Discourse Pod

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.discourseblog.com

Newly minted Rolling Stone senior writer Jack “Cros” Crobie is back in the third chair to discuss:

* How having a W2 job can make you a little bit (or a lot of bit) libertarian

* Trump saying he doesn’t care at all about the impact of the Iran war on Americans’ finances

* A quick aside about The Devil Wears Prada 2 (listen/watch our subscribers-only ep!)

* A chat about how Spencer Pratt opened his run for mayor of Los Angeles with an incredible AI slop video depicting himself as Batman that Republicans are absolutely eating up, munch munch crunch crunch

* Cros’ theory on why MAGA loves these hyper-stylized fake videos and images so damn much

* A detour into how badly the Bush family is aging

* How evil is like IBS

* And in our After Dark segment available only to subscribers, we talk FBI Director Kash Patel going ballistic in a Senate hearing about his alleged drinking on the job

This week’s cultural recommendations:

* Jack recommends Cats: The Jellicle Ball, now on Broadway

* Cros recommends the second seasons of Running Point and Beef, both on Netflix

* Aleks recommends Veronica Mars, newly on Netflix

Want to hear the full, extended episode on your favorite podcast app? First, subscribe to Discourse Blog here. Then, follow these instructions:

Spotify: Tap the “Play” button and select “Link Account” to sync your Substack subscription and unlock it instantly.

Apple Podcasts & Others: Go to Settings in Substack > select Discourse Blog > scroll to the “private podcast feed” section > select “set up podcast” > then copy and paste the link it generates into your preferred app.

And don’t forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel!

That’s it!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.discourseblog.com

! IMPORTANT PROGRAMMING NOTE!We’re taking next week (May 5, 2026) off! We’ll be back the following week with a new episode (May 12, 2026).

The Week’s Rafi Schwartz returns to the third chair to discuss:

* What foods are better soggy

* Kelsey Grammer’s 2021 collaboration with Gristedes??

* Was the shooting a FALSE FLAG OP to speed up the construction of the White House ballroom?????????

* Kash Patel reportedly being cucked mid-shooting :(

* Suspected WHCD shooter Cole Allen’s blog-worthy manifesto

* The Free Press’ Olivia Reingold going straight-to-cam

* The bleak conditions under which Trump assassination attempts keep happening

* A deep-dive on the mentalist Oz Pearlman, the entertainment at the WHCD

* This photo of Stephen Miller; this video of RFK Jr. and Cheryl Hines

* Our excitement for TMZ opening a DC bureau

* And in our After Dark segment available only to subscribers, we get into the very funny Vanity Fair profile of CBS Evening News anchor Tony Dokoupil (or as we call him, Du-poop-ul)

This week’s cultural recommendations:

* John Frankenheimer’s The Manchurian Candidate (and NOT!!! the Jonathan Demme remake)

* Rafi recommends Judd Apatow’s The Zen Diaries of Garry Shandling

* Aleks recommends AMC Lincoln Square in New York City

Want to hear the full, extended episode on your favorite podcast app? First, subscribe to Discourse Blog here. Then, follow these instructions:

Spotify: Tap the “Play” button and select “Link Account” to sync your Substack subscription and unlock it instantly.

Apple Podcasts & Others: Go to Settings in Substack > select Discourse Blog > scroll to the “private podcast feed” section > select “set up podcast” > then copy and paste the link it generates into your preferred app.

And don’t forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel!

That’s it!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.discourseblog.com

Producer Sam is BACK in the third chair to discuss:

* Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer resigns; Tim Apple said, “Also, me”

* Checking in on Ellen DeGeneres (she’s back in America! sort of)

* Speaking of problematic lesbians, Rosie O’Donnell is MAD at disgraced former Congressman Eric Swalwell

* Also Producer Sam has been sitting on a Rosie O’Donnell impression???

* FBI Director Kash Patel is suing The Atlantic $250 million for alleging he is drunk on the job

* We remember who was on the various CSIs. Did you remember that Gary Sinise was the star of CSI: NY? (And randomly Sela Ward was on it????)

* The great reconsideration of Lena Dunham upon the release of her new memoir, Famesick

* Which reminded us of the uh, not so thinly veiled rumors of Jack Antonoff’s affair with a teenage Lorde

* And in our After Dark segment available only to subscribers, Jack finally saw Kristoffer Borgli’s The Drama and we had to get into it!

This week’s cultural recommendations:

* Jack recommends Canada Dry seltzer

* Sam recommends the Blowback podcast

* Aleks recommends the fifth and final season of Hacks on HBO Max

Want to hear the full, extended episode on your favorite podcast app? First, subscribe to Discourse Blog here. Then, follow these instructions:

Spotify: Tap the “Play” button and select “Link Account” to sync your Substack subscription and unlock it instantly.

Apple Podcasts & Others: Go to Settings in Substack > select Discourse Blog > scroll to the “private podcast feed” section > select “set up podcast” > then copy and paste the link it generates into your preferred app.

And don’t forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel!

That’s it!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.discourseblog.com

The Intercept’s Katherine Krueger returns to the third chair to discuss:

* Sid Rosenberg’s beef with Mr. and Mrs. Met

* Eric Swalwell’s resignation from Congress

* Jack’s first bylines as an intern at The San Francisco Chronicle

* Those photos of Justin Trudeau and and Katy Perry at Coachella, which reminded us of that photo of Orlando Bloom and Selena Gomez

* Trump claiming he didn’t the AI slop he posted was of him depicted as Jesus

* Speaking of Jesus, Trump is now feuding with the Pope lol

* Doordash Grandma, welcome to the Resistance, with a side quest where we remember Ken Bone

* J.D. Vance’s 21-hour negotiations with Iran didn’t go well

* The double-blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and how Trump is leading the speedrun of American decline on a global stage

* Vance’s weird analogy about his wife skydiving

* And in our After Dark segment available only to subscribers, we get into the alleged attack on Sam Altman’s house

This week’s cultural recommendations:

* Jack recommends Steven Sodebergh’s The Christophers

* Katherine recommends Jason Molina’s Songs: Ohia

* Aleks recommends Rooster, on HBO

Want to hear the full, extended episode on your favorite podcast app? First, subscribe to Discourse Blog here. Then, follow these instructions:

Spotify: Tap the “Play” button and select “Link Account” to sync your Substack subscription and unlock it instantly.

Apple Podcasts & Others: Go to Settings in Substack > select Discourse Blog > scroll to the “private podcast feed” section > select “set up podcast” > then copy and paste the link it generates into your preferred app.

And don’t forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel!

That’s it!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.discourseblog.com

The Week’s Rafi Schwartz returns to the third chair to discuss:

* Whether werewolf astronauts would permanently be in wolf form due to their proximity to the moon

* Trump’s chaotic Easter Sunday post and his promise of war crimes (note: this episode was recorded before Trump threatened on Tuesday that a “whole civilization will die tonight”)

* Why Iran reminds Jack of how Trump handled COVID

* Pam Bondi was shitcanned as Attorney General—who’s next??

* This episode was recorded the same day Savannah Guthrie returned to the Today Show, which naturally led to a discussion about Jenna Bush Hager’s highly influential book club

* We took a quick scan of some current Kalshi bets

* And in our After Dark segment available only to subscribers, we discuss the scandal involving Kristi Noem’s husband and correct the record on Timothée Chalamet’s Jewish identity

This week’s cultural recommendations:

* Jack recommends the pro-shot of Maria Friedman’s Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim’s Merrily We Roll Along, on Netflix

* Rafi recommends Karthik Subbaraj’s Pizza Movie on Hulu

* Aleks recommends Kristoffer Borgli’s The Drama, now in theaters

Want to hear the full, extended episode on your favorite podcast app? First, subscribe to Discourse Blog here. Then, follow these instructions:

Spotify: Tap the “Play” button and select “Link Account” to sync your Substack subscription and unlock it instantly.

Apple Podcasts & Others: Go to Settings in Substack > select Discourse Blog > scroll to the “private podcast feed” section > select “set up podcast” > then copy and paste the link it generates into your preferred app.

And don’t forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel!

That’s it!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.discourseblog.com

Slate’s Caitlin Schneider is back in the third chair this week to discuss:

* A very silly Politico magazine story about Rahm Emanuel that opens with an inane lede about how he eats a salad and how we’ll be slurping down countless stories like this in the lead-up to the 2028 Democratic primary

* We Remember Some Salads and each rank our top three office worker nutrient bowl chains (R.I.P. Hale and Hearty). What are yours????

* Also, remember when someone allegedly found a DEAD RAT in a Chopt salad???

* The Rahm story led us to this absolutely cursed YouGov ranking of Democrats’ “fame” and “popularity,” so of course we made Jack guess who was in the top five

* We also remember how Kelsey Grammer and Jennifer Aniston were great on 30 Rock

* There was also this goofy Axios story about how some (anonymous) Dems are wringing their hands about 2028 and whether they should nominate a straight, white, Christian man

* Did you know Grimes joined LinkedIn?

* And in our After Dark segment available only to subscribers, we discuss Ryan Gosling’s career, the sad state of movie promotional tours, and the ways we make celebrities humiliate themselves to make us watch their little shows and movies. We also touch on The Devil Wears Prada 2, The Drama, and seeing movies in 4DX lol.

This week’s cultural recommendations:

* Jack recommends Jeopardy! (Ken Jennings ONLY!!!)

* Caitlin recommends Jury Duty: Company Retreat on Amazon Prime Video

* Aleks recommends Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s Project Hail Mary, in theaters now

Want to hear the full, extended episode on your favorite podcast app? First, subscribe to Discourse Blog here. Then, follow these instructions:

Spotify: Tap the “Play” button and select “Link Account” to sync your Substack subscription and unlock it instantly.

Apple Podcasts & Others: Go to Settings in Substack > select Discourse Blog > scroll to the “private podcast feed” section > select “set up podcast” > then copy and paste the link it generates into your preferred app.

And don’t forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel!

That’s it!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.discourseblog.com

We’re back! After taking a week off due to illness (more on that on the pod…), Jack Crosbie (“Cros”) returns to the third chair to get into:

* Trump saying the war is over, but not really, but maybe? The only thing we know for sure? We’re losing

* This Max Fisher video about what’s motivating the four main actors in the Iran War

* Gas prices soaring, seems fine, we definitely aren’t facing a supply shock we haven’t seen in decades, or maybe ever?

* As if going to the airport wasn’t already absolutely miserable, now we have to stand for hours in security lines while ICE agents run amok

* We started talking about James Talarico’s chances in Texas, but that led to us talking about magazine covers, what they’re even good for anymore (don’t even get us STARTED on the scam that is “digital covers”). This is also the moment Cros revealed he had never seen the “Planet Hillary” New York Times Magazine cover

* Coining our fandom/stan army name…if you don’t like it, then start commenting!!!

* And in our After Dark segment available only to subscribers, we dive deep into the latest Chappell Roan drama involving soccer star Jorginho Frello, Jude Law’s daughter, and the mayor of Rio

This week’s cultural recommendations:

* Jack recommends the audiobook for Liza Minelli’s memoir, Kids, Wait Till You Hear This!

* Cros recommends Summer House on Bravo

* Aleks recommends the OTC medication GasX

Want to hear the full, extended episode on your favorite podcast app? First, subscribe to Discourse Blog here. Then, follow these instructions:

Spotify: Tap the “Play” button and select “Link Account” to sync your Substack subscription and unlock it instantly.

Apple Podcasts & Others: Go to Settings in Substack > select Discourse Blog > scroll to the “private podcast feed” section > select “set up podcast” > then copy and paste the link it generates into your preferred app.

And don’t forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel!

That’s it!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.discourseblog.com

This week we get into:

* A winding discussion about Train Dreams, Blue Moon, Felicity Jones Bad Actor Disease, and an important plug for our forthcoming annual Oscars Special Edition episode

* Producer Sam gives us the local perspective on the Texas Senate primaries

* She also reminds about that weird scandal involving James Talarico and Collin Allred

* The Free Press’ Olivia Reingold is at it again! This time she has a bombshell report on New York City First Lady Rama Duwaji’s Instagram likes

* And in our After Dark segment available only to subscribers, we break open the biggest story of the year: Donna Kelce’s home renovation!

This week’s cultural recommendations:

* Jack recommends watching and/or listening to our annual Oscars Special Edition episode. Listen to last year’s here!

* Sam recommends Breaking Bad

* Aleks recommends The Sundays’ album Static & Silence

Want to hear the full, extended episode on your favorite podcast app? First, subscribe to Discourse Blog here. Then, follow these instructions:

Spotify: Tap the “Play” button and select “Link Account” to sync your Substack subscription and unlock it instantly.

Apple Podcasts & Others: Go to Settings in Substack > select Discourse Blog > scroll to the “private podcast feed” section > select “set up podcast” > then copy and paste the link it generates into your preferred app.

And don’t forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel!

That’s it!

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.discourseblog.com

It’s a single-topic episode this week, recorded just days after the United States and Israel launched a joint attack on Iran. The Week and Discourse Blog’s own Rafi Schwartz is back in the third chair to discuss:

* How this turned out to be even more terrible than we could have predicted

* Trump’s nonsensical pretext for why the U.S. joined Israel in their a…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.discourseblog.com

We get into a lot this week with Katherine back in the third chair, including:

* How we’re all dealing with the Big Blizzard of 2026

* Katherine saw Emerald Fennel’s Wuthering Heights. She’s not a fan!

* The DNC is refusing to release its 2024 election autopsy, probably in large part because of how much of Kamala Harris’ loss is attributable to the Biden Administration’s reprehensible response to the genocide in Gaza

* A helpful and definitely accurate pathologizing of FBI Kash Patel’s appearance in the locker of the U.S. men’s hockey team post-Canada victory

* A brief discussion on how our pending war with Iran would be the ultimate realization of America’s “foreign policy”

* And in our After Dark segment available only to subscribers, we touch on “longevity influencer” Peter Attia stepping down from his new gig as a contributor to Bari Weiss’ CBS News after his…interesting appearance in the Epstein Files

This week’s cultural recommendations:

* Jack recommends Alysa Liu’s gold-winning performance at the winter Olympics and the iconic interview between French clown Philippe Gaulier and Hilary and Chelsea Clinton

* Katherine recommends Kleber Mendonça Filho’s The Secret Agent and David Cromer-directed, Tracy Letts-written play Bug, now on Broadway

* Aleks recommends Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette on FX and Hulu

Want to hear the full, extended episode on your preferred podcast app? First, subscribe to Discourse Blog here. Then, follow these instructions:

Spotify: Tap the “Play” button and select “Link Account” to sync your Substack subscription and unlock it instantly.

Apple Podcasts & Others: Go to Settings in Substack > select Discourse Blog > scroll to the “private podcast feed” section > select “set up podcast” > then copy and paste the link it generates into your preferred app.

And don’t forget to like and subscribe to our YouTube channel!

That’s it!