The Political Scene | The New Yorker

The Washington Roundtable digs into the stunning collapse of Graham Platner’s Senate campaign in Maine, and what it means for the Democratic Party’s performance in the upcoming midterms. The hosts are joined by Neera Tanden, the president and C.E.O. of the Center for American Progress and a former adviser to President Joe Biden. The panel grapples with the pressing question of how the Party might resolve some of its ideological divisions and position itself to attract voters looking for an alternative to Donald Trump. Across the board, Americans are seeking a break from the status quo, Tanden argues—regardless of where a given candidate falls on the political spectrum. “People want action,” she says. “It’s not ideological as much as people are hungry for ideas.”

This week’s reading:

“Graham Platner’s Point of No Return,” by Jon Allsop

“Michigan Is the Next Big Test for the Democratic Party,” by Jason Zengerle

“Trump and NATO Court Erdoğan, Turkey’s Strongman,” by Ishaan Tharoor

“How Political Is This Supreme Court?,” by Isaac Chotiner

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The New Yorker contributing writer Ruth Marcus joins Tyler Foggatt to discuss the Supreme Court’s now concluded term and what some of the recent decisions indicate about the bench’s willingness to check President Trump’s use of executive power. They talk about the Court’s rulings on immigration, transgender athletes, the President’s authority to fire heads of independent federal agencies, and what various opinions reveal about the Republican-appointed justices’ tendency to side with the Trump Administration. They also explore the Court’s rejection of Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship, and whether the ruling should be seen as a reassuring defense of settled law or a warning that even long-established constitutional protections may be more vulnerable than they once appeared.

This week’s reading:

“The Supreme Court Enables Trump’s Cruel Immigration Agenda,” by Ruth Marcus

“The Supreme Court’s Check on Trump’s Power Was Too Close for Comfort,” by Ruth Marcus

“How Political Is This Supreme Court?,” by Isaac Chotiner

“Behind the Supreme Court’s Ruling on Transgender Athletes,” by Jeannie Suk Gersen

“The Supreme Court Upheld Birthright Citizenship—but the Fight May Not Be Over,” by Amy Davidson Sorkin

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The Washington Roundtable will return next Friday. To commemorate two hundred and fifty years of the American experiment, the hosts of The New Yorker’s Critics at Large podcast, Vinson Cunningham, Naomi Fry, and Alexandra Schwartz, present an American playlist. On this special episode, the hosts hear from listeners regarding the songs that best encapsulate their feelings about the U.S. today—and offer some tracks of their own. The resulting compilation reflects the country’s turbulent history, its uncertain present, and, crucially, listeners’ hopes for its future. “What we think of as nation-building—at least if you care about art, that’s not where the real action is,” Cunningham says. “The action is in our creative response to the circumstances that we’re given. And that’s what music is all about.” 
Listen to a playlist of songs from this episode here. Featured tracks:
“Kids in America,” by Kim Wilde
“Miss America,” by David Byrne
“All-American Bitch,” by Olivia Rodrigo
“Django Jane,” by Janelle Monáe
“Help Save the Youth of America,” by Billy Bragg
“Almost Cut My Hair,” by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
“Free Fallin’,” by Tom Petty
“America,” by Simon & Garfunkel
“Battle Hymn of the Republic,” covered by Joan Baez
“Sleep Now in the Fire,” by Rage Against the Machine
“Your Flag Decal Won’t Get You Into Heaven Anymore,” by John Prine
“Compared to What,” by Roberta Flack
“Ohio/Machine Gun,” by The Isley Brothers
“Bob Dylan's 115th Dream,” by Bob Dylan
“Wild Goose Chase,” covered by Nora Brown
“That’s Life,” covered by James Brown
“Billy The Kid Suite,” by Aaron Copland
“A Change Is Gonna Come,” by Sam Cooke
New episodes drop every Thursday. Follow Critics at Large wherever you get your podcasts.


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Americans tend to see the Declaration of Independence and the Revolutionary War as milestones in world history that inaugurated the era of modern democracy. But the British, unsurprisingly, see these events quite differently. David Remnick talks with the historians who host the popular podcast “The Rest Is History,” Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland. Growing up in Britain, Sandbrook explains, the Revolution seemed like “a parade of quite boring men talking very earnestly about liberty, [with] battles that involved twenty people in a field somewhere. . . . It’s not Waterloo!” The King was “annoyed” to lose the thirteen colonies to the new nation, but, for his government, “it could have been a lot worse.” Sandbrook and Holland discuss historical events that overshadow the American Revolution in the British mind; the 1619 Project and the subject of slavery; the “colossally consequential” Presidency of Donald Trump; and the fate of the British monarchy.
Further reading : 

“Was the Declaration of Independence Better Before the Edits?” by Jill Lepore.

 “The American Revolution Wasn’t the Main Event” by Daniel Immerwahr.

“Two Hundred and Fifty Years of Complicated Commemorations" by Jelani Cobb

The Political Scene draws on the reporting and analysis found in The New Yorker for lively conversations about the big questions in American politics. Join the magazine’s writers and editors as they put into context the latest news—about elections, the economy, the White House, the Supreme Court, and much more. New episodes are available three times a week. 
Tune in to The Political Scene wherever you get your podcasts.


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The Washington Roundtable is joined by Jeff Stein, the veteran political reporter and founding editor of the newsletter “Spytalk,” to examine Donald Trump’s appointment of Bill Pulte as the new acting Director of National Intelligence, a position that, in theory, oversees the C.I.A., N.S.A., F.B.I., and fifteen other agencies. Pulte has no intelligence background and no national-security experience, but does have a track record of going after the President’s perceived enemies. Plus, the panel discusses a recent Washington Post investigation that raised new questions about the outgoing director, Tulsi Gabbard, and her alleged ties to a religious cult.
This week’s reading:
“Everyone Wants to Touch the Blue Coating in the Reflecting Pool,” by Jesús Rodríguez
“Chronicle of a Disaster Foretold,” by David Remnick
“The Difference Between the Knicks and the White House Cage Fight,” by Adam Gopnik
“How the Trump Administration Pushed Judges to Deport Children,” by E. Tammy Kim
“Do Netanyahu’s Domestic Opponents Offer a Real Alternative?” by Isaac Chotiner
The Political Scene draws on the reporting and analysis found in The New Yorker for lively conversations about the big questions in American politics. Join the magazine’s writers and editors as they put into context the latest news—about elections, the economy, the White House, the Supreme Court, and much more. New episodes are available three times a week. 
Tune in to The Political Scene wherever you get your podcasts.


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