News & Brews

This week Mike and Erol talk about whether the continuation of the human race is actually a thing according to a new UN IPCC report. Anti-democratic states from Hungary to Florida get the Carlsonian/DeSantisian treatment. And bipartisanship peaks its head out from under the covers while Andrew Cuomo finally realizes that being a dinosaur is not an excuse.

What Mike's drinking: Ginger's Revenge Original Ginger Beer

This week, Mike and Erol are joined by Dr. Nikki Usher, Associate Professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Senior Fellow at the Open Markets Institute. Her new book, “News for the Rich, White, and Blue” traces the decline of local newspapers in cities that don’t have the Times or the Post, and how it has reshaped the landscape of news production and consumption. We talk about how the market for news has failed, what it has meant for our beloved places and papers like the Baltimore Sun and International Herald Tribune, and how we’ll always have croissants, all while Nikki enjoys the “beer of Champaign.”

To order Nikki’s book, “News for the Rich, White, and Blue”, visit: https://cup.columbia.edu/book/news-for-the-rich-white-and-blue/9780231184670

Mike is drinking: DC Brau Joint Resolution Hazy IPA

The Olympics kick off this week with fake news about cardboard beds, real news about free condoms, and maybe even some sports. Jair Bolsonaro is in the hospital with the hiccups, while Jeff Bezos is in space with a badass legend of aviation. Joe Biden is flirting with a 2-front cyberwar against China and Facebook, and the only good news out of Cuba is coming from...Guantanamo?

What Erol's drinking: Bell's Official Hazy India Pale Ale

Radiolab mini series The Other Latif: https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/radiolab/projects/other-latif-series

Joe Biden issues a game-changing executive order to revitalize competition in U.S. industries, while Xi Jinping kneecaps a promising Chinese company's IPO. We're seeing failed states in Haiti, Cuba, and Texas, with some rays of hope in the Euro final, but none at CPAC. Zero mentions of billionaires in space, you're welcome.

What Erol's Drinking: Sun’s Out Hops Out by the Solace Brewing Company in Sterling, VA

Ryan Berg article Erol mentions: https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/08/opinions/mose-haiti-assassination-unraveling-democracy-berg/index.html Patria y Vida song: https://open.spotify.com/album/11KmjqP7jS1tb7caxTPYHa?highlight=spotify:track:1jOF5X4zw27t9LQltutz9f /

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This week, Mike and Erol get back to the basics: talking about the news and drinking the brews. Mike's on location in CA while Erol holds down the fort in DC with a conversation that goes from Kabul to the cryosphere. They cover everything from a controversy in South Korea to a super not controversial series of indictments in NY, and from Sha’Carri Richardson’s unbelievable suspension to an eminently believable Russian cyberattack. Tune in for everything you need to know about this week's news... and maybe even some stuff you didn't.

What Mike was drinking: 805 Ale from Firestone Walker Brewing Company, "Properly Chill"

South Korea story ("Sausage Party") as told by an Economist writer who isn't afraid of some good ol' fashioned puns: https://www.economist.com/asia/2021/06/17/young-men-in-south-korea-feel-victimised-by-feminism

Sundar Ramanujam of the Center for Strategic & International Studies joins Mike and Erol to discuss the infrastructure policy framework agreed to last week by President Biden and a bipartisan group of senators. Come for the fiscal responsibility, spirit of compromise, and 32-oz crowler, stay for a cameo from friend of the show Donatienne Ruy!

What Mike's drinking: National Bohemian Lager aka Natty Boh

"Rainbows, not Butterflies" comparison of the bipartisan infrastructure compromise and the original American Jobs Plan: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1PdXdooJmaewyhSPy-H8QqQCQxymcF5frOv-lujdsY-A/edit#gid=0 

This week, Senate Republicans blocked discussion of the For the People Act, while Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) penned an op-ed reiterating her opposition to ending the filibuster. All to say, the easy wins have been won, and Biden's legislative agenda faces an uphill battle from now to 2022, and beyond. To help make sense of it all, Mike and Erol are joined by Andy Reynolds, Senior Vice President at Civix Strategy Group.

What Mike was drinking: Green Man ESB

Let’s dig into the G7, NATO summit, and the US-Russia meeting in Geneva. Donatienne Ruy of the CSIS Europe, Russia, and Eurasia program joins Mike and Erol to discuss.

Learn more about Donatienne’s recent work.

What Mike was drinking: Duvel