Podcast

Claire Conlon: Around the world and back again

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: Claire Conlon got her start in the capitol as a legislative aide in 2011, and has held a wide variety of roles since, including Press Secretary for Senate leader Kevin de León and Chief of Staff to Asm. Cottie Petrie-Norris. While building that impressive resume, she did something unusual: she left, traveling the world for a full year. These days she is the Senior Director of State Government Affairs for Biocom California. Claire shared stories from her capitol journey and other travels, offers advice for new legislators, and talks about her new role in California’s second largest industry.

Podcast

Special Episode: CA vs. Donald Trump – Panel 2, Climate and the Environment

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s conference The Resistance: California vs. Donald Trump, which was held in Sacramento on Wednesday, February 26, 2025. This is PANEL 2 – CLIMATE AND THE ENVIRONMENT.

Panelists: Kip Lipper, Chief Policy Advisor on Energy and Environment to the Senate pro Tem; Catherine Reheis-Boyd, Western States Petroleum Association; Victoria Rome, Natural Resources Defense Council. Moderated by Rich Ehisen, Capitol Weekly

Podcast

Special Episode: CA vs. Donald Trump – Panel 3, Immigration

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s conference The Resistance: California vs. Donald Trump, which was held in Sacramento on Wednesday, February 26, 2025. This is Panel 3 – Immigration.

Panelists: Senator María Elena Durazo; Luis Alvarado, Luis Alvarado Public Affairs; Kevin R. Johnson, UC Davis School of Law; David Trujillo, ACLU California Action. The discussion was moderated by Andrea Castillo of the Los Angeles Times.

Podcast

Special Episode: CA vs. Donald Trump – Panel 1, Health Care

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: This Special Episode of the Capitol Weekly Podcast was recorded live at Capitol Weekly’s conference The Resistance: California vs. Donald Trump, which was held in Sacramento on Wednesday, February 26, 2025

 This is Panel 1 – Health Care. Panelists: Beth Malinowksi, SEIU California; Devon Mathis, California Assembly (Ret.); Amanda McAllister-Wallner, Health Access California; Dr. Richard Pan, California Senate (Ret.); Moderated by Samantha Young, KFF Health News.

Podcast

Reporter Brian Joseph’s new book on sex trafficking in the USA

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: Brian Joseph has worked as a newspaper reporter and investigative journalist for two decades, writing for Capitol Weekly, the Orange County Register, the Sacramento Bee and the Las Vegas Review-Journal, among other publications. He recently released his first book: Vegas Concierge: Sex Trafficking, Hip Hop and Corruption in America. Using public and private records as well as exclusive, first-person accounts from primary sources, the book shows how prostitutes and pimps ply their trade, how law enforcement agencies trip up and their investigations become compromised, and how self-interest corrupts news organizations and the corridors of power.

Podcast

California Assembly Parliamentarian Brian Ebbert

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: Parliamentarian to the California Assembly Speaker Brian Ebbert joins Hosts Rich Ehisen and Tim Foster to talk about the Parliamentarian’s role, how the legislature has changed in the time he has been there, and about his brief but fascinating time in the Canadian Parliament. Plus – Who Had the Worst Week in California Politics?

Podcast

What the Hell is happening in Washington DC?

The Capitol in Washington DC. Photo by Pharun Tan, digital manipulation by Capitol Weekly.

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: To look at the unprecedented times in national politics, we’re joined by Thad Kousser, professor of Political Science at UC San Diego. Kousser has written extensively on US and California politics and is an astute observer of American political life. He spoke with us about President Trump’s “everything everywhere all at once” strategy, what Democrats can and can’t do, and how this all plays in California.

Podcast

Priorities for 2025, with Asm. Majority Leader Cecilia Aguiar-Curry

Asm. Cecilia Aguiar-Curry in her office. Photo by Ellie Appleby, Capitol Weekly

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: Cecilia Aguiar-Curry represents California’s 4th Assembly District, which includes Napa, Lake, Yolo, Colusa Counties and part of Sonoma County. She is the chair of the bipartisan California Legislative Women’s Caucus and is also the Assembly Majority Leader. She sat down with hosts Rich Ehisen and Tim Foster to talk about finding common ground with her Republican colleagues, her role in helping new legislators get their feet under them, and Democratic priorities for 2025.

Podcast

From Hope to the Secretary of State’s office: Dr. Shirley Weber

Rich Ehisen (right) and Tim Foster (left) interview Secretary of State Shirley Weber (middle) for Capitol Weekly's Podcast on January 15th, 2025. Photo by Ellie Appleby, Capitol Weekly

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: We’re joined today by Dr. Shirley Weber, California’s Secretary of State. Serving as the state’s chief elections officer is a natural fit for Weber, whose family left Arkansas during the Jim Crow era after her father was threatened for agitating in favor of voting rights. The family settled in southern California, where her mother became a longtime poll worker, with the family home often serving as a polling place. Hosts Rich Ehisen and Tim Foster spoke with Weber about administrating elections, why it takes so long to get results in some districts, and how to inspire young Californians to care as much about voting as Weber’s family always has.

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