Authenticity vs. Accountability
Graham Platner keesp surviving scandals. Is that progress or a bad omen?
I've resisted conversations about primaries this year. Horse races are tempting. They also pull me away from political analysis into political hobbyism. It's easier and more fun to talk about personalities and campaigns than...a lot of what headline news hands us right now. But I don't think it gets us anywhere. My husband doesn't love politics the way I do, so he gets this on a deep level. It drives him crazy to receive an email or text about a race he can't vote in. I think he's wise to know when something isn't our business.
We're spending an entire episode on Graham Platner today, so I guess I've got some explaining to do!
I'm less interested in Platner and his race specifically, and more interested in Platner and his race as an artifact of this political era. Sarah and I discuss what it means to be "normal," what the progressive vs. moderate tension names and what it misses, and what we really need from candidates in terms of their policies, biographies, and communication styles at specific moments in time.
We take a hard turn outside of politics to talk about personal style and to share changes to the business side of Pantsuit Politics. As you'll hear in the episode, it's a new season for us. We go into every season confident about our support systems because of how kind and thoughtful you all are. Thank you, endlessly. -Beth
Topics Discussed
Graham Platner and the Maine Senate race
Political scandals and changing voter tolerance
"Normie" politicians and the unapologetic posture in American life
Progressive vs. moderate framing in the Democratic Party
What we actually need from candidates: policy, biography, communication style
Emotional maturity as a political standard
Partisan identity and double standards
Bronte the Stylist on Instagram
Team changes at Pantsuit Politics
Want more Pantsuit Politics? Subscribe to ensure you never miss an episode and get access to our premium shows and community.
Episode Resources
The Sexting (WSJ)
Rep. Auchincloss’s position (The Hill)
Episode Transcript
Coming soon…
Show Credits
Pantsuit Politics is hosted by Sarah Stewart Holland and Beth Silvers. The show is produced by Studio D Podcast Production.
Our theme music was composed by Xander Singh with inspiration from original work by Dante Lima.
Our show is listener-supported. The community of paid subscribers here on Substack makes everything we do possible. Special thanks to our Executive Producers, some of whose names you hear at the end of each show. To join our community of supporters, become a paid subscriber here on Substack.
To search past episodes of the main show or our premium content, check out our content archive.
This podcast and every episode of it are wholly owned by Pantsuit Politics LLC and are protected by US and international copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws. We hope you'll listen to it, love it, and share it with other people, but not with large language models or machines and not for commercial purposes. Thanks for keeping it nuanced with us.