Vox

Why everyone is embracing populism | The Gray Area - November 6, 2026 - Vox
Today we’re bringing you an episode of the Vox daily news podcast Today, Explained. It’s a show that’s about the biggest stories of the day, and – like The Gray Area – it tries to make sense of what those stories tell us about our culture and our world.
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This week, voters delivered a sweeping rebuke to Trump and the Republican party, handing Democrats control of the House and Senate. So this is a good moment to take stock: How did Trump’s brand of politics change America? What has populism actually achieved, who are its new proponents, and are we ever going back?
Host: Noel King, co-host and editorial director, Today, Explained
Guests: Jonathan Chait, staff writer, The Atlantic and Eric Levitz, senior correspondent, Vox
00:28 The 2026 midterm elections and the rise of populism
01:59 Right-wing and left-wing populist movements
09:14 The economic limits of populism
14:41 The media environment and political upheaval
24:11 Future outlook: AI, tech oligarchy
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How Democrats swept the midterms - November 4, 2026 - Vox
A Democratic wave of wins has handed the party full control of Congress and major gubernatorial victories around the country, laying bare a historic defeat to President Trump.
Vox’s Sean Rameswaram and Astead Herndon discuss the 2026 midterm elections and how the issue of affordability resonated with voters, how immigration and data center concerns shaped the election, and why Republicans’ redistricting efforts and culture-war messaging fell short.
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Vox.com is a news website that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Check out http://www.vox.com.
Watch our full video catalog: http://goo.gl/IZONyE
Follow Vox on Facebook: http://goo.gl/U2g06o
Or Twitter: http://goo.gl/XFrZ5H
Why the right can't stop talking about communism - November 4, 2026 - Vox
There’s been a lot of “communist” talk on the midterms campaign trail. It’s become Trump’s favorite new perceived threat coming from the left. But it’s actually not new at all.
US politicians, especially on the right, have long described communism as a threat to the American way of life. As a result, the United States has undergone historical periods of intense and occasionally violent means to suppress the spread of communism. Beyond the clash between capitalism and communism as economic systems, a line is often drawn between communist ideology and religion in America, specifically Christianity.
In the 1950s, President Dwight D. Eisenhower added the words “Under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance, doubling down on the Christian values of an anti-communist America. The phrase “In God We Trust” was also added to US currency. As evangelical Christians grew into a crucial voting bloc for the Republican party, communist accusations against the left have appeared now and again to mobilize the base.
Hosted by Kahlil Greene, this video is part of our new series Kahlil Explains that unites Vox’s unique brand of explainer journalism with Greene’s expertise in how politics and culture shape society. This episode traces the history of communism in America and its clash with religious groups to unpack why Democratic candidates are being labeled communists and whether the strategy will resonate with voters today.
Read more about communism and religion in America:
Andrew Hartman’s book Karl Marx in America: https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/K/bo245100866.html
Vox’s Today, Explained covers Trump's imaginary Red Scare: https://www.vox.com/podcasts/498360/trump-democratic-socialists-communism-red-scare
Politico’s coverage of anti-communism rhetoric at the 2026 Republican midterm convention: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/09/09/a-communist-caucus-trump-gives-republicans-their-midterms-enemy-01070254
Insights from the Public Religion Research Institute’s American values atlas: https://prri.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/PRRI-Feb-2026-CN-in-50-states.pdf
An article from The Atlantic’s archive titled Ideology: The Christian Anti-Communism Crusade: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1974/06/ideology-the-christian-anti-communism-crusade/663345/
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Vox.com is a news website that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Check out http://www.vox.com.
Watch our full video catalog: http://goo.gl/IZONyE
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Rejection was Dan Toomey’s lucky break | Best of Luck - November 3, 2026 - Vox
How do you build your dream career when your dream job doesn’t call back?
Dan Toomey was rejected by the job he'd always wanted for four straight years. It was the luckiest thing that ever happened for his career.
Now, he’s the host of Good Work, where he makes funny videos about news in business, tech and finance that are watched by millions. 
In this episode: how do you build your dream job out of a job you never expected? Plus: why creating in public might get you hired, why Dan stopped looking at the numbers, and the case for taking up fly fishing in your 20s (and beyond).
00:00 Dan Toomey is not living his dream (sort of)
00:29 The story behind our theme song
1:49 A message brought to you by AlphaSpace
06:26 How ‘Good Work’ started
08:53 The failed experiment before ‘Good Work’
11:25 Dan Toomey’s worst stand-up bomb
19:49 How Dan resists the algorithm
20:50 Dealing with rejection
27:01 The algorithm shouldn’t dictate your work
36:26 Dan applies to be Kermit the Frog
39:50 Who Dan Toomey would hire (application tips)
41:42 Resume vs blog: create in public
Follow Best of Luck on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bestofluckpodcast
Follow Kyla Scanlon on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kylascan
Watch Good Work: https://www.youtube.com/@UC_-hYjoNe4PJNFa9iZ4lraA
Our theme song is "Frolic" by Jake Xerxes Fussell. Discover more of his music and tour dates here: https://www.jakexerxesfussell.com/