Podbit · The Rest Is Politics: US
Katty Kay argues Josh Shapiro is a superb candidate in almost every way — but the Democratic Party's shift on Israel makes it impossible for him to hold the position he currently holds and win a 2028 primary. The New York results this week made that clearer than ever.
Where this was said
At 34:13 · chapter starts 33:20
The conversation deepens into the question of electability and identity. Katty Kay sets up the Josh Shapiro problem: he is a formidable governor of Pennsylvania with strong executive credentials, but his position on Israel — supporting US military aid while being critical of Netanyahu — is no longer viable in today's Democratic primary. [1] — Anthony Scaramucci "Anthony Scaramucci asked bluntly: can a Jewish candidate or a gay candidate win the US presidency today? His honest answer is no — despite …" 36:17 She contrasts him with Jon Ossoff, the Georgia senator who has been sharply opposed to blanket military aid, and notes Ossoff is gaining momentum while Shapiro's numbers face headwinds. The Israel needle, she argues, can no longer be threaded. Scaramucci goes further — he asks the direct question: can a Jewish candidate win the presidency? His honest answer is no, and the same goes for Pete Buttigieg. Both men are clearly qualified, he says, but the country isn't there yet. On America's 250th anniversary, Katty Kay delivers a sobering coda: all men are still not created equal in the eyes of the electorate. The hosts then discuss Joe Scarborough's Monday monologue — which Scaramucci generously calls phenomenal — and his claim that Netanyahu has damaged the Israeli brand in America. Scaramucci reflects more personally, drawing on his visits to Yad Vashem and the historical assimilation of Jews in Germany, to ask whether it is fair to see Netanyahu as a disaster for that brand. Both agree it is fair. Kay adds the generational dimension: the Democrats now going to the polls have only ever known Netanyahu, and they associate the entire state of Israel with his actions.
Katty Kay argued that Josh Shapiro, despite being a strong candidate otherwise, will struggle to thread the needle on Israel in today's Democratic Party and may be unelectable in a 2028 primary.
Anthony Scaramucci said that despite their qualifications, he believes neither a Jewish candidate nor a gay candidate could currently be elected president of the United States.
Anthony Scaramucci asked bluntly: can a Jewish candidate or a gay candidate win the US presidency today? His honest answer is no — despite Josh Shapiro and Pete Buttigieg both being exceptionally qualified. On America's 250th anniversary, this is a sobering verdict on how far equality has actually come.
Democrats swept New York City's primaries with democratic socialists. Republicans will use that footage in every suburban district from Iowa to Pennsylvania. Katty Kay's warning: the voters deciding the midterms are not in Brooklyn — and Democrats risk handing the GOP a perfect script while celebrating in Manhattan.
Fei-Fei Li went back to Stanford from Google in 2018 specifically to build a multi-stakeholder governance framework for AI. Her argument: market forces are not societal norms. Just as biology uses IRBs and cars have safety laws, AI needs layered oversight from educators, governments, and the public — not just a few industry titans.
Andrew Santino's personal MCU of political villains is collapsing. He and Bobby speculated that a circulating photo of Mitch McConnell with a Chinese official was AI-generated compositing two separate images.
Mass surveillance is here to stay. The real battle isn't stopping cameras — it's ensuring judges and laws keep that data out of family court and civil disputes, admitting it only for violent crimes and national security. The surveillance economy currently yields more upside than downside, but only if we build the legal guardrails now.
When people cite Scandinavia as proof socialism works, Galloway says they've got it backwards. Northern Europe runs highly competitive free-market economies with more competition in many sectors than the US — they just make sure taxes are actually paid and redistributed. Billionaires and universal healthcare can coexist.
Two percent adjustments to income tax and stamp duty tweaks are deck-chair rearrangements. The UK's competitiveness hinges on four structural levers: currency valuation, energy costs, regulatory burden, and tax rates. Devalue the pound, build 56 nuclear plants, slash red tape, introduce a flat tax — and the country transforms.
Lisbon had one of Europe's worst heroin crises. Then Portugal legalised drugs and redirected all enforcement money into rehabilitation and housing. Crime collapsed. Addiction fell. Then politics moved the money elsewhere, and the problem started creeping back. Chesterton's Fence: you forget why you were spending that money.
Congress passed the Boland Amendment 411 to 0, explicitly banning CIA and Defense Department funds for the Contras. Reagan signed it — then immediately moved the operation deeper underground, essentially responding to a bipartisan prohibition by going more illegal.
The CIA planted mines in Nicaraguan commercial harbors, wrote the Contras' press releases taking credit, and promptly blew up ships from four allied nations. The Wall Street Journal broke the story, Congress erupted, and the Boland Amendments multiplied.
Oliver North was a decorated Marine and devout Catholic with zero covert operations experience. He ran the entire shadow war against Congress — planes, airstrips, arms shipments, shell companies — learning on the job. And by every operational measure, he crushed it.
We use essential and analytics cookies to run Vuci. To understand how the site is used: Privacy Policy.
Install Vuci on your phone
Add it to your home screen for a faster, app-like experience.
Install Vuci on your phone
Tap the Share button, then “Add to Home Screen”.
A new version is available
Reload to get the latest Vuci.