We are witnessing staggering corruption and indecency from the Trump Administration. From disappearing immigrants off the streets to plans for stripping Medicare and Medicaid from millions of Americans. Democrats are demanding their elected representatives fight back and one Senator isn’t shrinking from facing his voters. Senator Kim has been holding repeated town halls in the reddest districts of his state to hear his constituents. He has a stellar reputation in Washington and shot to the public’s eye when he was seen cleaning up the Capitol Rotunda after the January 6th violence. Senator Kim was a three term Member of Congress before running for Bob Menendez’s seat after his indictment for a host of crimes. He is the son of Korean immigrants and has led a life of public service. Andy had a career working as a diplomat and a civilian advisor to the Commanding Generals in Afghanistan before serving on the National Security Council staff under President Obama before returning home to unseat one of the leading authors of legislation to repeal the Affordable Care Act. He is now the junior Senator from New Jersey.

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With DOGE dismantling our government and anger building across the country, more and more Americans are looking for ways to get in the fight. Many are talking about running for local office or Congress next cycle to make Republicans pay for their surrender to Musk and Trump. The barriers to running for office can seem daunting but the National Democratic Training Committee has tools and training for anyone to use…for free. Fred is joined by Kelly Dietrich who is the founder and CEO of NDTC, which is not affiliated with the DNC, as an independent organization providing guidance for anyone to run, staff, or support a campaign at any level. If you find yourself asking…what can I do? Well…this is the place to start. Learn more at https://traindemocrats.org.

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While Elon and Trump continue to destroy the government and hurt millions of Americans it’s easy to feel hopeless with the mid-terms still well over a year and a half away. Well, the first major chance is already here and will be decided on April 1st in Wisconsin as well as special elections for the House. The Wisconsin Supreme Court race will determine the political balance of that state’s highest court all the way until 2028 and Elon Musk has poured an estimated $11 million into the race. He knows this is a test on his purchase of the U.S. government and is treating it as such. We need to as well. Fred sits down with Mother Jones national voting rights correspondent Ari Berman to discuss the race and the larger assault on voting rights. Ari is Mother Jones' national voting rights correspondent. He’s the author of the new book Minority Rule: The Right-Wing Attack on the Will of the People—and the Fight to Resist It, as well as Give Us the Ballot: The Modern Struggle for Voting Rights in America.

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We said that Trump planned to act like an autocrat if he was re-elected and we were right. In just six weeks we have seen the flood of outrageous actions without end. It’s being propelled by a concerted and coordinated effort to flood us with propaganda and lies. They are also clearly working to strike real fear among many Americans. It is exactly what they wanted and hoped for. This combination of lies and intimidation are designed to divide us against each other and make it easier to ride the wave of anger while we fight amongst ourselves. Fred dives into this effort to split us this week solo and offers perspective on how we can fight back.

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Trump, Musk, and Vought are executing their diabolical plans to dismantle the Federal government from within. The damage they have already caused is devastating and the impact on average Americans has just begun. Already thousands of Federal employees are being purged and threatened and the impacts on DC, Virginia, and Maryland which are home to hundreds of thousands of those Americans will profound. Maryland isn’t waiting to see what happens and under Governor Wes Moore they are launching a series of efforts to support these workers and protect the organizations in his state. The governor joins Fred to discuss what they are doing and the damage he sees from his front row seat in this battle. It’s not his first as an Army combat veteran and he’s ready for the fight. 

Trump has set his sights on destroying Ukraine. There is no other way to define what has happened in the last week as he attacks President Zelenskyy with lies and smears along with his willing propagandists. Rubio went to Saudi Arabia after Pete Hegseth all but gave the Russians the lifeline they desperately need to survive. Fred sits down with long time broadcast journalist Philip Ittner who has been in Ukraine since before the war began and reports on the situation weekly on his own show ‘On the Edge.’ They discuss the strategic situation, what is really the story behind Ukraine’s martial law, and how dangerous Trump’s threats are not to just Ukraine but the world.

You can learn watch Phil’s work at https://www.youtube.com/@PhilipIttner

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Another week of insanity in Washington D.C. and even overseas as Pete Hegseth and J.D. Vance bring a wrecking ball to our military relationships and Ukraine’s defense. While amateur hour unfolds in Germany Elon Musk is still running amuk and 200,000 federal employees were fired. The Democrats are continuing to struggle with a unified message even as the courts begin to show their muscle to stop Trump and Elon Musk’s destruction. Representative Mikie Sherrill is one of the leaders hitting the courts and rallying her constituents to push back. Sherrill is a Naval Academy graduate, helicopter pilot, and former prosecutor from New Jersey and is in the fight both on the Hill and running for governor of her state this year. She and Fred talk about the importance of our values, the firewalls against Trump, and what states will have to do this year to push back. 

You can learn more about her run for governor at https://www.mikiesherrill.com/.

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Elon Musk is running amok through the government using what was sold as an advisory role and organization to effectively dismantle everything from the inside. He is wielding unchecked power including gaining access to the Treasury itself, all but eliminating a federal agency, and appears to be in the personnel files of millions of government employees, contractors, and average Americans. It’s been a shocking couple of weeks but those who have studied the malign plans and dystopian philosophy of Musk, Peter Theil, and J.D. Vance saw this coming. Writer Gil Duràn is a journalist and longtime political communicator. He is the author of the Nerd Reich where he writes about the authoritarian dreams and desires of the Silicon Valley elite that appear to be unfolding before our eyes. His work was featured by Heather Cox Richardson in her wildly popular 'Letters from an American' series this week and he sits down with Fred to discuss the insane actions unfolding as we speak. The conversation will open your eyes and drive you to stand up to this destruction before it's too late!

You can read Gil’s work at https://www.thenerdreich.com/

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Donald Trump has spent his first two weeks in office causing absolute chaos. This was the plan. Stephen Miller is relishing it all and promises more with the flood of increasingly awful orders and memos. Many who oppose them feel overwhelmed and are struggling to fight back. But many were ready and have rolled into the battle with gusto. Democracy Forward spent the last two years analyzing what kind of actions to expect from Trump and Project 2025 to prepare for the mission. They launched a resource center with 280 other organizations for those who want to fight back called Democracy 2025 and have already sued the Administration in several cases. The plan is working. Fred sits down to chat with Skye Perryman the President and CEO of Democracy Forward on how they prepared, where they are fighting, and how we can help in the fight. Democracy Forward is a nonpartisan, national legal organization that promotes democracy and progress through litigation, regulatory engagement, policy education, and research. Perryman took the helm at Democracy Forward a few months after January 6, 2021, in the midst of rising extremism in communities and courts across the country that continues today.

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Donald Trump pardoned all of January 6th rioters including the leaders of the Oathkeepers and Proud Boys. It only took minutes for them to be welcomed with open arms back on the same Capitol grounds they stormed 4 years ago. It marks another dark turn towards extremism and a challenge for the opposition to this movement. Against this backdrop the Democrats are preparing for the critical February 1st leadership vote that will usher in a much-demanded new direction. Former Arkansas candidate for governor Dr. Chris Jones is running for Vice Chairman of the party and joins Fred to discuss his priorities and what comes next for the DNC. Chris grew up Arkansas. He attended Morehouse College on a full NASA Scholarship, then went on to study at MIT earning a Master’s degree in Nuclear Engineering, a Master’s Degree in Technology & Policy, and a Ph.D. in Urban Planning. After becoming an ordained minister, he returned home to Arkansas. He was the Democratic nominee for Arkansas Governor in 2022, launched Vortex PAC and has served as co-chair of Dirt Road Democrats driving rural outreach and recruiting.

Learn more about his bid for DNC Vice Chair here: https://www.vicechairjones.com/

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