The Focus Group Podcast

Usually, an assassination attempt outside a dinner with the president would be a HUGE news event. Instead, the voters in our focus groups weren't talking much about it, and when we brought it up, we heard a LOT of conspiracy theories. We also talked to some Republican voters about whether '86' is really a violent threat, as this week's indictment against James Comey alleges. Atlantic staff writer David Frum joins Sarah for a wide-ranging conversation on the week's events, voters' reactions, and keeping American democracy strong for the long haul. By David’s wife, Danielle Crittenden: Dispatches from Grief: A Mother’s Journey Through the Unthinkable By David Frum: The David Frum Show MAGA’s Strange Quiet After the Shooting Get tickets to The Bulwark's May live shows in San Diego and Los Angeles!

Enjoy a bonus episode of The Focus Group Podcast—Rachel Janfaza talks with Rotimi Adeoye about why moderate Gen Z focus group participants feel locked out of the economy. They discuss Rotimi’s “House by 30” idea, why vague promises aren’t cutting it, and how both parties—especially after Trump’s failed affordability pledges—are losing trust with young voters who feel like they did everything right and still can’t get ahead. Read Rotimi Adeoye in the New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/30/opinion/democrats-homeownership-affordability.html Tickets for our Bulwark Live shows in San Diego and Los Angeles in May: https://thebulwark.com/events

Everyone agrees that America is too divided. But ALMOST everyone is also contributing to that division in one way or another. So, how do we rebuild a country where Americans can live with each other a little easier? Sarah and our guest both have some ideas. Professional disagreer Jessica Tarlov of the Raging Moderates podcast and Fox News’s The Five, joins Sarah to discuss America’s political divisions and how voters across the political spectrum are feeling about them. Pre-order Jessica’s upcoming book, I Disagree: Winning Arguments Without Losing Friends. Get tickets to The Bulwark's May live shows in San Diego and Los Angeles!

Donald Trump and Pope Leo XIV are probably the two most prominent Americans in the world right now, and they're fighting. So we asked American Catholics (including those who voted for Trump) what they thought of their feud, and about Trump's Truth Social Post depicting himself as Jesus. JVL returns to the show with some choice words for some of his fellow Catholics, and discusses the role the Catholic Church has played in American politics more broadly. Get tickets to The Bulwark's May live shows in San Diego and Los Angeles!

On this bonus episode of The Focus Group, Rachel and guest Sami Sage of Betches Media wonder whether millennials are truly still ‘cringe.’ They also discuss the Gen Z gender gap, and how some politically moderate young women are navigating that political divide in their personal lives. By Sami Sage: In Paperback on April 28: Democracy in Retrograde: How to Make Changes Big and Small in Our Country and in Our Lives (https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Democracy-in-Retrograde/Sami-Sage/9781668053492) Check out 'The Context', from the Charles F. Kettering Foundation: https://kettering.org/thecontext/

If there's a blue wave in the 2026 elections, it'll be either because new people start voting for Democrats, or the current Republican base gets sad and stays home. So we convened a focus group of 2020 and 2024 Trump voters who are unhappy with his administration to give you a sample of the kind of despair that could keep Republicans home in November. Amy Walter, editor-in-chief of the Cook Political Report, returns to the show to break down the midterm landscape.

The Iran War has been going on for a month, and it’s deeply, DEEPLY unpopular. Plus, we get reactions from swing voters on the characters inside the Trump administration who they like (like Marco Rubio), or REALLY dislike (listen to find out). Atlantic staff writer Ashley Parker returns to the show. By Ashley Parker: The Wrath of Stephen Miller Pre-order Sarah’s book, How to Eat an Elephant, coming in September!

Artificial intelligence is such a big change to human civilization that our political class is struggling to keep up. The voters in our focus groups are struggling, too. The Washington Post's Megan McArdle joins the show to discuss how everyday Americans are using (and misusing!) AI, its impact on the political process and information environment, and how public policy can adapt to this brave new world. Megan McArdle's Washington Post Podcast, Reasonably Optimistic Make laundry day the best day of the week! Get 20% off your entire order @LaundrySauce with code THEFOCUSGROUP at https://laundrysauce.com/THEFOCUSGROUP #laundrysaucepod Get 60% off your first box with Tempo Meals at https://TempoMeals.com/THEFOCUSGROUP.

A lot of the young people we’ve been talking to recently in our focus groups are relatively apolitical, and many of them don’t vote. But what DO these young people care about? And what could mobilize them in the future? Rachel Janfaza discusses with Anderson Clayton, the youngest state party chair in the U.S. and chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party.

The Democratic primary for US Senate in Illinois is a bit quiet, according to our guest. But underneath the surface, one candidate has a VERY interesting way of getting attention...and voters are starting to notice. David Axelrod, former adviser to President Obama, joins the show to discuss this Chicago-style Senate race.

Sarah was out last week, and felt she had to bring you some timely focus group reactions to the War in Iran. We also check in on their feelings about the Trump administration (especially their handling of the Epstein Files), and talk about a growing strain of conspiracy theorizing tied to Israel (Jeffrey Epstein and Charlie Kirk are BOTH involved!) Finally, we’ve recently seen members of the Bulwark community pop up in the wild in our focus groups. Hear what drew THEM to The Bulwark. Sarah and Bill Kristol sift through it all. Pre-order Sarah’s book, How to Eat an Elephant, coming in September!

Rachel Janfaza sits in for Sarah on this week’s Focus Group to take a look at Gen Z’s personal finances, from their long-term outlooks to their day-to-day habits…especially their investments in crypto and how they’re engaging with sports betting and prediction markets. Ed Elson, co-host of Prof G Markets, joins Rachel. Pre-order Sarah’s book, How to Eat an Elephant, coming in September! Show notes: Rachel in The Up and Up: How Gen Z spends, saves, and invests Rachel in The Up and Up: The Kalshi election Ed’s interview with Kalshi founder Tarek Mansour

The Texas Senate primary on March 3 between James Talarico and Rep. Jasmine Crockett is a toxic cesspool on Twitter. But Texas Democrats are practically giddy over how much they like both candidates. Atlantic staff writer Elaine Godfrey, who's profiled both candidates, joins the show to chat about the race and discuss why she was kicked out of a Jasmine Crockett campaign event. By Elaine Godfrey: Why I Got Thrown Out of a Jasmine Crockett Rally Audio of Elaine being kicked out: ‘Elaine From Atlantic … She Needs to Leave’ Texas's Pete A Democrat for the Trump Era

Sen. John Cornyn has been a consistent ally of President Trump. Even Trump likes him just fine...but that may not be enough to save him in Texas, because he may have just been too mild-mannered for too long. He's running against a scandal-plagued (but combative) Attorney General, and a less scandal-plagued (but also less known) newcomer. Texas Monthly writer Eric Benson joins Sarah to break down the Republican brawl in the Lone Star State. Get 60% off your first box with Tempo Meals at https://TempoMeals.com/THEFOCUSGROUP. Show notes: Eric Benson's John Cornyn profile: The Last Ride of Big Bad John

More and more Trump voters are souring on his administration. But why? Inflation, immigration, and Epstein are all in the mix, but there's a giant mosaic of disappointments. We needed a second qualitative researcher to make sense of it all. Democratic pollster Margie Omero joins the show to discuss what she's heard in her own focus groups, listen to Trump voters who are down on his job performance, and check in with the Democratic base. Get free shipping and 365 day returns from Quince at https://Quince.com/THEFOCUSGROUP. Margie's focus groups: Trump’s Problems With Latinos Go Deeper Than the Economy 14 Wellness Voters Talk Parenting, MAHA and Social Media

Why are Gen Z men drifting right while Gen Z women move left? And why do right-wing zoomers think the gender gap is so wide? Sarah Longwell talks with the newest Bulwark contributor Rachel Janfaza, founder of The Up and Up, to analyze new focus groups of Gen Z Trump voters. They also get into these voters' Trump fatigue on foreign policy, why a future JD Vance presidential run isn't appealing, and whether these voters could ever date someone across the political divide. The Bulwark is heading to Minneapolis, and then to Texas. Get your tickets at https://TheBulwark.com/Events. Show notes: Rachel in Vox: The quiet reason why Trump is losing Gen Z From November 2025: Rachel Janfaza on The Focus Group Podcast

We saw an ICE officer kill an American citizen for the second time in less than three weeks. This time, it was harder for some of the voters we talked to to make an excuse for it. Bulwark immigration correspondent Adrian Carrasquillo returns to the show to discuss his reporting and listen to voters' raw reactions to what they're seeing in the news. Show notes: The abhorrent power of the photograph of a 5-year-old held by ICE By Adrian Carrasquillo: Why a Scared 5-Year-Old Boy Shook Our National Conscience Portraits of the Minneapolis Resistance Let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster. Join at https://RocketMoney.com/THEFOCUSGROUP

Some strange, under-the-radar things are happening on the right. Marco Rubio is experiencing a strange rehabilitation with the Republican base, and some young men are excited about taxing OnlyFans. Meanwhile, JD Vance is still on the struggle bus with swing voters, especially women. Will Sommer, The Bulwark’s right-wing fever swamp correspondent, joins Sarah to break down the growing rift between the MAGA establishment and the America First wing—and what it means for 2028. By Will Sommer: MAGA Influencers Cheered Trump’s Venezuela War. Their Audience Said ‘WTF?!’ Meet the First Groyper Politician

There's a lot of bad news right now—so much that none of it is breaking through that much to the voters we talked to. From the ICE killing of Renee Good to the Epstein files to the criminal investigation into Jerome Powell, Bulwark editor-at-large Bill Kristol joins Sarah for a reflective conversation on the tough times we live in and how voters are processing them. Get $30 off your first box and free croissants for life when you visit https://Wildgrain.com/FOCUSGROUP. Previous shows discussing the Epstein Files: With Will Sommer (November 2025) With Ashley Parker (September 2025) With Will Sommer (July 2025)

The United States just captured Venezuela's dictator, and we needed to get some quick voter reactions. Is this REALLY what the newest members of Trump's coalition voted for? We're also sensing growing discontent from them with the state of the country, and with the Trump administration governing more for its friends than for them. Atlantic staff writer Jonathan Chait joins the show to break down voter sentiment nearly a year into Trump's term. Let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster. Join at https://RocketMoney.com/THEFOCUSGROUP.