On this week’s episode, political scientist Trey Orndorff (Oklahoma Christian University) is joined by political scientist Justin Holmes (University of Northern Iowa) to break down a packed late-July news cycle spanning a massive war supplemental request on Capitol Hill, a rapid-fire prime ministerial transition across the Atlantic, executive tariff gymnastics, and an electoral shockwave in a premier battleground state.
The pair begins by diving into Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's combative appearance before the Senate Appropriations Committee. Hegseth revealed that the U.S. military conflict with Iran has burned through $37.5 billion so far, defending a massive $87.6 billion emergency supplemental request. Trey breaks down the math discovering that the request represents a 9.2% increase over the baseline defense budget.
Next, over in Great Britain, Andy Burnham officially became the UK's 59th Prime Minister. Trey and Justin discuss the mechanics of parliamentary leadership swaps, Burnham's swift shift to authorize U.S. air launches from British bases against Iran, and his appointment of prominent Trump critic Ed Miliband as Foreign Secretary. They also look at polling showing that nearly two-thirds of the British public oppose offensive U.S. strikes and explore the domestic risks Burnham faces as he balances transatlantic relations with a skeptical electorate.
After that the guys analyze the White House's latest trade moves following USTR Jamieson Greer's announcement of new Section 301 tariffs targeting 60 major trading partners under the official justification of combating foreign forced labor. Trey and Justin look past the human-rights framing to reveal the underlying legal timeline: the Section 301 action was timed to seamlessly replace temporary Section 122 tariffs that expired at midnight. They debate President Trump's mercantilist vision, "constitutional whack-a-mole," supply chain realities and why global companies are likely to wait out executive trade directives.
To close the show, Trey and Justin head to Arizona, where primary voters handed a complete sweep to Donald Trump's endorsed slate: Congressman Andy Biggs for Governor, State Rep. Alexander Kolodin for Secretary of State, and State Senate President Warren Petersen for Attorney General. With all three nominees tied directly to post-2020 election challenges, Jan 6 objections, and the Maricopa County Cyber Ninjas audit, the guys debate how this hard-right ticket will fair in November against incumbent Democrats, the median voter theory, and why Democrats consistently struggle with tangible election security messaging.
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