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Right Now With Perry Bacon

Right Now With Perry Bacon is a twice-weekly show about national politics with a focus on the radicalism of the Trump administration and tactics to combat it. The program, hosted by New Republic staff writer Perry Bacon on Substack, features in-depth discussions with experts and politicians. It goes beyond the daily headlines to explain why things are happening and put them in a broader context.

All Episodes
February 28, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Why Trump Decided to Attack Iran Right Now—and What His Endgame Is
Elizabeth Saunders and Kian Tajbakhsh discuss President Trump’s decision to attack Iran, assessing the value of weakening an anti-American regime versus the risk of starting another conflict in the Middle East.
Video is available for this article
February 27, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Why Crockett vs. Talarico Has Come Down to the Wire in Texas
Journalist Justin Miller explains why both the Democratic and Republican U.S. Senate primaries in Texas are so close.
Video is available for this article
February 27, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Transcript: Why Crockett v. Talarico Is Down to the Wire in Texas
Journalist Justin Miller explains why both the Democratic and Republican U.S. Senate primaries in Texas are are so close.
Video is available for this article
February 26, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
This State’s Senators Are Changing the Democratic Party
Journalist Tia Mitchell explains why Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock have been so successful in a red-leaning state and why they might be national candidates in the future.
Video is available for this article
February 26, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Transcript: This State’s Senators Are Changing the Democratic Party
Journalist Tia Mitchell explains how Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock have been so successful in a red-leaning state and why they might be national candidates in the future.
Video is available for this article
February 20, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Transcript: Britain’s Floundering Labor Party Is a Warning to U.S Dems
British writer Toby Buckle says moving right on social issues has failed for Britain’s liberals and would also be a disaster for Democrats in the U.S.
Video is available for this article
February 20, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Britain’s Floundering Labour Party Is a Warning to U.S Democrats
Writer Toby Buckle says moving to the right on social issues has failed for Britain’s liberals and would also be a disaster for U.S. Democrats.
Video is available for this article
February 18, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Transcript: What Today’s Democrats Can Learn from Jesse Jackson
Danielle Wiggins, a historian at Georgetown University, says Jesse Jackson’s 1984 and 1988 campaigns used rhetoric, tactics, and policy that would greatly benefit Democrats today.
Video is available for this article
February 18, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
What Today’s Democrats Can Learn From Jesse Jackson
Danielle Wiggins, a historian at Georgetown University, says Jesse Jackson’s 1984 and 1988 campaigns used rhetoric, tactics, and policy that would greatly benefit Democrats today.
Video is available for this article
February 12, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Transcript: Mamdani Is Showing His Pragmatic Side As Mayor
New York journalist Peter Sterne says that Zohran Mamdani’s first month as mayor shows a politician balancing big goals with a lot of barriers to them.
Video is available for this article
February 12, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Mamdani Is Showing His Pragmatic Side as Mayor
New York journalist Peter Sterne says that Zohran Mamdani’s first month as mayor shows a politician balancing big goals with a lot of barriers to them.
Video is available for this article
February 10, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Transcript: The Democrats Best Positioned To Win the 2028 Nomination
Gavin Newsom has surged in polls of the 2028 Democratic field, while many progressives are hoping Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez seeks the nomination.
Video is available for this article
February 10, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
These Democrats Are Best Positioned to Win the Party’s 2028 Nomination
Gavin Newsom has catapulted himself to the top ranks of potential Democratic candidates, and many progressives are hoping Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez takes steps toward a 2028 campaign.
Video is available for this article
February 4, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Transcript: The Religious Left Is a Leader in the ICE Resistance
University of Louisville political scientist David Buckley says liberal religious leaders are playing a key role in Minneapolis and in other efforts to resist Trump.
Video is available for this article
February 4, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
The Religious Left Is a Leader in the ICE Resistance
University of Louisville political scientist David Buckley says liberal religious leaders are playing a key role in Minneapolis and in other efforts to resist Trump.
Video is available for this article
January 30, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Trump Is Losing A Lot. We Must Celebrate Our Victories
Georgetown philosophy professor Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò explains why it’s vital for those resisting Trump to acknowledge and share their successes, both large and small.
Video is available for this article
January 30, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Transcript: Trump Is Losing a Lot. We Must Celebrate Our Victories
Georgetown philosophy professor Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò explains why it’s vital for those resisting Trump to acknowledge and share their successes, both large and small.
Video is available for this article
January 27, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
The Problem Is Bigger Than ICE
Criminal justice expert Jessica Pishko says ICE’s abuses in Minneapolis are rooted in an over-criminalization of immigration policy and that Customs and Border Protection is even more radical than ICE.
Video is available for this article
January 27, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Transcript: The Problem Is Bigger Than ICE
Criminal justice expert Jessica Pishko says ICE’s abuses in Minneapolis are rooted in an over-criminalization of immigration policy and that Customs and Border Protection is even more radical than ICE.
Video is available for this article
January 21, 2026
Right Now With Perry Bacon
Transcript: Trump Is Destroying Higher Ed. Here’s How To Rebuild It
University of Utah professor Marshall Steinbaum says American higher education should be reformed so we don’t have well-funded colleges for rich students and underfunded ones that lower-income people attend.
Video is available for this article

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Politics & Ideas
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