The Coffee Klatch with Robert Reich

Friends,

Like all authoritarians, Trump wants us to become so hopeless that we give up. Well, guess what? We’re not giving up. He can flood the zone all he wants with gonzo nominations — a Fox News host to lead the Defense Department, a sex trafficking clown to lead the Justice Department, a Russian troll to become Director of National Intelligence, a conspiratorial fanatic to run the Department of Heath and Human Services — but we will go on fighting, even harder than before.

Today, Heather and I discuss what Trump is doing and why, and how to stop him. Please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, take our poll, and join the conversation.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,

Like many of you, I’ve been wrestling with grief, fear, and anger. The outcome of the election was far worse than I had feared.

On today’s Klatch, Heather, Michael, and I take a deep dive into what happened and why. We also ask: What do we do now?

I don't have all the answers, but I believe Heather, Michael, and I are at least asking the right questions. We’re eager to have your thoughts as well.

Please grab a cuppa, pull up a chair, take our poll (if you wish), and join in the conversation.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,

Today, with the election just three days away, Heather, Michael, and I take a deep dive into the Trump Republican Party. We look at its malicious misogyny — why it exists, how it will harm women, how it’s communicated, and what its electoral result is likely to be. We also look at the party’s obsession about voter fraud — which is extraordinarily rare but gives Trump and his lapdogs an excuse to demonize Democrats, Harris, immigrants, and the all-purpose “them.”

Please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, take our survey, and join the conversation.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,

The election is nine days away, and there’s a good chance we won’t know the outcome until days or possibly weeks beyond.

On Tuesday, Harris will be giving her final message to America, at the same place on the Washington mall where Trump held his rally on January 6, 2021.

Heather and I discuss what that final message ought to be. We also examine why Trump is gaining ground in almost every poll, not just in the battleground states but even in the popular vote.

And we ask how best to get through the anxieties of the next nine days and also (perish the thought) if Trump should be elected.

So please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, take our poll, and join the conversation.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,

Today, Heather and I discuss why we’re optimistic about the election, just over two weeks away.

Harris is showing more of her strengths as she subjects herself to interview after interview (including on Fox News). Trump is revealing more of his instability, as he calls the violent assault on the U.S. Capitol “a day of love,” talks about using the military on his political opponents, and continuously veers into incoherence.

Meanwhile, the economy continues to improve — more jobs, higher real wages, and lower interest rates.

Harris is also gaining support of former Republican leaders. At the same time, many of Trump’s former Cabinet officers and White House staff have come out against him.

Trump is planning to top off his campaign with a large rally at Madison Square Garden — echoing a Nazi rally that occurred at the same location in February 1939, in which the theme was “America First.”

Please pour yourself a cup, pull up a chair, take our poll, and join the conversation.

Thanks again for joining us. If you’d like our whole package and would also like to support our work, please consider a paid subscription.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,

Today Heather and I assess the election outlook, specifically the widening gender gap, which is turning into a gender chasm. American women are overwhelmingly for Harris; men (especially those without college degrees) are overwhelmingly for Trump.

Meanwhile, Elon Musk and Trump have become the nation’s most dangerous bromance. Each wants what the other possesses: Trump wants vast wealth and a social media platform that reaches billions; Musk wants more power. Beware.

We also explore whether voters who say they “still don’t know enough” about Kamala Harris are hiding their own misogyny and racism.

Please pull up a chair, join our conversation, and take our poll.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,

This morning, Heather and I explore the biggest issues of the week: the remarkably good economy (September’s jobs report, out yesterday, was about the best you could possibly hope for); the VP debate last Tuesday; special counsel Jack Smith’s additional revelations about January 6; and Hurricane Helene.

And, of course, we’ll assess what all this means for the upcoming election (a bit over four weeks away) and whether there will be an “October surprise” for Harris or Trump, and, if so, what it might be.

Please pull up a chair, grab a cup, fill out our survey, and join us.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,

Today is the third anniversary of the launch of this newsletter community, and I want to thank you.

Three years ago today I posted my first daily letter, not knowing who would be out there to receive it.

Heather Lofthouse egged me on. (A special thanks to her, as well. And to Alessandra Bosco, whose gimlet eye has caught misspellings and grammatical mistakes I’m too embarrassed to admit, and to Michael Lahanas-Calderón, for his technical help.)

I wanted to key off current news but didn’t want this to be a mere summary of what’s happened. I wanted to provide context and background. Connect the dots. Expose the uses and abuses of power.

A few naysayers told me it was impossible to do this every day, seven days a week, and I shouldn’t even try.

It is sometimes difficult. But you have responded beyond my wildest dreams, sustaining and inspiring me.

I’ve been amazed by how many of you have embraced this letter and formed a community around it. I’ve been delighted by the thoughtfulness of your comments.

I’ve been humbled that some of you are “taking” my 13-part UC Berkeley course on Wealth and Poverty, or following my series on economic myths needing debunking, on the common good, and on the Roots of Trumpism.

I’m thrilled that so many of you enjoy Heather’s and my weekly coffee klatch podcasts, our presidential (and soon-to-come, vice-presidential) debate watch-alongs.

And my Sunday caption contests — to which some of you have contributed fabulously memorable captions.

“And that’s why there’s no 45 button in elevators anymore.”

***

I thank you from the bottom of my heart for making this possible — for making this such a civil and insightful community and for your financial support to sustain this effort.

A few of you worry that I’m “preaching to the converted” and not reaching the people who need to be reached — people whose democratic convictions are wavering and who are attracted to Trump and Trumpism.

I sometimes worry about this, too.

Yet most of you share my belief that we must know the truth if we are to effectively persuade others.

And that it’s vitally important that we spread the truth about the threats to the common good, to our democracy, and to our planet. And that in these perilous times it helps to know we are not alone. In fact, we are the majority.

But I’m not going to sugarcoat it: The 2024 election scares the hell out of me.

Even if Trump is defeated, the months or even years following the election will not be easy. Trump supporters will not just go away. Nor will the forces that fuel them.

The Trump criminal trials — if they occur, and they must — will test the nation.

On the other hand, if Trump wins the election or prevails in its aftermath, democracy and the rule of law are likely to be more endangered than the first time he took office.

In either case, it will be more urgent than ever that we know the truth, spread the truth, and feel the strength of community.

All of this feeds my determination to keep going.

America is threatened both by lies from the authoritarian foes of democracy and by increasing amounts of big money in our politics from corporations and the ultra-wealthy.

I promise to keep standing up to these forces (including the richest man in the world, no matter how many names he calls me).

In the next 12 months, I’ll provide more content. More analyses. More critiques of the ultra-wealthy who are turning their wealth into political power. More personal history bearing on what’s happening today. More podcasts and drawings.

My goal is to keep this community going for everyone who wants to read, listen, and contribute, each day.

But please don’t feel compelled to pay to be a part of it. These are tough times for so many.

That said, if you can support us to keep generating new content, we welcome it. If you’d like to become a paid subscriber with access to everything we’re doing, great.

A founding supporter, enormous thanks. Give a gift subscription, wonderful.

We do need help to sustain this effort. Your contribution allows us to post the vast majority of content without a paywall and ensures we keep getting the message out.

On to year four? You betcha.

All best,

Robert Reich

If you are a free subscriber and can afford a paid subscription, please consider supporting this venture. Paid subscribers allow us to continue to build and experiment while keeping most of our content free and open.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,

It was quite a debate and quite a week. Today, Heather and I look back on both and do our best to peer into the future. What effect will the debate have on undecided voters? What does Kamala Harris need to do in the remaining weeks? What will Trump do? Why is Trump refusing a second debate with Harris?

We also examine the consequences of Taylor Swift’s endorsement (and Elon Musk’s grade-school bully boy response). And we take a look at yesterday’s 30th anniversary of the Violence Against Women Act.

So pull up a chair and join us. And please take our poll.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,

Today, Heather and I examine the upcoming Tuesday night debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.

The American public knows Trump. He has forced himself into our minds for the last decade in every possible way. Yet much of the public doesn’t yet know Harris. Before Biden bowed out on July 21, she was a vice president who, like every vice president before her, was almost invisible.

Heather and I discuss whether it’s most important for her to define herself as strong and competent or define Trump as weak and incompetent? Emphasize law and order, while suggesting Trump is unlawful and disordered? Bait Trump into losing control? We also discuss the Trump trials, the U.S. economy, and other issues that have a bearing.

Please pull up a chair, grab a cup, take our poll, AND make a note on your calendars that Heather and I will host a watch-along of Tuesday’s debate, which you’ll find right here on this Substack.

This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe