A federal judge temporarily blocked taxpayer-funded ads promoting Trump and ordered the administration to cancel the remaining portion of a $20 million ad purchase ahead of the midterms. To discuss, we FEATURE Anna Massoglia. Massoglia is an expert on political ads, digital ads, money in politics, dark money, and opaque spending. A political influence expert and investigative journalist she has more than a decade of experience exposing the hidden forces of money, power, and politics. From 2018 to 2020, Massoglia was responsible for an initiative tracking TV, radio, and online political advertising for Open Secrets. Presently she is an editor at MuckRock Foundation and director of investigations at Sunlight Research. Media includes: Good Morning America, PBS NewsHour, The Washington Post, The New York Times, CNN, NPR.

Midterm elections are on November 3rd. To discuss, we FEATURE Lizzy Stephan. Stephan is senior campaign & election specialist at National Education Association. Previously, she was the executive director at New Era Colorado, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to reinvent politics for young people, mobilizing and empowering a new generation to participate in our democracy to move Colorado forward. New Era Colorado is an affiliate of the Bus Federation, and is one of the largest young voter mobilization efforts in the country. Stephan joined the organization in 2012, and has run the organization's civic engagement, advocacy, and communications efforts. She ran Colorado's largest voter registration drive for the 2014 midterm election in her capacity as Organizing Director. Media experience: The Denver Post, The Daily Specialist, Huffington Post.

A federal judge extended access for journalists from the three outlets while litigation continues over the Trump administration’s attempt to ban them from the White House. The case centers on press access, viewpoint discrimination, and executive authority. To discuss, we FEATURE Charlyn Stanberry. From 2021-2026, Stanberry was the vice president of government relations at the National Association of Broadcasters. She joined NAB after serving as chief of staff for Congresswoman Yvette Clarke (NY-09), for whom she previously served as legislative director and counsel. She was also an adjunct professor at the Florida International University's Honors College teaching their Washington, DC Seminar. Stanberry has also served as vice president of External Affairs for Net Communications, counsel for the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council and as a professional staff member for the Congressional Black Caucus. Media includes: Roll Call, Influential SHE Podcast, ICON Talks, Professional Women in Advocacy, Black Work Experience.

Since changes to federal Medicaid funding were announced in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act in July 2025, 52 maternity wards have closed and an additional 8 are due to be closed. Experts are deeply concerned that rural communities will lose access to maternity care. To discuss, we FEATURE Jamarah Amani. Amani is a community midwife who believes in the transformative and healing power of birth. As a birthworker and advocate, Amani has been tackling the epidemics of Black maternal and infant morbidity and mortality for over fifteen years. She is currently the executive director of Southern Birth Justice Network, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization working to expand the Birth Justice movement and to make midwifery and doula care accessible to all. Media includes: The Miami Times, The South Florida Times, The Huffington Post, PBS, NPR, NBC.

Federal agents searched Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Washington home on Monday as part of an investigation possibly related to whether she or her father lied on government immigration forms decades ago. Democrats and legal experts questioned the timing, just weeks before the midterm elections. To discuss, we FEATURE Amanda Baran. Baran is an attorney who engages in policy analysis and advocacy for immigrant and women's rights. She worked at the Department of Homeland Security for almost ten years where she held a number of significant positions including chief of public engagement at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and worked with the Department of Homeland Security Agency Review Team for the Biden-Harris Transition Team. Prior, she was principal director of immigration policy for the Department's Office of Policy. Baran is now a senior fellow at The Immigration Lab and an adjunct associate professor of law at American University. Media includes: The Hill, Los Angeles Times, VOA Noticias, Rewire.News.

Trump is weighing military action against Iran-backed Houthi rebels following attacks on Saudi Arabia. To discuss, we FEATURE Barbara Slavin. Slavin is a distinguished fellow at the Stimson Center in Washington and a lecturer in international affairs at George Washington University. Prior to joining Stimson, she founded and directed the Future of Iran Initiative at the Atlantic Council and led a bi-partisan task force on Iran. The author of Bitter Friends, Bosom Enemies: Iran, the US and the Twisted Path to Confrontation (2007). She covered such key foreign policy issues as the US-led ‘war on terrorism,’ policy toward ‘rogue’ states, the Iran-Iraq war and the Arab-Israeli conflict. She has traveled to Iran nine times. Media includes: The Washington Post, Al-Jazeera, NPR, C-SPAN. BBC.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s plan to livestream a military execution has drawn bipartisan opposition. To discuss, we FEATURE Debbie Hines. Hines is a Washington, DC based trial attorney, legal analyst, former Baltimore prosecutor and member of the Supreme Court bar. She is an expert in criminal law, high profile criminal cases, gun control and gun laws, police brutality, death penalty, domestic violence and Supreme Court cases. Hinrs often addresses legal/political issues at the intersection of gender, race and class. As a former felony prosecutor, she tried homicides, attempted murders, rapes, burglaries, robberies, narcotics and economic crimes. Presently, she maintains a boutique law practice focused on civil and criminal litigation. Hines is also a former Maryland Assistant Attorney General. Media includes: Al Jazeera, The Washington Post, Baltimore Sun, The Hill, Huffington Post, MSNBC, CNN, Fox News.

Louisiana, Alabama and Arkansas are using lawsuits to label abortion pills a “public nuisance” and challenge shield laws protecting out-of-state providers who mail the medication. The cases could restrict access to abortion pills across state lines. To discuss, we FEATURE Jenice Fountain, executive director of Yellowhammer Fund. Fountain is a grassroots organizer and advocate in Birmingham, Alabama dedicated to reproductive justice, direct aid, and equitable services for marginalized people. She is the founder of Margins: Women Helping Black Women, a local community aid organization that addresses the reproductive, financial, and material needs of low-income Black mothers, TGNC parents, and their children. Jenice prides herself on her work through a harm reduction lens and views her work as direct pushback to the stigmatized services that Black people are often subject to as well as a direct pushback to capitalist systems. Before the Dobbs decision, Margins was routinely offering transport to and from abortion clinics. Media includes: The New York Times, Cosmopolitan, Alreporter, Politico, BBC, MSNBC, NBC.

September 15–October 15 is Hispanic Heritage Month. To commemorate, we FEATURE Gabriela D. Lemus. Lemus is a dedicated advocate for the Latin community, working at the intersection of social justice and economic opportunity. With over 25 years of experience in congressional and overnment affairs, nonprofit leadership, policy advocacy, and civic engagement, she brings a powerful vision and deep expertise to her work. In 2020, Dr. Lemus became the founding Executive Director of Maryland Latinos Unidos (MLU), following the launch of her consulting firm, Revolution Strategy US, where she provided strategic counsel on policy advancement, coalition-building, and long-term impact for mission-driven organizations. Under her leadership at MLU, she co-founded the Mid-Atlantic Latinx Vaccine Equity Coalition—now the Latino Health Equity Alliance (LHEA)—to address health disparities in underserved communities. Media includes: Huffington Post, Inside Sources.