It’s all change in the Sunshine State. The term-limited governor Ron DeSantis won’t be on the ballot in next week’s primary. During his tenure, the former quintessential swing state has become a bastion of Republican power and centre of MAGA-land. How did a purple state turn so deeply red?

Guests and hosts:

• Charlotte Howard, US editor
• Rebecca Jackson, Southern correspondent
• Robert Guest, deputy editor
• Peter Schorsch, publisher of Florida Politics
• Byron Donalds, congressman who is running to be Florida’s next governor

Topics covered:

• Demographic shifts in Florida
• The state as a policy lab
• Challenges for the next governor

Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts

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AI could destroy millions of American jobs. Politicians have sometimes struggled to deal with previous eras of workplace upheaval: can America retrain workers before AI leaves them behind?

Guests and hosts:

• John Prideaux, executive editor
• Charlotte Howard, US editor
• Alex Domash, economics correspondent
• Maria Flynn, CEO of Jobs for the Future

Topics covered:

• Industries threatened by AI
• Past eras of technological change
• New efforts to retrain workers

Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts

Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to The Economist.

An establishment politician faces an energetic upstart. It’s a familiar story– but, in Michigan, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Democrats need to win this seat to take control of the Senate. Who will Michiganders trust? And what does it mean for the future of the Democratic party?

Guests and hosts:

• Charlotte Howard, US editor
• James Bennet, Lexington columnist
• Jeff Timmer, former Executive Director of the Michigan Republican Party

Topics covered:

• Michigan Senate race
• Democratic socialism
• AIPAC

Net approval for President Trump's decision to attack Iran now stands at -30% among Americans. Meanwhile, the administration’s attempts to broker peace are stalling, and the Strait of Hormuz remains closed. What will this ongoing war cost America?

Guests and hosts:

• Charlotte Howard, US editor
• James Bennet, Lexington columnist
• Shashank Joshi, Washington bureau chief
• Robert Guest, deputy editor
• Matthew Kroenig, Georgetown University political scientist

Topics covered:

• Military spending
• The Korean War’s legacy
• Republican goals in Iran

Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts

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In his second term, Donald Trump has transformed the justice department. Todd Blanche, America’s acting attorney-general, has done as much as anyone to aid this shift. This week Mr Blanche is facing confirmation hearings to stay in the job. What’s going on at the DoJ, and why does it matter?

Guests and hosts:

• John Prideaux, executive editor and host of “Checks and Balance”
• Charlotte Howard, US editor
• James Bennet, Lexington columnist
• Kennett Werner, Washington correspondent
• Aziz Huq, University of Chicago law professor

Topics covered:

• Trump v Slaughter
• The role of the attorney-general
• DoJ staff attrition

Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts

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Donald Trump earned at least $2.2bn in outside income in 2025. The president says his extraordinary windfall, revealed in financial disclosures last week, was thanks to a booming stock market. The White House has denied any conflicts of interest. How did the president amass all this wealth?

Guests and hosts:

• John Prideaux, executive editor and host of “Checks and Balance”
• Charlotte Howard, US editor
• Shashank Joshi, incoming Washington bureau chief
• Richard Painter, former chief White House ethics lawyer

Topics covered:

• Trump’s financial disclosures
• The Emoluments Clause
• Democrats’ response

Transcripts of our podcasts are available via economist.com/podcasts

Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to The Economist.

America is celebrating its semiquincentennial. The Founding Fathers had an idea for a system of government: three separate branches, with checks and balances so each could make sure the others didn’t overreach. As America marks its big birthday, how is that holding up?

Guests and hosts:

• John Prideaux, executive editor and host of “Checks and Balance”
• Charlotte Howard, US editor
• James Bennet, Lexington columnist
• Charles Birnbaum, president of the Cultural Landscape Foundation
• Lindsay Chervinsky, executive director of the George Washington Presidential Library

Topics covered:

• The Roberts Court
• The power of the executive branch
• Congressional dysfunction

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J.D. Vance rose to fame off the back of a book. Now, a decade after “Hillbilly Elegy”, he’s written another. “Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith” charts his conversion to Catholicism. How does the way Vance writes about his faith help us understand America’s vice president? And what is Catholicism’s influence on the right of American politics?

Guests and hosts:

• John Prideaux, executive editor and host of “Checks and Balance”
• Charlotte Howard, US editor
• James Bennet, Lexington columnist
• Catherine Nixey, Britain correspondent
• Ryan Burge, political scientist at Washington University

Topics covered:

• J.D. Vance’s new book
• The history of Catholicism in US politics
• Religious trends in America

Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+

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