GOP Panic Ahead Of Midterms; Meta’s Muse Goes To #1; Iced Coffee Job Debate; Gay Bar Mask Mandate Controversy

Mosheh Oinounou (0:04)

Hey, everybody, it is Thursday, September 24th. You're listening to the Mo News podcast. I'm Moshe Oinounou.

Jill Wagner (0:09)

And I'm Jill Wagner. This is the place where we bring you just the facts.

Mosheh Oinounou (0:13)

And where we read all the news and read between the lines so you don't have to. And sometimes, Jill, we're here with a job interview advice.

Jill Wagner (0:20)

You had the viral debate this week. Is it OK to bring a cup of iced coffee to a job interview? So that question is taking over social media. It started with a TikTok that was posted by a corporate recruiter who said that she has noticed that Gen Z candidates keep showing up to interviews with iced coffee in their hand. Her issue is that she says it makes the interview look like a quote, stop on your list of errands for the day.

That video got hundreds of thousands of views.

Mosheh Oinounou (0:51)

Yeah, so we were actually talking about this. I can't imagine walking into a job interview, like kind of shaking my cup of ice in there. Sipping from the straw. Yeah, tell me more about this company that I want to work at.

But I guess this is a thing.

You have a lot of people commenting on both sides here. You have on one side a self-described professional millennial who wrote, I would never show up with a drink in my hand. I agree with you fellow millennial. On the other, do you guys need employees or not?

SPEAKER_3 (1:22)

That view.

Jill Wagner (1:24)

Touche.

Mosheh Oinounou (1:26)

You put a job listing out there. I need my iced coffee. I need it during this interview. Jill, we've talked on this podcast too about how some of the remote interviews, people are utilizing AI to get answers to questions in real-time and pausing as the AI figures out the answer to the recruiter's question. This obviously is the in-person scenario here.

But listen, you need your caffeine fix, get it outside the interview. You come into the interview, you're sitting there, they might offer you a cup of water, a cup of coffee, played by the rules of the place you want to work at. Because come with your whole thing, chomping, chewing gum, that's a big thing too. I've had people who, I mean, I've had to hire a lot of folks at various organizations, Jill, and now I'm like, this is triggering memories of people coming in, who walk in like they own the place.

Which at times could like, okay, there's a certain amount of confidence you want in people.

Jill Wagner (2:23)

They got swagger.

Mosheh Oinounou (2:25)

They got a little swagger, they got a little toot, but like not too much toot, and the iced coffee, it's just the ice shaking in a cup is all I can hear right now.

Jill Wagner (2:33)

Wait, so we were talking about this on our morning meeting. So we asked our resident Gen Zers, Alec and Sam, if they've ever brought coffee, iced or hot to a job interview. Sam said that he had actually never done an in-person interview, which was interesting. They've all been just over Zoom. And then Alec was saying that a career counselor gave him advice in college that said, not only should he bring coffee to an interview, that you should bring coffee for yourself and the person who's doing the interview.

Oh, which is an interesting approach.

Mosheh Oinounou (3:09)

That is like, listen, exception to the rule. If you come in with your own iced coffee or like shaking it, that's a no.

But if you come in with an iced coffee for me, and you've somehow found out my coffee order or asked in advance, now you're halfway towards the job.

Jill Wagner (3:24)

All right, let's get to some headlines here, starting with politics a little over a month to the midterms. Republicans are in panic mode.

Mosheh Oinounou (3:32)

Yeah, we'll take a look at some of the polling here, Jill. States that Republicans didn't think they had to spend a dime in or much in, they're spending tens of millions of dollars in places like Texas and Iowa and other states. And it's not an issue of money, but it's an issue of message.

We'll tell you what they're saying about aspects of Trump's agenda.

Jill Wagner (3:53)

President Trump rolling out the red carpet for China's Xi Jinping, first greeting him at the airport and tonight that big state dinner.

Mosheh Oinounou (4:01)

Though the move has come under criticism from some fellow Republicans.

Jill Wagner (4:05)

Meanwhile, at the UN, a US delegation walks out as Iran's president addresses the General Assembly. He says Iran is not going to bend the knee to the United States.