What's Fueling Graham Platner's Success, and Sen. Hagerty on the Shutdown and Trump's Global Strategy

Next Up with Mark Halperin

MK Media

News, Daily News, Politics

4.6 • 1.2K Ratings

🗓️ 28 October 2025

⏱️ 79 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Mark kicks off today’s episode with a reported monologue on the high art and grand drama of political survival perfected by the masters — Bill Clinton and Donald Trump. He breaks down how figures like Graham Platner continue winning endorsements and voter enthusiasm even when controversy hits, revealing the strategies that help politicians withstand scandal and come out stronger. Then Senator Bill Hagerty joins to go inside Trump’s world and what is driving America’s global strategy right now. He explains why Japan is central to U.S. power in the Indo-Pacific, what the trilateral alliance with South Korea could mean for the future, and why the shutdown is exposing more political theater than problem-solving. Hagerty lays out the high stakes for national security and everyday Americans. Plus, former Democratic Senate candidate Steven Olikara shares a forward-looking conversation on bridging the divide in American politics. He explains how new grassroots energy and smarter media storytelling can strengthen pluralism and encourage leaders to better represent the country’s diverse communities. Forward Mobile: Help protect the American vaping industry before it’s too late! Visit https://vaportechnology.org Unplugged: Switching is simple, Visit https://Unplugged.com/Mark and order your UP phone today! Chapter: For free and unbiased Medicare help, dial 262-454-0503 or go to https://askchapter.org/mark Disclaimer: Chapter and its affiliates are not connected with or endorsed by any government entity or the federal Medicare program. Chapter Advisory, LLC represents Medicare Advantage HMO, PPO, and PFFS organizations and standalone prescription drug plans that have a Medicare contract. Enrollment depends on the plan’s contract renewal. While we have a database of every Medicare plan nationwide and can help you to search among all plans, we have contracts with many but not all plans. As a result, we do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 50 organizations which offer 18,160 products nationwide. We search and recommend all plans, even those we don't directly offer. You can contact a licensed Chapter agent to find out the number of products available in your specific area. Please contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-Medicare, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all your options.

Transcript

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0:00.0	You want the next up experience? You'll get the next up experience. I'm Mark Halperin.
0:06.8	Welcome in newbies, neophytes, and veteran nexters. This is our Tuesday program. Glad to have you here.
0:12.9	Happy to have a lot of new people and the show grows and the nexters meet the new nexters. And it's all very lovely.
0:19.5	I'm Mark Halperin, editor-in-chief of the interactive video platform Two-Way and your host here to bring you my exclusive reporting and analysis and all the top stories.
0:28.0	And then of course, great guests joining us today.
0:30.4	Bill Haggherty, he's a senator from Tennessee, a Republican, also was ambassador to Japan with President Trump traveling in Asia this week.
0:38.1	Great opportunity to talk to someone who knows the region and the country well.
0:41.9	And also Steve Ola-Kara, a former Senate candidate Democrat from Wisconsin,
0:46.9	who has started a number of organizations dedicated to trying to combat the toxic polarization in this company.
0:52.5	A super smart guy, love having him on.
0:54.6	Now he's a senior fellow for political reform at USC in the Schwartznager Institute, but also does
1:00.5	a ton of other stuff.
1:02.3	You'll like him if you haven't heard from him.
1:03.9	I'm looking forward to both conversations.
1:05.4	But first, my new report on why some politicians survive the unsurvivable.
1:12.5	That's next up. Don't go away.
1:16.4	Everybody, I want to tell you about the Vapor Technology Association.
1:20.0	It's an organization.
1:21.1	It started about a decade ago to protect the rights of Americans who choose alternatives to smoking
1:26.1	and the small businesses who have made a living
1:28.1	with the technology they use. They support science-based policies and the rights of adults to make
1:33.1	healthier choices. Did you know that many family-owned vape shots and manufacturers across the
	...

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