Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist has a new Sunday political talk show on One America News Network called “Political Plots Revealed.”
Norquist– often hailed as a legend by fiscal hawks and vilified by liberals for his Taxpayer Protection Pledge — was a natural fit for the conservative news outlet, which started in 2013 and has been growing rapidly since.
The anti-tax crusader has become a regular staple on cable news networks over the years, regularly appearing on top-rated shows to discuss inside-the-beltway issues.
Norquist told The Daily Caller News Foundation that while there are small differences he has to get used to, such as using a teleprompter instead of just talking to the camera, it has largely been a similar experience.
“The other one is how much as host do I jump in while guests are chatting to move it forward, you have to interrupt to redirect the conversation without looking like you are interrupting, but you sometimes have to help the guy get to someplace,” he said. “Sometimes people repeat their thought, you can’t do that on TV since it’s obvious, sometimes you need to move it to the next thing.”
The 30-minute program – which tapes in advance – follows a relatively standard format. It starts with a short monologue followed by a segment with a featured newsmaker and a panel discussion. It manages to set itself apart in that it makes an effort to choose big-picture topics versus focusing on breaking news.
While Norquist is known for his fiscal expertise, the show focuses on a broad range of political topics. Outside his off-the-record weekly Wednesday meeting – a gathering of conservative power players to brainstorm on the country’s most pressing issues – he has set up an area to do interviews with attendees for the program.
“I spend a lot of time thinking about the holistic center-right coalition and how it works together and what works,” he said. “You can’t take the movement one place on taxes, but not be aware there are other tendencies out there that could get in the way of tax issues as front in center or trump them. You need to make the case for the issues that matter to them, not just the issues that matter to you.”
According to One America News D.C. Bureau Chief Neil McCabe, in addition to trying to bring on high-profile guests, they also try to highlight less-known political power players like Marji Ross, president of conservative book publisher Regnery Publishing.
While the show has not yet had a Democrat as its headlining guest, producers said they are open to the idea. Norquist said he would be interested in interviewing someone like Ralph Nader if he wanted to come on.
“I feel like I’m treated very fairly here and I get to talk about the Bernie Sanders campaign a lot, which a lot of traditional liberal media outlets tend to disregard somewhat,” Sam Sacks, founder of The District Sentinel and regular liberal panelist, told TheDCNF. “Grover, among the left is seen as kind of a pariah, but in person he is a pretty nice guy.”
McCabe added he would like to eventually see it become an hour program as it gains more attention.
“Grover Norquist has effectively represented the idea wing of conservatism since he went to Afghanistan with the Mujaheddin against the Soviets as a young man,” House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who was shooting his segment March 29, said of the show. “His no tax increase pledge has changed history. He brings this depth to his ‘Political Plots Revealed’ show.”
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