It’s Casual Friday! Sam and Emma speak with Ryan Grim, DC Bureau Chief at The Intercept, to round up the week in news and discuss his new book The Squad: AOC and the Hope of a Political Revolution. Then, they’re joined by Matthew Film Guy! First, Sam and Emma run through, updates on the martyrdom of George Santos, the resumption of Israel’s bombing of Gaza, Israel’s knowledge of Hamas’ plans before October 7th, Mike Johnson’s tenuous speakership, the UAW, the Florida GOP, the Senate’s subpoenas of Harlan Crowe and Leonard Leo, and Tommy Tubberville’s military obstruction, before watching Max Miller and George Santos beef on the house floor. Ryan Grim then joins, first contextualizing the state of the Democratic Congress as the (OG) Squad (Reps Tlaib, Ocasio-Cortez, Pressley, and Omar) first came to power, with the Obama-era rightward swing defining the politics of their colleagues. After briefly touching on the developments in US-Israel relations over the Obama Administration, which included the creation of J-Street as a more liberal counterpart to  AIPAC, Grim dives into the first major attack on the Squad members, with Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, the first two Muslim women elected to Congress, immediately coming under fire for daring to criticize Israel and the outsized impact AIPAC had in US politics. Expanding on this, Grim walks Sam and Emma through the relationship between the Squad and the Democratic Party, with his recent exposé on the particularly stifling role played by Nancy Pelosi in refusing to acknowledge or incorporate internal criticisms of her party from the progressive wing, before assessing the handing of the reins to Hakeem Jeffries, and his somewhat more amicable relationship to the left. Grim then dives into the continued role AIPAC and DMFI have in the Democratic Party – with Jeffries himself a major benefactor – as he explores the state of the Squad heading into the 2024 election – a cycle for which AIPAC has pledged hundreds of millions to unseat them – and what the future of the Congressional Progressive Caucus could hold, before wrapping up with a quick discussion on the particular role Israel’s ongoing siege of Gaza has played in the CPC. Matthew Film Guy then jumps into some subtle foreshadowing of his upcoming projects before parsing through the meat of his recommendations as he looks at various artistic and journalistic approaches to the Israeli occupation of Palestine, including the more brutal depictions of “Tsahal” and “Tantura.”

And in the Fun Half: Sam and Emma watch Lauren Boebert and Steve Deece perfectly demonstrate the ongoing failure of the Republican Party, Gavin Newsome cucks Ron DeSantis, and the MR Crew discusses the canceling of Mehdi Hasan by MSNBC following critiques of Israeli occupation, plus, your calls and IMs!

Check out Ryan’s book here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250869074/thesquad

Check out Matthew’s Letterboxd here: https://letterboxd.com/langdonboom/

Check out Matthew’s film discussion group here: https://www.commonpointqueens.org/program/cultural-arts-and-jewish-heritage-classes/

Check out Matthew’s eBay auction here! https://www.ebay.com/itm/115464749223

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