This week: well, Republicans got absolutely shellacked in the midterms. Megan, Ben and Josh discuss what comes next: After a loss this bad, will the Trump-era Republican politics of gratuitous nastiness finally fade away? Can Ron DeSantis position himself as the Republican who can actually make a positive pitch to voters? What should Democrats do with their new majorities, and who is positioned to lead the party into the 2028 election? (This week’s show is free for all subscribers.)

This week: friend-of-the-pod Nate Silver prepares us for next week's elections and lays out why his model gives Democrats overwhelming odds to reclaim the House of Representatives and a nearly three-in-four chance to retake the Senate, despite the unfavorable map.

Also this week, for premium subscribers: We talk about the spate of fake pollsters putting out made-up polls this cycle and we get Nate’s guidance for interpreting early returns on Election Night. In cocktail hour this week, we discuss Cheesecake Factory-gate and what kind of gay President Trump is.

For that list of special opportunities to see us next week — online, and, if you are in New York, in person, go to www.centralairpodcast.com.

This week: Washington D.C. is in a recession, partly driven by DOGE and exacerbated by local policies that make it excessively costly to do business. Local elected officials want to copy the Mamdani playbook, but New York enjoys unique economic advantages other cities can’t rely on. We consider the diverging tracks of these two cities, and the lessons lawmakers can learn around the country.

During cocktail hour: we consider New York magazine’s cover story that alleges, with some justification, that chocolate is getting worse, and we discuss l’affaire Clarkson — singer Kelly Clarkson’s feud with a curiosity shop in Brooklyn, and the social media consumers around the world who increasingly can’t mind their own business when confronted with disputes between strangers.