So That Happened

For months, President Trump and his supporters said it was all just a political witch hunt, that his campaign had not colluded with the Russian government's interference in last year's presidential election. This week Donald Trump, Jr. revealed that he had, in fact, sought incriminating information on Hillary Clinton from a Russian government source. On this week's "So That Happened," HuffPost money-in-politics reporter Paul Blumenthal explains the several federal laws that Junior might have broken. Also, the Roosevelt Institute's Mike Konczal joins the podcast to explain a new policy from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that will allow credit card and other financial product customers to sue if they get ripped off -- unless Republicans in Congress stop the agency in its tracks. And nothing weird happened at the confirmation hearing for Christopher Wray, the totally normal career Justice Department official Trump nominated to replace the FBI director he weirdly fired. Is our Trumps learning?

Did CNN screw up this week by seemingly threatening to reveal the identity of a Reddit user who made a silly gif that President Trump tweeted? The Washington Examiner's Tim Carney says the episode represents the kind of media excess that gives rise to Anti-Anti-Trumpism, a sort-of movement animated by the belief that Trump's critics somehow lie more than Trump does. The Anti-Anti-Trump argument loses credibility, Carney says, the minute it serves as an excuse to avoid criticizing the president. Meanwhile, Trump's in Europe, possibly altering the United States' role in the world. HuffPost White House correspondent S.V. Date joined us to talk about whether everything is truly as terrible as it seems and whether Trump could make it worse with his offhand tweets. And HuffPost labor reporter Dave Jamieson explains the Trump administration's recent moves to undo Obama's effort to restore overtime pay for millions of workers.

Republicans in the U.S. Senate completely boofed their health care bill, so this week on "So That Happened" we discuss the politics of their failure as well as how the underlying policy could change when the zombie Senate bill rises from the dead next month. President Trump continues to seem completely unaware of what's in the legislation, and even resigned to its failure. And we also take a look at the increasing concentration of corporate power and the failure of both parties in the U.S. to stand up to monopolies.

Senate Republicans finally released their secret Obamacare repeal bill, so this week on "So That Happened" we explore the real possibility that this thing could actually pass and become law. We also take a look at Democrats' total fecklessness in special elections and the several high-profile acquittals of police officers who killed civilians for no good reason.

So, that happened. This week, we discuss the assassination attempt on members of Congress, which has left House Majority Whip Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) grievously injured. Fallout from the shooting included efforts to blame political opponents, as well as a familiar debate over whether it's appropriate to question permissive gun laws for gun violence, which it always is. Still, we have two important takeaways that hold true whether or not you like your society heavily armed: 1) Don't shoot people, and 2) Don't kill people. Also, HuffPost suffered a round of layoffs occasioned by the merger of our corporate parent with another company, and we lost So That Happened host Jason Linkins. We will miss him. We're very glad we organized and negotiated a contract that provided for a relatively generous severance, but layoffs still hurt. On this show, we say goodbye to our fearless host.

So, that happened. This week, the White House celebrated Infrastructure Week. Or at least, they wanted to, but couldn't because this week was James Comey-A-Go-Go in the Senate Intelligence Committee. Yes, the former FBI director debuted his testimony in front of an eager gaggle of Senators and he seemed pretty bent on making sure everyone knew that President Donald Trump was a serial liar. The White House struck back, accusing Comey of leaking privileged information and telling falsehoods of his own. Everyone in DC apparently went to a bar to watch these hearings on television, because we're a sad bunch of drunks. And that's Infrastructure Week. Congratulations to infrastructure. Meanwhile, if you can even remember where the country was a handful of days ago, you might remember last week's hullabaloo, President Trump's decision to exit the Paris Climate Accords. There was a lot of doomsaying in the wake of the decision, but there were also several renewed commitments made by other American politicians to...

So, that happened. This week, we're going in search of a Trump Doctrine. President Donald Trump has returned from his first lengthy trip abroad. You've heard the speeches, you saw the photos, you know about the orb. Now it's time to consider the ways Trump's dealings with our European allies and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia point to a coming shift in American foreign policy, and illustrate the way Trump wants to reshape the world and the United States role in it. Buckle up, it's gonna get bumpy. After looking beyond our borders, we'll then come home to Capitol Hill, where the lives of Republican legislators have continued to get more and more complicated, and more and more frustrating, as the ongoing Russia probes steal time away from shaping a legislative agenda. We'll also try to find out what Democratic lawmakers are up to while their counterparts are mired in all of Trump's melodrama.

So, that happened. This week, while President Donald Trump was away on foreign business, the wider world got a look at the latest White House budget proposals and the experience was like staring into a moral void. Broadly targeted for elimination: just about anything that offers assistance to the poor and vulnerable. Cashing in big time: rich income earners. There are education cuts that could decimate profitable research, new burdens on food stamp providers that could result in fewer in the market. Joining us to marvel at the pure draconian nature of it all is Alexis Goldstein from Americans for Financial Reform. Meanwhile, the murder of Seth Rich -- a young DC resident and Democratic National Committee staffer -- was a tragedy for those who knew him. But the internet's conspiracy swamps and right wing media outlets have teamed up to further traumatize Rich's family and friends. It's weaponized fake news, and it's perfectly emblematic of the surreal world that Donald Trump has both ushered in and...

So, that happened. This week, President Donald Trump had another one of those weeks where Donald Trump is president. By which I mean, total omnidirectional omnishambles. Building off the controversy of last week's controversial firing of James Comey, Trump revealed highly classified intelligence from a source in Syria to two high-ranking Russian officials, touching off yet another self-immolation. He's ended the week with more trouble from Comey, more indefensible deceptions, fewer allies willing to go to bat for him, and a newly appointed investigator nipping at his heels. We'll dive into the Trump black hole to try to rescue some light Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, fans of fixing the criminal justice system scored a major victory this week. Civil rights attorney and progressive-minded reformed Larry Krasner won the Democratic primary election for Philadelphia district attorney. It's a major shift in Philly, and it's also part of what seems to be a burgeoning trend of voters opting for reform champions at...

So, that happened. This week, Donald Trump fired James Comey. And that's been the implacable news event of the week, so much so that we are just going to surrender to it entirely. This single decision is the apotheosis of Trump. It has everything: a stumbled over decision that landed with a kersplat on the news-cycle, constantly shifting rationales that change by the hour, massive leaks from the White House, the usual concerns over temperament, and the unalterable impression that the White House is either strategically engineering a cover-up, or too impulsive to govern in a sane way. Or both! We even have White House press secretary Sean Spicer hiding among the bushes on the White House grounds. It's well and truly bonkers. We'll try to piece through the most troubling aspects of this decision, beginning with the implausible reason we've been told guided Trump's decision. Former Department of Justice spokesman joins our own Sam Stein, to offer an insider perspective on the matter. And we'll deal with the...