Start Me Up With Kimberley A. Johnson

Joe is an anti choice conservative Libertarian. I am a prochoice progressive Democrat. In the name of unity, we will discuss abortion and try to find common ground. We are on different sides of the debate and both of us are passionate. We both have the goal of offering a different perspective to the other. There will be no personal attacks. The good news is we were able to find some common ground even though we disagree in some important areas.

Author/Lawyer Teri Kanefield is back and she convinced me that it was better there were no witnesses during the Senate trial. I was disappointed but now I understand it was the best choice. We also discussed what comes next for Donald Trump. There are many different possible indictments and we talked about what may happen once those are underway. If you're like me and have an emotional stake in the outcome, you should definitely listen to Teri's point of view. She makes a compelling argument for the kind of punishment he deserves, and as usual, she takes a reasonable and realistic approach to complicated issues.

Nick Knudsen returns! He's the Executive Director of DemCast USA--a grassroots organization created to help Democratic down-ballot candidates win. It's a great way to get involved and you can do it from the comfort of your own home. Nick and I discussed the impact of the Senate impeachment trial, and the importance of messaging--from the current trial to how we talk about candidates in upcoming elections. DemCast is a great source for grassroots organizing and social media messaging. Nick and I had a great conversation and there's a bunch of useful information in the podcast.

Greg Olear, the author of Dirty Rubles, returns for another entertaining and informative conversation. Greg is currently writing a five-part-series about Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and we discuss it, as well as Merrick Garland, this week's Senate impeachment hearing, Dominion Voting Systems is suing Fox, Giuliani, and Fox anchors, and so much more. Greg is always a good time. Also, I love comments.

Rebecca Sive is the author of Vote Her In and Every Day Is Election Day: A Woman's Guide To Winning Any--Office. Show topics: the significance of having a woman serve as VP; the importance of electing women and how we can elect more; AOC was mocked and dismissed by some men on Twitter after she admitted she's been sexually assaulted, however, more and more men are calling out the sexists; how the pandemic hurts working women and what may happen as a result of next week's impeachment trial.

Jody Hamilton, the host of the From The Bunker podcast is back!Topics: First a little fun and personal stuff and then politics. Democrats need to be bold with messaging; GOP is basically dead and Jody shares some optimism about Trump's impeachment trial next week. We always have a great time. Listen and you will, too! I love comments

Former Trump supporter (now Democrat) David Weissman returns and we chatted about the latest news. He's working with the Lincoln Project and I expressed my concerns about that group. David was able to put some of my fears to rest ( at least for now). Also discussed: GOP is carrying on Trump's disastrous legacy; Trump has destroyed the GOP and now they're trying to stop the party from splitting; the importance of progressives and moderates finding common ground. David shares why he's running for office as a Democrat and why he's uniquely qualified to talk with Trump supporters.

James Reynolds is an Emmy award-winning actor best known for his role as Police Captain Abe Carver on the popular daytime drama Days Of Our Lives. (I played a police officer on Days for seven years and had the pleasure of working with James often.) We discussed his early life, his background in journalism as a reporter and drama critic as well as what eventually drew him into acting. Of course, we talked about his epic, ongoing run on DOOL, and then we chatted about politics. I absolutely adore James and I hope you have fun listening.

Actor Kirk Acevedo, A.K.A. #KidVicious, is back (and he's my first guest during the Biden administration!) Topics: Democrats need better messaging, especially with the Latino vote; Ivanka Trump poses a real threat in 2024 and how COVID is affecting actors. Kirk is an excellent guest and he's funny! We talked about his homelife with two new kitties and how he has to pay his teenage daughter every time he swears.

Former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirscher returns to answer questions about pardons, elected officials who promoted the storming of the Capitol, and how to deal with white supremacy in the military and law enforcement. Covered in this show: Can Trump pardon himself? Can pardons be rescinded--especially if those pardons were purchased or involve treason? Are the elected officials, that echoed Trump's lies, equally guilty of inciting an insurrection, and what legal action can be taken against them to protect America? Those burning questions and many more are addressed!

Another fabulous show with my bestie Steph Walton. This would normally be a show just for Patreon patrons but I'm making this one free because Steph and I have a blast when we pod! Today we talked a little politics and also had some fun for a good mix of hysterical laughter and well-placed rage because Donlad is still here.

Charles Johnson of Little Green Footballs joined me to talk a little about his background as a musician, then as a political blogger and then we focused on the crazy events currently unfolding. Topics we discussed: Will the Senate convict Donald? If Pence is POTUS, will he offer pardons? The right has been heading towards fascism for quite a while and Charles and I wonder where things are headed once Biden is sworn in..

Randy Bryce, the former Democratic candidate nominee for Wisconsin's 1st congressional district is back! Topics: the insurrection and the piss poor reaction from Republicans, Pelosi's demand for 25th Amendment or impeachment proceedings, and then Randy and I had a productive conversation about forming a massive Democrative big tent coalition. Randy emphasized the importance of both welcoming conservatives as well as reaching out to progressives. In order to win elections, the Democrats have to find a way to get along. All that and more.

Greg Olear, the author of Dirty Rubles, is back on a most awesome day. Topics: Looks like Democrats will take the Senate; Pence will not lick Donald's backside and he will name Biden as the next POTUS, Dems have a lot of work and there's is so much possibility, Biden tapped Merrick Garland to be his Attorney General and so much more. I love comments.

Jody Hamilton, the host of the From The Bunker podcast is back for the first show of 2021! Topics: Trump's criminal phone call was not perfect, Georgia runoff elections, Ted Cuz is a dick, Stacey Abrams is awesome, The Squad voted for Pelosi to be Speaker, and the Democratic party is a big tent. That's just a taste

My bestie Steph joins me for the last free show of the year! We DID talk about politics. Steve Schmidt announced that he's now a Democrat! My brother has COVID (I hate and blame Trump) and we talked a little about that; Trump's Mar-a-Lago neighbors don't want him to live at the resort and all kinds of other fun topics.

Bob Cesca hosts the political podcast, The Bob Cesca Show. He also covers politics for Salon and The Daily Banter, and he's my boyfriend! We started the show with a brief chat about politics but then quickly switched over to questions for Bob about his other notable accomplishments. I asked him about his career in radio, his animation work and I squeezed in some listener questions. We ended the show talking about his love for movies and why his office is filled with statues and posters from the films he loves.

Danny Derany is a publicist who's been on the show before and I wanted to have him back to talk about what our generation--Gen X--took from the messaging we received through pop culture when we were growing up and how it applies to our current worldview. We did discuss that, but the conversation took a slightly different turn. Danny likes to place his attention on what brings us together and we spent a good deal of time talking about how we (all of us) might find ways to come together by talking/posting about the things that unite us: love, laughter, and warmth, We live in complicated, divisive times and there's no easy answer, but we can explore the options, and that's what Danny and I did.

David TRex Ferguson is back for another show where we talk about whatever comes to mind. Nothing was pre-planned. We talked about religion, astrology (supposedly we're heading into periods of innovation, so I want that to be true), and Trump possibly in handcuffs in a year to a year and a half. We also discussed being creative because David has an AMAZING new song, Sad Season. Basically, another fun, conversational show with David. I love comments.

Actress Kiersten Warren has worked in film and television. Films include Bicentennial Man, Independence Day, and Divine Secrets of The Ya-Ya Sisterhood, and she's appeared in TV shows such as DesperateHousewises and Saved By The Bell. We pretty much steered clear of politics and talked about fun stuff. She shared some wonderful experiences working with Robin Williams; we both have stories about the actor Vince Vaughn, and basically we just have a great time chatting about the holidays, dealing with COVID, and what we do to entertain ourselves while sheltering-in-place.