Explain It to Me

Tara Golshan joins Jane and Matt to analyze the state of the GOP on the brink of the midterms. References and further reading: Ella Nilsen gives a rundown of the creative political ads from this midterm season. Tara’s piece on Rep. Duncan Hunter’s attacks on his opponent. Jane’s article in the National Review on “Trumpism.” Matt Schlapp’s tweet about Sens. Kamala Harris and Cory Booker. 

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Sarah, Ezra, and Matt debate the new IPCC report, William Nordhaus's Nobel Prize, and a hot new working paper about Medicaid contraction. References and further reading: The IPCC report on the impact of global warming David Roberts’s piece on the fight over the carbon tax in Washington state during 2016 Earl Swift tells of the disappearing Tangier Island in his book Chesapeake Requiem A white paper on the effects of disenrollment from Medicaid A contrasting paper on the effects of disenrollment led by Craig Garthwaite 

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Jane, Dara, and Matt talk about Kanye West, Taylor Swift, the black conservative political tradition, and the shifting politics of the Trump era. References and further reading: Jane dissects Trump’s meeting with Kanye West Jemele Hill’s article on black men and Brett Kavanaugh Hoteps, explained Jane’s piece on racism within the Republican Party Vann Newkirk’s piece on black civic engagement in the Trump era Vox's Constance Grady analyzes the Taylor Swift voter registration bump 

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Tara Golshan and Ella Nilsen join Matt to talk about the critical midterm races in the Lone Star State. References and further reading: Ella’s piece on Democrats running in Texas Tara outlines key themes in the race between Ted Cruz and Beto O’Rourke Tara’s piece on a potential blue wave in the state Tara details more on the battle between Cruz and O’Rourke 

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Sarah, Ezra, and Matt talk about Obamacare (again!), waning democratic legitimacy, and why retaking the SAT drives class and racial gaps in college enrollment. References and further reading: Josh Blackman’s piece on the ACA lawsuit Amicus brief from the pro- and anti-ACA law professors Katie Keith’s article on oral arguments John Harris’s piece on the ruthlessness of the Republican Party David Farris's book on fighting dirty Jennifer Victor's pinned tweet on the meaning of democracy A white paper on how retaking the SAT affects college admissions 

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Jane, Dara, and Matt talk about Amazon's pay raise, Sen. Bernie Sanders’s Stop BEZOS Act, and the new politics of big tech. References and further reading: Alexia Fernández Campbell’s piece on Vox about Amazon’s pay raises Sarah Butler of the Guardian lays out the pay raise versus bonus situation Matt’s piece in Slate on Jeff Bezos’s relationship with Wall Street Dylan Scott explains Medicare-for-all Kevin Roose’s daily Twitter updates on sources of the top-performing Facebook posts about Christine Blasey Ford and Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh 

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Congressional reporter Ella Nilsen joins Sarah and Matt to explain the unprecedented surge in women running for Congress this year. References and further reading: Michele Swers’s paper that highlights how women representatives bring back more funding to their district Sarah’s piece on how electing women changes the way the government functions Jennifer Palmieri’s book that examines the criticisms of Hillary Clinton 

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Ezra, Sarah, and Matt dive into the latest on the Kavanaugh nomination — and why USMCA is great for Canadians who drink milk. References and further reading: Alvin Chang charts every question the Senate asked Kavanaugh Ezra’s piece on the Republicans’ strategy to save Kavanaugh Catherine Rampell compares Trump’s new trade deal to the old A white paper on “College Party Culture and Sexual Assault” 

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Sarah, Jane, and Matt break down an excruciating day in American politics. References and further reading: Laura McGann’s piece on sexual harassment claims against Glenn Thrush of the New York Times Constance Grady explains rape culture of the 1980s A poll found evangelicals would support Kavanaugh even if allegations against him were true Eric Erickson argues Trump will escalate matters if Kavanaugh is rejected 

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Sarah, Matt, and Ezra dive into how other countries design parental leave policies — and what the US could do better. Plus: a white paper on subways, and outer space! References and further reading: RAND review on child care allowance Pew research finds birthrates are down while the desire to have kids is not ProPublica relates mothers to candy wrappers Henrik Levin charts attitudes toward working mothers with school-age children White paper on subways and pollution in urban centers 

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