The Diplomatic Pouch

We speak with Katherine Zappone, activist and former American Irish independent politician who served as Minister for Children and Youth Affairs from May 2016 to June 2020, about her life, career and her LGBTQI+ activism.

Dee Dee Bridgewater is a three time Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter and a Tony Award winning stage actress. In addition, she was the host of NPR’s syndicated radio show JazzSet with Dee Dee Bridgewater from 2001 to 2014.

Dee Dee discussed her career, stories from travelling around the world, the Black Lives Matter movement and how jazz is not just music to her, but a way of life.

She joined us to celebrate UNESCO World Jazz Day, that takes place on April 30th.

Shane Kimbrough, NASA Astronaut and Commander of the NASA SpaceX Crew-2 mission to the International Space Station, joined us ahead of this months launch.  The mission is scheduled to launch on April 22 at 6:11am from Pad 39-A at the Kennedy Space Center. All going well, Shane and the crew should splashdown off the coast of Florida around mid-late October.

Shane gave fascinating insights into life in space, his worries of not getting back after this last mission, and made a firm promise to get some great shots of Ireland from space!

Former Taoiseach, leader of Fine Gael and EU Ambassador to the US John Bruton joins us to discuss his time in power in Ireland and the part he played in bringing peace to Northern Ireland.

CBS 'Face The Nation' moderator and Foreign Correspondent Margaret Brennan is our guest on this episode. She tells us how she became host of one of the biggest current affairs shows on US Network TV. She also discusses journalism, Irish dancing, interviewing Irish Taoisigh and women who inspired her.

#WomensHistoryMonth

We chat to Fionnghuala O'Reilly, an Irish-American engineer, Director of Space Apps DC, a host of the NASA International Space Apps Challenge and correspondent with Unstoppable on CBS. She is also a successful model, who was crowned Miss Universe Ireland in 2019. She was the first mixed-race woman to represent Ireland at Miss Universe.

March is Women's History Month, commemorating and encouraging the study, observance and celebration of the vital role of women in American history.

Enda Kenny was Taoiseach (Prime Minister) of Ireland from 2011 to 2017. His tenure of office saw the exit of Ireland from a Troika bailout, without condition, and saw the restoration of Ireland’s sovereignty and economic independence. During his premiership, his government held a referendum and changed the Irish constitution to allow for same sex marriages, the first country in the world to do so in this manner.

We spoke to Enda Kenny about his life in politics, President Joe Biden, his visits to the United States for St. Patrick’s Week and the day he welcomed President Barack Obama to Ireland.

Cody is an American political advisor and speechwriter who served as the Director of Speechwriting for President Barack Obama.  Described as the "Springsteen" of Obama's White House. He helped President Obama craft remarks on every topic for every audience – from tiny backyards in Iowa to the biggest stadiums in the country; from sermons on the National Mall to the State of the Union Address.

Cody chats to us about his Irish west coast road trip and writing the perfect speech with Barack Obama. He also tells us about his upcoming memoir 'Grace', which will focus on 10 days in Obama’s presidency, during which he helped write addresses for the president dealing with everything from a public debate on the Confederate flag to Supreme Court rulings on healthcare and gay marriage.

Every year on March 17th, the Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) visits the White House and presents a bowl of Irish shamrock to the U.S. President. It is a tradition that dates back to the 1950's and is a highlight on the Irish American calendar. 

But what really happens in the White House on St. Patrick's Day? We speak to two former Irish Taoisigh (PM's) Enda Kenny and John Bruton, Barack Obama's speechwriter Cody Keenan, historian Dr. Michael Kennedy and broadcaster and author Dearbhail McDonald.

February is Black History Month, and to celebrate we are focusing on abolitionist Frederick Douglass's time in Ireland.

This is the astonishing story of how Frederick Douglass escaped from servitude and used the power of his voice and pen to help end slavery. But the impact of his story stretches beyond American shores. We look at on Douglass’s life and legacy, but more importantly his visit to Ireland in the 19th century.

We speak to Irish author Colum McCann, Christine Kinealy of Quinnipiac University, Ken Morris, a great great great grandson of Douglass and actor Paul Oakley Stoval reads the words of Frederick Douglas.

This episode will look at Inauguration Day, the last days of a sitting President and all that surrounds the moment a new President puts his hand on the bible and takes the oath of office. We speak to Robert Schmuhl, the Walter H. Annenberg-Edmund P. Joyce Professor Emeritus of American Studies and Journalism, John Podesta (Founder, Center for American Progress) and Elizabeth Goldsmith, FSU Professor Emerita & Fulbright Scholar and expert in inaugurations. We also hear from Dr. Martha Kumar, Director of the White House Transition Project.

After a new President is elected, the transition between administrations begins. It is a daunting task!

We go behind the scenes to see how previous administrations have handled transitions, and speak to John Podesta (Chairman of the Obama/Biden transition to Trump/Pence) and Clay Johnson, Executive Director of the Bush/Cheney transition. We also get the expert view of Prof Russell Riley, co-chair of the Miller Center's Presidential Oral History Program and Director for the White House Transition Project, Dr. Martha Kumar.

What affect is absentee and early voting having on the election?  What happens on Election Night? Our panel of experts discuss and we also get the inside story of what happened on Election night 2000 when the result was too close to call.

Americans do not vote directly for their president in November, but rather choose members of the Electoral College who then meet in December and cast their votes based on how the majority of voters in their state voted the previous month.

The digital platforms have been around for years. But the pandemic has forced candidates to embrace like never before.  We talk to the experts on how the COVID-19 has reshaped campaigning.