American Fever Dream

Project 2025 is officially in the mainstream news, and Sami and V compare its ideologies to that of Agenda 47, and the 7 Mountains Mandate. They also discuss Nazis marching in Tennessee and how the US could follow the UK's elections last week and pull a "Taccy V."MAIN NEWS5:00 Project 2025, tied to the Heritage Foundation, is gaining mainstream attention, and both the Vice President and Taraji P. Henson are warning American's to start paying attention. Sami & V also dive into the 7 Mountains Mandate and their strategy to turn America into a Christian nation by capturing the 7 pillars of society that they’ve identified: family, religion, education, media, entertainment, business, and government. And last but not least, V tells us about the British voting trend affectionately called the "Taccy V' or the tactical vote, and how this might be the key for Democrats in 2024.IN OUR DOWN BALLOT ERA48:15 Voter suppression via the ADA. Sami & V talk about how many Republicans misuse the Americans with Disabilities Act to force the closure of polling places that are not entirely ADA accessible, and what we can do about it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this very special 4th of July episode, Sami and V discuss the case for Kamala Harris as the potential Democratic presidential candidate, highlighting her voting record as a Senator, her advocacy for LGBTQ rights, and her stance on Israel-Palestine. They also consider how embracing Harris and giving her more spotlight is the clearest path to a victory against Donald Trump in November. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Back from Vidcon, V and Sami are comparing Project 2025, the Nazi's, Theocracy and Saudi Arabia, and where a win for Trump this fall would leave us. V and Sami also explore what the current round of Supreme Court rulings mean, and how this might be the end of #vanlife.TEMP CHECK:What are the realities of Project 2025? Everyone is quick to compare it to Nazi Germany, but is the reality more a Theocracy like Saudi Arabia? President Biden gives a mild speech after the Supreme Court’s decision to rule (6-3) that Donald Trump has immunity from being prosecuted for election interference & AOC says she’ll introduce articles of impeachment. Other laws being passed across the country include: rollbacks on child labor laws, age of consent laws & punishing people for sleeping in cars/public spacesMAIN NEWS:Sami and V go deeper into the 6-3 Supreme Court ruling, including Sotomayor's dissent and how this would have affected past presidents' actions. They also talk about the Chevron Deference and what that means for organizations like the FDA, Title IX, and Veteran Affairs.AMERICAN/T:Why you should vote for a Democrat even if you're not excited about it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sami and V are joined by host and creative director at MSNBC Live, Luke Russert, to talk about his book Look for Me There: Grieving My Father, Finding Myself.“Give them the best and the world will take care of the rest.” Luke shares how his grandparents’ and parents’ legacies shaped not only his career but his worldview.There is no correct way to grieve. Luke shares how his life has changed after the passing of his father and how he has navigated his grief. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

04:45 TEMP CHECK: Will this week’s headlines give you a fever or make you freeze?24:45 MAIN NEWS: Now that Louisiana has posted the 10 Commandments in every classroom, Sami and V discuss how extreme conservatives are spreading the Christian Dominionist Movement and how they want to completely rewrite the Constitution to create a more evangelical America.50:15 DOWN BALLOT: It’s Election Day, and the primary race between Jamaal Bowman and George Latimer has now become the most expensive in history as well as controversial due to the Within Our Lives protest.1:03:20 AMER-I-CAN’T: Hyper-capitalism in journalism is baring its fangs now that journalists are revealing they acquired important information while researching and how their contracts kept them from disclosing it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

00:00 Sami and V are joined by authors Lisa Lerer & Elizabeth Dias of the new book The Fall of Roe: the Rise Of A New America, to discuss the decades of work done by anti-abortion groups to finally overturn Roe.11:00 V wonders if American politicians had been more comfortable with using the word ‘abortion’ and didn’t shy away from these conversations, would it have been harder for conservatives to chip away at reproductive rights?20:20 Everyone knows that religion affects politics, but less discussed is how politics has actually changed religion, and how that has played into recent elections.24:20 Can Roe be put back? Lisa and Elizabeth’s book theorizes about how we go about getting our reproductive rights back. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

00:00 Welcome to your guide on media literacy. V and Sami explore how social media is used in hybrid warfare to manipulate public opinion through disinformation and emphasize the need to rebuild social trust.16:00 How can you spot a bot? In a few easy steps you too can spot disinformation through fake accounts, false engagement, and artificial intelligence.50:00 Don’t forget to mind the gap. Sami and V give listeners the tools to combat problematic accounts and how to find reliable information.1:00:00 Where does this leave trad media? While traditional media can still be used as a reliable source of information, listeners should be wary of their overlords. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1:20 Sami and V are joined by Representative Ro Khanna to share his economic philosophies and proposed changes to the legislative and judicial branches, which already have bipartisan support among voters (though not lawmakers!)9:00 They discuss the threat of AI to elections and discourse, and what regulations are needed around to rebuild trust in political information on social media.16:30 They dive into Rep. Khanna’s Political Reform Resolution, which presents a comprehensive roadmap to achieving broad political reform for the federal government through things like court term limits and a binding code of ethics. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

13:00 TEMP CHECK: Will this week’s headlines give you a fever or make you freeze?45:00 MAIN NEWS: Sami and V define the term ‘Manufactured Consensus’ and how social media has been used to sway popular opinion towards believing that a third party has more support than we think. Not sure how to spot a bot? Make sure to tune in next week for an in depth media literacy lesson.1:01:40 DOWN BALLOT: Our down ballot girlie of the week goes to The Working Families Party, which is going about the third party thing the right way, while striving to build a multiracial party of working people to transform our country.1:06:00 AMER-I-CAN’T: Why is the rent so high? Because corporate landlords are fixing it!Pre-Order Democracy In Retrograde: https://shorturl.at/7xQO2 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

7:55 TEMP CHECK: Sami and V are back this week to check your temperature on 6 new headlines. Have you ever heard of auto-brewery syndrome?33:40 MAIN NEWS: After reviewing Trump’s convictions, Sami and V uncover how social media could be the end to elections and how foreign interference poses a significant threat to democratic processes (and also the Olympics).1:01:30 DOWN BALLOT: Representative Kathy Manning was gerrymandered out of her district, but her bill Right to Contraception Act which will be voted on in the senate tomorrow and if passed will guarantee the right for people to obtain contraceptives.1:03:07 AMER-I-CAN’T: Two UT Austin professors are suing to win the right to fail students for having an abortion, and to refuse to employ a teaching assistant if they have had an abortion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices