Pantsuit Politics | Two Women, A Conservative And Liberal, Talk News & Politics. No Shouting. No Insults. Plenty Of Nuance.

In the Pearls, we discussed President Trump's proposed budget. The big winners under this budget were the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security, as well as Veteran's Affairs. The biggest loser was the Environmental Protection Agency, as well as nineteen other agencies that Trump proposed elimination. Beth argued that this budget shows diplomacy is not a priority for President Trump as it also includes cuts to the State Department and reductions in foreign aid. Inexplicably, healthcare companies such as drug makers and device makers will pay more than twice as much in 2018 to have their medical products reviewed for approval by the Food and Drug Administration under the proposed budget. The proposal budgets over $2 billion in fees to be collected from industry, twice as much in 2017. This doesn't seem to fit the increasingly loud narrative of reducing health care costs. We then moved on to compliment the other side. Sarah had big praise two Texas Congressmen who hit the road for a bipartisan

This week, Americans are squarely confronting the rights and responsibilities of our government, our citizens, and our fellow humans. With the travel ban, news from the intelligence community, and the AHCA, we’re asking what we exactly we do and do not owe to someone else’s babies. The Travel BanA federal district judge in Hawaii enjoined enforcement of President Trump's revised executive order on immigration. We recap the decision: The plaintiffs were seeking a nationwide temporary restraining order. They had to establishStanding (similar to state of Washington in 9th Circuit decision + tourism; the Court also held that an individual plaintiff had standing to challenge the order)Strong likelihood of success on the merits of the Establishment Clause claimsThe Court extensively quoted statements from then-candidate Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and Stephen Miller regarding the intention of the executive order. "The Government has established a disfavored religion." The Court also found that the executive or

Republicans have been saying "repeal and replace" for seven years. Today, we're talking about their proposal, the American Health Care Act, to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. The Pearls (our quick discussions at important stories of the week) Attorney General Jeff Sessions requested the resignation of 46 United States Attorneys this week. Though it is not unprecedented for new administrations to transition personnel in the Department of Justice, the Trump administration's approach seemed unnecessarily graceless. The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara, was especially taken aback by the Trump administration's move, refused to resign, and was ultimately fired.We also discussed two thought-provoking pieces on how we take in information. A recent study concluded that Breitbart dominated right-wing media during the 2016 election, creating an ecosystem of thought that altered the broader media agenda. We discuss our thoughts on Breitbart as a nationalist a

In preparation for Tuesday's podcast on the Republican health care proposal, Beth gives a quick overview of Medicaid and the American Health Care Act.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We discuss Noah Dyer - candidate for governor in Arizona - who posted a VERY transparent statement on his sex life on his website. Is total transparency something we want? Wikileaks certainly does. We discuss the trove of documents allegedly showing the CIA's cyber hacking capacity and technologies. We also discuss Assange's belief that total transparency is the goal.  We follow up on some feedback from our Book Club discussion with Brynn who shared: I have tried SO. HARD.  since the election to "reach across the aisle" and talk to people like this. But now, 120 days later, I am done. Do I condone physical or verbal aggression towards these people? Of course not. But if they are not willing to see that their views are truly HATEFUL then I don't know what else I can do. At this point I say we just press on without them if they aren't willing to abandon Radical Christian Extremism, embrace public education and accept facts as truth.&

We start the episode with a mini-Russian primer then attempt to work our way through the connections between Russia and the Trump campaign and administration. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sarah chats with Megan Hart, the founder of our Pantsuit Politics Book Club, to talk about the February book club pick, Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right by Arlie Russell Hochschild. They discuss Hochschild's trip deep into Tea Party country and what she learned about their "deep story".  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With Republicans controlling Congress and the White House, we focus on what Democrats can and should do to move forward before the midterms.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today's episode of the Briefcase, we talk about the appointment of H.R. McMaster before discussing the town hall meetings taking place during the Congressional recess. We discuss the Affordable Care Act and the political climate surrounding it. We also talk about the Trump administration's decision to revoke the Obama administration's guidance on transgender restrooms in schools, the role of the judiciary and the legislature, and the cultural polarization around these issues. We end with listener feedback on our last episode and a message from Autumn about Trump's creation of an "in group" and "out group."  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today, we talk about a provocative New York Times essay, "Are Liberals Helping Trump?" But first, we continue our efforts to keep up with the chaotic pace of news.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We bemoan the chaotic state of the news and try to tackle the highlights from the past few days' headlines. We discuss President Trump's frequent (and expensive) trips to Mar-a-Lago. Beyond the conflicts of interest, watching members of the club post pictures during what seemingly was a security crisis bother us and many others. We also discuss National Security Council Advisor Mike Flynn's resignation and President Trump's inability to take contradictory advice.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

First up, Trump and Kellyanne fight with Nordstrom. Trump earlier this week tweeted that "My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom. She is a great person – always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!" (And it was retweeted by the official @POTUS account) Then, Kellyanne stated on Fox & Friends: "Go buy Ivanka's stuff, is what I would tell you," Conway said. "It's a wonderful line. I own some of it. I fully -- I'm going to just, I'm going to give a free commercial here: Go buy it today, everybody. You can find it online."The comments could run afoul of a federal law that bars public employees from making an "endorsement of any product, service or enterprise, or for the private gain of friends, relatives, or persons with whom the employee is affiliated in a nongovernmental capacity."James Nuzzo, a legal scholar and founder of the Colchester Group consulting firm, took a closer look at President Trump's tweet and noticed something very important was missing: Sp

Listeners Aaron and Sierra join Beth for a quick overview of executive power.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

"Nevertheless, she persisted." Did Senator McConnell make a rare strategic mistake or was this all political theater? Was the raid on Yemen worth the cost?We talk about that and more on today's Briefcase, as well as sharing Sarah's talk with Jay Carson - the conservative counterpart on The Politics Guys podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is Steven Bannon really in charge? Does Congress want to pollute our streams? Does Donald Trump have it out for the judiciary branch? We check in with all three branches and talk to Jason Murray, a former law clerk for Supreme Court nominee Judge Neil Gorsuch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sarah talks with Dr. Tamara Tweel, Director of Strategic Development for the Hillel International Office of Innovation, about how her involuntary miscarriage brought her before the Ohio state legislator discussing voluntary abortion.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our executive producer Nicholas Holland and friend of the pod Annie Kratzsch help us process the chaos that ensued after President Trump's Executive Order on immigration and refugees.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We call our Friday episodes "The Briefcase." In each episode of the Briefcase, we cover listener feedback and news of the week. This week, we continue to talk about your thoughtful perspectives on the Women's March and reproductive rights. We also discuss the frenzy of news made by the White House this week as President Trump signs executive orders.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We decided that our word for 2017 is “forward”. Today, we’re exploring what exactly that means for all of us in the Trump era. We'll also talk about Sean Spicer and alternative facts, the Women's March, and what we’re personally looking forward to this year.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We got a report from the ground as Bryn and Loree marched on Washington! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.