What did Sarah Paine say about the US midterms and Pete Hegseth?

Sarah Paine said the midterms, which elect the whole House and part of the Senate, will show whether Americans reassess a war that has raised their fuel prices. She said the Republican Party committed a supreme dereliction of duty by confirming Pete Hegseth, a former major, to run the Pentagon instead of demanding someone like General Mattis. She urged the third of Americans who did not vote to turn out.

Paine said democracies correct mistakes by electing the other party, because leaders rarely admit errors.
Paine argued that wage stagnation in the US comes from the tax code and monopsony, not from immigrants.

▸In their words

“It's going to be a national IQ test for the United States on how they vote.” Sarah Paine · at 54:43 — open in the transcript →

Source: our own transcription of the episode. The full conversation is on The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett (2026-10-29). Read the whole episode summary →

▸More from this episode

Q1Why does Sarah Paine call the Iran war one of the most incompetent wars in history?Q2What does Sarah Paine mean by continentalist powers and the maritime world order?Q3Does Sarah Paine think the world is heading toward World War III?Q4Why does Sarah Paine reject the idea that NATO expansion caused the Ukraine war?Q5What did Sarah Paine say about reports of a Trump deal with Putin for diesel?Q6Can Ukraine win the war against Russia, according to Sarah Paine?Q7What does Sarah Paine think happens in Russia after Putin dies?

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