Fly on the Wall: a GU Politics Podcast

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Fly on the Wall: a GU Politics Podcast

Your weekly window into how the most impactful moments in politics unfold. Have you always wanted to how politics really works? Us, too. And we hope you are, too.

From the Oval Office to the Clinton campaign war room to the halls of Congress to Maryland's Governor's Mansion, we bring you inside the rooms where the biggest decisions are made. Curious how the public debating, social-media sparring, and closed-door deal-making yields policy? Wondering what gets left out of that news story? That's we decided to do something about it. Captivated by the 2016 elec

tion, energized by our home in Washington, DC, and inspired by the rise of mainstream political podcasts, a group of college kids at Georgetown pitched, planned, and launched Fly on the Wall in February of 2017--and never looked back. Unlike your typical news outlet, we don't look at the who, what or why. We're interested in the how; we want to know about the decision-making processes that yield tangible results. Our aim is to take our listeners into the rooms where it happens: the countless hours of planning, the dirty work, the moments of defeat, the moments of triumph. Each week, we bring in a new politico--including White House staffers, journalists, communications experts, and even elected officials--to tell us what we would see if we were "flies on the wall," extracting fascinating stories about how politics gets things done. As students studying government, we're fascinated by this stuff.

11/16/2025

Welcome back to another episode of the Fly on the Wall! Today, we welcome Former Senator Laphonza Butler on the podcast!

Laphonza Butler is a former senator representing California, who Governor Gavin Newsom appointed to replace the late Senator Dianne Feinstein after her death in 2023. Born in Mississippi, Butler attended Jackson State University before beginning her career as a labor organizer. She has been actively involved in the United States labor movement throughout her public service career, serving as President of SEIU Local 2015 in Los Angeles, California. Before serving in Congress, former Senator Butler served as the president of Emily’s List which works to elect Democratic pro-choice women to government. Former Senator Butler has also been prominent in the private sector, working as Director of Public Policy for Airbnb. Former Senator Butler is a Fall 2025 GU Politics Fellow at Georgetown University and has hosted her weekly discussion groups on AI, Labor, and the Politics of the Future of Work, which she expands on in this must-listen-to podcast episode. Listen on Spotify now!

11/10/2025

Tune in to this week’s episode with a fellow podcaster, Jamelle Bouie! Co-host of his own podcast, Unclear and Present Danger, and columnist for the New York Times, Jamelle Bouie, provides perspective on history and politics.

Before joining the Times, Bouie began his career at The American Prospect magazine and then became the chief political correspondent at Slate magazine. From receiving the Hillman Prize for Opinion & Analysis Journalism and being elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, Bouie has shaped national conversations on democracy and race. Some of Bouie’s most recent articles for the Times include “They Don’t Want to Live in Lincoln’s America” and “This Administration Is Silencing Its Critics.”

Listen to one of the most influential commentators in politics today as Bouie explores topics of the Constitution and the role of executive power in modern politics!

10/27/2025

Hi Flies, welcome back to Episode 5 of Season 18! On this episode, we have Congressman Adam Smith, a democrat from Washington state’s 9th district on the podcast. Representative Smith recently spoke at an event hosted by Georgetown’s Initiative for U.S-China dialogue, and discussed the U.S/China relationship and its importance. Representative Smith was born here in Washington, D.C and grew up in Washington State. In 1987, Congressman Smith graduated from Fordham University with a degree in political science and went back to Washington state to pursue his law degree at the University of Washington. After law school, Congressman Smith worked in both private and public law, notably practicing for Cromwell and Mendoza and Belur, before becoming a prosecutor and later a judge. At 25 years old, Mr. Smith was the youngest state senator ever elected, serving there until 1996 before being elected to Congress in 1997. Mr. Smith is currently the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee and is a member of the New Democrat Coalition, as well as the Congressional Progressive Caucus. Notably, and related to this episode of the podcast, Mr. Smith created the bipartisan congressional caucus for effective foreign assistance to advocate for reforms in foreign aid. In this episode, Mr. Smith discussed U.S-China relations regarding his leading of the first United States House delegation to China in six years, U.S-China diplomacy, the airstrikes conducted by the Trump administration in the Caribbean, and Mr. Smith’s role being one of the first Democrats to call for President Biden to drop out of his 2024 campaign. This episode, which you can find on Spotify, is one you won’t want to miss out on!

10/20/2025

Get ready for Episode 4 of Season 18! 🪰🪰
Listen to Georgetown University 2025 Fall Fellow Amy Howe! Amy Howe is an accomplished journalist and legal analyst, best known for her work SCOTUSblog. She is the co-founder of SCOTUSblog, where she helps break down complex Supreme Court decisions and is a leading voice on the intersection between law and public life. Before turning to journalism. Amy Howe has argued over two dozen merit cases before the Supreme Court and has taught at Harvard Law, Stanford Law School and American University’s Washington College of Law. Amy has covered the Court for more than a decade and has earned both a Peabody Award and a National Press Club Journalism Award for Breaking News! Tune in to get a behind-the-scenes at the Supreme Court and the life of a journalist!

10/16/2025

Welcome back to the Fly for our third episode of Season 18! Rob Flaherty is a Georgetown University Fall 2025 Fellow who is a leading political strategist. He previously served as Former Assistant to President Joe Biden, as well as his Director of Digital Strategy. When President Biden exited the presidential race in 2024, Flaherty took over as Deputy Campaign Manager for Harris for President in her historic 107 day battle for the White House. Flaherty is a 2013 graduate of Ithaca College, whose career in politics was sparked after watching West Wing and from there, joined local campaigns in New York. As a young professional, Flaherty also worked on Terry McAuliffe’s campaign for governor of Virginia. Later, Flaherty moved to the national stage where he became Presidential Candidate Beto O’Rourke’s Digital Director in 2020, Creative Director at Priorities USA, and Deputy Director of Digital Communications for Hillary for America. Flaherty runs a fellow’s discussion group currently titled "The Politics of Attention: Media, Campaigns, and Our Broken Information Environment.” Flaherty sat down with the Fly to discuss these topics and more, ranging from how he started in politics, his work in the White House and on the campaign trail, digital media strategy wins and losses, and how the traditional media and press has evolved, as well as its implications for the political landscape in the United States. This is a must-listen episode with many fun tid-bits and insights into the White House and digital media! Listen now on Spotify!!

10/07/2025

There is a big buzz in that air for Episode 2 of Season 18! 🪰
Jamaal Bowman, former middle school principal turned US Representative for New York’s 16th Congressional District joined us for a special episode on activism. Before entering politics, Bowman founded Cornerstone Academy for Social Action, a middle school focused on a restorative justice approach for their students. In the 2020 Democratic primary, Bowman’s defeat of 16-term incumbent, Eliot Engel, showed the strength of grassroot campaigning. Once in Washington, Bowman quickly became an influential progressive figure for his viewpoints on education, racial equity, and US foreign policy in Israel. Known for his authenticity and dedication to his community, Bowman was a key player in policies surrounding education and labor reform. In 2024, Bowman lost to pro-Israel candiate George Latimer in what was recorded as the most expensive House of Representives primary in US history. Since then, Bowman has launched the Built to Win PAC, and has used his platform to advocate for systemic change in education and human rights policy. Join us to hear a down-to-earth perspective on current political issues of education, the Israel-Gaza conflict, and labor reform. This is a must-listen episode for those interested in activism or a career in politics!

10/02/2025

Welcome to our last new member!! Will Trachsel is a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences studying Government and Russian. He is from New York City and will be working on the Research and Outreach workflow as a new member of The Fly's team. Will is also a member of Georgetown Political Strategy, a writer at The Stratagem Initiative, and an employee at the Midnight Mug in Lau.

09/29/2025

Give a warm welcome to Olivia! .romanson14 is a freshman in the College studying Public Policy. She is originally from Oklahoma and will be joining our Communications Team. Her fun fact is that she has a 1932 day streak on Duolingo!

Welcome Olivia!

09/26/2025

Welcome to another new member, Aniya! Aniya Jain is a freshman at the McDonough School of Business, majoring in Finance and Operations & Analytics. Originally from Dallas, Texas, she co-hosted a weekly radio show on a South Asian network covering current events. At The Fly, Aniya is excited to bring her experience in media and operations to the audio team, improving production and showcasing new voices and perspectives on the podcast.

09/24/2025

New member alert!!
gower is a freshman in the College studying Public Policy from Ukiah, California. Bode loves to golf and hosts his own monthly podcast called Gower Hour!

Welcome Bode!!

09/24/2025

Ishya Jain is a freshman in the School of Foreign Service majoring in Science, Technology, and International Affairs from Plano, Texas. Passionate about combating the spread of misinformation, she hosted a radio show about politics on a South Asian station in Dallas.

Ishya is looking forward to enhancing The Fly's production value and broadening its reach to audiences across the country. In her free time, she enjoys baking vegan desserts and watching The Daily Show. Welcome Ishya!

09/24/2025

We are so excited to kickoff Season 18!! But first, get to know the newest members of the Fly!

First up in Kennedy! is a freshmen in the College planning on majoring in Government and minoring in Journalism! A little thing about her is that she loves to run to the monuments at night!

WELCOME KENNEDY!!

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