
What Is America Beyond Trump? (w/ Astead Herndon)
From Assembly Required with Stacey Abrams by Assembly Required with Stacey Abrams
April 21, 2026 · 52 min · Episode 80
About this episode
Stacey Abrams discusses the complexities of American politics beyond Trump with guest Astead Herndon.
Do you want the government spying on you, or do you want it to catch bad guys? This week, Stacey opens the show by pointing out the false binary Americans are being presented with as Congress debates renewing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Then she speaks to reporter Astead Herndon, host of “America, Actually” at Vox Media. They break down how to talk about and report on America without focusing exclusively on Trump, why both parties should consider non-systems candidates in 2028, and the big realignments among groups like voters of color and faith-based voters. For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here . For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast. Learn & Do More: Be Curious: Check out Astead’s new podcast America, Actually and his reporting for Vox. Solve Problems: American reporter Ahmed Shihab-Eldin has been detained in Kuwait for the past six weeks. Visit the Committee to Protect Journalists to learn more about his unjust detention and sign the petition demanding his release . Do Good: As Trump’s war in the Middle East continues, the needs of members of our…
People in this episode
Host: Stacey Abrams
Guest: Astead Herndon
Topics covered
- government surveillance
- political discourse
- 2028 election
- voter realignment
- media reporting
Keywords
- Section 702
- Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act
- Trump
- voters of color
- faith-based voters
- 2028 candidates
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Vox Media, Committee to Protect Journalists, Operation Homefront
More episodes of Assembly Required with Stacey Abrams
- Why Is Disability Still an Afterthought? · June 9, 2026 · 1h 1m
- How the Left Can Take Back States’ Rights · June 2, 2026 · 1h 3m
- How Anxious Should You Be About AI? (w/ Katie Drummond and Timnit Gebru) · May 19, 2026 · 1h 9m
- How SCOTUS Is Erasing Black Voters, and Abby Phillip on Jesse Jackson’s Legacy · May 12, 2026 · 1h 15m
- What’s Next for Voting Rights, and Why Activism Matters (w/ Jane Fonda) · May 5, 2026 · 1h 3m
- A Democrat’s Guide to Challenging Trump on Iran, ICE, and Dollars (w/ Rep Ansari) · April 28, 2026 · 1h 4m
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Assembly Required with Stacey Abrams podcast page.