Polilogue

Some weeks when we watch the shows, one show will blend onto the next show— and we struggle to remember each unique moment. During those repetitive weeks, we lean on our notes to find trends and moments of distinction. This Sunday was not one of those instances. 

Meet the Press delivered a fascinating and riveting episode. The strongest moment on the show was when host Chuck Todd had a singular focus and provided consistent and clear follow up questions during his interview with White House Special Counselor, Kellyanne Conway. 

In comparison, This Week delivered a fire dumpster of an episode. Jonathan Karl allowed one man with no authority or political power to demean the value of the Sunday political shows when Steve Bannon rambled for 30+ minutes. 

• Introduction
• Highlight/Lowlight
• Chuck Todd shines
• Jon Karl blows it
• Rankings
• Closing

Email us at [email protected] or you can send us your feedback @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

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Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org

The Sunday political shows discussed this week:  

• This Week
• Face the Nation
• Meet the Press
• State of the Union

On the eve of the historic North Korea summit, President Trump had someone else in his crosshairs: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.  On a series of appearances this Sunday, Trump economic advisor Larry Kudlow turned the rhetoric up to ten—grilling Canada while striking a conciliatory tone with Russia and holding out hope for negotiations with North Korea's Kim Jung Un.  

It was a striking stance—and we cover it all on this week's episode of Polilogue.  First, we examine the fallout from Trump's disastrous G7 meeting—and all of the finger-pointing and name calling from Kudlow.  Then, we follow the lead of ABC News and record our second segment directly from Singapore...well, not really.  But our hearts (and hopes) are there!  

• Introduction
• Highlight/Lowlight
• Trump Goes to War...with Canada
• On the Eve of the North Korea Summit
• Show Rankings
• Closing

Email us at [email protected] or you can send us your feedback by tweeting @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

Want to stalk us some more? Check out some of our other work: 

Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com 
Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org

The Sunday political shows discussed this week:  

• This Week
• Face the Nation
• Meet the Press  (actually, MTP wasn't on this week!) 
• State of the Union

The global response to President Trump’s unilateral tariffs on steel and aluminum is deafening. In particular, allies like Canada, Mexico, and the EU have announced tariffs against the United States in response. Both Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland were on the shows to express their disappointment and frustration with President Trump’s tariffs.

This week on Polilogue, we explore the outrage around the world and the various responses from the Republican party on Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs. We also discuss the latest leak about the Mueller investigation and ask ourselves: “What are the limits of Trump's authority?” 

• Introduction
• Highlight/Lowlight
• Tariff Tempers Flare
• Trump Exceeds Authority
• Rankings
• Closing

Email us at [email protected] or you can send us your feedback by tweeting @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

Want to stalk us some more? Check out some of our other work: 

Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com 
Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org

The Sunday political shows discussed this week:  

• This Week
• Face the Nation
• Meet the Press
• State of the Union

Instead of reviewing all four political shows, in today’s episode of Polilogue, we focus on State of the Union. Dana Bash filled in for Jake Tapper and had two important interviews: the current attorney for President Trump, Rudy Guiliani, and former Director of National lntelligence, James Clapper.  Each man demonstrates very different levels of decorum and competence.

• Introduction
• Highlight/Lowlight
• Guiliani Strategy
• Closing

Email us at [email protected] or you can send us your feedback @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

Want to stalk us some more? Check out some of our other work: 

Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com 
Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org

In this special episode of Polilogue we look back to an important conversation that took place on This Week on April 22.  The panel conversation was half-inspired by the upcoming mid-term elections and half-inspired by New York Times journalist Amy Chozick’s new book: Chasing Hillary.

The media has always been instrumental in educating voters about their choices in presidential elections. But all the rules and expectations were thrown out the window in 2016 and now everyone— journalist, politicians, and voters— must reexamine the role of the media in all elections.

• Introduction
• Highlight/Lowlight
• The state of political reporting
• The future of political reporting
• Closing

Email us at [email protected] or you can send us your feedback @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

Want to stalk us some more? Check out some of our other work: 

Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com 
Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org

In this episode of Polilogue, we discuss America’s relationship with two countries: North Korea and Iran. First, we talk about President Trump’s upcoming summit with Kim Jong-Un in Singapore on June 12. Two of his top foreign affairs officials— Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and National Security Advisor John Bolton— have different tones on the upcoming meeting. 

We also discuss Trump’s announcement to get out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or as its more commonly known: the Iran Nuclear Deal. The decision will huge ramifications for America, Iran, and all the other nation states who are/were participating in this multilateral deal. 

• Introduction
• Highlight/Lowlight
• Preparing for North Korea 
• Reneging on the Iran Deal 
• New Studio for Face the Nation
• Rankings
• Closing

Email us at [email protected] or you can send us your feedback @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

Want to stalk us some more? Check out some of our other work: 

Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com 
Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org

The Sunday political shows discussed this week:  

• This Week
• Face the Nation
• Meet the Press
• State of the Union

After a series of explosive television appearances by President Trump’s new attorney, Rudy Guiliani, the White House struggles to maintain credibility and integrity. There seems to be a  giant gap between Trump’s legal team and those that represent the White House— neither knows how to explain the other. This was most evident in three distinct interviews on the Sunday Morning talk shows. 

First, George Stephanopoulos dissects Guiliani’s arguments on This Week. Guiliani tries to wiggle his away from the truth— but George holds him accountable and demands clarity. Later, White House Counselor Kellyanne Conway is interviewed by Jake Tapper on State of the Union and Margaret Brennan on Face the Nation. The two journalists take very different approaches when examining President Trump’s missteps and mistruths.

• Introduction
• Highlight/Lowlight
• Guiliani’s Rumors, George’s Facts 
• Comparing Kellyanne Interviews
• Rankings
• Closing

Email us at [email protected] or you can send us your feedback @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

Want to stalk us some more? Check out some of our other work: 

• Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com 
• Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org

The Sunday political shows discussed this week:  

• This Week
• Face the Nation
• Meet the Press
• State of the Union 

After the truly historic meeting with South Korea President Moon Jae-in and North Korea president Kim Jong Un last week, the tone of negotiations on the peninsula feels starkly different. The White House is even cautiously optimistic that President Trump’s meeting with Kim Jong Un could finally change the relationship between the two countries. 

This week on Polilogue we explore the narrative beneath this conversation. What is the American strategy? Who gets credit if North Korea finally gives up it nuclear weapons? Who gets the blame if North Korea doesn’t? 

In our other segments, we found several praiseworthy moments in James Comey’s interview on Meet the Press— and we also found frustrating moments whenever journalists discussed the White House Correspondent dinner.

• Introduction
• Highlight/Lowlight
• North Korea negotiations 
• A surprising Comey interview 
• Journalists don't get the joke 
• Rankings
• Closing

Email us at [email protected] or you can send us your feedback @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

Want to stalk us some more? Check out some of our other work: 

Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com 
Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org

The Sunday political shows discussed this week:  

• This Week
• Face the Nation
• Meet the Press
• State of the Union 

Helpful news articles

• Could North Korea really open up? 
• Chaos surrounds the Missouri governor
• Melissa Wolf’s speech at the White House Correspondent Dinner

Two conversations stood out on the Sunday talk shows. First: three legal experts on ABC’s This Week discuss the Southern District of New York’s (SDNY) investigation into Michael Cohen, President Trump’s personal attorney. The panel included Alan Dershowitz,  professor emeritus at Harvard Law School; ABC chief legal analyst Dan Abrams; and Mimi Rocah, former federal SDNY prosecutor. We question the value of having a voice like Alan Dershowitz on the shows— and the effectiveness of counter perspectives. 

Second, we spend time dissecting the bizarre State of the Union interview with Kellyanne Conway. Both journalist and guest bungled up their questions and answers— but who came off worse? That’s a hard contest with no winners.      

• Introduction
• Highlight/Lowlight
• Divisive legal panel 
• Kellyanne and Dana get angry 
• Rankings
• Closing

Email us at [email protected] or you can send us your feedback @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

Want to stalk us some more? Check out some of our other work: 

Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com 
Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org

The Sunday political shows discussed this week:  

• This Week
• Face the Nation
• Meet the Press
• State of the Union 

Helpful news articles:

• CNN summarizes confrontation
• Kellyanne talks about other spouses (Vox)
• Literally, George Conway’s twitter feed.

News agencies were not short for content last week. In a single week: criticism against EPA Director Scott Pruitt grew, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg testified in front of Congress, Speaker Paul Ryan announced he was not going to run for reelection, snippets from Former FBI Director Jim Comey’s new book was released, the offices of President Trump’s personal attorney were raided by the FBI, and America launched a limited military strike against President Bashar Hafez al-Assad in response to a chemical  weapon attack in Syria. 

This week on Polilogue, we examine the last three topics and let Zuckerberg, Pruitt, and Ryan save their talking points for another day. Between Comey’s new book and the attorney-client privilege President Trump shares with Michael Cohen being challenged, President Trump seems more erratic and volatile than ever. Nonetheless, important foreign policy decisions in Syria are still demanded of him. 

How much can Trump handle at once? How will the media cover it? Listen to the latest episode of Polilogue to hear our take. You can also jump to any chapter of the shows by clicking any of the links below: 

• Introduction
• Highlight/Lowlight
• Comey opens the floodgates
• Closing in on Cohen 
• Trumps responds to Syria 
• Rankings
• Closing

Email us at [email protected] or you can send us your feedback @PolilogueCast. You can also follow us at @sotonaomi_ and @bsteidle.

Want to stalk us some more? Check out some of our other work: 

Brendan’s website: www.armisticedesigns.com 
Naomi's website: www.startwithaquestion.org

The Sunday political shows discussed this week:  

• This Week
• Face the Nation
• Meet the Press
• State of the Union 

Other helpful articles: 

• Syria’s war: Who is fighting and why (Vox)
• 6 basic questions about the war in Syria (Washington Post)
• Exclusive: Inside the GOP plan to discredit Comey (CNN) 
• Brian Stelter’s Reliable Sources for Sunday, April 16, 2018