The Coffee Klatch with Robert Reich

Friends,

Welcome back to the Saturday Coffee Klatch, where today we’ll discuss whether TikTok should remain a Chinese company or be taken over by American billionaires (why would anyone trust billionaires to better guard their privacy and police against dangerous lies?). Which gets us into a discussion about big money in politics, and big money in housing. And what happens if Trump loses but the election is close — will he contest it, and, if so, how?

Please grab a cup, pull up a chair, and (if so inclined) take today’s 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,

Welcome back to our Saturday coffee klatch, where today Heather and I talk about Biden’s State of the Union address, the Republican reaction to it, what we learned from Super Tuesday, and Trump’s mounting troubles — ranging from the upcoming criminal hush-money trial to his cash crunch.

Please grab a cup, pull up a chair, and, should you wish, 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,

Welcome back to our Saturday coffee klatch, where Heather and I talk about the consequences of the Supreme Court’s decision to consider Trump’s immunity claim; the House Republicans’ (in particular, Speaker Michael Johnson’s) refusal to consider the Senate’s bipartisan bill to tighten border security and provide funding to Ukraine; Russia’s continuing efforts to help Trump through social media lies; and the coming end of Mitch McConnell’s reign as Senate Republican leader.

Please grab a cup, pull up a chair, and, should you wish, 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,

Welcome back to our Saturday coffee klatch.

This week, Heather and I try to figure out why the Republican Party has become an enemy of democracy — refusing to fund Ukraine against Putin’s aggression, supporting Trump’s invitation to Putin to attack other European countries and his threat to leave NATO if he’s reelected, and giving legitimacy to attempts to substitute scripture for law (as did the Alabama Supreme Court in deciding that embryos are “children”) and embrace white Christian nationalism.

So pull up a chair, grab some coffee, and, if you wish, 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 was not exactly Trump’s best week.

New York Justice Arthur F. Engoron found Trump liable for conspiring to manipulate his net worth and ordered him to pay a penalty that will exceed $450 million — which, along with the $83 million judgment against him in the defamation suit brought by E. Jean Carroll — could wipe out his entire stockpile of cash.

Meanwhile, a date was set for the hush money trial, in which Trump is alleged to have paid off a porn star to keep her quiet before the election but somehow failed to report it as an election expense.

Oh, and a former FBI informant was found to have fabricated the Hunter Biden story — the allegation that President Biden and his son sought bribes from a Ukrainian energy company. The informant has been arrested.

Meanwhile, Trump’s favorite murderous dictator, Vladimir Putin, seems to have knocked off his major opponent, Aleksei A. Navalny — an anticorruption activist who for more than a decade led the political opposition to Putin while enduring arrests, assaults, and a near-fatal poisoning — under mysterious circumstances. Navalny was 47. The apparent murder complicates Trump’s efforts to prevent Republicans from giving more aid to Ukraine.

Heather and I try to make some sense out of Trump’s week from hell. Please grab a cuppa, pull up a chair, and join us. (And take our klatch poll, if you wish.)

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

Hello friends,

Welcome back to our Saturday Coffee Klatch, where Heather and I consider special counsel Robert K. Hur’s report emphasizing Biden’s age and memory loss. Was it politically motivated? Is Biden really too old to be president?

We also examine the Supreme Court’s oral argument on Colorado’s decision to bump Trump from the ballot on the basis of Section 3 of the 14th Amendment; the decision of the three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia that Trump doesn’t have broad immunity from criminal indictments; and what this means for whether Trump will be tried before the election.

And the GOP’s bad week on the border bill and on trying to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas.

And, of course, tomorrow’s Super Bowl.

Please grab a chair and a cup of coffee and join us. Also, 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

Hello friends,

Welcome back to our Saturday Coffee Klatch.

Today is the South Carolina primary, but rather than spend much time on it (Trump will get his party’s nomination), Heather and I consider the remarkably good set of economic reports that emerged this past week and what, if anything, they mean for Biden’s reelection bid — plus why more than 70 percent of Republicans say the economy is terrible.

We also look at the U.S. military’s attacks on Iranian forces and the militias Iran is backing, in Iraq and Syria, in response to Iran’s drone attack last Sunday that killed three American soldiers and injured at least 40 others. Is this the start of a regional war?

Along the way we look at the new Child Tax Credit bill and why so many progressives are against it. And why the border security bill emerging from the Senate, as well as additional funding for Ukraine, are unlikely to pass (the answer is spelled TRUMP).

Finally, we examine whether the Delaware chancery court is correct — that there is such a thing as excessive executive compensation — and why Elon Musk is living proof.

Please grab a cup, pull up a chair, and join us. And, if so inclined, take today’s klatch 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

Hello friends,

Welcome back to our Saturday coffee klatch, where today we explore the real story behind Trump’s so-called “wins” in the New Hampshire primary and last week’s Iowa caucuses — and why they’re actually big losses for Trump. After all, he was president between 2017 and 2021, and a former president has a presumed lock on his party’s nomination. What’s extraordinary is how well Nikki Haley did on Tuesday.

We also talk with Congressman Ro Khanna — one of the sharpest and most progressive members of Congress — about these Trump losses, what they signify for the general election, and how Biden can best cut through the noise and demagoguery to show voters why he deserves another term.

So please grab a cup, pull up a chair, and join us (and if you wish, take this week’s coffee klatch poll).

Thanks for joining us. If you can, please consider a paid or gift subscription, so you’ll get the whole package and we can pay our bills!

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

Hello friends,

Today Heather and I look back three years to Biden’s inauguration and Trump’s no-show, and ahead to next week’s New Hampshire primary and the coming fight over funding for Ukraine — and wonder what happened to the Republican Party.

Lots more to talk about today. Please grab a cup, pull up a chair, and join us. And if you wish, take our poll.

A paid or gift subscription will give you the whole package and enable us to do even more. Please consider.

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

Hello friends,

Today Heather and I look ahead to Monday’s Iowa caucuses — and ask whether Nikki Haley has a chance to become the Republican nominee in 2024. Or are Haley and DeSantis simply laying foundations for their 2028 runs, assuming Trump relinquishes his dictatorship then?

Lots to talk about today. Please grab a cup, pull up a chair, and join us. And if you wish, take our poll.

Please consider a gift subscription for someone you care about. They’d receive the whole package. And your generosity would help us pay the bills.

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