National Journal Radio

There are few Democratic guests with more expertise about the legal and political storms President Trump is facing than Matt Miller. A longtime adviser to former Attorney General Eric Holder and top political aide to Sen. Chuck Schumer, Miller offers his perspective on everything from Trump's legal predicament, Judge Kavanaugh's Supreme Court prospects, and addresses whether Holder will be running for president in 2020.

There are few staffers that have been as close to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) as Josh Holmes, the senator's former chief of staff and campaign manager for his 2004 Senate race. Now the partner and founder of Cavalry, a consulting firm that offers strategic advice to the top Fortune 500 companies as well as some leading Republican Senate campaigns, Holmes sits down to share his thoughts on Harry Reid and Steve Bannon, the race in North Dakota, and how the RGA should've learned from McConnell.

Should Democrats veer left to excite their base or move to the middle to win over moderates? Lanae Erickson Hatalsky, vice president for social policy and politics at the centrist Democratic think tank Third Way, sits down with Josh Kraushaar to find the common cause across traditional ideological divides. 

Bipartisan duo Ali Lapp and Liesl Hickey join Josh Kraushaar to geek out on the battle for the House—in a year that's what everyone in Washington is focused on.

Veteran GOP pollster Glen Bolger joins the podcast and offers some sobering news to Republicans about their prospects in the 2018 elections. Bolger discusses the dramatic political shift of independent voters over the last year, the power of Trump's endorsements in GOP primaries, and the possibility Democrats retake both the House and Senate next year.  

Mark Putnam, one of the most talented political admakers in the business, sits down with Josh Kraushaar to talk that infamous Jason Kander ad, messaging in the Trump era, and how he's propelled some of his underdog Democratic clients out of obscurity.

Michael Wear, who engineered President Obama's outreach to faith communities, joins the podcast and offers some candid criticism about the Democratic party's unwillingness to support pro-life voices within the party. He also discusses whether there's room for religion in today's increasingly coarse political culture, identifies the most faith-friendly presidential prospects for 2020, and talks about his experiences working in the Obama White House.

Rep. Ryan Costello (R-PA 06) talks about the Trump-Putin summit, whether he believes there was collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, the challenge of being a Republican in suburbia and, of course, Philly sports.

National Journal Politics Editor Josh Kraushaar's weekly "Against the Grain" column challenges the conventional wisdom in Washington.  Now Kraushaar's no-BS approach to political reporting is becoming the newest addition to the podcast world.  Every week, Kraushaar will be interviewing some of the most interesting people in the world of politics—members of Congress, aspiring candidates, political strategists and veterans of campaigns past—and get their candid views of what's really happening in the White House and on the campaign trail.