Weekly Roundup: A Blue Wave So Big It Killed the “Rigged Election” Narrative - And Changed The Country Forever (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

The midterms are over, and the results were bigger than almost anyone expected. Brad Onishi and Dan Miller go through the wins, the firsts, and what the results mean for the religious right and the Republican Party. 

In this episode:

• Why Texas flipping matters, symbolically and for the electoral map
• Georgia’s statewide results and what they say about decades of organizing in the face of voter suppression
• Why the margin was too big for the “rigged election” and fraud narratives to work
• How Trump has responded since Election Day
• The first trans and non-binary lawmakers elected in several states
• The Republicans leaving office, and the 2028 hopefuls distancing themselves from the Iran war
• Why Republicans are going after Pete Hegseth, and what his exit could mean for Doug Wilson’s influence
• Whether this is the peak of the Christian nationalist movement, or only a setback
• Why the work isn’t finished, including the anti-trans ballot measures that passed in some blue states

Timestamps 

00:00 Intro: the blue wave
02:09 Texas
10:18 Georgia and the Reconstruction comparison
22:27 Mississippi and Republicans in crisis
31:11 Trump after the election
33:06 New trans and non-binary lawmakers
37:01 Who’s leaving office
42:39 Generational turnover and the Supreme Court
44:22 What Democrats should do first
46:45 Hegseth, Wilson, and the religious right
58:52 Closing hopes and a note of caution

Interview: 

https://axismundinetwork.substack.com/p/a-blue-wave-so-big-it-killed-the

Friendly Atheist News Roundup 11/5/2026: Democrats Had a Blue Tsunami! (Hemant Mehta and Jessica Bluemke, The Friendly Atheist podcast #660)

0:00 Intro
0:30 Let’s talk about the election results!
42:00 Federal judge orders Iowa to allow The Satanic Temple’s holiday event in Capitol.
49:10 The viral story about the pastor with two wives has another disturbing twist.
59:04 New Secular Student Alliance leader spent years at schools promoting pseudoscience.

Interview: 

Audio only podcast, with Jessica: https://friendlyatheistpodcast.com/2026/11/04/democrats-had-a-blue-tsunami/

YouTube video, with Jessica: https://youtu.be/_bl_TL7Bqd4?si=kAinzSSeG_L5nAFK 

YouTube video without Jessica: https://www.youtube.com/live/Gxj7b_A98nQ?si=20tFmwLCC8-UIpmY 

Schadenfreude (Conspirituality podcast)

First, the blue wave. Then, Russell Brand gets convicted of rape and sexual assault. Derek and Julian talk about the meltdowns going on in America right now.

Interview: 

https://www.conspirituality.net/episodes/brief-schadenfreude

Special Master (Andrew McCabe and Allison Gill; Unjustified podcast)

The justice department has filed its third set of charges against former FBI director James Comey.

A federal grand jury has refused to indict former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson for false statements to the January 6th Select Committee.

A magistrate judge sharply criticized Justice Department prosecutors over their handling of the case against two former FBI officials accused of lying to Congress about their involvement in investigations into Hunter Biden’s laptop.

FBI agents are expressing deep concern that they may be ordered to take actions designed to disrupt the midterm elections.

Plus listener questions.
Interview: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/special-master/id1317481380?i=1000799204971

 

Weekly Roundup: The 8-Week Plan to Delegitimize the Midterms Between Election Day and January 3 (Bradley Onishi and Daniel Miller; Straight White American Jesus podcast)

The midterms are Tuesday. The fight over whether they count may start the moment polls close.

Between Election Day and January 3, 2027, when the new Congress is sworn in, there are eight weeks. Right-wing media and political operatives are already building two narratives to fill that time: 

• “Non-citizens voted.” Hundreds of right-wing accounts and outlets have published thousands of statements questioning the election’s integrity, and the focus has shifted to non-citizen voting. The initial claims are huge. When the numbers are actually checked, they shrink dramatically, but the corrections rarely reach the audience that heard the big number. 
• “Some winners can’t be seated.” Trump, Sen. Bernie Moreno, and Rep. Keith Self have each argued that certain elected Democrats, including Muslim candidates and DSA-aligned candidates, are ineligible to serve. The same idea appears in Center for Renewing America materials tied to Russ Vought. 

Why it matters: a religious test for office isn’t just an insult to the people targeted. If this plan works, voters’ choices get overridden, and Muslims and others get branded as unfit to hold office.

In this video, Brad Onishi and Dan Miller walk through the evidence, show what’s being said in public, and explain what to watch for between November 3 and January 3. 

Chapters:

• 0:00 Intro
• 2:09 What to expect on Tuesday
• 5:55 The “non-citizens voted” campaign
• 10:24 Why the courts may respond faster this time
• 19:00 The plan not to seat Democrats
• 22:16 Trump, Moreno, and Keith Self on who can serve
• 29:00 Sen. Chris Murphy on CNN
• 41:00 Hegseth’s spiritual advisor
• 49:00 Netanyahu’s election fraud claims
• 51:00 Trump and men’s bodies
• 1:01:00 Reasons for hope

Interview: 

https://axismundinetwork.substack.com/p/the-8-week-plan-to-delegitimize-the

Behind Cleta Mitchell’s Relentless Effort to Overhaul U.S. Elections — ProPublica

Hidden Hand: Conservative attorney Cleta Mitchell has shaped virtually every aspect of the Trump administration’s norm-busting agenda on American elections. 

Movement Builder: After working to overturn Trump’s 2020 defeat, Mitchell forged a national grassroots movement to overhaul voting. Some of her allies now hold top administration jobs. 

More Drastic Steps: With the midterms approaching, Mitchell has pressed the Trump administration to take actions that even some who’ve worked with her say go too far...

 https://www.propublica.org/article/cleta-mitchell-elections-trump

 

Part 2: Bots, AI, and Elections #historyfacts #history #historia #usa

 https://www.youtube.com/shorts/VqRFHdn2keE

 

Netanyahu reportedly pressured military to attack Iran in run-up to election

Israeli prime minister increases alarmist rhetoric as his far-right coalition narrowly trails in polls…

 https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/oct/26/netanyahu-reportedly-pressured-israel-military-attack-iran-runup-to-election

 

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: 

• Video: https://axismundinetwork.substack.com/p/the-party-that-protects-girls-calls
• Audio only: https://www.straightwhiteamericanjesus.com/episodes/weekly-roundup-two-weeks-out-and-the-gop-is-desperate?hsLang=en

Why Fascists Fear Teachers (Dan Barker and Annie Laurie Gaylor, Freethought Radio podcast)

FFRF Action Fund’s legislative team gives us a rundown on the Nov. 3 ballot initiatives around the country, both good and bad. Then, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten describes her new book, “Why Fascists Fear Teachers.”

Interview: 

https://ffrf.org/news/freethought-radio/freethought-today-october-8-2026/

No, Brazil’s fast vote counting is not proof of US election cheating, despite Trump’s claim – PolitiFact

Brazil has a nationally standardized system that uses the same machines, the same procedures and the same counting process across the whole country. It also does not offer voting by mail. 

In the U.S., each state sets its own election laws, including who can vote by mail and the deadline for certifying official results.

 https://politifact.com/factchecks/2026/oct/05/donald-trump/no-brazils-fast-vote-counting-is-not-proof-of-us-election-cheating-despite-trumps-claim/

Can White Evangelicals Be Defended? (Hemant Mehta and Jessica Bluemke, The Friendly Atheist podcast #652)

— Bonnie Kristian’s “Defense of Evangelicalism” avoids the real problem. (0:17)

— Christian missionaries were not kicked out of Burning Man for preaching the Gospel. (38:04)

— The Supreme Court could let Catholic preschools discriminate on the taxpayers’ dime. (46:19)

— Here are the openly non-religious candidates for state/federal office in 2026. (56:30)
Interview: 

• Audio podcast: https://friendlyatheistpodcast.com/2026/09/09/can-white-evangelicals-be-defended/
• YouTube video with Jessica: https://www.youtube.com/live/Gs6JAyEf3e0?si=3eLLaOgLzcYBcXH3
• YouTube video without Jessica: https://www.youtube.com/live/Gs6JAyEf3e0?si=ADeNcI6xHDx3sskE

Prosecutorial Indiscretion (Andrew McCabe and Allison Gill; Unjustified podcast)

The Legal Accountability Center filed bar complaints on Tuesday accusing U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro and two lieutenants of violating their ethical duties in seeking to charge six Democratic lawmakers.

A federal judge has re-blocked the Trump administration’s executive order curtailing mail in voting after the Supreme Court lifted her previous block last week.

Three journalists dismissed from Stars and Stripes are suing the Pentagon accusing the government of violating their First Amendment rights and asking the courts to stop their termination.

Two election monitors from the Justice Department tried to interview voters and examine voting machines at polling places during Wyoming’s primaries last week, drawing pushback from the state’s Republican governor.

Plus listener questions.
Interview: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/prosecutorial-indiscretion/id1317481380?i=1000786786915

DOJ Leaks Volume II (Andrew McCabe and Allison Gill; Unjustified podcast)

Acting Director of National Intelligence Bill Pulte has begun firing dozens of intelligence officials as he installs an election denier as his Chief of Staff.

The Justice Department accidentally sent three copies of Volume II of Jack Smith's final report to the defense attorneys of the woman they charged with emailing herself Volume II of Jack Smith’s final report.

Kash Patel has sent over 250 FBI personnel to Atlanta to assist in an investigation into the 2020 election in Georgia.

Former CIA Chief John Brennan has sued the government to preserve records regarding the grand conspiracy investigation into him and others in the Southern District of Florida.

Plus listener questions.
Interview: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/doj-leaks-volume-ii/id1317481380?i=1000775511301

Harass, Coerce, and Retaliate (Andrew McCabe and Allison Gill; Unjustified podcast)

A federal judge throws out Justice Department subpoenas of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey calling them “blatantly unlawful.”

The full DC Circuit Court of Appeals panel will hear arguments over Judge Boasberg’s contempt inquiry into CECOT deportations.

Former IRS officials call for a Miami judge to scrutinize Trump's “breathtakingly improper” immunity from tax audits as part of the Justice Department’s anti-weaponization slush fund settlement.

The Director of National Intelligence commissioned two reports on voting machine accuracy that show no votes were flipped in 2020 but the White House is blocking their release.

Plus listener questions.
Interview: 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/harass-coerce-and-retaliate/id1317481380?i=1000774553058

How my bill stops Trump from sending the military to interfere in elections

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/LS2GMckDThY

 

We like to win (Find Out Podcast on YouTube)

We here on the Find Out Podcast are a big fans of Democrats winning elections and we couldn't be happier with this week's news that Attorney General Ken Paxton (R-TX), who was endorsed by Trump, won his runoff election, unseating the incumbent U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) as the Republican nominee. Why are we excited about this? Because Paxton, who has been impeached by the Republican Super Majority in the Texas state legislature for embezzlement, busted for an extramarital affair and is generally hated by Cornyn voters and his fellow Texas Republicans, this creates an excellent opportunity for State Rep. James Talarico (D-TX) to finally flip Texas Blue. The last time Texas Democrats came close to flipping this seat was in 2018 when U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) narrowly defeated Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-TX) by 2.6%. On this episode, we'll make the case for why someone like Paxton is worse than Cruz. Talarico's ability to communicate effectively with religious Christian voters, coupled with Hispanic and Latino voters turning on Trump in large numbers, makes this a must watch race that could help the Democrats win the U.S. Senate this year.

We'll also discuss why conviction is the best weapon for Democrats to counter Republican messaging when pitching massive changes like universal health care. We also enjoyed watching Chelsea Handler and Pete Davidson destroy Tony Hinchcliffe at the Netflix Roast of Kevin Hart. We also crack down on corporations using investments in AI data centers to justify mass layoffs but those investments haven't been paying off. Also, we'll highlight how the tech billionaires like Marc Andreessen, Peter Thiel and Elon Musk want cheaper workers while J.D. Vance and Stephen Miller want more white workers.

Contents

• 00:00 Welcome to the Find Out Podcast! 
• 00:28 Paxton Destroys Cornyn in the Texas Runoff 
• 08:40 Talarico's Crossover Appeal & Why He Can Win 
• 19:34 Republican Senate Defense Nightmare & the 2026 Map 
• 25:47 Democrats' Messaging Problem (And How to Fix It) 
• 45:52 The Universal Healthcare Argument Nobody's Making 
• 1:00:06 Podcast Tour Idea Listener Moments & Wrap-Up 
• 1:05:44 Subscribe!

Interview: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbWWsF0Ww0w

Former prosecutor pursued by Trump calls for crackdown on election lies: ‘Lying can be held to account’

Andrew Weissmann argues for new law to hold political liars like US president accountable for harming democracy…

 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/may/24/andrew-weissmann-donald-trump-liars-kingdom

 

House GOP leaders plan housing bill vote despite Trump ultimatum - Live Updates - POLITICO

House Republican leaders are forging ahead on a bipartisan housing affordability bill Wednesday — without the partisan elections bill President Donald Trump demanded to be attached over the weekend...

 https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2026/05/18/congress/housing-bill-trump-save-america-00926454

Rep. Rosa DeLauro on Congressional Chaos (Al Franken podcast on YouTube)

Guest Host Norm Ornstein welcomes Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) to cover all the news happening in Congress. We cover the war in Iran and how it’s driving prices up across the country and the world, consequently having a major impact on Americans' wallets. DeLauro calls this a "war of choice" and discusses what Congress can realistically do to invoke the War Powers Act and reclaim its constitutional authority.

DeLauro is the Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Committee and reveals how the Trump administration is taking the power of the purse away from Congress.

Plus, the midterms are rapidly approaching. Can Democrats make enough gains to slow down the Trump administration?
Interview: 

https://youtu.be/tXw_Ryo8fFo?si=kS153uhjF2m4hZGZ