The Fly

The Fly on the Wall team reports from across the pond, providing the scoop on the British snap elections. In this episode, we learn the context of the election (HINT- it has a little something to do with Brexit) and a crash course in British politics, talking to candidates, campaign managers, and press to get the full picture.

Finally, Aaron's dreams come true: his idol, Governor Martin O'Malley, is the guest on this week's episode. O'Malley reflects on his career in politics and his faith background, identifies key strategies for the Democratic party moving forward after a disappointing election season, and presents his vision for the nation. Will he run for president again? Listen to find out!

Everyone's favorite professor and WaPo columnist EJ Dionne joins Aaron and Christian for a fascinating discussion on religion in American political life. We cover a wide array of topics--from EJ's childhood to the impact of evangelicals in the 2016 campaign to party strategy in reaching religious voters. It's a long episode, but we promise every minute is worth it.

We landed the authors of the hottest political read, "Shattered"--which details the ups and downs of Hillary Clinton's unsuccessful run at the presidency. Jon Allen and Amie Parnes join us to discuss what it was like to observe the campaign from the inside, how they cultivated their sources, and how the concept of the book evolved from early 2015 to November 8th, 2016.

As Congress appears stuck in the mud, we bring in an expert of how the Hill works--Michael Steel, former Press Secretary to Speaker Boehner. We talk about stalled agendas, a looming government shutdown, and the festival that is the White House Correspondents Dinner.

Aaron visits Ambassador Peter Wittig in the German embassy to talk about the German approach to international deal-making in the second episode of "Fly on the World: Climate Change Edition." We discuss cultural differences, ambitious goals, and the need for strong leadership to hold the global consensus together.

Doug Heye, former communications head for the RNC and Majority Leader Eric Cantor, shares some of his craziest stories about communicating in crisis mode. In the wake of United and Pepsi PR disasters, we discuss what makes crisis communications different than day-to-day communications in terms of strategy, tactics, and results.

Ambassador Selwin Hart of Barbados kicks off our newest series, "Fly on the World: Climate Change Edition"! In these episodes, we'll discuss the global effort to combat climate change and explore how historic agreements like the Paris Deal come to fruition. Join us as we step into the rooms where real diplomacy--the nitty gritty deal-making--takes place!

The 2016 election raised a lot of doubts about polling--and top Democratic pollster and Obama campaign adviser Cornell Belcher joins us to address those very concerns. He talks about how he got his start, the need for strategic polling, and where we went wrong in 2016.

Christian hits the campaign trail for #HoyasInGA, touring Georgia's Sixth Congressional District just weeks before the special election to fill Secretary Tom Price's seat. He chats with campaign managers, party officials, and even candidates--including Democratic candidate Jon Ossof.

Former senior staffer for Hillary for America Marlon Marshall joins us on the pod this week to talk about the importance of local politics in national electoral strategy. NOTE: there's also a lengthy discussion on Girl Scout cookies.

It's budget season in Washington--so who better to talk to than Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform? We dive into how he wields his impressive influence in the form of an interest group to tackle his agenda year after year.

As Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch prepares for his confirmation battle, we chat with top Supreme Court reporter Bob Barnes, Democratic legal operative Ron Klain, and Republican political strategist Sara Fagan about what the ensuing saga will entail. We talk history, politics, and Kevin Spacey.

On the eve of a joint session address, we talk with two chief speechwriters--Cody Keenan of the Obama White House and Marc Thiessen of the Bush White House. They share commentary on President Trump's speaking style and reflections on their experiences writing for the President of the United States.

Aaron and Christian kick off our very first episode with special guest Jen Psaki, former Communications Director for the Obama White House, for a conversation on the rocky GOP repeal & replace of the ACA effort--specifically looking at the communications battle. We reflect on her part in the messaging battle for the ACA back in 2010 and talk about how Republicans can be successful in messaging their latest policy effort.