The Takeout

Major is in Nashville, TN, to interview independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. The hourlong chat covers Kennedy’s assessment of the race now that President Biden is out, parallels to the 1968 campaign, his history of childhood vaccine skepticism, his view of January 6th rioters, 9/11, his health, cryptocurrency and much, much more. Join us in Music City. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, Major visits Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to cover the Republican National Convention. His guests include former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, Milwaukee County Executive and Joe Biden surrogate David Crowley and former Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker. Join us! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

With President Joe Biden’s health in question, Representative Adam Smith (D-WA) is one of at least 13 House Democrats to publicly call for Mr. Biden to drop out of the 2024 presidential race. Smith joined Major to explain why there needs to be a new candidate, emphasizing that Mr. Biden can no longer carry the message of the party. The congressman, who called Mr. Biden one of the best first term presidents ever, envisions an optimistic future for both the country and the Democratic party with Kamala Harris as the nominee. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

From the AIDS crisis in the 1980s to advising on the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci has seen the country through the toughest of times. His new memoir 'On Call' covers his accomplished career, while providing insight into the high-pressure demands of his job and the minds of the presidents he has worked with. In his fifth (editorial note: actually, it's his sixth!) appearance on the show, Major sits down with Dr. Fauci to discuss Joe Biden’s mental capability, the consequences of Donald Trump’s optimism in the pandemic and the emotional toll experienced in the field of medicine. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Over the course of the past decade, an endless stream of mis- and disinformation has made it increasingly difficult to parse fact from fiction. We sat down this week with a man who has a plan to restore trust in institutions and hold social media platforms accountable for divisive content that's often pushed for profit. Author and journalist Steven Brill, who cofounded the misinformation tracking tool NewsGuard, joins Major for appetizers at Buck's Fishing and Camping in upper Northwest D.C. His new book "The Death of Truth" is out now. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Gene Sperling has served multiple presidents - real and ficticious. He was an economic advisor to Presidents Clinton and Obama and currently serves as a senior advisor to President Biden and coordinator of the American Rescue Plan. In between White House stints, Sperling served President Jed Bartlet as a consultant on the hit TV show "The West Wing." In this episode, Major presses Sperling on the causes of and solutions for inflation, economic perceptions versus reality and whether President Biden's age and health are in decline. Join us for ice cream at Thomas Sweet in Georgetown. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What can the lead up to the war in Iraq teach us about America's foreign policy today? Journalist and author Steve Coll joins Major to discuss his new book "The Achilles Trap," which chronicles the rise and reign of Saddam Hussein and the miscalculations that led to war in the Middle East. Join us. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Turn on certain cable news channels and you’ll hear how immigrants pose a threat to the nation. Listen to this episode (or read our guest Zeke Hernandez’s book, “The Truth About Immigration”), and you’ll hear just the opposite. Hernandez, a UPenn business school professor and immigrant himself, lays out a data-driven argument that immigrants are essential to economic prosperity in the U.S. Join us for lunch and a great conversation at Chef Geoff’s in Washington’s West End. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The presidential debates, as currently contemplated, will look and feel different in 2024. President Biden and former President Trump are scheduled to meet twice at events sponsored by CNN and ABC. That leaves the Commission on Presidential Debates, the organization that has produced presidential and vice presidential debates for 35+ years, out in the wilderness. Major sits down with Frank Fahrenkopf, the commission's co-chair, to find out whether his organization has a future without debates in 2024. Join us at Unconventional Diner in downtown D.C.! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Major sits down with authors Brody and Luke Mullins to talk about Washington’s favorite pastime - and it’s not baseball. Their new book, “The Wolves of K Street,” argues that the last few decades of lobbying members of congress and policymakers has only benefited corporations and the lobbyists themselves, leaving behind the general public. Join us at The Dubliner on Capitol Hill (where lawmakers and lobbyists have been meeting for 50 years!). See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When the U.S. Navy needed something in the South Pacific or Asia, Leonard Francis seemed to be able to provide just about anything. Nicknamed "Fat Leonard," Francis showered senior officers with bribes - lavish dinners, prostitutes and gifts. In exchange, the officers kept lucrative contracts flowing to Francis's companies, which often overcharged the government for services and supplies. Francis was also able to extract something even more valuable than Navy contracts: classified information. Join us for a conversation with author and Washington Post reporter Craig Whitlock whose scintillating new book "Fat Leonard" dives into one of the wildest scandals in U.S military history. We're at Ris in Washington, D.C.'s West End neighborhood. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett, a freshman Democrat from the Dallas area, joins Major in the Longworth House Office Building for a lively chat about the speakership, Democrats' congressional prospects in 2024, Israel and Gaza and much more. Crockett weighs in on Donald Trump's appeal to voters, how abortion will play as an issue this cycle and President Biden's re-election chances. Join us! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Bestselling author and New York Times reporter David Sanger joins Major at Macintyre's Pub in D.C.'s Woodley Park neighborhood. Sanger's new book, "New Cold Wars: China's Rise, Russia's Invasion, and America's Struggle to Defend the West," looks at some of the knottiest foreign policy challenges facing the Biden White House and how previous administrations have dealt with them. Join us for a trip around the world. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re at Daru, a bustling Indian restaurant in D.C.’s H St. corridor, with Ali Zaidi, the National climate advisor to President Biden. How does the government decide where to build electric vehicle charging stations? Why has this administration approved more oil and gas drilling permits on federal land than President Trump’s administration? Will the president declare a national climate emergency? Do Americans know what climate-related actions President Biden has taken? Answers to those questions - and some delicious scallops - on this week’s show. Join us. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join us at Carmine's in Washington D.C.'s Penn Quarter for epic quantities of rigatoni, calamari and garlic bread - and an equally delicious conversation with California Congressman Ro Khanna. Khanna, a progressive Democrat and ally of President Biden, says it's time for the U.S. to halt offensive weapons transfers to Israel. He weighs in on Mr. Biden's electoral prospects in key states and explains his very public critique of Robert F. Kennedy's runningmate. Join us! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

After an extraordinary junior golf career and a battle with personal demons, Lisa Cornwell got what should have been a dream job: on-air reporter for The Golf Channel. Cornwell spent seven years covering professional and collegiate golf but she writes few things about the job were all that dreamy. Cornwell describes a toxic, misogynistic workplace culture that punished women for speaking up. Her new memoir, “Troublemaker,” details a life of birdies and bogeys and what she’s learned along the way. Join us at Ris in Washington’s West End for a Masters week special. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

CBS News national correspondent Jonathan Vigliotti joins Major to discuss his new book, Before It's Gone: Stories from the Front Lines of Climate Change in Small-Town America, out this week from Simon & Schuster. Vigliotti, who is frequently called upon by CBS to cover natural disasters and their impact on American communities, shares stories of survivors with, "lessons to teach us all of what they have been through, of what they have witnessed." He recounts the near-death experience he and his photographer encountered during the 2019 Kincaid Fire in Sonoma County, California: "There was no way out. There was no exit." Plus: the roles that beavers play in combating climate change. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, we focus our attention on the new nine-part Netflix documentary series Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War, which offers viewers a comprehensive look at the Cold War and its aftermath. Major chats with Turning Point director Brian Knappenberger, an accomplished documentary filmmaker whose team conducted over 100 interviews with a variety of subjects: survivors of the atomic blasts in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, current or former world leaders and many other key figures of the Cold War era. Knappenberger says his doc series aims to tell a story about the reverberations from the invention of the atomic bomb and that while it's primarily a look back at the events of the Cold War, it also reflects "the tension we're feeling now" with Russian President Vladimir Putin's ongoing quest to make Russia powerful again. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week's guest wears several hats: he's an author, a data analyst, a tech businessman and a former gubernatorial candidate in his home state of Rhode Island. Ken Block, who joined Major for breakfast at Any Day Now in D.C.'s Navy Yard neighborhood, was also briefly employed by the Trump campaign to hunt for voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election. Block's new book, Disproven, details his unbiased search for evidence of fraud that ultimately, "wasn't there." He tells Major that he's worried about the election fraud narratives bubbling up ahead of the 2024 presidential election and warns that former President Trump, "has to be mindful that the election denialism is not a winning message." See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Julie Su joins Major this week for dinner at Anju in Dupont Circle to discuss President Biden’s State of the Union promise of an economic soft landing. Su, who has been serving as Biden's acting Labor secretary since her nomination stalled in the Senate, also addresses her confirmation prospects and the criticism she's endured from her opponents. Plus: the “moment” unions are experiencing across industries, from restaurant workers to actors in Hollywood. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.