Pete Hegseth invites you to watch an execution on your phone (JD Vance says no thanks)

Amid reports that would suggest a favorable relationship between President Trump and Russian President Putin, where does that leave Ukraine?On Today's Show:Julia Ioffe, founding partner and Washington correspondent of Puck and the author of Motherland: A History of Modern Russia, from Revolution to Autocracy (Ecco, 2025), shares her analysis of some recent wins that President Trump has handed Russian President Vladimir Putin, and how Russia...and Ukraine have responded. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A new memoir from an academic  international relationsOn Today's Show:Francis Fukuyama, senior fellow at Stanford University's Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, former State Department official and the author of The End of History and the Last Man (Free Press, 1992) and his latest, In the Realm of the Last Man: A Memoir (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2026), tells his story and how it intersected with events and his political beliefs. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With the news that the US will publicly execute the Fort Hood shooter, and the recent botched execution of a woman in Tennessee, capital punishment has taken center stage in the national conversation.On Today's Show:Justin Mazzola, deputy director of research at Amnesty International USA, talks about the history and current state of the death penalty and public execution, here in the United States and around the world. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With last week's ICE shooting, how are swing districts in the area responding on the political hot-button midterm issue of immigration enforcement?On Today's Show:Billy House, Washington/Congress reporter for Newsday, talks about the issue of immigration and ICE funding in New York's 4th Congressional district, where the incumbent Democrat Laura Gillen is trying to fend off a challenge from Republican Jeanine Driscoll. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With AI technology and its accompanying data centers taking up some of the spotlight as a midterm issue, we look at how it's playing out in a key house race. On Today's Show:Timmy Facciola, founder of the local news outlet Judge Street Journal, which focuses on New York politics, unpacks Mike Lawler and Cait Conley's positions on AI and data centers. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

As the DSA and other ideologies on the political left begin to gain footholds in elected offices including NYC's mayoralty, we look at what 'socialism' really is, in practice. On Today's Show:Bhaskar Sunkara, president of The Nation, founding editor of Jacobin, publisher of Catalyst: A Journal of Theory and Strategy, former vice-chair of the Democratic Socialists of America and the author of The Socialist Manifesto: The Case for Radical Politics in an Era of Extreme Inequality (Basic Books, updated 2026) and co-author of The Blueprint: How Socialism Can Work in the Real World (Verso, 2026), talks about today's socialism and its response to today's issues. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With affordability as a central political issue this midterm season, how are candidates in a key New Jersey race addressing it?On Today's Show:Timmy Facciola, founder of the local politics news outlet Judge Street Journal, talks about several 'pocketbook issues' that came up in the debate between U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler and his Democratic challenger Cait Conley, including energy, tariffs, and housing. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The free market supposedly sets fair prices based on supply and demand. How are algorithmic pricing models helping profiteers charge more for the same?On Today's Show:Lindsay Owens, president and CEO of the Groundwork Collaborative and the author of Gouged: The End of a Fair Price–and What That Means for Your Wallet (Viking, 2026), talks about the proliferation of "junk fees" and the hidden risks of loyalty programs, plus the use of data and algorithms to hike prices. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With right wing voices taking aim at transgender athletes, who they say create unfairness in women's sports, a look at the Trump administration's cuts to Title IX enforcement.On Today's Show:Maggie Mertens, journalist, author of Better Faster Farther: How Running Changed Everything We Know About Women (Algonquin, 2024) and host of "The Forecast: Seattle’s Weekly Women’s Sports Show" on KVRU 105.7FM, talks about her Slate article on the Trump administration's stated goal of "protecting" women's sports, while cutting the staff at the Department of Education that would investigate violations. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The national discussion about sexual assault on campus has been revived in the wake of a scandal at Cornell.On Today's Show:Alexandra Brodsky, civil rights lawyer and author of Sexual Justice: Supporting Victims, Ensuring Due Process, and Resisting the Conservative Backlash (Henry Holt 2021), unpacks a recent lawsuit against Cornell University accusing the administration of negligence in their investigation and handling of a reported gang rape Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.