Raging Moderates with Scott Galloway and Jessica Tarlov

Podcast Network: Vox Media Podcast Network
Episode: Can Democrats Criticize Trump’s Invasion Without Defending Maduro?
Date: January 7, 2026
Co-Host: Jessica Tarlov
Guest: Ben Mysalis (Midas Touch Network)

Overview

This episode explores the fallout of the Trump administration’s controversial operation in Venezuela, Democrat responses to foreign and domestic crises, the interplay of global power dynamics, a breaking welfare fraud scandal in Minnesota, and the debate over a proposed billionaire tax in California. Co-host Jessica Tarlov is joined by Ben Mysalis, who brings both a legal and media perspective, diving into the complexity of how Democrats can uphold democratic values and criticize policy overreach without appearing to support bad actors like former Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro—all through a centrist, "raging moderates" lens.

Segmented Summary

1. The U.S. Operation in Venezuela: Law, Politics & Oil

Main Theme: Questioning the legality and strategic sense of Trump’s action to remove Maduro from power, and the Democratic challenge of opposing overreach without appearing to defend a dictator.

• The Event: Maduro is in a Brooklyn holding cell, charged with narco-terrorism, and claiming he was “kidnapped” ([03:10]).

• Democratic Dilemma:

  • Maduro is acknowledged as a “brutal dictator,” but Democrats are angry about the lack of Congressional briefing and Trump’s musings about the U.S. “running Venezuela.”
  • The challenge: Defend constitutional principles without defending Maduro.

• Immediate Reaction:

  • Ben Mysalis on the legality ([03:42]):

    “We immediately didn’t hesitate in calling it an unlawful invasion... When I see Chinooks and our soldiers in a foreign country, you absolutely require congressional authorization.”

  • Ben emphasizes leading with values—not just politics—and holding leaders to principle rather than political calculus.

• Power Shift in Venezuela:

  • Delsey Rodriguez, Maduro's former VP, is “running the show.” Trump claims she’s his puppet; Rodriguez is seen cozy with Iranian & Russian officials, raising questions about U.S. influence.
  • “So what’s really happening?” asks Ben—are U.S. interests truly being served and how?

• Oil & Geopolitics:

  • Trump justified the operation to oil companies before Congress.
  • Jessica notes, oil companies weren’t briefed per Reuters, and Venezuela’s oil industry is so decrepit that investment is unattractive even with U.S. subsidies ([07:12]).

Key Quote

“Leaders need to lead, not ultimately come up with a position that they think is going to be palatable... your position as the leader should be grounded in values and principles.”
— Ben Mysalis ([03:51])

2. The Omitted Role of Russia, China, and Iran in Venezuela

Main Theme: Ignoring the obvious geopolitical competition on America’s doorstep.

• Jessica: Coverage is neglecting the enormously increased presence of Chinese, Russian, and Iranian influence—a point even Republicans like Marco Rubio acknowledge ([07:12]).

• Ben:

  • Rational debate requires honest discussion of threats.
  • Even so: “I still vote no... I want to make sure we fix what’s going on in the United States before we go have more wars abroad.” ([09:20])
  • The swearing-in of Rodriguez, with adversarial ambassadors present, suggests U.S. aims may not be fully realized.

• Regional Superpower Vision: Jessica sees this as a dangerous shift from global to mere regional superpower status ([11:54]).

Key Quote

“Why were those ambassadors there at our swearing in looking pretty happy?”
— Ben Mysalis ([10:40])

3. Democracy, Dictators, and U.S. Policy Hypocrisy

Main Theme: The futility of regime change without democracy.

• Machado’s Exile:

  • Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Machado, Nobel laureate, is sidelined. Despite her overwhelming electoral win (over 65% of the vote), she’s exiled and delegitimized.

• U.S. Motives – Democracy or Puppets?

  • Ben: Trump wants a loyal authoritarian, not democracy; a truly democratic Venezuela might not align with U.S. oil interests ([14:23]).
  • Machado’s perceived weakness after publicly offering to “give back” her Nobel Peace Prize to Trump is noted as “pathetic” and emblematic of her powerlessness ([16:30]).

• Republican Spin:

  • GOP reps in FL dodge questions about their support for Machado, preferring fealty to Trump’s policy.

Key Quote

“...what Trump wants is not to have a democratically elected leader of Venezuela, because where you have a democratically elected popular leader, that leader may do deals on fair terms with Europe, which Donald Trump doesn’t want to happen.”
— Ben Mysalis ([14:54])

4. The Democratic Response: Principle vs. Political Reality

Main Theme: How should Democrats talk about violations of principles when the electorate is disinterested?

• Polling: Only 13% of Americans see Venezuela as a major threat, and 2-to-1 oppose Trump’s actions ([19:03]).

• Tarlov’s Point: Previous administrations, even with faulty premises (Iraq, WMD), at least built a public case. Here, Trump’s administration offers almost no justification.

• What’s the Right Approach? (Jessica, [19:50])

  • “How do Democrats talk about constitutional violations...when voters are uninterested?”

• Ben:

  • You must call out injustice and support marginalized groups, even when politically risky:

    “I just think you have to be a human being... we’re gonna lead with empathy, with love, with respect.” ([22:23])

  • The right offers simple scapegoats (immigrants, etc.), but the left’s answer has to be empathy and economic solutions.

• Economic Angst:

  • People are “psychologically tortured, living paycheck to paycheck... that psychological torture is a feeling that millions, perhaps over hundreds of millions of Americans wake up with...” ([24:22])
  • The information environment is flooded with distractions and disinformation; simple, empathetic truth-telling can break through.

Notable Moment

“I just think we have to let people know ... I’m listening to you, I hear you ... how can we try to just find solutions to these problems?”
— Ben Mysalis ([26:13])

5. The Minnesota Welfare Fraud & Media Disinformation

Main Theme: The Tim Walls scandal: parsing fact from right-wing media narrative.

• Walls Steps Down: Amid a welfare fraud scandal, Governor Walls exits the race, not due to criminality, but to avoid being a distraction ([28:43]).

• Scandal Dynamics:

  • The main ringleader: “a white lady,” not part of the immigrant population being smeared.
  • Right-wing conspiracy: Trump accuses Walls of orchestrating an assassination (of Melissa Hortman), despite zero evidence ([30:57]).

• Media Ecosystem Asymmetry:

  • Viral right-wing videos get exponentially more impressions via the X platform (formerly Twitter), driven by Elon Musk and Republicans ([33:07]).
  • Traditional media and even large left-leaning YouTube outlets (like Midas Touch) struggle to match the impact, despite similar actual view numbers.

• Responsibility & Hypocrisy:

  • PPP fraud under Trump dwarfs the Minnesota scandal, yet draws no right-wing ire ([34:22]).
  • Jessica: “They don't care about that [PPP] fraud. It's crazy.”

Key Quote

“...you are having to debate issues that are being thrown in these directions as almost like traps... Shouldn't we be talking about this, this and that?”
— Ben Mysalis ([35:21])

6. Building Left-Leaning Media and the Power of Human Connection

Main Theme: Ben explains the philosophy behind the Midas Touch Network and winning media strategies.

• Ben:

  • Reluctant political actor turned anchor due to the pandemic and insurrection.
  • Midas Touch’s success: “Our message... resonates on an international human level... because the core values and principles... are relatable... to combat a lot of the forces happening on the right wing.” ([38:47])

• Broader Autocratic Playbook:

  • Trump is “a vessel of a broader right-wing talking point regime”; similar autocratic strategies surface in Hungary, Russia, Canada, Australia.
  • Democrats need humility, empathy, emotion—not robotic lab-tested soundbites—to counter right-wing propaganda.

• Hope and Humanism:

  • Ben: “...reminding people that there's a way to... live in a world that isn't filled with toxicity and hate every day... when Obama ran on Hope, Right?” ([42:07])

7. California’s Billionaire Tax Proposal

Main Theme: Ro Khanna’s support for a wealth tax splits Silicon Valley, and the show unpacks the practical and symbolic consequences.

• Background:

  • Proposal: One-time 5% tax on the ~255 billionaires in California to fund healthcare, food, and education ([46:51]).
  • Gavin Newsom opposes. Other countries have repealed wealth taxes as unworkable.

• Ben’s Take:

  • Yes to a billionaire tax, if well-designed.

    “...why is there basically subsidies for billionaires... a welfare program for billionaires built into our tax code?” ([44:34])

  • Citing Mamdani: “You're spending more annually to attack me than you are to be taxed... they're making far much more money... than what the tax would ultimately be.”

• Broader Point:

  • This is about basic fairness and restoring an "American Dream" of broad, shared prosperity.

Key Quote

“...the broader frustration of people is seeing this unaccountable class of billionaires that is getting a form of welfare, but for billionaires, and they get bailed out of everything.”
— Ben Mysalis ([49:48])

8. 2028 Democratic Outlook and Paths Forward

Main Theme: The 2028 Democratic field may be wide open, with several “paths” that could produce the next nominee.

• Paths Identified:
  • Strong Governor (e.g. Newsom)
  • Assertive Senator (e.g. Murphy, Gallego, Kelly)
  • Democratic Socialist outsider (à la Mamdani)
• Ben: The right approach is to provide a platform for diverse voices and let the public decide ([53:21]).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Jessica, on Party Messaging:

  “Democrats don’t have a good media strategy to protect Democrats and to fight back against bad information.” ([37:42])

• Ben, On Empathy:

  “I’ve rarely seen a politician look into the camera and say, I care about you... that combined with the right media ecosystem, I think is the right way to grow something special and different.” ([42:21])

• Jessica, On Political Hope:

  “I want someone to look into the camera and tell me that they care about me. So hopefully we’ll be seeing more of that in the midterms.” ([43:04])

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 03:10: Venezuela operation background
• 03:42: Ben’s legal analysis—“unlawful invasion”
• 07:12: The role of Russia, China, Iran
• 11:54: U.S. shifting from global to regional superpower?
• 14:04: Failure of American leadership on democracy in Venezuela
• 19:03: Polling—Venezuela as a security threat
• 22:22: Democrats, empathy, values, and leading
• 28:43: Tim Walls drops MN gubernatorial race
• 33:07: Viral media algorithm discussion
• 35:21: Ben on defending against right wing traps
• 38:47: Building a progressive media ecosystem
• 44:34: Wealth tax debate
• 53:21: 2028 Democratic field outlook

Final Thoughts

The episode delivers a nuanced, centrist, and highly informed discussion on the complex tradeoffs facing Democrats in an era of rampant disinformation, populist politics, and geopolitical risk. With a focus on values and empathy, both hosts challenge politicians and media institutions to refocus on people’s real problems rather than political positioning—a theme underscored by memorable moments of candor and policy substance throughout the show.