Sunday, October 25, 2026

Weekly Roundup: Two Weeks Out and the GOP Is Desperate (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

The Party That “Protects Girls” Calls an Abuse Survivor a Liar

Two weeks before the midterms, Brad Onishi and Dan Miller break down the GOP's growing desperation as Cook Political shifts 19 House races toward Democrats and James Talarico polls ahead of Ken Paxton in Texas. They cover the DOJ's push to block certification in Alaska, federal agents visiting California residents flagged as non-citizens from an error-filled list, and Todd Blanche's non-answer on whether the DOJ would step into the election.

The bulk of the episode digs into Vivek Ramaswamy's ad featuring Amy Acton's estranged mother calling her a liar, despite Acton's childhood abuse case, and JD Vance's defense of the ad, which they read as a window into a politics of ruling rather than governing. They also look at what Franklin Graham's midterm voting guide and Joel Webbon's "I told my wife how to vote" post reveal about the hollowing out of the religious right, using Sarah Palin in 2008 as a benchmark.
Interview: 

Unthinkable (Dan Barker and Annie Laurie Gaylor, Freethought Radio podcast)

After we report our challenges and victories regarding Christian nationalism, we hear Ron Reagan – son of the former president – talk about how a once unthinkable theocracy is now threatening democracy, and about what we can do to defend freedom of thought.
Interview: 

Botkin Sisters: We Were Wrong to Promote Submission658 - Botkin Sisters: We Were Wrong to Promote Submission (Hemant Mehta and Jessica Bluemke, The Friendly Atheist podcast #658)

— They told Christian girls to submit. Now the Botkin Sisters say they were wrong. (0:17)

— Kenyan starvation cult leader Paul Mackenzie convicted in deaths of 191 people. (23:57)

— Americans are deeply divided over empathy. White evangelicals oppose it. (34:30)

— Colorado parolees can now choose secular addiction recovery programs. (40:19)

— Salem Witch Museum to give Batavia High students free tickets after pastor’s objection. (48:52)

— Florida’s new science standards downplay evolution and climate change. (56:49)
Interview: 

What in the WORLD?! Hegseth's staff broke Eisenhower's globe trying to get it for his office

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/uXXBDBwl5RI

 

Republicans In Your Bathroom

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt_IZoM9KuQ

 

Can Trump supporters define communism? #DailyShow #JordanKlepper #MAGA

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/6o73cZMGQvg

 

 

The Truth About Pete Hegseth's Christian Nationalism

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DssEYl-KEDM

 

RFK Jr makes fun of people wearing masks. #mask #doctor #publichealth

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lhChb_7z1hw

 

This was jaw-dropping

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/kDYqyU_Y7uI

 

Peter Isely: Clarence Darrow Award Acceptance (video from the 2026 National Convention of the Freedom From Religion Foundation)

In this poignant and powerful speech, Peter Isley, a renowned advocate against clergy sexual abuse, shares his personal journey and the impact of systemic abuse within the Catholic Church. 

Isley, a survivor of childhood sexual assault by a priest, has dedicated his life to exposing and addressing these heinous crimes. 

His work has included co-founding survivor networks and establishing specialized treatment programs for victims of clergy sexual trauma.
Interview: 


BANNED BOOKS? JB Pritzker Shares Books Republicans DON’T Want You to Read.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZVZiH-yDcQ 

 

Verse from Qu’ran inspired US man to leap on runaway school bus and halt it

A man who hopped on to a school bus full of terrified children that was careering down a Minnesota street after its driver had a medical emergency and manually halted it says he was motivated to act by a Qu’ran verse about how saving one life is equivalent to saving all of humanity. 

 “I’m a numbers guy, and those numbers make sense to me,” Ebro Ahmed, 27, said on Friday during an interview about his actions four days earlier in front of his family’s convenience store in Saint Paul, Minnesota. “I didn’t do it for me. It was selflessness in the name of God.”…

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/24/runaway-school-bus-quran-minnesota


 

Israel launches collective punishment campaign in Hebron after two soldiers killed

The incident came a week after settlers severely injured the photographer Heidi Levine as she documented attacks on Palestinians attempting to harvest olives in the occupied West Bank. Israel has also denied entry to several European journalists and an academic. 

Since the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led attacks there has been a surge of Israeli settlement expansion, ethnic cleansing and violence against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. More than 1,100 Palestinians have been killed there by Israeli forces or settlers… 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/23/netanyahu-orders-very-extensive-operation-west-bank-two-israeli-soldiers-killed


 

Obama: 'He's Got The White House Looking Like Saddam Hussein Opened A Cheesecake Factory

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_p3xC5QBqE

 

Fine Print Behind Trump’s $8B Farmer Plan

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/E0KSWSRlgqU

 

We now know some of the people involved in mailing children fake transgender pamphlets in Texas

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/siS5HR_tjtU

 

The US west has lost nearly 300 glaciers since the 1960s. Climate crisis is drastically shrinking what’s left

Glaciers are important components of alpine ecosystems and provide some water for agriculture and hydroelectric power in the US west, even if they are remote from where most people live. Still, their retreat has been fast enough to cause a sense of angst among locals, according to Fountain. 

 “People like knowing glaciers are around, they are close to their hearts and it’s worrying to see the mountains look bare,” he said. “The loss of glaciers is also tangible evidence of a shrinking snowpack, where a lot of drinking water is sourced from, so that is a concern when it comes to drought too.”…

 https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2026/oct/23/glacier-loss-climate-crisis-west


 

LEAKED audio shows Pentagon denied more financial support for Navy families evacuated from Bahrain

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afGMaB1FDiU

 

Why Do I Hate God?

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEQewG5-mn0

 

He was cooking

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/vMP0vdhYS3w

 

Hell’s IT Dept. - What’s the Point of Evil? #comedy #itguy

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/peVPN5-sMGU

 

7 Arguments for God - SHREDDED Part 5 of 8

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/3k0Sy1t6KBo

 

Right-Wing Pastors SNAP as Delusion Dissolves ALL ATTACHMENTS TO REALITY

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FPPpnoa7E0

 

“It Shouldn’t Be Taken Literally”

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/wJnVcm3pEPc

 

You Were Waving to No One, Donald? 👋 | Paula Poundstone #shorts

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/vkfKtF5xhFM

 

Don’t join Christianity, folks 😔

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/CM7culFf1KE

 

Part 2: If you’re going to have integrity in faith...

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/K0aIm1VUSmU

 








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