. >>> joining me now is susan glasser and david fromme.get in with what suzanne was reporting first. do you think that helps or hurts other republican candidates when they get taken out of. >> this is a big bowl of delicious tasty cream put before senator johnson, just perfect. republicans do not want to talk about economic issues, the biden agenda is, so far, quite popeye lars. so far, the american economy is reviving. what does work is the politics of grievance. it can be pointed against they enormous tech giants. it's perfect. i suspect you'll see more of these deliberate prove indications by republicans who want toe say i was canceled, i'm a victim, support me, because they're coming for you next. >> we have seen it with other making hay out of that as well. susan, i want to switch gears. we have learned that trump's justice department demanded metadata for phones and e-mails addressing from apple all connected to democratic lawmakers be handed over, staffers, their families. the former attorney general bill barr told "politico" he was

if you missed the program, the recent program with peter baker and susan glasser, you can find it on youtube page. we are in bizarre times when you start to recognize his living room. you can purchase your copy of the book mercury rising john kennedy and the new battleground of the cold war at our local bookstore partner. our office receives a 10% discount by using the code. we have a full schedule of programs so remember to check out the website for newly scheduled events and now i'd like to welcome peter to moderate tonight's conversation. peter is "the new york times" chief correspondent for 20 years at the "washington post" including four years as moscow bureau chief in collaboration with journalist susan glasser and he's authored six award-winning books. thank you for joining us again. the floor is yours. thank you so much. >> thank you for that kind introduction. i think you've got a terrific background there so we should be seeing more of that. i can't tell you how excited i am to be here tonight. jeff knows this story, so i'm going to tell you anyway. he's written the book be

i want to bring in susan glasser.reporting on and from inside russia for a long time. so talk about what you're seeing ahead of that meeting and the way that the u.s. president is trying to manage expectations. >> well, thaefrt. i think that certainly in one way he has an easy job of it in the sense that donald trump has set a pretty low bar to jump over if your goal is to say i looked putin in the eye and i talked tough with him, that's going to be easy. the other day you had trump, in fact, reminding us how much he had a bizarre affinity for the russian leader saying i liked him, he liked me, what's the problem with that? in that sense biden is going to communicate a clear message of getting tough. remember that vladimir putin, although he is an autocrat, also has politics of his own. i think the fact they're not going to have a joint press conference is a reminder that both purt tin and biden will be able to essentially sell their own version, their own narrative of this meeting to their own domestic constituencies

for more, i'm joined by new yorker staff writer and cnn global affairs analyst susan glasser.e've heard this a lot. this is america is back, right? the american democracy is back. u.s. is back. that is the message that is the approach to will allies. what the is the new strategy exactly? what is the meat on the bone here for biden's foreign policy going forward. >> look, the big international summits are always as much about messaging and the sort of high plucks of it as they are about some concrete breakthroughs, the au age of cold war symmetry. for biden, this is a very important part of his message, connecting the whidea that democracy can deliver still. that means at home, domestically. and also internationally. the question is, what does the united states and what do other western democracies get out of working together? so that's where you're seeing them announce a big new international vaccine program with a billion doses going to be donated by these g7 countries. i think that's a down payment on the idea of biden era multilatteralism. >> is there a multilateral respons

. >>> live in geneva switzerland, with us now to discuss is susan glasser, staff writer at the new yorker, and cnn global affairs analyst, and mark mizetti, washington investigative correspondent at the "new york times," and cnn national security analyst. thank you both for being with us, susan, from what we know about president biden's approach going into this summit will it be effective against putin, will it work? >> well, you know, both of these men, like to and are capable of giving out long ex-plications o their positions. vladimir putin has given many lectures to many american presidents. biden is his fifth straight american president. it's a question of who's going to seize the speaking microphone and not let go of it first. but, you know, in private i was struck by something that fiona hill who was in the room the last time an american president met with vladimir putin, she was there for that infamous donald trump meeting, she said the russians are like the nasty schoolboys in the lunchroom. they're desperate to sit next to the girls and they spend the entire time at lunch kickin

rubenstein: so, number one, peter baker is not related to james baker, peter baker and susan glasser

let me quote the famous susan glasser on this.ther or not putin likes being called a killer, you write, he surely likes being ignored even less. explain that. >> well, that's exactly right. you know, again, russia's tendency and definitely for the two decades of putin's rule, he when it comes to foreign policy, he has seen the elevation on the world stage russia still values very much being one of the security council powers of the united nations. it uses its veto all the time to block american and other western priorities. putin needs this outward looking focus and he needs an enemy in some ways frankly like joe biden and an adversary in order to magnify his own power and to justify some of the repressions at home. so, you know, ignoring him would in some ways be the biggest insult of all. >> zeleny reported in this latest summit, susan, that biden has picked everyone's brain that he's talked to all of the world leaders about putin. what do you think about how he is preparing for this meeting? >> yeah. i do think that, you know,

. >> as analysis pours in on the president's first foreign trip susan glasser of "the new yorker" had a summit with vladimir putin and nothing crazy happened. she wrote measure than that but it's up to you to read it. now back with us is historian michael beschloss, the latest work is "presidents of war" and the book next he can't finish fast enough and on the presidents of race topic. michael, have -- did this right size summit, did this put the business of holding a summit back to normal after several ab rant years? >> i think it did. just ask the question. would you feel happy with the fate of the family in the hands of joe biden dealing in the world? it's hard to see how anyone would say no. during the last four years i think we had the hearts in the hands every time donald trump left this country and went for a meeting with a foreign leader, especially vladimir putin. you know? here he went to europe and met with boris johnson. was skeptical of biden. then he goes to g7, meets with the leaders that got used to not having the u.s. throwing the weight around and like the clock was

i want to start now with senior political analyst john avlon and global analyst susan glasser. john harwood. excuse me. i'm sorry. did i call you john avlon? i guess i did. >> you did. >> like the president today, i apologize. i'm really sorry. especially john avlon, of all people. geez. so john, just moments ago, the president arriving back in washington after his week-long trip to europe and face to face meeting with vladimir putin. he seems confident about what he accomplished overseas. he says, you know, a lot of challenges. but the proof will be in the pudding in time to see if anything was accomplished. so he has a lot of challenges. what is he up against? >> well, look, he has reason to feel confident about the results of the trip. it was overall, a success. he rallied allied democracies at nato and the g7 and the eu to try to say, we need to show we we can lead, solve big problems, stand up to autocracies and show that we're the way to lead the world into the 21st century, not autocracies. ten he went to geneva, confronted an autocrat, stood up to an autocrat, stood up

this is an excerpt of the writing tonight of our friends susan glasser of over at the new yorker.tes quote, this infrastructure deal proves biden's theory of the case, that the elusive middle in american politics is alive, if often hardly in evidence. for that reason alone, this may go down as the biggest week so far of biden's presidency. stewart, do you concur? >> well look, the white house has been saying that they have bipartisan support from the republicans and senators talk to that. but what they mean is the majority of the country, including some republicans. one -- i hope that what's happening here is that people are getting a sense that the government might work. it was that way when we had this incredible rollout of the vaccine, which is bring this country back to normal. and then today, when you just think about it, we're all celebrating because government actually worked for a day. ripping a lot of money for the government. for them to make people spot lives better, that's the whole idea. we -- was no child left behind. the picture of ted kennedy over his right shoulde

. >>> joining me to discuss is susan glasser global analyst and staff writer at "the new yorker."nks for being here. what do you think? should the u.s. be preparing for diplomacy or conflict with north korea? we just saw brian's piece laying out where things stand. >> thank you so much. i would say, you know, it's both and, not either or in the case of north korea. i do think you're looking at a sharp change in at least the surround sound between the united states and north korea. it's jarring every time you hear the president of the united states, donald trump, the former president, say he had love for kim jong-un. what on earth was that about? and so, obviously, you're not going to between an american president like biden and kim jong-un, so north koreans are bracing that on the one hand. the other approach that is different is you're going to see the biden administration much more focused, already has been, on trying to get back on the same page with the japanese and south korean allies, in terms of what the strategy is toward north korea. privately, president trump was always

. >> as analysis pours in on the presidents first foreign trip, susan glasser of the new yorker had thiswe quote. joe biden just had a summit with vladimir putin and nothing crazy happened. she wrote more than that, but it's up to you to read it now. back with us tonight celebrated author and presidential historian, michael beschloss. his latest work is presidents of war, and the bookies working on next he can't finish fast enough for our taste, and it's about our presidents on the topic of race. michael, did this right size symmetry, did this put the business of holding a summit back to normal after several average years? >> i think it did. just ask the question, brian, but you feel happy with the fate of your family in the hands of joe biden dealing in the world? after this last, week it's hard for me to see how anyone would say no. during the last four, years i think we had our hearts in our hands every time donald trump left this country and went for a meeting with a foreign leader, especially the leader vladimir putin. here he went, he went to europe, dealt with boris johnson, who h

. >> stewart i brought something for you, this is an excerpt from the writing of our friend susan glasser new yorker." she writes, quote, this infrastructure bill proves biden's theory of the case, that the elusive middle in american politics is alive, if often hardly in evidence. for that reason alone, this may go down as the biggest week so far of biden's presidency. stewart, do you concur? >> look, you know, the white house has been saying that they have bipartisan support and republicans in the senate scoffed at that. but what they mean is that the majority of the country, including majority of republicans, support a lot of the initiatives that the biden administration has pushed for. you know, i hope that what's happening here is that people are getting a sense the government might work. it was that way when we had this incredible rollout of the vaccine, which is bringing this country back to normal. and then today, i mean, if you think about it, we're all giddy and celebrating because, like, government actually maybe worked for a day. we pay a lot of money for government, it ought t

so my wife, susan glasser, and i are working on a book on president trum. down to mar-a-lago to see him along with others. we interviewed with him in the lobby mar-a-lago. that's where he does these interviews where you're part of the show, in effect, as people come in and out of the place tore dinner and activities there. i think he relishes in the idea of somebody listening to him and telling his version of the story. these interviews are not going to change these books necessarily, but he hopes his voice will be participate part of them and give him an opportunity, even if the books are hostile or skeptical. >> you say you get the interview in the lobby, so people are coming and going. is it all just a show, like trump wants to show he's being interviewed by the great peter baker for a book? is that what it's about? >> he is a showman. that's part of it. he's there in mar-a-lago -- this is obviously before he moved up to bedminster. we were down there a couple months ago in mar-a-lago. tgs part of the show. he enjoys the attention and wants the attention

the two most meaningful books that i have read this year are peter baker and susan glasser's book on james baker and your book on nancy reagan yet these both focus on a presidency 30 years ago. what is it about the reagan's president reagan nancy reagan that still intrigues and captivates interests today? well, you know was the whole. unlikelihood of his story that you know this man could come out of hollywood and really sees you know that he'd be elected governor, but also that he would he would dominate. politics in not only his era but you know for a generation to come the idea imagine. any political candidate today who could win 49 states? and certainly his policies. there are a lot of people who will draw a straight line from regular policies to a lot of the you know, less less attractive themes in our politics today. but where i think the analogies? fall apart is that ronald reagan's gift i believe? was his ability to make the country believe in itself. just the kind of sheer optimism that he was able to convey and again it just to me at least feels so at odds with everything a