The Back Room with Andy Ostroy

Pam Hemphill is a 72-year-old former Trump supporter known as the “MAGA Granny”. She was imprisoned over her role on January 6th, refused a pardon, and has spent the last several years working to debunk the stolen 2020 election Big Lie and the lies about the Capitol riot. She is a cancer survivor, a retired Substance Abuse Counselor, and a recovering alcoholic, 46 years sober. So is Donald Trump personally involved in the Epstein conspiracy and cover up? Is the MAGA fever breaking? Why has Marjorie Taylor Greene resigned? Pam shares her thoughts on these questions and more. Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Design by Cricket Lengyel

Nicholas Thompson is the CEO of The Atlantic, an American magazine founded in 1857, which earned the top honor for magazines, General Excellence, at the National Magazine Awards in 2022, 2023, and 2024. Before joining The Atlantic, he was the editor in chief of Wired and an editor at The New Yorker. He has long been a competitive runner; in 2021, he set the American record for men 45+ in the 50K race. In 2025, he became the top-ranked runner in the world in his age group for the 50-mile run. His new book is “The Running Ground: A Father, a Son, and the Simplest of Sports”. Nick joins me for a truly enjoyable, insightful chat about his terrific new book and the many invaluable life lessons it offers. Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Design by Cricket Lengyel

Michael Steele is the co-host of MS NOW’s “The Weeknight” and host of ‘The Michael Steele Podcast.’ Prior to joining MS NOW as a political analyst, he was elected Lt. Governor of Maryland in 2003. Following his time as Lt. Governor, he served as Chairman of the Republican National Committee from 2009 to 2011. Steele was the first African-American to hold either office. He has appeared on Meet the Press, Face the Nation, Real Time with Bill Maher, and The Daily Show and is also the author of two books, “Right Now: A 12-Step Program for Defeating the Obama Agenda” and “The Recovering Politician’s Twelve Step Program to Survive Crisis”. It's always fun and insightful when Michael's in The Back Room! This time he's back for a chat about the good, the bad and the ugly with Trump, the GOP and Democrats...including the election, the latest polls, Marjorie Taylor Greene and the MAGA fissure, and whether we've hit at an inflection point. Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Design by Cricket Lengyel

S.E. Cupp is a nationally syndicated columnist, author, podcaster and TV commentator. She hosts Off the Cupp, a podcast which focuses on mental health, and which features interviews with celebrities and newsmakers. She is a columnist at the New York Daily News and has also been published in the New York Times, Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, Washington Post and many other publications. She is currently a political commentator at CNN. She regularly interviews authors for CSPAN's BookTV, and is a regular guest on The View, Real Time w/Bill Maher, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Watch What Happens Live and others. SE has also consulted on Aaron Sorkin's The Newsroom and AppleTV's The Morning Show, and has made cameos on House of Cards and SNL. As an author SE has written two books, Losing Our Religion: The Liberal Media's Attack on Christianity, and co-authored Why You're Wrong About the RIght. She is on the Advisory Board of Cornell University's Institute of Politics and Global Affairs and INARA.org, and is a No Kid Hungry ambassador. S.E.'s back in The Back Room to discuss Trump, the election, the shutdown, MAGA, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Megyn Kelly, Mamdani, the midterms and more! Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Design by Cricket Lengyel

Jess Michaels is a 3x Founder, TEDx speaker, Advocate, and 1991 Jeffrey Epstein survivor who has lived with PTSD for 30+ years. She is founder and CEO of 3Joannes Inc and the #withyoutoo Social Safety App, which guides users to "know what to do when someone says #metoo”. Jess is back with us to share her thoughts on this week's emotional roller-coaster involving the monumental passage of the Epstein bill and the uncertain road ahead for getting the full files released by the Justice Department as mandated by the new law. Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Design by Cricket Lengyel

Jonathan Freedland is the author of the New York Times bestseller The Escape Artist: The Man Who Broke Out of Auschwitz to Save the World and he’s a weekly columnist for the Guardian and previously the Guardian’s Washington correspondent. He hosts the Guardian's Politics Weekly America podcast, presents BBC Radio 4's The Long View and co-hosts the Unholy podcast,. He is also the author of several thrillers under the pseudonym Sam Bourne and is a past winner of the Orwell Prize for Journalism. His new book is The Traitors Circle: The True Story of a Secret Resistance Network in Nazi Germany—and the Spy Who Betrayed Them” Jonathan and I discuss his incredible new book as well as British politics and Nigel Farage's Reform UK party, and the populist parallels to Donald Trump's MAGA movement. Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Design by Cricket Lengyel

For forty years, Ron Reagan has been a television and radio correspondent, host and political commentator with ABC, MSNBC and Air America among others. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller My Father at 100. Join us for this fun, insightful chat about the Epstein shitstorm, the blue wave election, the shutdown, the East Wing demolition, and Trump's meltdown over the Ontario tariff ad featuring his dad. Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Design by Cricket Lengyel

Tara Palmeri is the host of The Tara Palmeri Show and author of The Red Letter newsletter. She has spent more than 15 years covering national politics and foreign affairs, previously working as a White House Correspondent for ABC News and chief national correspondent for Politico. She has hosted multiple podcasts, including Broken: Jeffrey Epstein and Power: The Maxwells, and previously hosted Somebody’s Gotta Win for The Ringer while writing a political column for Puck. What are the Epstein emails telling us? Is the Epstein scandal too big to fail? Will it eventually bring down the Trump presidency? Tara addresses these questions and more. Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Design by Cricket Lengyel

Michael Cohen is the former personal attorney for Donald Trump and served for years as an executive in the Trump Organization. He is host of the YouTube channel The Michael Cohen Show, host of the Mea Culpa With Michael Cohen podcast and co-host of Political Beatdown with Michael Cohen and Ben Meiselas podcast. He’s also a 2x NYT best-selling author. His latest book is “Revenge: How Donald Trump Weaponized the US Department of Justice Against His Critics. You can also find him on Substack @TheRealMichaelCohen, where he writes the newsletter Truth and Consequences. Michael's back to discuss the latest Epstein developments, the Democrats' shutdown shitshow, the recent blue wave election, and, if he's planning to run for Congress in New York's 12th District! Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Design by Cricket Lengyel

Jonathan Karl is the chief Washington correspondent for ABC News and co-anchor of This Week with George Stephanopoulos. He’s covered every major beat in Washington, D.C., including the White House, Capitol Hill, the Pentagon, and the State Department. He’s reported from the White House under four presidents and fourteen press secretaries, and is a former president of the White House Correspondents' Association. He is the author of the NY Times instant bestsellers Front Row at the Trump Show, Betrayal, and Tired of Winning. And he’s in THE BACK ROOM to discuss his new book, "Retribution: Donald Trump and the Campaign That Changed America". Jonathan and I discuss the recent election, the shutdown and his terrific new book. Got somethin' to say?! Email us at BackroomAndy@gmail.com Leave us a message: 845-307-7446 Twitter: @AndyOstroy Produced by Andy Ostroy, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud @ Radio Free Rhiniecliff Design by Cricket Lengyel