Beyond Politics

Episode Two of The War to Win Minds: The Hidden Psychology of Political Persuasion. Matt Robison and Dr. Lauren Goldstein dive deep into the liking principle and break down campaign ads to show how politicians like Kamala Harris use similarities, compliments, attractiveness, and associations shape to change voters' minds and shape public opinion. Learn strategies used by campaigns to make thei...

Matt, Paul, and Alicia discuss Donald Trump's unhinged rant on Truth Social plus the recent Arlington National Cemetery incident, which has pushed Trump to new levels of insanity. The panel explores what triggered Trump's meltdown: Jack Smith's refiled case against him. They also question why, despite Trump's outrageous behavior, the race remains a 50/50 toss-up. Plus, the 10-year...

***Don't forget to check out our mini-series on the hidden psychology of political campaigns on ⁠YouTube⁠ or ⁠Spotify⁠ .*** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDbNEHJ_pV4 RFK Jr.'s withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race and his subsequent endorsement of Donald Trump would, until very recently, have been viewed as a watershed. But when it finally went down late last week, it barely made wa...

Episode One of The War to Win Minds: The Hidden Psychology of Political Persuasion. A limited series where PhD psychologist Lauren Goldstein and veteran campaign manager Matt Robison break down political ads to show the science behind how political campaigns fight and win the battle for our brains. In this episode: how one brilliant Kamala Harris ad explains the two pathways into our minds, and wh...

What do Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party need to do in the final stretch of the campaign to secure a win against Donald Trump? Paul, Matt, and Alicia take stock of where we are and where we need to get to. They also break down Harris' acceptance speech and the DNC's overall performance, the importance of upcoming debates, and the critical swing state of Pennsylvania. 00:55 Analyzing...

Was last night's set of Democratic Convention speeches a game changer for Dems? Paul, Alicia and Matt think it quite possibly was, and got into such a heated discussion about it over text that they decided to take it right to the podcast. We cover why Doug Emhoff hit a grand slam, what Michelle did that worked so well, and why Barack Obama's speech marked a critical shift in Kamala's s...

Today, an unvarnished and unbiased deep dive into the numbers and the scenarios for the 2024 election with former executive director of the Republican Party in Florida, Jamie Miller. We ask what are the best strategies and likeliest potential outcomes for the presidential race as well as down-ballot races? And we try to step outside either party's partisan perspective to see where the opportun...

With polling data showing Kamala Harris bursting into the lead ahead of Donald Trump, what do they need to do at the upcoming conversation to keep the momentum going and propel them into November. Also, why are voters suddenly rating Harris ahead of Trump on the economy? Also, the controversy surrounding Olympic gymnast Jordan Childs and the governing body's decision to take away her medal. 01...

Alicia Prestonhas reached a stunning conclusion: Trump's chances for 2024 are over, and Republicans' only hope is for every Senate, Congress, and gubernatorial candidate to fend for themselves. We talk about Trump’s blunders, the rise of Kamala Harris in the polls, and the weird attack on Tim Walz’s military record. 01:05 Trump's Mar-a-Lago Press Conference 02:41 Alicia's Bold Pred...

Matt was getting interviewed live on the radio when the news broke that Minnesota Governor Tim Walz was the surprise VP pick for the dems. Here's the analysis getting worked out in real time. And here is the Newsweek article that Matt wrote right after describing what we can read between the lines about this pick, and why it might be sneaky good news for Democrats. https://www.newsweek.com/3-t...

With Kamala-mentum becoming very real, we dive into Donald Trump's pretty insane strategy to put out that fire with gasoline by questioning whether Kamala Harris is actually Black. Is there any chance it could help him? Also, a massive deal that gained the release of 16 unjustly imprisoned people in Russia. And the "weird" wave sweeps America. 00:00 Introduction and Trump's Contr...

Dan Perry, former Middle East editor for the Associated Press, unpacks the complex, unfolding situation surrounding the assassination of both Hamas and Hezbollah leaders, including the potential "good news" scenario that this could create an off-ramp to end the war and bring Israeli hostages home, or the possibility that things could escalate. Perry writes "Ask Questions Later"...

We tend to think about American politics as being driven by the fight between the two major parties. But what if the conventional view of political polarization in America is missing the true divide: between elites and the working class. Batya Ungar-Sargon, Opinion Editor at Newsweek, discusses insights from her book ' Second Class ,' in which she interviews hundreds of Americans and posit...

Is Kamala Harris in an even better position than initial indications would seem to suggest, and can the Dem's big surge this week get even better? Also, were Joe Biden's limitations as a communicator really a legit demerit on how effectively he could do the job as president? Who should get the Dem VP nod? And did JD Vance say the most insulting and politically destructive thing in American...

The surging beginning of Kamala Harris' presidential campaign is exactly what anxious Democrats were hoping for. Matt joins radio legend Howard Monroe to discuss all the new angles: the fundraising, the maneuvering, the messaging, and the polling. 03:00 Kamala Harris's Campaign Momentum 07:28 Debate on Biden's Resignation 17:35 Kamala Harris vs. Donald Trump Winning Messages 22:39 Poll...

The Pivot to Kamala: Trump, Biden, and the Divide in America. Matt is joined by Batya Ungar-Sargon, Opinion Editor at Newsweek, to discuss the sudden ascension of Vice President Kamala Harris, Donald Trump's influence, and whether Joe Biden should resign. 02:18 Boiling it All Down: Has This Been a Great Week? 07:18 Biden's Withdrawal and Kamala Harris 12:01 Economic Models and the American...

President Joe Biden has withdrawn from the 2024 presidential race. He's already a hero who saved America once. Now, will his selfless move increased the Democratic Party's chances of beating Donald Trump? And, Matt just wrote in Newsweek on SATURDAY that Biden should also resign in order to help Kamala Harris defeat Trump. Is the case now even stronger? 00:00 Breaking News: Biden Withdraws...

We tried to boil down one of the most eventual weeks in American political history into two questions: Is there really a new Trump following the assassination attempt, and if this is the end of the political road for Joe Biden as looks increasingly likely, what will happen next for the Democrats? 00:46 Assassination Attempt and Trump's New Promise 01:51 Analyzing Trump's Convention Speech...

Voters consistently say the economic is the most important issue to them. Which is why it's baffling that there's been so little attention on Donald Trump's economic ideas, which would be an unspeakable disaster for the American economy, and especially for the middle class. Brian Riedl, a conservative economist from the Manhattan Institute breaks down why proposals like replacing the i...

Is the turmoil surrounding Joe Biden's potential dropout from the presidential race wrapping up, or ramping up? Is it even possible that the media is simply fueling this narrative for drama and traffic, obscuring where their focus should be on Donald Trump's controversial plans for America? Check out Matt's newest Newsweek article on the exceedingly dangerous Trump plan for a second te...

It's one of the biggest questions looming over American politics: what will the centrists do? There are as many as 71 million self-identified centrists in America - people who don't feel entirely comfortable with either major political party, and largely agree on most issues - and these are the people who are probably going to decide which of two very different paths America follows. So wh...

President Biden's candidacy is in what's increasingly looking like a death spiral. But "should he stick it out or should he drop out" is the wrong question. There is a much better and a much more important question that Democrats really need to ask. Also, is the Supreme Court's presidential immunity decision as bad as it seemed; should Russian athletes should be banned from i...

"The president is now a king above the law. With fear for our democracy, I dissent." Those were the words of Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor about yesterday's Supreme court decision conferring what the press described as "partial immunity" on Donald Trump and future presidents for crimes they may commit in office. But the reality goes much deeper than that. Legal scho...

BONUS EPISODE: There are two paths in the road ahead for Biden and the Democrats after President Joe Biden's rough debate. There is a roadmap for how he can recover--but can Biden pull it off? And if he can't, what does the unprecedented pathway of him dropping out look like? CHECK OUT MATT'S NEWSWEEK ARTICLE COVERING THIS ISSUE IN DEPTH: https://www.newsweek.com/disastrous-debate-bide...

The debate went very badly for Joe Biden. And whether it's fair or not, the reality is that Biden's path to stopping Trump has gotten much harder. Matt, Paul, and Alicia delve into the key question of what happens next. Can Biden recover? What would that take? And if his team concludes that he can't, what would that look like? 01:32 Analyzing Biden's Performance 04:13 Media Percept...