Skullduggery

Climate change the scientists tell us is an existential threat to the future of the planet. But what do we do about it? And how much time do we actually have before we're completely engulfed by rising sea levels, melting ice caps, and ever more extreme weather events from out of control wildfires to floods, tsunamis, and other natural disasters? Fresh off COP26 in Glasgow, Yahoo News' Ben Adler and David Knowles join to discuss our path forward. Also, Yahoo News Reporter Caitlin Dickson joins to paint the picture post verdict in the Kyle Rittenhouse case. GUESTS: - Ben Adler (@badler), Senior Climate Editor @YahooNews - David Knowles (@writerknowles), Editorial Senior Manager at @YahooNews, Host of @Climate_Podcast - Caitlin Dickson (@CEDickson), Senior Reporter @YahooNews HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - The Climate Crisis Podcast - Here. - Dickson's Rittenhouse story post verdict - Here.   Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

We all heard the tape of the phone call eleven months ago. President Trump telling Brad Raffensperger, Georgia Secretary of State, he should overturn the election results and declare that he, not Joe Biden, won the Peach State in last year's election. "President Trump is using what he believes is the power of his position to threaten me if we don't do what he tells us to do Raffensperger writes about the phone call in his new book called Integrity Counts. Essentially accusing then President Trump of criminal conduct. Raffensperger could end up being a crucial witness in the still ongoing investigation of Trump's conduct by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. Raffensperger joins to discuss said book as well as his upcoming hopes for re-election. GUEST: - Georgia Sec. of State Brad Raffensperger (@GaSecofState) HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Trump's infamous phone call to Raffensperger - Here. Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The new TV series, DOPESICK, showcases the big lie that a new opioid drug Purdue Pharma was pushing - oxycontin - was safe, effective, and most importantly not addictive. Well, it was. And the new drug had been blessed by an FDA official who later went on to work for, you guessed it, Purdue Pharma. This is the story of the billion dollar drug company run by the Sackler family and how they pushed this product out to the masses creating an addiction to a dangerous narcotic. Danny Strong, the director and writer of the DOPESICK series as well as the author of the book it's based on, Beth Macy, on this episode. Yahoo News' own Jon Ward joins as well to update us on Steve Bannon, who recently appeared in court after originally defying his subpoena. GUESTS: - Danny Strong (@Dannystrong), Writer/Director/Actor/Producer - Beth Macy (@papergirlmacy), Journalist, author of the award-winning, NYT-bestseller DOPESICK - Jon Ward (@jonward11), Senior Political Correspondent for Yahoo News HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Buy DOPESICK book - Here. - Jon Ward's latest Bannon story - Here.   Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

"His second term is going to start with a bang, that we can guarantee you." So spoke former White House Counselor Steve Bannon on his podcast Jan. 5th, seeming to foreshadow the horrific events of the next day at the US Capitol. The country, he told his listeners, was about to go through a constitutional crisis that would make the impeachment of Donald Trump look like a Sunday picnic. Did Bannon know what was going to happen on that dark day in US history? Did he encourage it? He was issued a subpoena to turn over documents, he denied. Now, he's been indicted on two counts of criminal contempt of congress. How will this all play out in court? And how long will it take? Evan Osnos also joins to discuss his new book Wildland: The Making of America's Fury. A book that charts how we got to Jan. 6th in the first place. A story in which Bannon plays a role. GUEST: - Evan Osnos (@eosnos) - Journalist & Author, staff writer @NewYorker HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Buy Osnos' new book Wildland: The Making of America's Fury - Here. Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Fiona Hill was a member of Donald Trump's National Security Council. She was a key figure who coordinated policy toward Vladimir Putin's Russia. She had a bird's eye view of the strange dynamic that played out throughout the Trump years. The repeated and seemingly inexplicable sympathy that the US President had for the authoritarian Russian leader culminated in a disastrous press conference in Helsinki. This of course is where Trump sided with Putin as opposed to his own US agencies in regards to the Russian interference in the 2016 election. Hill contemplated faking a seizure and throwing herself into a row of people right behind her in order to stop the press conference dead in its tracks. This is one scene from Hill's new book - There is Nothing For You Here. She joins to discuss.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

For more than a century has had on the books a concealed carry law that permits individuals to carry a weapon only if they demonstrate they have a special need for one to protect themselves from a threat on their lives. This week, the Supreme Court will hear a challenge from that law from an NRA affiliated group arguing that such restrictions are an unconstitutional violation to a citizen’s right to bare arms. Gun control advocates fear it’s something that could end up in the Supreme Court, which now has a solid 6-3 conservative majority. Two authors, both with a book out about the NRA and guns - Ryan Busse and Tim Mak - join to discuss where America is headed when it comes to guns, gun violence, and those that lobby for open carry. GUESTS: - Ryan Busse (@ryandbusse), author of Gunfight: My Battle Against the Industry that Radicalized America - Tim Mak (@timkmak), Author of Misfire: Inside the Downfall of the NRA HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Buy Busse's book - Here. - Buy Tim Mak's book - Here.   Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

As the race for Governor in the State of Virginia comes down to its final few moments, an epic debate blunder from Terry Mcauliffe has been exploited in order for his rival Glenn Youngkin to have a potential shot at victory. On top of that, a Loudoun County sexual assault case has arisen front and center during the final days. Yahoo News' own Jon Ward joins to breakdown the story. Then former Virginia Congressman - Republican Tom Davis - weighs in on what the results will ultimately mean moving forward. GUEST: - Fmr. Congressman Tom Davis of Virginia - Yahoo News' Jon Ward (@jonward11) HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Latest on Loudoun Country sexual assault case dominating Election Race - Here. Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Rep. Jamie Raskin took to the House floor last week to lay out exactly what is at stake in the battle of Steve Bannon's refusal to testify before the Jan. 6th Select Committee. Few members have done more to get to the bottom of what happened that day than Raskin and punish those who were responsible. Before being elected to Congress, he was a Constitutional Law Professor. It was he who led the charge to impeach former President Trump over his role in inciting the attack. But even if Raskin, who's leading the charge once again gets Bannon to testify, what will they actually learn? And what do they believe the investigation might actually uncover? Raskin himself joins to discuss. GUEST: - Rep. Jamie Raskin (@RepRaskin), Rep. from MD's 8th Congressional District, on @rulesdemocrats, @housejudiciary, @oversightdems, & @houseadm_dems HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Latest Yahoo News Article on Jan. 6th Subpoenas - Here. - Raskin and Cheney get in fight with Taylor Green on House Floor - Here. Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In recent weeks, a television series has been airing called American Crime Story: Impeachment that explores the events leading up to the impeachment of then U.S. President Bill Clinton. The story, mostly told through the eyes of former White House intern Monica Lewinsky, seemingly conflates and at times completely fabricates the truth to inflict maximum drama while depicting key role players involved with varying degrees of accuracy. Yet, at other times, completely nails exactly what was actually said and/or happened. One of those characters is Skullduggery's own Michael Isikoff who was the original reporter piecing together the landmark story that would change Clinton's Presidency forever. Our hosts, whom all three were involved - Isikoff and Klaidman both at Newsweek at the time, Bassetti who was in the room for Lewinsky's depositions - weigh in on what the show gets right and what it gets wrong. HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Michael Isikoff's 1999 book about the events - Uncovering Clinton: A Reporter's Story - Here. - Original Posting from the Drudge Report - Here. - Isikoff's Original Story from 1998 for Newsweek - Diary of a Scandel - Here. Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In late September of 2019, Congressman Adam Schiff, the Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, gathered with his staff to read a remarkable document just released by the Trump Whitehouse. It was the transcript to the phone call Trump had that July with Ukrainian President Zelensky stating, "I'd like you to do us a favor though..." then pressing Zelensky to launch an investigation of Joe Biden and his son Hunter. At this point, Schiff had muttered to himself, "Holy Shit." He thought in that moment that he had acquired the ultimate smoking gun. He then lead the charge in Trump's first impeachment. This is a scene he recounts in his brand new book, Midnight in Washington: How We Almost Lost Our Democracy and Still Could. Flash forward to today. How have the effort of Schiff and others been trying to purge Trump from politics? And what lessons has he learned to help guide members of his fellow January 6th committee as they seek to get to the bottom of Trump's role in one the darkest days in American Democracy? Congressman Schiff joins to breakdown his book and weigh in on where we are and could be headed. GUEST: - Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff), Rep. from CA's 28th Congressional District, Chairman of the House Intel Committee @HouseIntel HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Congressman Adam Schiff's new book - Here. - Yahoo News' latest story on Schiff - Here. Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

On New Years Day 2021, Mark Meadows the Chief of Staff to the President of the United States emailed a YouTube video to the acting Attorney General Jeff Rosen. The video promoted a bizarre conspiracy theory known as Italy-Gate, asserting that a tech employee at an Italian Aerospace company had worked with the CIA to use US Military Satellites that flipped votes on election night from Donald Trump to Joe Biden. There wasn’t a shred of evidence to support this fantastical claim. Nevertheless, Meadows wanted Rosen to have the Department of Justice investigate the matter. Rosen forwarded the YouTube video to his deputy Richard Donahue who responded with two words - Pure insanity.  This new exchange is found in a new Senate Judiciary Committee report that documents how then President Donald Trump and his top aides repeatedly pressured the Justice Department to take steps to block the rightful winner of last year’s election and from becoming President and how it all connects to the riot that took place on the US Capitol on Jan. 6th. Will the public ever learn the full extent Trump took to stay in power? Norm Eisen, a former White House lawyer, and a special counsel to the House Judiciary Committee.  GUEST: - Norm Eisen (@NormEisen), Senior Fellow @brookingsgov, former White House lawyer, and a special counsel to the House Judiciary Committee HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Norm Eisen Bio for Brookings Institute - Here. - Norm Eisen's latest CNN Opinion piece on Sen. Judiciary Committee report - Here. - Reuters Article on new details of Trump's attempt to overturn the election - Here. Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Billions hidden beyond reach. So the headline proclaimed in The Washington Post this week. The paper alongside more than one hundred partner news organizations around the world reported on a remarkable cache of documents exposing a secretive off-shore system that hides billions of dollars from tax authorities, creditors, criminal investigators, and the public. And who takes advantage of the system? World leaders, the rich, and the powerful worldwide. Greg Miller, one of the reporters from The Washington Post who worked on the exposure of information contained in what has been dubbed the Pandora Papers, helps unpack what we know about where all this money is being hidden, and how. GUEST: - Greg Miller (@gregpmiller), National Security Correspondent for The Washington Post HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Yahoo News' Guide to nine years of finance leaks - Here. - Greg Miller's Bio Page at The Washington Post - Here. - Washington Post Reports answer your Pandora Papers - Here. Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The final days of Trump's Presidency were filled with struggles, chaos, and an insurrection on the US Capitol. Bob Woodward and Robert Costa's new book, Peril, gives us insight into what happened during this tumultuous time period that almost destroyed democracy from the inside out. The authors join to discuss the final days of Trump's time in office. What happened? And more importantly what could have happened had the efforts of a select few not stepped in to intervene. GUESTS: - Bob Woodward (@realBobWoodward), Professor at the University of California – Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies - Robert Costa (@costareports), National Correspondent, Yahoo News. Former Newsweek/Daily Beast HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Peril - the new book from Bob Woodward and Robert Costa - Here. - Bob Woodward's Bio - Here. - Robert Costa's Bio - Here.   Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

CIA Director Mike Pompeo back in April 2017 depicted Wikileaks as a grave threat to American national security. He also called it a Non-State Hostile Intelligence Service was a grabby rhetorical talking point  However, with some exclusive reporting from the Yahoo News Team - Zach Dorfman, Sean Naylor, & Michael Isikoff - Pompeo’s branding opened the door for the CIA to plan all sorts of extreme measures to dismantle the organization. Including a snatch operation to kidnap the group’s leader Julian Assange, then holed up in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, and possibly to even assassinate him. This and so much more uncovered including a plan for a gun battle on the streets of London. Zach Dorfman joins to break it all down. GUEST: - Zach Dorfman (@zachsdorfman), National Security Correspondent @yahoonews, Former Senior Staff Writer @aspencyber HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Yahoo News Article Inside the CIA's secret war plans against Wikileaks - Here. Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Just days before the Republican Convention in 2016, 150 Tech executives and investors published a stinging open letter condemning the man the party was about to nominate for President. Donald Trump’s candidacy the tech moguls wrote was fueled by “anger, bigotry, fear of new ideas, and a fundamental belief that American is weak and in decline.”  That was undoubtedly the view that most of the big players in Silicon Valley. But there was one who had a decidedly contrary view. Peter Thiel was the billionaire co-founder of PayPal and Palantir. And was the first outside investor in Facebook giving him instant entree and more than a little clout with the company’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg. And Thiel had gone all in for Trump. Speaking at the convention, donating more than one million dollars to a Trump Super PAC. And later serving on his transition team as he sought to place figures who share his unorthodox views of the world in high places in the US Government.  How much influence did Thiel have during the Trump era? And how much power does he yield today in the insular world of Silicon Valley. Max Chafkin, author of the new book about Thiel called The Contrarian: Peter Thiel and Silicon Valley's Pursuit of Power, joins to discuss.  GUEST: - Max Chafkin (@chafkin), Features Editor/Writer @BW, Author of The Contrarian HOSTS: - Michael Isikoff (@Isikoff), Chief Investigative Correspondent, Yahoo News - Daniel Klaidman (@dklaidman), Editor in Chief, Yahoo News - Victoria Bassetti (@VBass), fellow, Brennan Center for Justice (contributing co-host)   RESOURCES: - Obtain The Contrarian - Here. - Yahoo News' David Knowles original piece on critics latest blasting of Facebook - Here. - Time Magazine's Who's Afraid of Peter Thiel? - Here. Follow us on Twitter: @SkullduggeryPod Listen and subscribe to "Skullduggery" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Email us with feedback, questions or tips: SkullduggeryPod@yahoo.com.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.