Ep. 544 — John Podesta

The Axe Files with David Axelrod

CNN

News

4.6 • 7.7K Ratings

🗓️ 10 August 2023

⏱️ 57 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

John Podesta was looking forward to retirement when he got a call from the Biden administration asking him to serve as the senior adviser to the President for clean energy innovation and implementation. A long-time advocate for the environment in the nonprofit and political sectors, he decided to jump back into the fight. John talked to David about his childhood on the Northwest side of Chicago in a close knit family, how anti-Vietnam activism led to his involvement in politics, why he worries more about America today than he did in the 1960s, and his leadership role on environmental protection and climate during the Biden presidency.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	And now, from the University of Chicago Institute of Politics and CNN Audio, the Acts Files,
0:12.5	with your host, David Axelrod.
0:18.9	John Podesta may not be a household name, but over a lifetime, he's been one of the most
0:23.9	formidable and impactful figures in American politics and government.
0:28.4	Senior counselor to three presidents, Podesta is currently overseeing the implementation
0:33.2	of President Biden's clean energy initiatives for the White House.
0:36.8	I sat down with Podesta this week to speak with him about his long and colorful life and
0:41.2	career and the issue that caused him to put retirement on hold.
0:46.4	Here's that conversation.
0:55.5	John Podesta, it's great to see you.
0:58.0	I'm sitting here in your hometown, the city of Chicago.
1:01.7	You're a product of what we call here the northwest side.
1:05.6	Tell me about that growing up on the northwest side of Chicago.
1:09.6	Well, thanks, David.
1:10.6	And it's also great to be with you and great to be talking to someone from Chicago.
1:15.0	It's just back there, actually.
1:17.0	Yeah, I grew up.
1:18.0	My father was a blue collar worker.
1:20.1	My mother worked at night.
1:21.2	We grew up in a kind of working class neighborhood in the northwest side of Chicago around Lawrence
1:26.5	and Elston for the Chicago listeners.
1:28.5	Yes.
	...

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