The Axe Files with David Axelrod

Carl Hulse, chief Washington correspondent for The New York Times, reflects on how Congress has changed during his years covering the institution, discusses what Paul Ryan’s political future may hold, and provides some insight into how Merrick Garland’s Supreme Court nomination might play out after the presidential election.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Secretary of State John Kerry talks to David about his service in Vietnam, why he chose to concede quickly after losing the 2004 presidential election, and his time in the U.S. Senate and how the institution has changed in recent decades.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tim Kaine, the Democratic Vice Presidential nominee and senator from Virginia, talks to David about his experience doing missionary work in Honduras with the Jesuits and the liberation theology he was exposed to there, why Congress should pass a new military authorization to fight ISIS, and why it’s better to choose optimism over pessimism.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John Heilemann, co-managing editor of Bloomberg Politics and best-selling author of Game Change, talks with David about Trump’s electoral end game, his own short but momentous stint as a political aide, and why his personality traits were ultimately better suited to journalism.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ron Brownstein, columnist at The Atlantic and longtime political journalist, talks to David about working for Ralph Nader in the 1970s, the intersection between Hollywood and Washington, and the demographic realities that will likely determine the presidential election.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Maureen Dowd, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for The New York Times, talks with David about growing up in Washington, D.C., how newsrooms have changed since she became a journalist in the 1970s, and how she views the presidents and would-be presidents she’s covered over her career.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Gary Johnson, the Libertarian Party candidate for president, talks with David about his foreign policy vision, the Johnson administration’s approach to illegal drugs, and his infamous Aleppo moment.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Fareed Zakaria talks to David about some of the most intractable problems around the globe—including how America should respond to the social and political upheaval in the Middle East, and to escalating tensions with Russia.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of the hit Broadway musical "Hamilton," talks to David about what he learned from meeting Stephen Sondheim in high school, what would surprise the Founders about our politics today, his advocacy for Puerto Rico as Congress debated how to address the island's debt crisis, and why he can't allow his creative output to be held captive to his own successes.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tom Brokaw, the legendary NBC News journalist, talks to David about his humble roots in South Dakota, covering the last days of the Nixon White House, the experience of being a news anchor during national tragedies like the Space Shuttle Challenger explosion and the 9/11 attacks, and the best news source he ever had.To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices