The Day Bob Mueller Spoke

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On the day when Robert Mueller broke his 2-year silence, the Feds convene in a special @talkingfeds Now! Episode to tell you what wasn’t said in the wall-to-wall coverage.  Each Fed offers up in roundtable order a detail or nuance that the coverage overlooked or underreported, filling in some critical blanks and implications in the first and perhaps only statement that Mueller will make.

Host, Harry Litman, is joined by Barbara McQuade, Elie Honig and Mimi Rocah.

Do Overs and Cover Ups

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The Feds analyze the current apparent impasse between the Administration and the House of Representatives and discuss possible inroads that the House Democrats could nevertheless execute.  They detail possible witnesses that the House still can call.  They conclude by considering the legal and political implications of the two district court victories upholding subpoenas for financial records of the President, including before 2016.

Host, Harry Litman, is joined by Joyce Vance, Matthew Miller and Jennifer Rodgers. Former head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Richard Cordray explains the sidebar.

Game of Trump: A Song of Vice & Ire

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The Feds discuss the implications of the revelation that some member(s) of Congress helped dangle a pardon to Michael Flynn, and the importance of the district court’s muscular intervention in ordering that the information be made public. They then consider Trump's deranged tweet about treason and the overall impact of Trump's threats now that he has an apparent ally and loyal servant in the Attorney General of the United States.

Host Harry Litman is joined by former feds Mary McCord, Glenn Kirschner and Mimi Rocah.

Sidebar by Scott Johnson, cartoonist, podcaster, and founder of Frogpants Studios, where you can enjoy Scott’s ExtraLife comics.

Transcript

The Counterintelligence Investigation: What it is, why it matters

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Of all the many aspects of the various Trump dramas, the counter-intelligence investigation of the President and his campaign can be the hardest to understand and follow, not least because it remains highly classified and we have no way to chart its progress with certainty.  But we can bring a depth of knowledge and experience to the topic, and that is what Feds Frank Figliuzzi and Josh Campbell, who both have extensive FBI experience, do in this episode.  The Feds provide a detailed but nuts-and-bolts explanations of how counter-intelligence investigations work, and then analyze the prospects over the next two years for the remarkable counter-intelligence investigation of the Trump campaign and the president himself.

Barr on the Rocks

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A Talking Feds NOW special episode.  The Feds convene in emergency session to dissect the Attorney General’s remarkable testimony today before the Senate Judiciary Committee and to analyze the import of Barr’s apparent decision to act as an advocate for the President’s personal interests. 

Host Harry Litman, is joined Robert Raben, Barbara McQuade and Matt Miller.

Mueller in the House

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As the center of investigation of Trump’s misconduct moves to the House, a group of Feds who have special in-depth knowledge of Congressional investigations predict what lies ahead.  The Feds discuss the likely maneuvers of three House Committees and the likely counter maneuvers of the Department of Justice.  They consider the  prospects for the House to get the Mueller Report without redactions, and the possible critical roles for public opinion and the handful of moderate Republican Senators.

Harry is in Washington, D.C. with Robert Raben, Elliot Williams and Matt Miller.

A Deep Dive Into Murky Waters

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The Feds probe deeply into the 438-page redacted Mueller report,  training their focus in in particular on the respective roles of Special Counsel Robert Mueller and Attorney General William Barr.  Was Mueller’s decision to shy away from a bottom line judgment on obstruction of justice appropriate?  Is Barr not an honest broker, and if not, why not? The Feds tell us the one thing that surprised them the most in the Mueller report. 

Host Harry Litman is in La Jolla, CA by Carol Lam, Jennifer Rodgers and from Tucson, AZ by Frank Figliuzzi.

The Mueller Report: And Now What?

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The Feds convene in emergency session to discuss the Mueller report and the Barr press conference.  They analyze whether Barr was a faithful expositor or an advocate for Trump, and whether Mueller’s intent was to leave the judgment on obstruction to Congress. Host Harry Litman is joined remotely by Amy Jeffress, Jennifer Rodgers and Paul Fishman.

Read the full report

Redaction Reaction

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The Feds analyze what to expect from the soon-to-issue Mueller report and offer educated surmises on the internal dynamics within DOJ, including the relationship between the Special counsel’s office and the Attorney General. They then take up the Assange case, again explaining the dynamics within government and evaluating whether it was a case that should have been brought.

Host, Harry Litman, is joined in the Washington D.C. studio by Amy Jeffress, Julie O'Sullivan, and Matthew Miller.

Report Summary: [REDACTED]

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The Feds analyze the outbreak of the war of press leaks between the Mueller camp and the Barr camp and the emerging dueling versions of Barr’s decision to give the President a pass on obstruction. They then consider the prospects that the House will be able to secure the unredacted Mueller Report and the President’s tax returns.

Host, Harry Litman, is joined remotely by Joyce Vance, Paul Fishman, and Matthew Miller.