How did a Ukrainian-born hustler help former President Donald Trump and his lawyer Rudy Giuliani dig up dirt on then-candidate Joe Biden and his son Hunter to influence the 2020 presidential election – a scheme that ultimately led to Trump's first impeachment? That's the question behind ‘From Russia with Lev’, a new doc from MSNBC's Rachel Maddow that follows Lev Parnas, a Ukrainian-American from a less-than-savory background, who paid his way into the former president’s inner circle in 2016 and quickly became Trump’s “Ukraine guy.” Kara sits down with Maddow and director Billy Corben to discuss how Parnas gained access to then-POTUS Trump; the mission to take down Hunter Biden; Parnas’ role in the ousting of former US Ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch; and how he eventually came out on the other side of it all.

Vote for Kara as Best Host in the Current Events for Signal’s Listener’s Choice Awards here: https://vote.signalaward.com/PublicVoting#/2024/shows/craft/best-host-current-events 

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher

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Will AI “agents” soon be personalized teachers, doctors, companions and even check items off your to-do list on their own? “Agentic” is the latest buzzword in AI and Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman says moving beyond the text chatbot to a "smart friend” is the goal. The former co-founder of DeepMind, Suleyman helped grow Google’s AI division before launching another start-up, InflectionAI. Earlier this year, Microsoft paid $650 million for the licensing rights to Inflection, and brought Suleyman and most of his staff on board. Kara spoke to him at this year's Lesbians Who Tech conference about his strategy for integrating Copilot into Microsoft’s existing product suite; why he views OpenAI more like a sibling than a competitor; and why renewable energies (and a lot of cash) will be vital in meeting AI’s massive energy needs.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher

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Bill Gates needs no introduction. The co-founder and former CEO of Microsoft and the co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has been one of the richest people in the world for decades. He’s also spent decades giving away his fortune and working on some of humanity’’s most vexing challenges. That’s the focus of his Netflix docuseries What’s Next? The Future with Bill Gates, where Bill dives into AI, misinformation, global warming, inequality, and disease.

Kara interviews Bill in front of a live audience at New York City and pushes him on the issues, his proposed solutions, and the always tricky details — plus, she finds out who Bill wants to win the presidential election. 

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher

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Pete Buttigieg burst onto the political scene in 2019, and his rapid ascent into a legitimate presidential contender was one of the most surprising storylines of the 2020 Democratic primary. Today, he’s one of the most effective communicators in the party. He was also one of many Democratic voters’ favorite candidates for the Harris VP pick. 

Kara and Pete get straight to all of that in this episode: is the Harris campaign strategy working? ; Was Tim Walz the right pick for VP? How is Pete prepping the Minnesota Governor for his upcoming debate against J.D. Vance? And what is his strategy when he goes on Fox News?

Kara and Pete also discuss the Trump cult of personality that has taken hold of young men and tech bros alike; the tech CEOs that need to “come home” to “normal” (you know who we’re talking about); and why some of them continue to support politicians who vote against technological advancement and the core missions of the industry.

*Note: Buttigieg appeared for this interview in his personal capacity. Kara was limited in asking questions relating to the Department of Transportation or anything about his role in President Biden’s administration due to the Hatch Act.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher

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For years, former President Donald Trump has railed against law enforcement officials who have sought to hold him accountable. In his latest book, Where Tyranny Begins: the Justice Department, the FBI and the War on Democracy, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and senior executive editor for national security at NBC News David Rohde investigates how Trump’s attacks have impacted law enforcement agencies and the civil servants who work there. In this episode, Kara and David discuss how Trump’s threats and conspiracy theories have undermined important investigations; why Attorney General Merrick Garland hasn’t been able to turn the tide on public trust; and what happens to a democracy that loses the rule of law.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher

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Kara interviews renowned economist, author, former Labor Secretary, and social media star, Robert Reich. The 78-year old professor of economics at University of California, Berkeley is as prolific as ever, pointing out the inequities in our “rigged system” and calling out the rich and powerful who want to keep it that way. 

Kara and Robert discuss the presidential candidates' competing visions for the America, our rigged economic system (and how it got this way), his prescription for reigning in Elon Musk, and his incredible ability to connect with young people on social media. No one is spared from his withering critiques — including Elon Musk, Donald Trump, trickle-down economics, the Democratic party and our two-party system.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher

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Former First Lady/Senator/Madam Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton is in a political league of her own. But the “housewife from Chappaqua” (as Kara likes to call her) isn’t ready to hang up her party hat just yet. As she details in her latest memoir, Something Lost, Something Gained, HRC continues to champion the rights of women and girls across the globe. And as a former opponent to Donald Trump and only other woman to lead a major presidential ticket, she’s an inimitable advisor and surrogate for Vice President Kamala Harris in her race to the White House. 

In their sixth interview, Kara and Hillary do post-game analysis of the Harris/Trump debate, chat about campaign strategy (do voters really need more policy?), discuss the recent backlash against gender equality and what a Trump re-election could mean for HRC personally and the country at-large.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher

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Last week, the Department of Justice announced major indictments alleging that, among other things, the Kremlin was paying right-wing influencers, like Dave Rubin, Tim Pool, and Benny Johnson, to spread Russian propaganda. The payments were funneled through a Tennessee-based company called Tenet Media, and while Rubin, Pool, and Johnson deny knowledge of the plot ... they don’t seem to have asked too many questions about the mysterious benefactor who was supposedly funding Tenet and paying them unseemly large amounts of money.

Unfortunately, this is only the latest in a string of foreign influence campaigns coming from Russia, China and Iran that target American elections. To break down all the news, Kara is joined by Julia Davis, Alex Stamos, and Brandy Zadrozny. Julia is a columnist for the Daily Beast, an investigative reporter, and the creator of the Russian Media Monitor; Alex is the chief information security officer at SentinelOne, the founder of the Stanford Internet Observatory, and a former chief security officer at Facebook; and Brandy is senior reporter at NBC News who covers the Internet, especially politics, tech, and extremism. 

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher

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CNN Chief Political Correspondent Dana Bash has been having one hell of a summer. She co-moderated the June debate that led to President Biden’s historic decision to step out of the race; she landed the first sit-down interview with Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Governor Tim Walz; and now she’s out with a book (co-written with David Fisher) called America’s Deadliest Election: The Cautionary Tale of the Most Violent Election in American History. It’s a deep dive into the Louisiana gubernatorial race of 1872 that surprisingly has had ripple effects until today. 

Kara and Dana sat down at Politics & Prose in Washington, D.C., to discuss the book, the huge shifts of the current election cycle, and the upcoming debate between former President Trump and Vice President Harris.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Threads/Instagram @karaswisher

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How much screen time is OK for a two year old? What is the right age for kids to get on Instagram or TikTok? And is there such a thing as "good" social media? Figuring out how to grapple with technology is one of the biggest headaches parents have to deal with these days. Kara talks to Dr. Becky (the "millennial parent whisperer") to get answers to the most pressing questions about tech and parenting. And this time, our expert questions come from you — our listeners!

Dr. Becky Kennedy is a clinical psychologist who’s been called the “millennial parent whisperer." She is also a best-selling author and successful entrepreneur who has 2.8 million followers on Instagram, a hit TED talk, and a subscription-based platform called Good Inside that recently launched an app.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find Kara on Instagram/Threads as @karaswisher

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