Stay ConnectedWelcome to Audie Cornish and Ari Shapiro’s Engagement Party, where the hot takes are the smart takes.
After years of working side by side, Audie and Ari have made it official with their pop culture podcast. Party hopping between what you’re watching, reading and scrolling, these longtime friends unpack what matters in our endless feeds.
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This week, both President Biden and former president Trump will head to the US-Mexico border, underscoring just how central immigration policy has become to this year’s election. CNN’s Priscilla Alvarez covered immigration during the Trump administration and now covers the Biden White House. She and Audie talk about Biden and Trump at the border this week, and how Texas Governor Greg Abbott has successfully elevated the border issue by bussing over 100,000 undocumented migrants to northern cities as part of his “Operation Lone Star.”
Read more from Priscilla and National Political Reporter Eric Bradner: Gov. Greg Abbott’s border tactics force Democrats to confront migrant crisis in their own backyards
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American politicians are responsible for some of the wildest scandals in the history of our country.
CNN Anchor and Chief Washington Correspondent Jake Tapper looks back on six of the most iconic political controversies of the modern era in his new series United States of Scandal with Jake Tapper.
Audie and Jake talk about what motivates politicians to break the rules, why they think they won’t get caught, and how the public’s reaction to these moral and legal mishaps has changed over the years.
Watch United States of Scandal with Jake Tapper here, and catch it on TV, it airs on Sundays, at 9pm ET/PT on CNN.
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Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis pushed back hard after having her personal life dragged into the spotlight. Lawyers for Donald Trump are trying to dismiss her from the Georgia election subversion case she brought against the former president. They argued that she and Nathan Wade, the special prosecutor she hired to lead the case, engaged in an improper romantic relationship which financially benefitted her.
Audie chats with journalist George Chidi about the hearing and what’s next for Willis. Chidi is a politics and democracy reporter for The Guardian, based in Atlanta. Chidi himself was subpoenaed in this case after exposing the Republican fake electors plot. Chidi was in the courtroom for Willis’s testimony, and he paints an audio courtroom sketch of this jaw-dropping moment.
George Chidi is co-host of the podcast King Slime: The Prosecution of Young Thug and YSL.
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The landscape of workplace etiquette has undergone a seismic shift in the wake of the pandemic. Gen Z entered the workforce and influenced already evolving social norms, from the dilemma of camera on or off, to the choice between calling or texting, and the blurred lines between what constitutes professional attire. Audie talks with Kate Zabriskie, the founder of Business Training Works, about the change in modern workplace norms.
We're diving deeper into the ever-evolving landscape of workplace etiquette, especially with Gen Z stepping into the forefront. Whether you're a seasoned pro or new to the workforce, we want to hear from you. Share your thoughts or questions. Text or send a voice memo to: 202-854-8802.
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Mitch McConnell is facing open criticism about his leadership among some in the Senate GOP, and that criticism is being egged on by Donald Trump. All comes after bitter disputes over immigration legislation and Ukraine aid. Audie talks with CNN Congressional Correspondents Manu Raju and Lauren Fox about this moment of peril for the longest-serving Senatorial party leader in US history.
Read all of Manu and Lauren’s reporting here: ‘McConnell’s GOP critics grow louder as party descends into feud over Ukraine and immigration’
Also mentioned in this episode: House Mouse, Senate Mouse
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There is no bigger cultural story right now than the romance between NFL superstar Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift. The reaction to their relationship has been so extreme that parody is almost indiscernible from reality. It’s a potent mix of celebrity culture, sports, and extreme politics.
Audie brings together Cari Champion and Anne Helen Petersen, to dissect why all of this is happening. Why have Travis and Taylor generated a supernova of fans, haters, and overwhelming scrutiny?
Cari Champion is the host of the podcast Naked with Cari Champion and former anchor of ESPN’s SportsCenter.
Anne Helen Petersen is the author of Culture Study on Substack, and the host of the Culture Study podcast.
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“We know Joe. But most importantly, Joe knows us." Congressman James Clyburn spoke those all-important words four years ago while giving his crucial endorsement to Joe Biden in his home state of South Carolina. With Biden now in the White House, Clyburn wields the power to spur lots of change, including an alteration to the Democratic party’s primary calendar, placing South Carolina at the head of the line. Audie sat down with Clyburn to learn how he thinks about power, what Biden needs to do to protect his, and how someone who’s been in his office since 1993 makes decisions about the future.
Leave us a voicemail: (202) 854-8802. Send us an email: theassignment@cnn.com.
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Jon Stewart is returning to The Daily Show, putting the spotlight back on this influential institution of political comedy. Today, Audie talks with a breakout star of the show’s very recent past, comedian Roy Wood Jr. He pulls back the curtain on his time at The Daily Show, schools us on the economics of entertainment for a creative, ambitious, working parent, and dives into whether comedians should fudge facts to get to a higher truth.
Find out if Roy is on tour near you.
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Donald Trump is leading in the polls for South Carolina GOP primary, by a lot. But it’s also Nikki Haley’s home state and she refuses to go quietly, ramping up her attacks on Trump even as most of her fellow Republicans call on her to drop out. Eva McKend is national political correspondent for CNN and she checks in with a view from the ground.
What did you think of this episode? Send us your feedback and assignments. Leave a message at (202) 854-8802 or email us at TheAssignment@CNN.com.
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During these divisive times, political fault lines are everywhere – including among members of the same church. So for people who live, work, and worship in divided spaces, what have they learned about how to communicate with people they love but don’t seem to understand?
Audie sits down with Pastor Rich Villodas of New Life Fellowship in Queens. They talk about “God, Politics, and the Church,” what division – and listening – looks like, why criticisms of candidate and party feel so personal, and why he’s welcoming people – no matter who they’re voting for – in 2024.
Pastor Villodas is the author of several books, including: Good and Beautiful and Kind: Becoming Whole in a Fractured World.
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