James Carville: Inside the Most Chaotic Seven Weeks of Trump's Second Term

James and Al celebrate the excellent candidates running for office and their growing prospects in the midterms, shame Trump for his renewed war on the press and the 1st Amendment, and make the point that the administration is focusing on the trivial when the world is on fire. Then, they welcome union leader and smokejumper-turned-congressional candidate for MT-01, Sam Forstag, to discuss the war on rural hospitals, the dangerous influence of money in our politics, the death of accountability, and the need to focus on struggling Americans instead of endless wars. Email your questions to James and Al at [email protected] or tweet them to @politicon. Make sure to include your city– we love to hear where you’re from! Sponsors: Trust & Will — 20% off affordable online estate planning. https://trustandwill.com/warroom Hers — Personalized, affordable GLP-1 weight loss care. https://forhers.com/warroom Chapter timestamps: 00:00 — Trump's UN threat to "annihilate" a sovereign nation 01:45 — "He doesn't want to do the job anymore": James on a president in decline 03:26 — Trump bans CNN, MSNOW, and Politico from the White House 04:49 — Do we actually lose anything if the president skips the briefing room? 06:24 — Why this is a First Amendment violation, not just a policy choice 07:07 — The Greenland deal that changed nothing 08:53 — James plays contrarian: maybe distraction is better than Trump focusing on "big issues" 12:08 — Guest: Sam Forstag, Montana's smokejumper-turned-candidate 17:01 — Why this class of Democratic candidates has a public-service background 17:51 — The Valentine's Day Forest Service firings that pushed him into the race 22:15 — His healthcare plan and his own insurance nightmare 25:48 — Corruption money backing his opponent 26:49 — Connecting the Iran war to diesel and gas prices back home 29:27 — Closing on the legacy of Mike Mansfield and Lee Metcalf 33:44 — Albert's monologue: the ballroom, the Kennedy Center, and the Arlington arch 35:06 — James's outrage: college football's lopsided, exploitative blowouts 38:27 — Listener Q&A begins 39:22 — Why Republicans are better at painting Democrats as villains than vice versa 40:47 — Mayor Mamdani's handshake with Rudy Giuliani at 9/11 ceremonies 42:17 — Is Trump's $5,000 check a bribe? 44:06 — The real threat: could Republicans refuse to seat newly elected Democrats? 52:02 — Why firing DNC Chair Ken Martin wouldn't fix anything 53:37 — Grading Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer's leadership 58:21 — Trump's push to rename Ford's Theatre, and his broader hatred of Washington 1:00:50 — Closing tip: the best airplane seat for landing at Reagan National