Topics:

What’s in the “tentative deal” struck by writers and studios? Our writers debrief on the imminent end of one strike while another heats up.

What does Kevin McCarthy want more, his job or a functioning government?

Did Senator Bob Menendez engage in sweeping corruption, or just leave a little extra cash lying around?

Are Men Ok? We deliberate over this cringey comment from the Greek Prime Minister


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#896 It’s Not Good, Bob (Writers’ Strike, Bob Menendez)

From under the desk to in your ears, V. Spehar joins Betches Media in a new podcast dedicated to curing the collective malaise brought on by our chaotic political environment. Every week, Spehar and co-host Sami Sage will tenderly guide you through the biggest moments in politics and pop culture with a healing dose of perspective and humor. Rather than spiral over the latest unprecedented event, the hosts dig for the 2024 political tea you *really* want to hear while offering all the information you need to be an empowered citizen, without the side of despair to keep you up at night.
For constant news updates, sign up for the Sup email newsletter at betches.com/newsletters and follow us on Instagram at @betches_news. And follow V on TikTok and Instagram @underthedesknews.

News

Politics

Daily News

Samantha Vinograd, senior national security counselor and assistant secretary for counterterrorism and threat prevention at the DHS, joins Sami and V to talk about how the council is approaching Holocaust denialism and the lack of Holocaust education.

Lawmakers proposed the bipartisan Antisemitism Awareness Act, which would codify the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism into federal anti-discrimination laws.

Samantha discusses antisemitism in the context of the recent campus protests.


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The Connection Between Autocracy And Antisemitism

5:40 TEMP CHECK: V and Sami check the temperature on the Columbia University protest, clarifying the motivation behind the protests and discussing how they’ve expanded nationwide.
25:45 MAIN NEWS: Why does it seem like every headline is about a court case? They highlight the latest developments at SCOTUS, criminal cases, and more… while reflecting on America’s long standing reputation of being one of the most litigious countries in the world and how Americans use the legal system to solve (and cause!) all sorts of problems.
39:55 DOWN BALLOT VILLAIN: This week goes to Eric Hovde, who has released several ageist remarks on Fox Radio while running for U.S. Senate in Wisconsin against Tammy Baldwin.
45:30 AMER-I-CAN’T: Dollar Tree announced that it is closing 600 of its Family Dollar store locations in 2024. V reveals the top three reasons why a Dollar Store may be a detriment to your neighborhood.
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Playing In The Legal Sandbox

Topics:

President Biden signed a bill that will force TikTok’s Chinese parent company to divest from its U.S. operations or face a nationwide ban. V updates us on the details of this bill and the consequences TikTok will face if they do not cooperate.

Sami is joined by Jesse Washington, film director of Hip-Hop And The White House, a documentary that examines the relationship between the emergence of hip-hop, how it arose as a result of public policy, and the power of hip hop to make political statements and mobilize audiences. You can stream Hip-Hop And The White House on Hulu today.


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TikTok & How Policy Affects Culture

2:40 TEMP CHECK: Sami and V check the nation’s pulse after Taylor Swift’s double album release and the discourse that followed.
11:56 MAIN NEWS: This week, Maine joined The National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (NPVIC). Under the proposed compact, each state would allocate all its electoral votes to whoever wins the national popular vote for president, regardless of how individual states voted in an election.
24:33 DOWN BALLOT GIRLY OF THE WEEK: Goes to the first South American-born immigrant to serve in Congress, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell. Mucarsel-Powell is running for the Florida Senate against current senator Rick Scott who has been a long time fixture in Florida politics.
34:15 OUR DOWN BALLOT VILLAIN OF THE WEEK: Goes to Louis DeJoy and his attempt to privatize the USPS through the “Delivering for America” plan which is a roadmap to destroying rural, indigenous communities that are too small to have private shipping offices.
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The Tortured Electoral College Department

TEMP CHECK: Sami and V discuss the 4B movement which renounces dating men, marriage, sex with men, and having children. It originated in South Korea in 2019 with 4,000 members, but now TikTok has caught wind and amassed over 60K videos with some form of #4B.


MAIN NEWS: In the midst of his trial, Donald Trump drops a sneak peek of what we can expect from his desired second term, starting with a brilliant plan to devalue the US dollar on purpose.


IN OUR DOWN BALLOT ERA: We are here to shout out the Vote Mama Lobby and a candidate submitted by a listener: Maxi Glamour, who is running to be the first non-binary committee member of the 3rd Ward of St. Louis, MO.


AMERICAN’T: To lower its rat population, New York City lawmakers have proposed an ordinance that will provide free and unfettered access to contraception for the city’s rats.


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#896 It’s Not Good, Bob (Writers’ Strike, Bob Menendez)

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