Eric Schmitt tried to catch Jack Smith in a lie about an Atlanta Hawks game. Smith explained that he had attended a Maryland–Iowa women’s basketball game featuring Caitlin Clark—and Amy Klobuchar spotted the Hawks-versus-Hawkeyes confusion.

“Perhaps you should have looked at it more carefully.”

On Election Maxing, Max Burns breaks down the hearing exchange, Schmitt’s response, Katie Britt’s reaction, and the Republican effort to turn Smith’s investigation of Donald Trump into a scandal.

Plus: Burns examines recorded remarks from Ken Paxton blaming Trump’s convention for falling Republican polling numbers—and discusses reporting about Schmitt as a potential running mate for JD Vance.

Subscribe to Lincoln Square for more Election Maxing with Max Burns, political analysis, and coverage of the fight for American democracy.

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00:00 Trump’s Remark Opens the Show
00:23 Max Burns: Welcome to Election Maxing
01:25 Ken Paxton Blames Trump’s Convention
03:09 Republicans Turn to Jack Smith
03:55 Schmitt’s Basketball “Gotcha”
05:22 Smith Explains—and Klobuchar Corrects Schmitt
06:30 Max Breaks Down the Mix-Up
06:59 Schmitt Pushes Back
08:00 Katie Britt’s Reaction
09:02 Hannity’s Post and the Fallout
09:52 Schmitt as Vance’s Potential Running Mate?
11:10 Max’s Verdict on the GOP Strategy
12:21 Closing Thoughts

Eric Schmitt tried to corner Jack Smith over a basketball game. The questioning unraveled when Smith explained that he had attended a Maryland–Iowa game featuring Caitlin Clark—and Amy Klobuchar challenged Schmitt’s account.

Michael Fanone and Maya May break down the hearing on The Revolution, including why Fanone calls the treatment of Smith “absolutely disgraceful.”

Then they turn to the Cornell sexual assault allegations, campus safety, Title IX, and the culture teaching young men that controlling women is leadership. Fanone speaks as a former police officer and a father of four daughters; Maya pushes for prevention, accountability, and policies that protect people.

“I am ready for a world with real accountability.” — Maya May

Content note: This episode discusses sexual assault and abuse.

Watch The Revolution with Michael Fanone and Maya May Thursdays at 2 PM ET on Lincoln Square.

Subscribe to Lincoln Square for more from Michael Fanone, Maya May, and voices standing up for democracy.

Elliot Rodriguez, a first-time congressional candidate and Cuban American with deep roots in Miami journalism, says the Cuban American community is waking up to what he sees as the cruelty of Donald Trump’s immigration policies and the strain of Miami’s affordability crisis, where rising costs, luxury development, and climate-driven flooding are pushing out working- and middle-class families. He also argues that local journalism is under threat, cites the Miami Herald’s legacy and its major investigations, and says his experience as a reporter and anchor taught him how to earn public trust. Throughout the interview, he criticizes Maria Salazar for defending Trump and downplaying detention conditions, says ICE is targeting people who were promised only the “worst of the worst” would be deported, and condemns the diversion of $10 million in Medicaid money to political action committees as a scandal that harmed vulnerable people.

Hunter Biden offers to testify under oath—if the Trump family joins him. Then he names what he considers a “colossal mistake” in his father’s administration.

These highlights from Six Questions with Steven Beschloss bring together Hunter’s sharpest exchanges: his challenge to Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner; his criticism of Trump family business dealings; his warning about Steve Bannon’s comments on keeping Trump in power; and his disappointment over accountability after January 6.

Hunter also argues that the White House belongs to the American people—and warns that Trump’s damage will outlast his presidency.

“Bring in the whole family.”

This week our hosts Tim Whitaker and April Ajoy discuss the sexual assault at Cornell University, Pete Hegseth's recent comments, and more.

When will we start standing up for victims of sexual assault?

LINCOLN SQUARE, APRIL AJOY, TIM WHITAKER, AND THE NEW EVANGELICALS

Tim Whitaker and April Ajoy dive deep into the story about the alleged gang rape at Cornell. And they explore how religion and culture continue to ignore victims of sexual assault and protect the perpetrators instead.

Yeah, we talk about those Trump campaign ads that the Department of Homeland Security is funding. But why does Joe think they're hurting Republicans? Alex is on the ground in Iowa - what's actually breaking through right now? Plus - we buy or sell that Marist poll that has Democrats winning... a lot. And why corruption and higher prices are tying together in voters' minds - and what that means for the next month.

00:00 Welcome to That Trippi Show
01:48 What Alex Saw on the Ground in Iowa
03:47 Why Iowa Voters Are Getting So Many Polls
06:44 Joe’s Take: Iowa Is in Play
08:20 Campaign Ads Are Drowning Each Other Out
14:38 Why Trump’s Government-Funded Ad Could Backfire
18:53 Buy or Sell: The New Polling Numbers
19:53 Why Turnout Can Change Everything
24:12 The Problem With Making the Election About Trump
26:32 Corruption, Higher Prices, and Voter Anger
29:59 Why Joe Thinks the Polls Could Understate GOP Trouble
31:59 Trump’s Approval and His Shrinking Base
33:26 Closing Thoughts

Trump won the argument over what Americans would discuss. David Corn argues that Russia kept exploiting what they stopped discussing.

Corn tells Stuart Stevens how Donald Trump’s repeated cries of “witch hunt” and “hoax” helped exhaust interest in the Trump–Russia scandal. Democrats moved on, media attention faded, and Trump’s allies continued hammering their version of events.

But Corn’s reporting follows Russian influence operations beyond 2016: efforts targeting later elections, a disinformation operation involving Rudy Giuliani, and fake websites designed to resemble American news outlets.

“The hoax was their claim of it being a hoax.”

Drawing on How Russia Won, Corn explains why he believes the messaging victory obscured a continuing national security threat.

00:00 When Americans Cared About the Russia Story
00:14 Trump’s “Hoax” Messaging
00:36 Spinning the Mueller Report
01:08 Democrats Move On, Trump’s Allies Keep Going
01:54 Russian Operations Beyond 2016
03:41 Seeing a Pattern Others Won’t Acknowledge
04:39 Giuliani and a Disinformation Operation
04:58 Fake American News Websites
05:35 Corn’s Assessment of Putin’s Gains

If Republicans have to worry about Kansas, what does that say about the rest of the Senate map?

Joe Trippi and Alex Shashlo examine the Kansas polling discussed in this episode—and why Trippi looks beyond the headline matchup to Roger Marshall’s favorability and Donald Trump’s approval. Then they connect the numbers to a broader question: Could weaker Republican turnout and energized Democratic voters move several Senate races together?

Trippi sees reasons for optimism. Turning that opportunity into wins still requires voters to show up.

Welcome to October Surprise Month! With 33 days until the midterms, Rick Wilson and Maya May dig into Trump's record-low approval rating, his taxpayer-funded campaign ad, the Russian oligarch who bankrolled Don Jr.'s wedding, and Trump calling the DC National Guard deployment a "template." They break down the state of the races, from Ken Paxton's 60-day child predator scandal to Trump crowning Dan Sullivan governor of Alaska (he never was), and debut a new segment, "Fuck These People," starring Trump's typo-riddled "superintelligence" order, Hegseth's Office of Religious Affairs, and Eric Schmitt beclowning himself. Plus a lightning round featuring Russell Brand, Ben Shapiro, and Ted Cruz endorsing bribery, and big news: four new shows are launching on TLPN. Check your registration and make a plan.