Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar

Episode Date: November 25, 2025
Title: GOP Majority At Risk Before Midterms, Dem Sen Threatened With Court Martial, Thanksgiving Advice

Episode Overview

In this episode, Krystal Ball and Saagar Enjeti tackle a tense moment in Washington as the GOP House majority teeters before midterms amidst waves of resignations, internal frustration, and a sense of institutional malaise. The hosts dissect the roots of congressional dysfunction, analyze a provocative court martial threat against Democratic Senator Mark Kelly, and wrap up with a candid discussion about the cost of living, the reality of inflation ahead of Thanksgiving, and the politics of airline travel and family gatherings. True to the show’s tone, expect incisive analysis with plenty of pointed asides and humor.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. GOP House in Crisis: Resignations, Dysfunction, and Loss of Majority

Spate of GOP Resignations and Low Morale

• Krystal sets the stage ([01:43]): Citing reports from Jake Sherman, she lays out how several Republican members are considering resignation, describing a Congress plagued by frustration, stagnation, and fear of taking tough votes.
• GOP members complain the White House treats them like “garbage,” while House Speaker Mike Johnson is accused of enabling it.
• Krystal points out: “Morale has never been lower. Mike Johnson will be stripped of his gavel and they will lose the majority before this term is out. That is shocking.” ([03:41])
• Saagar expands ([06:40]): This trend has historical roots post-Iraq, with Congress ceding power to the executive to avoid risk and responsibility. He observes, "They don’t want to take difficult votes... They’re happy to just pass the buck."
• The panel notes how this institutional failure lets the executive grab more power, with Congress left sidelined and frustrated.

Blame Game: Congress vs. White House

• Saagar: “They’re working together to give the executive as much power as possible. Like that's effectively what’s happened here." ([06:40])
• “You can't now turn around and be like, hey, they treat us like a potted plant. ...you asked for that treatment.” ([08:43])
• Both hosts criticize the performative nature of complaints—members enabled the very dynamic they're now protesting.

Legislative Implications and Midterms Anxiety

• Krystal: “The only thing worse than being treated like garbage in a potted plant in the majority is being treated like garbage in a potted plant in the minority.” ([08:46])
• Special elections and retirements could cost the GOP the House before the midterms even arrive, especially with restive constituents and tough special elections even in red districts.

Quotes from the Hill and Response from MTG

• Krystal reads MTG’s lament: “Our legislative majority has been wasted. Our best shot was the first six to nine months. When Republicans lose the midterms... it becomes total and complete political war gridlock.” ([10:27])
• Saagar recalls: “Inside the White House, top advisors joke they are ruling Congress with an iron fist… Steve Bannon likened Congress to the Duma, the Russian assembly that is largely ceremonial.” ([12:04])

2. Democratic Senators Targeted: Mark Kelly Court Martial Threat

“Seditious 6/7” and Military Code

• Saagar’s rundown: After a public video by “national security Dems” (Mark Kelly, Slotkin, etc) urging service members to disobey unlawful orders, the Trump administration responds with outrage, labeling them “seditious.”
• The Department of Defense (styled as “Department of War” in their statement) threatens court martial and recall to active duty against Senator and retired Navy Captain Mark Kelly under the UCMJ ([13:32 – 16:24]).

Mark Kelly’s Defiant Response

• Kelly responds:
  “If this is meant to intimidate me and other members of Congress from doing our jobs and holding this administration accountable, it won’t work. I’ve given too much to this country to be silenced by bullies..." ([16:50])
• Krystal’s take: Highlights how the administration, in trying to punish Kelly, has inadvertently turned him into “a resistance hero”—"Do you know how much skill it takes to make Mark Kelly compelling as a figure?...But this is the best thing they could have done for him." ([17:14])
• Kelly’s ordeal becomes a grassroots fundraising boon for Democrats.

Context of the Provocation and its Political Utility

• Saagar observes: “These centrists are actually learning a little something. They’ve created this whole conversation around which orders would be unlawful and what are you talking about?” ([17:51])
• Both see echoes of Trumpian political theater and agree the move, meant to intimidate, only bolsters Democratic unity and profile heading into tough elections ([18:18]).

Military Legal Arguments and Criticism of Trump DOJ

• Pete Hegseth, now at the Pentagon, pushes for discipline on Kelly; Krystal and Saagar roll their eyes at the hypocrisy and ineffectual legal posturing.

Fallout from Failed Trump-Era Prosecutions

• Krystal on DOJ’s incompetence: “It just pains me. The judge has now dismissed the case against James Comey and Letitia James after finding the prosecutor was unlawfully appointed... just to show how incompetently they handle the case, because this was one of their flagship ones against Comey....” ([20:51])
• Saagar: “The point of these prosecutions was not even necessarily that they would be successful. They were meant to frighten up the opposition and to send a message… When the prosecutions end up this pathetic and shambolic... it feels a lot less terrifying.” ([22:34])

3. Thanksgiving, Cost of Living & Travel: “You Can’t Out-Message Reality”

Inflation Advice and Cost of Living

• Sagar plays Scott Bessant’s clip: Official advice to tame inflation is to move from a blue state to a red state. ([26:41])
• Krystal retorts: “If you're already living in one of those red states and... having your electric cut off, no advice or plans really coming from the administration on that.” ([27:01])
• The hosts lampoon the disconnect: “One of the things that I hate most about those types of messages is what if you don’t want to [move]? ...Policy should be designed to help those types of people in particular.” ([27:22])

The Realities of Thanksgiving Dinner Costs

• Groceries: Main ingredients for Thanksgiving are on average up 4.1% over last year; some items (e.g., cranberry sauce) spiking 40%. Turkey is down 2.3%, pumpkin pie mix down 5%.
• Krystal: "You can't message or chart post your way out of increase in price and malaise and the feeling that not much is happening." ([29:50])
• Both agree: Perceptions of economic malaise and decline are rooted in lived experience, not “messaging gaps.”

Kitchen Table Politics & What Americans Talk About

• Saagar jokes he’d prefer Thanksgiving talk about Epstein conspiracies; Krystal says even among relatives, Epstein is the go-to discussion over more polarizing topics ([30:51-31:36]).
• Krystal’s optimism: “I do actually feel like there are a lot of issues now... where you could find some common ground. Healthcare, cost of living, wars, data centers, Epstein...” ([32:18])

4. Thanksgiving Travel: “Dress Better, Get Treated Better?”

Secretary of Transportation’s Manners Appeal

• The Secretary urges travelers to “maybe dress a little better,” decrying the spread of pajamas in the airport ([33:14]).
• Krystal: “He’s right: No pajamas at the airport....But the airlines have treated us like shit for 20 years...Their decline in standards is then reflected in the way people think about travel. My grand bargain is: the airlines have to treat us better, and in exchange, we will show up better to the airport.” ([33:49])

Air Travel Real Talk

• Sagar: “Thanksgiving travel, you’re talking about traveling with your kids, you know, at some ungodly hour, everyone is miserable. The least you can do is try to be a little bit comfy. ...The only people who really dress up for air travel at this point are like gay men and Instagram models.” ([34:43])
• Krystal: Shares experience dressing up for long-haul India flights, “I've changed diapers in a suit—it’s been an unfortunate situation.” ([35:11])
• Both riff on the unglamorous reality of travel, especially for parents, and agree comfort will almost always trump style these days.

Social Norms and Public Spaces

• Krystal reminisces about the high standards of public spaces in Japan: “When things are like that, then you don’t feel bad about dressing nicely...I really think it's not just that. It's that everything there is nice.” ([36:46])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Krystal Ball ([03:41]): “Morale has never been lower. Mike Johnson will be stripped of his gavel and they will lose the majority before this term is out. That is shocking.”
• Sagar Enjeti ([06:40]): "They’re working together to give the executive as much power as possible… they’ve co-signed Trump’s executive power grab from the beginning."
• Marjorie Taylor Greene Statement ([10:27]): “Our legislative majority has been wasted. Our best shot was the first six to nine months. When Republicans lose the midterms... it becomes total and complete political war gridlock.”
• Krystal Ball ([17:14]): “Do you know how much skill it takes to make Mark Kelly compelling as a figure?... this is the best thing they could have done for him.”
• Mark Kelly ([16:50]): “If this is meant to intimidate me and other members of Congress from doing our jobs... it won’t work. I’ve given too much to this country to be silenced by bullies who care more about their own power than protecting the Constitution.”
• Krystal Ball ([29:50]): "You can't message or chart post your way out of increase in price and malaise and the feeling that not much is happening."
• Sagar Enjeti ([34:43]): “The only people that really dress up for air travel at this point are like gay men and Instagram models.”
• Krystal Ball ([36:46]): “When things are like that, then you don't feel bad about dressing nicely and you don't feel filthy like subway clothes for New York.”

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [01:43 – 12:12] GOP Resignations, Loss of Majority, Dysfunction in Congress
• [13:27 – 24:55] Mark Kelly Court Martial Threat, Fallout of Failed Prosecutions
• [26:26 – 32:56] Thanksgiving, Inflation, Cost of Living
• [33:14 – 37:48] Thanksgiving Travel, Airline Etiquette, Social Norms
• [37:48 – End] Closing banter, Thanksgiving pie preferences, and sign-off

Conclusion

This episode offers an unvarnished look at Washington’s current dysfunction, with Krystal and Saagar unafraid to poke at both parties’ failures and hypocrisies. The show’s signature is its blend of deep institutional knowledge, populist skepticism, and irreverent, human banter—especially in the Thanksgiving send-off. For any observer of U.S. politics looking for clarity, humor, and some hard truths (with a side of pie talk), this is essential listening.