The Coffee Klatch with Robert Reich

Friends,Today we celebrate, toast America, and try to explain what happened this week. It wasn’t the inevitable midterm swing of the pendulum against the party in power, or the economy, or even just Trump. It was anti-establishment fury at a rigged system.We also discuss whether Democrats can deliver on their promises to unrig the system and deliver for Americans. Please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, and join the conversation. We hope to see as many of you klatchers as possible at our one-night-only live watchalong of The Work in Progress film on Tuesday, November 17, at 5:00 p.m. PT / 8:00 p.m. ET. I’ll be there with Heather, who produced the film, and other members of the film team. We’ll gather to watch the film together, answer your questions, and celebrate rediscovering our common humanity. Please mark on your calendars for November 17 and click the green button below to sign up! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends, It’s the day after a historic midterm election. I took some time with my colleagues Heather Lofthouse and Vishal Shankar to debrief, unpack the election results, and talk about where we go from here. Thanks for joining us.RRP.S. If you’re interested in learning more about our new film, visit theworkinprogressfilm.com This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends, Three days before the beginning of the end of Trump and all he stands for — let us hope and pray — Heather and I take a close look at what the midterm elections hold, what Trump is doing (and trying to do) to undermine them, what Elon Musk is doing (and trying to do) to poison them, and what we all must do in the days ahead. So please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, and join in the conversation. RRPS: On Wednesday, the day after the midterms, please join Heather and me for a live Coffee Klatch Special at 5:00 p.m. PT / 8:00 p.m. ET, where we’ll unpack the election results. I’ll send out the link here on Substack that day. And please join us for a free one-night-only “live watchalong” of our new film, the The Work in Progress, on Tuesday, November 17 at 5:00 p.m. PT / 8:00 p.m. by signing up here.Happy Halloween This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

My good friend Anand Giridharadas is out with a wonderful new book, Man in the Mirror, and today I had an opportunity to talk with him about it. One of the things I enjoy most about talking with Anand is how his mind works. He always sees the larger points that surround and give meaning to what’s happening around us. He’s both a journalist and a thinker, a writer and a public philosopher. In Man in the Mirror, Anand recounts a murder in the New York subway — a story that was treated in the media as a passing tragedy — but under Anand’s gaze turns into an extraordinarily insightful look into America today. Please watch our conversation. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,Ten days away from the midterms, the two most vile people in the United States (in the world?) — Elon Musk and Donald Trump — are plotting how to take over the elections. Musk is pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into Republican races and Trump is using the Justice Department to try to decertify Democratic wins even before they occur. But as Heather and I explain, they won’t succeed. Please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, and join in the conversation. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,Today, with just over two weeks to go until the midterm elections, Michael, Kamau, and I take stock of where we are: Trump is acting weirder than ever (which is saying something), his polls are lower than ever, inflation is higher than it’s been in years, his war in Iran is getting even worse and his cozying up to Putin even more bizarre. So please grab a cuppa, pull up a chair, and join the conversation. Robert Reich This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,Today, Heather and I are joined by our colleague Vishal Shankar to review where the midterm elections now stand and the issues emerging from them. We take a deep dive into what Trump is doing to save — or, in reality, hurt — Republican Senate and House candidates, and what a Democratic Congress (if we get one) might realistically do. Please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, and join the conversation.RRP.S. Heather and I will be at UC Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, October 14 for a screening of The Work in Progress film followed by a Q&A. Please join us and invite your friends! Tickets ($5 for students) here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends, Today, Heather and I take a hard look at the allegations over what occurred in a Cornell fraternity and explore why they’re sending tremors across America. Do they have anything to do with Trump’s toxic masculinity, the misogyny of his regime, and the male-dominant underpinnings of neofascism? With a culture of impunity fostered by Trump? We also look at the question of accountability in general and examine some of the other ways Trump and the manosphere — including the AI bros and the industry they’re hatching — are functioning with impunity. Please pull up a chair, grab a cuppa, and join in the conversation. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,Five weeks from today, America will make a choice about the future of our democracy.Today I talk about tyranny, Trump, and the upcoming midterm elections with Professor Timothy Snyder, author of On Tyranny as well as a number of other important books.Snyder specializes in the history of Europe, the Soviet Union, and the Holocaust. He is currently Chair in Modern European History at the University of Toronto’s Munk School of Global Affairs, and was previously Professor of History at Yale University. His books include Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin (2010), On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century (2017), The Road to Unfreedom (2018), Our Malady (2020), and his most recent, On Freedom (2024). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe

Friends,Today, Heather and I examine Trump’s efforts to silence criticism — not only by banning CNN, Politico, and MSNOW from the White House this week, but, even more worrisome, putting his billionaire buddy Larry Ellison and Larry’s son David in control of CNN as well as CBS News, HBO, TikTok, and other news outlets. (The deal to let Paramount acquire Warner Bros. Discovery went through this week with little public notice.) We also look at the larger issue of Trump’s billionaire buddies owning the media (Washington Post, X, Facebook, YouTube, etc.). Also: where the money is coming from to support Republican candidates in these last weeks before the midterm elections (spoiler alert: all of the above). Also: the attendees at Trump’s state dinner for Xi Jinping (spoiler alert: all of the above). Also: what this consolidation of wealth and power means for the upcoming midterms (no spoiler alert). So please grab a cuppa, pull up a chair, and join the conversation. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit robertreich.substack.com/subscribe