This week, guest host Melissa Murray, host of Crooked Media’s Strict Scrutiny podcast is joined by Erin Ryan, co-host of Crooked Media’s Hysteria. They juxtapose the Obama Presidential Center opening with Trump’s UFC event celebrating his 80th birthday, and talk about the two very different visions of our country that those events (and their attendants) represent. They also touch on Trump’s dismal approval ratings, the biggest takeaways from primary battles in states like New York and Georgia, the positive vibes at the World Cup, and why the right just can’t move on from attacking pride month.

This episode originally aired in 2025. Christian nationalism is an extremist, anti-democratic ideology rooted in the belief that the United States should be a nation for Christians to the exclusion of all others. In modern times, the Trump administration and its Republican allies have wielded this ideology as a weapon to divide Americans and implement an agenda via plans like the infamous Project 2025 that eviscerates the rights of immigrants and the LGBTQ+ community, questions the rights of women to vote, restores a freedom to discriminate against others and targets reproductive rights. This week, in response to a listener question asking what Christian nationalism has to do with the central tenets of Christianity, Stacey shares her own experience as a progressive, democratic Christian, pulling back the curtain on a core truth: the malice and hatred preached by right-wing religious leaders who shape our politics has nothing to do with Jesus’s actual teachings.

What does disability rights and representation really look like? While the Trump administration continues to decimate access to healthcare and dismantle civil rights, disabled Americans are often among those most affected and most overlooked. More than 70 million adults in the United States live with a disability, navigating barriers that extend far beyond health care. This week, Stacey is joined by Marlene Sallo, Executive Director of the National Disability Rights Network, and disability rights advocate and motivational speaker Spencer West. They discuss the challenges facing the disability community, what many people get wrong about disability rights, and why building a more accessible and inclusive society is a social justice issue that impacts us all. Learn & Do More: Be Curious: Follow Spencer West on Instagram (@spencer2thewest) and expand your list of trusted creators, advocates, and journalists covering disability issues. Our guests also recommended The Anti-Ableist Manifes

Why are state governments more important than ever? While the Trump administration has been busy gutting and remaking the federal government, it’s critical to remember that the power in Washington was given to it by…the states. This week, Stacey is joined by Pennsylvania House Speaker Joanna McClinton and Daniel Squadron, cofounder of The States Project and author of The Fourth Branch. They talk about the biggest lessons from their own time as elected officials, the critical ways that state legislatures impact peoples’ lives, share stories of their biggest victories, and argue that the states can be a powerful tool in the fight for Democracy. Learn & Do More: Be Curious: Pick up a copy of Daniel’s book, The Fourth Branch: How State Government Can Save Our Union, to learn more about the power of state government and check out the chapters at the end on how to take action at home. Solve Problems: We need more people who care about their communities running for state and local office.

AI development is barreling ahead with no guardrails, leading Americans to feel anxious about what lies ahead. This week, Stacey tackles the big questions we need to ask ourselves about the technology with Katie Drummond, Global Editorial Director at Wired, and Timnit Gebru, founder and Executive Director at the Distributed AI Research Institute (DAIR). They discuss the economic uncertainty created by AI, , the motivations driving tech leaders, making sense of the flurry of information and opinions that are influencing the discourse on the issue, and whether we can imagine a more optimistic technologically-forward future.

This week, Stacey goes beyond the headlines about the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on the Voting Rights Act and outlines why this step is so dangerous - not just for minority voters around the country - but for our democracy as a whole She’s joined by Lauren Groh-Wargo, CEO of Fair Fight, to discuss what people can still do at the local level and at the ballot box to save our elections and fight back against authoritarianism. Then, Stacey is joined by CNN host Abby Phillip, who talks about the importance of debate in our political culture and what current activists can learn from Jesse Jackson’s legacy of fighting for equality.For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email [email protected] and include the name of the podcast, episode title, and episode date.Learn & Do More: Be Curious: To learn more about the extraordinary legacy of Jesse Jackson, pick up Abby Phillips’ book, “A Dream Deferred: Jesse Jackson and the Fight for Black Political Power”.  Solve Problems: On Saturday, May 16th, a national mass rally will take place at the Alabama state capitol in Montgomery. Visit allroadsleadtothesouth.com to learn about how you can participate and stay updated on boycotts, events and other rapid response efforts. You can also follow  @FairFightAction on Instagram to stay up to date on the evolving voting rights landscape and mobilization efforts in the South, including upcoming marches in Jackson, Mississippi and at state capitols in South Carolina and Louisiana.  Do Good: Medication abortion now accounts for more than two-thirds of all abortions in the U.S., and since Dobbs, mail access to the pill has been a lifeline for people in states where abortion is banned. As the Supreme Court case on this issue continues to unfold, and Republican attacks on abortion access escalate, consider donating to the National Network of Abortion Funds at https://abortionfunds.org/, and look for local organizations that support reproductive justice for ways to get involved. 

This week, Stacey opens the show by answering audience questions about the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on the Voting Rights Act, and what it means for our democracy. Then she’s joined by Jane Fonda, who explains why she’s revived the Committee for the First Amendment, a group originally supported by her father in the 1940’s. Stacey and Jane also talk about the Trump administration’s attacks against Jimmy Kimmel, why the Warner Bros. and Paramount merger is so dangerous, and what Jane has learned after decades of activism, including her actions during the Vietnam War. Learn & Do More Be Curious: To learn more about Jane Fonda’s extraordinary history of art and activism, check out the documentary Jane Fonda in Five Acts from HBO. Solve Problems: You can get involved in the fight against the consequences of the Supreme Court’s recent ruling on the Voting Rights Act. Check out the Louisiana-based organization Power Coalition for Equity and Justice at powercoalition.org to learn about

What can international pro-democracy activists teach us about taking on authoritarianism here in the US? Stacey opens the show with reflections from the Salzburg Global Forum Democracy Resilience Conference featuring reformers from Bolivia, to Hungary, to Nepal. Then she’s joined by Representative Yassamin Ansari, a freshman from Arizona and the only Iranian-American in Congress. She tells Stacey about her opposition to Trump’s war with Iran, the horrific conditions she’s seen firsthand when visiting ICE detention centers, and how we demand a practical response to the competing harms coming out of Washington. Learn & Do More: Be Curious: Check out the Substack “The Anti-Authoritarian Playbook” by Scot Nakagawa, President of the 22nd Century Initiative. Solve Problems: Step Six in the “Ten Steps to Freedom and Power” is disruption. Visit Stacey’s Substack “Assembly Notes” to read her recent post about taking action. Do Good: Visit the nonprofit FreedomforImmigrants.org to donate to t

What can international pro-democracy activists teach us about taking on authoritarianism here in the US? Stacey opens the show with reflections from the Salzburg Global Forum Democracy Resilience Conference featuring reformers from Bolivia, to Hungary, to Nepal. Then she’s joined by Representative Yassamin Ansari, a freshman from Arizona and the only Iranian-American in Congress. She tells Stacey about her opposition to Trump’s war with Iran, the horrific conditions she’s seen firsthand when visiting ICE detention centers, and how we demand a practical response to the competing harms coming out of Washington. Learn & Do More: Be Curious: Check out the Substack “The Anti-Authoritarian Playbook” by Scot Nakagawa, President of the 22nd Century Initiative. Solve Problems: Step Six in the “Ten Steps to Freedom and Power” is disruption. Visit Stacey’s Substack “Assembly Notes” to read her recent post about taking action. Do Good: Visit the nonprofit FreedomforImmigrants.org to donate to t