<p>This week’s <em>Mid-Atlantic</em> served up a blistering transatlantic roundup, with host <strong>Roifield Brown</strong> and a sharp panel of commentators dissecting political dysfunction from the White House to Westminster. First, Elon Musk’s abrupt departure from the Trump administration drew collective side-eye. <strong>Denise Hamilton</strong> called it a “planned grift,” while <strong>Michael Donahue</strong> reminded us Musk’s firms are still swimming in government contracts. As for public perception? Let’s just say Tesla’s aura now smells a lot like diesel.</p><br><p>Next, Trump’s vendetta against Harvard and foreign students provoked righteous fury. Michael labelled it “vindictive chaos,” while Denise broke down how this could gut America’s soft power for decades. Meanwhile, <strong>Cory Bernard</strong> coolly suggested British universities may opportunistically benefit from Trump’s xenophobic overreach. A win for Oxford, a loss for everyone else.</p><br><p>On the UK side, Labour’s Brexit “reset” is, according to Cory, “technocratic fudge.” While the EU quietly standardises global regulation, Britain remains a rule-taker masquerading as a rule-maker. The panel skewered Starmer’s “quiet alignment” approach, calling it necessary but cowardly. Gaza and the UK’s too-little-too-late condemnation of Israeli settlements brought a sombre close, with Denise lamenting performative outrage after the damage is done. Oh, and Trump’s tariffs? Illegal, inflationary, and economically suicidal—now rubber-stamped as such by the courts.</p><br><p><strong>Selected Quotes from the Episode</strong></p><ol><li>“This is just a three-card monte. You’re looking over here, meanwhile, you’re being robbed mercilessly.” – Denise Hamilton</li><li>“You can’t run a country like a business because government’s job isn’t to make money—it’s to deliver the mail and send checks to old people.” – Michael Donahue</li><li>“The UK’s condemnation is just performative. Now that Gaza’s flattened, suddenly everyone finds their moral compass.” – Cory Bernard</li><li>“We are experiencing a level of grift we can’t even process.” – Denise Hamilton</li><li>“The EU is stealthily rewriting global corporate governance—and Britain is just cosplaying sovereignty.” – Roifield Brown</li></ol><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>