The Get More Smarter Podcast - A Weekly Show About Colorado Politics

A bipartisan bill on the Epstein files passes, stirring anticipation for disclosure. Trump's gerrymandering efforts backfire, as a judge blocks their plans for the 2024 elections. Polls reveal dismal approval ratings for Trump, leaving many to wonder if he's hit rock bottom. Tension rises as Trump threatens a Colorado congressman while another faces scrutiny for falsehoods. Additionally, health care subsidies are at risk, and the hosts dive into critical local political dynamics that could shape future elections.

Send us a message! Really!This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, we can finally shut up about the shut down as it has met a rather anticlimactic end right in time for the holiday travel crunch, but, the only thing we care about is…WHO WON, and, hey, what the hell is going on with all those healthcare premiums anyway...and, hey, what's with that multi-milliion dollar payout for Republican senators doing in there? Then, President Trump is totally not worried about the release of more information related to the Epstein files, so he and the White House are doing what totally not-worried people do in this situation: They’re freaking the fuck out. How does that impact our least-favorite members of congress from Colorado? And...you know him as Pollster of the Pod because he’s the pollster we’ve had on the pod more than any other…Andrew Baumann is BACK to discuss the national political environment after the 2025 elections, and a new poll from friend of the pod Jessica Killin, which has us asking: Are YOU Killin Pilled too?That’s it for this episode! If you loved watching and/or listening to it as much as we loved recording it, you can thank us by subscribing to the pod wherever you listen, following us over on New Old Twitter AKA Bluesky, subscribing to our shiny new channel on YouTube, smashing that subscribe button on our Substack, and sharing this episode with your friends, your enemies, and your 8th favorite Member of Congress from Colorado! THANK YOU so much for listening, and we’ll see you next time!

Send us a message! Really!This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, it’s 2017 all over again, but bigger, better, and BLUE-YER as Democrats from all sides of the spectrum ride an anti-Trump wave to huge win margins across the country that are sending Republicans into the long, dark teatime of the soul. We unpack the results of the 2025 election and ask “why the fuck did we have to learn this lesson, again, America?” Then, with SNAP benefits expiring and 1 out of every 10 flights getting canceled over the upcoming holidays, is there an end to the shutdown in sight? And we talk about what this all means for the 2026 midterms! And...our guest today in our seemingly never-ending quest to interview every viable democratic candidate for a major race in Colorado, friend of the pod Jeff Bridges joins us once more to explain his campaign for State Treasurer and his love for "T-pools."That’s it for this episode! If you loved watching and/or listening to it as much as we loved recording it, you can thank us by subscribing to the pod wherever you listen, following us over on New Old Twitter AKA Bluesky, subscribing to our shiny new channel on YouTube, smashing that subscribe button on our Substack, and sharing this episode with your friends, your enemies, and your 8th favorite Member of Congress from Colorado! THANK YOU so much for listening, and we’ll see you next time!

Christy Powell, a campaign finance monitor and analyst, joins to dissect Colorado's latest fundraising climate. She reveals how one party is dominating the primary fundraising scene, while the other struggles, highlighting weak Republican contributions. The ongoing government shutdown's impact is discussed, alongside how courts are acting as crucial checks against the Trump administration's overreach. From potential premium increases to the dynamics of various congressional races, listeners gain deep insights into the state of Colorado politics.

Send us a message! Really!Jason had to take an emergency trip to Argentina to check on his $20 billion investment in something called an "experiment in Anarcho-capitalism," so this week you've just got Ian interviewing David Seligman, candidate for the Democratic nomination for Attorney General of Colorado in 2026. We'll be back for an even bigger pod this Friday.   One of the country's leading workers' rights, consumer rights, and antimonopoly lawyers, David Seligman has dedicated his legal career to fighting for regular people against corporate abuse. After attending Harvard Law School and clerking for federal trial and appellate judges, David became the Executive Director of Towards Justice, a nationally recognized non-profit legal and labor rights organization based in Denver. David has seen throughout his legal career that there are two sets of laws in this country: one for the rich and powerful and another for the rest of us. He has brought some of the most important and cutting-edge legal cases in the country, helping working Coloradans and small businesses take on powerful corporations and the Trump Administration. He stands up in court for nurses, rideshare drivers, meatpackers, Amazon workers, veterans, teachers, federal employees, grocery workers, renters buried in junk fees, and working families drowning in medical debt.  You can learn more about David and his campaign at www.seligmanforag.comThat’s it for this episode! If you loved watching and/or listening to it as much as we loved recording it, you can thank us by subscribing to the pod wherever you listen, following us over on New Old Twitter AKA Bluesky, subscribing to our shiny new channel on YouTube, smashing that subscribe button on our Substack, and sharing this episode with your friends, your enemies, and your 8th favorite Member of Congress from Colorado! THANK YOU so much for listening, and we’ll see you next time!

Send us a message! Really!This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, the Federal Government Shutdown enters its second-ish week and Democrats seem to have the upper hand, at least so far. Then, can puppy-killer DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and her masked goons defeat an army of grannies with ukeleles and people in inflatable costumes in war-raveged Portland, Oregon? Even though 2026 is a ways away, we’ve got some more updates on the campaigns that matter most to Colorado. And we’ll tell you who didn’t win the Nobel Peace Prize (spoiler: It's not the guy who is siccing the military on his own citizens and canceled billions of dollars in foreign aid to starving children across the world). And in our continuing quest to interview every viable Democrat running for a major office in Colorado, Trisha Calvarese is on the pod to talk about her labor background, her ground game in the district, and why Co-04 primary voters should give her another chance to take on our 7th favorite member of Congress from Colorado. That’s it for this episode! If you loved watching and/or listening to it as much as we loved recording it, you can thank us by subscribing to the pod wherever you listen, following us over on New Old Twitter AKA Bluesky, subscribing to our shiny new channel on YouTube, smashing that subscribe button on our Substack, and sharing this episode with your friends, your enemies, and your 8th favorite Member of Congress from Colorado! THANK YOU so much for listening, and we’ll see you next time!

Send us a message! Really!This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, the shitdown shutshow or the shutdown shitshow or whatever you want to call it is officially on as Democrats and Republicans in Washington DC fail to reach an agreement on temporary funding and Mike Johnson and Donald Trump are just lying about it everywhere. Then, the hands-down winner for “least self aware giant unprecedented military leadership gathering of the century” is announced, and you won’t believe truly how much they deserve the award. Then a pretty big group of Colorado Republicans love them some Marxism, really, as a different group of Colorado Republicans can’t figure out the basic rules for replacing retiring lawmakers! And...continuing in our quest to interview every Democrat in a competitive primary for a big race in Colorado in 2026, State Representative Brianna Titone joins us to talk about her campaign for state treasurer, what it’s like being the first openly transgender state legislator in Colorado history, and her side-gig as a movie producer! That’s it for this episode! If you loved watching and/or listening to it as much as we loved recording it, you can thank us by subscribing to the pod wherever you listen, following us over on New Old Twitter AKA Bluesky, subscribing to our shiny new channel on YouTube, smashing that subscribe button on our Substack, and sharing this episode with your friends, your enemies, and your 8th favorite Member of Congress from Colorado! THANK YOU so much for listening, and we’ll see you next time!

Send us a message! Really!This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, despite polling showing that Colorado voters have soured on Democrats, they have not sweetened up to Republicans -- we explain why in a new segment called "Which is Worser." Then, Colorado braces for a recession as prices keep rising everywhere, the job market looks like it’s really starting to suck, and the nonpartisan economic staff starts predicting stormy skies ahead. And we’re officially back on shutdown watch as the shitshow in Washington DC sees no signs of stopping soon. And later...many have tried, but could our guest today be the one to finally send Lauren Boebert to her eventual home on Newsmax or Fox? Rear Admiral Eileen Laubacher joins us to talk about her campaign for the fourth congressional district, the weird meeting Pete Hegseth just called, and how she plans to do what no Democrat has done before. That’s it for this episode! If you loved watching and/or listening to it as much as we loved recording it, you can thank us by subscribing to the pod wherever you listen, following us over on New Old Twitter AKA Bluesky, subscribing to our shiny new channel on YouTube, smashing that subscribe button on our Substack, and sharing this episode with your friends, your enemies, and your 8th favorite Member of Congress from Colorado! THANK YOU so much for listening, and we’ll see you next time!

Send us a message! Really!This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, it's a special interview-only episode! Jason was volunteering in Siberia on a sabretooth tiger preserve so Ian reached out to old friend of the pod Chris deGruy Kennedy and new friend of the pod Christina Soliz to hear about the initiative their coalition is working to place on the 2026 ballot that would cut taxes for 98% of Coloradans while raising them on anyone making over $500,000 per year. We get into the policy, the politics, the numbers, and the rationale for this push into tax fairness, and you're not going to want to miss this interview! That’s it for this episode! If you loved watching and/or listening to it as much as we loved recording it, you can thank us by subscribing to the pod wherever you listen, following us over on New Old Twitter AKA Bluesky, subscribing to our shiny new channel on YouTube, smashing that subscribe button on our Substack, and sharing this episode with your friends, your enemies, and your 8th favorite Member of Congress from Colorado! THANK YOU so much for listening, and we’ll see you next time!

Logan Davis, a progressive researcher and writer from Denver, dives into the alarming influence of right-wing extremists connected to Russian oligarchs shaping Colorado's politics. He discusses how vast financial contributions from wealthy individuals like Phil Anschutz fuel conservative narratives despite their poor electoral outcomes. The conversation also touches on the stark differences in vaccine policies between Colorado and Florida, along with the troubling spread of misinformation surrounding Medicaid funding. Davis highlights the ongoing challenges faced by local journalism in exposing these issues.