Steve Hayes, Kevin Williamson, Sarah Isgur, and Washington Post columnist Megan McArdle discuss the Trump administration’s attempted crackdown on free speech following the assassination of Charlie Kirk before digging into the details of a new TikTok “deal.”Plus: Is fall the best season, or overrated?

The Agenda
—Jimmy Kimmel gets suspended
—The role of the Federal Communications Commission
—Obama administration vs. Trump administration on free speech
—‘LOL nothing matters’
—TikTok dilemma
—Why fall is the best season

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AI is racing ahead. Regulation? Not so much. Kevin Williamson talks with Adam Thierer, senior fellow at the R Street Institute, about the opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence. They dive into the policy fights shaping its future, the role of Big Tech, and how AI could reshape global competition.

The Agenda:
—Defining AI
—Hardware vs. software
—Economic and geopolitical implications of AI
—Job replacement concerns
—Tech skeptics

Show Notes:
—Defending Technological Dynamism & The Freedom to Innovate in the Age of AI

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 access to all of our articles, members-only newsletters, and bonus podcast episodes—click here. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member by clicking here.

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Political activist Charlie Kirk’s tragic and shocking assassination at Utah Valley University on Wednesday has sparked an outpouring of grief, anxiety, and recriminations over how we arrived at this moment. Steve Hayes is joined by Jonah Goldberg, Kevin Williamson, David French, and Washington Post columnist Megan McArdle to unpack what we know (and don’t) about the murder, discuss how we should think about this political moment, and explore how we can step back from the brink.

The Agenda:
—Proliferation of violent videos
—Navigating threats in political life
—Playing into the worst stereotypes
—The FBI fumbles investigation
—President Donald Trump’s remarks

Show Notes:
—Yascha Mounk for The Dispatch: “The Assassin’s Veto”

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 access to all of our articles, members-only newsletters, and bonus podcast episodes—click here. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member by clicking here.

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In a battle of flagship podcasts, Steve Hayes invites Sarah Isgur to share her biggest takeaways from her interview with Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett. Then, listen in as the Advisory Opinions crew speaks with ACB about the strengths and limitations of originalism, insights from her new book, and her writing style.

The Agenda:
—Sarah’s takeaways
—Lightning round!
—Give up, “equity docket,” David
—Do oral arguments even matter anymore?
—All about originalism
—Life as a Justice Antonin Scalia clerk
—Law school: to go or not to go?
—Click HERE to subscribe to Advisory Opinions

Advisory Opinions 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 access to all of our articles, members-only newsletters, and bonus podcast episodes—click here. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member by clicking here.

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Steve Hayes is joined by Jonah Goldberg, David French, and Washington Post columnist Megan McArdle to discuss the chaotic fiefdoms within the Trump administration, from Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s tenure atop the Department of Health and Human Services to Kash Patel’s leadership of the FBI.

Plus: How is The Dispatch crew thinking about artificial intelligence?

The Agenda:
—Firing Dr. Susan Monarez
—The GOP divide over anti-establishment figures
—How we got to the point of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. leading the CDC
—The effects of AI on journalism
—The gang’s favorite TV shows

Show Notes:
—Aaron MacLean for The Dispatch: Not Letting AI Master Us
—Jim Pethokoukis for The Dispatch: AI: An Engine of Human Progress
—Sen. Bill Cassidy’s floor speech in support of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

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 access to all of our articles, members-only newsletters, and bonus podcast episodes—click here. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member by clicking here.

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Steve Hayes, Jonah Goldberg, Sarah Isgur, and Washington Post columnist Megan McArdle debate whether Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Donald Trump exhibit similar authoritarian tendencies, discuss the role of elites in democracies, and explore the Democratic Party’s ongoing identity crisis.

The Agenda:
—Trump’s first and second terms
—Can the president do whatever he wants?
—Historical context of presidential power
—Weak democracies and crisis
—Is this all our fault?
—The future of Democratic messaging

Show Notes:
—Nick Catoggio's Boiling Frogs newsletter
—Megan McArdle's column on lawfare

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 access to all of our articles, members-only newsletters, and bonus podcast episodes—click here. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member by clicking here.

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In Jamie Weinstein’s final Dispatch Interview Podcast, he invites Matt Lewis, podcaster and columnist for the Los Angeles Times, to grade President Donald Trump's foreign policy, national security, and economic policy objectives.

The Agenda:
—The raid of John Bolton’s house
—The new three legs of conservatism
—D.C. crime and the national guard
—California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s trolling
—Who will be the presidential candidates for the 2028 election?

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 access to all of our articles, members-only newsletters, and bonus podcast episodes—click here. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member by clicking here.

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Steve Hayes invites Jonah Goldberg, Megan McArdle, and famed New York Times columnist David French to discuss the latest in the Russia-Ukraine conflict and dive into the ingredients for a potential financial collapse.

The Agenda:
—Post-Alaska analysis
—Tease 'em, goad 'em, kill ‘em
—Security guarantees
—We're in debt!
—Tariff rebates
—NWYT: Backer inners

Show Notes:
—Listen to Kevin Williamson's interview with Tim Mak on Ukraine

—Read Kenneth Rogoff's Foreign Affairs article on the debt crisis

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 access to all of our articles, members-only newsletters, and bonus podcast episodes—click here. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member by clicking here.

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Tim Mak, Dispatch contributor and founder of The Counteroffensive, joins Kevin Williamson to discuss the details of President Donald Trump’s meeting with Russian President Vladamir Putin in Alaska.

The Agenda:
—Life in Kyiv amidst war
—Analyzing the outcomes of the summit
—Trump’s “diplomatic” approaches
—The fragmentation of European unity
—Mak’s reporting on human interest stories in Ukraine

Show Notes:

—Tim Mak's piece for The Dispatch on war machines

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 access to all of our articles, members-only newsletters, and bonus podcast episodes—click here. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member by clicking here.

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Steve Hayes returns to the host chair, joined by coastal elitists Jonah Goldberg, Michael Warren, and Megan McArdle to discuss a wild week in Washington.

The Agenda:
—The crime debate in D.C.
—Shifting toward state capitalism
—Does the GOP even believe in free markets anymore?
—Best- and worst-case scenarios from the Trump-Putin summit
—The DC's 4H has to be pretty modest

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 access to all of our articles, members-only newsletters, and bonus podcast episodes—click here. If you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member by clicking here.

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