The Financial Times's Ed Luce joins to discuss the VP debate, the future of MAGA, and the Israel/Iran war.

Mona’s highlight: The impartiality of the DOJ, indicting members of the sitting party in power when they commit crimes.

Tim’s lowlight: The failure to have more than one debate.

Tim’s highlight: The young, hungry, improbable turnaround of the Detroit Tigers.

Sonny’s highlight / lowlight: Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis.

Sam’s highlight: Ohtani’s historic 50-50 season.

Sam’s lowlight: The indictment of Eric Adams.

Bill’s highlight: VP Harris’s economic speech on building and permitting overhaul.

AEI's Kori Schake joins the group to discuss Trump's "crazy guy" strategy, the 111 GOP leaders endorsing Harris, and Hezbollah's exploding pagers.

Referenced: U.S. Shrugs as World War III Approaches, by Walter Russell Mead (WSJ)

Kori: Gov. Mike DeWine defending Ohio against MAGA’s lies about Springfield (ABC)

Damon: The tired dance of the demagogue by Matthew Yglesias (Slow Boring)

Mona: How an AI ‘debunkbot’ can change a conspiracy theorist’s mind (Popular Science)

Linda: The Exotic Cat-Eaters of Springfield, Ohio by Kevin Williamson (The Dispatch)

Bill: The Future of Free Speech by Lee C. Bollinger and Geoffrey Richard Stone (Dædalus)

Third Way's Matt Bennett joins to discuss the debate, Harris's centrism, and which candidate would be better on inflation.

Mona: Why Mike Lee Folded by Tim Alberta, The Atlantic.

Matt: The lies being pushed about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, and the political opportunism of a young boy’s death.

Damon: Behind the Catholic Right's celebrity-conversion industrial complex (Vanity Fair)

Linda: What led to rumors Trump shared about Venezuelan gangs taking over a Colorado building? (NBC)

Bill: Stolen Pride: Loss, Shame, and the Rise of the Right by Arlie Russell Hochschild

Lawyer Kim Wehle discusses her book on the pardon power. The group then delves into Israel/Gaza, campus protests redux, and Tucker Carlson "Just asking questions" about Holocaust denialism.

Mona: Andrew Egger's "Pennsylvania Man Speaks" reporting.

Bill: The Rural Voter: The Politics of Place and the Disuniting of America

Linda: Republicans Seize on False Theories About Immigrant Voting (NYT)

Damon: DOJ alleges Russia funded US media company linked to right-wing social media stars (CNN)

The Atlantic's Peter Wehner joins the group to discuss the DNC and Harris's new tone, Trump's pivot on abortion, and the misfit toys (RFK Jr., Gabbard) of the Trump campaign. 

Mona: Can We Be a Little Less Selective With Our Moral Outrage? by Bret Stephens in The New York Times.

Peter: Lowlight: Trump Insists He Won California in Wild, Jesus-Filled Rant With Dr. Phil (Daily Beast)

Damon: Highlight: Conservatism: The Fight for a Tradition by Edmund Fawcett

Bill: Highlights: The Return of Hamiltonian Statecraft by Walter Russell Mead and Stopping the Next China Shock by Aaron L. Friedberg

Linda: Highlight: Making Race Skin Deep by Quico Toro in Persuasion

Andrew Egger subs for the vacationing Mona, and A.B. occupies Damon's seat, as The Deseret News's Samuel Benson joins regulars Bill and Linda to discuss the unity and vibes at the Democratic Convention, while the panel weighs how RFK's exit from the race is likely to affect the November election.

Andrew: Highlight: Gov. Tim Walz's Speech, and his family's reaction.

A.B.: Highlight: Doug Emhoff's remarks on anti-semitism, and that protests did not disrupt the convention.

Linda: Lowlight: Systemic Test Racism in Chicago (WSJ)

Bill: The slow counting of ballots in Pennsylvania, and the failure to fix this glaringly obvious problem.

Samuel: Lowlight: The slowness with which anti-semitism was addressed at the Democratic Convention.

Highlight: A moment of prayer he witnessed by Jewish men at night outside of the convention hall.

MSNBC's Charlie Sykes joins the panel to discuss the rise of Harris, the decline of Trump (in more ways than one?), and the Iranian hack of Trump's campaign.

The regulars discuss Walz pick and shape of the race. David French joins to talk about Trump v. United States. 

 

Mona: The life of Penny Parker (1927-2024).

David: Highlight: The USA's Medal Count

Lowlight: China's Gold medal count

Linda: What’s better than calling Trump weird? (David Broockman and Josh Kalla, Slow Boring)

Damon: The Book of Illusions by Paul Auster.

Bill: Highlight: He's still on Cape Cod

Lowlight: Hamas names Yahya Sinwar, mastermind of the Oct. 7 attacks, as its new leader in show of defiance (AP)

A.B. Stoddard guest hosts for today’s discussion on Donald Trump’s NABJ interview. It was shocking and set the internet abuzz, but was that his intention all along? Plus, do VP picks actually matter?

Highlights / Lowlights

Bill’s highlight: Inside the Secret Negotiations to Free Evan Gershkovich (WSJ)

Damon’s highlights: Pro-Wrestling Explains Why Trump Is Scared of Kamala, Donald Trump’s Cheap Heat (The Triad)

Linda’s highlight: The America of Yesterday (Yascah Mounk)

A.B.’s highlight: America’s New Political War Pits Young Men Against Young Women (WSJ)