The Dispatch Podcast

On Tuesday, an 18-year-old gunman fatally shot 19 students and two teachers at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas. Our hosts are here to discuss the latest updates and what comes next. Sarah, Steve, Jonah, and David then turn to this week’s round of primaries. What did they learn? They finish by discussing the latest from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. What does Russia’s Black Sea blockade mean for the world?

Show Notes:

-The Dispatch: “After Uvalde, What Now?”

-Uphill: “Mass Shootings Reignite Gun Control Debate in Washington”

-French Press: “Pass and Enforce Red Flag Laws. Now.”

-The Sweep: “A Focus on the Problem with Primaries”

-TMD: “A Big Night for GOP Incumbents”

-The Dispatch: “Georgia Republicans Stick With Kemp by a Wide Margin”

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Erick Erickson, host of the Erick Erickson Show, joins Steve for a conversation about what we learned from the primary election results in Georgia, and what it all means for November and beyond. Steve is then joined by Khaya Himmelman to discuss her fact check of Dinesh D’Souza’s new documentary film 2,000 Mules.

Show Notes:

-Erick Erickson: “Trump's 2000 Mules Got Stuck in Georgia Clay”

-Erick Erickson: “The Democrats Don't Want a Solution to Gun Violence”

-Khaya’s fact check: “Fact Checking Dinesh D’Souza’s ‘2,000 Mules’”

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Following a man’s racist attack at a supermarket in Buffalo, in which he killed 10 people and wounded three more, our hosts are here to discuss what it means for our politics and culture. Sarah, Jonah, and Declan then discuss the baby formula shortage. How did the Biden administration drop the ball? And finally, reactions to the latest round of primaries around the country.

Show Notes:

-The Dispatch: “A Look at the State of Red Flag Laws After Buffalo”

-TMD: “Grappling With the Buffalo Mass Shooting”

-Capitolism: “America’s Infant Formula Crisis and the ‘Resiliency’ Mirage”

-The Sweep: “Headed Toward a Recount in Pennsylvania”

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Joining this week’s Dispatch Podcast with Sarah is former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper. Esper was also secretary of the Army during the Trump administration, and in his new book, A Sacred Oath: Memoirs of a Secretary of Defense During Extraordinary Times, he talks about the challenges that came with working under President Trump. In the podcast, Esper and Sarah discuss life on the inside of the administration, Esper’s infamous “Four Nos,” and what he sees as the greatest threat to the United States today. Hint, his fears are more about things happening inside the country, not outside. 

Show Notes:

-A Sacred Oath: Memoirs of a Secretary of Defense During Extraordinary Times

-Esper Paints Chaotic Picture of Trump Administration’s Middle East Policy, by Charlotte Lawson

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The economic state of America, which technically may be improving according to the latest inflation numbers, is still not good. The gang (with deputy managing editor Michael Scott Reneau stepping in for Steve) discuss it and home in on why that’s bad news for Democrats. Plus, Tim Alberta of The Atlantic just wrote a profile of evangelical churches in America and it is so good Sarah, David, Jonah, and Michael had to talk about it and the state of evangelicalism on today’s episode. And finally, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer held a vote on abortion access in America which failed miserably. What the heck was he thinking? Finally, what is the legacy of John Brown?

Show Notes:

-TMD on the latest inflation numbers and baby formula shortage

-Tim Alberta on the evangelical church

-Politico: Senate Democrats’ imaginary majority

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There is no shortage of stuff to talk about in This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden, and the Battle for America's Future, the new book by New York Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Alex Burns, and Steve does his best to discuss all of it in this week’s Dispatch Podcast. As Steve says, “The book makes you feel like you are in the room.” The trio breaks it all down—from January 6, those now infamous Kevin McCarthy recordings, and the early days of the Biden administration. Burns and Martin respond to McCarthy’s accusation that they took his comments “out of context.” Plus, why does Biden want to “do it all?” Finally, how do the authors deal with critics on the right that immediately write them off because they work for The New York Times?

Show Notes:

-This Will Not Pass by Jonathan Martin and Alex Burns

-Recordings of McCarthy saying he will urge President Trump to resign

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What are we to make the Justice Samual Alito’s leaked draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health? Our hosts are here to discuss as the politics of abortion take shape. Sarah, Jonah, and David then pivot to what they learned from Tuesday’s primary elections. And finally, what does all of this mean for Trump’s chances in 2024?

Show Notes:

-David and Sarah’s podcast breaking down the Suprme Court leak

-French Press: “The Supreme Court Abortion Leak—Your Questions, Answered”

-G-File: “Why Joe Biden Hates Saying the A-Word”

-The Sweep: “What Does J.D. Vance’s Victory Tell Us About the Midterms?”

-Sarah in the Washington Post: “We in the ‘shallow state’ thought we could help. Instead, we obscured the reality of a Trump presidency.”

-Smithsonian’s National Zoo: “Tragic Loss of Animal Life at Smithsonian’s National Zoo”

-DCist: “There’s An Angry Turkey Attacking People On The Anacostia Riverwalk”

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Utah Sen. Mitt Romney joins Steve for a discussion on the state of the economy and how to rein in inflation. Plus, the senator answers questions about canceling student debt, the Supreme Court abortion leak, J.D. Vance’s victory in Ohio, and the latest from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Show Notes:

-Romney in the Wall Street Journal: “Biden’s Errors Worsen Inflation”

-Capitolism: “Is President Biden Trying to Boost Inflation?”

-TMD: “Washington Gears Up for a Post-Roe Future”

-The Dispatch: “Non-Interventionist Republicans: A Small, Vocal Minority”

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Most economic numbers paint a dire picture for Democrats in the upcoming midterms. Steve, Jonah, and David discuss who is exactly to blame for that. Then the trio wade into the debate over forgiving student loans. (Spoiler alert: They aren’t fans.) Will the woes in the Democratic Party produce a Ronald Reagan-type figure on the right? Plus, what is everyone’s opinion of the White House Correspondents Dinner?

Show Notes: 

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Lanhee Chen is running for state controller in California, but what does a state controller do? Steve gets that answer, plus Chen’s thoughts on California’s fiscal state and his plan if he wins the election. Chen also discusses his experience running Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign’s policy shop.

Show Notes:

-Chen’s campaign website

-Los Angeles Times endorses Chen’s campaign

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