Ken Rudin's Political Junkie

Dan Glickman, the former Democratic congressman from Kansas, fondly remembers Nancy Kassebaum, his state’s three-term senator and a Republican who passed away last week, reminding us what politics and bipartisanship used to look like.

PLUS:  It’s been 50 years since the 1976 Democratic convention, when Walter Mondale was selected as Jimmy Carter’s running mate.  We go into the Political Junkie archives for an interview we conducted with Mondale, back in 2015, remembering not only being picked for VP but naming Geraldine Ferraro, eight years later, as HIS VP.

AND:  Darline Graham, despite her blank slate, wins the GOP Senate primary runoff in South Carolina.  And Ed Markey, despite his age, wins the Democratic Senate primary in Massachusetts.

Music in this Episode:

Massachusetts by the Bee Gees

Those Were the Days by Mary Hopkin

Runnin’ Down a Dream by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

The post Episode #433: We’re Not In Kansas Anymore: Remembering Nancy Kassebaum appeared first on Ken Rudin's Political Junkie.

Claremont McKenna College’s Jack Pitney assesses what the Republican Party faces as we get closer to the midterm elections.

PLUS:  Karoline Leavitt prepares to leave her job … and Max Miller insists on running again.

Music in this Episode:

Somebody to Love by Jefferson Airplane

Against All Odds by Phil Collins

Freedom of Choice by Devo

The post Episode #432: Has The GOP Maxed Out In Ohio? appeared first on Ken Rudin's Political Junkie.

Kentucky political journalist Al Cross takes on the rumors behind the disappearance (from public view) of Sen. Mitch McConnell and, with his long career coming to an end, assesses his legacy.

And Meg Kinnard, a political reporter for the Associated Press based in South Carolina, sets up Tuesday’s Republican Senate primary to succeed the late Lindsey Graham, with all eyes on Darline Graham, who was surprisingly named to temporarily fill the seat and who now has decided to run for a full term.

PLUS:  Todd Blanche gets closer to confirmation for attorney general.  And Trump throws Jeanine Pirro under the pool.

Music In This Episode:

Don’t Go Near the Water by The Beach Boys

I’m Alive by The Hollies

Sisters Are Doin’ It For Themselves by The Eurythmics (feat. Aretha Franklin)

The post Episode #431: O Sister, Where Art Thou?; Bloodhounds For Mitch? appeared first on Ken Rudin's Political Junkie.

Donald Trump had an extraordinarily successful month of endorsing winning challengers to Republican incumbents in the primaries.  Laura Merrifield Wilson of the University of Indianapolis discusses the defeats of five Indiana state senators who opposed Trump’s redistricting plan.  Tyler Bridges of The Advocate/The Times-Picayune reports on how Sen. Bill Cassidy’s 2021 vote to convict Trump led to his defeat in 2026.  And Matthew Wilson of Southern Methodist University explains how four-term Sen. John Cornyn fell to Texas state attorney general Ken Paxton.

Music in this episode:



The post Episode #430: Trump’s Magical Mystery Revenge & Retribution Tour appeared first on Ken Rudin's Political Junkie.

The meteoric rise — and dramatic fall — of Congressman Eric Swalwell is the subject of this episode.  Seema Mehta, a political reporter with the Los Angeles Times, recounts how he went from media darling to alleged sex offender, ending what had initially been an improbable bid to become governor of California.  And, for good measure, George Skelton, the veteran L.A. Times columnist, spells out how this sad episode exposed the weaknesses in California’s “top two” electoral system.

ALSO:  Wondering the purpose of holding a White House Correspondents Dinner with a president that despises and denigrates the media.  And Republicans are, with a straight face, screaming “partisanship” at Virginia’s ballot initiative that may give the Commonwealth’s Democrats, four additional congressional seats.

MUSIC IN THIS EPISODE:

Bad Blood by Taylor Swift

Before He Cheats by Carrie Underwood

I Heard It Through the Grapevine by Marvin Gaye

It’s My Party by Lesley Gore







The post Episode #429: Swalwell That Ends Well appeared first on Ken Rudin's Political Junkie.