Issues & Ideas: News & Political Commentary · Chris DeBello - News & Political Analysis

Issues And Ideas: News & Political Commentary With Chris DeBello March 8 2026

·57 min·4 clips

Issues and Ideas opens by pushing back on the Trump administration's description of the Iran conflict. Chris DiBello argues that the fighting should be called a war, not a military action, because the softer label would let the White House avoid going to Congress and skipping other constitutional requirements. He also plays Pete Hegstead's complaint that the press is making the president look bad by focusing on the deaths of U.S. troops. The segment treats that as an attempt to shift attention away from the deaths themselves. From there, the show moves to a New Jersey lawsuit over federal access to voter information. A guest explains why the group chose to intervene, saying the move amounts to federal overreach and that the government has not been clear about why it wants the information. The guest cites a 2016 Brennan Center study that surveyed 42 jurisdictions covering about 23 million votes and found only 30 suspected cases of non-citizen voting. That comes out to 0.001 percent of the votes in that population. The discussion also points to the Heritage Foundation's own voter fraud base, which includes only 68 cases of non-citizen voting going back to the 1980s. Against that background, the guest says the push is political, not evidentiary, and connects it to the coming midterms and the SAVE Act in Congress. The segment also notes that three federal district courts have already dismissed DOJ efforts against California, Oregon, and Michigan after finding the government had not shown enough legal authority under the statutes it cited. The show says the department is framing the effort under the Civil Rights Act of 1960, while the guest argues it is being used to attack rather than protect the vote. The final stretch widens the warning to naturalized citizens and others whose information could be affected. The broadcast closes with a Bible reading from Revelation 22:18-19. It then gives the website, thanks listeners, and asks them to subscribe or follow.

As heard by us

A sharp, evidence-led look at Iran war rhetoric, Congress, and voter-data fights.

Chris DiBello uses the hour to press on two pressure points: the Trump administration's language around the war in Iran, and the federal effort to gain access to voter information in New Jersey.

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Why you'd press play

You want a sharp read on Iran, non-citizen voting claims, and the New Jersey records fight in one stretch.

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