The Political Scene | The New Yorker

One of the biggest stories of this election cycle is the emergence, for the first time in a long time, of socialism as a force on the national stage. Inspired perhaps by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Zohran Mamdani, D.S.A. candidates are running in congressional and state-level races all over the country. But some of those candidates, David Remnick thinks, talk more like F.D.R. Democrats than like students of Marx. How socialist is democratic socialism, and how does it square with the future of the Democratic Party? Remnick talks with a co-chair of the D.S.A., Megan Romer, who recently went viral for a lightning round of questions pitched at her on Fox News. Romer defends controversial D.S.A. positions on workers’ ownership of the means of production, U.S. support of Israel, the war in Ukraine, and defunding the police.

Further reading:

“Will Left-Wing Democrats Reinvent the Party or Hurt Its Chances in November?,” by Isaac Chotiner

“Which Way Should the Democratic Party Go Now?,” by Benjamin Wallace-Wells

“An Idea for Democrats to Keep It Together in 2028,” by Bill McKibben

“Can Zohran Mamdani Sway the Commie Corridor’s ‘Civil War’?,” by Naaman Zhou

“The Woman Who Made the Machine That Made Zohran Mamdani,” by Molly Fischer

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.
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The Washington Roundtable’s Jane Mayer interviews Andrew Weissmann, a former prosecutor for the Department of Justice who served as a lead member of the Mueller investigation, about what meaningful legal accountability in the Trump Administration looks like. He points to a fix that would raise the bar for federal grand-jury indictments, and explains why he believes that Donald Trump’s disputed I.R.S. settlement may not survive legal scrutiny. He also makes the case, drawn from his new book, “Liar’s Kingdom: How to Stop Trump’s Deceit and Save America,” for treating political lying itself as a problem that the law can address. “We have to be thinking about big, bold ideas,” Weissmann says.

This week’s reading:

“The Future, Made in China,” by Evan Osnos

“How Roy Cohn Taught Donald Trump Everything,” by Kai Bird and Susan Goldmark

“Why Donald Trump Talks So Much About Foreign Election Interference,” by David D. Kirkpatrick

“The Electability of Abdul El-Sayed,” by Jason Zengerle

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Michigan’s Senate seat is a must-win for Democrats hoping to take control of the Senate in 2026. The midterms are reflecting a surge of energy behind left-leaning Democratic candidates—sometimes known as the Mamdani effect—challenging their party’s establishment and its tarnished image. Abdul El-Sayed, a former health official, firmly supports Medicare for All and the abolition of ICE. He’s ahead of his moderate Democratic rival, Haley Stevens, in most polls. But that has some Democrats worried that El-Sayed is too radical to win the general election in a state that narrowly voted for Trump in 2024. El-Sayed talks with David Remnick about being “radicalized in medical school,” the trap of expressing righteous anger as an Arab candidate, how Robert F. Kennedy’s anti-science views have taken such a hold on the public, and why AIPAC and other lobbying groups have spent sixty million dollars opposing him in this election.

Further reading and listening:

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

“Can the Democrats Get It Together?,” by Amy Davidson Sorkin

“Governor Gretchen Whitmer on COVID-19, Trump, and the Accusations Against Joe Biden,” an episode of The New Yorker Radio Hour

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

The Washington Roundtable reflects on the stories they’ve been following this summer, touching on the “power mourners” at Lindsey Graham’s funeral, Anthony Fauci’s diaries and Senate hearing, and China’s usurping of the U.S. in global power. Plus, the hosts share what books they’re reading.

This week’s reading:

“The Outlandish Case Against James Comey,” by Ruth Marcus

“Which Way Should the Democratic Party Go Now?,” by Benjamin Wallace-Wells

“Will Left-Wing Democrats Reinvent the Party or Hurt Its Chances in November?,” by Isaac Chotiner

“How Donald Trump Silenced the Voice of America,” by Marc Fisher

Tune in to The Political Scene wherever you get your podcasts.
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The New Yorker contributor Mike Spies joins Tyler Foggatt to discuss the story of a woman who lost two partners to suicide by firearm and then spent years in a legal battle with the National Rifle Association over her late partner’s retirement savings. They talk about the role that gun ownership and decades of messaging from the N.R.A. played in her second partner’s descent into paranoia, extremism, and abuse. They also explore the link between firearm access and suicide, how gun-rights organizations have sought to cast doubt on research connecting the two, and the current state of the debate over gun rights and gun safety.

This episode mentions suicide and suicidal thoughts. If you are having thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 or chat at 988Lifeline.org.

This week’s reading:

“A Woman Lost Two Partners to Guns—Then the N.R.A. Came to Collect,” by Mike Spies

“Trump’s Isolationism Is Losing the Great E.V. Race,” by Bill McKibben

“The Department of Labored Content,” by Brady Brickner-Wood

“How Netanyahu’s Top General Became His Strongest Challenger,” by David Remnick

“Which Way Should the Democratic Party Go Now?,” by Benjamin Wallace-Wells

Tune in to The Political Scene wherever you get your podcasts.
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