Healthcare in America — it’s complicated (and expensive). From insurance gaps to prescription costs, Mak + Case dive into why the system feels designed for confusion and who’s left behind. Access, affordability, and politics collide — and what is this all costing us in the end?

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Is it finally time to get off Zillow? Between skyrocketing rents, stagnant wages, and a housing supply that can’t keep up, millions are being priced out of stability. This week, we break down what’s really fueling the housing crisis, who’s benefiting, and what it means for economic mobility in the U.S.

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works cited:

McKinsey Institute for Economic Mobility. “Mapping the U.S. Affordable Housing Crisis and Unlocking Opportunities for Economic Mobility.” McKinsey & Company, 11 Aug. 2025, https://www.mckinsey.com/institute-for-economic-mobility/our-insights/mapping-the-us-affordable-housing-crisis-and-unlocking-opportunities-for-economic-mobility. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.

Don’t forget to vote on November 4th! 

It’s election szn here in the U.S., and we are chatty. This off-year election could shape the next chapter in American politics — from New Jersey to Virginia to NYC, every vote counts, and every race tells a story. Tune in and exercise your rights!

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works cited:

• Fox News. “Trump Warns ‘I’d Rather Have a Democrat Than a Communist’ as NYC Mayoral Race Enters Homestretch.” Fox News, 21 Oct. 2025, https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-warns-rather-have-democrat-than-communist-nyc-mayoral-race-enters-homestretch. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025. Fox News

• NPR. “New Jersey Governor Election, Trump.” NPR, 21 Oct. 2025, https://www.npr.org/2025/10/21/nx-s1-5580619/new-jersey-governor-election-trump. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.

• Wikipedia. “2025 United States Elections.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_United_States_elections. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025. Wikipedia

• The New York Times. “2025 New Jersey Governor Election Polls.” The New York Times, 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/polls/new-jersey-governor-election-polls-2025.html. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.

• The New York Times. “2025 Virginia Governor Election Polls.” The New York Times, 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/polls/virginia-governor-election-polls-2025.html. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.

• The New York Times. “2025 NYC Mayoral Election Polls.” The New York Times, 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/polls/nyc-mayoral-election-polls-2025.html. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.

Project 2025’s reputation is… complicated, but its performance is impressive. Join us as we touch on the status of completion and dig into how a once-fringe playbook is becoming a real-time political reality.

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works cited:

• The New York Times. “Government Shutdown Means Trump Can Reshape the Federal Workforce — and Workers Feel It.” The New York Times, 15 Oct. 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/15/us/politics/government-shutdown-trump-layoffs-unions.html. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.

• Axios. “Pentagon Limits Press Reporting, New Rules Under Hegseth.” Axios, 16 Oct. 2025, https://www.axios.com/2025/10/16/pentagon-press-reporting-rules-restrictions-hegseth. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.

• Newsweek. “Project 2025 Tracker: Trump Has Implemented Half of the Conservative Plan.” Newsweek, 2025, https://www.newsweek.com/project-2025-trump-has-implemented-half-of-conservative-plan-tracker-10874076. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.

• The Cut. “Tracking Project 2025: How Far Has the Plan Come?” The Cut, 2025, https://www.thecut.com/article/trump-project-2025-tracker-progress.html. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.

• BBC News. “What Is Project 2025? The Conservative Blueprint Gaining Traction.” BBC News, 2025, https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c977njnvq2do. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.

• Observer. Project 2025 Tracker. Observer, https://www.project2025.observer/. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.

• Center for Progressive Reform. Project 2025 Executive Action Tracker. Center for Progressive Reform, https://progressivereform.org/tracking-trump-2/project-2025-executive-action-tracker/. Accessed 17 Oct. 2025.

It’s book club time! Mak + Case crack open 107 Days by Kamala Harris and dig into what the former VP has to say about her time on the campaign trail and beyond. She's spilling the tea and we're sipping it!

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works cited

Harris, Kamala. 107 Days. New York: Penguin Press, 2025.

The lights are off in Washington — and nobody’s taking the credit. Mak + Case dive into the latest government shutdown, explaining appropriations and just what this all means. Hint- Dems might actually be fighting back...

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Works Cited:

Fox News. “Here’s What Trump Wants to Do to Reshape the Federal Government During the Shutdown.” Fox News, 1 Oct. 2025, https://www.foxnews.com/politics/heres-what-trump-wants-do-reshape-federal-government-during-shutdown. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.

NPR. “Shutdown, ACA, Health Care Premium Subsidies.” NPR, 2 Oct. 2025, https://www.npr.org/2025/10/02/nx-s1-5559810/shutdown-aca-health-care-premium-subsidies. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.

Axios. “Bad Bunny, MAGA & NFL Super Bowl Halftime Show.” Axios, 29 Sept. 2025, https://www.axios.com/2025/09/29/bad-bunny-maga-nfl-super-bowl-halftime-show. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.

NBC News. “Supreme Court Allows Fed Lisa Cook to Stay in Office in Trump Fire Case.” NBC News, 1 Oct. 2025, https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/supreme-court-allows-feds-lisa-cook-stay-office-trump-fire-case-rcna232933. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.

Jesus take the ballot — we’re talking Christian nationalism, how church and state keep mixing, and why it’s still such a force in U.S. politics. Our country started with white Protestants at the wheel… so is this ever really going away?

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works cited

Pew Research Center. “White Evangelicals Continue to Stand Out in Their Support for Trump.” Pew Research Center – Short Reads, 28 Apr. 2025, https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/04/28/white-evangelicals-continue-to-stand-out-in-their-support-for-trump/. Accessed 27 Aug. 2025.

Public Religion Research Institute. “2024 PRRI Census of American Religion.” PRRI Spotlight, 2024, https://prri.org/spotlight/2024-prri-census-of-american-religion/. Accessed 27 Aug. 2025.

It’s episode TEN and we’re flipping the script — time to get to know your girls. Mak + Case reintroduce themselves, share why they started CLP, and give a peek at where the pod is headed next. In light of recent events, we’re pressing pause and reevaluating what matters most.

xx

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Bills, bills, bills — we’ve all got them, but do our paychecks keep up? With the federal minimum wage frozen since 2009, states are improvising and workers are caught in the middle. Mak + Case share their own come-up stories and weigh in on the Cutting Room Floor controversy.

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Chatting about Trump, governing styles and how we get back to democracy. Listen along as Mak + Case explain Stacey Abrams 10 Steps to Autocracy and where we go from here.

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@commonlanguagepod

Works Cited:

BBC News. “US Fed Governor Lisa Cook Sues Trump over His Attempt to Fire Her.” BBC News, 28 Aug. 2025, https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1dxl6ry4y3o. Accessed 28 Aug. 2025.

Mosley, Tonya. “Stacey Abrams Warns of Autocracy and Voter Suppression, Doesn't Rule Out Another Run.” NPR, 15 July 2025, https://www.bpr.org/npr-news/2025-07-15/stacey-abrams-warns-of-autocracy-and-voter-suppression-doesnt-rule-out-another-run. Accessed 28 Aug. 2025.

Newsweek. “Amy Coney Barrett Breaks with Trump in Deportation Case.” Newsweek, 14 June 2025, https://www.newsweek.com/amy-coney-barrett-supreme-court-scotus-president-donald-trump-deportation-el-salvador-2056746. Accessed 28 Aug. 2025.

Liptak, Adam. “Amy Coney Barrett Splits with Trump in Supreme Court Deportation Case.” The New York Times, 15 June 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/15/us/amy-coney-barrett-supreme-court.html. Accessed 28 Aug. 2025.

The New York Times. “2025 New York City Mayoral Democratic Primary Results.” The New York Times, 24 June 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/06/24/us/elections/results-new-york-city-mayor-primary.html. Accessed 28 Aug. 2025.