Start Me Up With Kimberley A. Johnson

You've seen actress Kiersten Warren in the films Independence Day, Bicentennial Man and 13 Going on 30 and she's appeared in countless television shows including Life Goes On Saved by the Bell: The College Years, and Desperate Housewives.She's smart, warm, insightful and we had a delightful conversation--which is important during this hellish time of quarantine. We talked about her family, her early years as a model and her successful career as a working actor. We discussed what it's like to be a woman of a certain age in Hollywood, and the current projects she's working on.All that said, our conversation was so much fun and we went off into a variety of other subjects. I guarantee you'll enjoy this episode!

Katherine Stewart is the author of The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism. We talk about how the religious right as masquerades as a social movement but it's actually a political movement. Stewart explains how AG Barr is part of that movement. We talk about how Christian nationalism is influencing the national response to covid-19 as well as why the effort to ban abortion has nothing to do with abortion--it's about control. An important and informative show.

Greg Olear, author of Dirty Rubles, is back for some entertaining, political quarantine fun. Greg talks me off a ledge and explains why Trump will not cancel the election and declare Martial Law. We spend some time discussing the fantastic docu-series "Hillary" --which you must watch! We also talk about Biden, Bernie and who Greg thinks will be VP. After politics, we talk about how we're staying sane and entertained as the world burns.

Maysoon Zayid is a comedian, actress, and disability advocate. She has Cerebral Palsy and she talks about what it's like to be a Palestinian disabled woman from New Jersey while pursuing a career in entertainment. It's a nice break from the global pandemic/Trump freak-out crisis we're all experiencing!

Jared is a political analyst and author and we had a sobering conversation about coronavirus: why we're here and what we can expect, Of course we discussed the debate between Biden and Sanders, who the VP might be, and we also talked about how the power structure has to change so The People are better represented.

Connie Shultz is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, author, and a professor of journalism at Kent State. She also happens to be married to Ohio Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown.We talked about her upcoming book, The Daughters of Erietown: A Novel, Warren's POTUS run and the impact of her suspending her presidential campaign. We also discussed sexism in politics and pondered what it will take to finally see a woman lead the country--and why it's so important to stay in the fight. We also wondered who the next VP pick might be and why the role of VP may be different this time. Connie is kind, warm and brilliant, there's so much good stuff in this interview...you will love her.

Former presidential candidate Joe Walsh returns to the podcast to talk about his new book "F*ck Silence." Joe is one of the only Never-Trump conservatives who understands it isn't his place to tell the Democrats how to behave (I bigly appreciate that), He's pledged to vote for the Democratic nominee no matter who it is, and he's even going to work to get other Republicans to vote for Democrats in November. Joe and I don't see eye to eye on policy, but we are able to see the threat Trump poses, and we agree the top priority is voting him--and the Republicans who voted against a Senate impeachment trial--out. It's not only a fun show, but it's also an important one. And it proves people of all political stripes can get along and work together for the greater good.

South Carolina changed the trajectory of this race and Biden did very well on Super Tuesday. Warren did not do well. (BOO!) Steph and I share our opinions about what will come next, and the importance of the VP pick no matter which older white man gets the nomination. It's crazy out there and we get in the weeds. But we also find some time to be positive. Voter turnout was huge and that means a 2020 blue flood.

Claude Taylor of Mad Dog PAC is back! As we were chatting, Klobuchar announced she's dropping out. Claude and I discussed where the race is headed, what might go down on Super Tuesday and who would be the best VP pick for the eventual nominee. Yes, lots of talk about Bernie and Biden. The race to the nomination is quickly changing and tomorrow we'll probably know who the frontrunner will be.

Lizz Winstead, co creator and former head writer of The Daily Show, joins me to talk about the pending March 4, Supreme Court abortion case.The first one since the addition of Trump appointed Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. Lizz is also the founder of Abortion Access Front, which is part USO, part Habitat for Humanity and AAF is the only nonprofit that travels the country doing comedy and providing aid and comfort to independent clinics in hostile states. We talk about what the SCOTUS decision might mean and how it could affect women in Louisiana who want to terminate their pregnancies.

Jody Hamilton is the host of the From The Bunker podcast. She's on the Bob Cesca podcast every Thursday and she's part of the Stephanie Miller Sexy Liberal Podcast Network. Everyone is freaking out about Bernie Sanders. Jody and I attempt to calm people's nerves and also remind everyone there are still 47 states to go. Harvey Weinstein is now a convicted rapist, and Jody and I discuss the joy of having men explain things to us. Such a fun show

The enchanting Sarah Wood is back to talk politics. We discuss Bloomberg and the growing/alarming divide in the Democratic Party. We found some time to talk about focusing on the positive and that both of us think--despite our divide--Democrats will win in November.

Steph is back and we talked about the Dem candidates; who's left? Who is viable and the fact that if you dare to have an opinion on social media, prepare for anger! Is Biden done? What about Warren? Is the nominee going to be Bloomberg? We had a spirited conversation. Trump is unleashed and everything is effing crazy.

Cliff Schecter, along with John Aravosis, are the cohosts of the UnPresidented Podcast and Cliff joined me for a thoughtful conversation about what's coming up in the New Hampshire primaries, how Biden is faring and Bloomberg might be a real player in 2020. We also talked about new tactics emerging online that are meant to suppress voting and enthusiasm on the Democratic side. Both of us love Bernie Sanders' vision but we discussed how some of his followers are online bullies, and that maybe some are GOP plants looking to sow division.

Ryan Knight is the host of the Amped Up podcast and he's a fierce progressive activist. He's a Warren supporter who passionately and intelligently makes the case for big bold structural change. We talked about Trump's biggest lie in the State of the Union, the 2020 Democratic field, results (so far) in Iowa and of course we talked up and about Elizabeth Warren. While Ryan is a dedicated Liz supporter, he is voting and fighting for whoever becomes the Democratic nominee.

Naveed Jamali is a former double agent; he works for the U.S. Department of Defense as an intelligence officer, he's a political commentator on national security and a former FBI asset. And he's the author of How To Catch A Russian Spy. We had a candid conversation about why Trump won in 2016. He shared his fascinating insights into the minds of Russian spies and how they view the United States. We also discussed who might get the 2020 nomination and why. Naveed also shared a fantastic personal story of when he met Elizabeth Warren.

Political strategist Steve Schmidt joined me to talk about the Bolton bombshell and what will likely happen next. Steve explained it's very possible we'll see a second Trump term and what that would look like. We talked about Russia, the 2020 Democratic candidates and what it will take to win this November. We also discussed his latest political endeavor: The Lincoln Project. Lot's of sobering information in this show, but fortunately, we did find some things to laugh about. A great conversation.

Scott Dworkin of the Democratic Coalition joined me to talk about the Senate trial and he put a big, much-needed, emphasis on We The People *believing* Trump and should be removed. If we say "Trump and GOP will win," we hand them a win! Scott and I also talked about Tulsi's pathetic attempt to get some attention, Hillary's comments on Bernie and much more.

MeWe is an alternative to Facebook and CEO Mark Weinstein joined me to discuss the benefits of migrating to his site. As he explains, there are no ads, there's no targeting and your data is not for sale. We covered a lot of ground. You'll want to hear this interview.

Greg Olear, author of Dirty Rubles, is back for another entertaining and informative political discussion. Topics include Giuliani's goons monitored every move made by Marie Yovanovitch, former US Ambassador to Ukraine, while she was in Kiev, our top choices for the Democratic nominee, why Greg believes Bernie Sanders is not the person to lead the country and that Russia is engaging in military grade psyops. Many of us have been duped and Greg and I talk about our own experiences.