Beltway Banthas

This week we’re discussing the most exciting and most invigorating you could think of: budgets! Specifically, military appropriations and government spending in the Star Wars universe! We’re joined by our friend John Liang, military journalist and mega Star Wars fan, to discuss how fiscal battles played out during the Clone Wars, and how we see that in our own politics. We also discuss John and Swara’s upcoming trip to STAR WARS CELEBRATION ORLANDO (!!!), Rogue One playing on Air Force One, President Trump’s potential military escalation with Syria, and so much more! Follow our guest John Liang on Twitter @JuanJohnJedi! Leave us a review on iTunes and tell us what you think of the show! Subscribe and connect with us on Twitter: @Stephen_Kent89 | @SwaraSalih1 We want to hear from you! You can send us your thoughts on the show and topics at [email protected].

No character captures intergalactic and real world politics better than Padme Amidala Naberrie of Naboo. This week we dive into the political ideals of Padme and also her legacy with fans. Allyson Gronowitz (The Mary Sue, Polygon) joins the show to help break down why Padme is beloved, but also divisive for so many fans. Spoiler: It has something to do with politics. Perfect for an episode of Beltway Banthas! We also review some Star Wars themed political ads out of a Congressional race in Georgia and a mayoral race in Memphis. These are funny clips you won’t want to miss. Lastly, Swara and Stephen share their thoughts on Star Wars Rebels, Darth Maul, fandom and the National Endowment for the Arts. Follow our guest Allyson Gronowitz on Twitter @TheFakeFanGirl Leave us a review on iTunes and tell us what you think of the show! Subscribe and connect with us on Twitter: @Stephen_Kent89 @SwaraSalih1 @beltwaybanthas We want to hear from you! You can send us your thoughts on the show and topics at [email protected]. We are going to be launching bonus content soon for subscribers to a super not-so-secret email list. Sign up here: eepurl.com/cxPyoX

It’s our second Comic-Con panel! Stephen and Swara are joined by friend of the show Nick Dicolandrea of Coffee With Kenobi to discuss “Star Wars goes to Washington,” and a bit of the international perspective of Star Wars as well. In our live panel at Oak City Comic-Con, we discuss political use of Star Wars from the 1980s to modern day, why it resonates with people of various political persuasions, and we even delve into some international political perceptions of Star Wars. In the Q&A section, our awesome audience joined us in a conversation of topics such as: Who in politics reminds of Galen Erso, and how do we think of the term “rebel” in the context of being in the American South. Take a listen and be part of the ongoing conversation on the politics of Star Wars! Follow Nick on Twitter @NickDiCo Follow Coffee With Kenobi @CoffeeWithKenobi Follow Stephen @Stephen_Kent89 Follow Swara @SwaraSalih1 Follow Beltway Banthas @BeltwayBanthas

Most Star Wars fans love the Empire to one degree or another. They’re orderly, professional, and have the best fashion sense in the Galaxy. But is our love for them misplaced? Are we so enamored with Emperor Palpatine, Darth Vader, and their subordinates that we forget they were based on real life fascist regimes? Why do we love villains anyway if they’re so awful? To discuss this challenging topic, we spoke with Dr. Andrea Letamendi of Lattes with Leia and Tyler Westhause of the Star Wars Podcast Alliance, two ardent Imperial fans. We discuss the extent to which we should take the fascist parallels seriously, why we all love the bad guys, and how the Empire can teach us about historical authoritarian regimes. You can find Dr. Letamendi and Tyler on Twitter @ArkhamAsylumDoc @twesthause You can email the show at [email protected] Tweet and follow us @BeltwayBanthas Or connect with us on Facebook! Connect with the hosts on Twitter @Stephen_Kent89 @SwaraSalih1

The next in our interview series! This week, we speak with Alexandra Petri, columnist and satirist for The Washington Post. She and Swara talk about keeping up with the crazy politics of the day, how it affects satire, her love of Star Wars, parallels between the real and Star Wars political worlds, and so much more! Listen to the conversation that is sure to lighten up your day and make the daily political craziness much more palatable. For more of her humor, follow Alexandra @petridishes on Twitter and her blog the ComPost!

This week Beltway Banthas was joined by Tamara Keith & Scott Detrow of the NPR Politics Podcast. In a conversation any political and public radio junkie won't want to miss, we dive into the politics of Star Wars and some of Star Wars most enduring cultural themes that resonate with people from 1977 to today. We start by catching up with friend of the show and White House Correspondent for NPR, Tamara Keith, previously featured for a interview on Beltway Banthas. She shares her thoughts on Rogue One the finality of its characters, Tarkin's reanimation and her experience seeing the movie. Later we're joined by Scott Detrow, who Congress for NPR. These two are well known for their Star Wars fandom and they didn't disapoint. We discuss the confusing aspects of Star Wars politics, Rogue One's political message (intended and unintended), the role of Disney in Star Wars future and also the political parallels from Star Wars to today. We want to thank NPR, Scott Detrow and Tamara Keith for welcoming us into their studio and sharing their insights with us about politics and Star Wars. It was a real blast and we hope you enjoy the conversation. You can find Tamara and Scott on Twitter @TamaraKeithNPR @ScottDetrow And check out the NPR Politics Podcast on iTunes and @NPRPolitics

This week Stephen and Swara discuss the key points of the article “Star Wars Politics Part Two: The Right Side Strikes Back.” How does the franchise reach out to and inspire conservative audiences? Did Star Wars take any inspiration from family values, limited government, and other issues on the political right? Also on this weeks jam packed episode: We connect with our friend Michael O’Connor (@oconnoblog) on his article “Phantom Menaces: Star Wars Tribalism.” We also discuss the Women’s March and the presence of Princess/General Leia on the resistance and feminist signs, the new Episode VIII title The Last Jedi and much more. This extra long episode of Beltway Banthas is one you won't want to miss. Piece by Becky Sharp: https://www.retrozap.com/star-wars-politics-right/ Tribalism by Mike O Connor: https://www.retrozap.com/star-wars-tribalism/ We are going to be launching bonus content soon for subscribers to a super not-so-secret email list. Sign up here: eepurl.com/cxPyoX

This interview with U.S. Congressman Derek Kilmer is a continuation of the Beltway Banthas interview series! Stephen spoke with U.S. Congressman Derek Kilmer (D) of the state of Washington's 6th District in his DC office. This conversation is a landmark for Beltway Banthas because it is our first chat with a sitting member of Congress It was nothing short of honor to be on Capitol Hill talking Star Wars with someone as busy as Derek Kilmer. We want to thank him and his staff for making it possible. Get in touch with everyone on the show! Leave us a review on iTunes and tell us what you think of the show! Subscribe and connect with us on Twitter: @Stephen_Kent89 @BeltwayBanthas @RepDerekKilmer

This week on Beltway Banthas we discuss the Confederacy of Independent Systems AKA The Separatists. The theme of disenchantment with government is never more relevant than in 2017, so we dug back into the prequel era to discuss this movement, why it happened and who was involved. To better understand this era we are joined by Dennis Keithly of the podcast STARSHIPS, SABERS and SCOUNDRELS. Follow him on Twitter linked below. We are going to be launching bonus content soon for subscribers to a super not-so-secret email list. SIGN UP HERE: eepurl.com/cxPyoX You can reach us on the show by email at [email protected] On Twitter: @BeltwayBanthas @Stephen_Kent89 and our guest Dennis Keithly @DJKver2 Please share our show with a friend, review us on iTunes and shoot us some feedback. We grow in quality everytime someone reaches out to tell us what they liked.