Wednesday on the RealClearPolitics podcast, Tom Bevan, Carl Cannon, and Andrew Walworth discuss whether Republicans or Democrats have better chances at spinning the results of last night’s special election in Tennessee as a win, and President Trump calling Democrats’ focus on “affordability” a “hoax.” Later, OutKick columnist Mary Katharine Ham joins the show to discuss the emerging 2028 presidential primary fields on both sides of the aisle, including a scandal plaguing Gov. Tim Walz and a new poll showing Donald Trump Jr. actually in the running, plus a review of the Democratic Party’s new “male-whisperer.” You can listen to the show live each day at 11:00 a.m. on SiriusXM’s Megyn Kelly Channel 111 and then on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, and here on our website. *** The show opened with the results of last night’s special election in Tennessee’s 7th Congressional District, where Republican Matt Van Epps defeated Democrat Aftyn Behn by nine points. Democrats saw a chance for victory after a single poll showed the race within the margin of error in a deep-red district, but Republicans managed to show up and rally in time. Who’s got a better narrative going into the 2026 midterms? “Both sides can claim victory here,” Tom Bevan said. “Since Trump was elected in 2024, there have been six special elections, and the Democrats have overperformed in all of them… But for Republicans to win by nine points is nothing to sneeze at, even in a district that Trump won by 22 points in 2024.” *** In the next segment, around minute 9:30, the group discusses what the president meant when he said, at yesterday’s televised cabinet meeting, that the Democratic Party’s focus on “affordability” is another “hoax.” “He does have a point that Democrats caused a lot of these problems, and now say we’ve got an affordability crisis,” Bevan said. “But he’s been president for almost a year. It is his economy, like it or not, and affordability is an issue for voters.” “He just has a very limited vocabulary for a native English speaker,” Carl Cannon quipped. “The average American is saying, wait a minute. Interest rates are still high. Housing prices are high. The cost of groceries has doubled in the last seven years. And if you’re calling it a hoax, I’m not going to have much confidence that you’re going to be able to fix it.” *** At minute 19, OutKick columnist Mary Katharine Ham joins the show to talk about how Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is responding to claims that billions have been scammed out of the state’s social safety net, which Jim Geraghty wrote about in the Washington Post: Tim Walz Is Crumbling, Along With His 2028 Hopes” Did Walz really have a chance to begin with? “Once you signal that you will not root out fraud, that you are willing to accept it, that you are afraid to even talk about it because you might be accused of being racist, the people involved in this fraud have been frank about using white guilt against officials,” Mary Katharine Ham commented. “If that’s the situation you’re putting taxpayers in, you will become a magnet for people who want to use the system for fraud.” *** In light of Walz’s collapse, at minute 23, the conversation turns to someone who may have a chance in the 2028 Democratic primary, and Joel Kotkin’s new piece: “Slouching Toward Gavin Newsom” “Kotkin says his record as governor of California should be disqualifying, but he is basically arguing that Democrats don’t have anybody else,” Cannon said. “But Newsom has this charisma that’s more than most politicians. It’s almost electric. Obama was like this. Clinton was like this. Most others don’t have it. So it’s more than good hair.” “Walz and Newsom have a similar dynamic-neither has governance results they should be proud of,” Mary Katharine Ham said. “But someone actually has to stand up and say, I’m better, and here’s why.” *** After that, at minute 28, the group discusses the 2028 Republican presidential primary, where the RCP Average of polls shows Donald Trump Jr. solidly tied for second place with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. “Vice President JD Vance has a healthy lead,” Tom Bevan explained. “And tied for second place at 10%: Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump Jr.” “Rubio is at 8.5, Haley is at 4.5, and RFK Jr. is around 4, with 11% undecided,” he continued. “The conventional wisdom is Vance–Rubio, but I thought yesterday-hold on. Vance and Don Jr. are very good friends. If you want to keep the Trump magic going, why wouldn’t a Vance–Trump Jr. ticket make some sense?” “It’s likely to be Vance. And he demonstrated why at that cabinet meeting,” Mary Katharine Ham explained. “But I don’t think Don Jr. is entirely wishful thinking. A lot of elections now feel like vibes elections. Voters are choosing the story that makes sense to them.” *** Finally, 38 minutes into the show, the group discusses Scott Galloway, author of “Notes on Being a Man,” who has been described as “a progressive Jordan Peterson.” Does he have what it takes to bring young men back to the Democratic Party? “The left has spent 20 years saying masculinity is toxic. Men heard them. It’s not rocket science why many men turned away,” Mary Katharine Ham said. “One of my favorite anecdotes from the 2024 election was Chris Jansing at MSNBC talking to a Latino prison guard. He said he voted for Trump because ‘Democrats make me feel bad about who I am.'” *** Don’t miss a single episode of the RealClearPolitics weeknight radio show – subscribe at Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
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