Straight White American Jesus

Brad Onishi talks with three Texans about what happened in the state on Tuesday, when Democrats won the Senate seat, the governorship, down-ballot statewide races, and a majority on the State Board of Education. Robert Downen of Texas Monthly explains why the results are a generational setback for the national Christian nationalist movement, and why Texas has been its incubator for policy and legal strategy. Journalist Bekah Stolhandske McNeel looks at how progressive clergy and faith-forward candidates changed the conversation, and at what to watch as the religious right recasts itself as the aggrieved party. Mendi Tackett of See It, Name It, Fight It describes how first-time and young voters, worried about schools, cost of living, and ICE, flipped Tarrant County after years of Christian nationalist control of the county commissioners court. The panel also discusses why education is the most likely place for new leaders to begin, how overreaching legislation has fared in court, and why this blue wave is probationary. It ends with a case for connecting on shared values and for giving religious voters a different way to be faithful. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The midterms are over, and the results were bigger than almost anyone expected. Brad Onishi and Dan Miller go through the wins, the firsts, and what the results mean for the religious right and the Republican Party. In this episode: Why Texas flipping matters, symbolically and for the electoral map Georgia’s statewide results and what they say about decades of organizing in the face of voter suppression Why the margin was too big for the “rigged election” and fraud narratives to work How Trump has responded since Election Day The first trans and non-binary lawmakers elected in several states The Republicans leaving office, and the 2028 hopefuls distancing themselves from the Iran war Why Republicans are going after Pete Hegseth, and what his exit could mean for Doug Wilson’s influence Whether this is the peak of the Christian nationalist movement, or only a setback Why the work isn’t finished, including the anti-trans ballot measures that passed in some blue states Timestamps 00:00 Intro: the blue wave 02:09 Texas 10:18 Georgia and the Reconstruction comparison 22:27 Mississippi and Republicans in crisis 31:11 Trump after the election 33:06 New trans and non-binary lawmakers 37:01 Who’s leaving office 42:39 Generational turnover and the Supreme Court 44:22 What Democrats should do first 46:45 Hegseth, Wilson, and the religious right 58:52 Closing hopes and a note of caution If you enjoy our work, please subscribe. Paid subscribers get bonus content, ad-free listening, access to the entire 1k episode archive, an invite to our Discord community, and access to the Axis Daily Brief. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... 🔔Subscribe - Substack: www.axismundi.substack.com Books mentioned: 📕 American Caesar: How Theocrats and Tech Lords Are Turning America into a Monarchy by Brad Onishi — out September 15: https://static.macmillan.com/static/e... 📗 Defying Tyrants: Following Jesus in a World of Christian Antichrists by Matthew D. Taylor — out October 6: https://www.broadleafbooks.com/store/... Full tour dates: https://axismundinetwork.substack.com... 🔗 axismundi.us www.quo.com/SWAJ - Try QUO for free PLUS get 20% off your first 6 months www.groundnews.com/SWAJ 40% off the Vantage Subscription! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does it mean to be a “Christian”? An overwhelmingly common answer for American Christians would be, “to accept Jesus as your personal lord and savior.” But what does that actually mean? Can they even tell you? How much more complicated is the idea than it first seems? And why does this matter? And what happens if you keep asking questions like this? Check out this week’s discussion with Dan to find out. If you enjoy our work, please subscribe.  Paid subscribers get bonus content, ad-free listening, access to the entire 1k episode archive, an invite to our Discord community, and access to the Axis Daily Brief.  ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/axis-daily-brief/id1896931494⁠ 🔔Subscribe - Substack: www.axismundi.substack.com Books mentioned: 📕 American Caesar: How Theocrats and Tech Lords Are Turning America into a Monarchy by Brad Onishi — out September 15: ⁠https://static.macmillan.com/static/essentials/american-caesar-9781250427922/⁠ 📗 Defying Tyrants: Following Jesus in a World of Christian Antichrists by Matthew D. Taylor — out October 6: ⁠https://www.broadleafbooks.com/store/product/9798341900370/Defying-Tyrants⁠ Full tour dates: ⁠https://axismundinetwork.substack.com/p/the-american-caesar-book-tour⁠ 🔗 ⁠axismundi.us⁠ ⁠www.quo.com/SWAJ⁠ -  Try QUO for free PLUS get 20% off your first 6 months  ⁠www.groundnews.com/SWAJ⁠ 40% off the Vantage Subscription!   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Election Day, Brad Onishi and Matthew D. Taylor walk through what they’re watching on voting day and in the weeks after. The focus is religion, politics, and the echoes of January 6th, including how an electoral loss could be framed as illegitimate before results are even certified. What they cover: DOJ election monitors. The DOJ has reportedly sent about 1,000 monitors to counties with large Black and Democratic populations, including Shelby County (Memphis) and Prince William, Fairfax, and Charlottesville in Virginia. Taylor says the pro-democracy side has prepared with its own monitors and lawyers on call, and that the tactic is predictable. The bigger risk would be an attempt to seize ballots. Black turnout surge. They cite a Politico piece reporting that over a quarter of Black Southerners had voted six days before the election, a rate above the overall electorate. In 2022 Black turnout trailed by three points at the same stage, and in 2024 by six. They tie the surge to anger over redistricting efforts in Texas, Florida, and Tennessee. Taylor adds that Mike Madrid predicts four or five of Texas’s five redrawn districts could flip Democratic, and says he saw unusually heavy turnout at his own polling place. Delegitimization campaigns. Taylor describes a shift from ordinary attacks to claims that candidates are illegitimate or “not real Americans.” He points to Trump’s rhetoric about Abdul El-Sayed (Michigan), the attacks on Mary Peltola (Alaska) over the two-Dan-Sullivans ballot issue, and the “fake Christian” attacks on James Talarico. His worry is that propaganda built up over time creates pressure not to certify results or not to seat winning candidates. Predictions and warnings. Onishi predicts a media push between now and January 3 saying that Peltola, El-Sayed, and others can’t be seated. Onishi predicts a Democratic House majority in the 225 to 245 range and argues Republicans have written it off. He says the Senate is where the real stakes are: impeachment, Supreme Court vacancies, and confirmations. Taylor notes a pending effort, filed by Rep. Thomas Massie, to impeach Pete Hegseth, and that Trump couldn’t replace cabinet officials without Senate cooperation. Texas and Talarico. Both hosts argue a Talarico win would be a major symbolic blow to the religious right, because he speaks Christian language fluently and in a pluralistic way. They also cover why El-Sayed (potentially the first Muslim senator) and Adam Hamilton in Kansas matter. Taylor says they could provide a playbook for faith-forward Democrats. Tucker Carlson, Iran, and Chris Murphy. They discuss a Carlson post claiming Trump may be days from a nuclear strike on Iran’s “Pickax Mountain,” and Sen. Chris Murphy’s warnings about Iran escalation. The Intercessors for America report. Taylor explains IFA’s ties to the New Apostolic Reformation, including its live prayer call during the January 6th riot. . The hosts argue it seeds a narrative from the ground up, mirroring the top-down lies that preceded January 6th, and note the report’s own language about a “demonically inspired” coup. If you enjoy our work, please subscribe. Paid subscribers get bonus content, ad-free listening, access to the entire 1k episode archive, an invite to our Discord community, and access to the Axis Daily Brief. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/axis-daily-brief/id1896931494 🔔Subscribe - Substack: www.axismundi.substack.com Books mentioned: 📕 American Caesar: How Theocrats and Tech Lords Are Turning America into a Monarchy by Brad Onishi — out September 15: https://static.macmillan.com/static/essentials/american-caesar-9781250427922/ 📗 Defying Tyrants: Following Jesus in a World of Christian Antichrists by Matthew D. Taylor — out October 6: https://www.broadleafbooks.com/store/product/9798341900370/Defying-Tyrants Full tour dates: https://axismundinetwork.substack.com/p/the-american-caesar-book-tour 🔗 axismundi.us www.quo.com/SWAJ - Try QUO for free PLUS get 20% off your first 6 months www.groundnews.com/SWAJ 40% off the Vantage Subscription! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Palantir’s AI is helping decide who gets targeted in Gaza, and the same technology is already in use by US police and ICE. This week, Brad Onishi talks with Jacob Sprang, a humanitarian worker who spent about 18 months in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. He also worked in Sudan and Ukraine, and he sat on the executive committee of the INGO Forum and the Humanitarian Country Team. Chapters (approximate) 00:00 Intro: Palantir, Lavender, and the Israeli military 04:00 Spring’s background in humanitarian work 06:00 What AI targeting looks like on the ground 08:50 How a point-based system flags people 12:40 COGAT’s three categories of “Hamas” 15:20 Taking the human out of the decision 17:50 “AI slop” as human slop 19:50 Geo-fenced SMS warnings and Maven 24:40 Data as the price of aid 29:10 The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation 38:40 Planned communities and manufactured scarcity 43:20 Why Spring came home 50:00 Palantir, ICE, and surveillance in the US 56:50 NSPM-7, “domestic enemies,” and the shrinking protected class 1:00:00 Closing thoughts Guest Jacob Sprang is a humanitarian worker. He is writing about his experiences on Substack. https://substack.com/@jakesprang If you enjoy our work, please subscribe.  Paid subscribers get bonus content, ad-free listening, access to the entire 1k episode archive, an invite to our Discord community, and access to the Axis Daily Brief.  ⁠https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/axis-daily-brief/id1896931494⁠ 🔔Subscribe - Substack: www.axismundi.substack.com Books mentioned: 📕 American Caesar: How Theocrats and Tech Lords Are Turning America into a Monarchy by Brad Onishi — out September 15: ⁠https://static.macmillan.com/static/essentials/american-caesar-9781250427922/⁠ 📗 Defying Tyrants: Following Jesus in a World of Christian Antichrists by Matthew D. Taylor — out October 6: ⁠https://www.broadleafbooks.com/store/product/9798341900370/Defying-Tyrants⁠ Full tour dates: ⁠https://axismundinetwork.substack.com/p/the-american-caesar-book-tour⁠ 🔗 ⁠axismundi.us⁠ ⁠www.quo.com/SWAJ⁠ -  Try QUO for free PLUS get 20% off your first 6 months  ⁠www.groundnews.com/SWAJ⁠ 40% off the Vantage Subscription! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices