The Majority Report with Sam Seder – Episode 3570 Summary

Date: August 28, 2025
Host: Emma Vigeland (filling in for Sam Seder), with Sam Seder and guest hosts
Guests:

• Julia Gledhill (National Security Reform Program, Stimson Center; co-host, Undiplomatic podcast)
• Ari Berman (National Voting Rights Correspondent, Mother Jones)

Episode Overview

This episode centers on two interlinked themes: reforming the U.S. defense industry—including the radical proposition of its nationalization—and the ongoing Republican attacks on voting rights and democratic mechanisms. Through detailed interviews with Julia Gledhill and Ari Berman, the show unpacks both the hidden inner workings of defense sector profiteering and the systematic assaults on election fairness, with both conversations situated in the rapidly shifting political context of Trump’s second term.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Mass Shooting in Minneapolis – Political Response and Right-wing Deflection

• The episode opens with coverage of another tragic mass shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis, resulting in child casualties and sparking renewed debate on gun policy.
• Emma Vigeland highlights broad patterns in mass shootings:

  “This is a policy choice… the numbers on mass shooting demographics: of the 172 individuals who engaged in public mass shootings… 97.7% were male… Trans individuals are not overrepresented in mass shootings as perpetrators at all.” (17:00)

• Detailed exploration of the right-wing media’s strategy to scapegoat marginalized groups (notably trans people) for America's gun violence, despite clear data to the contrary.
• Notable quote:

  “Other countries have trans people. They don’t have kids being slaughtered in schools. It’s because we allow people to buy this. This person had an AR-15. It shouldn’t be allowed. I don’t care about permits. Fuck you.” (10:36, Matt)

• Broader critique of political inertia despite clear polling in favor of gun reform.

2. Nationalizing the Defense Industry – Interview with Julia Gledhill

Segment starts: 24:27

The Setup

• The Trump administration’s moves to, in effect, transfer public funds to private defense contractors via stock “equity” purchases, described as “crony capitalism.”
• Howard Lutnick (quoted via CNBC) states:

  “Lockheed Martin makes 96% of their revenue from the US government. They are basically an arm of the US government…” (26:29)

Gledhill Interview Highlights

• Why Nationalize the Defense Industry?

  “The arms industry is so deeply ingrained in our government and corrupts our decision-making process around national security policy. And frankly, I think that we need fundamental institutional reform to throw a wrench in the war machine.” (27:51, Julia Gledhill)

• Comparing Nationalization Models

  • References partial nationalization in European countries like France, where government representation on boards and better oversight helps align defense policy with the public interest.
  • The U.S. spends over $1 trillion annually on defense, much of it unaccountable, driven as much by lobbying and private profit as strategic needs.

• Shareholder Profits & Waste

  “Ultimately they are private companies with private interests. If they can’t exist without the government, then I think that this deserves serious conversation about how we reorient that relationship.” (31:33, Gledhill)

• Intellectual Property and Right to Repair

  • Contractors maintain monopolies on maintenance and repair, leading to ballooning costs (e.g., the F-35 program).
  • They’re not required to provide substantiating cost data to the government, enabling rampant price gouging.

  “They have really successfully lobbied Congress to essentially gut contracting law and regulations so that they can sort of make up prices on military contracts...” (36:10, Gledhill)

• Partial vs. Full Nationalization

  • Partial: government stake/representation, more transparency, oversight.
  • Full: buy out (compensate) shareholders, government assumes control. Not considered likely but worth public debate, especially in crisis.
  • Historical precedent: U.S. government intervention in WWII; temporary nationalization of banks during crises.

  “If the government is the stabilizer here, even in a partial nationalization situation, then you have undercut the profit motive to a large degree...” (42:10, Emma)

• Ethics and Foreign Policy Impact

  “Imagine…if arms contractors were not lobbying Congress to the extent that they are, if they weren’t giving tens of millions of dollars… It could totally change the way that we talk about national security, particularly in Washington, D.C.” (42:19, Gledhill)

3. The Republican War on Voting Rights – Interview with Ari Berman

Segment starts: 44:36

Historical Background

• Since Shelby County v. Holder (2013), the Supreme Court has stripped crucial protections from the Voting Rights Act, eliminating pre-clearance for states with histories of discrimination.

  “That…was really the most important part of the Voting Rights Act because it stopped abuses before they even occurred…” (47:10, Berman)

• Post-2013: rapid resurgence of discriminatory voting policies in multiple states.

Present Attacks on Voting Rights

• Section 2’s Fate

  • Now the focus is on gutting Section 2 of the VRA, which allows private parties to bring voting rights lawsuits.
  • Only 15 successful Section 2 VRA lawsuits (of 182 since 1982) were brought solely by the DOJ; most were brought by private actors (51:20).

• Judicial Activism and Racial Gerrymandering

  “This is the idea that Section 2 shouldn’t be used to strike down racial gerrymandering. That is also an insane, totally ahistorical idea. Clarence Thomas has basically been arguing this for 30 years. And now it seems like there’s a majority on the court for this idea.” (56:48)

  • Supreme Court plans to revisit whether majority-minority districts violate the “colorblind Constitution,” a legal maneuver critics say directly undermines the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments’ intent.

• Conservative Justifications and Real-World Impact

  “They’ve been turned on its head… The interpretation that the Fourteenth and Fifteenth who were meant to prohibit racism, not the consideration of race, now are said to prohibit the consideration of race. That…would basically kill the Voting Rights Act.” (58:39)

• Gerrymandering Arms Race

  • Trump administration’s direct pressure on Republican states to redistrict mid-decade, seeking up to 12 extra GOP House seats. Unprecedented presidential intervention.

  “A president telling a state, you need to redistrict, you need to gerrymander mid decade to give me more seats… this is absolutely insane to see.” (69:28, Berman)

• Voter Roll Purges and DOJ Actions

  • DOJ requesting voter roll data from blue states to fuel a new wave of voter purges, echoing past efforts to falsely allege mass voter fraud.

• Broader Shift Toward Authoritarianism

  • Berman warns of the “flood the zone” tactic: increase the volume and speed of anti-democratic changes so opposition cannot keep up.

  “His push for authoritarianism is gaining speed every single day and has been remarkably effective and has been quicker and more aggressive and more successful than I think even many of his critics… expected.” (80:35)

  • Glaring lack of institutional resistance; higher education, corporations, and even law firms “caving” to the new status quo.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Right's Deflection After School Shootings:
  “They are professional scapegoat hunters, pointing at scapegoats at every single turn. And, you know, we gotta stop being stupid enough to fall for it.” (19:10, Matt)

• On Pentagon Waste and Cronyism:
  “Our national security budget is well over a trillion dollars. It is completely unmoored from any cohesive or realistic strategy to guide our foreign policy.” (32:48, Julia Gledhill)

• On the VRA’s Historical Importance:
  “The Voting Rights Act was a law that basically made America a multiracial democracy. And without it… some of the things that we thought we would never see again, those kind of things will start coming back.” (66:39, Ari Berman)

• On Trump 2.0’s Ruthlessness:
  “They have accomplished, in my estimation, a lot in just eight months. I mean, very bad things. And again, it’s been destructive and that’s a lot easier to do. But they have started to figure out how to work around the courts…” (78:32, Sam)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:18-07:00: Minneapolis mass shooting & right-wing response
• 24:27-43:21: Julia Gledhill on defense industry nationalization
• 44:36-86:25: Sam Seder interviews Ari Berman on voting rights (detailed historical and current analysis)
• 86:25-end: Show panel fun and lighter discussion (skip for core political content)

Episode Tone & Style

• Forthright, irreverent, occasionally expletive-laden analysis
• In-depth interviews with strong focus on policy detail and democratic principles
• Clear outrage at current political developments, tempered by moments of dark humor and camaraderie among the hosts

Conclusion

This episode is a must-listen for anyone wanting an accessible, strongly-argued account of how America’s twin crises—a captured defense economy and a sabotaged democracy—intersect under the current political regime. Both interviews serve as a call to action for more radical, structural solutions—be it nationalizing war profiteers or fighting for the very foundations of voting rights. The mood is urgent but never defeatist, consistently foregrounding data, real-world impact, and the imperative of public accountability.