
The Counsel
Join a team of experts — from former prosecutors to legal scholars — as they break down the complex legal issues shaping our country today. Twice a week, Elie Honig and other CAFE Contributors examine the intersecting worlds of law, politics, and current events. Twice a week, a CAFE contributor – Joyce Vance, Barbara McQuade, Asha Rangappa, Rachel Barkow, and Elie Honig – will examine the intersecting worlds of law, politics, and current events. New episodes out Wednesdays and Fridays. From CAFE and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Latest episodes

May 9, 2025 • 11min
Note from Elie 5/09: How Diddy Just Might Avoid Disaster
Elie Honig is a former Assistant U.S. Attorney and co-chief of the organized crime unit at the Southern District of New York, where he prosecuted more than 100 mobsters, including members of La Cosa Nostra, and the Gambino and Genovese crime families. He went on to serve as Director of the Department of Law and Public Safety at New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. He is currently Special Counsel at Lowenstein Sandler and a CNN legal analyst.
For a transcript of Elie’s note and the full archive of contributor notes, head to CAFE.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

May 7, 2025 • 8min
Note from Rachel 5/7: Commandeering Through Intimidation
Rachel Barkow is the Charles Seligson Professor of Law at NYU School of Law and the Faculty Director of the Zimroth Center on the Administration of Criminal Law at NYU. From 2013 to 2019, she served as a Member of the United States Sentencing Commission. From 2010 to 2020, she was a member of the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office Conviction Integrity Policy Advisory Panel and co-chaired Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s transition committee on police accountability in 2021. She is also amongst the most cited legal scholars of all time.
For a transcript of Rachel’s note and the full archive of contributor notes, head to CAFE.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

May 2, 2025 • 10min
Note from Elie 5/02: We’ve Got 99 Immigration Problems, but the Judge Arrests Ain’t One
Elie Honig is a former Assistant U.S. Attorney and co-chief of the organized crime unit at the Southern District of New York, where he prosecuted more than 100 mobsters, including members of La Cosa Nostra, and the Gambino and Genovese crime families. He went on to serve as Director of the Department of Law and Public Safety at New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. He is currently Special Counsel at Lowenstein Sandler and a CNN legal analyst.
For a transcript of Elie’s note and the full archive of contributor notes, head to CAFE.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apr 30, 2025 • 7min
Note From Barb 4/30: Freezing the Free Press
Barb McQuade is the former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, a law professor at the University of Michigan, and a legal analyst for NBC News and MSNBC.
For a transcript of Barb’s note and the full archive of contributor notes, head to CAFE.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apr 25, 2025 • 10min
Note from Elie 4/25: The Trump Administration’s False Flag: Combating Anti-Semitism at Harvard is Really About Thought Control
Elie Honig is a former Assistant U.S. Attorney and co-chief of the organized crime unit at the Southern District of New York, where he prosecuted more than 100 mobsters, including members of La Cosa Nostra, and the Gambino and Genovese crime families. He went on to serve as Director of the Department of Law and Public Safety at New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. He is currently Special Counsel at Lowenstein Sandler and a CNN legal analyst. For a transcript of Elie’s note and the full archive of contributor notes, head to CAFE.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apr 18, 2025 • 11min
Note from Elie 4/18: How Could the Kilmar Abrego Garcia Standoff End?
Elie Honig is a former Assistant U.S. Attorney and co-chief of the organized crime unit at the Southern District of New York, where he prosecuted more than 100 mobsters, including members of La Cosa Nostra, and the Gambino and Genovese crime families. He went on to serve as Director of the Department of Law and Public Safety at New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. He is currently Special Counsel at Lowenstein Sandler and a CNN legal analyst. For a transcript of Elie’s note and the full archive of contributor notes, head to CAFE.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apr 16, 2025 • 12min
Note from Asha 4/16: What’s the Real Quid Pro Quo with Bukele?
Asha Rangappa is a Senior Lecturer at Yale University's Jackson Institute for Global Affairs. Before that, she served as a Special Agent in the New York Division of the FBI, specializing in counterintelligence investigations. She is also a legal and national security analyst at CNN and an editor of Just Security. For a transcript of Asha’s note and the full archive of contributor notes, head to CAFE.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apr 11, 2025 • 10min
Note from Elie 4/11: Trump Threatens to Imprison Critics — and Now He’s Got the AG To Do It
Elie Honig is a former Assistant U.S. Attorney and co-chief of the organized crime unit at the Southern District of New York, where he prosecuted more than 100 mobsters, including members of La Cosa Nostra, and the Gambino and Genovese crime families. He went on to serve as Director of the Department of Law and Public Safety at New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. He is currently Special Counsel at Lowenstein Sandler and a CNN legal analyst. For a transcript of Elie’s note and the full archive of contributor notes, head to CAFE.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apr 9, 2025 • 8min
Note from Rachel 4/9: Rethinking Precedent
Rachel Barkow is the Charles Seligson Professor of Law at NYU School of Law and the Faculty Director of the Zimroth Center on the Administration of Criminal Law at NYU. From 2013 to 2019, she served as a Member of the United States Sentencing Commission. From 2010 to 2020, she was a member of the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office Conviction Integrity Policy Advisory Panel and co-chaired Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s transition committee on police accountability in 2021. She is also amongst the most cited legal scholars of all time. For a transcript of Rachel’s note and the full archive of contributor notes, head to CAFE.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Apr 4, 2025 • 11min
Note from Elie 4/3: Trump’s Blacklisted Law Firms: Surrender or Fight?
Elie Honig is a former Assistant U.S. Attorney and co-chief of the organized crime unit at the Southern District of New York, where he prosecuted more than 100 mobsters, including members of La Cosa Nostra, and the Gambino and Genovese crime families. He went on to serve as Director of the Department of Law and Public Safety at New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. He is currently Special Counsel at Lowenstein Sandler and a CNN legal analyst. For a transcript of Elie’s note and the full archive of contributor notes, head to CAFE.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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