

Balance of Power
Bloomberg
Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill. Watch us LIVE on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Oct 18, 2025 • 2min
Introducing: The Mishal Husain Show
Make sense of the world with one essential conversation, every week. Mishal Husain, one of Britain's best interviewers, brings her signature blend of curiosity and tenacity to weekly conversations with world leaders, business titans, and cultural icons, revealing who they really are and how they see the world changing around them.Follow the podcast wherever you listen, so you don't miss an episode.swap.fm/l/P1iueaQy5gndhEheLwN3See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 17, 2025 • 37min
Trump, Zelenskiy Meet in Washington
Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.President Donald Trump has his sights once again on ending the war in Ukraine, announcing another meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin after a first summit in Alaska failed to yield progress.The president framed the decision, announced after he spoke with Putin for more than two hours Thursday, as a plan to bring peace at last to a conflict that he once claimed he’d solve within a day. But it also deflates any pressure that had been building on Putin in recent weeks as Trump vented frustration with the Russian leader’s foot-dragging to end the war. Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition Bloomberg's Mario Parker is in for Kailey. Joe and Mario speak with: Former US Ambassador to Georgia Ian Kelly. Bloomberg Intelligence Senior Commodity Strategist Mike McGlone. Center for Strategic and International Studies Defense and Security Department Senior Fellow Ben Jensen. Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino and former RNC Communications Director Lisa Camooso Miller. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 16, 2025 • 42min
Trump Says He’ll Meet Putin Again to Discuss War in Ukraine
Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.US President Donald Trump said he would hold a second meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a yet-to-be determined date aimed at ending the war in Ukraine.Trump and Putin agreed to meet in Budapest during a two-hour phone call on Thursday. The two leaders met in Alaska in August, but failed to reach a breakthrough.“I believe great progress was made with today’s telephone conversation,” Trump posted on social media, saying that he and Putin would “see if we can bring this ‘inglorious’ War, between Russia and Ukraine, to an end.”Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition Bloomberg's Mario Parker is in for Kailey. Joe and Mario speak with: European Investment Bank President Nadia Calvino. Bloomberg White House Correspondent Lauren Dezenski. Former Chief of Staff to Vice President Mike Pence Marc Short. S-3 Group Partner Ashley Davis. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 15, 2025 • 34min
Democrats Gird for Long Shutdown Fight with Vought
Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.Democrats are digging in for a long shutdown fight, rallying around their collective disdain for President Donald Trump’s budget director.Russell Vought has become an unusually prominent director of the Office of Management and Budget. His role in ratcheting up the pressure during the government shutdown — questioning whether federal workers will get back pay when the lapse ends and taking steps to lay off several thousand employees — has given Democratic lawmakers a clear opposition figure.Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition Bloomberg's Mario Parker is in for Kailey. Joe and Mario speak with: Ipsos US Public Affairs Chair Cliff Young. Democratic Congressman Sam Liccardo of California. Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis and Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 14, 2025 • 36min
Powell Signals Another Cut
Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled the US central bank is on track to deliver another quarter-point interest-rate cut later this month, even as a government shutdown significantly reduces its read on the economy.Powell, in a speech Tuesday at the National Association for Business Economics annual meeting, said that the economic outlook appeared unchanged since policymakers met in September, when they lowered interest rates and projected two more this year.“A rate cut in October is done,” said Julia Coronado, founder of the research firm MacroPolicy Perspectives and a former Fed economist. “Nothing has changed the perspective that there’s still downside risks to the labor market.”Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition Bloomberg's Joe speaks with: Bloomberg News Economics Editor Molly Smith. Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis and Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino. Bloomberg International Economics and Policy Correspondent Michael McKee. Bloomberg National Security Editor Iain Marlow. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 13, 2025 • 24min
Trump Urges World Leaders to Seize Momentum for Gaza Peace
Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.President Donald Trump pressed world leaders gathered at a summit on Gaza’s future to ensure the US-led truce between Israel and Hamas turns into a lasting peace, hailing the agreement as a “new beginning” for the war-torn region.“Today, for the first time anyone can remember, we have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to put the old feuds and bitter hatreds behind us,” Trump said in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh.” “Together we’re going to forge a magnificent, great and enduring peace.” Trump’s whirlwind trip, which also included a stop in Israel, heightened optimism for ending the two-year-long war between Israel and Hamas. “Together, we’ve achieved what everybody said was impossible. At long last we have peace in the Middle East,” Trump said. “Now the rebuilding begins.”Yet the nascent ceasefire remains fragile, with many key details left to be worked out. Trump said food and aid has begun to flow into Gaza, which has been devastated by the conflict. “Numerous countries of great wealth” have pledged reconstruction funds, Trump added, though he did not name them. Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe and Kailey speak with: Oliver Crook, Bloomberg Europe correspondent Hagar Chemali, Former-Director for Syria and Lebanon at the National Security Council (NSC)/CEO and Founder of Greenwich Media Strategies Rick Davis, Partner at Stonecourt Capital and Bloomberg Politics Contributor & Jeanne Sheehan Zaino, Democracy Visiting Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center and Bloomberg Politics Contributor See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 13, 2025 • 11min
Weekly Washington Policy Pulse: October 13th, 2025
With President Donald Trump vowing to pay the military on Oct. 15, the lack of a pressure point to bring Congress together to resolve the US government shutdown led Bloomberg Intelligence's Washington Policy Pulse on Oct. 13. The next major catalyst, in our view, would be if Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits run out at the end of the month, potentially impacting grocers like Walmart, Kroger and Albertsons. We also discussed the latest in Trump's threat to place tariffs on China, as well as an update on deposit insurance legislation, which could increase costs for banks like JPMorgan and Bank of America. The Bloomberg Intelligence Financial Policy weekly call is designed to provide investors an opportunity to learn about the most recent relevant policy research, information regarding forthcoming political catalysts and other on-goings within Washington D.C. The call is open to all and is held every Monday at 10:00 a.m. EST. You can register for the call here: https://bloomberg.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN__PqCkwY-S2m3hbQqvVC1_Q#/registrationSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 10, 2025 • 50min
Trump Threatens Higher China Tariffs
Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.US President Donald Trump threatened a “massive increase” of tariffs on goods from China and to cancel an upcoming meeting with the country’s leader, Xi Jinping, citing recent “hostile” export controls Beijing placed on rare-earth minerals. “I was to meet President Xi in two weeks, at APEC, in South Korea, but now there seems to be no reason to do so,” Trump posted Friday on social media. The president added that one form of retaliation the US is considering “is a massive increase of Tariffs on Chinese products coming into the United States of America,” adding that “there are many other countermeasures that are, likewise, under serious consideration.”Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition Bloomberg's Michelle Jamrisko is in for Kailey. Joe and Michelle speak with: Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall. Bloomberg Surveillance Host Tom Keene. Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis and Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino. Democratic Congressman Brad Sherman of California. Former Republican Congressman Patrick McHenry of North Carolina. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 9, 2025 • 24min
Congress Mired in a Shutdown Brawl
Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.Congressional leaders continued to blame the other party for the US government shutdown as President Donald Trump doubled down on his threats to use the stalemate, now in its ninth day, to make sweeping cuts to Democratic priorities and the federal bureaucracy. There was no sign of progress as government workers and military personnel prepare for missed paychecks and the general public begins to fell the effects of the closure on everything from taxpayer services to air travel. Trump has repeatedly threatened to fire federal workers, withhold back pay for some government employees and cut funding for programs favored by Democrats, but so far none have materialized. Some Republicans have questioned that strategy, saying it distracts from their messaging to blame Democrats for the shutdown effects. Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition Bloomberg's Michelle Jamrisko is in for Kailey. Joe and Michelle speak with: Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall. Bloomberg Washington Deputy Bureau Chief Laura Davison. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oct 8, 2025 • 42min
Government Spending Impasse Continues
Watch Joe and Kailey LIVE every day on YouTube: http://bit.ly/3vTiACF.Speaker Mike Johnson dismissed Democrats’ pleas to call the House back into session and ensure troops get paid Oct. 15 if the government is still shut down.House Democrats “are clamoring to get back here and have another vote, because some of them want to get on record and say that we’re paying troops,” Johnson told reporters Wednesday. “We already had that vote. It’s called the CR,” he added, referring to the stopgap spending bill the House passed with Republicans and just one Democrat.Democratic Reps. Gabe Vasquez (N.M.) and Derek Tran (Calif.) will send a letter to Johnson this afternoon, asking for the House to return and vote on legislation to pay troops during a shutdown “immediately.” Johnson canceled this week’s House session and has signaled the chamber would stay away until Senate Democrats fold to accept the GOP-led continuing resolution.Bloomberg Washington Correspondents Joe Mathieu and Kailey Leinz deliver insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. On this edition, Joe speaks with: Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Tyler Kendall. Republican Congressman Jason Smith of Missouri, Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. Stonecourt Capital Partner Rick Davis and Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center Visiting Democracy Fellow Jeanne Sheehan Zaino. Democratic Congresswoman Melanie Stanbury of New Mexico. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.