Episodes
Hot on the heels of the Iowa caucus, Republican candidates Donald Trump, Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis prepare for the next primary showdown in New Hampshire. Sarah and Justin unpack if it could prove to be a tougher test for Trump and a way back into the race for the other candidates.And, why are the Democrats infighting after Biden’s idea to bump the state from its prized primary calendar slot?HOSTS:
Sarah Smith, North America editor
Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenterGET IN TOUCH:
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The 2024 presidential election is officially underway.Americast hits the road for a record breaking caucus. Destination? Des Moines, Iowa. It’s not only the coldest caucus ever seen in Iowa, but it’s also the biggest landslide for a Republican nominee. The question is whether it’s enough to bury his main rivals Ron Desantis and Nikki Haley for good, or whether the runners up are still even in the running at all.The gang chew through the numbers with the famed pollster Frank Luntz, and Sarah gets a peek into the Trump family business by speaking to the former President’s son, Eric.HOSTS:
• S...
With the Iowa caucus just days away, Chris Christie drops out of the 2024 presidential race. Can anyone stop Donald Trump? The team takes a look at why Iowa dominates the political conversation every four years.Anthony Blinken is once again in the Middle East to broker peace in the region amid a barrage of attacks by Houthi rebels against Red Sea shipping.And on Saturday Taiwan heads to the polls for its presidential elections in a vote that could shape the future of relations between the US and China. With the help of Ivo Daalder, former US Ambassador to NATO, the team takes you inside the...
High-profile associates of Jeffrey Epstein named in US court papers.Former presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump are among the people named in US court papers detailing connections of late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.The team assesses what we know so far, what’s to come, and how the story has played out on social media.And after weeks of controversy, Claudine Gay has stepped down as president of Harvard University following her comments on anti-Semitism. We speak to the reporter who got the scoop on the plagiarism story about why he thinks she had no choice but to step down.HOSTS:
• Sa...
Americast reimagines the Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol, to understand the changing landscape of American politics. They are joined by Heather Cox Richardson, historian and author of the hugely popular newsletter "Letters from an American", who helps guide them through the past, the present and the future of the United States on this special Christmas edition.HOSTS:
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondent
• Anthony Zurcher, North America correspondentGUEST:
• Heather Cox Richardson, author GET ...
The Colorado Supreme Court has ruled that Trump cannot run for president in the state. The Trump team has called the decision “completely flawed” and will appeal to the US Supreme Court. But will this lead other states to follow suit? The Americast team brings in a constitutional expert – Kermit Roosevelt III – to dive into the 14th amendment and what could happen next. HOSTS:
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondent
• Anthony Zurcher, North America correspondent GUEST:
• Kermit Roosevelt III, ...
In a week dominated by legal cases, the team takes you into the virtual Americast courtroom to dissect the various trials involving Donald Trump and Rudy Giuliani.Sarah’s back from her trip to the US/Mexico border and tells us how it relates to a funding deadlock in Congress for support to Ukraine. One person who lives on that border is former presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke. He dials in to chat about how the deadlock can be broken and enters his own predictions into the Americast time capsule…HOSTS:
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Marianna Sprin...
The shadow looming over the fourth Republican debate was the party’s most recent president, Donald Trump. But while the other candidates traded blows at one another, Trump was conspicuously absent, instead taking part in a town hall event on Tuesday evening. He raised eyebrows when saying he would only be a dictator on ‘day one’ if elected president. The Americast team chew over Trump’s comments – and the Republican debate – before speaking to GOP candidate Asa Hutchinson, the former governor of Arkansas who’s still in the race for the White House.And, a clip of American university leaders ...
Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger has died at the age of 100.The team take a world tour of the polarising statesman’s legacy with his biographer.MSNBC host Rachel Maddow talks about Trump, misinformation and charting the rise of fascism in the US in her new book.And, what does New York Congressman George Santos have to say about efforts to expel him from the US House of Representatives? HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondent
• Anthony Zurcher, North America correspondent GUESTS:
• Rachel Maddow, broadcaster and...
Happy Thanksgiving Americasters!
OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman is returning as boss just days after he was fired by the board.
The team talk about the whole story: who he is, and who’s winning the AI arms race, with New York Times tech journalist Mike Isaac.
And – the lives of two turkeys, ‘Liberty and ‘Bell’, have been saved after they received a pardoning from Joe Biden in time for Thanksgiving.
A former White House chef reveals the favourite foods of past presidents.
HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and...
Sarah didn’t quite make it to dinner with Xi Jinping at the APEC Summit, but we spoke to someone who did, an old friend he met in 1985 at a potluck in Muscatine, Iowa.Back in the present, the Chinese president has held talks with Joe Biden for the first time in over a year. What came from the meeting and where has it landed US/China relations?
And, Gen Z and Millennials will make up half of the electorate when it comes to the 2024 presidential election. The Americast team looks at the political power of social media with Gen Z TikTok influencers Harry Sisson and Isabel Brown.
HOSTS:
• J...
As votes from Election Day 2023 were tallied up this week, wins for Democrats may have given a preview into next year’s presidential election. But new polls seem to point towards a rocky road to re-election for President Joe Biden. It’s not all good news for Trump, though. He and his children took the stand in New York, giving evidence in the civil fraud case brought against him. How might these problems play out as the 2024 presidential elections near? Expert pollster and political analyst Amy Walter joins the team to make sense of it all.HOSTS:
Sarah Smith, North America editor
Marianna S...
Twelve months until the US election, Americasters join us on the recording to ask some of the big questions about an era-defining presidential poll and help the team put some predictions in the Americast time capsule.Will it be Biden v Trump again? What issues will define the race? Could we see a first female president sooner than it seems? And will Justin have a change of heart about Americast's Discord community? Listen back to our live episode.HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondentGET IN...
The aide to Donald Trump’s White House Chief of Staff opens up to Americast about her mistakes and why she believes that the former president should never be allowed near the Oval Office again.Cassidy Hutchinson explains why she wrote her candid memoir, which Trump’s team tells us “either belongs in the discount bin of the fiction section of a bookstore or should be repurposed as toilet paper.”There’s finally a new Speaker of the House of Representatives. But who is Mike Johnson?And Arnold Schwarzenegger tells Justin why he thinks Trump’s re-election hopes have terminated.Please note there ...
President Biden wanted to show America’s global strength during his flying visit to Israel this week, but does the United States still call the shots internationally? The Americast team reviews Biden’s high-stakes 30 hours in the region, talks about the misinformation swirling around the internet, and weighs in on America’s place in the world.Back in DC, House Republicans are still struggling to elect a Speaker after two rounds of voting. Anthony gavels the gang in for a crash course on the latest congressional chaos.HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America edito...
President Biden has promised to support Israel with whatever it needs and forcefully condemned the attacks by Hamas on civilians. But what do Americans think about the unfolding conflict in the Middle East?The Americast team also hears from 2020 presidential candidate and co-founder of the Forward Party, Andrew Yang, on why third parties are important to US politics and what it’s like running for the Oval Office.HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondent
• Anthony Zurcher, North America corresp...
For the first time in US history, a speaker has been kicked out. A group of Trump-supporting Republicans carried out a coup to remove him from the chair of the House of Representatives.How did it come about? What does it say about the Republican Party? Put simply, what the hell happens now? Americast is called to order to shed light on the situation in Congress.And on the theme of political division, Naomi Klein explains her theory behind what’s making America hard to govern and why not everyone on the left wants to get behind Joe Biden.HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Katty Kay, U...
Why did Donald Trump skip another Republican debate? Sarah is sent to Michigan instead of California as Trump and Joe Biden race to show their solidarity with striking car factory workers.Marc Lotter, who ran the comms on Trump's last campaign and was press secretary for Vice-President Mike Pence, tells the Americast team about the ex-president's re-election strategy.He gives his take on why Trump doesn't need to debate his Republican rivals, which vice-presidential pick could help put him back into the Oval Office, and the only thing that could stop Trump from winning the Republican nomina...
Some US politicians are growing impatient over supporting the war effort – and a lot could change if Donald Trump wins back the White House.Our very own Anthony was in the Oval Office to see President Zelensky meet its current occupant, Joe Biden, while Sarah watched them address the UN. We talk about how Washington views America’s role in the conflict.And Marianna chats to award-winning true crime podcasters, Suruthi Bala and Hannah Maguire, about the harmful effects of social media’s obsession with crime cases and whether that could extend to US politics.HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 pres...
Is Joe Biden too old to win another go in the White House? And could his son derail his campaign? The Americast team talks through the challenges the president is facing in the run-up to the next election.Barack Obama's former spokesperson and podcaster Tommy Vietor gives us his thoughts on Biden's achievements and viral moments, as well as his 2024 chances, with some critics obsessed by his age and sceptical about Vice President Kamala Harris.And the gang tries to guess the Republican presidential candidate from the songs that supposedly "stir their souls".HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 pre...
How do we cover a headline-grabbing former president who falsely claims he never lost the election?Two of our bosses step into the worldwide HQ of Americast for the kind of conversation we normally have in our morning meetings: what past mistakes can we learn from and what’s the BBC’s strategy for reporting on Donald Trump’s campaign and his court cases?HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondentGUESTS:
• Paul Danahar, BBC News Foreign Editor
• Adam Levy, BBC News Channel Executive ProducerGET I...
Charting music's part in US politics, from 1970s disco to 'Rich Men North of Richmond', which has become a surprise No.1 hit. What does this country song, claimed by conservatives, tell us about American society? The Americast team talk to the BBC's 'Professor of Pop', Paul Gambaccini, about protest music in the States.And what happens when musicians refuse to be used by politicians? Karen Willis, manager of The Village People and the wife of its lead singer, tells us about the YMCA group's cease and desist letter against Donald Trump.HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, N...
While his challengers clashed in Milwaukee, Donald Trump skipped the first Republican debate of the campaign for the relative comfort of an interview with ex-Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson.Did any of the other presidential candidates surprise? It’s an Americast Wisconsin special as the team try cheese curds and sip beer at a bar near the venue and link up with Sarah, who’s in Atlanta waiting for Trump’s latest arrest, to break down the showdown and the no-show.And Marianna chats to local voters about how the politics has been playing out on their social media feeds.HOSTS:
• Sarah Smith, Nor...
As the last Republican presidential hopefuls try to qualify for the opening debate of the primary in Milwaukee next week, Donald Trump is deciding whether to turn up or to surrender to a court in Georgia. Jake Tapper, who has moderated election debates for CNN, joins the Americast team to explain what they are like behind the scenes and how this one could play out.HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondent
• Anthony Zurcher, North America correspondentGUEST:
• Jake Tapper, CNN anchor and author...
Donald Trump has been criminally charged for the fourth time in a frenzied five months. Now he’s accused of trying to interfere with the result of the 2020 election in Georgia.The Americast team stays up late into the Atlanta and Washington nights (while Justin mans the Radio 4 studio) to talk through what’s in the indictment – and why this one could be the most challenging yet for Trump.HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Anthony Zurcher, North America correspondentGUEST:
• Josh McKoon, Georgia Republican Party chairmanGET IN TOUCH:
• Join our onli...
As Donald Trump prepares for a possible fourth indictment, Americast wonders if the word “unprecedented” has lost all meaning. To find out, we gather together four BBC Washington reporters past and present to talk about how US politics has changed since their tenures, swap stories of presidential interviews, and share American memories through the medium of show and tell.HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondentGUESTS:
• Matt Frei, Channel 4 News presenter
• Nick Bryant, ex-BBC New York corres...
As Donald Trump pleads not guilty over the Capitol riot, will his third criminal indictment impact his election chances?Is the ex-president allowed to use campaign money to fund his legal battles? Could he really be president from jail? And is there no-one in the Democratic Party who will challenge Joe Biden?We’re back (and Justin has woken up!) to answer questions from Americasters with the help of political correspondent Liz Landers, who's standing in for Anthony (but doesn’t have his pink suit).HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Marianna Spring,...
Donald Trump has been charged with a third set of crimes. This time he's accused of plotting to overturn his election defeat after an inquiry into the storming of the Capitol two years ago on January 6th.Former FBI director James Comey, who was fired by Trump, joins this emergency Americast, as we look at what happens next and what it could mean for the ex-president's attempt to return to the White House.HOSTS:
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondentGUEST:
• James Comey, former FBI directorGET IN TOUCH:
• Join our online community...
Viral memes and alien themes: the Americast News Feed returns as we scroll through the biggest stories trending on social media.Twitter X and Threads fight for online attention while Congress hears unworldly claims about the existence of UFOs.Hunter Biden’s legal troubles continue, and 81-year-old Senator Mitch McConnell freezes during a press conference.These topics and much more are unpacked on Americast’s podcast equivalent of a social network.HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America editor
• Marianna Spring, disinformation and social media correspondent
• Ant...
Could global warming make some states uninhabitable? With parts of the US sweltering in record-breaking heatwaves, the Americast team wonders whether cities like Phoenix in Arizona can continue to survive by the end of the century.Meanwhile, Sarah enjoys cooler temperatures in Colorado and catches up with the UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly at the Aspen Security Forum.And Hollywood strikes have held up the Barbie film's press tour, but could politicians learn a thing or two from its internet-breaking marketing campaign?HOSTS:
• Justin Webb, Radio 4 presenter
• Sarah Smith, North America...