Senator Mitch McConnell was absent from Capitol Hill for weeks. Rumors and conspiracies swirled until he recently reappeared and said he was in medical care recovering from a fall.

He’s not the only politician who’s hid their health from the public eye – Joe Biden, for instance, tried to keep concerns about his health quiet before the 2024 election – until it was too hard to ignore.

We talk about what aging and ailing lawmakers owe to the public especially if it impairs their ability to serve.

Plus, immigration enforcement is surging. ICE doubled the number of arrests compared to earlier this year, and has been doing it without the massive protests that rocked the country. But now, with two headline-grabbing shootings of motorists by ICE agents, what is the future of that strategy?

We also talk about how congress came together on a massive affordable housing bill.

Producer: Leo Duran

Host: Mike Madrid

Guests:

• Liz Bruenig, staff writer at The Atlantic - @EBruenig
• Sarah Isgur, senior editor at The Dispatch - @whignewtons

Progressive Democrats are surging in primary elections across the country, but the party establishment is worried they’ll lose this November. Republicans think those progressives will be easier to beat, too.

So how will this intra-party fight among Democrats play out and determine control of Congress? And why is the GOP so sure they can beat progressive Dems when some polls show their party is underwater with voters on the economy?

Plus, the president campaigned to secure elections using false claims. House Republicans advanced his elections bill – the SAVE America Act – just as two election deniers advanced in Arizona’s Republican primaries.

And we talk about the Iran war. Republicans passed extra military spending to keep it going, so do those Republicans now own an unpopular war?

Producer: Leo Duran

Host: Susan Davis

Guests:

• Mo Elleithee, executive director at Georgetown University's Institute of Politics and Public Service - @MoElleithee
• Sarah Isgur, senior editor at The Dispatch - @whignewtons

What does “affordability” mean, and who should we trust to deliver it? Democrats are pounding the affordability message hard, saying President Trump began a global tariff war and a war in Iran that have both pushed prices up for Americans.

We’ll talk about what actual ideas Democrats are offering to bring relief. The boldest ideas so far have come from their more progressive members, which could be a potential challenge for the more moderate wing of the party. Republicans have their own challenge: GOP lawmakers seem willing to work on bipartisan solutions on affordability, but President Trump keeps undermining them.

Mo and Sarah have their own policy debate to stump for proposals that can bring prices down, and also pick each other’s ideas apart.

Plus, Dr. Anthony Fauci refused to answer questions about Covid in a congressional hearing, and we talk about whether he was justified.

Producer: Leo Duran

Host: David Greene

Guests:

• Mo Elleithee, executive director at Georgetown University's Institute of Politics and Public Service - @MoElleithee
• Sarah Isgur, senior editor at The Dispatch - @whignewtons