Shows / Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Politics has never been more chaotic, and most podcasts just add to the noise. Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes cuts through it.Grant is an AP Award-winning journalist with over a decade of on-the-ground reporting on the biggest political stories, scandals, and elections in America. Twice a week, he takes the stories dominating the headlines and breaks them down in plain English — no jargon, no spin, no shouting.If you care about what’s happening in this country but you’re exhausted by how…
Episodes
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The President's "Human Binky" And His Lawyer
Natalie Harp. She's a 35-year-old White House staffer who credits Donald Trump, not her doctors, with saving her life from bone cancer. She slept in the…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
"Authoritarian Projects Don't Like Science." And Other Vaccine Truths
When the White House announced its new vaccine recommendations this week, Grant knew he needed someone who actually understands what these diseases do to human…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Sailors Are Jumping Off A Navy Ship As Trump Plays White House Foreman
The USS Abraham Lincoln has been deployed for 250 days without making port. Sailors are supposed to dock every 30 to 45 days to resupply with food, fresh…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The American President Hid In A Catering Cart
Two stories this week. One is absurd. One is alarming. Both are real.The New York Times, backed by multiple outlets, reported that during Trump's NATO trip to…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Two Former Republican Strategists Watch the Michigan Primary. Here's What They Saw.
This is the election night conversation. On Tuesday, as the Michigan primary returns came in, Grant sat down live with Mike Madrid from The Great…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
What Just Happened In Michigan?
Abdul El-Sayed beat Congresswoman Haley Stevens in the Michigan Democratic Senate primary by one point. He had a 15-point lead in polls going in. Grant was on…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The Pentagon Is Out of Missiles and Crowdsourcing Ideas To Win In Iran
Four stories today, none of them good for anyone in charge.On Iran: Trump said the US was on the verge of its largest attack since World War Two. He called it…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Did Trump Use the CIA to Lie About 2020? Ex-Intel Officers Say Maybe
When Trump released a tranche of declassified documents to support his national address claiming China stole the 2020 election, most reporters treated them as…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Fauci Pleads The Fifth 111 Times
Two stories this week, connected by one thread: what happens to people who don't follow Trump in lockstep.Todd Blanche, Trump's personal criminal attorney who…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
98 Days Out. Republicans Are Drowning. Democrats Are Broke.
98 days to the midterms. Here is where both parties actually stand.Republicans: Trump has a 30% approval rating and every Republican running has to tie…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
We Don't Know How To Get Out Of Iran And It's Everyone's Problem
Eric Zuleger is back on the show! He's the reporter and analyst behind The Under Report. He spent 10 days on the ground in Lebanon during active conflict, got…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
You've Paid $1,341 in Tariffs And Congress Just Left for Summer
The House of Representatives left for summer recess today. In their final 48 hours they passed three bills and sent them to the Senate.The continuing…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Is Entering His Escalation Era
Last weekend was the deadliest stretch of the Iran war in months. Three US service members were killed and one is still missing after strikes on US bases in…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
How John Roberts Broke the Supreme Court This Term
Andrew Torrez is a lawyer and co-host of the legal podcast Law And Chaos who has spent his career watching the Roberts Court systematically reshape American…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Is About to Lie to You About 2020. Here's What's Actually True.
Tonight Trump is giving a national address about foreign interference in the 2020 election. Grant recorded this episode to get ahead of the lies before they…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Lindsey Graham Died. Trump Wants to Blow Up a Mountain.
Senator Lindsey Graham died Sunday morning from an aortic dissection. He was 71. Grant's assessment of his legacy is honest: a foreign policy expert who never…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The Feds Are Erasing History. America's Top Historian Has Receipts.
On July 4th, America's 250th birthday, the White House published a report on its own website calling the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
"I Have Bread That Lasted Longer Than Trump's Iran Ceasefire."
The ceasefire Trump called a once-in-a-generation peace deal is over. It lasted three weeks. Grant has bread on his counter that lasted longer.Trump declared…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The Senate Is About to Explode. Here's Every Race That Could Make It Happen.
A New York Times/Sienna poll just found that for the first time, the key states needed to flip the Senate from Republican to Democrat are either Democratic…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
America Turns 250. Trump Is Hijacking It For Himself.
One week before America turns 250, Congress set aside money to celebrate the country. Trump's private organization, Freedom 250, is siphoning that money into a…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Holds His Own Housing Bill Hostage To Throw Tantrum In The Senate
The most bipartisan housing bill in 40 years passed the House 358-32 and the Senate 85-5. Trump himself called it "the most comprehensive and consequential…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
How Trump Turned a Botched Pool Job Into A National Scandal
A convicted felon named JJ Cafaro, who runs a company called Greenwater Services, was awarded a no-bid $1.7 million contract to paint the Lincoln Memorial…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The Constitution Is Still Working... But Just Barely. w/ NYU Professor Melissa Murray
Two weeks before America turns 250, Grant sits down with NYU Law Professor Melissa Murray, co-host of the Strict Scrutiny podcast and one of the country's…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Signed Iran's "Deal" at Versailles And JD Vance Is Already the Fall Guy
Trump gave his longest speech since the State of the Union at a press conference in Paris, then flew to the Palace of Versailles to sign the Iran memorandum of…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
After 40 Broken Promises, Trump Says the Iran War Is Over. Did The US Lose?
Over the weekend, on Trump's birthday, the US and Iran announced they'd reached a deal to end the war. The actual text has not been released. What we know so…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
She Locked Up Detroit's Corrupt Mayor. She Says Trump Is Doing the Same Things. She Has a Fix.
Barb McQuade spent her career as a US Attorney prosecuting organized crime, including the conviction of former Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick on extortion…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Announced a Ground Invasion of Iran. Then Called It Off, Six Hours Later.
103 days into a war Donald Trump promised would never happen, the United States is striking targets inside Iran and along the Iranian coast for the third…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Got Debunked in California, Booed In New York, and Then Iran Shot Down a Helicopter
California held its primary last week. Six days later, votes were still being counted. That's normal. But Trump, Elon Musk, and Mike Johnson decided it was…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Has Made $1.8 Billion From Crypto While President. A Corruption Researcher Explains How.
Zach Everson is the research director at Public Citizen and the head of their Trump Accountability Project. He is a former Forbes reporter who has spent a…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Hadn't Been Seen in a Week And Then Showed Up Like This?
Trump went seven full days without a public appearance. When he resurfaced, it was first in a pre-taped podcast interview with a friendly outlet where he…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump's $1.8 Billion Slush Fund Is Collapsing. His Own Party Is Turning on Him.
Two federal judges have now stepped in to freeze Trump's $1.8 billion anti-weaponization slush fund. One judge in Virginia halted all payouts. A judge in Miami…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
A CIA Veteran Says Trump Is Using "National Security" the Way Dictators Do. He's Seen It Before.
Steve Cash from The Steady State is back on the show this week. He spent his career as a prosecutor, CIA counterterrorism officer, and DHS intelligence…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Iran Violated The Ceasefire While Making A Deal, Troops Ready To Invade Cuba & Trump's Face On Money
It's a grab bag episode, because everything is happening at once.Iran launched missiles at Kuwait AND drones near the Strait of Hormuz while reportedly…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump said the Iran deal was 'DONE.' Now we're back at war.
Trump spent the weekend claiming an Iran deal was basically done, just some last-minute details to iron out. Except that those "details" were Iran's entire…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The DOJ Is Being Dismantled From the Inside, A Former Insider Explains What We're Losing
The Department of Justice has lost over 10,000 employees. The acting Attorney General, Todd Blanche, appears to be auditioning for the permanent job by doing…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The DNC's 2024 Autopsy Is a Mess, Here's Everything Wrong With It
The Democratic Party just released its long-awaited autopsy of the 2024 Harris campaign, and it's not what voters were promised.The 192-page report has no…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
How Trump Just Shielded Himself from the IRS — And Made You Pay for It
The ceasefire in the Iran War officially expires TODAY and the White House is searching for a loophole to restart military strikes without Congressional…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Harvard Psychiatrist to Congress: Trump Is Too Dangerous to Have the Nuclear Codes
36 doctors, psychiatrists, and Nobel laureates just signed an open letter, now part of the official Congressional Record, saying Donald Trump's mental and…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Your Money Is Worth Less Today Than It Was Last Month
Inflation just hit 3.8%, the highest in three years, and wages can't keep up. Gas is nearly $4.50 a gallon, groceries cost more than ever, and the war in Iran…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The Democratic Party Is Lost. A Former Presidential Campaign Manager Explains Why
Why is the Democratic Party so lost right now, and is there actually a path forward?Former presidential campaign manager and Democratic strategist Maya Rupert…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The Iran Peace Deal Is Just Obama's Deal (But Worse?)
The White House is claiming a peace deal with Iran is close, but The deal on the table looks almost identical to the Obama-era agreement Trump tore up in 2018…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Is the Iran War Actually Over? The White House Can't Get Its Story Straight
The president told Congress the Iran war was "terminated." The Secretary of Defense says there's still a ceasefire. Then Trump called it a "mini-war" on…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Forget Gerrymandering, The Supreme Court Legalized Gerrymaxxing w/ Dave Daley
It's like Looksmaxxing but for gerrymandering. GERRYMAXXINGThe Supreme Court just finished what John Roberts started 45 years ago, gutting the Voting Rights…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The Supreme Court Just Killed the Voting Rights Act
The Supreme Court just gutted the Voting Rights Act. Grant explains what that means for your vote, your district, and the next election. Plus: four massive…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The Shooting, The Ballroom, and The Fallout
Someone tried to assassinate the President at the White House Correspondents' Dinner — and the political fallout may be almost as dangerous than the attack…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
They Can Take Your Citizenship Away — And the Trump Administration Is Trying
Can the U.S. government take away your citizenship? Increasingly, the answer is: they're trying.This week, Grant sits down with Irina Manta, professor of…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Blinked Again and Gas Prices Won't Drop Until 2027
Trump extended the Iran ceasefire indefinitely, which is another way of saying he blinked. Again. Meanwhile, a new Pentagon assessment says the Strait of…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Lied About Iran, The US Broke the Ceasefire & The FBI Director Is Allegedly Wasted
Trump got caught lying about Iran agreeing to US demands. The Wall Street Journal published a bombshell account of his erratic behavior behind closed doors…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
America Already Crossed the Line in Iran. What Happens Now? w/ Oona Hathaway
The war in Iran may be ending, maybe, but the legal and moral reckoning is just beginning. Grant sits down with Oona Hathaway, Yale Law School professor and…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
4 Scandals, 2 Resignations, 1 Week. Welcome Back, Congress
Congress came back from spring break, and in under 6 hours, two members resigned, two more could be next, and the balance of power in the House just got a lot…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The Blockade Backfired and the Iran Crisis Is Worse Than Ever
The US tried to end the war in one day. It collapsed. Then things got significantly worse...and weirder.After 21 hours of failed peace talks in Pakistan, the…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
We Made It Worse: How the US Handed Iran a Nuclear Argument w/ Eric Czuleger
How Close Did We Actually Come? — Iran, The Peace Talks, and What Happens NextThe VP is on a plane to Pakistan. Peace talks are scheduled for Saturday in…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Is This Even A Ceasefire?
The Iran "ceasefire" lasted roughly three hours. The Strait of Hormuz is technically a toll road now. America might get a cut. And nobody can agree on what…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Threatens to Wipe Out Iran's Entire Civilization And The Nuclear Option on the Table?
Trump's deadline for Iran expires at 8PM ET tonight — and hours before it hits, he threatened to wipe out an entire civilization in a single night. Is the…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The 1% Election: How Primaries Are Rigged Against Everyone ft. Chad Peace
45% of Americans now call themselves independent — more than either party. So why does Congress look nothing like the country?Today Grant talks with Chad Peace…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Trump Said Nothing For 20 Minutes
Trump gave a primetime national address about the Iran war — and the most important parts were what he didn't say. We break down the three things that got cut…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
The Shutdown Is Still Here, The War Has No Plan, And Lindsey Graham Is At Disney World
The longest government shutdown in US history drags on as Republicans in the House and Senate square off against each other before leaving for Spring Break…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Congress Is Giving Away Your Power w/ Michael Thorning from Bipartisan Policy Center
Grant is joined by the Bipartisan Policy Center's Michael Thorning. Thorning is the director of structural democracy at the nonpartisan think tank and the lead…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Pam Bondi Wants To Save The Lawyers Judges Hate w/ Liz Dye from the Law and Chaos Podcast
Grant is joined by Liz Dye from the Law and Chaos Podcast to talk about the shenanigans coming from the Attorney General's office. AG Pam Bondi is trying to…
- Make It Make Sense with Grant Hermes
Why Is The FBI Digging Through Arizona's Election Trash?
Grant gives an update on the war in Iran after a new report shows the US did in fact bomb a girls' school, Iran chooses to start deploying mines in the Strait…