Harry talks with Sen. Chris Murphy about a range of subjects, including his recent reelection, his favorite book, and his annual walks across Connecticut. They focus mainly however on Murphy’s thoughts about the reasons for the Democrats 2024 defeat. Murphy had argued that the Democratic Party was ignoring a crisis staring it in the face, born of the inability to connect with Americans’ bleak view of the economy and their growing alienation. As flawed and vicious as Trump’s candidacy was, it had a certain spiritual element of connecting with voters’ deep-seated feelings about a society that is leaving them behind and increasingly isolated and lonely. Murphy talks about how the Democrats can and should advance their own message of meaning and purpose, and what they will need to do in the near future to counter Trump’s expected legal and policy outrages.

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Harry speaks with Constitutional scholar and Supreme Court expert Steve Vladeck about the seeds of a fundamental crisis in American political life. The Supreme Court rebuffed Trump at least some in his first term. But now Trump is a lame duck and a lawless cynic, and it’s not hard to envision as ignoring even a mandate from the Supreme Court. Moreover, in part because of their bad steps in the last several years, including the Dobbs opinion, the court is at a low ebb of respect and credibility in the country, which is ultimately the capital it must call on to enforce its decisions. Harry and Steve also discuss the constitutional gambit. Trump is suggesting for recess appointments. If the Senate won’t cooperate, they can drive in lot of thinks is unlikely to succeed. Finally, the two talk about the embarrassing and non-judicious personal attack on Steve launched by Court of Appeals Judge Edith Jones at a recent conference of the Federalist Society.

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An excellent roundtable of commentators—Heather Cox Richardson, Bill Kristol, and Mara Liasson—explains why based on the early evidence, Trump 2.0 poses grave risks to the rule of law & the national security. He has advanced a series of gonzo nominations for key administration positions that as much as dare the Senate to cross him. And he is making noises about using recess appointments to install those nominees, a maneuver that would warp the constitutional design of Senate advice and consent.

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