Have our elite universities become seedbeds of hatred? Since Hamas’ murderous attacks on Israel on October 7th, and the war in Gaza that followed, demonstrations have exploded on the campus of American universities. In the last two weeks, the mayhem has escalated. Columbia University especially has been overrun by angry protesters, many of them pushing nakedly antisemitic messages and harassing Jewish students - who have been advised to steer clear of campus for their own safety. One Columbia professor who has challenged the encampments, Shai Davidai, has even found himself barred from the campus. On this episode of the Free Expression podcast, Davidai tells Gerry Baker about the growth of Hamas and Hezbollah-supporting organizations at Columbia and other universities and describes the threat they pose not just to Jews but to the wider population. 

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As the Biden administration and international public opinion up the pressure on Israel to suspend its campaign against an enemy sworn to destroy it, the right of the Jewish state to defend itself seems to be challenged. Can Israel finish the job against Hamas? Will Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remain in office despite fierce domestic criticism? What are the wider geopolitical issues at stake? On this episode of the Potomac Watch podcast, policy analyst Reuel Marc Gerecht tells Gerry Baker why an occupation of Gaza by Israel is likely necessary, how pro-Palestinian voters in the United States have influence over Joe Biden’s policy decisions, and why Iran and questions about its nuclear program continue to linger over the entire war.

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With more and more parents giving their children access to smartphones earlier in their lives a common troubling thread seems to be arising that is affecting the way children are growing up.

On this episode of the Free Expression Podcast, Gerry Baker speaks with Jonathan Haidt, Author of “The Anxious Generation” How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness.

Haidt discusses the dangers that are present on social media platforms and how easily accessible they are to kids with very little obstacles to get in the way of them being harmed psychologically. 

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After over 140 people were killed at a concert venue in Moscow, Islamic State in Khorasan Province, or ISKP, an Afghanistan-based offshoot of ISIS, quickly claimed responsibility. Who are ISKP and what wider threat do they pose to the West and the U.S. in particular? On this episode of the Free Expression podcast, Afghan Armed Forces Lieutenant General Sami Sadat tells Gerry Baker why he thinks ISKP will strike again and soon - - perhaps even in the U.S. He also explains how the chaotic and hurried U.S. departure from Afghanistan in 2021 and the Doha Accord of 2020 helped set the conditions for the resurgence of the terrorist menace. According to Sadat, the Biden administration's plans to fight the enemy from "over the horizon" are doomed to fail. 

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With the Federal Reserve signaling it still plans to cut interest rates this year, has the inflation threat really abated? Heightened optimism about a soft landing has cooled somewhat as inflation at the start of the year has shown signs of persisting. What happens next will have big political implications too. In an election year, more voters seemingly have a negative opinion of how Joe Biden is handling the economy. If interest rates don’t fall appreciably, it won’t help his re-election prospects. On this episode of the Free Expression podcast, former Obama White House chief economist Jason Furman tells Gerry Baker why he’s concerned about continuing inflation risks, how rising mortgage rates are causing so much pessimism in households nationwide, and what he thinks the Fed will do next. 

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Four years ago this week, the U.S. shut down in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. While officials were adamant that lockdowns, masks, and later vaccines were essential for all Americans to limit the damage from the spread, it's become increasingly clear that the science behind so many of the mandates was decidedly shaky. Yet those who warned at the time of the risks of draconian actions were widely denounced and even silenced. On this episode of the Free Expression podcast, Professor Martin Kulldorff, one of the most prominent skeptics tells Gerry Baker why he says he was fired as professor of medicine at Harvard University for his views, why the research on vaccines is not so 'black and white,' and why the media and society were so hostile to alternative views on masks, school closures and natural immunity.

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Super Tuesday put the seal on the 2024 primary season and the rematch of Joe Biden and Donald Trump is set for November. Biden starts out in a weaker position than any incumbent in decades. But, while polling suggests Trump currently has the edge, many voters seem reluctant to endorse either candidate. On this episode of the Free Expression Podcast, Gerry Baker speaks with former Trump pollster and co-executor of the WSJ’s own regular polling Tony Fabrizio to talk about what we can expect in November and whether Biden can turn the race around? Will Trump overcome the Scott’s about his character? With Robert F. Kennedy running as an Independent and pulling votes from both sides, how sure can either party be about winning the 2024 election?

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This week Hungary finally agreed to the accession of Sweden to NATO. With characteristic defiance of allies and the U.S., Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who alone in the alliance mainstains strong relations with Vladimir Putin after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, had held out for almost two years against the NATO expansion. It's not the only issue on which Hungary has been an outlier. With his opposition to open borders and a strong believer in traditional Christian values, Orbán's government has been despised by establishment elites and progressives and lauded by many on the right in Europe and the U.S. as a model of conservative populism. What's the reality - Are Orbán's "strong man" government and its admirers here a threat to democracy or its salvation? On this episode of the Free Expression podcast Balázs Orbán, political director to the Hungarian prime minister, discusses the future of the west with Wall Street Journal Editor at Large Gerry Baker. 

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The last few months have been a tumultuous time on the campuses of American universities. Shocking instances of anti-Semitic rhetoric on top of a culture of repression of views that challenge the progressive orthodoxies - as well as evidence of plagiarism - led to the departure of the presidents of two high profile institutions. The University of Chicago has long prided itself as a defender of free speech in academia. On this episode of the Free Expression podcast, UChicago President Paul Alivisatos tells Gerry Baker what makes his school special and offers highlights of some of the groundbreaking research his institution is pursuing in science, medicine, and artificial intelligence. 

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After special counsel Robert Hur's report described Joe Biden as “a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” many fears Democrats may have had in private were now out in the open. But with the party’s primary already almost over, is it too late to consider an alternative? On this episode of the Free Expression podcast, Democratic commentator and scholar Marie Harf tells Gerry Baker why Joe Biden and Donald Trump together will make age a non-issue, which Democrats could be potential successors to Joe Biden and if Kamala Harris is among them, and how both candidates can win voters over on Israel, the border, and the economy. 

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