The Dispatch Podcast

Most economic numbers paint a dire picture for Democrats in the upcoming midterms. Steve, Jonah, and David discuss who is exactly to blame for that. Then the trio wade into the debate over forgiving student loans. (Spoiler alert: They aren’t fans.) Will the woes in the Democratic Party produce a Ronald Reagan-type figure on the right? Plus, what is everyone’s opinion of the White House Correspondents Dinner?Show Notes:  TMD on the economy numbers  Student loan forgiveness is regressive whether measured by income, education, or wealth | Brookings Institute Kevin McCarthy recordings Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lanhee Chen is running for state controller in California, but what does a state controller do? Steve gets that answer, plus Chen’s thoughts on California’s fiscal state and his plan if he wins the election. Chen also discusses his experience running Mitt Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign’s policy shop. Show Notes:-Chen’s campaign website-Los Angeles Times endorses Chen’s campaign Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It was a busy week. The Justice Department is appealing a federal judge’s decision to strike down the CDC’s travel mask mandate. The Biden administration is standing by its plan to end Title 42, a pandemic-era border policy, despite pushback from Democrats. Texas and Florida have governors making their own questionable decisions. Netflix and CNN feel the full effects of the streaming wars. Plus, what did Kevin McCarthy say? Show Notes:-David and Sarah’s deep dive into the mask mandate decision-Sarah’s immigration conversation with Ali Noorani-Uphill: “Kevin McCarthy’s January 6 Lie” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Biden administration plans to end use of Title 42, the pandemic-era border policy, next month. The governor of Texas is busing migrants to the nation’s capital. Meanwhile, illegal border crossings are on the rise. Does anyone have a plan? Ali Noorani, president of National Immigration Forum and author of Crossing Borders, joins Sarah to discuss America’s immigration woes. Show Notes:-“Crossing Borders: The Reconciliation of a Nation of Immigrants” by Ali Noorani-Room to Grow: Setting Immigration Levels in a Changing America-Texas Tribune: “San Antonio and other Texas cities confront the spillover from the border migration crisis” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released its latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report this week, and our hosts are here to talk through it. What does this all mean for the upcoming midterms and 2024? They will discuss that too. Plus, Sweden and Finland are looking to join NATO. What does this mean for the Western alliance? What should we expect from Russia? Show Notes:-TMD: “Light at the End of the Inflation Tunnel?”-The Sweep: “Tsunami or Ripple? What a Midterm Wave Might Look Like.”-The Sweep: “To Agenda or Not? That Is the Question for the GOP.”-TMD: “Finland and Sweden Weighing NATO Bids”-New York Times: “Military Memo Deepens Possible Interstellar Meteor Mystery”-WUSA: “Teens among seven people arrested after detectives find dog reportedly taken at gunpoint” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah and her guest are here to talk about sex. Christine Emba, a columnist for the Washington Post and author of the new book Rethinking Sex, examines our current sexual mores and finds them wanting. What’s the cause of today’s sexual malaise? What does a new sexual ethic look like? Listen (but maybe not with your young children) for those answers and more. Show Notes:-“Rethinking Sex” by Christine Emba-Christine in the Washington Post: “Consent is not enough. We need a new sexual ethic.”-David in The Atlantic: “Consent Was Never Enough” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Thursday, the Senate confirmed Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. Our hosts are here to discuss what her confirmation foreshadows for future Supreme Court fights. Plus, the Biden administration announced plans to end use of Title 42, a pandemic-era border policy, next month. What does that mean? Sarah, Jonah, and David finish the show discussing the practicality of bringing charges of war crimes as we learn more about the atrocities committed by Russia in Ukraine. Show Notes:-The Dispatch: “​​The Bucha Massacre and the Horrors to Come”-G-File: “Is It Okay to Use the ‘G-Word’?”-The Dispatch: “What are Secondary Sanctions?”-TMD: “How Will the U.S. Admit Ukraine's Refugees?”-Uphill: “Congress Finally Meanders to a Russia Trade Bill” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rep. Cheri Bustos is leaving Congress at the end of this term. What has she learned from her five terms in the House and—as the former leader of the House Democrats’ campaign arm—from the 2020 election? How can Democrats improve their prospects in the 2022 midterms? Sarah gets these answers and more in a candid conversation with the Illinois congresswoman. Show Notes:-Hope from the Heartland: How Democrats Can Better Serve the Midwest by Bringing Rural, Working Class Wisdom to Washington-How Dems Win in Trump Districts-The Sweep: “Tsunami or Ripple? What a Midterm Wave Might Look Like.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Biden announced he would tap our strategic oil reserves in an effort to fight high gas prices. Our hosts are here to discuss the economic realities of that decision. Plus, it was the slap heard around the world: Why can’t we stop talking about it? Sarah, Jonah, David, and Scott finish the show talking about gaffes, cocaine-fueled orgies, and standing in line. Show Notes:-TMD: “It’s a Petroleum Reserve Release, but Is It Strategic?”-The Dispatch: “The Uncomfortable Truth of Biden’s Gaffe”-G-File: “Madison Cawthorn’s Warped Washington”-Capitolism: “Why You Should (Almost) Never Wait in Line” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 1557 into law on Monday. The Parental Rights in Education Act—or “Don’t Say Gay” bill, as its detractors call it—is one of the most contentious and least understood pieces of legislation in recent memory.On today’s podcast, Declan is joined by Gabriel Malor, an appellate litigator based in Virginia, and Eugene Volokh, a law professor at UCLA, for a thoughtful conversation that dives into the bill text and elucidates what the law does—and doesn’t—do. Plus: What are the benefits and drawbacks of writing legislation with vague terminology? And why is Florida passing this bill now? Are the political right and left swapping sides on the exercise of government power? Show Notes:-TMD: “Breaking Down the So-Called ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices