Claim OwnershipThe Focus Group Podcast
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Unfiltered, uncompromising, unexpected—The Focus Group is a look into what the average voter thinks about politics, policy, and current events. Sarah Longwell, publisher of The Bulwark, has conducted hundreds of hours of focus groups all across the country. She and a series of special guests will take you behind the glass to hear what real focus group participants have to say.
https://www.thebulwark.com/podcast/focus-group/
https://www.thebulwark.com/podcast/focus-group/
114 Episodes
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2Donald Trump has run into some summer doldrums...from the uncertainty in the economy, to his Big Beautiful Bill, to his refusal to come clean about Jeffrey Epstein. We're wondering how voters are processing the last couple of months. Atlantic staff writer Ashley Parker, who's covered Trump for over a decade, joins Sarah for our season premiere.
By Ashley Parker:
'I Run the Country and the World'
Flattery, Firmness, and Flourishes
Why Is the National Guard in D.C.? Even They Don’t Know.
Inside the White House’s Epstein Strategy
The Focus Group Podcast will be back for real in a couple of weeks, but by popular demand, Sarah and her producer, Conor Kilgore, take on some of our listeners' frequently asked questions about how and why they do all these focus groups.
The Focus Group Podcast is still on hiatus, but the Trump administration's walkback of the promised "Epstein Files" this week got us curious about how voters were thinking.
The Bulwark's own Will Sommer sat down with Sarah to break down a focus group we convened with 2024 Trump voters who disapprove of Trump's job performance, and discuss how Democrats can talk about this Epstein news.
Our season finale is a bit of a pep talk. America is in a precarious place, but Americans everywhere are speaking up against the authoritarian threat. Historian extraordinaire Heather Cox Richardson joins Sarah to discuss the lessons history leaves for this moment, and Americans' role in fighting back.
By Heather Cox Richardson:
Letters from an American
Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America
The New York City mayoral primary is "dumb" and getting lots of "dumb attention," at least according to our (radically candid) guest. Democratic voters face a choice between disgraced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, and the inexperienced socialist state assemblyman Zohran Mamdani. There's another candidate who was just arrested by ICE, which may shake up this race at the VERY end. The City's Harry Siegel joins Sarah for a wide-ranging conversation about New York City's politics today.
By The City:
The City's Meet Your Mayor Quiz
FAQ NYC Podcast
By Harry Siegel:
NYC’s lousy election rules create lousy choices
Mamdani’s moment for momentum: The surging socialist in the Democratic mayoral primary
Donald Trump's Big Beautiful Bill is moving through Congress, and you may be surprised by some former Trump voters' reactions. Bulwark in-house policy wonk Jonathan Cohn joins Sarah to talk about the bill's negative consequences and why healthcare has been such a political albatross for the Republican Party. We also learn that plenty of voters are irritated by Congress only seeming to pass 'big' bills these days.
The Democratic primary for New Jersey governor is crowded, and Democratic voters all over the map. But as always, they're united in wanting a candidate who can fight the Trump administration effectively. So which candidate can do it? Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report and the podcast The Odd Years makes her sixth appearance on the show to discuss how these off-year elections in New Jersey and Virginia can change the political environment.
Sarah had a busy travel schedule this week, so we're bringing you some raw audio. With the recent revelations about Joe Biden's mental state during his term, we asked a couple of groups of Democrats what they thought during (and after) his presidency, and how it might inform their thinking going forward. These voters liked Biden but supported his decision to withdraw from the 2024 race. The excerpts of these groups were edited for length and for participants' privacy.
Donald Trump is looking to pass his Big, Not-So-Beautiful Bill through Congress. To do it, he needs to get it past congressional Republicans. So what do Republican voters think of congressional leaders, and whether this bill is as big and beautiful as it seems? New York Times congressional reporter Annie Karni joins Sarah.
By Annie Karni:
Mad House: How Donald Trump, MAGA Mean Girls, a Former Used Car Salesman, a Florida Nepo Baby, and a Man with Rats in His Walls Broke Congress
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JD Vance is one heartbeat away from the presidency, and he's a big part of the Republican Party's future. It turns out, his ideas are also part of the reason the second Trump term has been a lot more pure MAGA than the first. POLITICO's Ian Ward returns to the show to recap Vance's first few months in office, his political future, and go deep on some of the New Right's major intellectual influences.
By Ian Ward:
The Spiritual Case for Greenland
There’s No Need to Guess. JD Vance Is Ready to Ignore the Courts.
Curtis Yarvin’s Ideas Were Fringe. Now They’re Coursing Through Trump’s Washington.
The Seven Thinkers and Groups That Have Shaped JD Vance’s Unusual Worldview
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get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN!
With Donald Trump's approval ratings falling, that means some of his voters aren't getting what they voted for. We talked to those voters, to find out what that does and doesn't mean about their relationship to this administration (spoiler: they DON'T wish they'd voted for Kamala Harris). Semafor's Dave Weigel joins the show to break down how those voters are feeling, and the battle lines for the upcoming legislative battles over Trump's agenda.
show notes
By Dave Weigel:
Democrats’ new pitch: Down with the king
Democrats are all but done with Trump impeachment talk
Sarah didn't think she'd be looking to Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as examples of good Democratic communicators. But all of a sudden, they're some of the only people in the Democratic Party showing how to get the Trump opposition engaged. Faiz Shakir, Sanders' adviser and 2020 presidential campaign manager, joins the show to talk about Sanders' and Ocasio-Cortez's rallies around the country, why he thinks they'll advance the Democratic Party going forward, and what even moderates can learn from their approach.
Donald Trump's first 100 days in office have been marked by a lot of aspiring autocratic behavior...like deporting a legal resident without due process, targeting his political enemies, to walking right up to the line of ignoring the Supreme Court. Unfortunately, it's not a given that voters will care...or even clock that what they're seeing is bad. Atlantic staff writer Anne Applebaum joins Sarah to discuss how voters are seeing Trump, and how he's comparing to autocratic regimes around the world.
show notes
Anne on Substack
By Anne Applebaum:
Twilight of Democracy: The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism
Autocracy, Inc.: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World
America’s Future Is Hungary
Trump has plunged the markets into chaos over the last couple of weeks with his tariffing, and un-tariffing, and possible re-tariffing. The Biden-to-Trump voters we've talked to were a mixed bag on this. Scott Lincicome, author of The Dispatch's economics newsletter Capitolism and Vice President of general economics at the Cato Institute, joins Sarah to listen to how the trade war is trickling down to voters and where it all might go from here.
show notes
By Scott Lincicome:
Capitolism Newsletter
This show is #sponsored by OneSkin. Get 15% off OneSkin with the code THEFOCUSGROUP at https://www.oneskin.co #oneskinpod
We've heard from a lot of Democrats who want the party to be more moderate, and many who want the party to be more progressive. But they all agree that the party needs to fight harder in this moment. Lauren Egan, author of The Bulwark's newsletter, The Opposition, joins Sarah to listen to some Democrats talk about the threats they see from the Trump administration, and how they think elected Democrats should respond.
By Lauren Egan:
Chuck Schumer Is Facing a Biden Moment
Where Have All the Pussyhats Gone?
Some Weird Alliances Are Breaking Out Among Democrats
This show is #sponsored by OneSkin. Get 15% off OneSkin with the code THEFOCUSGROUP at https://www.oneskin.co/ #oneskinpod
Donald Trump is facing some headwinds. His staff accidentally leaked war plans to a reporter, and the promised price cuts are nowhere to be found. We check in with Biden-Trump voters on Signal-gate, and talk to Trump's base about whether they want him running for a third term, how they feel about the economy (which may surprise you), and the state of the MAGA media ecosystem. The Bulwark's MAGA-knower Will Sommer joins Sarah to sift through it all.
show notes
By Will Sommer:
When ‘Owning The Libs’ > The Constitution
A Crack in Ben Shapiro’s Daily Wire
We're checking in with 2024's non-voters, and Sarah has a (friendly) fight with our guest over whether Kamala Harris should have closed the 2024 campaign with Liz Cheney. They also talk to some of 2024's non-voters, who have some thoughts on how Democrats should be fighting back right now. Jen Psaki, host of MSNBC's Inside with Jen Psaki and the podcast The Blueprint with Jen Psaki, joins the show.
We're checking in on first-time Trump voters as Trump's reign of chaos continues. Some love what they're getting and think Democrats are out over their skis. Others are wondering when Trump will get around to fixing the economy. Atlantic staff writer and legendary DC chronicler Mark Leibovich joins Sarah to discuss what to make of it all.
Show notes:
Mark Leibovich in The Atlantic:
Greenland’s Prime Minister Wants the Nightmare to End
Books by Mark Leibovich:
Thank You for Your Servitude
This Town
Five years ago this week, the COVID-19 pandemic came to the United States, and with it a level of suffering and distrust of authority (and each other) that we haven't fully reckoned with. Indeed, the pandemic was a major factor in what made Donald Trump's political comeback possible. Dr. Leana Wen, public health expert and author of the Washington Post newsletter The Checkup with Dr. Wen joins Sarah to discuss the lessons learned from the pandemic, how it changed Americans, and its implications for the future of public health.
Show notes:
The Checkup with Dr. Wen
This show is #sponsored by OneSkin. Get 15% off OneSkin with the code THEFOCUSGROUP at https://www.oneskin.co/ #oneskinpod
Trump shouted down Zelensky in the Oval Office last week, and many pro-Ukraine Trump voters wished it hadn't happened like that...publicly, at least. So, we wondered, what did the remaining pro-Ukraine Republicans think of America's role in the world? Pod Save America and Pod Save the World host Tommy Vietor joins Sarah to discuss the future of foreign policy in Trump 2.0.
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Why not ask your group participants why they don't not go to sources like your guest rather than rely on partisans and media spin? Are they too dumb to think of that, too stupid to absorb the knowledge? It sounds as though a lot of them are too brainwashed to know Trump is a liar and has run many businesses into the ground or maybe too dumb to care. I think you insult them by not challenging them and not asking why they believe what they believe. I guess you're scared they'd not join the groups.
Anne noted: Not one person said we have the right to legal representation. Those whose security clearance or protection was ended by Trump had ethical problems. WHAT were they, according to your geniuses ? You know that the accusations are nonsense, but feel no compunction about letting them go. You dig up clips. Your panelists never think to look for the truth, huh? Why? You strike me as a self indulgent, and privileged dilettante. I wonder what your focus group fools think of you?
Anne takes your groups seriously. I do not. These are stupid* people. You choose not to challenge them or offer them the truth and ask them to consider it. Why? My guess is because they would not take part if they knew you would challenge them. 15 years ago, what were YOU saying about Obama's birth? Why not ask them who the Bill of Rights applies to, and if they believe POTUS can violate it at will? *BTW stupid just means lacking in knowledge or common sense, and it can be cured. Can they?
Oy. Jennifer. You reminded me, from the start, why it is so tough to listen to you... right, right, right, right, right, right, right, right? What did I learn? Nothing new. The same rationalizations for opting out by some, choosing apathy by others. If you could not identify the utter unsuitability of Trump to lead this country, even after seeing him at it for 4 years, you got what you created space for: the MuskTrump presidency. A government bought by and for the ultra wealthy. Thanks.
I must agree with Swisher. Not much knowledge is displayed in these groups, although she tempers her critiques, perhaps to be polite, as the tape rolls on.
This episode was so hard to listen to. These fellas clearly "did their research" in the MAGA echo chamber in addition to being too naive about life.
Sara, in your episode with Sam Stein you remarked that talking about transgenders (and gays?) to small kids is inappropriate. You are completely wrong: from knowing some transgenders and gays (one of my sons is gay) and talking to them I LEARNED that most already know that they are different than their friends, or that they are not really of the gender by which they are addressed already at a very young age - by as young as three years old!!!
I know this isn't the way focus groups work, but I just wanted to jump into the podcast to press these people to articulate just exactly how they would enumerate "Trump policies" and "Republican principles". All I heard was "this is your brain on Fox", aped talking point after aped talking point.
I'm curious - is there any kind of sociological study that shows the overlap between GOP voters and irrational/conspiratorial thought? just seems that when a Democrat loses an election, Democratic voters are not anywhere near as predestined to default to this argument of a rigged election.