Podcast

Americano

American politics is ever more divisive and The Spectator’s Americano podcast delivers in-depth discussions with the best American pundits to keep you in the loop. Presented by Freddy Gray.

American politics is ever more divisive and The Spectator’s Americano podcast delivers in-depth discussions with the best American pundits to keep you in the loop. Presented by Freddy Gray.

Americano

Will America ban TikTok?

Freddy Gray speaks to Matt McDonald, Spectator World’s managing editor about the campaign to ban TikTok; who from the Republican party supports the bill and what influence the Israel lobby has.

Play 20 mins

Americano

Power, politics and the grid

Freddy Gray speaks to author Robert Bryce whose recent docuseries Power Politics & The Grid explores the growing vulnerabilities of America’s electric grid. On the podcast they talk about Trump vs Biden energy policy; why Europe needs America’s energy and what environmentalism could look like in 2024. 

Play 27 mins

Americano

How will RFK Junior change the 2024 election?

Freddy Gray is joined by John Rick MacArthur, president and publisher of Harper’s Magazine to discuss Robert F. Kennedy junior and his candidacy in the presidential election.

Play 42 mins

Americano

Will Trump’s election be ‘too big to rig’?

For this Super Tuesday discussion, Sarah Elliot – head of the Special Relationship Unit at the Legatum Institute joins Freddy Gray to chat about the predicted Trump-Biden victory; what Nikki Haley will do next and who could be Donald Trump’s vice president. 

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Americano

Will Tech decide the US election?

Freddy talks to political technologist Eric Wilson about the role technology and media will play in the 2024 US election. They cover the differences in strategy between the Democrats and the Republicans, why television is still the best medium for reaching voters, and the role of social media influencers.  Produced by Natasha Feroze.

Play 25 mins

Americano

A Donald Trump debate

In this special episode of Americano, The Spectator’s editor Fraser Nelson explores Trump’s candidacy with political commentator Deroy Murdock, and The Spectator’s economics editor Kate Andrews.  They debate the influence of his rhetoric on American politics. How important is language? Will his achievements as President be enough to secure his re-election? Does personality Trump policy? 

Play 28 mins

Americano

Are pollsters underestimating Joe Biden?

Freddy Gray speaks to James Kanagasooriam who is the chief research officer at Focal Data about the state of the polls. They discuss why vaccines have become a polarising topic for this election; why bookmakers might be underestimating Joe Biden and the importance of the cost of living.

Play 31 mins

Americano

Americano: human rights vs democracy

Freddy speaks to journalist and author of The Age of Entitlement: America Since the Sixties, Chris Caldwell, about the human rights movement. Can America’s influence be considered imperial? Is how we think of human rights outdated? And, what does the Black Lives Matter movement and the 2011 intervention in Libya tell us about the state of

Play 20 mins

Americano

Should Julian Assange be extradited to America?

Freddy speaks to philosopher Slavoj Zizek ahead of what we understand will be Julian Assange’s final court appeal against extradition back to the US. The WikiLeaks founder has been wanted by the US authorities after he leaked tens of thousands of highly sensitive documents. On the podcast they discuss the parallels between Assange and Navalny,

Play 27 mins

Americano

What do Republicans think of Lord Cameron?

Freddy Gray speaks to Americano regular Jacob Heilbrunn about Lord Cameron’s recent visit to DC, where he persuaded Congress to pass a bill sending aid to Ukraine. Jacob and Freddy also discuss why Jacob thinks Biden’s mental capacity is over exaggerated, and what Nato could look like under Trump, and the latest on his charges.

Play 30 mins

Americano

What happened to the Democratic Party?

Freddy Gray speaks to author Joshua Green who wrote The Rebels: Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and the Struggle for a New American Politics. On the podcast they discuss the three rebels in the book; how they influenced Joe Biden in office; and whether the Democratic Party has given up ‘finance-centered’ liberalism.

Play 38 mins

Americano

Which way will the swing states go?

Freddy Gray speaks to JL Partners Director Scarlett Maguire about America’s swing states which could decide the general election. 

Play 12 mins

Americano

How bad is the border crisis?

Freddy is joined by Todd Bensman, fellow at the Centre for Immigration Studies and author of Overrun: how Joe Biden unleashed the greatest border crisis in US history. They discuss how to solve what is perhaps the issue of our time, why meaningful reform doesn’t seem to happen on immigration, and the extent of Biden’s physical

Play 33 mins

Americano

Is 2024 a ‘flip election’?

Freddy Gray is joined by pollster and writer Patrick Ruffini. They talk about why the strengthening economy isn’t improving Biden’s numbers, and the other factors that will influence the 2024 election.

Play 31 mins

Americano

Can Trump ever get a fair trial?

Last week Donald Trump was ordered to pay more than seventy million dollars to E. Jean Carroll, the writer who accused him of sexual assault. Freddy speaks to Spectator columnist Lionel Shriver about some of the oddities of this case against the former president. 

Play 15 mins

Americano

Does the Biden administration know what it’s doing with Iran?

Freddy Gray is joined in the office by Mike Baker a former CIA operations officer, CEO of the global intelligence and security firm Portman Square Group and host of the popular news podcast the President’s Daily Brief. 

Play 45 mins

Americano

Could Taylor Swift swing the election?

Freddy Gray sits down with host and producer of the 538 Politics podcast Galen Druke to discuss whether a Taylor Swift endorsement could sway the general election.

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Americano

Will Jon Stewart still be funny?

Freddy Gray speaks to Jonathan Askonas, assistant professor of politics at the Catholic University of America about Jon Stewart’s return to TV, and what role, albeit inadvertent, he played in Tucker Carlson’s success.

Play 35 mins

Americano

What went wrong with Ron?

Freddy Gray is joined in New Hampshire by Ben Domenech, editor at large of Spectator World. On the podcast they discuss the pro-Trump establishment of the Republican party; how the Republican cohort have changed since the Obama election and what issues Trump can identify that appeal to voters. 

Play 40 mins

Americano

Is New Hampshire a Potemkin primary?

For this special Americano podcast, Freddy Gray is in New Hampshire with the Spectator US team, Matt McDonald and Zach Christenson covering the chilly primaries. Are both Ron De Santis and Nikki Haley’s defeat a foregone conclusion?

Play 18 mins

Americano

Is the Republican race over?

Freddy Gray speaks to Republican strategist Luke Thompson about Trump’s landslide Iowa win; how much Trump’s legal proceedings will interfere with his campaign and who could be his deputy. The Spectator is hiring! We are looking for a new producer to join our broadcast team working across our suite of podcasts – including this one

Play 32 mins

Americano

Is 2024 the ‘regime referendum’?

Freddy Gray speaks to Daniel McCarthy, editor of the conservative review Modern Age, about all things Donald Trump. Do his ongoing trials help or hinder his campaign? Do the Democrats want him to be the Republican candidate or not? And is there a bureaucratic ‘permanent power’ that Trump would overthrow if he succeeds? The Spectator

Play 36 mins

Americano

Do Trump’s Republican rivals have any hope?

Freddy Gray is joined by pollster James Johnson, co-founder of JL Partners. They speak about the upcoming Iowa caucuses, the New Hampshire primary, and whether Trump’s opponents have any chance of beating him. They also discuss the impact of Trump’s trials, and JL Partners’ viral word cloud which both Biden and Trump have been attempting

Play 23 mins

Americano

Is America heading towards Civil War?

Freddy Gray speaks to classicist, military historian and author Victor Davis Hanson.  In an end of year review, they talk about antisemitism in the US today, the battle between right and left since 2016, and a potential future Trump presidency. 

Play 52 mins

Americano

Is an impeachment inquiry good for Biden?

The House of Representatives has voted to open an impeachment inquiry into Joe Biden, after three Republican-led committees alleged bribery and corruption during his time as vice-president. Could it actually be good news for Biden? Freddy speaks to Jacob Heilbrunn.

Play 25 mins

Americano

Does the legacy of Prohibition still haunt America?

Freddy Gray speaks to journalist and author Niko Vorobyov who wrote Dopeworld: Undercover in the secret war on drugs. 90 years after Prohibition ended, what are some of the biggest misperception about that era? And what has been the legacy of repealing the 18th amendment?

Play 21 mins

Americano

Is Cop a busted flush?

World leaders are in Dubai this weekend to discuss climate change, but are these Cop summits pointless? Joe Biden isn’t attending this year’s get together, allegedly because he’s focusing on the war between Israel and Hamas. Meanwhile, there have been reports that the Emiratis are using the convening power of the summit to sign new

Play 25 mins

Americano

Have we seen the last of Mitt Romney?

Freddy Gray talks to McKay Coppins, author of the New York Times bestselling book ‘Romney: A Reckoning’. Romney has announced he will not seek reelection in 2024. What next for the ‘never-Trumper’, could he support the creation of a new centrist party? And how does he feel about the significant losses in his career?

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Americano

Is it time to take Nikki Haley seriously?

Freddy Gray is joined by Patrick Ruffini, pollster and author of Party of the People: Inside the Multiracial Populist Coalition Remaking the GOP to discuss who could be a serious competitor to Trump.

Play 42 mins

Americano

Biden’s Middle East approach – and is he in trouble at home?

Freddy Gray is reunited with Charles Lipson and Jacob Heilbrunn to debate the impact of Biden’s Middle East policy, and his shaky reputation at home. Is he a Cold War liberal, out of touch with the modern Democratic Party?

Play 24 mins