jersey Democratic Congressman Peter Rodino - to whom Spinelli was a staffer and friend for 30+ years. Rodino's 40-year career in the House spanned from Truman to Reagan as he played important roles on labor policy, landmark civi...

Mary Bono served 15 years in the House, representing a Palms Springs-based seat in Riverside County, CA. She initially entered politics and the House after the tragic passing of her late husband Sonny Bono - the world-famous singer / TV star turned mayor and ultimately congressman. In this conversation, she talks the political rise of Sonny Bono, running for and winning a seat in the House amidst tragedy, getting her bearings as a member herself, putting her own stamp on her service, taking t...

Ryan Davis, co-founder of the digital political firm People First, has long been at the cutting edge of digital politics and the rise of digital influencers and has dubbed 2024 as "The Influencer Election". In this conversation, Ryan talks his roots in politics, a detour through the NYC theater community, being part of the influential 2004 Howard Dean campaign, and eventually starting the first firm focused on digital political influencers. And Ryan goes deep on the 2024 race...how the campai...

Mark Harris, co-founder of ColdSpark strategies, was the General Consultant for the successful Dave McCormick 2024 Pennsylvania Senate race - arguably the lone true upset of the '24 Senate cycle. In this conversation, Mark talks his roots in PA politics - including running for office himself, ousting a sitting legislator in a GOP primary, and multiple stints helping elect and re-elect GOP Senator Pat Toomey. Then Mark goes deep on his role helping elect Dave McCormick to the US Senate - start...

Senior Strategist Morgan Jackson & Campaign Manager Jeff Allen helped guide Democrat Josh Stein to a historic win in the 2024 open-seat North Carolina Governor's Race over GOP lighting rod Mark Robinson. In this conversation, they both discuss how Stein went from trailing in many of the early polls to winning on Election Day by a historic 15-point margin. They talk the initial phase of the race with Robinson leading the polls, the Stein strategy to define Robinson early, the power of usin...

Rebecca Katz, founder of New Deal Strategies, is coming off her second consecutive cycle as General Consultant on signature Democratic Senate wins - including Ruben Gallego in Arizona and John Fetterman in Pennsylvania. In this episode, Rebecca talks in depth about both of those races and the lessons to be mined for Democrats in the future. And she also discusses her early days on Capitol Hill, important lessons learned working for high profile figures like John Edwards and Harry Reid, and mu...

Nathan Gonzales is the Editor and Publisher of Inside Elections, one of the foundations of American political analysis, and a frequent presence talking and writing about politics on TV and in print. In this conversation, recorded two weeks after Election Day 2024, Nathan weighs in on the headlines from the '24 campaign, surprises and lessons learned, goes deep on the Presidential, Senate, and House races, looks ahead to the 2026 midterms, & much more.IN THIS EPISODENathan's big picture he...

[Originally released 11/22]Maggie Haberman is, of course, the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter who's covered the political rise of Donald Trump for the New York Times...and her book, CONFIDENCE MAN: The Making of Donald Trump & The Breaking of America became an immediate best seller. In this conversation, Maggie dives into all things Trump...from his formative influences in the New York City of the 70s and 80s, to his political ascent, time in the White House, her take on the likelihood of...

[Initially Released 11/07/23]Patrick Ruffini, pollster at Echelon Strategies, returns to talk about his new book PARTY OF THE PEOPLE - on the transition of the Republican Party from being dominated by wealthy, suburban white voters to a more blue-collar and increasingly-multi-racial coalition. In this conversation, Patrick lays out the data behind these shifts, what is driving the GOP's new-found success with blue-collar voters, why this movement came as a surprise to many, the balance of eco...

With just hours until polling places open for the November 5th presidential election, this week's guest is analyst Amy Walter to provide her insights and instincts heading into Election Day. The editor and publisher of The Cook Report with Amy Walter, Amy has been a constant presence writing and thinking about US elections for nearly three decades. In this conversation, she goes deep on her thoughts on the presidential race, her take on both the Senate and House, and narratives she expects to...

This is a different type of episode this week as I have borrowed the audio from a panel I was part of last Thursday (10/24/24) to discuss the upcoming 2024 elections. This panel is hosted by the government affairs firm Husch Blackwell Strategies, and the video link can be accessed here. Moderating the discussion is Husch Blackwell CEO Andy Blunt and I'm also joined by election analyst Jim Ellis - whose background includes working for the GOP House leadership and, for decades, has been an anal...