The Oath and The Office

Two Squared Media Productions
  • 4.9 (574)
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Mixing sharp wit and serious political fire, The Oath and The Office is where hard-hitting constitutional analysis meets razor-sharp comedy. Distinguished political science professor Corey Brettschneider teams up with comedian John Fugelsang to break down the most powerful 35 words in American democracy—the presidential oath of office. Every president swears to “preserve, protect, and defend” the Constitution, but what happens when one openly attacks democracy and the rule of law itself? Each week, Corey and John pull no punches, exposing the latest threats to the rule of law and demanding accountability. Smart, fearless, and wickedly funny—this is the civics lesson you can’t afford to miss.

  1. 4D AGO

    The Supreme Court’s Assault on Our Rights (with Kate Shaw)

    The Supreme Court is reshaping American democracy — weakening voting rights, empowering the presidency, and narrowing the protections that have defined modern civil rights law. John Fugelsang and Corey Brettschneider begin with the Court’s assault on the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the fallout for democratic participation across the country. They also discuss Trump’s attacks on James Comey, threats against ABC and Jimmy Kimmel, and the broader campaign of intimidation against critics and dissenters. Then constitutional law scholar Kate Shaw joins the show to discuss how the Court is enabling Trump’s authoritarianism, including the pending fight over Temporary Protected Status, the shadow docket, emergency rulings on immigration and executive power, and her recent exchange with Senator Josh Hawley over nationwide injunctions. What happens when the courts weaken voting rights while expanding presidential power? And what does it mean for the future of constitutional democracy? Subscribe to The Oath and The Office wherever you get podcasts.

    1h 13m

  2. APR 30

    Trump’s War on Truth and Science (with James Morone)

    Trump briefly talked about “cooling things down.” Then came the escalation. This week on The Oath and The Office, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang look at how President Trump is using political violence not as a reason for restraint, but as a weapon against his opponents. Jimmy Kimmel and Trevor Noah are targeted for jokes. A 60 Minutes interview becomes another venue for attacking the press. And the administration’s suit against the Southern Poverty Law Center raises a larger question: is law enforcement being turned into a tool of political retaliation? We also turn to the Supreme Court’s major Fourth Amendment case over geofence warrants and cell location data. The old law-school hypotheticals about government surveillance no longer feel hypothetical. With companies like Palantir helping build the modern surveillance state, the threat of databases tracking protesters, dissidents, and political opponents is suddenly very real. Then Corey is joined by James A. Morone, Professor Emeritus at Brown University and one of the country’s leading political scientists, to discuss his new book with David Blumenthal, "Whiplash: From the Battle for Obamacare to the War on Science". The book tells the inside story of how Obama, Trump, and Biden transformed health care politics, from the fight over Obamacare to COVID, Operation Warp Speed, anti-poverty policy, and Trump’s war on science itself. Get the book from Yale University Press: https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300263480/whiplash/

    58 min

  3. APR 23

    Trump’s Supreme Court, the Shadow Docket, and the New Normal (with Aaron Parnas)

    Has Trump changed American politics so deeply that what once seemed dangerous now feels normal? In this episode of The Oath and The Office, we begin with the Supreme Court: the shadow docket, Clarence Thomas, and a judiciary that increasingly operates with extraordinary power and too little accountability. We then turn to the case against the former CIA director, along with the resignation of a Justice Department prosecutor, and ask what these developments reveal about the state of law, accountability, and political pressure inside the justice system. Then Aaron Parnas joins us. Parnas has built a massive audience by reporting breaking political news to a younger generation in real time, often outside traditional media. We ask him a bigger question: can the news be reported outside the wider context of the threat to democracy? And when Parnas argues that much of this feels normal to people who grew up in the Trump era, Corey asks what it means when democratic crisis starts to feel ordinary. We also discuss Trump’s reported pressure on the IRS, the questions surrounding Kash Patel and the FBI, and why these stories may be part of a much broader pattern. This is a conversation about power, accountability, and the risk of treating democratic erosion as the new normal.

    52 min

  4. APR 16

    Trump vs. the Pope

    Trump says the pope should stay out of politics. But when Trump posts himself as Jesus, attacks independent moral authority, and demands loyalty from every institution, the real goal is not religious neutrality. It is control. In this episode of The Oath and The Office, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang begin with Trump’s clash with the pope and what it reveals about the authoritarian impulse: not keeping religion out of politics, but bending religion to serve power. Then they turn to Hungary, where Viktor Orbán’s loss offers a real sign of hope. Even after gerrymandering and years of democratic erosion, autocrats can still be challenged and defeated. They also break down two more revealing stories: a judge throwing out Trump’s defamation suit over the Epstein birthday-card report, and the administration’s move to abandon civil-rights settlements protecting trans students. Taken together, these stories show the same pattern: attacks on truth, attacks on vulnerable people, and attacks on any institution unwilling to bend to raw power. This episode is about more than one controversy. It is about the larger authoritarian playbook — and why resistance still matters.

    45 min

  5. APR 9

    Is Trump Committing War Crimes? Lawrence Douglas on Hegseth, Nuremberg, and the Criminal State

    Can a president commit war crimes? Can a defense secretary? And what would it take to hold either one accountable? Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang open with the Supreme Court showdown over Trump’s attack on birthright citizenship. After Trump became the first sitting president to attend oral arguments at the Court, Solicitor General D. John Sauer faced tough questioning from several justices, including Chief Justice John Roberts, who delivered the line of the day: “It’s a new world. It’s the same Constitution.” Corey and John break down why the administration’s argument looked weak, why Wong Kim Ark remains the key precedent, and what the hearing may signal about the fate of Trump’s effort to gut birthright citizenship. They also discuss the latest chaos inside Trump’s Justice Department after Pam Bondi was pushed out as attorney general and replaced, for now, by Todd Blanche, another Trump loyalist. From there, they turn to the Supreme Court’s move that could wipe away Steve Bannon’s contempt conviction, and what it says about accountability in Trump’s Washington. Then Corey and John are joined by Lawrence Douglas of Amherst College, professor of law, jurisprudence, and social thought, and author of "The Criminal State", for a chilling conversation about whether Trump is committing war crimes, whether Pete Hegseth could face exposure as a war criminal, and how leaders who authorize brutality can be held to account. They explore the continuing relevance of Nuremberg, the legal meaning of crimes carried out by the state, and whether American institutions still have the power to confront criminality at the top. This is a sober, urgent discussion about impunity, presidential violence, and the future of the rule of law

    1h 2m

  6. APR 2

    Before Project 2025: How the Right Built Trump’s Power Grab (with David Sirota)

    Trump’s attack on birthright citizenship is only part of the story. The bigger danger is a decades-long effort to free the presidency from constitutional limits. Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang begin by breaking down Trump’s latest argument against birthright citizenship, why it misreads the Constitution, and what is really at stake in the legal fight. Then David Sirota joins to trace the deeper roots of Trump’s power grab: the conservative blueprints that helped lay the groundwork for Project 2025, the lessons of Nixon and Reagan, and the long campaign to expand executive power. In this episode: Trump’s attack on birthright citizenshipwhy the constitutional case against it failsthe antecedents of Project 2025Nixon, Reagan, and the growth of presidential powerwhy the No Kings protests matterwhat reforms could restore real limits on the presidency This episode is about more than one policy fight. It’s about how the presidency was reshaped, and whether American democracy can still impose meaningful limits on executive power.

    1h 5m

  7. MAR 26

    Mueller Warned Congress. Trump Celebrated His Death.

    Trump’s reaction to Robert Mueller’s death was grotesque. But the deeper question is what Congress failed to do when Mueller was alive: why didn’t it impeach Trump based on the Mueller report? Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang revisit Mueller’s findings, the Nixon parallel, and the constitutional failure that still shapes Trump’s presidency. Then: a major Supreme Court voting-rights case out of Mississippi, ICE at airports as a new front in Trump’s immigration crackdown, and a federal judge’s ruling against Pentagon restrictions on defense reporters. Plus, a listener from the U.K. asks a question many Americans are asking too: could Trump really defy the Constitution and try for a third term? This week’s episode connects the week’s biggest legal and political stories into one urgent question: how many constitutional guardrails are still holding? Learn more about the ACLU and its upcoming Supreme Court case at aclu.org/barbara.

    45 min

  8. MAR 19

    Stacey Abrams on the SAVE Act: The New Voter Suppression Threat

    Is the SAVE Act really about election security — or is it a new blueprint for voter suppression? On this episode of The Oath and The Office, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang break down the latest fight over the SAVE Act, why its proof-of-citizenship requirement could make it harder for millions of eligible Americans to register and vote, and what this battle reveals about the future of democracy. Then Stacey Abrams joins the show to explain what the bill would do, why it is so dangerous, and how the broader attack on voting rights fits into the Trump-era push to undermine democratic institutions. Also in this episode: Gregory Bovino is out, Judge Boasberg pushes back against politically charged legal tactics, and Trump lashes out at the courts yet again. This is a conversation about voter suppression, constitutional democracy, and who gets to decide the future of the country. Learn more about the ACLU and its upcoming Supreme Court case at aclu.org/barbara.

    1h 10m
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Hosts & Guests

4.9
out of 5
574 Ratings

About

Mixing sharp wit and serious political fire, The Oath and The Office is where hard-hitting constitutional analysis meets razor-sharp comedy. Distinguished political science professor Corey Brettschneider teams up with comedian John Fugelsang to break down the most powerful 35 words in American democracy—the presidential oath of office. Every president swears to “preserve, protect, and defend” the Constitution, but what happens when one openly attacks democracy and the rule of law itself? Each week, Corey and John pull no punches, exposing the latest threats to the rule of law and demanding accountability. Smart, fearless, and wickedly funny—this is the civics lesson you can’t afford to miss.

Information

  • Creator
    Two Squared Media Productions
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    66
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Corey Brettschneider
  • Show Website
    The Oath and The Office

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