US of Ed

"We're really pushing against a ceiling here... she's got to reach deep into her cookie jar and pull out more cookies." Officially the Democrats' nomination for president in 2024, Kamala Harris continues to gain in the polls but Republicans are doing all that they can to keep people from voting with voter purges, lawsuits, and intimidation. Meanwhile, Jack Smith is doing his best to salvage his Ja...

"This is a movement, and I'm saying movement here beyond political parties." Democrats have come together to pull for Kamala Harris at the Democratic National Convention this week, so just what kind of election platform are we seeing come together as far as policy is concerned? Also, attempts to impeach Joe Biden have died not with a bang but with a whimper as Republicans have found nothing to sub...

"This campaign now is the Happy Meal, they're announcing happy happy happy, better better better, don't fight all that old, ugly stuff." Kamala Harris continues to make massive gains over Donald Trump in the polls, but is there a risk of complacency setting in if more policies are not announced? Meanwhile, Ukraine has flipped the script on Russia and made an incursion into Russia territory to Puti...

"So if the nation's in danger, look to the coach." It's official, the Democratic National Convention has nominated Kamala Harris unopposed as their presidential candidate for the 2024 election and she has announced Minnesota governor Tim Walz as her running mate. While Donald Trump was hoping Joe Biden would somehow return to snatch back the nomination, he's got problems enough of his own to distr...

"Americans are feeling positive... the first thing Kamala did in her first ad was talk about the things she's going to do." The White House has announced anticipated reforms for the Supreme Court this week, including term limits and a binding code of conduct, but just how long before any of it can come into effect? Meanwhile, the Harris campaign is making great strides against her 'weird' opponent...

"Black women are a very powerful force, and they've been on the sidelines since Obama." After weeks of speculation and calls for him to drop out, Joe Biden has finally opted out of the 2024 presidential race. But not everyone is happy, with Republicans throwing everything at the wall to declare Biden bowing out as somehow illegal or, failing that, calling on him to resign. We discuss the campaign...

"This is so super weird, I think I've withdrawn from reality here." An apparent assassination attempt on former president Donald Trump wiped everything else from the headlines ahead of the Republican National Convention. As the dust settles it appears to have shifted the political landscape shockingly little but it remains to be seen whether Biden and Democrats can regain political momentum. Also...

"[Joe Biden] would be a marked man if he doesn't leave now." In spite of a dismal debate performance and questions about his ability to do the job for four more years, Joe Biden has rejected calls to step down as the Democrats' nominee. NATO has met in Washington this week to celebrate its 75th anniversary and rally behind Ukraine right as Russia unleashes its deadliest wave of missile strikes in...

"What we thought of as the United States of America is gone." The US Supreme Court has come to a stunning decision to deliver US presidents' almost total immunity against any and all crimes committed while in office as long as they can be vaguely defined as "official acts" of the presidency, all but openly declaring allegiance to Donald Trump. This comes in the same week that the court has severel...

"In Biden's case, his voters are there but they need to be compelled to vote given his age and given this kind of nagging position on Israel." Joe Biden and Donald Trump are set to face up in the first of two scheduled debates with Team Trump already downplaying the likelihood of a good performance, but just how significant the event will be for voters remains to be seen. Meanwhile, whistleblower...

"What we are seeing is the professionals now sounding the alarm, that if perchance he becomes the president he will not have the mental stamina to perform the office." Joe Biden is attempting to soften the blow of his latest attempts to turn back illegal border crossing by installing new protections for immigrant spouses of US citizens. Meanwhile, more people seem to be waking up to the increasing...

"This is such nothing that they're turning their own people against them. Get with it, Republicans." President Joe Biden's son Hunter has been convicted on charges related to his use of illegal substances and possession of a firearm in 2018. Will it make much difference with voters or have Republicans oversold on Hunter's criminal misdeeds? Discussing that and other partisan divides in the legal s...

"Trump is trying to become president so he can abolish most of the things in the constitution and get out of all these charges." A week on since Donald Trump became the first former president to be convicted on felony charges, fallout continues as Republicans scramble to justify and distract. Meanwhile, Joe Biden has sought to shore up perceived weakness on the issue of the southern border with an...

Breaking news this morning that the jury in Donald Trump's New York fraud case have delivered a guilty verdict on all 34 counts, making Trump the first former president ever convicted of a crime. Ed and Sean dissect the likelihood of Trump facing jailtime, what the process will look like, as well as what the conviction means for the Republican party, voters, and for Biden. See omnystudio.com/liste...

"It's hard for me... to think of Americans wanting a convicted felon as President of the United States." At time of recording, the jury in Trump's New York fraud case is deliberating on what will be a historical decision regardless of what they determine. Meanwhile, the Biden administration continues to throw its support behind Israel claiming their invasion of Rafah has failed to cross a "red lin...

"The world has lost patience with Israel."  Karim Khan, chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, has requested arrest warrants for three top Hamas leaders as well as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, just what are the implications? In New York, Donald Trump's hush money trial is set to wrap up next week but other legal cases are just beginnin...

"Biden has an interesting dilemma on his hands, because this election is going to be close. So whatever group you lose may lose you the election." Joe Biden is a busy man keeping those plates in the air this week, balancing policy with campaigning, as a new arms shipment to Israel runs contrary to previous tough talk and new tariffs put China at odds with American manufacturing. Meanwhile, Donald...

"Everyone loses. Even if the Israelis lose, the Palestinians have lost so much, maybe the seed isn't there anymore. And in Israel, the great abundance of goodwill Israel has built up around the world with the holocaust centres and so forth is being dismantled." As long threatened, Israel has invaded the last refuge of Palestinian citizens along the Gaza Strip, the city of Rafah, leading to more es...

"Why have an election? An assassination is cheaper." Protests concerning Israel's treatment of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have continued to wrack college campuses this week, with Joe Biden walking a thin line between support and rapprochement. Meanwhile, Donald Trump's court cases continue with conservative justices on the Supreme Court looking curiously willing to entertain arguments on presi...

"I think we should listen to the underlying message here, let's get the hell out of being warmongers." The passing of a long-stalled funding bill for Ukraine and Israel means a fresh injection of cash for Ukrainian and Gaza war efforts but, particularly for House Speaker Mike Johnson, it could come at a cost. Meanwhile, Donald Trump's hush money trial in New York continues with Justice Juan Mercha...

"Israel created a mess rather than cleaning up a mess." Israel has successfully repelled an air attack by Iran as part of an escalation of hostilities over Gaza, and the world waits to see just what a more complete reaction will look like. Meanwhile, Trump is having his day in court over hush money charges in New York while his lawyers ready arguments to be made before the Supreme Court in favour...

"It doesn't matter what a court decides today or tomorrow, the legislation needs to be clear." Arizona has resurrected an 1864 law to ban almost all abortions in the state, once again underlining the importance of reproductive rights in the 2024 campaign and damaging Donald Trump's attempts to paint himself as an abortion moderate. Meanwhile, Joe Biden is marrying policy and campaigning with new t...

"This is a turning point for Biden and the election, he has to, quick-smart, hopefully, get Israel to withdraw entirely." Seven aid workers killed in Gaza by Israeli forces brings the war home for Australians and Americans, but will Biden's strong words ever be matched by strong actions? Also, Donald Trump continues to slip out of consequences when it comes to his legal cases, with a reduced bond...

"This degrades the court and the court system." A devastating incident has left six dead and Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in ruin with the city and the Biden Administration now wrestling with how to steer the recovery. Meanwhile, Trump has been handed a lifeline after being unable to pay the bond in his New York case over fraudulent business practices leaving many wondering whether it will...

"Joe's going to have to pull a rabbit out of a hat because the American people are just disillusioned." While still battling over border control and funding for Ukraine, Democrats and Republicans appear to have reached a deal to avoid government shutdown once again, or have they? And what happens at the next federal budget two months before the election? Meanwhile, Trump has failed to secure bond...