The Fifth Column

Recorded on Thursday, October 5th, 20171) First Amendment Controversies

2) Meditations on the Las Vegas and the Second Amendment

3) An Homage to Catalonia (particularly on the subject of secession, with additional remarks on Kurdistan)

PLUS:

Kmele Heads to ComicCon, Bumps into TNCMoynihan vs Melba

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Guest: Katherine Mangu-Ward, Editor-in-Chief @ Reason

Recorded: Wednesday, September 27th, 2017.

Another wide-ranging, intellectually-stimulating, and very well-lubricated dispatch.

We begin with an almost respectable (but undeniably illuminating) discussion of Donald Trump's "Revolutionary Tax Framework" -- (his words). Proceeding from there to the re-re-re-failure of Republican maneuvering to "Repeal and Replace" Obamacare.

Then we really pour on the gas:

From "Taking a Knee" to "Title IV"Banning Uber to prevent rape is ... beyond stupid.Mark Warner's crusade to stop Russia from using Facebook (and hollow out the First Amendment).

PLUS:

Should you ever use "cyber" as a prefix?What's the origin of "hang 10"?#firebettsyGender differences.

(Sweep the leg.)

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Recorded on Thursday, September 21, 2017

President Trump's remarks at the UN parley were (hilarious? /meh? /dangerous? ) and unmistakably confused.

We crack open cans of Portland's finest sangria while discussing this and other matters of profound consequence.

Cargo shorts are irredeemably awful, but should a UN human rights commission formally designate them Nazi paraphernalia? Is Mark Zuckerberg's plan to save democracy credible? How hot would your step-granddaughter have to be before you wouldn't, not, totally date her?

Also:

- Meditations on the St. Louis and Police Shootings- Something about the Manafort warrant and wiretaps- and "some idiot wrote this..." and it's so awful that you should find the time to read it.

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Recorded on Thursday September 14, 2017

Guest: David Weigel, political reporter for The Washington Post and author of the prog-rock history "The Show That Never Ends."

Matt's recovering from surgery, Moynihan's upright & sober, and Kmele's getting domesticated.

Also:

-Bernie Sanders is pushing a new health care plan (and he's got a dirty little anti-immigration secret).

-Trump's immigration reversal, and his infatuation with those generals.

-The best thing about Hillary's new book.

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Recorded 9/8/2017

Moynihan’s back from Russia and has the drinking stories to prove it. Normally reasonable journalos lose their goddamn minds over Betsy DeVos’ intention to bring back due process on college campuses.

Matt Welch on DACA: “Call it amnesty, and do it anyway” (WaPo) https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/posteverything/wp/2017/09/08/yes-daca-is-amnesty-lets-just-call-it-that-and-then-lets-make-it-happen/?utm_term=.d7cee531cf3a

Kmele takes Anthony Fisher to task for calling President Trump’s brand “cruelty” in a DACA-related article Fisher wrote for The Week. But you gotta hear BOTH SIDES (link: https://theweek.com/articles/722742/trumps-daca-suspension-proves-brand-isnt-winning--cruelty)

Absorbing Ta-Nehisi Coates latest epistle “Donald Trump is the First White President” (The Atlantic) https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2017/10/the-first-white-president-ta-nehisi-coates/537909/

Matt claps back at "comic" Andy Kindler.

A rare morning recording. Sober*, salty, caffeinated.

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Recorded 8/31/2017

Guest: Ronald Bailey, science correspondent for Reason magazine and Reason.com.

Natural Disasters, political photo-ops, and formulaic media coverage.

The worst thing about Mitt Romney, the fecklessness of Barack Obama, and the dark innovations of Bill Clinton.

SFTW.

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Recorded 8/24/2017

This episode: non-existent Nazis, overblown Antifa, and Portuguese vagina-walls.

Jacob Siegel was in Boston and Afghanistan, and now he is in Moynihan's chair. He helps the guys figure out what the hell happened in Boston (and why it's not the same as Charlottesville).

PLUS: Is there a "libertarian-to-alt-right pipeline"? Should we take "Internet fascists" seriously? Would going "soft on white supremacists" actually help Trump?

AND... sunk costs in Afghanistan, fights on Planet Libertarian, and Matt doesn't want to punch any grannies.

Happy birthday, Hollywood (wherever he is).

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The guys take a deep dive into Donald Trump's policy on infrastructure and Nazis.

Matt is back, Moynihan is off drugs and high on life, and Kmele once started a Bible study group.

BONUS: Kmele interviews BLM activist Deray Mckesson, and the conversation gets *dangerous*.

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Recorded: 8/9/2017

With Us This Week:

Radley Balko - Washington Post Columnist, Author "Rise of the Warrior Cop","Dr Death and The Country Dentist" (Coming - Feb 2018)

Thaddeus Russell - Host of the Unregistered podcast, Author "A Renegade History of the United States"

(Much Topics. Extra Innings)

- Criminal Justice Reform (Obama's Legacy, Trump's Trajectory, Opioids, Ferguson 3yrs On)

- Foreign Policy Miasma (Venezuela, North Korea, Manafort's Home Searched by FBI)

- A Diversity Memo, Super Angry About A Show That May Never Get Made

Pro Tip: Don't Send Send Photos of Your Junk to CoWorkers Without Their Consent. May not end well. Sure, it could, theoretically work out fine... but above average odds that it won't.

Moynihan, Fisher, Foster are in the building. (Welch is... in Europe... Claims to have no internet access)

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[“And We Back." -Chance the Rapper]

- Moynihan is MIA

- Welch is trapped in a room with no AC, 75 dead flies, and a busted shoulder -- and loving every minute of it.

- Moscow is beautiful in the summer (if you believe a former RT propagandist)

- Kmele... well, yeah

- And the brilliant, talented Alyona Minkovski is IN THE BUILDING (@AlyonaMink)

PLUS:

- The brief but magical tenure of THE MOOCH.

- The conspicuous absence of President Steve Bannon.

- Net neutrality and banning VPN apps in Russia and China.

- Numerous other things of urgent importance.

- And there may have been a brilliant Affirmative Action *exchange* at the end of this dispatch too, but it’s all a bit of a blur.

[ … The brightest stars have the shortest lives.]

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