Who Wants a Third Party, Anyway?

<p>This week, David Plotz and guest hosts<a href="mikepesca.com/">; <u>Mike Pesca</u></a> and<a href="newyorker.com/contributors/susan-b-glasser&quo…; <u>Susan Glasser</u></a> discuss what to make of Elon Musk’s quixotic attempt to start a third political party in America, how Trump’s conflation of national interest with self-interest creates an incoherent foreign policy, and the tedious but impactful “summer rerun season” of Trump’s tariff folly. </p><p><br></p><p><strong>Here are this week’s chatters:</strong></p><p>Mike: ABC7 New York:<a href="abc7ny.com/post/nyc-traffic-deaths-officials-s…; <u>Traffic deaths across NYC at record low so far this year as City sees historic drop</u></a>; Tomoki Chein for The San Francisco Standard:<a href="sfstandard.com/2025/07/07/san-francisco-traffi…; <u>Policing has little effect on SF traffic deaths, decades of data show</u></a>; National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:<a href="nhtsa.gov/press-releases/traffic-fatalities-de…; <u>NHTSA Announces Traffic Fatalities Decreased in the First Quarter of 2025</u></a>.</p><p>Susan: Meg Anderson for NPR:<a href="npr.org/2025/06/30/nx-s1-5448852/murders-down-…; <u>Murders are down nationwide. Researchers point to a key reason</u></a></p><p>David: Kyla Scanlon on Substack:<a href="kyla.substack.com/">; <u>Kyla’s Newsletter</u></a>;<a href="amazon.com/Clan-Cave-Bear-Earths-Children/dp/0…; <em>Clan of the Cave Bear</em></a><em> </em>(1980) by Jean M. Auel; Leah Dearborn for LitReactor:<a href="litreactor.com/columns/what-is-the-clan-of-the…; <u>What Is ‘The Clan of the Cave Bear,’ and Should You Read It?</u></a></p><p>Listener chatter from Alan Spatrick in Newton, Massachusetts: Podcast by Andrew Hickey:<a href="500songs.com/podcast/">; <u>A History of Rock Music in 500 Songs</u></a></p><p>For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, David and guest hosts<a href="mikepesca.com/">; <u>Mike Pesca</u></a> and<a href="newyorker.com/contributors/susan-b-glasser&quo…; <u>Susan Glasser</u></a> discuss whether ICE agents should be allowed to do their jobs in masks.</p><p>In the latest<a href="slate.com/podcasts/gabfestreads">; <u>Gabfest Reads</u></a>, David talks with<a href="dykestowatchoutfor.com/about/">; <u>author Alison Bechdel</u></a> about her new book,<a href="amazon.com/Spent-Comic-Novel-Alison-Bechdel/dp…; <em>Spent</em></a><em>.</em></p><p>Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)</p><p>Podcast production by Kevin Bendis</p><p>Research by Emily Ditto</p><p>Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on <a href="podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/political-gabfes… Podcasts </u></a>and <a href="open.spotify.com/show/2oXS9kkKiXdkkCYB3YfqYZ&q…;. Or visit <a href="slate.com/gabfestplus"><u>slate.…; to get access wherever you listen.</p><p><strong>Hosts</strong><br>David Plotz,<a href="mikepesca.com/">; <u>Mike Pesca</u></a>, and<a href="newyorker.com/contributors/susan-b-glasser&quo…; <u>Susan Glasser</u></a></p><p> </p><p>Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our <a href="slate.com/podcastfaqs#plusbenefits"; rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">FAQ</a> at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup required.</p><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy<…; for more information.</p>