The Campaign Moment

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A message from Aaron Mar 06, 2025

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Thank you for listening to “The Campaign Moment” throughout the 2024 election and into the start of the Trump presidency. Stay subscribed to this feed for more updates on our politics coverage in audio. And make sure you’re subscribed to “Post Reports” – that’s where you’ll find our politics roundtable conversations for now.

Ukraine and the anxiety over Trump's budget Feb 28, 2025

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Some House Republicans are getting nervous. They’re worried that passing President Donald Trump’s budget proposal could mean cuts to popular programs like Medicaid. They’ve also gotten an earful from voters angry at Elon Musk who are packing congressional town halls.

Senior politics reporter Aaron Blake unpacks the drama with congressional reporter Marianna Sotomayor and congressional economics correspondent Jacob Bogage.

Today’s show was produced by Laura Benshoff. It was edited by Lucy Perkins and mixed by Ted Muldoon.

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Trump parrots Putin, GOP DOGE drama, a big new poll Feb 21, 2025

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Senior political reporter Aaron Blake talks with Post congressional reporter Liz Goodwin and Dan Lamothe, who covers the Pentagon and the U.S. military, about the week’s political news. They dig into Trump’s sharp turn against Ukraine and its president, Volodymyr Zelensky, and toward Russian President Vladimir Putin. They also talk about new polling that shows Trump’s sweeping federal policy decisions are largely unpopular. Plus, why GOP lawmakers are quietly begging Trump to spare their districts from Trump and his ally Elon Musk’s splashy government spending cuts.

Today’s show was produced by Laura Benshoff. It was edited by Lucy Perkins with help from Rachel Van Dongen. It was mixed by Justin Gerrish.

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A doomsday scenario for the constitution Feb 14, 2025

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Senior political reporter Aaron Blake talks with Supreme Court reporter Justin Jouvenal and Democracy reporter Colby Itkowitz about how President Donald Trump is testing the power of the courts — and trying to expand his own authority in the process. They break down the cases facing the executive branch right now, what Trump and his allies are saying about them, and why some experts say Trump’s actions run afoul of the constitution.

Today’s show was produced by Laura Benshoff. It was edited by Reena Flores and Rachel Van Dongen and mixed by Ted Muldoon.

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Why so few people stand up to Trump Feb 06, 2025

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Senior political reporter Aaron Blake talks with senior national political correspondent Naftali Bendavid and national politics reporter Hannah Knowles about President Donald Trump's proposal to “take over” Gaza, displace Palestinians and remake it as the “riviera” of the Middle East. They also dig into Trump's use of tariffs as bargaining chips and the lack of resistance to Trump policies from both parties.

Today’s show was produced by Peter Bresnan. It was edited by Lucy Perkins and Rachel Van Dongen and mixed by Sam Bair.

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More Trump chaos and key confirmation fights Jan 31, 2025

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Trump’s extraordinary news conference on the plane crash near Reagan National Airport, his administration’s freeze and unfreeze of all federal funds, and the Senate hearings for three more of his controversial Cabinet picks.

Senior political reporter Aaron Blake talks through another chaotic week of political news with Congress reporter Liz Goodwin and White House economics reporter Jeff Stein. They break down Trump’s baseless claims that DEI could be the cause of the fatal plane crash in the Potomac, why the administration reversed its decision to halt the flow of all federal funds, and whether Trump’s picks for FBI director, director of national intelligence and health and human services secretary have enough support to be confirmed.

Today’s show was produced and mixed by Ted Muldoon. It was edited by Lucy Perkins and Rachel Van Dongen.

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What Trump’s executive orders and Jan. 6 pardons mean Jan 24, 2025

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Senior political reporter Aaron Blake talks with senior White House reporter Isaac Arnsdorf and national political reporter Marianne LeVine about how Trump’s executive actions are already having a tangible impact. They also talk about how Trump’s pardon of Jan. 6 rioters was met with a muted response from several prominent Republicans.

Today’s show was produced by Laura Benshoff. It was edited by Lucy Perkins and Rachel Van Dongen and mixed by Sam Bair.

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Hegseth and Bondi go to Washington Jan 17, 2025

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Aaron Blake, senior political reporter and author of The Campaign Moment newsletter talks with national security reporter Abby Hauslohner and national politics reporter Hannah Knowles about the most heated exchanges that Trump’s picks for defense secretary and attorney general, Pete Hegseth and Pam Bondi, faced during their Senate confirmation hearings. They also talk about what to expect if the historic ceasefire deal goes into effect over the weekend and what to watch for at Trump’s inauguration on Monday.

Today’s show was produced by Laura Benshoff and Rennie Svirnovskiy, who also mixed the episode. It was edited by Lucy Perkins and Rachel Van Dongen.

Subscribe to Aaron’s newsletter, The Campaign Moment, here.

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Trump, the unpunished felon Jan 10, 2025

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Senior political reporter Aaron Blake talks with The Post’s White House editor, Naftali Bendavid, and national political reporter Maeve Reston about the politics of Trump’s sentencing in the New York hush money case. They also dig into how Trump is trying to pin the Los Angeles wildfires on Democrats and look ahead to next week’s Senate confirmation hearing for Trump’s pick for defense secretary, Pete Hegseth.

Today’s show was produced by Sabby Robinson. It was edited by Lucy Perkins and Rachel Van Dongen and mixed by Rennie Svirnovskiy.

Subscribe to Aaron’s newsletter, The Campaign Moment, here.

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.

How Mike Johnson won, and the politics of New Orleans Jan 03, 2025

Show notes

On Friday, Republicans once again selected Rep. Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) to be speaker of the House — but not before there was a little bit of drama.

Earlier this week, President-elect Donald Trump took to social media to link the New Year’s Day vehicular attack in New Orleans to weak border policies, even though the attacker was an American citizen born in Texas. In the hours following, the message became a popular Republican talking point.

Reporters Marianna Sotomayor, Marianne LeVine and Leigh Ann Caldwell join host Aaron Blake to discuss how Johnson eked out a victory in the speaker fight, and why the New Orleans attack became so quickly politicized.

Today’s show was produced by Laura Benshoff. It was edited by Reena Flores and Rachen Van Dongen and mixed by Sam Bair.

Subscribe to Aaron’s newsletter, The Campaign Moment, here.

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