Faiz has spent more than two decades thinking about what American politics gets wrong — and what it might still be capable of getting right. His starting point was the Iraq War, but his deeper frustration is with the gap between ordinary people and the politicians that claim to represent them.

In this episode, we talk to Faiz about class consciousness, why the Democratic Party can feel like a closed club, and what it would mean to actually open the doors. That takes us from Bernie Sanders to Zohran Mamdani, and then of course, to Graham Platner and the U.S. Senate race in Maine.

With Janet Mills out of the primary, the Maine Senate race has changed fast. Faiz makes the case for why Platner can beat Susan Collins — not by running to the middle, but by running directly against money in politics, private equity, corporate power, and the feeling that Washington has stopped listening to working people.

Plus: Is this really a generational fight? Faiz isn’t so sure. He argues the real divide is between politicians who have been captured by corporate interest and politicians who are still listening and connected to regular people.

Stick around for Agebait, where Luca usually brings Alison a piece of internet culture to test her knowledge. This week, we switch things up: Alison brings something to the table — the idea that younger men increasingly want to date older women.

Background Reading

Why I Am Running For DNC Chair

Janet Mills drops out of race for US Senate

Why Young Men Want to Be With Older Women

Politics Between Us is created by Alison Beyea and Luca DeAngelis. Produced by Steven Jackson. Research by Jeff Sanders.

This Substack is a personal project. Alison and Luca are both employees of Colby College, but the views and opinions expressed here are entirely our own and do not represent those of Colby College or any other institutions with which we are affiliated. This publication is not produced, sponsored, or endorsed by the College.

Keywords: Faiz Shakir, Bernie Sanders, More Perfect Union, ACLU, Graham Platner, Susan Collins, Maine Senate race, Zohran Mamdani, money in politics, Democratic Party, working-class politics, economic justice, populism.

Lucas’ story is unlike anyone else in Maine politics. He grew up off the grid in rural Piscataquis County, watched his mom build Burt’s Bees on a wood stove in a one-room schoolhouse, and spent years winning over deeply hostile communities to turn 87,000 acres of northern Maine into a national monument. Then he ran for Congress.

We get into all of it: what it actually felt like to walk into communities that despised him, how he turned opponents into allies one kitchen table at a time, and what he thinks about politicians going negative.

We also dig into the question Alison and Luca keep coming back to: who gets to define your identity? Lucas has a lot to say about the attacks on Graham Platner’s biography because he lived a version of the same story. And after dancing around it, he comes pretty close to an endorsement….but you should hear that for yourself.

Plus, is Lucas considering running for office again? Maybe. Or maybe there’s more power in staying outside.

Then stick around for Agebait, where Luca introduces Alison to looksmaxxing, mogging, and a whole online universe of scary extreme ideas.

Join the Politics Between Us Community:

Background Reading

Katahdin Woods and Waters

‘Looksmaxxing’ Reveals the Depth of the Crisis Facing Young Men

Musings on the political and Graham Platner: Reflections on a conversation, Part 1

Clavicular Looksmaxxing Interview

Politics Between Us is created by Alison Beyea and Luca DeAngelis and produced by Steven Jackson.

This Substack is a personal project. Alison and Luca are both employees of Colby College, but the views and opinions expressed here are entirely our own and do not represent those of Colby College or any other institutions with which we are affiliated. This publication is not produced, sponsored, or endorsed by the College.

Keywords: Lucas St. Clair, Katahdin Woods and Waters, Maine Senate primary, Graham Platner, Janet Mills, rural Maine, identity politics, class and authenticity, looksmaxxing, Gen Z, negative campaigning, happy warrior, 2026 Senate race.

This week, we’re continuing our deep dive into Maine’s 2026 U.S. Senate primary—but stepping back to ask a deeper question: what matters to rural voters?

To help us think about this question, we’re joined by Professor Nicholas Jacobs, a leading scholar of rural politics. His work challenges one of the most dominant narratives in American politics: that rural voters are driven by irrational “rage.” Instead, he offers a more complicated argument about politics rooted in place, identity, and experience.

We talk about why Democrats keep misreading rural communities, how resentment differs from rage, and why the most “authentic” rural candidate in recent memory might actually be Donald Trump. And we spend time on Maine specifically: why this state is “wonderfully weird,” why national media keeps missing the point, and why being a harbormaster might matter more than other points on a résumé.

Along the way, we also get into the tension shaping this race, and American politics more broadly. Experience vs. disruption, governing vs. standing up, and whether voters today care more about who you are or whether you actually have their back.

Then stick around for Agebait, our recurring segment where Luca pulls something from internet culture and tests how much Alison actually understands about the world people under 35 are living in. This week: betting, billionaires, and the odds on the Maine’s 2026 U.S. Senate Democratic primary.

Join the Politics Between Us Community:

Background Reading

Trump’s rural voters know what they’re doing Sneering only widens the divide

What Liberals Get Wrong About ‘White Rural Rage’ — Almost Everything

“I’ve Got Your Back” Politics

Maine Democratic Senate Primary Winner — Polymarket

Politics Between Us is created by Alison Beyea and Luca DeAngelis and produced by Steven Jackson.

This Substack is a personal project. Alison and Luca are both employees of Colby College, but the views and opinions expressed here are entirely our own and do not represent those of Colby College or any other institutions with which we are affiliated. This publication is not produced, sponsored, or endorsed by the College.

Keywords: Maine politics, rural voters, Nicholas Jacobs, Janet Mills, Graham Platner, authenticity, resentment vs rage, 2026 Senate, political identity, rural America.

We’re kicking things off with a conversation that gets right into the heart of Maine’s 2026 U.S. Democratic Senate primary: the race between sitting Governor Janet Mills and political newcomer Graham Platner. To help us make sense of it all, we brought in David Farmer, one of Maine’s most seasoned political strategists, with nearly 25 years of experience in the state.

We get into the complicated gender dynamics at play in this race, why transgender rights have become such a defining issue in Maine politics, and what Democrats nationally keep getting wrong about political messaging. David also makes an unexpected case for Janet Mills — even while admitting he might be protecting the status quo.

Then stick around for the debut of ‘Agebait’ — our segment where Luca pulls something from internet culture and tests how much Alison actually understands about the world people under 35 are living in. This week: AI-generated videos, Erika Kirk, and Alison having a lot of feelings about spectacle.

This Substack is a personal project. We are both employees of Colby College, but the views and opinions expressed here are entirely our own and do not represent those of Colby College or any other institutions with which we are affiliated. This publication is not produced, sponsored, or endorsed by the College.

Keywords: Maine politics, 2026 Senate, Janet Mills, Graham Platner, Democratic primary, political strategy, AI.