Pantsuit Politics

Beth watched Christopher Nolan's Odyssey this summer and could not stop thinking about it as an extensive metaphor for American politics. We ended up talking about disorientation, the allies we've spit in the eye of, the moment Odysseus blinds the Cyclops he'd already escaped from, and whether America's time has come. Then, Outside of Politics, we're sharing part of our crossover with Knox and Jamie at The Popcast about the odyssey that is podcasting.

In-person tickets for our August 29 live show in Minneapolis are sold out, but virtual tickets are still available and are buy one, get one half off. This is our only live gathering in 2026: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/p/2026-events

Support the show and get access to our new morning talk show, bonus episodes, and the best community on the internet: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com
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Sarah and Beth are back together after summer break, and they're starting with the question everyone seems to be asking: was this summer the worst? They work through the cyclospora outbreak and what it means to not trust the salad or the information about the salad, the storms that keep coming, the war narrative that changed every forty-eight hours, and the new polling showing Trump losing ground with his strongest supporters. They dig into what the Michigan Senate primary did to Haley Stevens and what that says about the people who cover politics, why AOC calling Woke 1.0 crazy might be a gift to the Democratic Party, and why data centers can go up in months while a bridge takes ten years. Then, because dark times have always made good music, they hand out the first-ever Pantsuit Politics Music Awards — song of the summer, album of the summer, and new and noteworthy.

We are in Minneapolis on August 29 — in-person tickets close Wednesday morning, and virtual tickets are buy one, get one free: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/p/2026-events

Support the show and get access to News Briefs, Spicy Live bonus episodes, and community: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com
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Beth is still on vacation, so Sarah drafted a guest co-host she's been married to for 23 years. Sarah and Nicholas run through the headlines — Iran's "low-key" chess game, the cost of absolutely everything, and the Flock cameras multiplying across the country — before digging into the state of the Democratic Party: the DSA's rise, AOC, purity tests, and why Barack Obama is somehow still the party's leader. Then, Outside of Politics, the full report on the Hollands' 3,000-mile RV trip from hell — eight states, four national parks, one brutal adenovirus, and a PSA about the rental company.

Join us in Minneapolis on August 29 — or grab a virtual ticket to watch the live show from home: https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/p/2026-events

Support the show and get access to News Briefs, Spicy Live bonus episodes, and community: https://pantsuitpolitics.substack.com

Iran

Trump to Axios: "We are low-keying it" with Iran (Axios): https://www.axios.com/2026/08/09/trump-iran-interview

The Economy

July jobs report: US economy shed 23,000 jobs (NBC News): https://www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/july-2026-jobs-report-rcna591138

The Employment Situation — July 2026 (BLS): https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm

Chick-fil-A keeps winning over customers despite quietly increasing prices by 55% (Market Realist): https://marketrealist.com/how-much-have-menu-prices-of-chick-fil-a-gone-up/

Substack essay on Chick-fil-A pricing that Sarah mentioned (add link)

Surveillance & Flock Cameras

The New York Times on Flock cameras (add link)

How rogue officers turned a nationwide camera network into a tool for stalking (The Washington Post): https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2026/08/02/how-police-officers-used-vast-network-cameras-spy-their-exes/

Police cameras tracked one driver 526 times in four months, lawsuit says (NBC News): https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/virginia-police-used-flock-cameras-track-driver-safety-lawsuit-surveil-rcna230399

The Democratic Party

Platner's Top Strategist on What Went Wrong | The Ezra Klein Show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xET1CqVTrNE

Pantsuit Politics on the Reagan legacy (add link)

Outside of Politics: The RV Trip

Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library — Plan Your Visit: https://www.trlibrary.com/visit

Medora Musical: https://medora.com/medoramusical/

Pitchfork Steak Fondue: https://medora.com/pitchforksteakfondue/

Sun Tours — Blackfeet-owned tours of Glacier National Park: https://www.suntours.co/

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The breaking news in Sarah's hometown is the breaking news everywhere:
Paducah, Kentucky is getting a $100 billion data center. Sarah is joined
by Lacey Bowling, head of Paducah Cooperative Ministries, to talk about
what the anti-data center backlash gets right and wrong — water, power
bills, pollution, tax subsidies — and the deeper story: a trust vacuum
at every level of government and a growing sense that the wealth isn't
for the rest of us. Outside of Politics: their kids are officially high
school seniors.

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