Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes

Donald Trump gives his first true State of the Union speech to Congress since becoming president for a second time. It just might be the most important speech in his political legacy.  Trump is going into this speech as weak as he's ever been. His approval ratings are the lowest they've been, as are the approvals of his handling of every top issue, and the belief that he's fit to do...

Grant brings Eric Czuleger back on the show for the very first back-to-back guest on Make It Make Sense.  With the largest military buildup in the Middle East since 2002 happening right now and President Donald Trump promising a "limited strike" in Iran, the world is on edge... again.  Grant and Eric talk about how the US got here, why it's different than the last time the US bombed...

Donald Trump ran for president promising to make Americans richer and bring prices down, starting on day one. So far, that's not panning out.  The cost of the ICE and troop deployments to US cities and around the globe has ballooned into the billions. Despite promising it would bring in money to the US, Trump's tariffs have cost Americans billions of dollars out of their own pockets. So...

The government is in another shutdown. This time, it's only a partial one. Every agency inside DHS isn't being funded, except ICE.  Grant explains the 10 demands Democrats have and why two of them are already non-starters for Republicans who are looking to capitalize on the crises to force through their voter ID bill.  MANTRA MATCHA If coffee makes you alert and deeply unwell, it might b...

Grant is joined by Eric Czuleger, the voice behind The Under Report, which covers foreign policy, open-source intelligence operations, and what's really happening outside the borders of the US.  Most if Eric thinks is part of what he calls "strategic abandonment" by the US; the idea that the US is breaking old alliances and abandoning long-term agreements in favor of short-term wins...

As the Senate takes up the House's voter ID bill, Grant explains what's in it. Known as the SAVE America Act, along with its partner bill the MEGA Act, Republicans are hoping to make it harder to vote by imposing strict rules on who can register to vote (which already exist), showing proof of citizenship at the polls, and ending the popular mail-in voting rules.  Grant breaks down what&a...

Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle are getting increasingly angry with the Department of Justice and the president after they were supposed to have been given access to unredacted Epstein files.  Instead, what they got were files that lacked victim protections and went out of their way to protect potential co-conspirators, in direct violation of the law.  Grant breaks down what we know...

Grant is joined by Michael McNulty to talk about a wild week of the federal government attempted to interfere in the 2026 elections.  McNulty is an elections expert with promoting democracy in authoritarian countries and is now Policy Director at the bipartisan non-profit Issue One.  They talk about Trump's push to "nationalize" elections, what the latest round of voting bills would...

Grant talks to Former ICE Assistant Director for policy Scott Shuchart. Scott served in both DHS as a senior advisor for civil rights during the Obama and first Trump Administrations and as the AD for policy at ICE under Joe Biden.  The two talk about how far ICE and DHS have fallen from their original mission and what Tom Homan is really doing in Minneapolis. PLUS the big question, what it would...

The Department of Justice has released millions of documents, photos and videos from the Epstein Files. Despite it being 6 weeks late and still refusing to publish millions more documents, what was released has some incredibly damning allegations for the president and some of the world's richest, most powerful people.  Grant breaks down the allegations you need to know about, what the DOJ isn...

Grant is joined by the Executive Director of TheSteadyState, Steve Cash to talk about the mission of the nearly 400 intelligence and diplomatic community members who turned their experience dealing with authoritarian governments abroad inward.  They talk about where the US is on the road away from democracy, how DHS and ICE have changed into an aggressive, paramilitary force being used against Ame...

As the deal to avoid a government shutdown seems likely, Democrats are grappling with what it would mean to continue to allow DHS and ICE to operate the way it has been.  Senators are asking for big changes at ICE, like more body cameras, no masks, and no roving patrols, but the clock is ticking against the deadline to fund the government... and keep their voters' support.  All that is happen...

After the latest fatality at the hands of DHS agents and the second in as many weeks in Minneapolis, ICE, DHS and the Trump Administration have begun to scramble.  Grant breaks down the death of Alex Pretti, what we have to understand about DHS pattern of lying, why the courts and the law still matter, and what it means next for the White House's plans for out-of-control immigration forces. ...

Grant talks to David Gans about what we're seeing happen to civil rights and  Constitutional rights as ICE continues to occupy Minneapolis.  Gans is the Director of the Human Rights, Civil Rights and Citizenship Program at the Constitutional Accountability Center.  They discuss how ICE is crossing Constitutional lines, is there a way back from that, and how history is repeating itself when it...

The Department of Justice investigates one of the president's favorite political punching bags. This time it's the head of the Federal Reserve. While the president says he doesn't have any involvement, he's been targeting  Grant explains what the Fed actually is , what the investigation is about, and what Trump's fight with the Fed is about...and why it matters for you.   ...

Grant talks to Mike Madrid, the former GOP operative, consultant, and now the mind behind The Great Transformation Substack, about the bombing and capture mission in Venezuela, what it means for Latin America, Latino voters in the US, and the US's new position on the global stage.  PROMO CODES:  This episode is brought to you by Cozy Earth. Wrap the ones you love in warmth and luxury this hol...

An ICE officer shot and killed a 37-year-old US Citizen, wife, and mother named Renee Good on a neighborhood street in Minneapolis, MN. All of it was caught on video from multiple angles.  Grant explains what the videos actually show, how the Trump Administration is attempting to protect the officer, defame the victim, turn up the heat on anti-ICE protesters, and why it's part of a predictabl...

It's been a whirlwind start to 2026. The United States is actively working to run Venezuela after bombing the country and capturing its leader, Nicolas Maduro.  But we didn't do it for democracy or drugs or security. We did it for oil, at least according to the president.  Grant explains how the strike in Venezuela happened, what the White House is saying happens next, and the plan to re...

President Donald Trump made a surprise announcement the week of Christmas; the US had attacked a Venezuelan port with a drone strike. But no one has been able to prove it definitively, leaving Americans wondering, are we at war or not? Grant explains what we might know about the alleged airstrike, what we definitely know about the 30th strike on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean Sea, and why thi...

The first of what might be a new tradition here at Make It Make Sense. Grant reads you some of his favorite Christmas and holiday stories!  First,  The Polar Express.  The Caldecott Medal-winning classic from 1985 by Chris Van Allsburg  Second,  A Letter From Santa Claus  by Mark Twain.  Third,   A Visit From St. Nicholas  by Clement-Clarke Moore MAKE IT MAKE SENSE SUBSCRIPTION DRIVE!  For the nex...

The Department of Justice missed its deadline to release all the Epstein files to the public and is now actively saying it's going to continue to break the law by continuing to withhold documents without justification.  Grant explains what happened with the release, what's being redacted, what's not, who is and isn't being protected in the files and what consequences there coul...

With the Epstein files set to be released on Friday, Grant talks to Alex Hinton. Alex is a Rutgers Professor of Anthropology, Director of the Center for the Study of Genocide and Human Rights, and UNESCO Chair on Genocide Prevention. He talks to Grant about looking at MAGA as a cultural movement, what the release of the Epstein files may (or may not) mean for Trump's most die-hard supporters...

Vanity Fair drops two bombshell stories based on months of interviews with the White House Chief of Staff, Susie Wiles. Wiles says Trump has an "alcoholic's personality," that JD Vance is a "conspiracy theorist," and that Pam Bondi "whiffed" on the Epstein files. She also admits to knowing about Elon Musk using drugs while working in the White House and that she&...

Grant sits down with the CEO of the Zero Abuse Project, Jeff Dion, to talk about the Department of Education's new policy to downgrade degrees for jobs required to report child abuse, neglect, and maltreatment.  Jeff talks about the worries that abuse prevention experts are having right now, why mandated reporters need more training right now, and what might happen next if the Department is a...

After weeks of fighting over what will happen to Affordable Care Act subsidies that help millions of Americans afford their health insurance, Republicans in the Senate shrugged and voted to let prices spike.  Not just for people on the ACA but for everyone.  Grant explains what's happening with Obamacare (the ACA), why this is happening without a plan to stop it and what happens next.  MAKE I...