We are deep into the government shutdown with no end in sight. Republicans refuse to even negotiate in good faith with Democrats who are demanding a simple thing….restore the healthcare tax subsidies that have been instrumental in controlling spiraling health insurance. It was the Republicans that destroyed that system in their Big Billionaire Bill. Now they are smearing Americans who will be protesting against it all this weekend. Fred sits down with two remarkable guests to discuss it all. First, Rohit Chopra the former CFPB Director and FTC Commissioner fired by Trump in February on the insane Argentinian bailout and shutdown games. Then he managed to get time with Delaware Senator Lisa Blunt Rochester on the Senate Democrats battle for average working Americans. It’s a full size show this week so tune in for it all!

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Mother’s are being arrested in school drop off lines who are legal immigrants but have brown skin. James Comey and Letitia James were indicted afer Trump installed his inexperienced personal attorney as the Assistant Attorney General for Northern Virginia to prosecute his enemies. Mike Johnson is calling the ‘No Kings’ protests a planned terrorist event supporting Hamas. The outrageious actions are building and destroying the very soul of this nation. We cannot look away. Joining me this week is Mike Nellis a Chicago-based leading political strategist, social impact entrepreneur, and investor reshaping the future of American politics. Mike has an unprecedented election win rate for his clients, a billion-dollar fundraising track record, and zero tolerance for performative politics, he builds campaigns and companies that don’t just compete—they win. Fred and Mike dive deep into the events this week and what it means for our fight for the nation.

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This week has seen one assault on average Americans after another from actual assaults in Chicago to the government shutdown driven by the White House and Republican Congress. Amidst it all the Democratic caucus has held strong to dig in their heels and demand healthcare support and more for millions. Republicans are betting that Americans will blame Democrats for it all but that’s not what is happening. The Democratic caucuses are holding the line and Republicans are struggling. Rep. Jason Crow has been on the front line of the fight now and for years in and out of uniform. Congressman Jason Crow represents Colorado’s Sixth Congressional District. Former Army Ranger and Bronze Star recipient. After graduating college, Jason joined the active duty Army and served in the Army’s storied 82nd Airborne Division and in the elite 75th Ranger Regiment, deploying to both Iraq and Afghanistan. When he returned home, he looked for ways to continue to give back. Jason struggled to get his veterans benefits and knew others were having similar challenges transitioning from service to civilian life so he went to work helping veterans across Colorado. He carried that focus to Congress and now he serves on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and House Armed Services Committee, on which he is the Ranking Democrat of the Intelligence and Special Operations Subcommittee.

You can learn more about his work at: https://crow.house.gov/

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It's been one assault on our rights and freedoms after another this week. From more attacks on the media to this outlandish Executive Order to go after ‘left wing terrorism.’ But, yesterday was a shocking turn when it was revealed that the National Archvies illegally released the unredacted military records of Representative, and New Jersey Gubernatorial candidate, Mikie Sherrill. Rep. Sherrill is a decorated Navy veteran who graduated from U.S. Naval Academy and flew helicopters.  Mikie Sherrill proudly represents New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District. After graduating from the United States Naval Academy in 1994, Sherrill spent almost 10 years on active duty. She flew missions throughout Europe and the Middle East as a Sea King helicopter pilot, worked on the Battle Watch Floor in the European Theater during the Iraq invasion, and served as a Flag Aide to the Deputy Commander in Chief of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet. Congresswoman Sherrill attended law school after leaving the Navy in 2003, earning a degree from Georgetown University. She worked as a lawyer and eventually joined the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New Jersey. As an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Mikie worked to keep our communities safe, prosecuting federal cases and advising law enforcement on investigations.  She holds a Bachelor’s degree from the United States Naval Academy, a Master’s degree in Global History from the London School of Economics and Political Science, and a Law degree from Georgetown University.Sign up for our Substack at fpwellman.substack.com to the big announcement first on October 1st.   
You can learn more about her campaign for governor at: https://www.mikiesherrill.com/

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The horrifying murder of Charlie Kirk has unleashed a flood of chaos like nothing many of us have seen in our lifetimes. Recriminations have flown in all directions from his supporters and the targets are nearly anyone who doesn’t praise Kirk. Even the lightest criticism including quoting his own words from his voluminous record of speaking and writing has caused anyone from teachers, to pilots, to now TV show hosts to lose their jobs. Talking heads on the right are justifying the unfolding assault on free speech as necessary to protect the public. Even more chilling, Donald Trump has declared the amorphous movement “ANTIFA” as a domestic terrorist organization. Fred speaks longtime political commentator and journalist Greg Sargent about the unfolding chaos and attacks on our rights. Greg is a staff writer at The New Republic and the host of the podcast The Daily Blast. A seasoned political commentator with over two decades of experience, he was a prominent columnist and blogger at The Washington Post from 2010 to 2023 and has worked at Talking Points Memo, New York magazine, and the New York Observer. Greg is also the author of the critically acclaimed book An Uncivil War: Taking Back Our Democracy in an Age of Disinformation and Thunderdome Politics. 

While culture war issues and crime are blowing up the news cycle, average Americans are facing a reckoning in their lives. The economy is swiftly moving into to two-tiers. One for the rich and one for everyone else. Multiple stories have been coming out in the last week about the plunge of consumer confidence and shocking indicators of an economic collapse coming. Fred speaks with Michael A. McCarthy about a piece he had published this week in the new magazing, Hope and Hammer, arguing that Democrats can pursue populist policies without giving up their loyalty to the key factions of their coalition. That you can be populist and fight identitity politics at the same time. McCarthy is an Associate Professor of Sociology and Director of Community Studies at the University of California, Santa Cruz. His research is on class, capitalism, and democracy. His first book, Dismantling Solidarity: Capitalist Politics and American Pensions, was published with Cornell University Press in 2017 and was awarded the Paul Sweezy Book Award as well as an honorable mention for the Labor and Labor Movements Book Award. His most recent book is The Master’s Tools: How Finance Wrecked Democracy (and a Radical Plan to Rebuild It). His work has been featured in Hammer & Hope, Boston Review, The Guardian, Jacobin, The New York Times, The New Left Review, and The Washington Post.

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Make no mistake but we are in the midst of a surge of political violence from the horrific killings of the former Speaker of the Minnesota House and her husband to increasing clashes with ICE agents. Trump wants this violence to excuse him to impose even more authoritarian control over his enemies. We dive deep into it this week as he threatens to send thousands of Federal agents and the military to Chicago. A city that is literally over three times larger than his practice exercise in Washington D.C. Fred speaks with Dr. Robert Pape from the University of Chicago and director of the Chicago Project on Security and Threats (CPOST) as well as Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth a combat veteran of the National Guard herself. We must act now to stop this illegal deployment that will undoubtedly lead to more violence, stripping of our rights, and damage to our military’s reputation for decades to come.  

Trump spent the week musing about being a dictator and picking fights with governors over his sudden interest in law and order…even as he refuses to release the Epstien files. There is a real sense that we are the proverbial frog in the pot as the water keeps heating up and millions of our fellow citizens seem to be missing it. Many in the pro-democracy space are baffled by the increasing open authoritarianism of Trump and how so many including the media seem to be completely missing the point. Fred sits down with content creator and journalist Steven Beschloss to discuss the moment. Beschloss has created award-winning content, as a writer, journalist, editor and filmmaker. Consistent in this work is a passion for writing and a belief in the transformative power of story. He applies that in a dozen different ways to our fight for our democracy today and especially through his newsletter ‘America, America’ focused on politics and society, democracy and justice.
Subscribe to Steven’s Substack at: https://www.americaamerica.news/

Trump and his Republican minions have been hard at work this last week making sure he can stay in power and keep the House. From redistricting mid-decade to attacking mail-in voting, they have a rotten plan to suppress Democratic voters. The fight is on thanks to Democratic leaders not taking it laying down. But, what’s next? One of the biggest complaints many have about the Democratic Party is that they are not offering a vision for the future other than being anti-Trump. Many of the party leaders are stepping up to lead the way on countering that narrative and recently Ohio Congressman Greg Landsman offered a multi-step Pledge to America as a path to a more prosperous and secure future for all Americans. Representative Greg Landsman is a father and husband who is proud to call Southwest Ohio home. Prior to his time in elected office, Greg was a public school teacher and worked in education advocacy. Greg earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics and Political Science from Ohio University and a master’s degree in Theology from Harvard University. In Congress, Representative Landsman serves on the House Committee on Small Business and the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs.
You can learn more about Congressman Landsman’s campaign: https://www.landsmanforcongress.com/

As the military descends on Washington D.C., and the Border Patrol just randomly showed up at Governor Gavin Newsom’s press conference in LA, it’s increasingly clear that the Trump Administration wants us to be intimidated and scared. How about if we don’t? Their games aren’t fooling veterans who know what it really takes to militarize a nation. Fred sits down with his friend Patrick Murphy who was the first Iraq War veteran to get elected to Congress. He went on to serve as the 32nd Under Secretary of the Army. Today, as an entrepreneur and advocate, Patrick harnesses the power of the public, private, and nonprofit sectors to help veterans find jobs, start businesses, and secure quality health care and mental health services. He and Fred dive into the issues of these deployments, how veterans can lead the charge for Democrats, and more.

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