The Nicole Sandler Show

Today is a legal holiday here in the US. The Pumpkin in chief declared it Columbus Day, which it already was, despite the facts we've learned about Christopher Columbus. Many of us prefer to, instead, use the misguided holiday to honor the people who were here long before Columbus or other explorers set foot on this land -- the Indigenous People. Meanwhile, Trump was in Israel this morning cel...

Every Friday, Marcy Wheeler joins me from emptywheel.net to discuss the craziness that happened since we spoke the previous Friday. So today, we talked about D’ump’s invasion of Chicago and Portland and how those cities and others are pushing back. Then there was the Senate Judicary Committee’s oversight hearing of the batshit crazy Attorney General Pam Bondi and her sickening, contemptuous displa...

I’m back today. I’m sorry there was no show yesterday, but I was at the Emergency Room until about 2AM yesterday morning. When I awoke in the morning, I wasn’t feeling well and was exhausted. So, I decided to take care of myself and rest. But I'm back today, I got started with a rant about how frightening things are in this country right now. Lisa Graves was here last week to talk about the la...

We are one week into this government shutdown and it doesn’t appear to be opening back up any time soon. Today is the 260th awful day since Trump took office again, meaning there are still 1200 days until this term ends. And today also marks two years since Hamas’ deadly, horrific attacks on Israel, provoking a deadly, horrific war that’s still raging in Gaza. I dealt with all of that on today’s s...

It feels like deja vu all over again. It is weird that the weeks go by so slowly, yet it seems as if Mondays come too quickly. It must be a sign o’ the times...We begin each week with a discussion about some of what’s going on with Jonathan Larsen , who writes about the news with the snark and expletives it deserves at thefuckingnews.substack.com . He also does quite a bit of original reporting wi...

I love Fridays, not just because the weekend is almost here and I get to catch my breath, but mostly because I get to hang out with Marcy Wheeler of emptywheel.net for an hour (and then some) to recap and attempt to explain/understand what happened this week. So strap in, this was a busy, crazy one.... Get full access to The Nicole Sandler Show at nicolesandler.substack.com/subscribe Advertising I...

If you’ve been listening to or watching this show for a while, you’ve definitely heard my friend, the brilliant Lisa Graves , on this show, as she’s been on dozens of times over the years. Aside from the fact that she’s an extraordinary person, her history and work experience makes her my favorite authority on all things concerning the Judiciary. Lisa's here today to share some of what's i...

One of the few things I like more than reading Digby is talking with her. I try not to impose on her generosity too much, so she joins me on the show about once a month or so. And wow, our conversations really are cathartic. As it was today. And wow, was it needed! Get full access to The Nicole Sandler Show at nicolesandler.substack.com/subscribe Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands...

There was a Shutdown Showdown in the Oval Office yesterday but, like everything D’ump does, this was a ruse. The deadline is tonight at midnight... This morning, the cabinet member formerly known as Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth , made it clear to the 800 highest-ranking US military officials from around the world he hastily called home for an unprecedented meeting, that he means war. And he...

Last week turned out to be one of the worst in the eight months since a phalanx of incompetents took over the US government and has been working to disassemble the work-in-progress of the last 249 years. This week portends more of the absurd and the frightening, from a likely government shutdown, a strange meeting with 800 or so of our highest ranking military officers called back from all over th...

Every week in D’ump’s America seems to be worse than the week before. I’m reeling from all that has happened this week and frankly, I’m truly worried about what next week will bring with a shutdown likely beginning Tuesday night. On Fridays, Marcy Wheeler of emptywheel.net joins me to recap most of what happened each week.. and this week was a doozy. Get full access to The Nicole Sandler Show at n...

Greg Palast returns to The Nicole Sandler Show today to explain why and how we must protect our votes. Yes, they are at risk. And he answers my question about what happened too Bobby Kennedy. And no, it wasn't Tylenol. Get full access to The Nicole Sandler Show at nicolesandler.substack.com/subscribe Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/p...

Jeff Sharlet has been covering the rise of religious fundamentalism and right wing extremism. He’s warned us for decades now about the rise of fascism in the US. And although he’s not a soothsayer, he really has predicted what was coming. I think we’ve entered a new era with the murder of Kirk. We’ll hear what Jeff has to say when he joins us on today’s show. Get full access to The Nicole Sandler...

Today on my show, I had the honor of speaking with my friend Kelly Carlin. Yes, George Carlin’s daughter was probably channeling her dad when, this weekend, she posted a video to Instagram  calling out Disney for bowing down to dear leader and suspending Jimmy Kimmel. Well, Kimmel returns to the public airwaves tonight, and Kelly spoke to us about how her dad fought and spoke out regularly about o...

Today, in addition to yesterday's hate-filled funeral, we'll talk about the crackdown on Free Speech from the administration who promised a "return" to FREE SPEECH. There's also a little issue of a so-called president writing a DM to his AG but sending it out for ALL to see on his Orwellian-named "Truth" social media platform. I could go on, but it’s Monday, so Jonathan...

We made it to another Friday when we get together with the always-brilliant Marcy Wheeler of emptywheel.net to recap much of the important news of the week. This was the week that Jimmy Kimmel was unceremoniously yanked from the air with threats to the rest of the broadcast media not to cross el Presidenté or suffer their consequences. Get full access to The Nicole Sandler Show at nicolesandler.su...

I can't recall when Republican hypocrisy has been more evident than this week. It's an ugly and vicious cycle. Charlie Kirk was killed, shot by a killer's single bullet. It was evident in the actions leading up to Jimmy Kimmel's show being indefinitely pulled from the air yesterday... Get full access to The Nicole Sandler Show at nicolesandler.substack.com/subscribe Advertising Inq...

Today is a doozy. At 7 this morning, dueling hearings in Congress began. The House Oversight committee held their hearing with Kash Patel in the hot seat - the House's version of yesterday's Senate hearing. Meanwhile, the Senate HELP committee held a hearing on wtf is happening at the CDC under RFK Jr 's leadership (sic). Trump is in the UK, Interested rates are lowered. Our guests Rey...

The title of today's show suggests a mighty big supposition, that the "ills of Democracy" can be cured. When I suggest anything similar, those who disagree with everything I stand for quickly respond that "This is not a Democracy" instead of speaking to the larger issue. Today's guest is James S Fishkin, Professor of Communications, Prof of Political Science at Stanford, au...

Mondays are tough. I like to ease into the week by injecting humor and snark into the news. I prefer to do that every day, but Mondays are special. JONATHAN LARSEN of The Fucking News joins us every Monday for the second half of the show to discuss what's happening in our truly f'd up reality. But today, we’ll bring along some extra snark! We'll begin the show with an old friend of min...

Every Friday, the always brilliant and always informed Marcy Wheeler of emptywheel.net joins me to wrap up the week. We discuss most of the big and often the under-reported news of the week that you really should know about. And wow, was this a jam-packed week… From Charlie Kirks murder to the FBI’s malpractice. If not for the shooter’s father, he’d still be loose. To Trump’s power grab, SCOTUS cr...

I was struggling this morning as I sat down to prepare for today’s show. I’ve had panic attacks since last November, and I’m doing my best to keep them at bay these days. But today is a tough one. As was yesterday. I'm sorry that Charlie Kirk was killed yesterday. Gun violence is never the answer to anything, especially a political disagreement. It's sickening. On Today's show, I'l...

Today has been a shitty day on a few levels. Two shootings today. One at a college in Colorado, injuring three.. The other at a college in Utah, killing Charlie Kirk. Unreal. On today's show, Impolite Talking Religion & Politics with comedian John Fugelsang & Democratic strategist Mike Nellis. Get full access to The Nicole Sandler Show at nicolesandler.substack.com/subscribe Advertisin...

Journalist, Author, Podcaster, Musician and a lot more, Brian Karem joins me today. Brian has had numerous run-ins with his orangeness. With Captain Cankles' relationship with pedophile/child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein dominating much of the news today, that's one of the shitty news items we discussed today. The Epstein connection and stories surrounding it are really at the center of...

SCOTUS keeps issuing unsigned decisions from cases on the so-called Shadow Docket; two of them came this morning, neither one good. The first allows D'ump to fire commissioners at the FTC and other executive branch agencies without cause . In this case, that means his firing of Democratic member Rebecca Slaughter stands. The second one actually allows the administration to engage in racial pro...