Nov 6, 2026 · 26 min
Republicans lose the local internet
BONUS PREVIEW: The Republicans forgot how to use the internet
The episode argues that political power now depends on connecting local grievances across fragmented social networks, not dominating one national platform.
- 1Republicans overinvested in X and other national platforms while neglecting Instagram, Facebook, and localized social graphs.
- 2The midterm losses reflected economic grievances, weak candidates, declining youth and Hispanic support, and strong Black turnout.
- 3Trump’s insulated media operation favors unserious AI memes over the disciplined narrative-building that turns local concerns into national movements.
Don't miss
Ryan Broderick’s critique of Donald Trump’s media operation, especially its fixation on unserious AI memes, crystallizes the episode’s argument about strategic failure.
The brief
Ryan Broderick and Grant Irving open with a counterintuitive theory of the Republicans’ poor midterm performance: the party lost touch with where political narratives actually form.
Broderick argues that Republicans overinvested in X and other national algorithmic platforms while neglecting Instagram, Facebook, and the localized social graphs that amplify ideas.
The midterm explanation extends beyond platform strategy, encompassing gas prices, data-center opposition, weak endorsements, declining youth and Hispanic support, and strong Black turnout.
The sharpest criticism targets Donald Trump’s insulated information bubble and a White House social-media operation more interested in AI memes than strategic narrative-building.
The conversation closes on a fragmented internet where no single website controls culture, making the ability to connect local grievances into national identity newly decisive.
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