It’s All Political

It’s All Political is now a part of the Fifth & Mission podcast. You can hear It's All Political on Fifth & Mission by subscribing to Fifth & Mission, the San Francisco Chronicle's flagship daily newscast. Joe Garofoli is the Chronicle’s senior political writer, covering national and state politics. He has worked at the Chronicle since 2000 and in Bay Area journalism since 1992, when he left the Milwaukee Journal. He has previously written about the intersection of tech and politics and about the politics of the cannabis industry.

News
Government
Politics
126
How Old is Too Old to Be President?
Louise Aronson, a geriatrician at UCSF and author of the new book “Elderhood: Redefining Aging, Transforming Medicine, Reimagining Life,” talks about whether the top three Democratic candidates and President Trump — all of whom are in their 70s — are too old to be president.
23 min
127
Scandalous Stanford
Just in time for the Big Game, Oakland author and journalist Roland De Wolk, author of “American Disruptor: The Scandalous Life of Leland Stanford,” talks about the robber baron’s dark side.
33 min
128
Trump, Impeachment and the California GOP
Jessica Patterson is in her first year as chair of the California Republican Party. There’s no place to go but up for the state’s GOP, and Patterson explains what she’s done so far to try to revive its fortunes — and how President Trump's unpopularity in California affects that.
39 min
129
What’s Next for Indivisible?
Ezra Levin and Leah Greenberg, the co-executive directors of Indivisible, the nationwide grassroots organization that led the anti-Trump resistance shortly after he was elected, talk about their new book, “We Are Indivisible: A Blueprint for Democracy After Trump.”
28 min
130
Could Voter Suppression Wreck the 2020 Election?
Robert Greenwald, the longtime liberal filmmaker, talks about his latest film: “Suppressed: The Fight to Vote.” It’s about voter suppression in Georgia in 2018, and how it could happen again there and elsewhere in 2020.
23 min
131
“How the Rich Dodge Taxes”
Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman are the UC Berkeley economists behind Bernie Sanders' and Elizabeth Warren’s tax-the-rich tax plans and the authors of the new book “The Triumph of Injustice: How the Rich Dodge Taxes and How to Make Them Pay.” Joe talks to Saez in his campus office.
26 min
132
How Close Are Joe Biden and Barack Obama — Really?
Steven Levingston, author of the new book “Barack and Joe,” joins Joe Garofoli to talk about how close the former president and vice president really are. Can Biden count on his former boss to endorse him?
27 min
133
Tom McClintock: Impeachment Is a Terrible Idea
One of California’s few Republican congressmen talks about why he thinks impeaching Trump is a bad idea, plus why he thinks thinks concerns about climate change are overblown and what he thinks is wrong with the California GOP.
31 min
134
Bernie or Warren: Who Should Progressives Pick?
Maurice Mitchell, national director of the Working Families Party, talks about why the organization endorsed Elizabeth Warren. And he explains why his party sees a lot of Americans not being served by the “corporatist” Democratic Party.
21 min
135
A Master Class in Shade: Dem Debate Review
Chronicle Washington correspondent Tal Kopan and Deputy Opinion Editor Caille Millner join Joe to break down the fourth Democratic primary debate. Who gave that master class?
27 min
136
Ro Khanna on Impeachment and Bernie Sanders
Silicon Valley Rep. Ro Khanna breaks down the latest on the battle to investigate President Trump from his perch on the House Oversight Committee. He also talks about how the recent health problems of Sen. Bernie Sanders — Khanna is a campaign co-chair — will reshape the presidential race.
26 min
137
How Trump's Impeachment Could Help ... Julian C...
Castro sees a glimmer of hope in the impeachment inquiry for low-polling candidates like himself. If voters start to see Trump as a wounded candidate, then ex-Vice President Joe Biden’s “electability” argument becomes weaker.
25 min
138
Fifth & Mission: Pelosi Pulls the Impeachment T...
On The Chronicle's flagship news podcast, Joe Garofoli and John Diaz join Demian Bulwa to talk about Speaker Nancy Pelosi's announcement that the House of Representatives will open an impeachment inquiry into President Trump. Will her strategy of waiting pay off? Subscribe to Fifth & Mission wherever you get It's All Political.
17 min
139
Tommy Vietor: The Ball Has Moved on Impeachment
The Pod Save America co-host — and President Obama’s former national security spokesman — talks about Trump and Ukraine, impeachment, Iran on the brink, and whether Joe Biden has lost a step.
37 min
140
Is Getting Picked on Good for Joe Biden?
Will fellow Democrats' attacks on Biden make him tougher if he has to face President Trump, or will they cripple his candidacy? Joe breaks down the third Democratic debate with The Chronicle’s Caille Millner, Tal Kopan and John Wildermuth.
37 min
141
The Gig Worker War: Live Event
With California’s landmark AB5 bill pending about who should be classified as an employee, Joe moderates a conversation at an event hosted by TheBridge between labor leader Jim Araby and Postmates VP Vikrum Aiyer about how labor and tech will interact in the new economy.
58 min
142
The California GOP’s Great Hope
Kevin Faulconer is the pro-choice, pro-same sex marriage, climate-change acknowledging, Spanish-speaking mayor of San Diego who didn’t vote for President Trump. He explains the way forward for the moribund California Republican Party.
24 min
143
Michael Bennet: The Backup Joe Biden?
Could the Colorado senator be the moderate Democrats turn to if front-runner Joe Biden falters? He's spent the campaign dishing tough love to progressives about Medicare for All, the Green New Deal and the $15 minimum wage. Does he have a shot?
23 min
144
Kirsten Gillibrand on Gender Equality, Al Frank...
The presidential candidate talks about electability, her drive to get on the debate stage, and what she would do differently in the Franken case. Plus: Can Joe bait her into swearing on the campaign trail?
28 min
145
Democrats’ Health Care Plans in Plain English
Candidates have debated their plans but many Americans have no idea what they're talking about. Larry Levitt, a health policy expert from the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation, explains — and says what they’re omitting.
30 min
146
"The Democratic Party Is Like Eeyore”
Emily’s List president Stephanie Schriock tells Democrats to “stop wringing your hands” and worrying about losing to President Trump. She also has concerns about how female presidential candidates are being covered.
39 min
147
Marianne Williamson Comes Down to Earth
Her reputation is as the woo-woo candidate who talks about "dark psychic forces." But she connects to voters by addressing the nation's "low-level emotional civil war." She talks about that, her views on vaccinations and more.
31 min
148
“Electability” Is A Myth
Brenda Choresi Carter of the Reflective Democracy Campaign talks about her research, which shows that claims of candidate “electability” are more damaging than they are realistic, especially for women of color.
28 min
149
Terry McAuliffe Takes on White Supremacy
The former governor of Virginia and DNC chair sits down with Editorial Page Editor John Diaz to discuss his new book, "Beyond Charlottesville: Taking a Stand Against White Nationalism," and President Trump's response.
24 min
150
Big Finish for the California Legislature
Sacramento reporters Dustin Gardiner and Alexei Koseff join Joe Garofoli to talk about the last month of Gov. Gavin Newsom first "semester," with the Legislature considering bills on guns, rents, charter schools and more.
26 min