This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the Senate confirmation hearings of Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees, including Pete Hegseth and Pam Bondi; the January 6th report of Special Counsel Jack Smith; and the farewell address and lasting legacy of President Joe Biden. 

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, Emily, John, and David discuss the politics of the L.A. fires. 

In the latest Gabfest Reads, David talks with David Greenberg about his new biography, John Lewis: A Life. 

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) 

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth

Research by Julie Huygen

Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.

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This week, Emily Bazelon and David Plotz are joined by Juliette Kayyem and discuss the status of the Jack Smith reports and Donald Trump’s legal troubles; Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk’s continued cozying up to Trump; and the horrific wildfires raging in Los Angeles. 

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Juliette, Emily, and David discuss dropping into the memory hole the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol. 

In the latest Gabfest Reads, David talks with David Greenberg about his new biography, John Lewis: A Life. 

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth

Research by Julie Huygen

Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.

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This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the presidency and post-presidential life of Jimmy Carter; the infighting of Elon Musk v. MAGA; and the possibilities of citizens’ assemblies with The New Yorker’s Nick Romeo.

Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:

John Dickerson for CBS Mornings: John Dickerson on Jimmy Carter’s legacy and a life shaped by faith

CBS News: From the archives: Jimmy Carter becomes first president to walk in inaugural parade to White House and WGAL: Harrisburg, 1979: Jimmy Carter visits TMI after partial meltdown 

Sam Stein and Jonathan Alter for The Bulwark: Jimmy Carter was a misunderstood President. Here’s Why. and His Very Best: Jimmy Carter, A Life by Jonathan Alter

Stephen Hess for The Brookings Institution: Jimmy Carter: Why He Failed

Todd S. Purdum for The Atlantic: Jimmy Carter Was America’s Most Effective Former President and Gal Beckerman: What Made Jimmy Carter Such a Strange President

Andrew Prokop for Vox: Elon Musk is on a collision course with Stephen Miller

Jonathan Edwards for The Washington Post: MAGA is fighting a ‘civil war’ over H-1B visas. Here’s what they are.

Nick Romeo for The New Yorker: What Could Citizens’ Assemblies Do For American Politics?

History.com: Ancient Greek Democracy and Simon Hornblower for Britannica: The reforms of Cleisthenes  

Stanford University’s Deliberative Democracy Lab

Bürgerrat: Citizens’ assemblies worldwide

Here are this week’s chatters:

Emily: Caucasia: A Novel and Colored Television by Danzy Senna and A Complete Unknown from Searchlight Pictures

John: Event Santa Cruz: Dock Ellis No-No Cocktail at Brophy’s – Carmel; Patrick Hruby for ESPN: The Long, Strange Trip of Dock Ellis: Meet The Man Behind Baseball’s Most Psychedelic Myth.; and Paul Geisler Jr. for the Society for American Baseball Research: Dock Ellis 

David: Billy & Molly: An Otter Love Story from National Geographic and Imperium: A Novel of Ancient Rome and Fatherland: A Novel by Robert Harris 

Listener chatter from Lawrence in Bowling Green, Ohio: Rhiannon Giddens for Silkroad: American Railroad: A Musical Journey of Reclamation 

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, Emily, John, and David discuss what President Joe Biden should do in his final two weeks in the Oval Office.

In the latest Gabfest Reads, David talks with David Greenberg about his new biography, John Lewis: A Life. 

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Jared Downing

Research by Julie Huygen

Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.

Hosts

Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz

Follow

@SlateGabfest on X / https://twitter.com/SlateGabfest

Slate Political Gabfest on Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/Gabfest/

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This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz close out a confounding year by answering listeners’ Conundrums. 

Thank you to Conundrums contributors Mitchell, Alan, Rajesh, Margot, Josh, Rob, Thad, Tobi, Collin, Anna, Glenn, Tom, Aimee, Brad, Phil, Erin, and Sam!

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, Emily, John, and David conduct a Conundrums lightning-round. 

In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily talks with Stephanie Gorton about her new book, The Icon & the Idealist: Margaret Sanger, Mary Ware Dennett, and the Rivalry That Brought Birth Control to America. 

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Jared Downing and Cheyna Roth with live show support from Katie Rayford

Research by Julie Huygen

Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond’s yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond’s YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more.

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Slate Political Gabfest host David Plotz talks with author David Greenberg about his new book, John Lewis: A Life. They discuss how Lewis went from marching with Martin Luther King, Jr. to an iconic career as a politician, Lewis’s commitment to non-violence, how Greenberg uncovered never-before-seen documents, and more.

Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected]. (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth.

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This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the capitulation of American media and corporations to President-Elect Donald Trump; the government shutdown and surrender of House Republicans to Elon Musk; and the appeal of TikTok to the Supreme Court. 

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David discuss the drones over New Jersey.

In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily talks with Stephanie Gorton about her new book, The Icon & the Idealist: Margaret Sanger, Mary Ware Dennett, and the Rivalry That Brought Birth Control to America. 

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth

Research by Julie Huygen

Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.

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This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the fall of the al-Assad dictatorship in Syria with Steven A. Cook of the Council on Foreign Relations; the killing of a health insurance CEO and the acquittal for the death of a troubled man; and the future of American birthright citizenship.

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, Emily, John, and David discuss President Joe Biden’s clemency for nearly 1,500 Americans and pardons for 39 more. 

In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily talks with Stephanie Gorton about her new book, The Icon & the Idealist: Margaret Sanger, Mary Ware Dennett, and the Rivalry That Brought Birth Control to America. 

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth

Research by Julie Huygen

Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.

Disclosure in Podcast Description: A Bond Account is a self-directed brokerage account with Public Investing, member FINRA/SIPC. Deposits into this account are used to purchase 10 investment-grade and high-yield bonds. As of 9/26/24, the average, annualized yield to worst (YTW) across the Bond Account is greater than 6%. A bond’s yield is a function of its market price, which can fluctuate; therefore, a bond’s YTW is not “locked in” until the bond is purchased, and your yield at time of purchase may be different from the yield shown here. The “locked in” YTW is not guaranteed; you may receive less than the YTW of the bonds in the Bond Account if you sell any of the bonds before maturity or if the issuer defaults on the bond. Public Investing charges a markup on each bond trade. See our Fee Schedule. Bond Accounts are not recommendations of individual bonds or default allocations. The bonds in the Bond Account have not been selected based on your needs or risk profile. See https://public.com/disclosures/bond-account to learn more.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss President Joe Biden’s pardon of son Hunter and President-Elect Donald Trump’s nomination of Pete Hegseth; the Democrats’ debate on why they lost and how they might win in the future; and the Supreme Court case on treatment for transgender children. 

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, Emily, John, and David answer Conundrums. Or Conundra.

In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily talks with Stephanie Gorton about her new book, The Icon & the Idealist: Margaret Sanger, Mary Ware Dennett, and the Rivalry That Brought Birth Control to America. 

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth

Research by Julie Huygen

Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.

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This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss Donald Trump’s threatened tariffs and his pick for Treasury Secretary; the next Federal Communications Commission Chair and free speech; and the “bro-economy” with The Atlantic’s Annie Lowrey. 

For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, Emily, John, and David discuss the most fulfilling jobs in America.

In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily talks with Stephanie Gorton about her new book, The Icon & the Idealist: Margaret Sanger, Mary Ware Dennett, and the Rivalry That Brought Birth Control to America. 

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Cheyna Roth

Research by Julie Huygen

Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.

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(Note: The episode was recorded prior to the withdrawal of Matt Gaetz from consideration for Attorney General.) This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss Donald Trump’s Cabinet selections and their involvement with sexual-assault allegations; the Texas elementary school curriculum that incorporates the Bible; and coming changes to health care with The Washington Post’s Dan Diamond. Political Gabfest Live in Brooklyn on December 4 is sold out, but you can still submit your Conundrums at slate.com/conundrum.

Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

Podcast production by Kevin Bendis and Cheyna Roth

Research by Julie Huygen

Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.

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