Greenland

This week, America passed the grisly milestone of 300,000 dead from COVID-19. With the first vaccines being televised as being given to VP Mike Pence and others, only 50% of Americans and just 25% of African American males are committed to getting the jab. Dr DeHart gives us some insights into why so many Americans - particularly minorities - are against getting the vaccine, and the grim truth of trying to protect her community from a rampaging virus.

We are delighted to welcome Madam Secretary and former Secretary of Labor in Kansas, Delia Garcia to Greenland. She joins us from Texas on the eve of the US Presidential Election, where people are queuing for up to 11 hours to vote in an election that is already breaking records for voter participation.

The Latino vote is shaping up to be a critical factor for both parties and we get the lowdown on why that is, and what the equivalent to Australia's Election Day 'democracy sausage' is on the ground in San Antonia and beyond!

Donald and Diana are joined by special guest, Judge Phillip Journey, a Republican running for re-election for the Division 1 judge of the Kansas Eighteenth Judicial District. Phil is also a board member of the National Rifle Association (NRA), which boasts 5 million members and is arguably the most potent activist organisation in the US.

In this episode, we chat to Phil about:

- the process for judicial appointments in the US and his views on the federal Supreme Court nomination process

- why Americans won't lay down their guns as Australians did after the Port Arthur massacre

- what needs to be prioritised in the wake of the 2020 Presidential Election, no matter who wins.

We're incredibly grateful to have Phil share his candid insights with us on Greenland (and some tips for buddying sports gun enthusiasts).

It's been a hectic week in the US, with the grisly milestone of 200,000 American deaths from COVID-19, the Great Debate that wasn't between Trump and Biden, and finally news that the President himself, together with the First Lady and members of the Republican campaign inner circle tested positive to the virus.

Donald and Diana tiptoe through the mud to try to make some sense of it (and offer a controversial, unfounded but maybe possibly true theory about that awks exchange between Melania Trump and her husband at the end of the debate.

Over the last two weeks, we've borne witness to two very different conventions - the Democratic National Convention - heavy on the heart strings, celebrities and motherhood statements in place of specific policies. Next up, the Republication Convention - loads of Trumps, 'don't mention The War/aka virus' and animated pitches from Trump's offspring and their sometimes outlandish partners. And the RNC happened right in the midst of yet another brutal assault by police on an unarmed African American man, Jacob Blake, shot seven times in the back, in front of his children. We talk about Donald and Diana's reactions to watching the first ever virtual conventions, and what's at stake.

Joe Biden is keeping us all in suspense about his choice of running mate, ahead of the Democratic National Convention on 17-20 August 2020. This episode we look at the mooted frontrunners and hear Donald's wildcard tip for who it may be. Plus thanks to John for the listener question

George Flloyd's death has sparked global civil rights movement. In Australia, thousands of people defied government orders regarding physical distancing measures to come together in their thousands to bring attention to the plight of Indigenous Australians - particularly in relation to deaths in custody and incarceration rates.

We're delighted to be joined by Bevan Mailman, a Bidjara man and highly respected commercial lawyer. Bevan is the co-founder and director of Jaramer Legal - Australia's first majority Indigenous-owned law firm. Bevan sheds some light on why he's confident a new generation, inspired by what's just and right, will help to transform the way we view our Indigenous history and people to come together. Oh and umm...his sister is the uber talented, much loved actor, Deborah Mailman!

On 25 May 2020, 46-year-old George Floyd died while in police custody. He was handcuffed, pinned down by three police officers, one of whom used his knee to restrain George Floyd face down on the ground. Struggling to breathe, George told the officer he couldn't breathe. His pleas, together with those of bystanders went ignored by the officer, who callously kept his knee pressed on George Floyd until (and beyond) he took his last breath.

The footage is abhorrent. What's worse is that this is not the first time such as act has been perpetrated by police officers - those who have sworn to preserve and protect life.

Donald and Diana reflect on George Floyd's death and why we can't look away from it.

When Trump moved into the White House in 2016, he replaced one of the great orators in American modern history, Barack Obama. Trump communicates like no other President ever has, or ever will again. We talk to a 25-year veteran of the speechwriting profession and director of the Professional Speechwriters Association, David Murray, about what's changed for speechwriters now, why the way we talk to each other - at work, at home and in politics - needs to change.

Is life in America what we dream it to be sometimes here in Australia? In this episode, Donald and Diana invite special guest, Inna Tysrlin to share her perspectives after eight years living in the US.

Inna spent her first four years living and working in New York City, and the rest of the time living and studying in rural Appalachia. She's worked in corporate America and recently finished graduate school in Ohio, studying playwriting. She's gone from the New York hustle to living in one of the most economically challenged parts of the country. What a ride! Inna takes us on a realistic look at life in rural America and how she feels being back in Australia during a global pandemic.