The Dispatch Podcast

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu stops by Dispatch HQ to talk with Steve about his record, from pandemic response to school choice. With eyes towards 2024, they discuss The Granite State's role in primaries, Sununu's own presidential prospects, and his unfiltered thoughts about former president Trump.

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It's Jonah in the driver's seat this week as he bring along Declan and Kevin to talk about the debt ceiling mess, the over-classification of documents, and whether Ron DeSantis' all-in-on-the-culture-war approach is simply what right wing politics is going to be from now on.

Show Notes:

-The Dispatch: Debt Ceiling Coverage

-Nick Cattagio: VP MTG? 

-CBS News: Why A&W put pants on its cartoon bear after M&M's spokescandies gaffe

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Elon Musk opened up the secret Twitter vaults before a select group of journalists who went on to chain-tweet their findings. David French sits down with Kmele Foster, co-host of The Fifth Column podcast, to figure out whether the response to the findings should be a vociferous freak out, a tired shrug, or something more nuanced. They discuss political censorship, media spins, and Big Tech.

Show Notes:

-David French: Elon Musk and Tucker Carlson Don't Understand the First Amendment

- Kmele Foster, We The Fifth

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China’s population is getting older and older and analysts warn this could have significant global impact. Deputy Morning Editor of TMD Esther Eaton sits down with Scott Kennedy of the Center for Strategic and International Studies to dig into the root causes behind the country’s demographic decline and the impact this will have on economic and labor conditions.

Show Notes:

Esther Eaton's TMD Piece: China's Looming Demographic Crisis

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Sarah, Jonah and David wonder what's left of fiscal responsibility in the Republican Party as the debt-ceiling deadline hits Congress. Who’s serious about digging in and balancing the budget? Will taking on the "weaponized" beauracy make a dent? And, haven’t we been in this before? The crew also tallies which countries are providing tactical support to Ukraine (and how much). And of course, stay tuned for an extra salty Not Worth Your Time.

Show Notes:

Watch: White House Press Briefing on Debt Ceiling

Brian Riedl for The Dispatch: How Republicans Can Get Serious on Spending

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Declan joins Sarah, David and Steve to break down President Biden’s classified documents scandal. The team then discusses McCarthy's backroom dealing, the proposed SANTOS act, and the riots in Brazil. Plus: An anatomically descriptive Worth Your Time(?) segment that made David deeply uncomfortable.

Show Notes:

The Dispatch: House GOP Moves to Messaging Bills and Investigations

Proposed Bill Text: SANTOS Act 

The Atlantic: Prince Harry’s Book Undermines the Very Idea of Monarchy

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As the House enters a third day of its parade of pettiness, Sarah, Steve, and Jonah discuss Kevin McCarthy’s slow, tortuous slug of concessions towards becoming a speaker in name only. Also on the agenda: Biden’s 2024 vision, Mayor Pete’s carpetbagging, and the online right’s grotesque response to Damar Hamlin’s cardiac arrest.

Out of context: “That is a trifecta of wrongness.”

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Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse will resign from Congress and take on a new role in February as President of the University of Florida. Sasse, a junior senator from Nebraska and member of the Republican party, has been a vocal critic of Trump's influence on the right and the GOP.

He joins Steve Hayes to discuss the dangers of infotainment, the increasing tribalism of American politics, the future of academic freedom, and why he believes he can affect more change by leaving Congress.

Show Notes:

-The Dispatch Podcast: Ben Sasse on Afghanistan and Reflections on September 11

-The Remnant: Fighting for Lost Causes

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Inflation has driven the cost of living to a record high and most recent reports are giving mixed signals about what to expect. Declan is joined by Desmond Lachman, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, to talk about interest-rate hikes and Lachman's critiques of the Fed in what he calls "monetary policy overkill."
 

Show Notes:

-Desmond Lachman: “The Fed is playing with fire with its continued interest-rate hikes” 

-CPI Index released on Dec. 13th

-The CME FedWatch Tool mentioned by Declan

-Desmond Lachman’s American Enterprise Institute profile

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Sarah, Steve, Jonah, and David (who heroically dragged himself from bed at the crack of the Tennessee dawn) discuss some of the best and worst stories of 2022. What will make the list? The Russian invasion? The Artemis launch? Asteroid nudging? The Ye-Fuentes summit? The resurgence of COVID in China? The unveiling of Donald Trump’s NFT? Come for the review of a wild year, stay for the wild(?) predictions for 2023.

Plus: a gut-check update on the Sarah-Steve bet.

Show Notes:

-The Morning Dispatch on Zelensky’s speech

-Asteroid: nudged!

-Jonah’s rant on the crazy and insane attempt to retire bad words

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