Pro Politics with Zac McCrary

Send us a textPat Leahy is a giant of the US Senate...the first Democrat elected to the Senate from Vermont...the third longest serving Senator in US history...the Senate President Pro Tem...Chair of Appropriations, Agriculture, and Judiciary...and 8 terms in the US Senate. In this conversation, we talk his roots in small town Vermont, overcoming the state's deep Republican roots in a 1974 upset, entering the Senate in his mid 30s, and his favorite stories, lessons, and proudest moments from nearly 50 years in the US Senate.IN THIS EPISODEGrowing up in small-town Montpelier with a love of reading...How his service as District Attorney propelled his successful run for Senate in 1974 as the first Democrat to win a Vermont Senate seat...Early days in the US Senate in his mid 30s...How he won 8 terms in what was initially a very Republican state...The interesting story behind his 1998 re-election, his first true landslide...The most tense and high-stakes moments during his career in the Senate...Passing anti-land mine legislation...A day in the life of the Senate President Pro Tem...How trust among Senators one late night saved lives during a mid 80s Capitol bombing...Senator Leahy receives a tip he received from an "anonymous jogger" during the Iraq War debate...When Vice President Dick Cheney swore at Senator Leahy on the Senate floor...The Senator who gave the best Senate floor speeches...The most effective Majority Leader he saw...When his colleague Jim Jeffords switched parties and changed control of the Senate...His views on the rise of Bernie Sanders as a national figure...Why he didn't run for re-election in 2022...How he received the Order of the British Empire designation...His connection to the Batman character and appearing in several Batman films...His status as the Senate's leading Grateful Dead Head...The status of his wife Marcelle as his political secret weapon...AND anatomical impossibilities, Howard Baker, James Baker, Leonid Brezhnev, Dale Bumpers, George H.W. Bush, Robert Byrd, George Clooney, DC Comics, designated survivors, Charles Dickens, John Durkin, Jim Eastland, Jerry Ford, Jerry Garcia, John Glenn, holy water, Hubert Humphrey, John F. Kennedy, Ted Kennedy, Heath Ledger, Mike Mansfield, Miranda Rights, Mitch McConnell, Bobby Muller, Christopher Nolan, Sam Nunn, Barack Obama, organic farming, Colin Powell, Quebec City, Hugh Scott, secret weapons, Alan Simpson, Bob Stafford, Ted Stevens, Robert Louis Stevenson, Fred Tuttle, Mark Twain, Vincent Van Gogh, Wayne Industries...& more!

Send us a textYoav Attias is a documentary filmmaker whose projects include Brick City chronicling the inner-workings of Newark, NJ under then-Mayor Cory Booker and CNN's Chicagoland featuring then-mayor Rahm Emanuel. His most recent role is as Director on the new documentary film Fault Lines - which examines the issue of affordable housing in American cities through the prism of several storylines in San Francisco where the housing crisis is especially acute. In this conversation, Yoav talks starting a legal career in South Florida before following his passion to become a documentary filmmaker...what he learned about the politics and challenges facing major American cities working closely around Mayors Cory Booker and Rahm Emanuel...the origin of the Fault Lines film project set in the Bay Area...and a deep dive on the challenges and complexities surrounding the American housing crisis.IN THIS EPISODEYoav's roots in South Florida and why he left a legal career for documentary film-making...Yoav's involvement in the Brick City project that follows Newark politics, including then-Mayor Cory Booker...The documentary that deeply inspired Yoav to enter the field...Yoav's time as showrunner on CNN's Chicagoland project that featured Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel...Yoav's pitch to pols like Rahm Emanuel and Cory Booker to agree to be filmed for hundreds of hours for a documentary project...Yoav's relative optimism versus pessimism regarding the trajectory of the modern major American city...The origin story of his latest project, Fault Lines - a documentary about the housing affordability crisis facing American cities...How the housing process became so broken in cities like San Francisco in the first place...The controversy over 100 proposed affordable housing units in San Francisco's Sunset Neighborhood...How Yoav found housing advocates and a homeless family to participate in Fault Lines...How one local Bay Area elected official found himself caught in a political vice on the issue of affordable housing...Is the housing problem better or worse than Yoav initially thought?The Grateful Dead song that appears toward the end of Fault Lines...Yoav's take on political ad-making from outside of the political industry...The recent political documentary Yoav strongly recommends...AND Mark Benjamin, Anthony Bourdain, Bill Clinton, Todd Davis, Liz Dozier, Fenger High School, field producers, Jerry Garcia, HUD, hippie utopias, Hoop Dreams, hornets' nests, Nate Houghteling, Robert Hunter, Steve James, Flo Kimmerling, Ezra Klein, Marc Levin, Gordon Mar, the Mission, PCE, Section 8 vouchers, Sarah Sherman, toxicology reports, trust-building, undesirables, University of Florida, verité documentaries, Scott Weiner, zoning laws..& more!

Send us a textKaren Deflippi is launching Versus Media Group, after nearly 20 years in politics - including running campaigns, being a House Chief of Staff on the Hill, senior positions at Emilys List and the DCCC, and her current role as a media consultant for Democratic candidates and progressives causes. In this conversation she talks her path in politics from a Catholic family in swing Western PA to helping run some of the most impactful political organizations in the country and now putting a stamp on campaigns as a media consultant.IN THIS EPISODEKaren grows up in a "social justice" Catholic family in Western PA...Why Karen's initial goal of being a Naval fighter pilot wasn't in the cards...The moment Karen realized she wanted to work full-time in political campaigns...Memories of Hillary Clinton 2007-2008 primary campaign...Karen's stints working on Capitol Hill, including as Chief of Staff for Congresswoman Debbie Dingell...Karen spends 3 memorable cycles at Emilys List, from 2016-2020...What structural barriers do women candidates still face running for office?Inside how Karen has tackled candidate recruitment at both Emilys List and the DCCC...Karen takes on the challenge as Deputy ED at the DCCC ahead of the difficult 2022 midterm...Karen on tell-tale signs that a campaign may be in need of intervention...How Democrats exceeded expectations in the '22 midterms...Why Karen took on the role of media consultant as her next challenge & her favorite race she worked in 2024...The Launch of Versus Media Group...The evergreen advice Karen gives to anyone interested in working in politics...Karen's strangest work habit...AND Kelly Ayotte, basic sponges, Berlin Rosen, Lisa Blunt Rochester, Bill Clinton, Angie Craig, Sharice Davids, Deaniacs, John Dingell, framed post-it notes, giat Trump signs, Jared Golden, Maggie Hassan, Chrissy Houlahan, the Iowa State Fair, John Kerry, Ellen Malcolm, Nancy Pelosi, Project 314, Stephanie Schriock, Mikie Sherrill, sleep hygiene, Abigail Spanberger, Sunday staff meetings, Susan Wild...& more!

Send us a textTaegan Goddard is the founder and editor of Political Wire, one of the most widely-read political news sites over the last 25+ years. He created Political Wire in the late 1990s after stints as a Senate staffer on Capitol Hill and several years in state government in his home state of Connecticut. In this conversation, he talks his own development as a rabid political junkie, setting out early goals in the public and private sector, both encouraging and disheartening stints in government, why he decided against running for office, and starting Political Wire initially as a hobby - which has now grown into a site that is a regular stop for 10+ million readers a month. To become a paid subscriber to Political Wire to see additional content and no ads, click here.IN THIS EPISODEGrowing up as a young political junkie in Hartford, CT...Taegan runs across an early version of the internet in the 1980s...The British politician who had an important important on the structure of Taegan's life...Important lessons working for the Senate Banking Chair, Michigan Democrat Don Riegle, on Capitol Hill...Highs and lows of working for Governor Lowell Weicker and others in CT state government...Why time working in state government made Taegan forgo an early desire to run for office himself...The core lesson of his book for elected officials, You Won, Now What?, that stands the test of time...The origin story of the Political Wire news website, which goes back 3+ decades...When Taegan realized Political Wire had found an audience and developed staying power...How Taegan has maintained and grown his audience in the tumultuous space of internet political sites...Taegan's sense of how important and history-making our current era of politics is...Taegan's most effective work tool & favorite non-political website...AND Spiro Agnew, David Bradley, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton's best friend, Congressional Quarterly, Charlie Cook, Al D'Amato, dark horse campaigns, the Federal Reserve Board, Joe Ganim, Newt Gingrich, Michael Heseltine, the Keating 5, John Kerry, Merck, nattering nabobs, The New Republic, Ross Perot, reader freakouts, Robert Redford, Chris Riback, Joe Rogan, Stu Rothenberg, John Rowland, William Safire, Ben Thompson, Chuck Todd, Donald Trump, the Wall Street Journal, yellow legal pads...& more!

Send us a textDr. Larry Spinelli has worn numerous hats in and around politics...Hill staffer, senior positions in the federal bureaucracy, political science professor, historian and author. His new book is Watergate's Unexpected Hero, about the life of the incredibly impactful New Jersey Democratic Congressman Peter Rodino - to whom Spinelli was a staffer and friend for 30+ years. Rodino's 40-year career in the House spanned from Truman to Reagan as he played important roles on labor policy, landmark civil rights legislation, attempting to hold back the tide of 80s conservatism...but most notably, as Chair of the House Judiciary Committee during the Watergate crisis and Nixon impeachment hearings. In this role, the previously low-profile Rodino led the hearings watched daily by 80 million Americans amidst the greatest constitutional turning point since the Civil War. In this conversation, Dr. Spinelli talks his own connection to Rep. Rodino - and the 50+ year career of the legendary congressman who found himself at the center of a national crisis and ultimately became one of the most prominent and respected members of Congress of the past century.IN THIS EPISODEHow Larry's use of Machivellian high-school politics led him to first meet Peter Rodino in the late 1960s..How the Rodino family first came to the U.S. from Italy and located in Newark NJ...The anti-Italian discrimination the Rodinos faced and how a young Peter Rodino fought back... How Peter Rodino first gets his foot in the door in local politics in the 1930s...How his WWII service and a controversial anti-labor bill set the stage for him to come to Congress in 1948...Just weeks into his first term, Rodino bucks the seniority system and takes on a racist, autocratic committee chair...Peter Rodino's often under-realized impact on the landmark civil rights legislation of the mid 1960s...The two unexpected elections that made Peter Rodino Chair of the House Judiciary Committee in 1973 and thrust him into the spotlight as the Watergate scandal grew...The steps Rodino took to ensure bipartisan cooperation and effectiveness out of the House Impeachment Committee...The liberal member of the Committee who worked against Rodino behind the scenes...What Rodino believed was on the infamous, missing "18 minute gap" in the Nixon White House tapes...Rodino's view Gerald Ford's controversial pardon of Richard Nixon...Rodino's stature as a popular, national-figure after the Watergate hearings...How close did Rodino come to being Jimmy Carter's VP nominee in 1976...How Rodino held on to a changing Newark, NJ district as it moved from majority Italian-American to majority Black...Peter Rodino's final 15+ years after leaving the House in early 1989...Is Peter Rodino the most influential Italian-American political figure in American history...

Send us a textMary Bono served 15 years in the House, representing a Palms Springs-based seat in Riverside County, CA. She initially entered politics and the House after the tragic passing of her late husband Sonny Bono - the world-famous singer / TV star turned mayor and ultimately congressman. In this conversation, she talks the political rise of Sonny Bono, running for and winning a seat in the House amidst tragedy, getting her bearings as a member herself, putting her own stamp on her service, taking tough votes as a moderate, championing the cause of prescription drug abuse prevention, and much more in an illuminating conversation with someone who's had one of the most unique and fascinating careers in congressional politics. IN THIS EPISODEGrowing up in the LA area as a daughter of a doctor and scientist and early, formative experiences as a competitive gymnast...The story of when then-Mary Whitaker met Sonny Bono the day after graduating from USC...The challenges of being the spouse of a celebrity and politician...How red-tape run-ins with Palm Springs city government led to Sonny Bono's entry into politics...Sonny Bono's forays into national politics in the mid 90s...What Sonny Bono would've thought of President Trump...The passion projects she believe Sonny Bono would've left politics to pursue...How she made the decision to run for his House seat after Sonny Bono's tragic passing in early 1998...Memories from a whirlwind first few weeks and months of a new member thrown into office in a special election...How she built her own legacy over time in the House...Some of the most intense moments on the House floor in her tenure...The vote against GOP leadership that "got her in the most trouble"...What led to her passion in tackling Rx drug abuse and her experiences of being one of only members who initially took this issue seriously...Memories from her presence as the lone GOP woman on the House Judiciary Committee during the Clinton Impeachment saga...The decision made by Tom Delay that "incensed" Rep. Bono...The bizarre story of a forged love letter from Rep. Bono to another member of the House...The experience of dating and marrying a fellow member of the House...Representing a district that shifted from safe(ish) Republican to a swing seat...Her current projects and passions, including the great podcast Sagely Speaking with Mary Bono...AND 2-tops, Bruce Babbitt, bison farms, Chaz Bono, G.K. Butterfield, Ken Calvert, Lois Capps, Cher, Kellyanne Conway, The Desert Sun, David Dreier, Jo Ann Emerson, Dianne Feinstein, Gerald Ford, King Gillette, Lindsay Graham, Fred Grandy, height jokes, hysterical mothers, the Inland Empire, Angelina Jolie, Gil Kerlikowske, Olga Korbut, Steve Largent, Jerry Lewis, Love Boat, Abbe Lowell, John McCain, The National Enquirer, Anne Northup, Tom Osborn, Nancy Pelosi, Ronald Reagan, Hal Rogers, Karl Rove, SNL, Salton Sea, Tea Party onslaughts, Terry Schiavo, The Waltons...& more!

Send us a textRyan Davis, co-founder of the digital political firm People First, has long been at the cutting edge of digital politics and the rise of digital influencers and has dubbed 2024 as "The Influencer Election". In this conversation, Ryan talks his roots in politics, a detour through the NYC theater community, being part of the influential 2004 Howard Dean campaign, and eventually starting the first firm focused on digital political influencers. And Ryan goes deep on the 2024 race...how the campaigns' strategies differed, the role of influencers and podcasts, which platforms are on the ascent versus descent, how he is thinking about the 2026 and 2028, and much more covering one of the most important and quickly evolving facets of modern political campaigns.IN THIS EPISODERyan's path from early work in Libertarian-minded GOP politics to migrating to the Democratic side of the fence...Ryan is inspired to work in politics by the anti-war sentiment of Howard Dean's 04 campaign...Ryan talks his time working in the NYC theatre and his views of "theatre kids" in politics...Ryan on how the '04 Dean digital operation changed the way campaigns are run...Ryan's path from working in campaigns to starting People First - the first political firm focused on digital influencers...Ryan's favorite case studies of how to smartly utilize digital influencers in politics...Ryan on why he dubs 2024 as "The Influencer Election"...The role of podcasts in the '24 presidential election...Why Democrats can't and shouldn't try to create their own Joe Rogan...The symbiotic nature of influencer content bridging into paid media content..."White Guys for Kamala" and other affinity groups...The relative value of political vs non-political influencers...How GenZ digests information differently than those who came before...How some big influencer accounts "rip off" clients...Ryan on the political utility of various platforms like TikTok, BlueSky, Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, LinkedIn, NextDoor, and more...How Ryan would tackle digital organizing ahead of the 2026 and 2028 elections...Ryan on the right skill set to work with digital influencers...Ryan's life as an itinerant "digital nomad" and tips from extensive world travels...AND The Analyst Institute, Andy Beshear, Simón Bolívar, ChatGPT, conservative e-zines, dog influencers, Al Gore, Mark Green, Kamala Harris, Curtis Hougland, John McCain, Barack Obama, parasocial relationships, Ronald Reagan, RealPlayer, Joe Rospars, Sesame Street, Norman Siegel, Snoopy, Zephyr Teachout, Joe Trippi, Barron Trump, Tim Walz...& more!

Send us a textMark Harris, co-founder of ColdSpark strategies, was the General Consultant for the successful Dave McCormick 2024 Pennsylvania Senate race - arguably the lone true upset of the '24 Senate cycle. In this conversation, Mark talks his roots in PA politics - including running for office himself, ousting a sitting legislator in a GOP primary, and multiple stints helping elect and re-elect GOP Senator Pat Toomey. Then Mark goes deep on his role helping elect Dave McCormick to the US Senate - starting with McCormick's ill-fated '22 race...getting back on the horse in '24...clearing the GOP field...challenging a proven Pennsylvania political institution...and ultimately winning a close race many pundits expected to break toward the Democratic incumbent.IN THIS EPISODEMark's roots in Pittsburgh & why he ran for office when he was 22...Why running Pat Toomey's 2010 Senate race was Mark's "dream job"...Mark's front row seat to the tumultuous period of PA politics around veteran Senator Arlen Specter's 2009 switch from Republican to Democrat...Mark weighs in on how PA politics has transformed over the past 20 years...Mark's insight on how Pat Toomey won two tough Senate races, despite a non-traditional background for PA politics...How Mark and his firm initially connected with Dave McCormick in his first Senate race in 2022...How Mark was viewing the '24 race against Bob Casey over a year out...How the McCormick campaign navigated a Trump endorsement and cleared the GOP primary field...Mark's best practices on how GOP candidates should pursue a Trump endorsement...The headwinds of running against Senator Bob Casey...The appealing personal bio that McCormick brought to the race....How late focus groups changed the McCormick closing message...How the McCormick ad campaign departed from the traditional GOP playbook...The voter subgroups the McCormick campaign identified as the most important...How the McCormick campaign appealed to "soft pro choice voters" and Black and Latino men...Why the McCormick team was one of the only GOP campaigns that preferred Dems nominate Harris instead of Biden...Why the abortion issue didn't sink McCormick in a 60% pro-choice state...How Mark was interpreting results coming in on Election Night...Mark's thoughts on Democratic erosion in the Dem base in Philadelphia...The approach Mark brings to races as a General Consultant...Mark's views of the potential of PA Dems Josh Shapiro and John Fetterman as national candidates...Mark's travel tips for spending a couple of days in and around Pittsburgh...AND Lou Barletta, James Blair, Bob Brady, Bridgewater Associates, George W. Bush, Herman Cain, Susan Collins, Mike Devanney, flippant poll questions, gold watches, Orrin Hatch, Chris LaCivita, Rush Limbaugh, Katie McGinty, Zell Miller, midnight pay raises, Tim Murphy, muscle atrophy, Dr. Oz, Nancy Pelosi, Primanti Brothers, Andy Reilly, Ed Rendell, Tom Ridge, Rick Santorum, Joe Sestak, shadow primaries, Matt Smith, Tom Smith, Arlen Specter, Brad Todd, West Point, Susie Wiles...& more!

Send us a textSenior Strategist Morgan Jackson & Campaign Manager Jeff Allen helped guide Democrat Josh Stein to a historic win in the 2024 open-seat North Carolina Governor's Race over GOP lighting rod Mark Robinson. In this conversation, they both discuss how Stein went from trailing in many of the early polls to winning on Election Day by a historic 15-point margin. They talk the initial phase of the race with Robinson leading the polls, the Stein strategy to define Robinson early, the power of using Robinson's own words against him, the infamous "Nude Africa" scandal, the impact of storms and massive damage in Western NC, what is replicable for other campaigns from Josh Stein's victory, & much more digging into the signature gubernatorial race of the 2024 election.IN THIS EPISODEThe political origin stories of both Morgan and Jeff...How NC politics has completely transformed over the past 20 years...The early machinations that led to a Josh Stein vs. Mark Robinson '24 campaign...What led to Jeff managing the '24 Stein campaign...The potential political strengths of Mark Robinson...The initial core strategy and approach of the Stein campaign...The story behind the impactful first TV ad showing voters Mark Robinson in his own words... (link to ad)The Stein strategy to prioritize communications to Black voters...The story & fallout of the "Nude Africa" disclosures that forced national GOP donors to cut Robinson loose...The impact of the Hurricane Helene storms that hit Western NC...How the big Stein margin helped NC Dems win other races downballot...Their expectations heading into Election Day and reactions from the 15-point Stein victory...Both Jeff and Morgan share some of their favorite spots around The Tarheel State...AND...Roy Cooper, crazy uncles, the DCCC, Scott Falmlen, Pete Giangreco, Bill Graham, Bill Hefner, Jesse Helms, Jim Hunt, I-95, Jesse-crats, Mt. Rushmore, Pat McCrory, Myspace, Trey Nix, Barack Obama, Stephanie Pigues, RLG Media, shithouse rats, storm machines, Thom Tillis, Trump-proofing, visceral reactions, Mark Warner, water jets, Kathleen Williams & more!

Rebecca Katz, the Founder of New Deal Strategies, is a prominent consultant behind wins for Democratic Senators like John Fetterman and Ruben Gallego. In this engaging conversation, she discusses pivotal campaign strategies and the importance of grassroots movements. Rebecca shares insights from her early days on Capitol Hill, including a humorous job interview with Harry Reid. She emphasizes the necessity of authenticity in politics and highlights lessons learned from past campaigns that can inform future Democratic successes.