RealClearPolitics Podcast RealClearPolitics, Carl Cannon, Tom Bevan

Andrew Walworth, Carl Cannon, and Tom Bevan are joined by RCP Senior Elections Analyst Sean Trende and White House correspondent Phil Wegmann for a special preview of tonight’s presidential debate. Topics include the latest polls, managing expectations, the stakes for CNN, issues that voters want to hear about, and topics the candidates want to talk about.

Andrew, Carl, and Tom discuss Tuesday’s primary results and Senator Joe Manchin’s remarks at the Aspen Ideas Festival about who he will vote for in November. They also chat about recent statements by Vice President Kamala Harris on Donald Trump’s position on abortion and a letter released yesterday by 16 Nobel Prize-winning economists criticizing Trump’s proposed economic policies. Next, Carl talks with White House correspondent for the National Journal - George Condon, about the press coverage of Thursday’s debate. And winding it up, Andrew talks to David DesRosiers, president of the RealClear Foundation and co-host The Energy Future Forum, a conference of experts held today in Washington, DC.

Andrew, Carl, and Tom discuss recent polls in Georgia and today’s primary races in Colorado where Lauren Boebert is favored to win and in New York where Jamaal Bowman faces a tough challenge. They also talk about the reaction to this weekend’s assault outside a Los Angeles synagogue, the change of leadership at the Washington Post, and the release of Julian Assange from a UK prison after he struck a plea deal with the United States. Next, Tom Bevan talks to pollster Frank Luntz about Thursday’s presidential debate. And finally, Andrew Walworth talks to Charlie Tidmarsh; author of the regular RCP feature “This Week in Censorship”; about court suppression of the diary of Audrey Elizabeth Hale - the transgender man responsible for a 2023 mass school shooting in Tennessee and the closure of the Stanford Internet Project.

Andrew, Carl, and Tom discuss the candidates’ preparation strategies for this Thursday’s presidential debate and this morning’s controversial exchange between CNN host Kasie Hunt and Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt: Hunt cut off Leavitt’s camera when she brought up past statements by Dana Bash and Jake Tapper about Donald Trump.
They also discuss the primary race between New York Congressman Jamaal Bowman and challenger George Latimer and Bowman’s use of foul language at Saturday’s rally that featured Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. Next, Tom Bevan talks to RCP White House correspondent Phil Wegmann about Trump’s process for choosing a running mate. And lastly, Carl Cannon talks with the CEO of the Open to Debate Foundation Clea Conner about what's wrong with the presidential debates and how to fix them.

Andrew, Carl, and Tom discuss Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s FEC complaint against CNN for keeping him out of next week’s presidential debate and the DNC’s plan to nominate the Biden/Harris ticket by Zoom in advance of the Democratic Convention. They also chat about the Biden campaign’s new advertising strategy to reach Hispanic voters during the Copa América soccer tournament, which starts today. Plus, a new California Supreme Court decision will keep the Taxpayer Protection Act off the state’s ballot in November, a move that is seen as a win for Governor Gavin Newsom. Next, Andrew Walworth talks to Douglas Holtz-Eakin, former director of the Congressional Budget Office, about this week’s increase by the CBO of the 2024 federal deficit and debt projections, and why neither major political party seems interested in debt reduction. And finally, Carl Cannon talks with Democratic strategist Maria Cordona about the politics behind President Biden’s immigration plans.

Andrew, Carl, and Tom discuss preparations for next Thursday’s CNN presidential debate and new polls from Fox News that show Joe Biden’s numbers improving over former president Trump. Then, they talk about a New York Times survey that shows Biden’s advantage among women declining and a new ranking of American cities based on how well they are run. Next, Tom Bevan talks to Spencer Kimball of the Emerson College Polling Center on new poll results from the swing states. And finally, Carl Cannon talks with Lindsay Chervinsky, new head of the George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon.