Eye on Congress:The Big Story

Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart was the first member of Congress to disclose he had COVID-19, and he tells Political Theater about those first scary days of self-quarantine, how grateful he was to his neighbors for their kindness and continuing to work to tackle the pandemic as a lawmaker while recovering from it himself. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What lessons did the U.S. government learn from its success in clamping down on the 2014 Ebola epidemic in fighting the coronavirus pandemic? “We did basically everything that was on the ‘don’t’ list,” Reid Wilson, author of "Epidemic: Ebola and the Global Scramble to Prevent the Next Killer Outbreak," says on the latest Political Theater podcast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When we started realizing how significant the coronavirus pandemic was shaping up to be, we wanted to cover not just the story, but how we covered it. At Political Theater, that meant keeping an audio diary. But sometimes, even when you work in an audio medium, that is easier said than done. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Congress has worked hard to address the human and economic costs of the coronavirus pandemic. Amid this work, some senators have gotten testy on the floor, leading to what looked like a meltdown in relations. But this is what actual debate in the Congress looks like, according to James Wallner, senior fellow at the R Street Institute and a former aide to several senators. It's just been so long since we've seen an earnest debate, it feels weird. And it's leading to positive results. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are 24 men named Mike on the Hill. It’s the most popular name up there, followed closely by John. To put that into context, there are more men named Mike than there are GOP congresswomen. What does data like this tell us about congress? Heard on the Hill reporter Clyde McGrady and Data editor George Levines join the podcast to talk about their project on the most popular names in congress. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A new documentary, "Slay the Dragon" explores what happens when voters fight back against gerrymandering. Jason Dick is joined by the directors of the film Chris Durrance, Barak Goodman, and one of the film's main subjects, Katie Fahey. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Margaret Cho has been called a political comedian, but to her political comedy is just a part of the authenticity she strives for. On this episode of Political Theater she joins Heard on the Hill reporter Kathryn Lyons to talk about her development as a comedian and where politics fits in, the democratic presidential candidate she thinks could do a 'mean foxtrot' and what she hopes 2020 will bring. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So it turns out Super Tuesday was pretty spectacular. Race dynamics changed dramatically, several marquee House and Senate races were set up and the stage is set for a long series of primary battles reaching into the summer. CQ Roll Call Politics Editor Herb Jackson helps break it down. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Everything is bigger in Texas, and Texas is even bigger when it's part of Super Tuesday. And while the Democratic presidential primary gets a lot of attention, we like congressional politics even better. Bridget Bowman discusses the most influential and interesting Democratic and Republican primaries coming up on March 3, including what she learned in her recent reporting trip to the Lone Star State and what else we should pay Super attention to among the more than 100 contests that day. Among the highlights: $200 sheet cake, the fate of Jeff Sessions and the un-gerrymandering of North Carolina. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Taco trucks, cookies and a ‘Battle Born’ caucus interview with Julián Castro: CQ Roll Call reporter Niels Lesniewski joins Political Theater to share some of the moments he caught on tape during his long weekend in Nevada, where the state was holding early caucuses. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With populist leaders like President Donald Trump and Sen. Bernie Sanders leading their parties' primaries, it seems people are fed up with their current institutions. But what does it mean for the future? Joining us to chat about populist movements and their potential outcomes is Daron Acemoglu, an economics professor at MIT and co-author of "The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty". Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New Hampshire's 2020 Democratic primary was the mirror image of Republicans' 2016 primary. We're still lacking clarity even as the the field winnows. One thing we do know, according to Reuters political correspondent Amanda Becker, is that the candidates are preparing for a long slog and expect a lot of twists and turns as they head to Nevada, South Carolina and Super Tuesday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Donald Trump's State of the Union was a master class in deploying conservative rhetoric, entertainment kitsch and Americana tropes before a televised audience. Alyssa Rosenberg of the Washington Post discusses Trump's gifts as an entertainer and how he uses it to maximum effect in the political arena. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Less than one week to go, and it's anyone's guess who will win the Iowa Caucuses. What's the biggest thing on Iowans' minds as they decide? Impeachment? Electability? Personal likability? Caucus expert and political scientist David Redlawsk , who has spent the last six months on sabbatical in Iowa, talks us through what to expect on Feb. 3. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a special edition of Political Theater, PhD drop out and comic Maz Jobrani takes Heard on the Hill's Kathryn Lyons "back to school" to talk Trump hecklers, the candidates he likes in 2020 and what it's like to be in the fake West Wing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is a lot to learn from covering the White House for four years. For former CQ Roll Call White House correspondent John T. Bennett, that included the president's aides looking into that "Hakuna matata" thing, whether the president's accessibility is a double-edged sword and how to stay sane in a crazy environment. Now as Bennett takes on a new assignment with the Independent of London, he shares some of the biggest lessons of life in the Executive Mansion.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week's Democratic presidential debate in Iowa was the last chance for the significantly winnowed field to make a big impression -- not just before the Feb. 3 caucuses but also before the Senate impeachment trial of President Donald Trump. Herb Jackson and Jason Dick break down the biggest takeaways as candidates tried to get in one last look, and what voters can expect as the trial drags on. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Senators are getting a little antsy waiting for Speaker Nancy Pelosi to deliver articles of impeachment of Donald Trump so they can start a trial. We spent the first full day Congress was back in the Capitol talking to Senators, and we got an earful of their frustrations, suggestions and theories about what happens next. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From Jon Stewart’s smirk to a scrum at the Iowa State Fair to the frenzy surrounding former presidential aide Hope Hicks, CQ Roll Call photographers explain their favorite images of 2019, how they got them and what goes into getting the shot they need. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Democrat Sherrod Brown was first elected to the House in 1992 and just won a third Senate term in 2018. Perhaps aware of the history that surrounds him and his own place in it, he has a new book out, Desk 88. That is where he sits in the Senate, and the book is a series of portraits of the senators who sat there before, a list that includes Hugo Black, Bobby Kennedy and George McGovern. Political Theater spoke with him about the likely coming impeachment trial, when the senator would be expected to sit in Desk 88 and consider whether to remove President Donald Trump from office. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices