Politix

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmThis week, a close look at two troubling authoritarian provocations from the Trump administration: Friday’s dawn FBI raid of John Bolton’s house in Maryland, and Monday’s purported firing of Lisa Cook, a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. We discuss:* How Matt managed to leave his microphone in Maine.* What Trump seemingly hopes to accomplish by making an example out of Bolton.* Whether opposing the retributive prosecution of a crank like Bolton represents a good test of how to build a unified front against fascism.* Also, what the fuck is going on with Trump’s bruises and cankles?Then, do the Bolton and Cook abuses provide the broad left any openings to peel off Republicans who might see Trump’s consolidation of power as a threat to their own ambitions. If he’ll go after a stalwart Republican like Bolton, why wouldn’t he go after certain Republican presidential candidates? If overlook Trump’s harassment of Cook, what leg will they have to stand on when 2029 Democrats purge Republicans from government, mine their federal records, and have a big fat precedent to point to.All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Matt on the economic downside of personalist autocracies like the one Trump is building.* Brian makes the case against liberal rectitude politics, which make it so hard for the whole, unified party to stand up for itself. * HEADLINE: Trump, 79, Smears Right Hand in Makeup Amid Cankles Cover-Up.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump’s federal occupation of the capital continues, but the context has worsened. It now unfolds alongside Trump’s seemingly related efforts to: 1) gerrymander as many red states as possible; 2) unconstitutionally void and rerun the Census in a manner that would benefit Republicans; and 3) assert unconstitutional control over the time, place, and manner of elections. In this episode we’ll discuss:* To what extent is Trump’s desire to subjugate the residents of blue cities related to his long-established desire to cheat in elections.* Are Democrats outmatched in the gerrymandering arms race?* Have the opinion makers who discounted Trump’s threat to the 2020 election reverted to complacency once again?Why is Trump acting so spooked about the midterms? And what is to be done? Should congressional Democrats resist these power grabs during the government shutdown fight? Should Democratic governors send their own national guard troops to DC to magnify the contradictions? What kinds of resistance tactics from DC residents would work best to either deescalate the situation, or make it blow back against Trump?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian says it’s gut check time for Senate Democrats: Will they take Trump’s abuses of power head on when the government-funding deadline nears?* Matt: Let’s fix the gerrymandering problem with proportional representation.* Via National Security Counselors, Should Wes Moore (or someone) send blue state national guardsmen to DC?* No comment….

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump has commandeered Washington DC’s police force and deployed federal agents and national guardsmen to patrol DC streets, on plainly pretextual grounds. In this episode we’ll discuss:* What makes this affront to DC sovereignty unusually offensive;* Trump’s stated reasons for seizing power, and how to see through them;* What, if anything, elected Democrats should say and do to defend district residentsThen, behind the paywall, there’s good reason to suspect Trump hopes his DC invasion will distract us from less flattering news. So we’re not going to let him! We discuss the latest indications that Trump has damaged the economy, the steps that can be taken in the event Trump tries to fabricate economic data, and the most recent developments in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Matt on the actual policy obstacles to more effective policing in DC.* Brian on why DC residents are perfectly right to be frustrated with national Democrats for leaving us vulnerable to this unwelcome takeover.* Trump’s hackish nominee to oversee government economic data wants to stop releasing government economic data.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmThis week, we’re reassessing both the resiliency of the economy, and the health of U.S. democracy.Why? Because recent data suggests Donald Trump’s reactionary policy blitz (global tariffs, mass deportation) has caused the economy to seize up; and Trump has responded by trying to kill the messengers. In this episode you’ll hear all about:* What the recent jobs numbers actually say, and how do they gel with other recent data;* Sydney Sweeney;* Why data pointing to a slowdown, if not a contraction, fits the facts of Trump’s erratic agenda;* The bull and the bear theories of the case: Could the economy somehow continue growing despite all this? Would Trump be freaking out like this if he thought the economy was firing on all cylinders?Then, behind the paywall, is a recession the sort of thing Trump could even theoretically bullshit his way out of? Or would reality break through? What would a “recession coverup” attempt actually look like, given the complexity of the data? And what’s Trump likely to do if and when his excuses and lies stop selling?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian on why Trump’s reaction to the jobs report is of a piece with broader signs that he and his administration are spiraling.* Matt notes Argentina’s recent economic successes are attributable to Javier Milei’s decision to abandon an unworkable agenda.* Dean Baker breaks down why the jobs news is so bad.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump is trying desperately to bury the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. In this episode, Matt and Brian explore all the distractions Trump has attempted—implicitly and explicitly—to knock the Epstein files out of the news, why Trump is so desperate and why are his usual tactics failing.* Should we at this point suspect this is a coverup of damning evidence of Trump’s conduct specifically?* If the story is just that Epstein conspiracy theories are all bunk, why bother with distractions or incriminating claims (like that Hillary Clinton and James Comey forged the Epstein files)?* With Trump finally on the hind foot, why are elite institutions like Columbia University going out of their way to surrender to Trump’s threats?Then, behind the paywall, do the new tariff “agreements” Trump has struck with Japan and the E.U. count as distractions from the Epstein scandal, or are they on their own track? What’s in the deals? How much harm will they do to American importers and consumers? And how meaningful can they be if they’re as illegal as they seem?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Matt on repairing the tax code after Trump.* Brian argues we the discourse should shift from whether Trump is engaged in an Epstein coverup, to grappling with the truly dark things Trump is covering up, and what the consequences should be. * Philip Bump debunks Trump’s main Epstein distraction.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmThe new Superman is a critical hit and box-office smash—despite conspicuous Republican efforts to discourage people from seeing it. It’s the GOP vs. truth, justice, and the American way!In this episode, Matt and Brian explore all the reasons the modern right might have been put off by this movie, and Superman’s longer-running themes:* To what extent are right-wing critics really just evincing old, philosophical conservative misgivings about liberal empathy and compassion?* Are today’s Republicans really upset to learn that Superman is pro-immigrant (as he has been for almost 90 years, or is that just a red herring?* Or is it really just that this particular adaptation is an unsubtle send up of several recent, high-profile, right-wing corruption scandals (though not, unfortunately, the Jeffrey Epstein scandal)? Then, behind the paywall, in a recent interview, Hunter Biden of all people challenged Democrats to appeal to people’s better natures, rather than appeasing their prejudices—just like a certain superhero…The younger Biden’s broader judgment aside, his comments raise pretty profound questions for the party as it wrestles with how to broaden its appeal in the Trump era. Should Democrats be Superman to Trump’s Lex Luthor? How far will uncut virtue get them? And who’s the best avatar for Democrats to broadcast empathy across the board: Another old white guy with cultural roots in white working class America? Or a next-generation Obama-like figure who leans on respectability politics to appeal to cultural conservatives?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian on why Republicans are right to dislike the new Superman (because it rightly depicts their political values in an unflattering light).* Matt argues Democrats should just throw Joe Biden under the bus. * The Hunter Biden interview.* The canonical Matt Bors cartoon.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmThe race is on between Donald Trump, who’s desperately trying to put down the raging scandal surrounding his Jeffrey Epstein lies (whatever they happen to be) and Democrats who are finally engaged, and trying to pry the truth loose. Who’s gonna win?In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* How has the Epstein scandal developed over the past week?* Why have Democrats been uninterested in all matters Epstein, both recently and over many years of right-wing conspiracy theories?* What’s the likeliest explanation of why Trump is behaving so desperately now?Then, behind the paywall, we tackle a bunch of pressing questions: what have Democrats done thus far to move the story forward? What more could they do? Will the files be released, or will the story fizzle? Could “the Epstein files” be the thing that finally creates real, lasting political problems for Trump? And what would it say about America if this—rather than matters of major civic significance, like COVID failures and the insurrection—becomes the thing that finally brings Trump low?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Matt wrote, “I’m not deeply invested in any theory about Epstein, but I always thought Democrats blew it by not pushing for some oversight here,” way back in 2021.* Brian on how the Epstein saga illustrates the need for Democrats to get outside their comfort zones, and how they might use this opportunity to wage war on the entire right-wing bad-faith media complex.* The 2002 Epstein profile that started it all: “‘I’ve known Jeff for fifteen years. Terrific guy,’ Trump booms from a speakerphone. ‘He’s a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it — Jeffrey enjoys his social life.’”* Julie Brown, the reporter who broke the real Epstein trafficking scandal, weighs in with The Bulwark.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmThe Trump administration suddenly wants you to stop asking questions about Jeffrey Epstein. Case closed. Nothing to see here. That client list we promised to release? It doesn’t exist. In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* What is the Jeffrey Epstein conspiracy theory, and why has it persisted so long?* Why are Epstein’s old, wide-ranging associations distinct from all the other rich guys who hobnob with politicians and powerbrokers?* How should Democrats react to Trump administration efforts to sweep this under the rug, after dangling it so conspicuously.Then, behind the paywall, Zohran Mamdani and the shortcomings of institutional diversity efforts: the perspective of two white, Jewish, latinos who’ve grappled with a few box-checking exercises themselves. What’s wrong with the assumption that Mamdani must have been trying to game the affirmative-action system? Zooming out, are institutions that request demographic data (universities, employers) doing so for the right reasons? Is there a better way to recruit, or to take account of applicants who’ve had a rough go in a country with plenty of racial discrimination, than asking them to approximate their ethnic identities?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* From Brian’s archives: Call MAGA’s Jeffrey Epstein bluff. * Matt: Yes DOGE failed, and it matters.* Nothing fishy about this!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmMinutes after recording this episode, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) provided the decisive vote for GOP legislation to kick 15-20 million people off their health insurance and give rich people a trillion dollar tax cut, along with many other horrors.Now it’s back to the House, where hope, which springs eternal, goes to die!In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* What more could have been done to stop this?* By whom?* Given GOP margins and Donald Trump’s warlord-like control over the GOP, would it have made any difference? Then, behind the paywall, could Zorhan Mamdani kill this bill … by endorsing it?And, more seriously, what does his victory in the New York mayoral primary mean for Democrats post-2024? Is there anything Democrats in more conservative places can learn from a primary in a very blue city? Can the Democratic Party be a genuinely big tent, where centrists abide progressives (even self-avowed socialists) and progressives give red-state Democrats room to run on cultural issues?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Matt on the sewer socialists Mamdani can (and hopefully will?) learn from. * Brian on whether Republicans’ continued obsession with “starving the beast” will return us to the era of New Deal politics.* Matt, again, on the moderate-left synthesis: The view that an obsessive focus on cost-of-living issues is a winning move across factions.* Brian, again, on the hard truths progressive and moderate leaders should tell their fellow travelers, for the sake of unifying against right-wing extremism.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmWelcome to hell, because we’ve reached the hot war phase of the second Trump presidency. Or have we? In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* What has actually happened, both since 2018, and just in the past couple weeks, and why it’s so unlikely to have left the U.S. and the world better off.* Is there any upside to Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu using and playing each other in a way that undermines both of their political goals? * What’s the least worst and worst worst possible near-medium term outlook?Then, behind the paywall, how opponents of Trump and his war can balance political and substantive objections? Is it possible to oppose/criticize/mock Trump for his spastic, failed policy without driving him toward further hostilities? Is that even a consideration Democrats should heed? What about the fact that Trump and his administration lied to justify the attacks? That the strikes were illegal? That they may lead to American civilian deaths?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian on how Trump’s evolution from shitty president who posts a lot to shitty president who wields dictatorial power should bring an end to the Democratic tick of brushing off all of his outrages as “distractions.” * Matt’s 21 thoughts on Trump’s Iran war. * Chris Murphy: 8 Things You Should Know About Trump's Strikes on Iran.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump may not always chicken out, but his on again/off again, advance-retreat dance does seem to insulate him from lasting blowback. It seems the only way to drag Trump’s popularity down low enough to really hem him in is for his supporters to find out the hard way.In this episode, Matt and Brian tackle the questions:* Does the hyperbolic claim that “Trump Always Chickens Out” serve to insulate him from public backlash, while also perversely encouraging him to prove his haters wrong?* Would we be better off if he stopped chickening out?* Does defeating Trump (in Congress, the courts, etc.) weaken him, or does it protect him from his own unsustainable policies?* If we’re all accelerationists now, where would failure (or catastrophic success) undermine Trump most? Economic mismanagement? Medicaid cuts? Mass deportation? War?Then, behind the paywall, some considered thoughts on how the Trump opposition would respond if Trump didn’t chicken out. What can Democrats as a whole learn from the handful of leaders (most recently Alex Padilla and Tina Smith) who’ve drawn attention to their causes in productive ways? Are Democratic political fortunes best served if Trump’s Medicaid cuts fail, or if they succeed? And how, in this hothouse environment, can progressives and moderates align to help Democrats recruit viable Senate candidate in red states?Further reading:* Matt argues you’re not really alarmed about the slide into autocracy if you aren’t willing to make ideological sacrifices to help Democrats win the Senate. * Brian’s schema for when to try to stop Trump, and when to let him step in it.* Noah Wyle helps get the word out about looming Medicaid cuts. (Paging George Clooney, Jimmy Kimmel…)

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmSince last week’s episode, Donald Trump and Elon Musk had a bitter falling out, Republicans encountered new obstacles to enacting their top priorities (cutting rich people’s taxes and poor people’s Medicaid) and Trump ordered a federal siege of Los Angeles.Also, Brian got his first taste of sweet, sweet European health care. What do these things have to do with one another? Arguably not much, arguably quite a lot. If safety nets weren’t valuable and important, Republicans wouldn’t be lying about the contents of their budget reconciliation bill. And if their reconciliation bill was wise, popular, and on the glide path to passage, Trump (really, Stephen Miller) wouldn’t be trying to whip up a violent pretext to squeeze Republicans on Capitol Hill into voting for a reckless, terrible bill. But siccing federal troops on American citizens is a big deal, whether it’s intended as a diversion or an inducement or not. Should Democratic leaders have seen it coming? Should they have been more prepared? Are there ways for them to increase public awareness of the looming decimation of Medicaid without falling back on the trope that everything else is a “distraction?” All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* Brian argues Democrats overweighted the importance of “issue salience” and it left them unprepared to wage unavoidable political battles with Trump.* Matt argues that if progressives understood FDR’s legacy more accurately, they would be more tolerant of Democratic efforts to widen the party’s appeal.* No Kings protests across the country on Saturday.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmBrian’s European Vacation continues as Matt is joined by special guest Jane Flegal of the Blue Horizon Foundation to break down the energy provisions of Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill. The energy cuts have attracted less attention than the health care provisions in part because they were made much more severe at the last minute. Jane breaks down how the Inflation Reduction Act changed America’s approach to clean energy subsidies — making them more durable, more flexible, and more inclusive of the full range of technologies including nuclear, geothermal, and carbon capture — and how it connects to larger industrial policy questions related to supply chains and battery production. Repealing these measures will leave America worse off than it was pre-Biden in terms of clean energy production, which is going to lead to higher levels of air pollution and higher energy bills as Americans face a generational increase in electricity demand from AI and data centers. After the break, Matt and Jane analyze the broader philosophy of investment-led climate policy — what’s the right lesson to learn from the failure of Obama-era carbon pricing and what can we do about the flood of extremely dirty Chinese steel on world markets?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading:* How Republicans turned against energy programs in their Big Beautiful Bill.* The impact of repealing energy credits on electricity prices.* Dylan Matthews on the geopolitics and environmental economics of steel.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmBrian is on vacation, so special guest McKenzie Wilson joins Matt to talk about Blue Rose Research’s retrospective on the 2024 election and their work on message-testing. McKenzie came to Blue Rose after working in the private sector, working for Jamal Bowman, and working in the Biden administration’s Department of Health and Human Services — she believes in progressive values and she wants to win elections. In this episode, Matt and McKenzie discuss: * The central role of the cost of living in the 2024 election.* The importance of partisan realignment based around engagement with news and politics. * The deep unpopularity of Joe Biden and the need for Democrats to internalize that as they move forward. Then, behind the paywall, what are the Trump administration’s biggest points of vulnerability? What are Democrats getting right and wrong about highlighting those issues? Most of all, McKenzie makes the case for a disciplined approach that ties everything back to core values that motivate progressives and also resonate with swing voters.All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed.Further reading: * The full Blue Rose slide deck.* Matt’s article on Republicans’ Medicaid cuts.* A corporate marketing guru’s appreciation and praise of Bernie Sanders’ message discipline.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmBy the time you listen to this episode, the Republican bill to give rich people trillions in tax cuts, and throw millions of people off of Medicaid will be…somewhere. It could be on the glide path to passage in the House, or on life support, or somewhere in between. But the basic shape of what Republicans want to do, and what Donald Trump wants them to do, is clear.In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* How this terrible bill, which many Republicans really do not like, might become law anyhow.* Should this bill, if it passes, change the way Democrats think about the social compact, where productive, younger, more tolerant Americans underwrite Republican populations and politicians that despise them?* Will Republicans be committing political suicide by passing a huge, debt-financed tax cuts given inflation pressures and high interest rates?Then, behind the paywall, the renewed but cursed Joe Biden discourse. Did Biden or his advisers actually perpetrate a coverup of any kind, or is that just hype from reporters and Republicans trying to sell books and hurt Democrats? Do Democrats really need to have any kind of “reckoning” or are the lessons of 2024 and electing extremely old presidents pretty obvious to everyone? And how should they go about engaging in this and other forms of discourse that are frustrating and unhelpful, but impossible to avoid.All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed. Further reading:* Update: Biden says his last PSA was in 2014.* Greg Schultz on the REAL reason Democrats lost the 2024 election. (The real reason was that Biden was very old.)* Brian argues Democrats should spend less time staking out positions on controversies, and more time reflecting privately on what their real views are. * Jonathan Cohn on the highly irregular way Republicans are trying to force their tax and Medicaid cuts through the legislative process.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmDonald Trump blinked, as many people suspected he would. This week, he reduced the embargo-level tariffs he imposed on China a month ago, and did so unilaterally. So in exchange for a month-long crisis, a still-looming supply shortage, lost jobs, and lost wealth, we got nothing! But Trump’s supporters are all too ready to cover for him. In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* What does Trump’s reversal mean for the economy in the near and medium term?* Will his army of propagandists be able to sell his flailing as a “win,” and, thus, blunt the political consequences of his economic mismanagement?* Would Democrats be better off if their grassroots were similarly cult like, or is Trump’s “superpower” actually a big weakness, both for the GOP and the country?Then, behind the paywall, how should Democrats think about the damage Trump is doing, not just in the trade realm but across government? It’s (apparently) easy to tweak tariff rates, but much harder to convince trading partners that we’re trustworthy. Could this be a basis for Democratic opposition? Should Democrats unify behind a general promise to reconstitute the government Trump broke, and rebuild global faith in the United States? Or are technical questions surrounding how to rebuild destined to leave the party mired in infighting? All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed. Further reading:* Brian argues it’s counterproductive to wallow in the fact that building things is harder than breaking them, and that Dems should adopt a posture of resolve and defiance. * Matt on Trump rediscovering the virtues of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and how he succeeds politically by claiming credit for renegotiating shittier versions of deals he broke in the past. * Adam Serwer: “The Coronavirus Was an Emergency Until Trump Found Out Who Was Dying.”

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmThey won’t come right out and say it this time, the way they did in 2017. But Republicans are still hellbent on repealing the Affordable Care Act—or at least the half of the ACA that expanded Medicaid coverage to millions more poor and disabled Americans.In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* What do Republican pronouncements about their aspirational health care cuts actually mean?* Will cuts to a program that benefits millions of Trump supporters, and that basically nobody in industry supports, create disarray among House and Senate Republicans?* How should Democrats and industry stakeholders alike go about clarifying the stakes, so that Republicans might balk?Then, behind the paywall, the ACA meant to expand Medicaid in every state. But the Supreme Court decided it was unconstitutional for the federal government to force states to adopt policy under threat of massive, peripheral spending cuts. Since that’s the law of the land, shouldn’t Democratic governors err on the side of fighting Trump, rather than capitulating to his extortionate threats? What counts as fair-game cooperation with the Trump administration, and what counts as caving? And do Democrats need to be mindful of the underlying issue, or should they fight everywhere the law’s on their side?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed. Further reading:* Matt on not letting the awfulness of the GOP tax-and-Medicaid agenda slip through the cracks.* Brian on why Democratic governors like Gretchen Whitmer should stop Paul Weissing themselves. * Resources to help citizens with Republican representatives effectively oppose Medicaid cuts.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmOn Donald Trump’s hundredth day in office—the day we taped this podcast—he was historically unpopular, driving the country into recession, and responding to the loss of confidence in his administration by escalating his authoritarian threats against the public. In this special episode, Paul Krugman joins Brian to discuss:* What Trump has done to the U.S. economy in just the past 100 days.* Why it’s too late for him to fix some of the mistakes he made without subjecting Americans to real economic hardships in the coming weeks.* How his own faithless, erratic conduct will make recovery difficult (for the economy and his polling) even if he ends his trade war. Then, behind the paywall, how can future leaders attempt to undo the damage Trump has done? What will the country look like after 1300ish more days of this? Are economic forecasters underrating the risk of recession to hedge their bets? Would further inroads toward dictatorship deepen the economic crisis as well as the crisis of democracy and human rights? And what does it say about the direness of our circumstances that major upheaval, like impeachment and removal, would likely help restore global economic confidence in the U.S.All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed. Further reading:* Krugman asks, Did Peter Navarro save democracy? * Brian argues that though Trump is wreaking economic havoc, the rising against him isn’t class war as commonly understood on the left.* Matt argues hoping Trump implodes is not enough, and Democrats need a plan to actually win back the Senate.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmRight-wing religious fanatics want women to have more children with bread-winning men. Donald Trump views masculinity as synonymous with physical toughness. The synthesis: instead of using prosperity to make family formation more appealing, what if we just crushed female employment and made most jobs manual labor? In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* How Trump’s economic policy and disdain for white-collar professionalism might actually drive men into blue-collar work, and women into the kitchen.* Why this is a bad idea!* Whether Trump’s fear of backlash suggests Republicans will ultimately lack the courage of their convictions to stick with this attempted cultural revolution. Then, behind the paywall, what, if anything, can liberal elites do to make progressive politics and the Democratic Party more appealing to men—particularly men who like the idea of working hard and playing by the rules to get ahead, but don’t like Trump’s lying, misogyny, and authoritarianism? Can quietly competent Democrats like Chris Van Hollen out “man” testosterone-addled incompetents like Pete Hegseth? And is the solution to this gender-driven tension for men to spend less time online and more time socializing? All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed. Further reading:* Brian on how men can be manly without working in the mines at the behest of soft elites like Trump and Elon Musk. * Matt on the gender politics of Trumponomics.* Stephan Schubert.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.politix.fmTwo weeks into his trade war, Donald Trump has made at least a few tactical retreats, and markets have stabilized a bit as a result. Are we just in the eye of the storm? Or is it possible the economic fallout from the trade war won’t be as severe as we feared on LIBERATION DAY?In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:* Why did markets recover significantly (though not entirely) from the big sell off after Trump launched the trade war?* Who has a better read on the harm Trump is likely to do to the United States and its economy, traders or Democrats?* Even in a least-bad case scenario, isn’t Trump setting himself up to absorb more economic blowback than Joe Biden did for presiding over a year of moderate inflation?Then, behind the paywall, how can Democrats hedge against the possibility that public opinion won’t do all their political work for them? Between Trump violating court orders, and Democrats facing greater threats of violence, how likely are we to lose democracy well before the midterm elections? What if anything can Democrats do to keep the rule of law intact enough to have a fair shot next November? What kinds of candidates should they recruit to maximize their odds of retaking power, even if the economy doesn’t collapse?All that, plus the full Politix archive are available to paid subscribers—just upgrade your subscription and pipe full episodes directly to your favorite podcast app via your own private feed. Further reading:* Matt on the trade-deficit myths driving Trump’s economic self-sabotage.* Brian on how House Democrats can exploit the rules to run down the clock and draw attention to the assault on democracy, and growing momentum for resistance.* Democrats plan a fact-finding trip to the CECOT gulag in El Salvador.