Behind the Democrats’ Losing Strategy

Just as he was getting kicked out the door, former Attorney General Jeff Sessions wanted to do one last thing: strongly limit the strength and use of consent decrees moving forward. It’s a move that deals a significant blow to the Department of Justice’s ability to reign in police abuse across the country. Today on the show: what is a consent decree? And what happens in one small town in Louisiana when Jeff Sessions takes office and decides to turn a blind eye to its abuses? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

10 Nov 201819min

Ben Wittes of Lawfare and the Brookings Institution tells us four things to watch for in the wake of the ouster of Attorney General Jeff Sessions. For more from Wittes on this, check out the latest episode of The Lawfare Podcast. Plus, Mary McCord, who used to lead the National Security Division at the Department of Justice, explains why she remains hopeful that her old agency can keep its blinders on and stay above politics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

9 Nov 201821min

Democrats ran all sorts of different campaigns and won (or lost) in all sorts of different ways. Is there a lesson they could take from the midterms and carry into the next election? Plus, how did racism figure into the Florida and Georgia governor’s races? Jamelle Bouie joins the show to nurse our election hangover. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

7 Nov 201821min

Alfredo Corchado calls in from the border to talk about voter enthusiasm in his area. Amy Walter from the Cook Political Report shares her tips for watching election night returns. Slate’s Molly Olmstead explains why she’ll be eyeing the teacher candidates tonight. The Root’s Jason Johnson is our man in Atlanta following the Georgia gubernatorial contest.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

6 Nov 201828min

With less than 36 hours to go until the final voting deadline for the midterm elections, it's important to know what's at stake. Amy Walter, a host on The Takeaway and National Editor of the Cook Political Report, knows that each election tells us a story and this one is no different. She joined us today to talk about what signals and trends she's looking out for and what that means for our future as a country and how we understand ourselves. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

5 Nov 201817min

Daryl Johnson tried to warn Homeland Security about the growing momentum behind right-wing extremists. He was not well-received. On Friday’s show, how the actions of the Obama and Trump administrations fueled far-right violence. Plus, there’s election shadiness happening in Kansas. Slate’s Mark Joseph Stern explains.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2 Nov 201822min

President Trump wanted to make this the election of the caravan. For red state democrats, that’s becoming the case. So with only days to go until midterms how will Trump’s immigration rhetoric shape close races? Slate’s Jim Newell joins us today to discuss the state of red state democrats. Plus, BuzzFeed’s Caroline O’Donovan spent the day in Mountain View, CA at Google’s headquarters to cover the walkout of its employees in protest of what they say is the company's lenient treatment of executives accused of sexual misconduct. She joins us to debrief on the day out West. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1 Nov 201822min

Eric Nagourney, an international desk editor for the New York Times, explains the paper’s decision to publish harrowing photographs of malnourished Yemeni children. And Fatima Alasrar, a Yemeni and a senior analyst for the Arabia Foundation, explains why she thinks assigning blame for Yemen’s famine is complicated. We’ll be piloting What Next in public for the next several weeks. Tell us what you think: whatnext@slate.com. Follow us on Instagram for updates on the show, our weekend reading lists, and occasional posts about pita chips. Podcast production by Mary Wilson and Jayson De Leon. Engineering by Terence Bernardo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

31 Okt 201819min