On Jan. 23, 2020, then-Rep. Adam Schiff delivered his closing arguments in the first impeachment trial of President Donald Trump.

“No constitution can protect us if right doesn’t matter any more. And you know you can’t trust this President to do what’s right for this country," Schiff said at the time.

We discuss the relevance of those words when applied to Trump 2.0, how the conflict with Iran compares to the intelligence he received during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and his concerns about the end game. Plus, what’s next for California’s jungle primary to elect the next governor now that Eric Swalwell has withdrawn from the race amid sexual assault allegations.

This is a repost from Heather Cox Richardson's channel Monday, when JT & MG join her to discuss the Citizens United decision, exorbitant amounts of money in politics, and the Montana Plan! Plus, organizations (like End Citizens United ) trying to combat the effects of big money in politics and what YOU can do about it.

It’s a month that starts with A, which means Jon Tester becomes increasingly harder to schedule because of work on the farm (April means planting; August means harvest). That said, many people have been asking where he’s been, so we attempted a Tractor Time with Tester episode that we came very close to pulling off… until his phone died.

We asked Ellie Leonard to join us to discuss Melania Trump’s surprise statement to the White House press corps and how a deported Brazilian model (and her now deleted posts on X) could be part of the story.

We dissect the timing, the tweets, and the relevance with Ellie, along with growing calls for Rep. Eric Swalwell to resign from Congress and drop out of the California gubernatorial race as new allegations of rape, sexual assault and misconduct come to light.

We also discuss Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s crushing defeat after 16 years in power (and after VP JD Vance stumped for him), along with failed peace talks with Iran.

Big thanks to former White House counsel Ty Cobb for joining us on Grounded this morning. We shared some laughs and also talked about some very serious concerns about the rule of law, the Supreme Court hearing on birthright citizenship, the president’s threats to pull out of NATO, and more. Plus, how he came to work for the first Trump administration and his memories of his friend, former FBI director Robert Mueller.

We could have done an entire episode about the lengthy Trump cabinet meeting at the White House earlier today, including the 5 minutes spent talking about pens and sharpies (Yes, really). We cover a little bit of that with THE Sharon McMahon, America’s Government Teacher, author of The Preamble on Substack and also The Small and the Mighty (with newly illustrated version We Are Mighty out May 19). We also dive into other topics like the war in Iran, concerns about the 2026 election, and the lessons learned from the people of Minnesota. Plus, a spicier version of Sharon and why she says hope is the most grounded stance available to us.

If you’re worried about the future, Knowa De Baraso should help ease some concerns. The 14-year-old podcast host and political phenom is not only engaged—he’s bold. You may remember Knowa from the viral clip of him confronting the conspiracy peddling (and now Minnesota gubernatorial candidate) Mike Lindell at the 2024 DNC. We talk about how he became interested in politics, his plans to be active in the 2026 midterms, and what leaders need to do to reach the next generation.

Plus, JT doesn’t hold back on recent headlines from a Pentagon press briefing.

We owe the parents of Kalpana Narlikar and Leo Auerbach an apology. A few weeks ago, we recorded a conversation with these two Georgetown University undergrads. Between the State of the Union and a new war, I completely forgot we had it on deck.

Narlikar and Auerbach are students in JT’s discussion group this semester at Georgetown. They were kind enough to sit down with us to chat about the issues most important to their generation, how they view the political landscape, and also what gives them hope. Don’t miss the broken chair that is sure to become a new inside Grounded joke.

We hit on bipartisan conversations, ICE policies, the national debt, artificial intelligence, and normalized mayhem.

“We don’t know anything different than the pandemonium and the craziness that we’re seeing,” Auerbach said. “I don’t think our generation knows a normal politics. I don’t think we know decorum, I don’t think we know diplomacy, and I don’t think we know dialogue.”

Ahead of our conversation with the students, we break down the Georgia special election results, the latest on Iran, the shoes making political headlines, and more reflections on Montana political bombshells.

Dover Air Force Base received another fallen U.S. soldier Monday night as a result of the war in Iran. The Pentagon says Army Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington, 26, of Glendale, Kentucky died Sunday from injuries he sustained in an attack March 1 on the Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia. There’s no audio on the recorded feed, which punctuates the sober reality of this moment.

We talk about the latest Iran updates with Tara Setmayer, who is the co-founder and CEO of the Seneca Project and also a longtime political commentator and former GOP communications director.

We discuss the mixed messages from the administration on the status of this war in Iran, renewed threats against Cuba, and a new video that appears to show a U.S. tomahawk missile hitting near a school where 168 people—mostly kids— were killed.

She also talks about leaving the Republican party, messaging musts for successful political campaigns in 2026, and primary season infighting. Plus, Trump’s new threats about overhauling our voting laws ahead of the midterms.