The Politics Guys

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Mike & May open with a discussion of the guilty verdict in the Hunter Biden gun trial. They discuss Biden’s defense, the possibility of a pardon or commutation by President Biden, Donald Trump’s reaction, and how this may all play out politically.

Next, they turn to two big Supreme Court decisions. In the first of these, a unanimous Court found that the group challenging the FDA’s loosening of restrictions on the abortion drug mifepristone didn’t have standing to sue. Mike agrees, but May feels that standing has become such a degraded doctrine that the right should be able to take advantage of it as much as she feels the left has in the past.

They close with the Court’s ruling that the Trump-era ATF exceeded its authority by banning bump stocks. Mike and May agree with the ruling, but Mike is more inclined to give regulatory agencies some deference in interpreting statutes than May.

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Check out Democracy Works, Mike’s other podcast –  Sustainable Planet, and the Sustainable Planet Substack.

Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

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Trey and Ken start the show with Biden’s immigration order. President Biden has announced a sweeping executive action on immigration, authorizing U.S. immigration officials to deport large numbers of migrants without processing their asylum claims. This new policy, seen as one of the most restrictive border policies by a Democratic president, marks a significant shift in the administration’s approach to border security. Ken partially defends Biden’s order, even if it looks similar to past Trump policies. Trey argues that Biden issued it as a proclamation instead of an executive order because he recognizes it is not inherently constitutional.

Next, Attorney General Merrick Garland faced intense scrutiny from Republicans this week. Garland was grilled on Capitol Hill and has seen his standing on both the right and the left fall. Ken argues that Garland has overemphasized neutrality and has not properly pursued former President Trump and allies. Trey argues that the left’s attacks on Garland are nearly identical to those from Republicans and are no more founded than those from the Republicans.

Finally, the pair discuss Dr. Anthony Fauci’s testimony before the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, where he addressed critical issues related to the U.S. response to COVID-19. Fauci admitted that the “6 feet apart” social distancing recommendation lacked robust empirical support and it was more of an arbitrary guideline. He also acknowledged that the lab leak theory regarding the origins of COVID-19 should not be dismissed outright, a significant shift from his earlier stance. Both Trey and Ken continue to agree he largely did well in his capacity during the pandemic, however, Trey faults him for wrongfully downplaying, primarily for political reasons, the possibility of a lab leak in China.

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Check out How Do We Fix It and Mike’s other podcast – Sustainable Planet.

Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Castbox | PocketCasts | Overcast

Mike & Jay open with a discussion of Donald Trump’s conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records. Mike isn’t crazy about the law but believes that the prosecutor, judge, and jury acted reasonably in applying it. Jay discusses possible grounds for appeal. They agree that the effect of the conviction won’t be great, but that any small political benefit should be to Biden.

Then they move to calls for Justice Samuel Alito’s recusal. Mike starts with some comments concerning Ken’s characterization of Alito as corrupt and racist on last week’s show with Trey. On the issue of recusal, neither Mike nor Jay think Alito should step back, though Mike is somewhat more troubled by self-recusal at the Supreme Court level.

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Check out How Do We Fix It and Mike’s other podcast –  Sustainable Planet.

Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Castbox | PocketCasts | Overcast

Mike talks with Corey Nathan, host of the most excellent podcast, Talkin’ Politics & Religion Without Killin’ Each Other. Corey shares his unique perspective as a “born-again Christian with a thick Jewish accent” and how his background has influenced his approach to discussing sensitive topics like politics and religion.

Topics Mike & Corey Discuss Include:
– how and why Corey doesn’t fit the ‘Evangelical Christian’ stereotype
– discussing politics with evangelical Christians
– a Biblical approach to political issues like immigration and LGBTQ rights
– searching for the truth, as opposed to trying to ‘win’ every argument
– the value of regularly engaging with people with whom we disagree

Follow Corey on X

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Mike’s other podcast is Sustainable Planet.

Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

Trey & Ken start the show by delving into the International Court of Justice’s Friday ruling against Israel. Trey and Ken disagree over the scope of the decision as to whether it prohibits further offensive action. Ken believes the ICJ is offering wiggle room and Trey does not.

Staying overseas, the guys talk about the surprising call for snap elections in the United Kingdom. The hosts focus on the motivations behind this decision, especially given recent poll numbers for Conservatives, the potential outcomes, and the impact it could have on British politics.

Next, attention turns to the primary elections in Georgia, Oregon, and Kentucky along with the special election in California. The focus is primarily on the presidential election. Trey believes it points to a low turnout election and Ken is more optimistic.

In Supreme Court news, Trey and Ken finish the show over the landmark ruling on racial gerrymandering. Here Ken believes that Justice Alito is overtly racist and inconsistent. Trey pushes back hard and argues that Ken fundamentally misunderstands Alito’s ruling. They dive deep into the details of the decision. They also address the recent Alito flag controversy.

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Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Castbox | PocketCasts | Overcast

Mike and Trey open with a discussion of the Biden administration’s recently announced tariffs on China. Trey is no fan of protectionism, but he understands Mike’s points concerning US issues with China’s trade practices. They both agree that Donald Trump’s approach to China would almost certainly be more tariff-heavy than Biden’s.

Then they turn to presidential debates, which will happen without the Commission on Presidential Debates. Trey points out how early the first of the two scheduled debates will be, which Mike attributes to Biden wanting to give debating Trump a try far enough ahead of the election that it won’t do much damage if things go off the rails.

From there they move to the Supreme Court allowing Louisiana’s congressional redistricting map to go into effect. Trey points out the difficult position Louisiana’s legislature is in, caught between the Equal Protection Clause and the Voting Rights Act. Mike is most sympathetic to the view of Justice Jackson, who felt that the Court shouldn’t have gotten involved at this point.

They close with a discussion of US aid to Israel. Mike doesn’t think it unreasonable for the US to put conditions on its support of Israel, or to withhold support entirely if aid is being used in a way we believe to be morally unacceptable. Trey points out that were neighboring countries more willing to take in Palestinians, the situation might be far less dire than it currently is.

Check out Let’s Find Common Ground.

Mike’s other podcast is Sustainable Planet.

The Politics Guys on Facebook | X

Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.