Early Returns - Law and Politics with Jan Baran

Jul 09 2024 20 ep. 47 mins 1
Early Returns - Law and Politics with Jan Baran Podcast artwork

Elections, lobbying, voting, and campaigning today are intense and filled with increasingly complex rules and resulting legal disputes. “Early Returns: Law and Politics with Jan Baran” spotlights players on the field, including political professionals, activists, election officials, lawyers, and journalists, eliciting their insights and personal experiences. Join Jan and his guests as they tackle current controversies in law and politics. Jan Baran is a partner at Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak PLLC.

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Josh Gerstein: SCOTUS, the Presidential Immunity Case Fallout, and the Dobbs Case Leak Investigation

Jul 09 2024 50 mins  
A very unusual and historic week of political and legal events just preceded America’s Independence Day. The Supreme Court of the United States ended its term with pivotal decisions, including a number that affect former President Donald Trump, the pending legal cases against him, and the 2024 presidential election. Indeed, the justices have ruled on constitutional, political, an

A Supreme Path: From Latin to Campaign Finance Law, to 38 Oral Arguments – Kannon Shanmugam

May 29 2024 44 mins  
Arguing before the Supreme Court increasingly has become a specialty of an elite group of lawyers. A former Scalia judicial law clerk, Kannon Shanmugam has argued 38 cases at the court. In this episode, Jan speaks with Kannon about his Midwest upbringing, his route to being a lawyer, his exceptional career, and his times before the Supreme Court. They discuss his most memorable cas

Ambassador Jim Gilmore: From the Popular Virginia Car Tax Reimbursements to Current Foreign Affairs

Apr 28 2024 37 mins  
In this episode of Early Returns, Jan Baran speaks with Former Virginia Governor and U.S. Ambassador, Jim Gilmore. They discuss his career in public service, his rise in Republican politics with the popular Virginia car tax reimbursement, and staying true to his roots and passion for foreign affairs and policy. As Ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europ

Deciphering Election 2024 with Charlie Cook

Feb 20 2024 48 mins  
At this point in a presidential election year, the national conversation would usually be focused on which candidates are wrestling for their party nomination. But, as we know, this year is different. Even though primary elections still remain and the nominating conventions won’t occur until late summer, the 2024 candidates for president appear to be settled: President Joe Biden

Sean Cooksey Shares FEC Menu for 2024

Dec 27 2023 49 mins  
As with the previous two season kick-offs of Early Returns, we welcome the third season with the newly elected 2024 chair of the Federal Election Commission, Sean Cooksey, who is a republican. The FEC consists of six bipartisan commissioners with no more than three from the same political party. It takes the vote of four commissioners to take any major action. Chair Cooksey has thr

Bradley Smith – Deregulating Political Speech Through Campaign Finance

Jul 31 2023 48 mins  
In this episode of Early Returns, Jan speaks with Bradley Smith, professor at Capital Law School, former Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) Chair, nationally recognized expert on campaign finance and the First Amendment, and the Founder and Chairman of the Institute for Free Speech (“IFS”). IFS defends rights guaranteed by the first amendment of the United States Constitut

Jill Holtzman Vogel – A Trailblazing Woman in Politics and the Law

Jun 13 2023 43 mins  
In this episode, Jan speaks with Jill Holtzman Vogel, the managing partner of Holtzman Vogel and a Virginia State Senator. Jill started her law firm 21 years ago as a sole practitioner specializing in political law. It now has over 40 lawyers in four states. Jill also has devoted 16 years of public service in the Virginia Senate. Jill speaks openly about her experiences as a woman

The Honorable Thomas Griffith – Judiciously Ruling in the Face of Politics

Apr 24 2023 66 mins  
It appears that policy changes are being resolved in the courts, and most specifically at the Supreme Court. If we look at recent court decisions involving abortion, the Affordable Care Act, Environmental Protection Act and gun rights, many people believe these decisions are politically motivated, especially when the politicians and media help to plant that seed by branding each Ju

Donald Palmer and the U.S. Elections Assistance Commission’s Role in the Integrity of the Voting Process

Mar 31 2023 42 mins  
This episode examines an important government agency that helps keep our voting systems current, transparent, and reliable. The U.S. Elections Assistance Commission (“EAC”) has existed for a little over 20 years. It was created in the aftermath of the 2000 presidential election and the Florida vote recount. In today’s political climate of distrust and controversy regarding, a

Wes Bizzell: The Role of Corporate America and Associations in Politics

Feb 06 2023 40 mins  
Political activity and lobbying have become not only full time, but also highly regulated. That also means that election campaigns as well as lobbying activities are getting under way for the next election cycle. To talk about the demands and challenges of advising companies on political law, Jan speaks with Wesley Bizzell, a lawyer who has spent over 20 years specializing in polit