Raging Moderates with Scott Galloway and Jessica Tarlov

The first-ever GOP midterm convention is underway in Dallas, and a number of high-profile Republicans, particularly those in battleground territory, are notably skipping it. The party has even been offering free tickets to help fill seats, at a moment when Trump's approval rating is at an all-time low and oil hits $100 a barrel amid escalating chaos in the Middle East. Trump is competing with NFL kickoff and insisting the American Airlines Center is "totally sold out." What will the vibes be like on the ground, and more importantly - what will ratings look like? Plus, why Aaron thinks the midterms will be closer races than polls would suggest.

This week marks the 25th anniversary of September 11, 2001. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is releasing more than 170,000 pages of city records documenting the government's response to the attacks and their aftermath, launching the city's first public portal dedicated to 9/11 records. But controversy surrounds the commemoration: former Mayor Rudy Giuliani says he doesn't want Mamdani at Friday's ceremony, and Trump falsely claimed that firefighters carried him away from the site after the attacks. Aaron and Jessica break down the commentary around Mamdani, how people are grappling with the tension between honoring families' grief and holding the city accountable, and reflecting on how history repeats itself.

New disclosures show Trump gave three young White House staffers $45,000 each as Christmas gifts — including executive assistant Natalie Harp, who is rarely more than a few feet from the president. A former White House ethics lawyer says the payments may violate federal law. The White House insists they were simply holiday gifts. Is this generosity — or a serious ethical and legal problem?

A senior Anthropic researcher has publicly stated he believes there is more than a 10% chance AI could kill all humans within the next decade — and he's not alone, with several Anthropic researchers now warning publicly that AI could become uncontrollable. Are we actually on track for an AI apocalypse?

Plus, Jess and Aaron take listener questions.

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Scott Galloway and Jessica Tarlov break down a packed Tuesday, starting with the news that Canada's counter-tariffs are officially in effect — and Trump is escalating rather than negotiating. In recent days he has threatened to bar Bombardier from the U.S. market unless it builds there, accused Canada of blocking American banks and companies while benefiting from American customers, and floated ending all trade with Canada entirely. How does this end?

The Republican National Committee is holding its first-ever midterm national convention this week. Unlike a presidential nominating convention, there is no party business or nominations, which means it's shaping up to be a two-night Trump rally. Scott and Jess break down what to expect from the event, and why Democrats aren't hosting something similar. Is it a missed opportunity?

An Israeli newspaper is reporting that Prime Minister Netanyahu was personally warned by UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed that Hamas was planning a major offensive roughly ten days before the October 7, 2023 attack. What implications does this have for the ongoing conflict in the region today?

It has now been three months since Mitch McConnell was last present in the Senate. Will Republicans start publicly demanding he resign — and what happens to his seat if he does?

Plus, the Trump administration has proposed a new child care subsidy that would let married couples in certain income brackets collect money if one parent stays home — funded by redirecting money from the $12 billion Child Care and Development Fund, which was created to help low and moderate income parents work or attend school. The program currently provides about $9,000 per child per year. Who benefits from this proposal — and who gets left out?

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Scott Galloway and Jessica Tarlov open by addressing a warning signal that Washington appears to be ignoring: the 10-year Treasury yield just hit 4.81% — up from 4.20% in January — while the 30-year remains at levels not seen this persistently since 2006. With a $2 trillion deficit, potentially billions in tariff refunds, and a Fed that could raise rates to fight inflation that’s now at 3.4% annually, the economic picture heading into the midterms is… complicated. Are Republicans turning away from these issues in order to keep Trump happy — and how likely is an interest rate hike from Trump's own Fed chair?

The Trump administration is doubling down on AI data centers — even as about 70% of Americans say they oppose building one in their community. Trump says communities against them "want to be backwards and poor," while Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is calling concerns about their water use propaganda from U.S. adversaries. Scott and Jess break down why this has become such a political flashpoint — and why Trump is pushing so hard for something so deeply unpopular. U.S. data center power demand is projected to nearly double to 95 GW by the end of 2027, all while electricity prices are rising fast.

New York City has rolled out the nation's broadest generative AI moratorium in schools — banning student-facing AI tools for a year for 600,000 students from preschool through 8th grade. Is this a positive step from mayor Zohran Mamdani— or is this setting up NYC’s youth to fall behind? Scott and Jess also connect a policy like this to broader problems facing many Democrat-run cities, such as governing amidst a homelessness crisis in San Francisco.

In Massachusetts, 80-year-old Senator Ed Markey, the co-author of the Green New Deal who was first elected to Congress in 1976, successfully fended off a primary challenge from Rep. Seth Moulton. In a cycle defined by younger challengers ousting incumbents, Markey is an outlier, having positioned himself as the more progressive candidate. Does his win say anything meaningful about the age debate — or is this a rare exception?

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Get your ticket for our live show at 92NY: https://www.92ny.org/event/scott-galloway-and-jessica-tarlovJessica Tarlov and Aaron Parnas are back for Raging Perspective, breaking down the week's biggest stories live.

Military strikes between the U.S. and Iran have intensified again after a month of relative quiet — and the markets noticed immediately. The Dow closed down nearly 500 points, oil prices climbed back toward $100 a barrel, and the U.S. private sector added just 38,000 jobs in August, well below forecasts. Meanwhile, House Speaker Mike Johnson is being asked about Congress's role in authorizing the use of force — and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll has resigned, in what looks like the latest in a pattern of Vance allies departing as Rubio allies gain ground inside the administration. They also preview what the 2028 field might look like, and ask whether Howard Lutnick is becoming the administration’s favorite fall guy.

House Democrats are threatening consequences for Representatives Jared Golden and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez after both broke with Democratic leadership to help advance a key Republican procedural vote. Hakeem Jeffries has called it a "significant breach of trust" and asked the caucus rules committee to consider stripping them of their committee assignments. Was this justified — or is the party eating its own?

A whistleblower disclosure filed through Senator Blumenthal's office reveals that USPS is rushing out a system to implement Trump's mail voting order — and according to the whistleblower, it is "secretive, rushed, chaotic, and fundamentally flawed." The plan requires states to upload lists of mail voters with barcoded ballot envelopes; if USPS scanners find even one mismatch in a batch, the entire batch — potentially tens of thousands of ballots — gets kicked back to the state instead of delivered. Mail-in voting starts this week. A federal judge has frozen the mandatory part of the rule, but the Justice Department is appealing. Is this the administration getting its way even when it loses in court?

In Times Square, a knife-wielding suspect killed 32-year-old Erin Piacenti — a Bank of America vice president and lawyer from New Jersey — on what was her first day back at work after maternity leave. The suspect, a 49-year-old woman, was shot and killed by NYPD after graphic video of the confrontation spread widely on social media. Jessica and Aaron break down what we know.

And before the audience Q&A: AOC is single and showing up. Jessica and Aaron react.

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Scott Galloway is back — and so is the Iran war. He joins Jessica Tarlov to discuss the new round of fire between the U.S. and Iran after a month-long lull in military strikes. The resumption comes alongside growing fractures inside the administration: Army Secretary Dan Driscoll resigned after months of tension with Secretary Pete Hegseth, six months into a war with no visible endgame. There are reports that senior military leaders have warned Hegseth that current operations aren't sustainable. Meanwhile, Hegseth was spotted in Iowa looking increasingly like a 2028 presidential candidate, and Trump has now weighed in on the idea.

The Canada tariff deadline is one week away. Canadian retaliatory tariffs kick in on September 8th, focused on politically sensitive goods like steel, dairy, appliances, and construction materials. Scott and Jess debate whether Trump will blink before the deadline, whether Canada is right to hold its ground, and what it means if Canada starts pivoting to new long-term trading partners and strengthening ties with other allies.

With nine weeks until the midterm elections, Scott gets caught up on everything he missed. The odds of Republicans keeping Senate control are 52% on Kalshi, but Jess breaks down the mounting favorables for Democrats headed into November. How will 2026 stack up against the 2018 “blue wave”?

And finally: a particularly funky TikTok trend involves skipping showers, ditching deodorant, wearing the same clothes for days, and — for the truly committed — drinking one’s own urine… all in pursuit of a "natural musk,” supposedly more attractive to women. Scott and Jess ask who exactly benefits from pushing this narrative on social media.

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