
Free Daily Podcast Summary
by Scan Media, LLC
Politics and Religion. We’re not supposed to talk about that, right? Wrong! We only say that nowadays because the loudest, most extreme voices have taken over the whole conversation. Well, we‘re taking some of that space back! If you’re dying for some dialogue instead of all the yelling; if you know it’s okay to have differences without having to hate each other; if you believe politics and religion are too important to let ”the screamers” drown out the rest of us and would love some engaging, provocative and fun conversations about this stuff, then ”Talkin‘ Politics & Religion Without Killin‘ Each Other” is for you!
The most recent episodes — sign up to get AI-powered summaries of each one.
What happens when the people who read your writing talk back?A couple weeks ago, The Dispatch published an essay Corey wrote about his hometown of Freehold, New Jersey, growing older alongside his friends from high school, and what it means to lose someone who isn't gone. This episode, recorded live on Substack, Corey reads it himself and reacts to comments in real time on Substack Live as well as some that came in at The Dispatch, including one from a stranger that turns into a pretty candid moment.Calls to Action✅ Leave a rating and review: lovethepodcast.com/politicsandreligion✅ Subscribe on Substack: coreysnathan.substack.com✅ Watch and subscribe on YouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligion✅ Share this episode with someone from your hometown you haven't talked to in a whileLinks and ResourcesRead the original essay at The Dispatch: "Whatever Happened to Freehold, New Jersey?" - thedispatch.com/article/freehold-new-jersey-springsteen-politicsConnect with UsSubstack: coreysnathan.substack.comLinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, Bluesky, TikTok, X: @coreysnathanYouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligionOur PartnersProud to be part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts examining what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.Some things deserve disagreement. Few deserve losing a friend over.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Mike Madrid on why both parties are running on empty, and what's actually filling the vacuum.Mike Madrid, author of The Latino Century and co-founder of the Lincoln Project, joins Corey to argue that neither party is being reshaped so much as replaced. The conversation moves from a 13,000-person Texas town that could decide the midterms to what it costs a person to spend a career in gladiator politics, and why Madrid traded that fight for painting, pilgrimages, and personal writing.Calls to Action✅ Leave a rating and review: lovethepodcast.com/politicsandreligion✅ Subscribe on Substack: coreysnathan.substack.com✅ Watch and subscribe on YouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligion✅ Share this episode with someone who still thinks red versus blue explains anythingKey takeawaysMadrid argues both parties are "zombie parties," hollow shells running on inertia while voters increasingly organize around issues instead of labels.Beeville, Texas, a 70% Hispanic town that went 70% for Trump, is why Madrid calls it the most important town in America for the midterms.State Rep. James Talarico is connecting with Latino voters by framing politics as class, not identity: the working class had the American dream stolen from them.After years of "gladiator politics," Madrid stepped back from the fight and now spends his time writing, painting, and teaching, calling it work that's better for his soul.About Mike MadridMike Madrid is a longtime Latino GOP political consultant and co-founder of the Lincoln Project. He's the author of The Latino Century: How America's Largest Minority Is Transforming Democracy, and co-hosts the Latino Vote Podcast with Chuck Rocha. He writes The Great Transformation on Substack, where most of his reporting and essays now live, and this fall he's teaching courses built around his book at USC and UC Irvine.Links"The Latino Century" by Mike Madrid: simonandschuster.com/books/The-Latino-Century/Mike-Madrid/9781668015278The Great Transformation on Substack: greattransformation.substack.comConnect with usSubstack: coreysnathan.substack.comYouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligionInstagram, Threads, Bluesky, X, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn: @coreysnathanPartnersProud to be part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts examining what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.The parties aren't just dying. Something else is already replacing them.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Two megaphones, two drinks, one bar. Corey quits talking about talking and just gets to the talkin'.Second edition of "To the Republic... To the Pub." Corey sits down with his buddy Chip, a Tea Party guy since the '70s, and it turns into a real fight: Trump's second term, JD Vance, ICE and the Home Depot raids, and whether bipartisanship even means anything anymore. Not talking about people we disagree with. Talking with them.FOR THE RECORD: Biden's Last Two Years vs. Trump's First 20 MonthsJobs: averaged 216,000/month in 2023 and 168,000/month in 2024 (BLS, revised). Under Trump, growth has slowed sharply, roughly 716,000 jobs added total from January 2025 through June 2026, versus 2 million over Biden's final 17 months.Inflation: fell steadily under Biden, from a 4.1% average in 2023 to 2.9% by December 2024. Under Trump it's climbed back to 3.4% for the 12 months ending July 2026.GDP: grew 2.9% in 2023 and 2.8% in 2024. Grew 2.1% in 2025, Trump's first year, and slowed to 1.5% in Q2 2026.Stock market: the S&P 500 gained roughly 53% and the Dow roughly 31% combined over 2023 to 2024. Since Trump's inauguration, the S&P is up about 26.5% and the Dow about 21%.Consumer sentiment (University of Michigan index): rose from 69.7 to 74.0 between December 2023 and December 2024. Fell to a near-record low of 44.8 in May 2026 and sat around 52 as of August.Calls to Action✅ Leave a rating and review: lovethepodcast.com/politicsandreligion✅ Subscribe on Substack: coreysnathan.substack.com✅ Watch and subscribe on YouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligion✅ Share this episode with someone who thinks bipartisanship is either the whole answer or the whole problemConnect with UsSubstack: coreysnathan.substack.comYouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligionInstagram, Threads, Bluesky, X, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn: @coreysnathanPartnersProud to be part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts examining what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.Pull up a stool. Folks we disagree with? It's more fun to talk to 'em than to talk about 'em.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
A newspaper editor from East Tennessee on why Dolly Parton was one of the last people almost everyone agreed on, and what that says about faith, place, and the work of editing well.Michael Reneau, executive editor at The Dispatch, joins Corey to talk about growing up 50 miles from where Dolly Parton was raised, and what her death revealed about a country that still finds a handful of people impossible to dislike. The conversation moves from Appalachia and Hurricane Helene to Bryan College, Flannery O'Connor, and the hardest thing Michael has ever watched his parents live through.Calls to Action✅ Leave a rating and review: lovethepodcast.com/politicsandreligion✅ Subscribe on Substack: coreysnathan.substack.com✅ Watch and subscribe on YouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligion✅ Share this episode with someone who still thinks "dominionism" is a fringe word.Key takeawaysDolly Parton's death pulled praise from across the political spectrum, and Michael sees that as a clue about what Appalachia's isolation and hardship actually produced: solidarity, not the caricature.Editing longer-form work, learned in part from mentor Marvin Olasky, means being ruthless about finding a story's essence, and Michael treats AI strictly as a tool, never as a substitute for that judgment.The formative event of Michael's faith was watching his parents grieve his infant sister's death and hold onto their belief anyway, not any theological argument he later studied.About Michael ReneauMichael Reneau is executive editor at The Dispatch, where he oversees editing across the newsroom. Before joining The Dispatch in 2022, he was editor of World Magazine, and prior to that spent several years as editor and writer for an award-winning daily newspaper in East Tennessee. He lives in Greeneville, Tennessee, with his wife and four kids.LinksThe Dispatch: thedispatch.comMichael's tribute to Dolly Parton: thedispatch.com/article/dolly-parton-tennessee-music-philanthropyConnect with usSubstack: coreysnathan.substack.comYouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligionInstagram, Threads, Bluesky, X, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn: @coreysnathanPartnersProud to be part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts examining what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.Nobody agrees on much these days. Dolly was the exception.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
A friend's Facebook post asks who's afraid of the truth. Corey wonders if he's who she means.A couple weeks ago, The Fulcrum published an essay Corey wrote about an old friend's social media post, and what it stirred up about the walls we build online without meaning to. This episode, Corey reads it to you himself.Calls to Action✅ Leave a rating and review: lovethepodcast.com/politicsandreligion✅ Subscribe on Substack: coreysnathan.substack.com✅ Watch and subscribe on YouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligion✅ Share this episode with someone who reads the news and someone who's given up on itLinks and ResourcesRead the original essay at The Fulcrum: Walling In, Walling OutRobert Putnam, Bowling AloneThe Village Square: villagesquare.usConnect with UsSubstack: coreysnathan.substack.comLinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, Bluesky, TikTok, X: @coreysnathanYouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligionOur PartnersProud to be part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts examining what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.Clarity, charity, and conviction can live in the same room. Yes, really.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
The theology quietly staffing Trump's cabinet, and why it doesn't need to make sense to work.Dr. Keri Ladner studies the radicalization of the American religious right, from the Moral Majority to the New Apostolic Reformation. She joins Corey to unpack Christian dominionism, the Seven Mountain Mandate, and how movements with contradictory theologies ended up governing together.Calls to Action✅ Leave a rating and review: lovethepodcast.com/politicsandreligion ✅ Subscribe on Substack: coreysnathan.substack.com ✅ Watch and subscribe on YouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligion ✅ Share this episode with someone who still thinks "dominionism" is a fringe word.Key Takeaways:Contradictory theologies, same movement. NAR, Christian Reconstructionism, and neo-Confederacy don't agree on doctrine, but they've united around Trump and the belief that Christians are called to take dominion over government.The Seven Mountain Mandate isn't about church. It reframes government, education, and business as spheres apostles are called to control, well beyond the pulpit.A neo-Confederate is advising the Pentagon. Doug Wilson calls himself "paleo-Confederate." Ladner traces his influence in American Dominion, including his role leading prayer at the Pentagon.Dr. Ladner's advice is deliberately unglamorous. Vote in the midterms. Turn abstract political fights into stories about real people you already know.About Our Guest:Dr. Keri Ladner is the author of Endtime Politics: From the Moral Majority to QAnon (2024) and American Dominion: The Rise and Radicalization of a New Christendom (Bloomsbury). Her work has appeared in Christian Century, Religion Dispatches, and Good Faith Media.Links and Resources:American Dominion, published by Bloomsbury (also on Amazon, or ask your local library to carry it)Substack: "The Boogaloo," by Keri Ladner - keriladner.substack.comConnect with usSubstack: coreysnathan.substack.comYouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligionInstagram, Threads, Bluesky, X, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn: @coreysnathanPartnersProud to be part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts examining what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it."Just talk to people."See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
A Navy SEAL commander on identity, faith, and why we fight the wars we fight.Captain Robert "Gus" Gusentine spent nearly 30 years in the Navy, commanding SEAL Team 10 and leading special operations forces from the Philippines to the Pacific. He joins Corey to talk about faith, painting, moral injury, and what it means to defend your identity without losing your soul.Calls to Action✅ Leave a rating and review: lovethepodcast.com/politicsandreligion✅ Subscribe on Substack: coreysnathan.substack.com✅ Watch and subscribe on YouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligion✅ Share this episode with someone who reads the news and someone who's given up on it.Key Takeaways:Identity is the last citadel of the soul. Gus argues that when you back someone into a corner over their identity, there's nowhere left for the conversation to go. That's why wars of religion cut so deep.Faith and religion aren't the same fight. Drawing on a mentor's line, "we never go to war over faith, we always go to war over religion," Gus distinguishes belief itself from the practice and politics built around it.Moral injury outlasts the battlefield. Gus and Corey discuss what happens when service members carry out orders that conflict with their conscience, and why caring for that wound is a command responsibility.Art forces you to see differently. Gus talks about painting as a discipline that trained his eye long before it trained his hand, and how that same habit of seeing applies to leadership and writing.About Our Guest:Captain Robert "Gus" Gusentine served nearly 30 years in the Navy, including as an exchange officer with Germany's Kamphschwimmer Company, commander of SEAL Team 10, operations chief (J3) for Special Operations Command Pacific, and commander of Joint Special Operations Task Force Philippines. After retiring in 2014, he led the Strategic Leaders International course at the Naval Special Warfare Schoolhouse, teaching senior military officers and diplomats from around the world. He is also a painter and writes on Substack alongside Roger Herbert.Links and Resources:gusentineandherbert.substack.comrvgusentine-art.comHome Base Veteran and Family Care - homebase.orgConnect with usSubstack: coreysnathan.substack.comYouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligionInstagram, Threads, Bluesky, X, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn: @coreysnathanPartnersProud to be part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts examining what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.Clarity, charity, and conviction can live in the same room. Yes, really.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Terms of Service with Future CaucusA Rhode Island Democrat and a West Virginia Republican, both serving in supermajorities, on why the toughest fights are sometimes within your own party.Terms of Service is a limited series from Future Caucus and TP&R, hosted by Future Caucus CEO Layla Zaidane. People run for state legislature to serve their communities, then find the fine print. This episode brings together Sen. Tiara Mack (D-RI) and Del. Andy Shamblin (R-WV), two lawmakers serving in supermajority chambers, on building coalitions across factions, pay that doesn't match the job, and what it takes to keep good people in office.This series is a partnership between Scan Media and Future Caucus. Executive Producers: Future Caucus and Layla Zaidane. CALLS TO ACTION✅ Leave a rating and review: lovethepodcast.com/politicsandreligion✅ Subscribe on Substack: coreysnathan.substack.com✅ Watch and subscribe on YouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligionKEY TAKEAWAYSA supermajority has its own fault lines. Both Mack and Shamblin serve in chambers where their own party holds overwhelming control, and both say their fiercest fights happen within the party, not across the aisle.The fine print of the paycheck. West Virginia delegates earn around $24,000 a year plus per diem, a disruption to career and family that Shamblin says surprises most people who assume lawmakers get rich in office.Building the next generation of lawmakers. Both point to campaign funds covering childcare as a bipartisan fix that's opened the door for more young parents, especially women, to run.ABOUT OUR GUESTSSen. Tiara Mack (D) represents District 6 in Providence, Rhode Island, now in her third term after unseating a 30-year incumbent in 2020 to become the state's first openly queer Black state legislator. She is a former teacher and community organizer. Del. Andy Shamblin (R) represents District 59 in Kanawha County, West Virginia, now in his second term. He teaches history at Nitro High School and has served on Nitro City Council since 2012. Host Layla Zaidane is president and CEO of Future Caucus.LINKS AND RESOURCESWatch on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@FutureCaucusFuture Caucus: futurecaucus.orgCONNECT WITH USSubstack: coreysnathan.substack.comYouTube: youtube.com/@politicsandreligionInstagram, Threads, Bluesky, X, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn: @coreysnathanPARTNERSProud to be part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts examining what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.Clarity, charity, and conviction can live in the same room. Yes, really.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Politics and Religion. We’re not supposed to talk about that, right? Wrong! We only say that nowadays because the loudest, most extreme voices have taken over the whole conversation. Well, we‘re taking some of that space back! If you’re dying for some dialogue instead of all the yelling; if you know it’s okay to have differences without having to hate each other; if you believe politics and religion are too important to let ”the screamers” drown out the rest of us and would love some engaging, provocative and fun conversations about this stuff, then ”Talkin‘ Politics & Religion Without Killin‘ Each Other” is for you!
AI-powered recaps with compact key takeaways, quotes, and insights.
Get key takeaways from Talkin‘ Politics & Religion Without Killin‘ Each Other in a 5-minute read.
Stay current on your favorite podcasts without falling behind.
It's a free AI-powered email that summarizes new episodes of Talkin‘ Politics & Religion Without Killin‘ Each Other as soon as they're published. You get the key takeaways, notable quotes, and links & mentions — all in a quick read.
When a new episode drops, our AI transcribes and analyzes it, then generates a personalized summary tailored to your interests and profession. It's delivered to your inbox every morning.
No. Podzilla is an independent service that summarizes publicly available podcast content. We're not affiliated with or endorsed by Scan Media, LLC.
Absolutely! The free plan covers up to 3 podcasts. Upgrade to Pro for 15, or Premium for 50. Browse our full catalog at /podcasts.
Talkin‘ Politics & Religion Without Killin‘ Each Other publishes 2x weekly. Our AI generates a summary within hours of each new episode.
Talkin‘ Politics & Religion Without Killin‘ Each Other covers topics including News, Religion & Spirituality, Spirituality. Our AI identifies the specific themes in each episode and highlights what matters most to you.
Free forever for up to 3 podcasts. No credit card required.
Free forever for up to 3 podcasts. No credit card required.