Recent threats by Attorney General Pam Bondi to prosecute "hate speech" and by Federal Communications Commissioner Brendan Carr to penalize ABC affiliates over Jimmy Kimmel's comments have thrust the nation into a muddled conversation over free speech. On this episode of All Things, Kim Strassel asks Institute for Free Speech Chairman Brad Smith to sort through the basics: What does the First Amendment actually cover? What are the limits to free speech? Should the federal government have any role moderating media comments, and where does the legal system stand on that question? And how corrosive is cancel culture to our broader free-speech tradition? 

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The assassination of Charlie Kirk and the rising tide of political violence is turning a spotlight on how best to keep Congress and other members of government safe. What kind of protection do political leaders have now, and what more do they need? What challenges come with protecting members both in Washington, D.C., and also in their home districts and states? On this episode of All Things, Kim Strassel speaks with chairman of the Committee on House Administration, Wisconsin Rep. Bryan Steil, about current and planned resources, what might be done to turn down the political temperature, and whether these events threaten the ability of politicians to engage in their core duty of interacting with constituents. 

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President Donald Trump is considering declaring a national housing emergency to deal with high home costs, but what can the federal government actually do, and will it make a difference? On this episode of All Things, Kim Strassel speaks with former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Dr. Ben Carson about cutting regulatory burdens, increasing tax incentives, expanding financing for unconventional homes, and the great opportunity that rests in transferring some federal land for housing development. They also discuss the politics of housing--an issue that, like crime, transcends demographics and voting groups. 

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Donald Trump’s decision to send the National Guard into Washington, D.C. to tackle crime is provoking backlash from Democrats across the nation. But Republicans are leaning in on law and order, seeing it as political winner in next year's midterms. Will the president now escalate, and send troops to other cities? On this episode of All Things, Kim Strassel speaks with Wall Street Journal columnist and Manhattan Institute Senior Fellow Jason Riley about why Democrats are losing the argument on policing, and what politicians get right and wrong about the reasons behind spikes in crime.

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Trey Gowdy is known as a former congressman and a Fox News television host, but he remains a prosecutor at heart and has now poured that experience into his newly released first novel, "The Color of Death." On this episode of All Things, Kim Strassel and Gowdy discuss the real work "good" prosecutors do, the emotional toll it can take, and the worrisome trend of prosecutors focusing more on politics than on justice for victims.

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Public approval of Congress remains low, as Americans no longer think the polarized institution is even capable of performing basic functions. But does the gridlock really all come down to partisanship? On this episode of All Things, Kim Strassel speaks with the Bipartisan Policy Center's J.D. Rackey about the congressional rules, procedures and trends that get in the way of action, and some of the more innovative reforms and ideas for making Congress work again.   

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A battle of restricting in Texas has created a national firestorm, with Lone Star State Democrats fleeing to other states, and governors from California to New York getting in on the fight. But what is gerrymandering, how did it start, and what does it mean for Donald Trump’s second term? On this episode of All Things, Kim Strassel speaks with legal scholar and former member of the Federal Election Commission Hans von Spakovsky about how race, politics, and Supreme Court rulings all collide in gerrymandering cases, and why so-called “independent” commissions are nothing like they say they are.

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The Department of Energy's new climate report is making waves, offering a fresh look at the alarmist claims pushed by special-interest groups and prior administrations. The report's five scientists lay out data showing that while climate change is real, it isn't the threat suggested by media or the climate lobby. On this episode of All Things, Energy Secretary Chris Wright takes Kim Strassel through the findings, including the upsides of warming, the minimal economic effects of climate change, the limits of U.S. policy actions and the lack of evidence that climate is related to the frequency or intensity of extreme weather.  

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Recently declassified documents by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard are illuminating the political origins of the infamous Russia “collusion” hoax that began with the 2016 election. On this episode of All Things, Kim Strassel and investigative journalist Michael Shellenberger take a deep dive into the new material. Just how far did the Barack Obama administration go to manipulate intelligence to spin the collusion narrative? What were the consequences for the first Donald Trump administration, and for public faith in institutions? And what else might be released? 

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Donald Trump scored a victory with the passage of his ‘One Big, Beautiful Bill,” and lawmakers recently approved a rescissions package that cuts $9 billion in spending. Yet Republicans remain far from their campaign promises to rein in the Joe Biden-era spending spree. On this episode of All Things, Kim Strassel speaks to one of the Senate's fiscal conservatives, Florida's Rick Scott, about the prospects for more reconciliation or rescission bills that cut government largesse, whether Senate Democrats will join to pass slimmer GOP appropriations bills (or provoke a government shutdown) as the September 30 funding deadline looms, and the criticisms surrounding Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell.

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