The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg

The Hangover has now concluded, and Chris Stirewalt thought it appropriate to provide an epilogue to the series. If the last four years have taught us anything, Chris observes, it’s that “people are terrible at predicting the future.” After the GOP’s victory in 2016, nobody could have guessed that the party would be swept out of power four years later, or that our lives would be upended by a pandemic. Going forward, there’s no way of knowing whether the GOP will overcome its current craziness or completely self-destruct, but the rot within the party reveals as much about America itself as it does Republican politicians. Making our republic healthier and stronger is a job for all of us, and we can accomplish it by engaging with our institutions and communities. This series has been a pleasure to put together, and we at The Dispatch send our thanks not only to all of Chris’ guests, but to all of you for listening. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fan-favorite political strategist Mo Elleithee returns to The Remnant today for a discussion of Joe Biden’s first six months in office, America’s deepening polarization, and how we should understand the results of the 2020 election. With debates over issues like critical race theory and police reform continuing to intensify, has the Democratic Party really shifted as far to the left as conservatives believe? For that matter, what can Mo’s latest Battleground Poll tell us about the challenges America faces, and why is the political side of Twitter so inexpressibly hideous? It’s a dream come true for lovers of statistics and infrastructure. Show Notes: - Mo’s work at the Georgetown Institute of Politics and Public Service - Mo’s recent appearance on The Dispatch Podcast - Nate Cohn on the statistics behind the 2020 election - Chris Wallace accuses Republicans of defunding the police - The Bill Clinton/Lani Guinier episode - Abigail Spanberger blasts progressive sloganeering - Sean Trende on Conversations with Bill Kristol - The June 2021 Battleground Poll Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Hangover concludes on a unique note, as David Glade, rector of Virginia’s Christ the King Anglican Church, joins Chris Stirewalt to discuss what the future holds for religion in a divided America. Politics, the pair note, can be an especially alluring idol. Today, even shopping at Home Depot is seen as a political act, and the forces of populism and wokery have supplanted real faiths in the lives of many Americans. Committed Christians, meanwhile, increasingly focus on relatively trivial political issues rather than deeper ethical matters. With politics, David observes, “a little more disinterestedness may not be a bad thing” when true religion can offer so much more to human beings. He and Chris also reflect on the evolution of American Christianity and how the relationship between evangelicals and the GOP changed in the age of Trump. Show Notes: -David’s work at Christ the King -The Falls Church split -The Great Awakening and the American Revolution -Mircea Eliade on what draws humans to the sacred -Timothy Keller: “Can Evangelicalism Survive Donald Trump and Roy Moore?” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Start spreading the news: Esteemed historian Vincent Cannato is back on The Remnant to discuss all things New York City. After digging into the ongoing mayoral election, Curtis Sliwa’s rescue cats, and Rudy Giuliani’s descent into madness, Jonah and Vin explore what the Big Apple’s partisan divisions reveal about America’s broader political shenanigans. From there, they consider how the paranoid style in American politics can explain the right’s embrace of post-liberal Catholic integralism. At the end of it all, one question remains: Who will be the third man in Jonah and Vin’s upcoming production of On the Town? Show Notes: -The New York Post backs Eric Adams -Brad Lander’s comptroller campaign -Curtis Sliwa’s colorful discussion with Eric Shawn -Vincent: “Same Old, Same Old, Same Old” -Did Fred Trump attend a KKK rally? -“I’m no FDR, but …” -Jonah on the latest infrastructure fracas -Bingo -OAN’s remarkable craziness -Mamma mia! -Somebody’s watching me... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sleep-deprived following his return from Oklahoma and haunted by visions of Nick, Jonah begins today’s Ruminant with the mother of all rants. Why, when there are so many urgent issues for Americans to be concerned with, is the New York Times more interested in denying objective reality and attacking the concept of motherhood? For that matter, why is the fight over critical race theory only getting crazier, and why is Sheldon Whitehouse seemingly sowing the seeds for a new Tyler Perry script? Tune in to hear these bizarre questions answered, and to learn of Jonah’s vehicular writing habits. Show Notes: -The Wednesday “news”letter -The New York Times piece that ruined Jonah’s morning -Facebook’s list of many genders -Insane people who think “covfefe” was Arabic code -Birthing people in Biden’s budget -Trigger warnings are now triggering -Jonah on the war over CRT -Gen. Mark Milley defends teaching CRT at West Point -Tucker Carlson’s charming response to Milley’s comments -Madea Goes to Rhode Island -Today’s TMD on Biden’s infrastructure deal -Pence rebukes Trump -Afghanistan in jeopardy -Ban the word “cockpit.” Yes, really Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today’s Remnant, recorded in the wilds of Oklahoma, Jonah once again attempts to fuse the weekend Ruminant format with that of a supplemental episode. He begins by elaborating on his pro-life views and what abortion law would look like if he were made czar for a day. Afterward, a nerdtastic dive into the morass of intellectual history begins, as Jonah uses an extract from The Tyranny of Clichés (which is still available from all good book sellers, hint-hint) to explore what separation of church and state really means in American life. Tune in not just to hear Jonah’s patented progressive-bashing, but to either commend or correct his pronunciation of a certain troublesome name. Show Notes: -The Wednesday “news”letter -Biden’s Catholic quandary -Moynihan on partial-birth abortion -Locke’s “A Letter Concerning Toleration” -Don’t burn the witch -JFK (or possibly Mayor Quimby) and Catholicism -Mario Cuomo’s Notre Dame speech -Jonah’s deep affection for Richard Ely -Barack Obama, arbiter of sin -Seinfeld on spite Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Conservative journalism has changed markedly since John Podhoretz began his career at the Washington Times in the early 1980s. When Matt Drudge broke the Monica Lewinsky story in 1998, it was clear that things would never be the same. On today’s episode of The Hangover, John joins Chris Stirewalt to explore how the changing media ecosystem contributed to Donald Trump’s election in 2016. The pair reflect on the creation of The Weekly Standard, electoral politics in the Clinton and Obama years, and how Trump’s victory affected the conservative movement. Even though Trump is no longer president, will his presence in conservative media continue to be felt for the foreseeable future? Show Notes: -John’s page at Commentary -John on the history of The Weekly Standard -Bill Clinton’s 1996 State of the Union address -Matt Drudge breaks the Lewinsky scandal -Josh Marshall: “The Digital News Industry Was Built on Lies” -Glenn Beck and Roger Ailes -Obama’s birth certificate coffee mugs -National Review’s “Against Trump” issue -Chris Christie’s takedown of Marco Rubio -16 magazine Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Scott Winship, director of poverty studies at the American Enterprise Institute, joins Jonah to discuss the history of poverty in the United States. The pair begin by digging into a new report from Scott and four of his peers that explores issues of black vs. white inequality, before they turn to examining potential solutions to these disparities. Is the success sequence outdated? Should America be based on bourgeois morality? And will Jonah ever forgive Scott for collaborating with scholars at the hated Brookings Institution? Show Notes: -“Long Shadows,” Scott’s report on the black-white gap in multigenerational poverty -Scott joins the candy eaters on the Brookings Cafeteria Podcast -The Moynihan Report -LBJ (Jonah’s second favorite president) on affirmative action -Baby bonds -The success sequence -Nigerians have the highest level of education in the U.S. -Black Identities, by Mary Waters -Scott: “Is it Really too Expensive to Raise a Family?” -Scott’s case against child allowances Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fair warning: Eating styrofoam may prove more constructive than listening to today’s drive-time Remnant, which contains even less substance than your average Seinfeld episode. Jonah (scourge of baggage agents across America), Ryan (softball hero of the think-tank league and true retainer to The Remnant’s legacy), Guy (who contributed nothing to this episode because “Talkin’ Softball” was stuck in his head), and Nick (full-time Renfield to Jonah’s Dracula) reunite to explore the pointlessness of various government departments, kooky conservative reactions to making Juneteenth a federal holiday, and political blogging in the dark ages of the internet. The quartet also has sad news to impart: Beginning next week, Nick will no longer be serving as Jonah’s research assistant. To mark his departure and celebrate his legacy, the guys talk about absolute guff for about an hour, and then retroactively stick some newsy things onto the front of the show. Show Notes: - The enduring strangeness of Jackie Butts (sorry, Jack) - Darkest drilling - The 2001 shoe bombing attempt - Tucker Carlson outcrazies himself - Andrew Egger on the latest January 6 conspiracy - Charlie Kirk confirms his genius Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After several years worth of appearances, David Bahnsen (managing partner and chief investment officer at the Bahnsen Group) finally comes on to talk about his main gig: how money works. It only took five whole shows for Jonah to stop asking him about the postmillenial view about how the world’s going to end. But what better time to start asking about the economy than now, as the national conversation turns to taxing the rich, reopening the economy after a year and a half, and whether or not we’re entering an inflationary spiral? Oh, and David’s in the Five-Timer’s Club now. Show Notes: - That time that David Bahnsen started COVID - David sub-hosts for Jonah, talks to David (the other one) - Remember “flattening” the curve? - David recognized a COVID/obesity connection in May 2020 - Jonah on the ProPublica story - David’s somewhat mistimed book on Elizabeth Warren’s campaign - David in Commentary on wealth tax proposals - Larry Summers doesn’t like wealth taxes - “Sticky wages”... gross - Lacey Hunt thinks inflation ends with a whimper, not a bang Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices