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Every episode
The Oath and The Office
30 episodes
Trump vs. the Supreme Court. Again.
Aug 13, 2026 · 51 min
Trump already lost on birthright citizenship. Now he is testing the limits of constitutional law with two narrower executive orders. We explain the high-stakes game of chicken underway: can a president just keep pushing after the courts and the Constitution say no? Plus, a rapid-fire breakdown of this week’s legal chaos: Vanity Plates: A bizarre but critical free speech fight. DOJ Takeover: Todd Blanche officially steps in as Attorney General after a bruising confirmation fight over Trump, DOJ i…
Blanche’s Confirmation Deal: Trump’s Weaponization Fund Could Return
Aug 6, 2026 · 1 hr
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche appears to have secured the committee votes needed to advance his nomination. He cleared the path by agreeing to rescind Donald Trump’s controversial $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund and narrow sweeping IRS audit protections for Trump and his family. But does the deal truly kill the fund—or merely clear a political hurdle while leaving the door open for its return? Corey and John argue that walking back these dangerous policies does not erase Blanche’s…
What Trump and the New Right Really Believe | David French
Jul 30, 2026 · 1 hr 16 min
What does Trump actually believe, and how does his worldview connect to the New Right? Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang look beyond the latest outrages to the ideology linking them. Then New York Times columnist David French joins Corey to discuss the forces reshaping the American right. Inside the episode: David French on birthright citizenship, the postliberal right, and whether there is a path out of America’s democratic crisis. The attack on the Smithsonian and the fight over who coun…
Trump’s Media Threats & Todd Blanche’s $1.8B Slush Fund (with Skye Perryman)
Jul 23, 2026 · 1 hr 14 min
Threatening the broadcast licenses of news networks is a direct assault on the free press. Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang tear down Trump’s extraordinary primetime speech and explain why standard media fact-checking is no longer enough to protect democracy. They also break down Todd Blanche’s attorney general confirmation hearing and a judge’s condemnation of Trump’s IRS self-dealing. Then, Democracy Forward President and CEO Skye Perryman joins Corey to expose the administration’s hidd…
Trump Targets the Press—and Spies on Americans (with Sen. Ron Wyden)
Jul 16, 2026 · 1 hr 6 min
Trump’s Justice Department subpoenaed New York Times reporters after they exposed security problems with the Qatari jet Trump accepted for use as Air Force One. The prosecutor who issued those subpoenas, Jay Clayton, is now Trump’s nominee to lead the nation’s intelligence agencies. Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang trace the line from the “bribe plane” to a broader attack on democratic accountability, including another fatal ICE shooting in Maine and the White House pressure campaign agai…
Trump’s $2.2 Billion Presidency: The Corruption the Constitution Saw Coming
Jul 9, 2026 · 52 min
Trump’s latest financial disclosure points to something far bigger than another ethics scandal: a presidency being used as a vehicle for private financial gain. From crypto windfalls and foreign-linked deals to branding revenue, settlements, and the continued monetization of political power, the numbers raise a constitutional question hiding in plain sight: what happens when the Emoluments Clauses are not enough? Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang break down the corruption story behind Trum…
Trump Loses Birthright, Wins a Power Grab (with Joyce Vance)
Jul 2, 2026 · 1 hr 1 min
The Supreme Court dealt Trump a major defeat by rejecting his effort to end birthright citizenship. It also refused to let him fire the head of the Federal Reserve. But in the same week, the Court handed him sweeping new authority by allowing presidents to remove commissioners at independent agencies. We break down what these landmark decisions mean, along with the Court’s ruling on Temporary Protected Status, its latest campaign finance decision expanding the influence of wealthy donors, the le…
Trump’s DOJ Is Hiding the Epstein Files. Katie Phang Is Suing.
Jun 25, 2026 · 57 min
Katie Phang joins The Oath and the Office to discuss her legal fight to force Trump’s DOJ to release the Epstein files. This is not about money. It is about whether Trump’s DOJ can defy the law and keep records from the public. Phang explains how she is using the Epstein Files Transparency Act, her role as a journalist, and statutory interpretation to challenge DOJ secrecy. We get into the harm Epstein caused, why transparency matters, and what it means when a citizen uses the law to fight for d…
Trump’s War on Habeas Corpus and DOJ Independence — with Harry Litman
Jun 18, 2026 · 60 min
Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang open with explosive new reporting that Stephen Miller pushed a plan for President Trump to suspend habeas corpus — the fundamental constitutional safeguard that allows people detained by the government to challenge their imprisonment in court. They explain what habeas corpus is, why it has been central since the Founding, and why suspending it to speed mass deportations would mark an extraordinary expansion of presidential power. Then Harry Litman joins Co…
Trump Melts Down as Congress Pushes Back
Jun 11, 2026 · 59 min
Trump melts down in a chaotic Meet the Press interview, lashing out when pressed on his “anti-weaponization” fund and his false claims of rigged elections. Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang break down what the moment reveals about Trump’s larger project: turning government power into personal protection, personal revenge, and an attack on democratic legitimacy. Then: Congress pushes back. The House rebukes Trump over Iran war powers and passes new Ukraine aid over his objections, raising a…
Trump’s Bad Week Is Democracy’s Opening
Jun 4, 2026 · 57 min
Donald Trump’s revenge politics hit resistance this week — not by accident, but because citizens, journalists, lawyers, judges, and lawmakers kept pushing. This week on The Oath and The Office, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang break down a rare hopeful stretch for democracy: a judge blocks payouts from Trump’s so-called “anti-weaponization” fund, another judge reopens questions around Trump’s IRS settlement, courts reject Trump’s attempt to put his name on the Kennedy Center, and thousand…
Trump’s Imperial Presidency: Bogus Charges and Foreign Wars
May 28, 2026 · 1 hr 1 min
Trump’s claim of power above the law is showing up on every front: bogus prosecutions, deportation threats, attacks on speech, war powers, and military escalation abroad. This week on The Oath and The Office, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang start with the dismissal of human trafficking charges against Kilmar Abrego Garcia. A federal judge found the prosecution vindictive and selective, a major rebuke to a Trump DOJ that tried to punish a man after he fought back against his unlawful depo…
The Secret Memos Behind the Supreme Court’s Shadow Docket (with Jodi Kantor)
May 21, 2026 · 1 hr 4 min
What is the Supreme Court doing when it acts without full briefing, oral argument, or a real explanation? This week on The Oath and The Office, Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter Jodi Kantor joins the podcast to explain the Court’s shadow docket: the emergency orders process that has become one of the most powerful and least understood parts of American government. Kantor discusses the Supreme Court memos she obtained with Adam Liptak, what they reveal about Chief Justice John Robert…
Can Trump Undo Our Citizenship Rights? (with ACLU’s Cecilia Wang)
May 14, 2026 · 1 hr 6 min
This week on The Oath and The Office, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang begin with the new redistricting wars, as southern states move to dilute Black Americans’ voting power after a green light from the Supreme Court. They look at Tennessee, Alabama, and the Virginia Supreme Court’s decision striking down a voting plan approved by voters. Then, they turn to citizenship itself: DOJ support for stripping citizenship from naturalized citizens and Trump’s attacks on his own Supreme Court just…
The Supreme Court’s Assault on Our Rights (with Kate Shaw)
May 7, 2026 · 1 hr 13 min
The Supreme Court is reshaping American democracy — weakening voting rights, empowering the presidency, and narrowing the protections that have defined modern civil rights law. John Fugelsang and Corey Brettschneider begin with the Court’s assault on the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and the fallout for democratic participation across the country. They also discuss Trump’s attacks on James Comey, threats against ABC and Jimmy Kimmel, and the broader campaign of intimidation against critics and disse…
Trump’s War on Truth and Science (with James Morone)
Apr 30, 2026 · 58 min
Trump briefly talked about “cooling things down.” Then came the escalation. This week on The Oath and The Office, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang look at how President Trump is using political violence not as a reason for restraint, but as a weapon against his opponents. Jimmy Kimmel and Trevor Noah are targeted for jokes. A 60 Minutes interview becomes another venue for attacking the press. And the administration’s suit against the Southern Poverty Law Center raises a larger question: i…
Trump’s Supreme Court, the Shadow Docket, and the New Normal (with Aaron Parnas)
Apr 23, 2026 · 52 min
Has Trump changed American politics so deeply that what once seemed dangerous now feels normal? In this episode of The Oath and The Office, we begin with the Supreme Court: the shadow docket, Clarence Thomas, and a judiciary that increasingly operates with extraordinary power and too little accountability. We then turn to the case against the former CIA director, along with the resignation of a Justice Department prosecutor, and ask what these developments reveal about the state of law, accounta…
Trump vs. the Pope
Apr 16, 2026 · 45 min
Trump says the pope should stay out of politics. But when Trump posts himself as Jesus, attacks independent moral authority, and demands loyalty from every institution, the real goal is not religious neutrality. It is control. In this episode of The Oath and The Office, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang begin with Trump’s clash with the pope and what it reveals about the authoritarian impulse: not keeping religion out of politics, but bending religion to serve power. Then they turn to Hung…
Is Trump Committing War Crimes? Lawrence Douglas on Hegseth, Nuremberg, and the Criminal State
Apr 9, 2026 · 1 hr 2 min
Can a president commit war crimes? Can a defense secretary? And what would it take to hold either one accountable? Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang open with the Supreme Court showdown over Trump’s attack on birthright citizenship. After Trump became the first sitting president to attend oral arguments at the Court, Solicitor General D. John Sauer faced tough questioning from several justices, including Chief Justice John Roberts, who delivered the line of the day: “It’s a new world. It’s…
Before Project 2025: How the Right Built Trump’s Power Grab (with David Sirota)
Apr 2, 2026 · 1 hr 5 min
Trump’s attack on birthright citizenship is only part of the story. The bigger danger is a decades-long effort to free the presidency from constitutional limits. Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang begin by breaking down Trump’s latest argument against birthright citizenship, why it misreads the Constitution, and what is really at stake in the legal fight. Then David Sirota joins to trace the deeper roots of Trump’s power grab: the conservative blueprints that helped lay the groundwork for P…
Mueller Warned Congress. Trump Celebrated His Death.
Mar 26, 2026 · 45 min
Trump’s reaction to Robert Mueller’s death was grotesque. But the deeper question is what Congress failed to do when Mueller was alive: why didn’t it impeach Trump based on the Mueller report? Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang revisit Mueller’s findings, the Nixon parallel, and the constitutional failure that still shapes Trump’s presidency. Then: a major Supreme Court voting-rights case out of Mississippi, ICE at airports as a new front in Trump’s immigration crackdown, and a federal judg…
Stacey Abrams on the SAVE Act: The New Voter Suppression Threat
Mar 19, 2026 · 1 hr 10 min
Is the SAVE Act really about election security — or is it a new blueprint for voter suppression? On this episode of The Oath and The Office, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang break down the latest fight over the SAVE Act, why its proof-of-citizenship requirement could make it harder for millions of eligible Americans to register and vote, and what this battle reveals about the future of democracy. Then Stacey Abrams joins the show to explain what the bill would do, why it is so dangerous,…
Trump’s War and the Imperial Presidency
Mar 12, 2026 · 54 min
Trump’s shifting war aims are a warning sign of the imperial presidency. We examine how changing justifications for war weaken democratic accountability, whether Congress can still use the power of the purse to stop an illegal war, how the Anthropic story reflects resistance to expanding executive power, why the growing influence of billionaires in American elections is making constitutional democracy even more fragile, and why Kristi Noem’s exit at Homeland Security was a rare reminder of how c…
Can Congress Stop Trump’s War?
Mar 5, 2026 · 52 min
As the prospect of a U.S. military clash with Iran returns to the headlines, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang break down the constitutional stakes: who actually controls the power to start—and stop—a war? They explain the War Powers Resolution of 1973, why Congress passed it after Vietnam, how the 60-day clock is supposed to work, and why the law was weakened in the 1980s—leaving presidents with wide room to maneuver. What can Congress realistically do today if Trump escalates conflict? T…
Trump Loses in Court — But Pressure Remains on the Press and Late Night (with Mike Pesca)
Feb 26, 2026 · 59 min
Trump just suffered a major Supreme Court defeat. A significant tariffs ruling limits presidential power and reasserts Congress’s authority — applying a doctrine once confined to agencies directly to a president. But don’t mistake this for resolution. A reauthorization attempt could trigger a new wave of litigation and deepen the constitutional fight. Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang also examine how Judge Cannon stalled Jack Smith at a pivotal moment — and what the prosecution of a forme…
Title Trump’s FCC Pressures Late Night — Even as Resistance Wins
Feb 19, 2026 · 1 hr 4 min
Trump’s FCC is pressuring late-night TV — and CBS is hesitating. What happens when regulators don’t censor speech outright, but make networks afraid to air it? In Minnesota, democratic guardrails held. A far-right witness was exposed in a Senate hearing and a judge blocked cuts to critical public health funding. Proof that pushback can succeed. Then the counter-move. Under the Trump administration, the Federal Communications Commission has signaled it will enforce the equal-time rule against lat…
DOJ Payback Politics (with Preet Bharara)
Feb 12, 2026 · 58 min
Trump is turning DOJ into payback politics—and this week shows the playbook in action: pressure around the Gateway tunnel, a reporter’s home searched, the Clinton subpoena spectacle, and a growing recruiting crisis inside the department. Then Preet Bharara on the warning we missed: Trump forcing the showdown that got Preet fired—an early preview of today’s collapse of prosecutorial independence. We break down political prosecutions (Comey, James), the hard edge cases where “law enforcement” gets…
Trump vs. the Rule of Law: A 5-Year-Old Detained + Election Power Grab
Feb 5, 2026 · 1 hr 13 min
A federal judge warns that Trump is violating the principles of law and the Declaration of Independence—and this week’s events show exactly what that means in practice. We break down the detention of a five-year-old and the collapse of due process, Trump’s threat against Trevor Noah and the future of free speech, and the raid on a Georgia election center. We also examine the authoritarian “tell” behind Trump’s call to “nationalize the voting”. Plus: Trump’s reported Fed Chair pick Kevin Warsh an…
Jan. 6 Then & Now: The Insurrection Blueprint (with Tom Joscelyn)
Jan 29, 2026 · 1 hr 15 min
Jan. 6 wasn’t just a riot—it was a blueprint. This week, we connect Jan. 6 then to now and ask the core question of self-government: what happens when federal power starts acting as if the rules don’t apply? Hosts Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang are joined by Tom Joscelyn—senior House Judiciary staff and a principal author of the House January 6 Committee’s final report—for a deep dive into the pressure campaign on Mike Pence, the false-electors plot, and why white supremacy and Christia…
DOJ vs. Trump: The Indictment That Never Came (with Glenn Kirschner)
Jan 22, 2026 · 1 hr 11 min
The indictment that never came is still shaping DOJ’s ongoing battle with Trump. In the first half, Corey Brettschneider and John Fugelsang break down this week’s accountability flashpoints: The push to impeach DHS Secretary Kristi Noem — what impeaching a cabinet official actually means and why it matters now The Supreme Court fight tied to the FTC with huge stakes for independent agencies and the question of whether a president can threaten the Federal Reserve The looming tariff decision — and…
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