Slate News

In the wake of this week’s sweeping midterm rebuke of Donald Trump, Protect Democracy co-founder Ian Bassin joins Dahlia Lithwick to discuss how voters pushed back against authoritarianism—and how the country can turn that victory into lasting change. Bassin argues that congressional investigators must do more than expose corruption: They should preserve the evidence a future attorney general would need to recoup taxpayers’ money. As he explains, Trump’s pardons can’t shield ill-gotten gains.
Later, the conversation turns to the Supreme Court’s response to election interference, the case for term limits for justices, and why repairing the Justice Department cannot mean turning a blind eye to abuses of power. Drawing on other countries’ struggles with authoritarianism, Dahlia and Ian consider whether this moment will usher in a revival of “small-d” democracy—and why the answer still depends on what the people do next.
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Today, get to know Political Gabfest co-host John Dickerson, beyond his political analysis.

In this special feed drop from NPR's Wild Card with Rachel Martin, John steps away from politics for a candid conversation about his childhood, his relationship with faith and what comes next after leaving CBS News.
Using questions drawn from a deck of cards, Rachel invites John to reflect on the experiences and relationships that have shaped his life.

For more conversations that go deeper than the usual interview, follow NPR's Wild Card with Rachel Martin on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify. You'll hear revealing conversations with guests including Michelle Obama, Harrison Ford, David Sedaris, Oprah Winfrey, Brené Brown, and more.
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This Week: We saw the culmination of the $11.87 billion that was spent on political ads for the midterms. Felix Salmon, Elizabeth Spiers, and Emily Peck bring on Axios’ Sarah Fischer to explain where that money went and what role it played (or didn't play) in Tuesday's election. Then they turn their eyes to how the stock market is responding to the election and A.I. data center backlash. Finally, in a bit of counter-programming, they talk about how to make a bottle of scotch look as extravagant as its $36,000 price tag.
In the Slate Plus episode: What's going on with right-wing media after a big blue wave?

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Podcast production by Jessamine Molli and Cheyna Roth.
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Democrats wouldn’t let themselves believe the polls heading into Tuesday’s midterms, and Republicans didn’t seem all that worried about them either. But as returns started coming in Tuesday night, no one could believe their eyes.

Guest: Molly Olmstead, Slate staff writer.

This episode is member-exclusive. Listen to it now by subscribing to Slate Plus. By joining, not only will you unlock exclusive episodes of What Next —you’ll also access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the What Next show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/whatnextplus to get access wherever you listen.

Podcast production by Evan Campbell, Madeline Thames-Ducharme and Patrick Fort.
Paige Osburn is the senior supervising producer of What Next and What Next TBD.
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As an electoral issue during the midterms, artificial intelligence was tied up with money in politics, with industry and government in cahoots, and with data centers feeling forced into communities. It was a big winner for Democrats this year, and all of these—plus the implications for employment—are going to be bigger issues in 2028.

Guest: Rob Flaherty, political strategist and founder of Tomorrow Together, a tech-focused political action committee.

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Podcast production by Evan Campbell, Madeline Thames-Ducharme, Patrick Fort and Micah Phillips.
Paige Osburn is the senior supervising producer of What Next and What Next TBD.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.