When David Axelrod and Mike Murphy get together to talk politics, it’s not academic. They speak from the perspective gained through hundreds of campaigns for offices from City Hall to the White House. So if you want to know what’s really going on behind the scenes, where strategic decisions are being made, pull up a stool for Hacks on Tap. Incisive, sometimes uproarious and always entertaining, these political warhorses and their guests will give you insights you’ll only get from folks who have spent a lifetime in the political trenches of both parties.
This week, Axe and Heilemann dive into Trump’s Oval Office presser on the state of the war with Iran—and, of course, his ballroom. The Hacks also break down kitchen table issues, potential watershed moments, Republican influencers turning on Trump, redistricting, the midterms, and much more.
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This week Axe and Murphy are joined by Campaign Manager Hackeroo David Plouffe — who ran Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign, later served as a senior White House advisor.The Hacks dive into another week of war with Iran, unpack Trump’s motivations (and re-motivations), break down how negotiations on the Hill are going, dig into the politics of the SAVE Act, check in on Illinois primary results, and review some spicy Texas ads — and, as always, so much more.
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Happy St. Patrick’s Day, Hackeroos! This week, Axe and Heilemann are joined by one of the greatest Hacks in all the land, Amy Walter—publisher and editor-in-chief of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter. The Hacks dive into Joe Kent’s resignation, unpack the Iran war and its costs at home and abroad, check in on midterm kitchen table issues, take a look at today’s Illinois primary, and so much more!
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This week, Axe and Murphy are joined by frequent flier in the Hackeroo Lounge, Jonathan Martin. JMart gives the Hacks a preview of his new Politico show, On the Road with Jonathan Martin, including his conversation with Sarah Huckabee Sanders. The Hacks also discuss the war with Iran — how it’s affecting Americans at home, the administration’s shifting rationales, and the U.S. Tomahawk strike that hit a school. Plus: Donald Trump firing Kristi Noem, the first cabinet dismissal of his administration, the Texas runoff, and the Hacks close with a tribute to Jesse Jackson.
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This tumultuous week in the news, the Hacks are joined by not one but two expert Hackeroos. First up, Mark McKinnon — former adviser to George W. Bush and co-creator and co-host of The Circus — jumps in with Axe and Murphy to break down the strikes in Iran: what led up to them, what’s happened since the initial attacks and retaliatory strikes across the region, and what the Trump administration is saying (and not saying) about its strategy amid shifting justifications and questions about long-term planning. Then they’re joined by Hacks kin Billy Begala, veteran Democratic strategist and co-founder of The Barbed Wire, to preview tonight’s Senate primary in Texas and what the outcome could signal for the midterms.
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This week Axe and Murphy burned the midnight oil to break down Trump’s State of the Union with Hackeroo extraordinaire Jonathan Martin. No spoilers here — the Hacks have kept you waiting long enough. Hit play and find out what went down.
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This week Murphy and Heilemann were joined by the one and only Dave Wasserman of the Cook Political Report. The Hacks dive into Trump’s polling, the standoff over ICE funding, and the attention economy — then put Wasserman on the map (literally) for a midterm check-in across Texas, Alaska, Ohio, Michigan, Iowa, and so much more.
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This week, Axe and Heilemann were joined by Lis Smith, veteran Democratic strategist and political advisor. The Hacks dive into the Super Bowl and Bad Bunny’s halftime show, the battle for views, the Trump economy, inflation and mortgage rates, proposed voter ID laws, the latest Epstein files dump, ICE reform, Trump retweets, and—because it’s been that kind of week—so much more.
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Happy Tuesday, Hackeroos! This week Axe and Murphy are joined by repeat guest and all-around savant Jonathan Martin of Politico. The Hacks dive into the latest news, including the FBI raid of a Georgia election center, Trump’s cryptocurrency exposé in The Wall Street Journal, Trump’s mixed messaging on the economy and inflation, what an increasingly abnormal election looks like, and a check-in on several key states as the midterms come into focus.
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This week Axe and Heilemann are joined by former Chief Beast, current journalist, and author John Avlon. The Hacks dig into the aftermath of a tumultuous weekend in Minnesota — and across the Trump administration — following the killing of Alex Pretti. They unpack ICE and citizen accountability, the administration’s evolving claims versus video evidence that challenges them, and the tangled web the White House has woven around the Second Amendment, DHS funding, and the looming threat of another government shutdown. Plus, Greenland, Mamdani battling the storm (literally), and so much more.
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This week all three Hackeroos (or Quackeroos) convened to take on a full fire hose of breaking news. The Hacks dive into Trump’s Nobel Piece Prize acquisition, his Davos trip, ICE’s provocative tactics, pardon-palooza, NATO on the brink, Greenland becoming Orangeland, and so much more!
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