Republicans Have the Cash, but Democrats Have the Atmosphere

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss where the midterms stand mere weeks out from Election Day, the legal and cultural issues at the heart of the deeply disturbing Cornell University rape case, and the perennial American debate over whether to make Daylight Saving Time permanent. Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: Isaac Arnsdorf for The Washington Post: Four ways the midterm elections could go, one month away Andrew Howard for Politico: Exclusive: Democrats add 6 more targets, 2 in districts Trump carried by 20 points Aaron Blake for CNN: Analysis: Democrats are taking big chunks of GOP voters in key Senate races, polls show William A. Galston for The Wall Street Journal: Opinion: How Big a Midterm Win for the Democrats? Andrew Solender and Stef W. Kight for Axios: Exclusive: Paxton privately blames woes on Iran war, gas prices Nathan Layne and Jason Lange for Reuters: Trump voters are not pumped about voting in the midterms, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds Amy B. Wang for The Washington Post: ‘I felt like bait’: A timeline of the Cornell University rape allegations Rebecca Schneid and Miranda Jeyaretnam for Time: Cornell Sex Assault Case Raises Questions About Title IX Accountability and New York’s Intoxicated Consent Law Jill Filipovic for Slate: A College Rape Case Has Ignited the Country. Let’s Talk About What We’re Actually Talking About Here. Jonathan Zimmerman for The Philadelphia Inquirer: Opinion: After the Cornell case, it’s time for colleges to have an overdue discussion about the role of alcohol in sexual assault Jacob Bacharach for New York Magazine: Intelligencer: Why Don’t Colleges Just Ban Fraternities? Justin Dillon for The Wall Street Journal: Opinion: Commentary: Cornell, Letitia James and the New York Ethics Code Mack Liederman and Robert Jimison for The New York Times: Here’s Senator Cotton’s Cell Number, Trump Says, in Dispute Over Daylight Saving Bill Matt Viser for The Atlantic: ‘LOCK THE CLOCK!’ Lynne Peeples for The New York Times: Should We Make Daylight Saving Time Permanent? Here are this week’s chatters: Emily: Samuel A. Alito Jr. for The Wall Street Journal: Opinion: Commentary: Justice Samuel Alito: Even Originalists Make Mistakes John: Hamed Aleaziz, David A. Fahrenthold, Nicholas Nehamas, Tyler Pager, and Niraj Chokshi for The New York Times: Kristi Noem’s Agency Gave Her Donor a Lucrative Contract Just Before She Left; David Gilmour for Mediaite: ABC News Mysteriously Deletes Report on Trump Sons’ ‘$6B’ Business Dealings (original from ABC News on Internet Archive); Dana Mattioli, Drew Hinshaw, Rebecca Ballhaus, and Joe Parkinson for The Wall Street Journal: Exclusive: ‘Honey Please’: Kimberly Guilfoyle Pushed Donor to Wire $100,000 to Her Amex Account; Record Lows by CJ Green; Historian T.J. Stiles on Bluesky on Grant documentary (also available on Netflix) David: Acquired Podcast: Season 13, Episode 2: Costco (also on Apple Podcasts); Lioness on Paramount Plus Listener chatter from Mark Phillips in Baltimore, Maryland: Katie Bo Lillis and Zachary Cohen for CNN: Exclusive: US military had close call after using AI for false intelligence report, sources say For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David react to a New York Times list of 100 open scientific questions by coming up with some unanswered questions of their own. Their lists run from the cosmic (is interstellar travel possible?) to the intimate (what is it like to be my dog?) to the unsettling (how much of memory is made up in the moment?). Gabfest is coming to Providence, RI on October 21st. Tickets available now! In the latest Gabfest Reads, David Plotz talks with journalist Annie Lowrey about her new book, The Time Tax: How the Government Wastes Our Time - and How to Fix It, an investigation into the hours Americans lose to broken bureaucracy, from 12-hour tax filings to multiyear waits for housing vouchers and building permits. Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Nina Porzucki Research by Emily Ditto You can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here. Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen. Find out more about David Plotz’s monthly tours of Ft. DeRussy, the secret Civil War fort hidden in Rock Creek Park. Bonus Episode Bonus: What Is It Like to Be My Dog? Emily, John, and David ponder unsolved questions about ourselves and our world.