On with Kara Swisher

As Democrats solidify the size and scope of their House and Senate majorities after Tuesday’s midterm blowout, the party is brainstorming how best to take advantage of its coming Congressional control. One area of focus will be passing AI regulations, an issue with some bipartisan support. But with Trump still in the White House — and warning lawmakers not to “kill the golden goose” — what can the party actually accomplish?

Two Democrats who will be key to getting any AI bill passed are Texas Rep. Greg Casar, who chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus and has introduced a series of populist bills aimed at reigning in big tech, and California Rep. Sam Liccardo, whose Bay Area district includes a sliver of Silicon Valley. Kara talks to them about what Democrats should prioritize when it comes to AI legislation, where the party might be able to work with Republicans, and whether Congress can actually get ahead of the technology’s rapid advancement.

Please note: This episode was taped the Wednesday following the midterm elections.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
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Kara Swisher and Hillary Clinton break down a historic midterm election, in which Democrats won control of both the House and Senate. They discuss the night’s firsts, including the nation’s first Black woman governor, first Muslim senator, and the record number of Democratic women heading to the House. Clinton shares her election-night routine, and the results that surprised her most. Then, the two look ahead to what a Democratic Congress means for the final two years of Trump’s presidency.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
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Today, we’re bringing you a new episode of “Stay Tuned with Preet” from CAFE and the Vox Media Podcast Network.

A panel joins Preet Bharara to break down the midterm election results: historian Joanne Freeman, The New Yorker staff writer Susan Glasser, and political commentator and author of the Substack publication “To the Contrary,” Charlie Sykes.

They discuss what led to President Trump and the Republican Party’s sweeping defeat, what to expect from Trump in his final two years in office, how Democrats might wield their newfound power in Congress, and the implications for the 2028 presidential election.

Show notes and a transcript of the episode are available on our website.

Watch this episode on our Youtube channel.

Shop Stay Tuned merch and featured books by our guests in our Amazon storefront.

Have a question for Preet? Ask @PreetBharara on BlueSky, or Twitter with the hashtag #AskPreet. Email us at [email protected], or call 833-997-7338 to leave a voicemail.

Stay Tuned with Preet is brought to you by CAFE and the Vox Media Podcast Network.

Kara will be back on Friday with a special episode of “High Stakes” with Hillary Clinton. They’ll unpack what the midterm results mean for the country and for the Trump administration's next two years.
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Authors Michael Lewis and Jacob Weisberg have built careers on writing deeply researched books about the ways human judgement shapes powerful institutions, especially the U.S. government. Their latest books are a study in contrasts. In “Profiles in Cowardice,” Weisberg scrutinizes the people in positions of great power who folded to President Donald Trump’s power grab at the start of his second term. Lewis’s “Blockers” highlights the opposite: the nameless career bureaucrats who tried to defend federal laws and norms in the early days of DOGE.

Kara, Michael and Jacob talk about the ways the second Trump administration has been dramatically different from the first, whether Elon Musk and his DOGE “musk-rats”really intended to cut $2 trillion from the federal budget, and why gutting the civil service left all of us worse off. They also talk about the upcoming midterm elections and how Democrats can work to hold the Trump administration accountable should they win back power in Congress.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
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With less than a week to go until Election Day, Elon Musk is once again at the center of American politics. The world's richest man has poured nearly half a billion dollars into the midterms to stave off Democratic gains. Meanwhile, Republican and Democratic lawmakers have called for an investigation following revelations that Musk restricted Ukraine’s access to Starlink. And last week, Musk threatened Kara with jail time on X after she said he could face investigations if Democrats return to power.

Kara brings together a panel of experts to unpack the business interests behind Musk’s political bets: why he's spending big on the Texas Senate race, what’s driving a potential Tesla–SpaceX merger and whether a post-election reckoning could bring accountability and check his power.

Kirsten Grind is an investigative business reporter at The New York Times covering Silicon Valley and tech executives, including Elon Musk. Catherine Rampell is the Economics Editor for The Bulwark and an MSNOW contributor. Faiz Siddiqui is a tech reporter at The Washington Post and author of the book Hubris Maximus: The Shattering of Elon Musk.

Questions? Comments? Email us at [email protected] or find us on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, and Bluesky @onwithkaraswisher.
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