Megan McArdle joins Steve Hayes, Jonah Goldberg, and Sarah Isgur to discuss President Donald Trump’s various trade deals and their effect on the latest economic numbers.

The Agenda:
—Thank you, Scott Bessent
—Texas’ mid-cycle redistricting
—DoorDash discourse
—Parsing Israel news coverage
—Famine is a plural word
—The new political tribes
—NWYT:What are our hosts’ favorite movies?

Show Notes:
—John McCormack for The Dispatch: ‘We’re Just Hoping the Ship Sinks’
—Michael Brendan Dougherty’s National Review
—Jason Furman’s New York Times piece

The Dispatch Podcast is a production of ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Dispatch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including members-only newsletters, bonus podcast episodes, and weekly livestreams—⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠click here.

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General H.R. McMaster joins Jamie Weinstein to discuss Iran’s weakened military state, the United States’ backtracking in Ukraine, and the conditions needed for a new Palestinian political order.

The Agenda:
—Iran’s nuclear program: Maybe not obliterated, but definitely devastated
—Israeli and U.S. coordination
—“Whenever an Iranian leader is speaking, they’re lying to you.”
—War in Ukraine
—Transparency of the modern battlefield
—Putin doesn’t have all the cards
—Pressuring Egypt to open their border to Gaza’s population

Show notes:
—Tucker Carlson interview of President of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian
—H.R. McMaster’s piece for The Dispatch: Trump Ends the Folly of De-escalation
— H.R. McMaster’s book: Battlegrounds: The Fight to Defend the Free World

The Dispatch Podcast is a production of ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Dispatch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including members-only newsletters, bonus podcast episodes, and weekly livestreams—⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠click here.

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Megan McArdle, John McCormack, and Grayson Logue join Mike Warren to discuss President Donald Trump’s recent trade deal with Japan, the latest in the Jeffrey Epstein story (sigh), Russiagate (another sigh), and the cancellation of shared culture.

The Agenda:
—A sweetheart deal for Japanese automakers
—America’s surprisingly resilient economy
—Getting the housing market back in balance
—Three weeks into the Epstein drama: “unverified hearsay”
—Russiagate is just exhausting
—Colbert cancelled

The Dispatch Podcast is a production of ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Dispatch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including members-only newsletters, bonus podcast episodes, and weekly livestreams—⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠click here.

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Jamie Weinstein is joined by Michael Smerconish, host of SiriusXM’s The Michael Smerconish Program and CNN’s Smerconish, to discuss the state of centrism and the future of the Republican Party.

The Agenda:
—Centrism in 2025
—Third-party viability
—Government efficiency
—The role of media in political division
—Trump’s Epstein problem
—Trump’s letter to Epstein
—Republicans in 2028

The Dispatch Podcast is a production of ⁠⁠⁠⁠The Dispatch⁠⁠⁠⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including members-only newsletters, bonus podcast episodes, and weekly livestreams—⁠⁠⁠⁠click here.

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Is the Jeffrey Epstein issue blowing up the MAGA base? Jonah Goldberg, Mike Warren, and David French join Steve Hayes to discuss the Epstein files and their implications for Vance 2028, delayed resolve toward Russia, and the Supreme Court’s apparent greenlight for Department of Education cuts.And, of course, an extended Not Worth Your Time on soda.

The Agenda:
—Jeffrey Epstein catch-up
—Little Epstein, big Epstein
—Why can’t Trump shut this down?
—Kudos to First Lady Melania Trump
—Putin’s dark determination meets Trump’s hurt feelings
—Monday’s SCOTUS decision looks good for Trump administration—for now

—Stuart Stevens’ on killing the DOE
—The Platonic ideal of Coca-Cola

Show notes:

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We’re flipping the script this week, with executive producer Adaam James Levin-Areddy talking to Jamie Weinstein about Jamie’s interviewing philosophy and the future of the show.

The Agenda:
—Interviewing bad-faith actors
—The Mehdi Hasan interview
—Douglas Murray/Dave Smith debate
—Future guests and format
—Jamie’s most regretted interview

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Mike Warren is joined by Jonah Goldberg, Sarah Isgur, and Kevin Williamson to react to the latest internal fights within Donald Trump’s White House on Ukraine and explain the logic behind flip-flops on immigration enforcement.

The Agenda:
—Rogue pause on Ukraine aid
—Freelancing at the Pentagon
—Trump vs. the restrainers
—ICE raids in Los Angeles
—Trump’s flip-flop on immigration
—The Hispanic vote
—UFC on the South Lawn

The Dispatch Podcast is a production of ⁠⁠⁠The Dispatch⁠⁠⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including members-only newsletters, bonus podcast episodes, and weekly livestreams—⁠⁠⁠click here.

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Originally aired on Oct. 16, 2024.

Palestinian-American activist and resident senior fellow at The Atlantic Council Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib joins Adaam James Levin-Areddy to discuss growing up in the Gaza Strip, the challenge of polling public opinion in Gaza, the future of Palestinian self-governance, whether there is a meaningful contingent in support seeking peace with Israel.

The Agenda:

—The story of Gaza

—Hamas vs. Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)

—October 7

—Breaking down support for Hamas in Gaza

—Palestinian sovereignty and UNRWA

—Do Palestinians want peace?

—The radicalism of the moderate voice

Show Notes:

—⁠⁠Ahmed’s piece for The Dispatch⁠⁠

—⁠⁠Adaam talks with Dr. Einat Wilf about UNRWA and the refugee industrial complex⁠⁠

—⁠⁠Adaam and Jonah talk on Oct. 7, 2023⁠⁠

The Dispatch Podcast is a production of ⁠⁠The Dispatch⁠⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including members-only newsletters, bonus podcast episodes, and weekly livestreams—⁠⁠click here.

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Steve Hayes is joined by Jonah Goldberg, David French, and Megan McArdle to explain the consequences of passing President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Is fiscal conservatism officially dead?

The Agenda:
—Big beautiful bill
—God save us from “the groups”
—The political process is broken
—Abandoning Ukraine
—Republican divide on Russia
—Alliances don’t matter
—The Next 250
—What makes America great

The Dispatch Podcast is a production of ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Dispatch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including members-only newsletters, bonus podcast episodes, and regular livestreams—⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠click here.

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David Frum joins Jamie Weinstein to break down Trump’s Iran strikes, the brewing civil war within MAGA over foreign policy, and the winners (and losers) of the tariff war.

The Agenda:
—The state of the Trump administration
—Analyzing the Iran strikes
—MAGA’s foreign policy split
—Immigration policy
—J.D. Vance and opportunism
—What’s going on with the Democratic Party?

The Dispatch Podcast is a production of ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Dispatch⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a non-partisan, conservative perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including members-only newsletters, bonus podcast episodes, and regular livestreams—⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠click here.

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