America, If You're Listening

ABC Radio

A podcast about how Donald Trump changed the United States and the world. Four years ago, Donald Trump promised to make America Strong, Wealthy, Safe, Proud and Great Again. In November, Americans will have their chance to elect him again. Has he lived up to his promise? Season 4 of America, If You’re Listening (formerly known as Russia, If You’re Listening) will look back on Trump’s greatest achievements, disappointments and disasters, and look at how they all fit together.

  • 21 minutes 24 seconds
    Putin or the EU? Georgia's big fight

    The people of Georgia are in the streets of Tbilisi, protesting the ruling party’s recent election win. At the heart of the fight is whether the country should appease Vladimir Putin, or oppose him. 

    For years Georgia was moving closer to the European Union, but the war in Ukraine changed everything. Now, billionaire oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili and his Georgia Dream party are betting on a relationship with Putin, hoping to save the country from a fate similar to Ukraine’s. 

    Today on If You’re Listening, the story of a democracy at the crossroads of the West and the East, fighting over whether to be afraid of Vladimir Putin or not.

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    Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/q9zRfSut8TU?si=0KJ4A49zvSz35Th6

    18 December 2024, 2:00 pm
  • 24 minutes
    The serious ramifications of Hunter Biden’s pardon

    We want to know what you think of the show so we can make it better in 2025! Give us your feedback here: https://forms.office.com/r/w0hT5fzuxg

    Hunter Biden has been a main character in far-right conspiracy theories for years, and Donald Trump’s associates have spent significant effort searching for proof that could lead to his prosecution. In the end, Hunter reportedly provided the only evidence that has mattered: a laptop full of terribly embarrassing and potentially incriminating material. The story of how that laptop found its way to Trump’s favourite lawyer Rudy Giuliani is almost too bizarre to believe. But the Biden family story has been improbably tragic for decades, and it was those tragedies that have seemingly steered the outgoing president to pardon his son despite the very real cost to his own reputation, and the country.

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    Check out our series on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0R75Jqu0ySM&list=PLDTPrMoGHssAfgMMS3L5LpLNFMNp1U_Nq

    11 December 2024, 3:00 pm
  • 22 minutes 31 seconds
    Will Netanyahu ever face court for alleged war crimes?

    We want to know what you think of the show so we can make it better in 2025! Give us your feedback here: https://forms.office.com/r/w0hT5fzuxg

    The International Criminal Court in The Hague wants Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrested for alleged war crimes in Gaza. 

    But international justice works differently to other forms of justice — it relies on everyone opting in. More than 20 years into its existence the court is yet to convict any world leaders of anything. As the first fugitive from the ICC who is also an ally to Western countries like Australia and France, this case is one that could make or break the court itself. 

    So what does that mean for Netanyahu and his allies? And what does it mean for the idea that there are some crimes that go beyond borders, committed against humanity itself. 

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    Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/LAUiawjoKKs?si=fSxJDpMEK7EuhdWs

    4 December 2024, 2:00 pm
  • 22 minutes 4 seconds
    Could Russia turn off the whole internet?

    A Chinese-owned cargo ship called the Yi Peng 3 is sitting idle in Danish waters, after undersea internet cables were cut in the Baltic Sea. European officials have cried sabotage. 

    It’s not the first time something like this has happened; similar events have seen cables cut in other parts of the ocean. There’s serious concern that China and Russia are planning more of these attacks, and the way the internet is set up, it wouldn’t take many of them to cause serious problems. 

    So how vulnerable is the internet to undersea sabotage? And if a big global conflict were to break out, would the cables be the first casualty?

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    Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/GOA7NxYvYKg?si=QgMQOudReqZkahlU

    27 November 2024, 2:00 pm
  • 24 minutes 13 seconds
    America's Last Election 6: How Trump’s banishment led to his comeback

    After January 6, many who had stuck by Donald Trump through his presidency condemned his denial of the election, and his failure to stop the attack on the Capitol. 

    Banished to Mar-a-Lago the former president was banned from major social media platforms, driving his messages and MAGA community underground, into a parallel online world. 

    That response by big tech to the violence of January 6 was designed to stop it happening again. 

    Instead, it found Donald Trump powerful allies, and fostered his comeback, one that would send him all the way back to the White House. 

    This is the final episode of America's Last Election. We'll be back next week with an episode about something completely different. If you liked the series, please share it around. 

    Editor's note: In this episode, host Matt Bevan states that the Biden administration found itself in a "lose-lose situation" when it came to prosecuting Donald Trump.

    While the position of Attorney General is appointed by the President, and sits within their cabinet, decisions over particular prosecutions are traditionally made without the President's input.

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    Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/GOA7NxYvYKg?si=8U9OnBgsFBIjqRlA

    20 November 2024, 2:00 pm
  • 23 minutes 28 seconds
    America’s Last Election 5: Trump demands loyalty

    Over the last four episodes we’ve told the story of Donald Trump’s denial of the 2020 election result. It’s a period of time many thought would disqualify him from another run for US president. 

    Now, exactly four years later Trump is preparing to head back to the White House after a significant election win against Kamala Harris, and the way his last presidency ended has shaped his campaign. 

    January 6th and the events that led up to it alienated many moderate actors in Trump’s orbit, and unless they’re brought back into the fold, this presidency is set to look very different to his last.

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    Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/GOA7NxYvYKg?si=8U9OnBgsFBIjqRlA

    13 November 2024, 2:00 pm
  • 26 minutes
    Hello America: Chess at the White House

    It’s Matt Bevan’s last 24 hours in Washington DC, and he’s leaving a very different place to the one he arrived in. Donald Trump is going to be president again, and in the United States, people from across the political spectrum are figuring out exactly what that looks like. 

    Matt sits down with ABC Global Affairs Reporter John Lyons in sunny Lafayette Park to chat about the potential geopolitical impacts of a second Trump term and how world leaders are already scrambling to get Trump on the phone to strike a deal.  

    This episode was produced by Kara Jensen-Mackinnon and Jess O'Callaghan. 

    This is the final Hello America bonus episode of If You’re Listening, thanks for coming along for the ride. The next episode of America’s Last Election will drop next Thursday morning. 

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    Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/GOA7NxYvYKg?si=8U9OnBgsFBIjqRlA

    8 November 2024, 3:15 am
  • 15 minutes
    US Results: Coffee with extra Trump

    In this update from Washington DC, Matt Bevan is filling in as host for ABC News Daily to bring you an early morning update on all the events from overnight Australian time. 

    In a spectacular victory, Donald Trump has secured the US election to become the 47th President of the United States. 

    Matt is joined on the ground by Emma Shortis from The Australia Institute to explain where the Democrats went wrong and the Republicans went right - and what a more emboldened Trump with the support of the House, the Senate and the Supreme Court means for America. 

    6 November 2024, 7:15 pm
  • 19 minutes 20 seconds
    Hello America: Trump’s path back to the presidency

    As the night goes on, and key states in the US presidential election are called for Donald Trump, it's becoming harder to see a way that Kamala Harris wins the White House.

    Matt Bevan shares his view from a Washington rooftop on election night, where ABC News is covering the results. He reflects on the Harris and Trump campaigns, and what a second Trump presidency could look like. 

    Matt will be back in this podcast feed on Thursday morning hosting a special episode of ABC News Daily, speaking with Dr Emma Shortis from the Australia Institute. 

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    Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/GOA7NxYvYKg?si=8U9OnBgsFBIjqRlA

    6 November 2024, 9:00 am
  • 26 minutes 13 seconds
    Hello America: Queuing for Kamala Harris

    It's election day in America! But in the dying hours of Monday night (and the campaigns), Matt Bevan took a train to Pennsylvania to stand in queue for a massive Lady Gaga concert — Kamala Harris's final event before election day.

    Luckily, you can get the speeches online. What you can't get is the vibe, which was apparent speaking to supporters in this kilometres-long queue. 

    On the train ride home Matt and Dr Emma Shortis from The Australia Institute decide the Democrats' election-eve vibe was: things seem good for Kamala Harris ... nobody jinx it.

    We'll be back on Wednesday evening with an election-night update.

    Read Matt on ABC News: When do polls close and when will we know the result of the US election?

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    Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/GOA7NxYvYKg?si=8U9OnBgsFBIjqRlA

    5 November 2024, 2:00 pm
  • 16 minutes 4 seconds
    Hello America: Two trains and seven swing states

    It's election eve in America, and Matt Bevan is in Washington DC. How did he get there? By train, from Detroit, where he took in the fall foliage from the comfort of his tiny bunk bed, and talked politics over breakfast with a fellow train-devotee named Bill. 

    But neither Kamala Harris or Donald Trump is taking the slow train to election day -- both campaigns have whirlwind 24 hours planned, hitting the swing states key to winning the White House. Donald Trump is ending years of campaigning with a late-night rally that looks to soothe his superstitious mind, and Kamala Harris is throwing a massive garden party in Philadelphia. Speaking of which, Matt has another train to catch ... 

    This episode was produced by Kara Jensen Mackinnon and Jess O'Callaghan. Catch Matt across the ABC's election coverage on ABC TV, ABC NewsRadio and digital platforms, including this one; we'll drop a bonus episode when results start to shape up on Wednesday evening AEDT.

    Follow If You're Listening on the ABC Listen app.

    Check out our series on YouTube: https://youtu.be/GOA7NxYvYKg?si=8U9OnBgsFBIjqRlA

    5 November 2024, 3:00 am
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