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What Now? With Trevor NoahHarris v. Trump: The Week Before with Tressie McMillan Cottom | What Now? with Trevor Noah Podcast
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Chapter summaries
Election Anxiety and the Trump Hangover
Trevor Noah asks how everyone is feeling a week before the election. Tressie McMillan Cottom says people are texting her their stress because they can't believe losing didn't get rid of Trump. Noah and a co-host compare the dread to horror-movie formulas and talk about Trump's staying power.
- •Tressie says some of the anxiety is a hangover from thinking Trump had been pushed off the stage
- •A co-host says she has disassociated and lacks the emotional stamina for four more years
- •Noah compares Trump's endurance to Robert Mugabe's
- •Noah likens the resignation some feel to the ending of horror movies
Political Affiliation as Identity
Noah asks why parties now come with personality types, with Democrats scared and conservatives confident. Tressie explains that affiliation has become an all-year identity and that Trump appeals to identity rather than morality. She uses a Wonder Bread analogy for what consumers want.
- •Political affiliation has become identity over about 30 years
- •Tressie says Trump appeals to identity while liberals appeal to higher angels
- •The Wonder Bread versus whole grain analogy
- •Democrats are scared while conservatives sound sure of victory
Secret Ballots, Political Violence and Hidden Votes
Noah recalls South Africa's first democratic election, where the message was that your vote is your secret. The group debates secrecy versus openness, and Noah suggests some voters may wear a hat publicly but vote differently in the booth. Tressie questions the divided-couple trope and says women's votes are shaped by proximity to patriarchal power.
- •South Africa's 'your vote is your secret' campaign
- •A co-host argues that if something must be secret, you should question why
- •Noah links secrecy to protection against political violence
- •Tressie says conservatives vote to regulate others, not themselves
- •Tressie relays a friend's line that crackheads don't marry non-crackheads
Black Men, the Hispanic Vote and Democratic Coalitions
A host asks whether the story of Black men leaving the Democrats is overblown. Tressie says it is real but about 5%, and ties it to patriarchal appeals and the declining Black church. They then discuss how the Hispanic vote is treated as a monolith.
- •Tressie says the shift among Black men is statistically interesting but not important
- •Trump taps working-class men's desire to be breadwinners again
- •Tressie attributes the shift more to the decline of the Black church's power
- •Hispanic voters come from different national origins with different interests
- •The Hispanic vote may matter more given demographic growth
Big Tent vs. Clear Message: Democrats and Republicans
Noah argues Democrats are in a lose-lose position because a coalition party can't deliver one clear message, unlike Republicans. A co-host disagrees and says Democrats need to sell the big tent as Obama did. They argue over whether Trump is tribalist, and Noah says to listen to what Trump means rather than what he says.
- •Noah says Republicans offer one clean message while Democrats juggle a coalition
- •A co-host cites Republican papers panicking about minority voters and says Democrats should use the big tent
- •Obama's 'no red America, no blue America' convention line is discussed
- •Noah argues that people hear Trump differently than academics do, citing the Muslim ban
- •Tressie says Democrats erred in mocking the 'Black jobs' remark
Trump's Messaging Gift and a Rigged Structure
The group discusses why Trump can get away with things Harris could not, including the idea that shamelessness works for white men. Tressie says Harris has limitations as a candidate and that the structure of US electoral politics, with gerrymandering and packed courts, keeps Republicans competitive.
- •Democrats are afraid of being held responsible for a clear message, per Tressie
- •Noah says Trump's Israel-Palestine message of 'peace' is clearer than Harris's
- •A co-host says Trump uses his whiteness to the max and Harris couldn't get away with it
- •Tressie says a potato could be competitive as the Republican candidate
Madison Square Garden Rally and Trump as Preacher
Noah discusses the Trump rally at Madison Square Garden where an opening comedian made jokes about Puerto Rico and Black people, prompting celebrity responses. He says Trump can recover in the moment, comparing it to a preacher's sermon that mixes a politically incorrect joke into a serious message. His co-host calls Trump a preacher of darkness, and the group debates this.
- •Noah says the rally was a major misstep so close to the election
- •Bad Bunny, J.Lo and Ricky Martin posted pro-Harris messages afterward
- •Noah argues Trump brings church dynamics to politics
- •A co-host calls Trump a preacher of darkness and compares him to an outrageous great uncle
- •She says he is humorous but also stoking hatred
Can Harris Win? Fears of Election Litigation
Noah asks whether the fears are overblown and whether Harris might win. Tressie says anything is possible, but that Trump will declare victory on election night regardless and litigate in courts and in voters' minds. The group also talks about Harris's prosecutor instincts, and Tressie describes her as a shark.
- •Tressie says she thought Biden would win in 2020 because COVID was a big external shock
- •Tressie says Trump doesn't need to win to win
- •She worries Democrats won't go as far as Trump in a dispute
- •Tressie sees Harris as a shark who wants it, and hopes the party lets her fight
Tucker Carlson's 'Daddy's Coming Home' Speech
Noah recounts Tucker Carlson's Turning Point speech comparing Trump's return to a father coming home, which ended with a spanking fantasy aimed at a daughter. Tressie notes the daughter's punishment was sexualized and says it reflects anxiety about women voters and Carlson's need for attention. A co-host connects it to the audience's religious discipline culture.
- •Carlson's analogy has a boy smoking marijuana and a girl slamming a door, but the daughter gets the spanking
- •Tressie says the fixation on the daughter reflects who they think the problem is: women voters
- •Tressie says Carlson needs attention after leaving Fox
- •A co-host links it to trad wife and Quiverfull discipline culture
Male Anxiety, the Soft Life and White Women Voters
Noah suggests much of politics boils down to men feeling the world has no place for them. The group discusses men falling behind in education, women seeking protection from men and the 'soft life', and Tressie argues marriage is a capitalist fantasy. She says white women's votes defend their sons' patriarchal privilege.
- •Noah says climate, gender identity, guns and the border all tie back to male anxiety
- •A co-host says some women want to be under a man's authority because capitalism hasn't worked for them
- •Tressie calls marriage a capitalist fantasy
- •Tressie says white women vote to defend their sons' privilege while Black women know it isn't promised for their sons
IVF, Abortion and Republican Reassurances
A co-host who did IVF in Texas asks whether conservative women upset about abortion bans affecting IVF and miscarriage care could swing the election. Tressie hopes so, but says JD Vance's debate answer reassured them. She says these voters want assurances rather than policies.
- •Conservative churchgoing women in IVF clinics are unhappy about how abortion bans overlap with IVF
- •Tressie says Vance smoothly papered over the issue on the debate stage
- •These women want assurance they can keep IVF while abortion is denied to others
- •Louisiana rulings have worried people about IVF
Democrats' Campaign Strategy and Undeclared Voters
Noah criticizes the Harris campaign for spending too much time warning about Trump's danger, since voters lived through his presidency. He argues nothing is a foregone conclusion, and that undeclared voters who want to avoid chaos may favor Harris. He says he'd put it at 51% for Harris but wouldn't bet on it.
- •Noah says warnings lose force like storm evacuation alerts, and Democrats should have said more about what they'd do
- •He notes authoritarianism is a gradual creep
- •A co-host reacts anxiously, and Noah says nothing is decided until election day
- •Noah thinks undeclared voters may lean toward Harris
- •He puts Harris at 51% but wouldn't bet money
Staying Sane: Tressie's Advice and Sign-Off
Noah asks Tressie for advice on maintaining sanity. She says to opt out of polling culture, go vote, bring someone along and expect a long, drawn-out count. The episode ends with banter about Tressie returning next week and a joke drunk post-election episode.
- •Tressie says she dislikes polling culture and that polls are not deterministic
- •She says you might be a bad citizen for not voting, not for ignoring polls
- •Tressie will blog until about 2 AM for The New York Times and expects a long count
- •Tressie will return to the podcast next week
