Radio Atlantic

The Rio Grande Valley in Texas was a Democratic stronghold for decades before it went for Donald Trump in 2024. Now polls show it swinging to Democrats again.

The Atlantic staff writer Nick Miroff traveled to the region and talked with people whose family members or employees had been targeted by ICE. He also spoke with Latino men about how much it costs now to fill up their trucks. Miroff discusses the wild political swings in the Rio Grande Valley and what they might reveal about the statewide Texas races and the Latino vote in the rest of the country.

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Gas prices, an unpopular Iran war, and a bizarre Alaska lawsuit about the two Dan Sullivans on the ballot collide as the midterm elections enter their final week.

“Radio Atlantic” host Adam Harris is joined by the Atlantic staff writers Ashley Parker and Michael Scherer to break down the final spending blitz, early-voting hype, where Trump is trying to rally his base, and what a Democratic win could mean for investigations during his last two years in office.

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Hanna Rosin interviews the comedian Maria Bamford, the subject of the new documentary “Paralyzed by Hope,” directed by Judd Apatow and Neil Berkeley. Bamford explains the relationship between her OCD and her comedy. She talks about why she doesn’t do political comedy, and why she no longer does imitations of her sister. She discusses her divorce and getting on the apps. She does all of that from a car, buzzed on nitro cold brew

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Get more from your favorite Atlantic voices when you subscribe. You’ll enjoy unlimited access to Pulitzer-winning journalism, from clear-eyed analysis and insight on breaking news to fascinating explorations of our world. Atlantic subscribers also get access to exclusive subscriber audio in Apple Podcasts. Subscribe today at TheAtlantic.com/listener.
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President Trump is striking deals again—this time with the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. On Friday, he exempted Russia from a sanctions bill that Congress had passed and he had signed. The executive order followed a deal on importing diesel fuel from Russia the week before. Why is Trump seeming to turn on Ukraine at this moment? Is this a midterm strategy, or is something else going on? Atlantic staff writers Jonathan Lemire and Simon Shuster join “Radio Atlantic” host Adam Harris to discuss.

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Politics has seemed obsessed recently with performing masculinity. If there’s one factor that animated Donald Trump’s reelection and continues to animate the political right in general, it’s “masculinism,” a movement to fight back against the advances of feminism and reassert the primacy of men, as the Atlantic staff writer Helen Lewis wrote in her June cover story.

As the midterms approach, though, the administration—and masculinism with it—seems deflated. Have we reached “peak testosterone” already?

Hanna Rosin talks with Lewis and her fellow staff writer Sophie Gilbert at a live taping from last month’s The Atlantic Festival about the evolution of the manosphere, why both Republicans and Democrats have put masculinity on a political pedestal, and where that leaves feminism.

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