Defending Democracy with Marc Elias

Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal, a former state attorney general, United States attorney and Supreme Court clerk, maps out the transformation of the Supreme Court from a revered institution to one facing immense distrust and credibility issues. Sen. Blumenthal speaks with Marc Elias about the necessary reforms to the Court and what is preventing their passage in Congress. -Sign up for our f...

New York Congressman Dan Goldman (D) joins Marc Elias to discuss why he’s made voting rights a top issue, the major concerns he has about Project 2025, efforts to fix the U.S. Supreme Court and Republican voter suppression. -Sign up for our free newsletters: https://www.democracydocket.com/youtubesubscribe/   -Become a member of our premium content: https://www.democracydocket.com/member-yt   -Sup...

Republicans have been laying the groundwork to subvert elections this fall. It’s all a part of their three-part strategy to undermine free and fair elections and seize power for themselves. Marc Elias and Paige Moskowitz break it down. -Sign up for our free newsletters: https://www.democracydocket.com/youtubesubscribe/   -Become a member of our premium content: https://www.democracydocket.com/memb...

Sarah Longwell, founder of Republican Voters Against Trump, wants you to know that not all Republicans support former President Donald Trump. She discusses with Marc Elias fractures in the GOP, how Trump is a threat to democracy and conservative ideals and what Democratic voters need to understand about modern Republican voters. Learn more about Republican Voters Against Trump: https://rvat.org/ -...

As a critical swing state, Michigan is on the front lines in the fight to protect democracy. Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson joins Marc Elias to discuss how Michigan has worked to protect elections this fall, the growing threat of election deniers and what citizens can do to help safeguard voting rights. -Sign up for our free newsletters: https://www.democracydocket.com/youtubesubscribe/   -Beco...

The Republican plan for the 2024 election is simple: make it harder to vote and easier to cheat. Marc Elias and Paige Moskowitz break down the various tactics the GOP is using to suppress voters, how these efforts will intensify and what actions voters can take to protect themselves.  -Sign up for our free newsletters: https://www.democracydocket.com/youtubesubscribe/ -Become a member of our premi...

Nearly 50 million Americans lack an active ID that has their current name and address. And if they’re in a state with strict voter ID laws, it likely means they can’t vote. But who in America lacks photo ID and who gets squeezed out of the electorate because of it? Lauren Kunis of VoteRiders joins Marc Elias to break down these stats, myths behind noncitizens voting and more. Learn more about Vote...

While Congress makes laws for the whole country, the reality is that people’s everyday lives are more affected by their state legislature. So why don’t we pay more attention to state legislative races? Especially when extremist candidates are winning seats? Daniel Squadron of The States Project joins to discuss the power of state legislatures, why everyone should pay attention to these down-ballot...

What happened with election lawsuits in July and what cases should you look out for in August? Marc Elias and Paige Moskowitz break it all down.  -Sign up for our free newsletters: https://www.democracydocket.com/youtubesubscribe/ -Become a member of our premium content: https://www.democracydocket.com/member -Support our work: https://www.democracydocket.com/support/  -Shop Democracy Docket merch...

Former Congressman Joe Kennedy III joins Defending Democracy to talk about the local solutions to national democracy problems, the Groundwork Project, whether Election Day should be a holiday and more. Learn more about the Groundwork Project: https://www.groundworkproject.com/ Learn more about the states and local organizations Groundwork works with: https://www.groundworkproject.com/our-states/ -...

It’s clear that there are issues with the U.S. Supreme Court. From justices accepting lavish gifts to the shadow docket to outrageous rulings, immense reform is needed to ensure that faith and trust is restored in the nation’s highest court. Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse discusses the most pressing issues facing the Court and how we fix them.  -Subscribe to our newsletters: https://www.d...

Everything is bigger in Texas — including voter suppression. Former Congressman Beto O'Rourke discusses the fight for voting rights in the Lone Star State and how people can help. Support Powered by People: https://poweredxpeople.org/ -Subscribe to our newsletters: https://www.democracydocket.com/youtubesubscribe/ -Become a Democracy Docket member: democracydocket.com/member  -Support our work...

New York State Senator Zellnor Myrie discusses New York’s terrible voting laws, efforts to improve ballot access and how MAGA extremism has infected even the Empire State.  Check out Sen. Myrie’s website: https://www.zellnor.nyc/ -Subscribe to our newsletters: https://www.democracydocket.com/youtubesubscribe/ -Become a Democracy Docket member: democracydocket.com/member  -Support our work: https:/...

Law professor and former United States Attorney Joyce Vance joins Marc Elias to discuss whether the justice system can handle a defendant like Trump, the state of voting rights in Alabama and what we all can do to save democracy. Read Joyce’s Substack: https://joycevance.substack.com -Subscribe to our newsletters: https://www.democracydocket.com/youtubesubscribe/ -Become a Democracy Docket member:...

Pod Save America co-host, former Obama senior advisor and writer Dan Pfeiffer joins to discuss the role of media in protecting democracy, polls and changes in politics over the past 20 years with Marc Elias. -Get involved with Vote Save America: https://votesaveamerica.com -Read Dan’s substack: https://www.messageboxnews.com -Listen to Pod Save America: https://www.crooked.com/podcast-series/pod-s...

Voting rights journalist Ari Berman joins Defending Democracy to discuss his new book, right-wing extremism, gerrymandering, the U.S. Supreme Court and more. Buy Ari’s new book Minority Rule here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374600211/minorityrule 🗳️Subscribe to our newsletters: https://www.democracydocket.com/youtubesubscribe/ 🗳️Support our work: https://www.democracydocket.com/support/ 🗳️...

On May 13, the Wisconsin Supreme Court will hear a case arguing that drop boxes should be reinstated in the battleground state. Marc and Paige explain what’s going on in the lawsuit, what to look for in oral argument and the potential electoral impact of the court’s decision.  🗳️Subscribe to our newsletters: https://www.democracydocket.com/youtubesubscribe/ 🗳️Support our work: https://www.democrac...

On April 25, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear former President Donald Trump’s claims that he has absolute presidential immunity and cannot be prosecuted for actions he took while in office. Former federal prosecutor and host of the Talking Feds Podcast Harry Litman joins to discuss the merit of Trump’s claims, what you should look out for during oral argument and whether the justice system can han...

Hillary Rodham Clinton, former U.S. secretary of state and 2016 presidential nominee, joins Defending Democracy to talk with Marc Elias about the harm Donald Trump has done to our democracy and America’s global standing. Plus, Secretary Clinton talks about her thoughts on the GOP’s plans for 2024, Supreme Court justices and President Joe Biden. Sign up for Democracy Docket's premium membership...

Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold joins Marc to discuss the rising threats against election workers, efforts to hold Donald Trump and John Eastman accountable and how secretaries of state are securing elections — plus the details of Colorado Republicans’ attempt to impeach her. Sign up for Democracy Docket's premium membership! Subscribe here: https://www.democracydocket.com/member/ Li...

How maps are drawn determines electoral power in the United States. Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder joins Marc Elias to discuss the fight for fair maps, attacks on voting rights and federal courts’ failure to protect democracy.  Sign up for Democracy Docket's premium membership! Subscribe here: https://www.democracydocket.com/member/ Listen to this episode wherever you get your podcas...

A second Trump presidency would last longer than 4 years. Writer and political commentator Molly Jong-Fast joins Defending Democracy to discuss how a second Trump term would be different, the myth of the "moderate" Republican and the media's role in all of this. ⭐️⭐️⭐️Sign up for Democracy Docket's new premium membership! ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Subscribe here: https://www.democracydocket.c...

A bonus podcast episode! Between blatant gerrymanders, power-grab laws and hard-line positions threatening the future of the state’s educational and business institutions, North Carolina Republicans have shown that they’re committed to anti-democracy. Democratic Leader of the North Carolina House Rep. Robert Reives is here to discuss.  ⭐️⭐️⭐️Sign up for Democracy Docket's new premium member...

Republican and conservative groups are filing lawsuits targeting states' voter info under the guise of "cleaning the rolls." But the real motivations behind the lawsuits are to purge voters and facilitate mass voter challenges. Marc and Paige break down what's happening in the latest episode of Defending Democracy. ⭐️⭐️⭐️Sign up for Democracy Docket's new premium membershi...

In 2023, the Republican Party launched the “Bank Your Vote” program to encourage people to vote early and by mail. Despite this, the RNC is involved in multiple lawsuits to restrict mail-in voting — some filed after this program was announced. Marc and Paige break down the GOP’s hypocrisy and go over the details of the cases.  ⭐️⭐️⭐️Sign up for Democracy Docket's new premium membership! ⭐️...