There's a term in poker called tilt—when players become overwhelmed by bad news and it starts clouding their decision-making. Poker star Annie Duke talks to guest host Maria Konnikova about the psychological tricks that pro card players use to get through rough patches and how it applies to our political climate today. Duke has written several books about poker and sits on the board of How I Decide, a nonprofit that helps disadvantaged young people make better decisions. For the Spiel, Maria breaks down what Donald Trump is doing to our brains.

Today's sponsor:

Indochino, the company that's reinventing men's fashion. Go to Indochino.com to get any premium Indochino suit for just $389, plus free shipping, when you use promo code gist at checkout.

And Green Mountain Coffee. Green Mountain Coffee is passionate about making a smoother-tasting cup. Try it today with$4 off when you buy two boxes of most Green Mountain Coffee K-Cup pods atKeurig.comwith code TRYGMC.

Join Slate Plus! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today at slate.com/gistplus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.