In 2018, Greta Gerwig became the fifth woman ever to be shortlisted in the Best Director category at the Academy Awards for "Lady Bird," an ode to mother-daughter relationships. She continues her exploration of strong female characters with an adaptation of the Louisa May Alcott classic, "Little Women." She sits down with Michel Martin to discuss this new project.

Boris Johnson laid out his agenda with the traditional Queen's Speech in parliament today. Top of his wish list is finishing Brexit, trade deal and all, by this time next year. It's an incredibly ambitious deadline which sets up another year of roller coaster politics. Former Prime Minister Tony Blair joins the program to discuss this and the deeply partisan politics rocking the U.K.

In the U.K., tensions between the ruling Conservative Party and the British media are rising. During the election campaign, Prime Minister Boris Johnson refused to sit down for the main BBC election interview. And since his win, he has threatened the BBC's primary source of funding: the license fee. Journalist Michael Crick and historian Anne Applebaum join the program to discuss the situation.

As the Trump administration pushes to resume federal executions, a new film called “Clemency” looks at the moral questions of death row and emotional demands on executioners. The film won the grand jury prize at Sundance this year, making director Chinonye Chukwu the first African American woman to win it in the festival’s 35 year history. Chukwu joins Michel alongside lead actor Alfre Woodard.

To assess the impeachment efforts and the constitutional and political implications, Christiane speaks with a transatlantic panel of expert journalists and commentators in New York, Washington D.C. and London.

Today is a historic day for the American presidency, as the House votes on the impeachment of President Trump, in what would be the third impeachment of a president in the 243 year history of the republic. Scott Walker was a rival of Trump’s for the GOP nomination in 2016, and he joins the program to outline the GOP point of view.

Ronny Chieng had his breakthrough last year as Eddie Cheng in “Crazy Rich Asians," a fictional portrait of the glitz and drama of the Singapore elite. Today, he makes his debut on Netflix with “Asian Comedian Destroys America," where he explores the U.S. from his unique vantage point. He gives Hari a preview of the show.

Polarization seems to be the default state of U.S. politics these days, but how did it get so toxic and divided in the first place? Ezra Klein is a policy journalist and co-founder of Vox, and his new book delves into that very issue. He joins the program from California to discuss.

A new film takes a look at the pivotal moments that led to Pope Francis' papacy. “The Two Popes” explores the unique relationship and clash of cultures between then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina and Pope Benedict XVI. Jonathan Pryce plays Pope Francis, and joins the program to discuss the film and its political message.

Politics are well and truly cemented along party lines in the Democrat-controlled House and Republican-controlled Senate when it comes to the impeachment proceedings, but what is President Trump’s view of the process? Chris Ruddy is CEO of Newsmax and a close confidant of the president, and joins the program in London.

An estimated 1.1 million people are living with HIV in the U.S., and it’s gay black men who are most at risk. Steven W. Thrasher is the Daniel Renberg Chair of Social Justice Journalism at Northwestern University, and he says that while new HIV infection rates are dropping in cities around the U.S., HIV is actually on the rise in rural areas. He speaks with Hari about the crisis.

The two week COP25 climate summit in Madrid closed with key nations dragging their feet over regulating the global carbon market. Despite desperate pleas from activists, carbon cutting was kicked down the road with a compromise that will see new plans negotiated at next year’s summit in Glasgow. Former Secretary of State John Kerry joins the program to discuss this outcome.

The treatment by China’s government of its Muslim Uyghur minority has been both shocking and underreported, but it received a lot more attention this weekend thanks to soccer player Mesut Özil, who criticized China’s treatment of the Uyghurs and the subsequent silence of much of the Muslim world. Christiane speaks about the situation with Uyghur activist Ferkat Jawdat.

Democrats have released a 658 page report that lays out in detail the evidence behind their charges of obstruction of justice and abuse of power against President Trump. The vote may take place in the House this week, but when the trial comes to the Senate, the odds are in the president’s favor. Former Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal offers a Republican perspective on the situation.

With his large majority, Boris Johnson will push the first stage of Brexit through Parliament by January 31st. But what does his promise to “get Brexit done” really look like? Europe will have an important say. Helle Thorning-Schmidt, former Danish Prime Minister and wife of British Labour MP Stephen Kinnock, joins the program to discuss perspectives from both sides of the English Channel.

The dust has settled on the U.K. general election, and it was a decisive win for Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party and his unambiguously pro-Brexit stance. Johnson has a comfortable majority, guaranteeing that Brexit will happen. By contrast, Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party suffered a catastrophic defeat, its worst since 1935. Christiane analyzes the situation with a panel of experts.

This week, a trove of documents reveal how U.S. officials allegedly misled the American people about the war in Afghanistan in an effort to conceal fears that America was losing. But now, the Washington Post has obtained more than 2,000 pages of these documents through a FOIA request. Journalist Craig Whitlock has been looking into the papers for the last three years and joins the show to discuss.

As the results of the U.K. general election became clear early on Friday morning, Christiane spoke with a man who knows better than most just what an achievement Boris Johnson’s victory was. Gavin Barwell is a former Member of Parliament and current member of the House of Lords, and he served as chief of staff to former Prime Minister Theresa May. He joins the program to discuss the election.

The Atlantic Magazine is devoting its December issue to a special report called “How to Stop a Civil War,” looking at a country they say is “coming apart.” Yoni Appelbaum is a senior editor at the magazine, and his article “How America Ends” explores the demographic shift changing the country’s very fabric and its impact on politics today. He speaks with Hari about a cautionary tale for our times.

Myanmar de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi is in The Hague this week, defending her country over charges of genocide. Not so long ago, she was considered an icon of democracy, but her international support plummeted after she continued to stand up for her army when it was accused of genocide against the Rohingya population. Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein joins the program to discuss her fall from grace.