Flight Cancellation Chaos, SNAP Ruling, and U.S.-Canada Trade War
In this live Pivot taping from Toronto, hosts Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway discuss escalating U.S. flight delays tied to FAA staffing and a government shutdown, using airline safety and history to illustrate how policy choices affect economic vitality and public trust. They examine the U.S. Supreme Court's handling of SNAP food benefits, child hunger, and what budget priorities reveal about American values, before turning to U.S.-Canada tariffs, asymmetric trade benefits, Canadian efforts to diversify away from the U.S., and missed innovation opportunities. The episode also explores progressive urban politics, models of modern masculinity, debates over state-run grocery stores versus higher minimum wage, falling cross-border tourism, and audience questions on defending democracy, advertising careers, and AI-driven disinformation.
Mamdani's Win, Palantir's Stock Slide, and Tesla's Pay Package
Hosts Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway discuss recent U.S. election results, including Zoran Mamdani's New York mayoral win and Democratic gains nationwide, and analyze generational and gender divides in voting alongside structural inequality in education and child poverty. They debate income-based affirmative action and tax enforcement, examine the Supreme Court case over Trump's tariffs and the investment implications of possible refunds, and explore the growing privatization of space, Palantir's soaring valuation versus Michael Burry's short, right‑wing flirtations with extremism, and the looming shareholder vote on Elon Musk's massive Tesla pay package.
After the shutdown, SNAP will still be in trouble
The episode examines how a new federal law, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, ties states' costs for food stamps (SNAP) to their payment error rates, shifting part of the financial burden from the federal government to states. Reporters follow Oregon official Nate Singer as he works to reduce the state's high error rate without making it harder for people like Safeway cashier and SNAP recipient Vicki Aguilar to access benefits. The story also explores the auditing system, the tradeoff between accuracy and accessibility, the perspective of Governor Tina Kotek, and the added pressure from a federal government shutdown threatening to suspend SNAP payments.