Firing Line with Margaret Hoover

California Sen. Alex Padilla sits down with Margaret Hoover to discuss Vice President Kamala Harris, his longtime friend and colleague.  The son of Mexican immigrants, Padilla was appointed to Harris’ seat after she won the vice presidency in 2020. An MIT graduate, he initially hoped to become an aerospace engineer. But he was instead drawn to politics when, in 1994, California voters passed a pro...

Justice Neil Gorsuch sits down with Margaret Hoover at the Supreme Court to talk about his new book, Over Ruled, and his concern that America has “too much law.” In its recent term, the Supreme Court overturned the Chevron doctrine, a precedent established in 1984 that required judges to defer to federal agencies when interpreting unclear statutes. Gorsuch explains why that longstanding approach h...

Republican Sen. Joni Ernst sits down with Margaret Hoover in Iowa to talk about her life and her views on trade and foreign policy. Ernst, a combat veteran, explains why she advocates for confronting threats abroad and providing strong support to Israel and Ukraine. She also reflects on how a visit to Soviet-controlled Ukraine in 1989 helped shape her position. She details her response to antisemi...

Margaret Hoover discusses what it will take to ensure a secure and accurate vote count in 2024 with three experts: Democratic Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Republican election lawyer Ben Ginsberg, and David Becker of the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation and Research. Ahead of Firing Line’s “Counting the Vote” documentary–premiering on PBS on Aug. 27–the experts address how...

Legendary Democratic strategist James Carville talks to Margaret Hoover about the state of the 2024 presidential race after the withdrawal of President Joe Biden and the ascension of Vice President Kamala Harris. Carville explains why he had long urged Democrats to replace the aging Biden and why he is satisfied with supporting Harris without a competitive primary process. He also pushes back agai...

Veteran Republican strategist Mike Murphy, an outspoken critic of Donald Trump, assesses the state of the presidential race in the wake of Trump’s attempted assassination and the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Murphy tells Margaret Hoover why he believes Joe Biden needs to withdraw from the race and how he thinks Democrats should approach replacing him as their nominee. He also lays...

Matt Pottinger, who served as deputy national security advisor under former President Trump, talks to Margaret Hoover about the geopolitical and economic stakes of defending Taiwan and the challenge of deterring China. Pottinger, editor and co-author of “The Boiling Moat: Urgent Steps to Defend Taiwan,” assesses Xi Jinping’s ambitions and timeline for a potential invasion, and he details what the...

Edward O’Keefe, author of “The Loves of Theodore Roosevelt,” joins Margaret Hoover to discuss the “extraordinary and unsung” women who shaped the life and legend of the 26th president–and why his legacy still resonates today. O’Keefe, a former journalist and North Dakota native who is now CEO of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library Foundation, details Roosevelt’s relationships with his moth...

Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres of the Bronx sits down with Margaret Hoover to talk about Israel, immigration, and other issues that impact voters of color as polls suggest support for Donald Trump is rising among traditionally Democratic voting blocs that will play a pivotal role in the 2024 election. Torres, the first openly gay Afro-Latino member of Congress, discusses how growing up in public h...

Following a U.N. report accusing Israel of war crimes, Margaret Hoover sits down with Dan Senor, a former foreign policy aide to Mitt Romney and the host of the podcast “Call Me Back,” to the daring rescue of four Israeli hostages in Gaza, prospects for a cease-fire, and the new U.N. report accusing both Hamas and Israel of war crimes. Senor defends how Israel has conducted the war, arguing that w...

As the end of Donald Trump’s first trial nears, Margaret Hoover sits down with conservative attorney and former Trump supporter George Conway to discuss the case and the prospect of another Trump presidency. Conway defends the Manhattan prosecution, talks about watching Trump in the courtroom, and explains why he disagrees with those who say the case is driven by politics. He also argues Trump has...

Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin sits down with Margaret Hoover to discuss “An Unfinished Love Story,” her new book recounting the 1960s from her perspective and that of her late husband, presidential speechwriter Dick Goodwin. The Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer recalls the genesis of the project and reflects on the difference between writing about her husband and long-dead presidents like Abraha...

Author and journalist Fareed Zakaria joins Margaret Hoover to talk about his recent book, “Age of Revolutions,” and how past periods of progress and backlash inform our present revolutionary moment. Zakaria, host of CNN’s “Fareed Zakaria GPS,” reflects on a full-blown cultural backlash against decades of social and political change that has fueled the rise of Donald Trump. He also discusses the ne...

New York Times columnist Frank Bruni sits down with Margaret Hoover to talk about college protests, grievance politics, and how to restore humility in a fractured country. Bruni, author of “The Age of Grievance” and a professor at Duke University, discusses the roots of anti-Israel sentiment on campuses and the double standards behind progressive speech codes. He also addresses the rise of a cultu...

Margaret Hoover sits down with Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer – a Republican election official in Arizona’s most populous county – to discuss the new indictment of allies of Donald Trump for their fake elector scheme in 2020 and how he’s preparing for the 2024 election. Richer recalls the “unrelenting” pressure that Arizona officials faced to overturn the 2020 election results and praises...

As Donald Trump’s first criminal trial begins, Margaret Hoover sits down with NYU law professor Melissa Murray to discuss the historic proceedings and what prosecuting a former president means for America. Murray, co-host of the Strict Scrutiny podcast, breaks down the charges filed by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, addresses the challenges of selecting an impartial jury, and responds to Trump’s compla...

Coleman Hughes, author of “The End of Race Politics,” joins Margaret Hoover to lay out his argument against race-based policies and in favor of a colorblind approach. Hughes, host of the Conversations with Coleman podcast, traces the roots of his colorblind philosophy from the Civil War through the civil rights era, making the case that leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and Bayard Rustin would h...

Futurist Ari Wallach joins Margaret Hoover to discuss “A Brief History of the Future,” his new PBS series exploring the ideas and technologies that could help humanity build better tomorrows. Wallach reflects on the “intertidal” moment society currently faces and explains why he believes decisions made in the years ahead will have ramifications for generations to come. He assesses the implications...

Margaret Hoover sits down with social psychologist Jonathan Haidt to discuss how social media and smartphones have rewired childhood and put the mental health of a generation of kids at risk. Haidt, author of “The Anxious Generation,” argues a surge in anxiety and depression among Gen Z is a consequence of constant smartphone use that has crowded out traditional forms of play since 2010, and he ex...

Margaret Hoover hosts a forum at Hofstra University on whether America should abolish the Electoral College with writers Jesse Wegman and Trent England. Wegman, author of “Let the People Pick the President” and a member of The New York Times editorial board, makes the case that the current system is unfair and undemocratic, empowering a handful of swing states to decide who leads the whole country...

In a special Firing Line forum recorded before a student audience at Hofstra University, Margaret Hoover talks to conservatives Amanda Carpenter and Mike Gonzalez about the potential ramifications of another Donald Trump presidency. Carpenter, a writer and editor for Protect Democracy, believes a second Trump term would be far more damaging than the first, citing the former president’s threats to...

Margaret Hoover sits down with Jared Cohen, author of “Life After Power: Seven Presidents and Their Search for Purpose Beyond the White House,” to discuss the unique role of the post-presidency in American democracy. Cohen’s book explores how different ex-presidents have handled being out of power from Thomas Jefferson to George W. Bush. He explains why examining the lives of former presidents int...

Entrepreneur Sheila Johnson–who co-founded BET and went on to become America’s first Black female billionaire–sits down with Margaret Hoover to discuss her memoir and the personal and professional obstacles she has overcome to achieve success. Johnson, who recently released “Walk Through Fire: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Triumph,” reflects on her childhood and what she describes as an abusive firs...

Retired Gen. David Petraeus sits down with Margaret Hoover to discuss retaliation for a fatal drone attack on U.S. troops in Jordan, as well as the latest developments in the wars in Gaza and Ukraine. Petraeus, co-author of Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Ukraine , offers insight into the Biden administration’s deliberations on a response to the attack by an Iran-backed militia and...

Deborah Lipstadt, the State Department’s special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism, joins Margaret Hoover to talk about the surge of hatred against Jews worldwide since October 7th and why she considers it a threat to democracy. Lipstadt, who has studied antisemitism and Holocaust denialism for decades, details the double standard she sees in the muted response to the Hamas attack from orga...