Trump's Vaccine Executive Order Explained — And What Polio Did to One Family

I put one of my own kids on an alternate vaccine schedule, and it took me years and a lot of humility to come back from it. So when this administration says it wants to put parents in the driver's seat, I know exactly how good that sounds — and exactly what it costs.

In this episode, Beth and I break down the new executive order that would unbundle the MMR and reclassify a whole set of childhood vaccines as "shared clinical decision making," plus the request for information HHS put out on August 24. We talk about the two unvaccinated people who just died of measles in Pennsylvania, the first deaths from measles in that state in thirty-five years. And Beth talks with Beth Sumner from Grandparents for Vaccines, whose brother got polio in 1954 — one year before the Salk vaccine — about what that did to him and to her whole family.

Then Outside of Politics, we get into things from our youth that hold up and things that absolutely do not.

We're in Minneapolis this weekend for our one and only live show of 2026. Inperson tickets are gone, but virtual tickets are still available and are buy one, get one half off grab a friend and make an evening of it

All episode resources and links are in the show notes on Substack

Pantsuit Politics is hosted by Sarah Stewart Holland and Beth Silvers and produced by Studio D Podcast Production. Our theme music was composed by Xander Singh with inspiration from original work by Dante Lima.

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*Inside Pantsuit Politics: Nuanced News, Honest Disagreement & A Better Way Through*

Pantsuit Politics is the political podcast for people who want to understand the news without letting outrage take over. Hosts Sarah Stewart Holland and Beth Silvers bring different personalities, priorities and perspectives to the week's biggest political stories, with more in common than cable news would have you believe.

➡️ Every Tuesday and Friday, they connect national headlines to the people, institutions, communities and relationships that shape everyday life. The goal is not to flatten complex issues into partisan talking points, but to offer context, competing perspectives and a manageable way to keep paying attention.

Episodes explore elections, democracy, public policy, courts, education, the economy, foreign affairs and political culture. Interviews with writers, public officials, experts and community leaders add depth, while Outside of Politics remembers that civic life is only one part of a full human life.

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✅ Subscribe to Pantsuit Politics for thoughtful political analysis, meaningful interviews and honest conversations that help you understand the news instead of simply reacting to it.

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