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California Attorney General Rob Bonta joins Beth to talk about how state attorneys general are preparing for this election and pushing back on federal overreach. They discuss: the security of mail-in ballots the fight over "citizenship lists" preparations to safeguard against intimidation at the polls the Supreme Court's emergency docket and strain on the court system immigration enforcement AI and the tools needed to protect citizens outside of politics: soccer brings people together Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We did not expect to be discussing the death penalty less than a month before midterm elections, but here we are. Today, Sarah and Beth discuss: Our individual perspectives on the death penalty Tennessee's failed attempt to execute Christa Pike Pete Hegseth's plan to livestream the execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan Outside of politics: seeing leaves last week in New England and Quebec Mentioned in the episode: Still Listening, our free pop-up book club for the midterms Pew Research polling on the death penalty Shirley Jackson's short story "The Lottery" Common Ground Pilgrimages Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beth talks with Zach Dembo, the Democratic candidate for Kentucky's 6th Congressional District, running against Republican Ralph Alvarado in one of the closest House races in the country: Zach's path to running: Teach for America, active-duty Navy, policy advisor to Gov. Andy Beshear, and most recently a federal prosecutor Why he resigned from the DOJ, and how that decision affected his marriage (his wife is also a prosecutor) His anti-corruption platform: no stock trading for members of Congress, 12-year term limits, a ban on lobbying, a ban on dark money and corporate PAC contributions Why the corruption message is landing with voters across party lines in central Kentucky right now His "team Kentucky, not team party" case for independence in a polarized Congress The "nightmare scenario": what Congress can actually do if the executive ignores its own laws His committee priorities — armed services and agriculture — and why farm economics are personal to both hosts The contrast with his opponent, Ralph Alvarado Running a true toss-up race, and how listeners can help A closing conversation about UK football under Will Stein and UK basketball Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah and Beth talk with Kristin Kobes Du Mez about her new book Live, Laugh, Love, exploring the history and influence of white Christian women's culture in America: how Live, Laugh, Love traces the roots of white Christian women's culture beyond evangelicalism, including Mormon and positive thinking influences the intertwining of religion, capitalism, and multi-level marketing, and how corporate power shaped Christian subcultures the impact of Christian fiction, media, and influencers from Little House on the Prairie to modern blogs and Instagram the challenges of writing recent history and representing living figures in the Christian women's influencer space Outside of politics, some easy organizing has improved our lives. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah and Beth discuss the horror described in Jane Doe's complaint, the campus culture at Cornell, and the challenges of addressing sexual assault in college environments. They cover: The reporting and investigation into the Cornell 7 case and the role of student journalism How campus culture, Greek life, and university responses shape outcomes The complexities of Title IX, criminal investigations, and legal standards in sexual assault cases Broader questions about prevention, parenting, and the ongoing struggle to change campus safety Outside of Politics: Sarah and Beth talk about Derek Thompson's essay on the decline of hosting and why fewer people are having others over. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah and Beth discuss the viral stories that took over the weekend, and what they reveal about conflict, context, and civic life heading into the midterms: - The New York Times report on Alaska Senate candidate Mary Peltola's treatment of staff - The Boston Globe story on Last Ditch, a COVID-cautious lesbian bar in Greenfield, Massachusetts - The Giants game "mom of the year" couple and iced coffee at job interviews - Taylor Swift's four-song encore to The Life of a Showgirl Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beth talks with Dr. Robbyn Wacker, a former university president (most recently at St. Cloud State University) with a background in gerontology, about the book she's writing on leadership and values in higher education. They cover: Robbyn's path from gerontology and legal aid for older adults into higher-ed leadership, and eight years as a university president The current state of higher education: flipped funding models, the enrollment cliff, cuts to research funding and student loans, restrictions on international students, and a growing public skepticism about the value of a degree Why Robbyn's book centers on values rather than tactics, and how to choose two or three core values as an actual decision-making tool rather than a platitude "Values drift" — how leaders rationalize small departures from their stated values until those values stop driving behavior at all A detour through Lindsey Graham's admission that his real value is "relevance," and what that reveals about naming one value in service of another Whether organizations — and an entire sector like higher education — can meaningfully hold values, and how to navigate different constituencies without seeming inconsistent Beth's own reflection on the three values guiding her work this year: honesty, distinctiveness, and joy A closing story about the real budget dilemmas university presidents face, and how a "North Star" value holds up under pressure Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're picking back up on artificial intelligence — Mustafa Suleyman's warning about conscious AI, the difference between chatbots and frontier models, recursive self-improvement, kill switches, and what policy response should actually look like at every level of government. Outside of Politics: the foods from our childhoods that still hold up. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sports, race, gender, religion, cancel culture, and Donald Trump — this week they're all the same conversation. We cover Caitlin Clark's fouls and the House Republicans weighing in, Sophie Cunningham and the trans-athletes-in-sports debate, the Sydney Sweeney ad everyone's arguing about, SF Giants pitchers under DOJ scrutiny for Bible verses on Pride caps, the golf ad that ended a sponsorship, and LIV Golf's bankruptcy. Outside of Politics: which area of law would we actually want to practice? Sports and the culture war, generally Sports' grip on America sparks summer of political warfare – Axios Caitlin Clark / House Republicans RSC Chairman Pfluger Leads Letter to WNBA Demanding Accountability Over Unfair Treatment of Caitlin Clark House Republicans absurdly ask WNBA to investigate fouls against Caitlin Clark – Yahoo Sports Sophie Cunningham / trans athletes / Title IX Inside the disunited United States that shadows the WNBA – ESPN WNBA star Sophie Cunningham defends her views on transgender athletes – The Hill Destroying Women's Sports In Order To Save Them – Matthew Yglesias, Slow Boring Sydney Sweeney ad Sydney Sweeney under fire from athletes over nude sports-prediction ad – CNN Sydney Sweeney Faces Backlash for Sexualized Sports Trading Ad – Hollywood Reporter SF Giants Pride caps / DOJ-EEOC Giants 'Pride Night' cap controversy prompts investigation into MLB for religious discrimination – Yahoo Sports DOJ opens probe into MLB after Pride Night controversy – The Hill Good Good Golf ad / Callaway Golf ad showing man shove woman to ground taken down after backlash – CNN Callaway Golf ends partnership with Good Good Golf after controversial ad – ABC News LIV Golf bankruptcy LIV Golf files for bankruptcy protection; Rahm, Bryson owed millions – ESPN LIV Golf files for bankruptcy protection as it seeks to restart in 2027 – NBC News Trump and the World Cup 2026 Trump–FIFA red card controversy – Wikipedia Trump's FIFA Intervention Draws Global Backlash – Time Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a weekend when an Anthropic researcher quit and warned AI could wipe out humanity within a decade, Sarah and Beth take on the questions listeners sent them about artificial intelligence, starting with what is actually being made and what it costs. They argue that the flyers-and-water critique is stuck in 2022 while frontier models and agents race ahead, and they take the Doomer scenarios seriously without buying that the doom is just sales copy. Beth explains why "can't we just unplug it" would mean unplugging the internet; Sarah argues nobody trained these models on a soul, and that's where we need to put our chips. They disagree on whether building superintelligence was ever the right call, and agree that fear isn't enough to bring to the table with our kids, our employers, or Congress. Then, Outside of Politics, a conversation about quitting: Jessica Strawser's The Quitters Club, Lindsay Crouse's case for opting out, and the biggest things each of them has walked away from. If you missed our live show in Minneapolis, the full recording is available in our shop for $15: https://pantsuitpolitics.myshopify.com/ Support the show and get access to News Briefs, Spicy Live bonus episodes, and community: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Twenty-five years ago today, and Sarah and Beth close out the re-share of their 2018 series on September 11 with the two hardest parts. First, the road from 9/11 to Iraq, from "we will wipe terrorism off the face of the earth" to an occupation that hired loyalists over experts, and a real disagreement between the two of them about whether George W. Bush was a bad man or just a bad president. They end at the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, where each of them chose one life to be grateful for, Kathy Mazza and CeeCee Lyles, and where the museum asks you to look up at the photos in exactly the way people on the ground had to that day. Parts one through three came out Wednesday. If you missed our live show in Minneapolis, the full recording is available in our shop for $15: https://pantsuitpolitics.myshopify.com/ Support the show and get access to News Briefs, Spicy Live bonus episodes, and community: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week marks twenty-five years since the September 11 attacks, and Sarah and Beth are re-sharing the five-part series they made in 2018 to do what they felt the country never quite did: process it. Today's episode holds parts one, two, and three. First, a careful, flight-by-flight walk through the morning of September 11, 2001, with attention to the people who improvised when no plan existed for what was happening, from flight attendants Betty Ong and Amy Sweeney to Rick Rescorla to the passengers of Flight 93. Then they travel back eighty years, to the borders drawn after World War I, the Soviet war in Afghanistan, and the conditions that produced al Qaeda, with help from Middle East expert Kerry Anderson. Then they ask how we missed it, and find the answer in an FBI and CIA built to distrust each other, an overcorrection after Watergate that stopped agents from sharing what they knew, and two future hijackers living in the United States that the CIA never told the FBI about. It is a hard listen in places, made with care for everyone who carries the day with them. Parts four and five, the road to Iraq and the Memorial, follow on Friday. If you missed our live show in Minneapolis, the full recording is available in our shop for $15: https://pantsuitpolitics.myshopify.com/ Support the show and get access to News Briefs, Spicy Live bonus episodes, and community: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's a mailbag day, and Sarah and Beth work through everything the Substack Premium community sent in — starting with the Lindsay Clancy jury deadlock and whether the legal system is built to answer a question like this one, then into a new round of tariffs and how this administration keeps finding new legal doors no matter what the Supreme Court says. They spend real time on a listener question about whether the evangelical church can repent from Trumpism, working through what happens when politics and religion try to answer the same question about human freedom on two completely different timelines — and where they land differently along the way. They set the record straight on what Project 2025 actually says about the FDA, talk about who benefits from a weakened food and drug regulatory system, and take on the bigger question of how to keep functioning when people can't agree on the same reality anymore. Then it's the midterms: Sarah's optimistic, Beth's braced for anything, and both explain why. Outside of Politics, they get into what's worth correcting in kids and what's worth letting go of as they get older, the particular chaos of the first weeks back at school, and a rapid-fire round covering summer highs and lows, on-camera style, Sarah Bareilles's new album, early holiday traditions, and who they'd most like to interview under truth serum. If you missed our live show in Minneapolis, the full recording is available in our shop for $15 — a substantial discount, and well worth your time. That virtual option exists because of the generosity of Fearless Finance and Substack. And if you haven't already, check out this week's bonus live conversation with Jen Hatmaker on Substack. One quick heads up: next week is Labor Day, so we're recording Tuesday instead of Monday, which means the next episode lands in your feeds on Wednesday instead of Tuesday. New episodes every Tuesday and Friday. Subscribe so you never miss one. Support the show and get access to News Briefs, Spicy Live bonus episodes, and community: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pantsuit-politics/id1055348656 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/37qY4LmXijGefBvzR0lWKt Follow us on Instagram: @pantsuitpolitics — Pantsuit Politics is hosted by Sarah Stewart Holland and Beth Silvers. Produced by Studio D Podcast Production. Our theme music was composed by Xander Singh with inspiration from original work by Dante Lima. This podcast and every episode of it are wholly owned by Pantsuit Politics LLC and are protected by US and international copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Meta just settled with 47 states for roughly $17 billion over claims it built a product designed to addict teenagers, and Flock cameras are facing a backlash that runs from Lexington's city council all the way to Capitol Hill. Sarah and Beth connect the two stories: both are about building first and asking permission basically never. They dig into whether this is big tech's big tobacco moment, why the product changes in the settlement should probably apply to adults too, what a national license plate database actually does to civil liberties, and where the two of them land very differently on traffic cameras. Underneath it all is Beth's argument that we are increasingly being asked to live in excerpts, and Sarah's that we are chasing a zero-risk society that does not exist. Then Outside of Politics, they come home from Minneapolis with a joy hangover from the first-ever Spice Conference and talk about what four hundred people in one room says about the community they've built. Still Listening is coming — a pop-up book club built around our first book, with free discussion guides and a big online session with Sarah and Beth. Sign up to participate here: https://forms.gle/FnSiAH9uD9GSX4g38 Support the show and get access to News Briefs, Spicy Live bonus episodes, and community: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah and Beth dig into the new executive order on childhood vaccines and the request for information the Department of Health and Human Services issued on August 24 — what "shared clinical decision making" actually means, why unbundling the MMR shot asks far more of families than this administration has shown any willingness to make possible, and how two measles deaths in Pennsylvania were both foreseeable and foreseen. Sarah talks candidly about the years she kept one of her own children on an alternate vaccine schedule and what it took to come back from it. Then Beth sits down with Beth Sumner of Grandparents for Vaccines, whose brother contracted polio in 1954, one year before the Salk vaccine became available, and who describes what that did to him and to their whole family across the next six decades. Outside of Politics, they get into the things from their youth that hold up, the things that really do not, and a genuinely contentious disagreement about whether "American Pie" is any good. Pantsuit Politics is in Minneapolis this weekend for its one and only live show of 2026. In-person tickets are sold out, but virtual tickets are still available and are buy one, get one half off. Pantsuit Politics is listener-supported. To join the community of paid subscribers who make the show possible, subscribe on Substack. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah opens by calling it what it is — a national day of mourning — and she and Beth spend the hour on the only thing anybody's feed is showing them: Dolly Parton, dead at 80. They trace the fork in the road that turned a prolific Hall of Fame country star into a global icon, from the podcast and the Drunk History episode to the Miley and Taylor of it all and America's unbelievable hunger for a unifying figure. Sarah makes the case that the most under-discussed thing about Dolly Parton is her shrewdness — saying no to Elvis, keeping her publishing, running a hyper-professional business out of Tennessee her whole life — and that she likes that woman a great deal more than the angel-on-earth version. Beth talks about using this week with her daughters to describe what a good life and a good death actually look like, and about what it means to come into enormous wealth from a background of being poor but happy. They get into the wigs as a shield, the sincerity underneath the artifice, the faith that ran through all of it, and how on earth she escaped the last ten years of polarization without ever making the statement everyone demanded. Along the way: the Imagination Library, the My People Fund, the Moderna money, Steel Magnolias, and why "I Will Always Love You" is a business breakup song. In-person tickets for our August 29 live show in Minneapolis are sold out, but virtual tickets are still available and are buy one, get one half off. This is our only live gathering in 2026: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/p/2026-events Support the show and get access to Morning Assembly, bonus episodes, and the best community on the internet: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah opens with a simple question — what's going on with the ladies? — and she and Beth spend the hour discovering that you can't answer it without first describing the sexism everyone is swimming in. They walk through head-of-household voting being discussed openly in respectable rooms, promotions blocked at the Pentagon on the basis of sex and race, and a bipartisan IVF provision for military families killed in committee. Then they turn to Natalie Harp, the aide who follows the president with a printer, and the strange insistence from her defenders that a thirty-five-year-old woman with enormous daily influence is somehow both above and below criticism. Sarah and Beth talk about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez filming her egg retrieval and why Republicans are genuinely stuck on IVF, about Susie Wiles and Darline Graham and two very different theories of how a woman gets power, and about the women showing up in pink outside the Lindsay Clancy trial. Outside of Politics, they compare notes on nostalgia concerts: Sarah saw En Vogue, TLC, and Salt-N-Pepa in Franklin and is ready to tap out, while Beth saw Garth Brooks in Indianapolis and will take any live music ticket you offer her. In-person tickets for our August 29 live show in Minneapolis are sold out, but virtual tickets are still available and are buy one, get one half off. This is our only live gathering in 2026: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/p/2026-events Support the show and get access to Morning Assembly, bonus episodes, and the best community on the internet: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com The Korean skincare brand everyone is talking about. Our listeners get 20% off their entire order by using code PANTSUIT at jiyuskin.com/PANTSUIT #JIYU #ad Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beth watched Christopher Nolan's Odyssey this summer and could not stop thinking about it as an extensive metaphor for American politics. We ended up talking about disorientation, the allies we've spit in the eye of, the moment Odysseus blinds the Cyclops he'd already escaped from, and whether America's time has come. Then, Outside of Politics, we're sharing part of our crossover with Knox and Jamie at The Popcast about the odyssey that is podcasting. In-person tickets for our August 29 live show in Minneapolis are sold out, but virtual tickets are still available and are buy one, get one half off. This is our only live gathering in 2026: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/p/2026-events Support the show and get access to our new morning talk show, bonus episodes, and the best community on the internet: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah and Beth are back together after summer break, and they're starting with the question everyone seems to be asking: was this summer the worst? They work through the cyclospora outbreak and what it means to not trust the salad or the information about the salad, the storms that keep coming, the war narrative that changed every forty-eight hours, and the new polling showing Trump losing ground with his strongest supporters. They dig into what the Michigan Senate primary did to Haley Stevens and what that says about the people who cover politics, why AOC calling Woke 1.0 crazy might be a gift to the Democratic Party, and why data centers can go up in months while a bridge takes ten years. Then, because dark times have always made good music, they hand out the first-ever Pantsuit Politics Music Awards — song of the summer, album of the summer, and new and noteworthy. We are in Minneapolis on August 29 — in-person tickets close Wednesday morning, and virtual tickets are buy one, get one free: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/p/2026-events Support the show and get access to News Briefs, Spicy Live bonus episodes, and community: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beth is out this week, but we're sharing a conversation we both had with John and Cindy Mulligan of Owensboro, Kentucky. After years of feeling like all they had were opinions, the Mulligans helped start Yellow Banks PAC, a nonpartisan, small-donor political action committee working at the local level in a deep red corner of the state. They talk about why they chose a PAC, how they brought in lawyers and consultants to build their "shark cage," the billboard that got their community talking, and what it's felt like to trade despair for agency. Then, outside of politics, Sarah shares what life looks like two and a half months into running Meander Bookshop inside Piper's Tea and Coffee in Paducah: turning the table, what sells when she's not there, the lessons of rearranging everything on a Sunday, and why fall releases are about to be bananas. Episode resources: Yellow Banks PAC: yellowbankspack.org Go to ⁠⁠groundnews.com/pantsuit⁠⁠ for 40% off the unlimited access Vantage plan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beth is still on vacation, so Sarah drafted a guest co-host she's been married to for 23 years. Sarah and Nicholas run through the headlines — Iran's "low-key" chess game, the cost of absolutely everything, and the Flock cameras multiplying across the country — before digging into the state of the Democratic Party: the DSA's rise, AOC, purity tests, and why Barack Obama is somehow still the party's leader. Then, Outside of Politics, the full report on the Hollands' 3,000-mile RV trip from hell — eight states, four national parks, one brutal adenovirus, and a PSA about the rental company. Join us in Minneapolis on August 29 — or grab a virtual ticket to watch the live show from home: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/p/2026-events Support the show and get access to News Briefs, Spicy Live bonus episodes, and community: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com Iran Trump to Axios: "We are low-keying it" with Iran (Axios): https://www.axios.com/2026/08/09/trump-iran-interview The Economy July jobs report: US economy shed 23,000 jobs (NBC News): https://www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/july-2026-jobs-report-rcna591138 The Employment Situation — July 2026 (BLS): https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm Chick-fil-A keeps winning over customers despite quietly increasing prices by 55% (Market Realist): https://marketrealist.com/how-much-have-menu-prices-of-chick-fil-a-gone-up/ Substack essay on Chick-fil-A pricing that Sarah mentioned (add link) Surveillance & Flock Cameras The New York Times on Flock cameras (add link) How rogue officers turned a nationwide camera network into a tool for stalking (The Washington Post): https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2026/08/02/how-police-officers-used-vast-network-cameras-spy-their-exes/ Police cameras tracked one driver 526 times in four months, lawsuit says (NBC News): https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/virginia-police-used-flock-cameras-track-driver-safety-lawsuit-surveil-rcna230399 The Democratic Party Platner's Top Strategist on What Went Wrong | The Ezra Klein Show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xET1CqVTrNE Pantsuit Politics on the Reagan legacy (add link) Outside of Politics: The RV Trip Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library — Plan Your Visit: https://www.trlibrary.com/visit Medora Musical: https://medora.com/medoramusical/ Pitchfork Steak Fondue: https://medora.com/pitchforksteakfondue/ Sun Tours — Blackfeet-owned tours of Glacier National Park: https://www.suntours.co/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The breaking news in Sarah's hometown is the breaking news everywhere: Paducah, Kentucky is getting a $100 billion data center. Sarah is joined by Lacey Bowling, head of Paducah Cooperative Ministries, to talk about what the anti-data center backlash gets right and wrong — water, power bills, pollution, tax subsidies — and the deeper story: a trust vacuum at every level of government and a growing sense that the wealth isn't for the rest of us. Outside of Politics: their kids are officially high school seniors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beth is out for two more weeks, so I've got a guest host: Laura Tremaine, my co-host over at Slow Read. We start in California, where Laura has lived for 25 years, and get honest about Gavin Newsom — the trolling, Prop 50, the podcast with Charlie Kirk, and why even the people rolling their eyes at him keep talking themselves into him for 2028. That opens up a bigger question we can't stop circling: what does the Democratic Party actually stand for right now, with no leader and no message? Then we get into that viral Atlantic piece, "The End of Reading Is Here." We talk about slow reading as an antidote to algorithmic media, what our civic life loses when people stop reading books, and why neither of us is ready to call it over just yet. We also announce our next Slow Read book. Outside of Politics: the summer the movies came back. The Odyssey, Spider-Man, Toy Story 5, and whether Christopher Nolan is our new Spielberg. Two weeks left to grab tickets to our live show in Minneapolis on August 29: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/p/join-us-in-minneapolis-94f Topics discussed: • Gavin Newsom, California Politics, and the 2028 Democratic Primary • The Democrats' Search for a Fighter (and a Message) • Slow Reading as an Antidote to Algorithmic Media • The Atlantic's "The End of Reading" and What It Means for Civic Life • Slow Read's Next Book: Outlander • Outside of Politics: The Summer the Movies Came Back Mentioned in this episode: The End of Reading Is Here (The Atlantic) — https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/2026/08/reading-crisis-postliterate-age/687618/ Slow Read — https://slowread.substack.com Laura Tremaine's Secret Stuff — https://secretstuff.substack.com Our show is listener-supported. Join our community of paid subscribers at https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.rm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Teen driving is the leading cause of death among adolescents — and most of us are completely winging it when we hand over the keys. Dr. Charlie Klauer is a Research Scientist and Associate Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech. She's spent fifteen years doing naturalistic driving research: cameras and sensors in teenagers' cars, watching what they actually do. We took notes and hope you'll find her learnings helpful, too. Topics discussed:Why teen driving is more dangerous than most parents realizeHow to structure the learner's permit period for maximum practiceNight driving, interstate driving, and other milestone moments to sequence carefullyHow parents' own driving habits shape teens behind the wheelApps and tools for monitoring teen drivers without being in the carWhy giving a teen "their own" car may increase risky drivingAt what age teens should start learning — and why waiting until 18 isn't the answerDr. Klauer's survey for parents (link in show notes)Join us live in Minneapolis on August 29 — virtual tickets available at pantsuitpoliticsshow.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's easy to check the organ donor box on your driver's license without thinking too much about how organs are treated and routed to people who need them. NYT investigative reporter Brian Rosenthal thoroughly examined the system. His complicated findings have led to congressional inquiry and meaningful progress. This is a conversation about where the system fell short, what his reporting changed, and what still needs work.Topics discussed:How the organ transplant system actually works (it's not really a list)Why doctors can refuse organs offered to their patients — and patients are never toldWhat federal pressure on organ procurement organizations produced in KentuckyHow the priority list was being bypassed 20% of the time — and why time pressure wasn't actually the reasonWealthy foreign nationals getting faster organ access at certain U.S. hospitalsWhat's changed since Brian's reporting and what reforms are now in placeThe future of organ donation: animal organs, AI matching, printed organs Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kids who are anxious about the news might not need to hear less — they might need to know more. Tracy Kaplan, creator of The 10 News (a podcast for kids and families ages 8-12), has spent six years helping kids make sense of everything from the Russia-Ukraine war to gun violence to banned books. What she's learned about talking to kids about hard news is useful for parents too.Topics discussed:Why kids' anxiety about the news is often rooted in a knowledge gap, not the news itselfHow The 10 News covers scary topics like school shootings — and why vagueness can be worse than directnessWhat kids actually want to know more about (spoiler: more politics, not less)How to cover hard stories without being condescendingThe shift toward more international coverage over six yearsWhat it looks like to watch a generation of kids grow up through the news Go to ⁠⁠⁠groundnews.com/pantsuit⁠⁠⁠ for 40% off the unlimited access Vantage plan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the hardest parts of paying attention to international news is wondering: what can I, one person, do about this? Today's guest, Gwyn Ridenhour, asked herself that question and answered in an extraordinary way. She moved to Lviv, Ukraine, to put books in the hands of children living through the war. Her project, Vinok Libraries, is small and specific and a quiet wonder. Today, she tells us about the work she's doing and how we can help. Topics discussed:What drew Gwyn to Ukraine — and why she moved there during the warHow Vinok Libraries works: sourcing books, shipping them to Ukraine, distributing to schoolsThe language politics of children's books in Ukraine (Ukrainian, English, and the gap)Delivering books near the front line and what that looked like in personWhat $500 means to a school that's been bombedThe bookmobile dream and how to support it Go to ⁠⁠groundnews.com/pantsuit⁠⁠ for 40% off the unlimited access Vantage plan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

While Sarah's on summer break, Beth talks with writer and urban planner Angie Schmitt about giving yourself permission to feel lighter about the news this summer, then digs into what's gone wrong with how American cities and neighborhoods are built for kids — from car-dependent suburbs to vanishing teen hangouts. Topics discussed: Taking an emotional break from the news without checking out entirely ICE shootings, cabinet confirmation hearings, and the Iran war Why car-dependent neighborhoods limit kids' independence The nationwide school bus driver shortage Disappearing teen hangouts and rules around unsupervised kids How lawsuit-aversion backfires on children's wellbeing Rebuilding civic infrastructure — rec leagues, public pools, community schools Book recommendations: Shiloh and The Sheep Detectives Join us in Minneapolis on August 29th for a live show and after party — details and tickets at pantsuitpoliticsshow.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beth is joined by guest host Alex McCoy, a progressive organizer focused on holding Big Tech accountable, for a conversation about what breaks trust and how to rebuild it. They start with what the collapse of the Graham Platner campaign reveals about the progressive movement's relationship with imperfect candidates, then turn to the accountability vacuum around AI — who's making decisions about our jobs, our data, and our lives, and why almost nobody is calling their member of Congress about it. Topics discussed: Graham Platner's Senate campaign collapse and what it means for progressive candidate recruitment Trust, accountability, and the "the groups are the problem" debate in Democratic politics What voters actually want from elected officials AI's growing role in hiring, firing, workplace surveillance, and government decisions The AI industry's political spending and lobbying power How to actually get your member of Congress to pay attention to AI Alex McCoy's immersive medieval battle reenactment hobby Beth talked with Alex about the kind of in-person community his medieval weekends create — that's exactly what's waiting in Minneapolis on August 29. Grab tickets here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beth sits down with Lauren Pinkston, an independent candidate for governor of Tennessee, on the same day Governor Beshear sent Senator Mitch McConnell a letter asking about his month-long hospitalization. They use that story, plus Graham Platner's exit from the Maine Senate race, to get at something bigger: what "honor" means in public life when authenticity and elitism both fall short. Then they turn to what that looks like in practice — data centers, classrooms, and a possible return of family dinners to the governor's residence. Topics discussed: Transparency and elected officials' health, from Mitch McConnell to Tom Kean Jr. Graham Platner's exit from the Maine Senate race and what it says about party incentives Elitism, authenticity, and what "honor" means in public service Money in politics and running a campaign without party infrastructure A proposed moratorium on data centers in Tennessee Rebuilding public education: vouchers, Montessori models, screen time, and special education Parenting lessons Lauren brings to how she'd govern Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah's on summer break this week, so Beth sits down with chef, culinary historian, and seventh-grade history teacher Mica Chavez to trace how food actually built the world we live in — from the Columbian Exchange and the science behind corn, to slavery, immigration, and the industrial food system we're stuck with today. Topics discussed: The Columbian Exchange: how corn, chili, potatoes, and tomatoes reshaped diets on both sides of the Atlantic The science of nixtamalization — why New World corn didn't wreck teeth the way Old World wheat did How chili peppers spread across the globe via birds The Irish potato famine's surprising link to New Mexico settlement history Indigenous and Spanish foodways merging in the Southwest: acequias, sheep, and companion planting How mechanization and post-WWII food policy created the mass-produced, processed food system Precision farming, AI, and the tension between efficiency and sustainability What to cook this summer (hint: it's pie) Speaking of good food and good company — the Minneapolis live show after party has both! Get your tickets here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For America's 250th, we asked Ezra Klein what freedom actually requires of us — and he took us somewhere we didn't expect: attention. We get into why the older idea of freedom was about self-mastery, not just endless choice, and what that means for how we live, parent, and govern right now. It's a Fourth of July conversation about virtue, institutions, and whether we can still build something new.Topics discussed:• The vision of abundance and why the future is so hard to imagine• Attention as a collective resource — and why ours is deranged• Freedom as choice vs. freedom as self-mastery• Virtue, vice, and the illiberal moment• Institutional trust, corruption, and the education debate• Natalism, AI, and whether we're living through an aberration• Outside of Politics: which founder would make the best podcast guestResources mentioned:• Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson https://bookshop.org/a/124929/9781668023488• Why We're Polarized by Ezra Kleinhttps://bookshop.org/a/124929/9781476700366• The Lost History of Liberalism by Helena Rosenblatt https://bookshop.org/a/124929/9780691203966• The Pursuit of Happiness by Jeffrey Rosen https://bookshop.org/a/124929/9781668002483• The British Are Coming by Rick Atkinson https://bookshop.org/a/124929/9781250231321• "Now Is a Time of Monsters" by Ezra Klein, The New York Timeshttps://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/12/opinion/ai-climate-change-low-birth-rates.html?eafs_enabled=false Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're celebrating America 250 with three-time Pulitzer winner Rick Atkinson, whose Revolution Trilogy strips the reverence off the founding to show what was actually there: the first American civil war, a continent of human loss, and a republic that has weathered worse than this. Outside of Politics, the most important question of the summer: what's your favorite fair food? Topics discussed:The Revolution as America's first civil warWhy Britain lost a war it was expected to win — and the role of alliesThe human cost: Valley Forge and the letters of Sergeant Oliver ReedThe women of the Revolution and "remember the ladies"Reliable and unreliable narrators in historyAmerican exceptionalism, reconsideredOutside of Politics: the glory of fair foodWant the full America 250 series, including our premium Good Morning and More to Say episodes? Join our community at pantsuitpoliticsshow.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After a wave of June primaries, the question isn't just whether democratic socialism is winning — it's what it's actually offering. Beth and Sarah pull apart the electoral story (charisma, anti-establishment energy, and a generational shift on Israel) from the policy story: where collective approaches have something real to contribute, where capitalism still delivers, and the third thing Trump is quietly building that nobody's naming.Topics discussed:- The Mamdani effect and the June primary results across four states- Why Mamdani spent political capital endorsing three House races- The generational shift on Israel and the "Ossoff off-ramp"- How the DSA and the IMF each define their economic vision- Where markets fail (caregiving, healthcare) and where capitalism still works- "State-guided capitalism" and what Trump is actually building- Billionaires as a manifestation of the system, not the cause- Outside Politics: Confessions of a know-it-all and getting "fired" by your doctorNext week is the big one — our America 250 celebration, with Good Morning from 1776, Founding Father karaoke, and two special episodes. Don't miss it: join us at pantsuitpoliticsshow.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From a $14.5 million paint job peeling off the bottom of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool to a sitting vice president's conversion memoir, this episode is about the distance between what leaders perform and what they actually deliver. Sarah and Beth dig into rushed, made-for-TV governance, Keir Starmer's resignation one day before Brexit's tenth anniversary, and the Washington Post's bombshell reporting on faith and power in American politics.Topics discussed:- The Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool's makeover gone wrong- Keir Starmer's resignation and Brexit at ten- What the center-left can learn from Europe's leadership turnover- The Washington Post investigation into Tulsi Gabbard and the Science of Identity Foundation- JD Vance's conversion memoir, Communion- Sincere faith vs. faith as a political tool — Hegseth, Talarico, and Beshear- Where a faith advisor ends and a political advisor begins- Pantsuit Politics featured in the Washington PostOur America 250 celebrations — the murder mystery parties and the Film Club — are all happening over on Substack. Join us at pantsuitpoliticsshow.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The President announced a "deal" with Iran on his birthday, between a UFC fight and a crypto promotion — except it isn't a deal, it's a memorandum of understanding, which is a fancy way of saying nobody agreed to much of anything yet. Sarah and Beth get into what's actually happening in Iran, then turn to a Pew Research framework that breaks the country into nine political types instead of two parties. Plus: the surprisingly useful rule about when it's worth staying up late.Topics discussed:- The Iran "deal" that's really a memorandum of understanding- Why JD Vance looks set up to take the fall if it collapses- What we actually know (and don't) about who's in charge in Tehran- Pew Research's nine political "types" and the death of simple red vs. blue- Taking the typology quiz live — and Sarah's and Beth's results- The progressive litmus test and the voters Democrats leave on the table- A rule for bedtime: don't stay up for anything you wouldn't wake at 5 a.m. to doTook the Pew quiz and want to compare results with people who think about this as hard as you do? That conversation is happening in our premium community at pantsuitpoliticsshow.com. Go to ⁠groundnews.com/pantsuit⁠ for 40% off the unlimited access Vantage plan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The country got an invitation to its own 250th birthday and hesitated — do we even feel like celebrating right now? Sarah and Beth make the case that the answer is yes, and not in spite of how hard things are but because of it. A milestone is a chance to take stock and tell the most honest version of the story we can, regardless of what the loudest and most cynical voices do. Topics discussed:- Why celebrating America's 250th feels awkward this year- The America250 commission vs. Trump's separate "Freedom 250" / White House rally- What the 1976 Bicentennial actually got right- The military's place in the anniversary — a component, not the centerpiece- Holding patriotism and clear-eyed honesty about the country's failures at the same time- America's Potluck and celebrating at the level of your own town and table- Outside Politics: naming your "mom aesthetic"We're celebrating all month on Substack — news briefs reported live from 1776 on Good Morning, and Founding Father karaoke on More to Say. Join us at pantsuitpoliticsshow.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SpaceX's IPO begins trading today, with OpenAI and Anthropic close behind. The rules of going public seem to be changing by the day. We talk about why this IPO matters to all of us and the Bernie Sanders proposal for the public to take a stake in AI companies. Outside of politics, a halfway-through-2026 check-in on our words of the year (which we had fully forgotten, if that tells you anything!). Topics Discussed:- The SpaceX IPO and its red flags- What going public is supposed to mean — and what it means here- How index funds could put SpaceX in your retirement account whether you choose it or not- President Trump's June 2 executive order on AI and cybersecurity- Senator Sanders' proposal for a 50% public stake in AI companies- The EU's risk-based approach to AI regulation- Outside of Politics: words of the year, half-time reportWant Beth's Founders' Trunk — six family stories to celebrate America250? Download it free as a premium member at pantsuitpoliticsshow.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The headlines about this job market are frightening, and the advice often feels contradictory, particularly for young people. Sarah sits down with professor Kim Miller — who taught both of us at Transylvania — to talk honestly about what is actually happening and what you can do about it. We cover negotiation, the power of real relationships, and how to make yourself ready for opportunities you can't yet see.Topics discussed:• Why the job market feels so chaotic right now: AI, economic uncertainty, mass layoffs, and even retirees re-entering the workforce• Negotiation as the skill nobody teaches you — and why it matters more than ever• Building relationships instead of "networking," and graduating with at least one good mentor• Getting work experience before you graduate, paid or unpaid• How to handle a job offer: asking for 48 hours and negotiating beyond base salary• Outside of Politics: Sarah opens Meander Bookshop in Paducah For exclusive episodes, America250 celebrations, and more, join us at pantsuitpoliticsshow.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week's primary results gave Democrats and independents a few reasons to pay attention — and behind closed doors, the Republican caucus is finally showing some friction. Beth and Sarah go deep on Delaney Hall, a Newark ICE detention facility where protests are escalating, lawsuits are piling up, and conditions are becoming impossible to ignore. Outside of politics, what we're doing with our "time confetti." Topics discussed:• Primary results in California, New Jersey, New Mexico, Iowa, South Dakota, and Montana• Republican caucus friction: the anti-weaponization fund, Todd Blanche's AG nomination, and Bill Pulte as acting DNI• Delaney Hall ICE detention facility in Newark• New Jersey's lawsuit against the GEO Group and escalating protests• The civil (not criminal) nature of ICE detention• Immigration reform proposals• Outside of Politics: using wait time for fictionWant to be in a hotel full of Pantsuit Politics listeners this summer? The deadline to book in Minneapolis is one week away — find everything you need at https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/p/join-us-in-minneapolis-94f. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Graham Platner is running for Senate in Maine and trailing a string of controversies — a tattoo with Nazi-era symbolism, old Reddit posts, and now a Wall Street Journal exposé on explicit texts with multiple women. Sarah and Beth use his candidacy as a lens on what we actually want from politicians: how normal is too normal, what "progressive vs. moderate" names and misses, and whether emotional maturity is a reasonable standard to hold. Plus: a new Instagram obsession and significant news about changes at Pantsuit Politics.Topics discussed:- Graham Platner and the Maine Senate race- Political scandals and changing voter tolerance- "Normie" politicians and the unapologetic posture in American life- Progressive vs. moderate framing in the Democratic Party- What we actually need from candidates: policy, biography, communication style- Emotional maturity as a political standard- Partisan identity and double standards - Bronte the Stylist on Instagram- Team changes at Pantsuit Politics Celebrate America250 with us at pantsuitpolitics.substack.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's Pantsuit Politics: Ken Paxton defeats John Cornyn by 28 points — the widest primary margin against a sitting senator in nearly 50 years — and we dig into what it means for the Senate map and the midterms. Plus a redistricting roundup from South Carolina, Alabama, and Florida. And Outside of Politics: summer movies, from Project Hail Mary to The Odyssey to The Mandalorian & Grogu (the popcorn was excellent). Ready to go deeper? Check out https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over the weekend, I started a “lessons learned” Google doc. I love the stark, in-your-face, no-hedging clarity that comes from a bullet point list: “Here are the words that distill years or months of experiences, emotions, decisions, triumphs, and set-backs.”  That energy seems to be in the air as Memorial Day unofficially kicks off summer. Pope Leo has distilled his thoughts on the dignity of humans. The public at-large seems to be with him on the indecency and foolishness of war. Universities and schools are changing policies in light of lessons learned, and people running for office are asking what we want our literal lessons to be.  Sarah and I discuss the headlines and the lessons we’re learning about school as parents and from teachers. Then, we end in the only way a podcast kicking off summer should: with an ode to ice cream. - Beth Topics Discussed: Texas Senate Primary Iran War Pope Leo and Human Dignity Tulsi Gabbard Resigns Education Policy Outside of Politics: Ice Cream Ready to go deeper? Visit ⁠⁠⁠our website⁠⁠⁠ for complete show notes, exclusive premium content, chats, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beth’s daughter, Ellen, asked why our books aren’t on the bestseller list, and honestly? Great question, Ellen. That one question opens up the whole can of worms today: how popular consensus gets manufactured — from the mysterious black box of the New York Times bestseller list to music catalogs being protected like the financial assets they literally are, to the Vulture piece that confirmed what I’ve suspected for a while now, which is that nothing on your social media feed is actually organic. We also wade into the Michael Jackson biopic, which I have real feelings about, and we end in a much better place, talking about songs that have nothing to do with romantic love. I am warning you now that I cannot discuss Brandi Carlile without crying, so just be ready for that. — Sarah Topics Discussed Cultural Consensus and Its Impact Art, Trust, and Marketing in the Digital Age Outside of Politics: Nonlove Songs Ready to go deeper? Visit ⁠⁠our website⁠⁠ for complete show notes, exclusive premium content, chats, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Trump's China trip barely makes a headline, a $1.7 billion taxpayer-funded slush fund raises alarms, and we check in on where we're really at with AI — as users, as parents, and as small business owners trying to keep up. Topics Discussed: Trump Goes to China The AI Backlash Outside of Politics: The Goldilocks Summer Ready to go deeper? Visit our website for complete show notes, exclusive premium content, chats, and more. Get 50% Off Monarch, the all-in-one financial tool at www.monarch.com/pantsuit Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman launches her run for governor of Kentucky, we were honored to sit down with her and discuss her path to public service and hopes for the future of Kentucky. Ready to go deeper? Visit ⁠⁠our website⁠⁠ for complete show notes, exclusive premium content, chats, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This weekend, the Virginia Supreme Court struck down the voter-approved congressional maps, while the Tennessee legislature eliminated its only Democratic Congressional District — but Sarah and Beth think despondence is the wrong response. Then they break down Trump's increasingly tangled Iran situation, why declaring victory and walking away might be the best bad option on the table, and what Ukraine's quiet battlefield gains reveal what America's absence on the world stage costs. Then, Sarah and Beth discuss what it means when marriage and family become a luxury — and whether the way we talk about life is making the problem worse. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Fifth Circuit ruled again on mifepristone and the legal, political, and medical mess that followed is anything but settled. Sarah and Beth break down what Louisiana's "sovereign injury" theory means for mail-access abortion pills, why "leave it to the states" was never a real answer, and where the Republican Party goes from here on an issue Donald Trump desperately wants to avoid. Then, inspired by this week's Pulitzer announcements, they share the pieces of journalism they've never been able to forget. Topics Discussed Mifepristone, the Courts, and the Mail Trump, the GOP, and the Abortion Trap Outside of Politics: Our Personal Pulitzers Ready to go deeper? Visit ⁠our website⁠ for complete show notes, exclusive premium content, chats, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah and Beth break down the Supreme Court's decision gutting the Voting Rights Act and what it means for the gerrymandering arms race reshaping our electoral map. They check on Trump's promises to lower prices and fix our fiscal house. Outside of Politics, prom season has them asking whether we've over-structured — or under-structured — life for our kids. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rahm Emanuel came ready to talk — and y'all, we were ready. This conversation covers the education crisis in America (which I don’t think a single person in this audience needs to be convinced about), what Mississippi actually did to turn things around, why Rahm closed schools in Chicago and would do it again, and what a real federal education strategy could look like. We also got into fiscal reality, political will, phones in classrooms, the debt we owe to community colleges, and whether the next president should come in like FDR or like a triage nurse. Plus: Rahm's near-death experience at 17, coffee in bed, and empty nest advice. — Sarah Topics Discussed The Education Crisis: Why We Know What to Do and Won’t Do It (science of reading, phonics, the Mississippi Marathon) High School Reform, Community Colleges, and the “Learn, Plan, Succeed” Framework Phones, Screens, and What We’ve Abdicated to the Algorithm School Closures, Political Will, and Owning Tough Decisions Outside of Politics: Swimming, Coffee in Bed, and Raising Boys Ready to go deeper? Visit our website for complete show notes, exclusive premium content, chats, and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices