Episodes

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the Supreme Court’s busy week on government speech and immigration authority; Donald Trump’s bond issue and words problem; and COVID learning loss. Join us for Political Gabfest Live in Washington, D.C. on March 27! Tickets are on sale now; get ‘em before they’re gone. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Amy Howe for SCOTUSblog: Court sympathetic to NRA’s free speech claim and Supreme Court skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies
    Lindsay Whitehurst for AP: Supreme Court appears receptive to NRA free-speech lawsuit against a former New York state officia
    Hogan Gore for the Austin American-Statesman: 5th Circuit Court of Appeals leaves SB 4 on hold after dueling orders on Texas immigration law
    Ben Protess, Maggie Haberman, and Kate Christobek for The New York Times: Trump Spurned by 30 Companies as He Seeks Bond in $454 Million Judgment
    Ruth Marcus for The Washington Post: Fair’s fair: Trump should be able to appeal the judgment against him and Catherine Rampell:Trump can’t find anyone to spot him $424 million. Would you?
    Sarah Mervosh, Claire Cain Miller, and Francesca Paris for The New York Times: What the Data Says About Pandemic School Closures, Four Years Later
    Slate Political Gabfest: The “Stop Counting Now” Edition
    Weakley County, TN

    Here are this week’s chatters:
    Emily: Small Game: A Novel by Blair Braverman and Small Game: A Novel at the DC Public Library
    John: Ramishah Maruf for CNN: MacKenzie Scott donates $640 million after open call for nonprofits and Ahjané Forbes for USA Today: Ticketless passenger found in Delta flight’s lavatory, forcing plane to turn around
    David: Sarah Zhang for The Atlantic: DNA Tests Are Uncovering The True Prevalence Of Incest and City Cast: Work with us.
     
    Listener chatter from Joshua Weaver in Austin, Texas: Matthew Brown for AP: Montana man used animal tissue and testicles to breed ‘giant’ sheep for sale to hunting preserves
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily talk about The Mysterious Case of The Reappearing Princess. See Karla Adam for The Washington Post: Will Princess Kate video put an end to royal communications mess? and Mark Landler for The New York Times: The Royals Tried to Control Their Image Online. The Internet Had Other Ideas.
     
    In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily talks with Tana French about her book, The Hunter: A Novel.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • Emily Bazelon talks with author Tana French about her new book, The Hunter. They discuss the different perspectives French uses throughout her books, how French happened into writing mysteries, writing as an outsider to Ireland, and more.

    Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected]. (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth.
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address and Special Counsel Robert Hur’s congressional testimony; crime and punishment with the Wren Collective’s Jessica Brand; and Congress’s move to ban the Chinese government from TikTok. Join us for Political Gabfest Live in Washington, D.C. on March 27! Tickets are on sale now. Planning to attend? Submit a Listener Chatter to [email protected] and you might be picked to chatter live. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    C-SPAN: 2024 State of the Union Address and Former Special Counsel Hur Testifies on Biden Classified Documents Report, Part 1and Part 2
     
    House Committee on the Judiciary: Recorded Interview: Robert Hur, President Biden Transcript, Date of Interview: October 8, and Date of Interview: October 9

    Kaitlan Collins for CNN: Fmr. Mar-a-Lago employee who helped move classified docs speaks with CNN
     
    Adam Serwer for The Atlantic: How Hur Misled the Country on Biden’s Memory

    Jack Goldsmith in The New York Times: Jack Smith and Robert Hur Are the Latest Examples of a Failed Institution

    Erica Pandey and Russell Contreras for Axios: Blue cities go red with conservative policies on crime

    Michael Barbaro and Mike Baker for The New York Times’s The Daily podcast: Oregon Decriminalized Drugs. Voters Now Regret It.

    Madaleine Rubin for The Texas Tribune: Sean Teare unseats Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg in primary
     
    Stefanie Dazio for AP: Progressive Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón advances to runoff

    Jeffrey M. Jones for Gallup: More Americans See U.S. Crime Problem as Serious

    Stephanie Sy and Shoshana Dubnow for the PBS News Hour: As concerns grown around surging violent crime, the numbers tell a different story
     
    David Leonhardt for The New York Times: Should China Own TikTok?

    CBS News: FBI Director Wray says China targeting U.S. civilian infrastructure, economic security

    Laura He for CNN: If the US bans TikTok, China will be getting a taste of its own medicine

    CBS Mornings: Jon Stewart on why he’s going back to “The Daily Show” anchor desk

    Mike Pence on Fox News: TikTok is digital fentanyl and Congress, Biden must act before it’s too late

    Josh Dawsey and Jeff Stein for The Washington Post: How Donald Trump switched to defending TikTok

    Here are this week’s chatters:
    Emily: Josh Gerstein for Politico: Federal courts move against ‘judge-shopping’ and John Dickerson and Jessica Levinson for CBS News Prime Time: New rules aim to prevent “judge shopping” in major court cases
    John: Emily Goulet for Philadelphia: Fight Like a Girl: The New Wave of High-School Wrestling and Alex Bellos for The Guardian: He ate all the pi: Japanese man memorises π to 111,700 digits
    David: Lend A Box
    Listener chatter from Steven in Queens, New York: New York Times: Soon Finds Mother For His 5 Children; Widower Discovers Six Women Eager to Marry Him and Care for His Brood.
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily talk about marriage proposals. See Caroline Kitchener for The Atlantic: Marriage Proposals Are Stupid; Sadiba Hasan for The New York Times: 10 Great Ways to Pop the Question; and Parija Kavilanz for CNN: After 2023 wraps up, get ready for a spike in marriage proposals.
     
    In the latest Gabfest Reads, David talks with Kiley Reid about her book, Come and Get It.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the Biden v. Trump polls and Super Tuesday, the Supreme Court’s decision to leave Donald Trump on the ballot, and whether The Golden Age of American Jews Is Ending with The Atlantic’s Franklin Foer. Join us for Political Gabfest Live in Washington, D.C. on March 27! Tickets are on sale now. Planning to attend? Submit a Listener Chatter to [email protected] and you might be picked to chatter live. Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:538: Latest PollsShane Goldmacher for The New York Times: Voters Doubt Biden’s Leadership and Favor Trump, Times/Siena Poll FindsMark Joseph Stern for Slate: The Supreme Court’s “Unanimous” Trump Ballot Ruling Is Actually a 5-4 DisasterMichael C. Dorf for Dorf on Law: Nine Justices in Search of an Excuse to Nullify Section 3 of the 14th AmendmentKate Shaw, Melissa Murray, and Leah Litman for Crooked Media’s Strict Scrutiny podcast: SCOTUS Restores Trump to the Colorado Ballot, Unanimously (Kind Of)Franklin Foer for The Atlantic: The Golden Age of American Jews Is EndingElena Schneider and Melanie Mason for Politico: AIPAC uncorks $100 million war chest to sink progressive candidatesCenter for Antisemitism Research: 24% of Americans Harbor Extensive Antisemitic Prejudice, Up From 20% in 2022, Survey FindsRomain Chauvet for The Times of Israel: ‘I’m afraid every day for my children’: As antisemitism soars, French Jews flee to IsraelHere are this week’s chatters:Emily: Madaleine Rubin for The Texas Tribune: Sean Teare unseats Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg in primary; Serena Lin for the Austin American-Statesman: Incumbent JosĂ© Garza wins Democratic primary for Travis County district attorney; Stefanie Dazio for AP: Progressive Los Angeles County District Attorney George GascĂłn advances to runoff; Mensah M. Dean for The Trace: In Philadelphia, a Program Offers Some People Arrested for Unlicensed Guns a Second Chance; and Jenice Armstrong for The Philadelphia Inquirer: Philly program keeps gun offenders out of prison. I’m all for it.John: Bozi Tatarevic for Road & Track: Here’s Why NASCAR Driver Joey Logano Was Penalized For Cheating Gloves and Victoria Beaver: Caught Webbed-Handed: Here’s the Cheated-Up Glove NASCAR Fined Joey Logano OverDavid: One Day on Netflix and One Day by David Nicholls; Normal People on Hulu and Normal People: A Novel by Sally Rooney; Shƍgun on Hulu and Shƍgun, Part One by James Clavell; Atlas Obscura’s Ecliptic Festival; and Danielle Dowling for The New York Times: 31 Things to Do for the Big Eclipse This AprilListener chatter from Jason Dewees in San Francisco, California: Julie Zigoris for The San Francisco Standard: He died in a Jewish ghetto. How did his long-lost art end up on a bench in San Francisco? For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily talk with Researcher Julie about working as an election judge. See Arapahoe County (Colorado) Elections; Election Judges; Election Transparency; and Arapahoe County Life of the Ballot. In the latest Gabfest Reads, David talks with Kiley Reid about her book, Come and Get It. Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Cheyna Roth Research by Julie HuygenLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign; the Supreme Court’s boost for Donald Trump and review of social media’s content moderation; and Senator Mitch McConnell’s decision to time out as minority leader. Join us for our next Political Gabfest Live show in Washington, D.C. on March 27! Tickets are on sale now. Planning to attend? Submit a Listener Chatter to [email protected] and you might be picked to chatter live. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Ezra Klein for The New York Times Ezra Klein Show podcast: Democrats Have a Better Option Than Biden
    Jamelle Bouie for The New York Times: It’s Not as Easy as Just Getting Biden to Drop Out
    Yasmeen Abutaleb and Marianne LeVine for The Washington Post: Biden wins Michigan primary but faces notable showing by ‘uncommitted’
    Thomas L. Friedman for The New York Times: Israel Is Losing Its Greatest Asset: Acceptance
    Karl Rove for The Wall Street Journal: Trump Goes on Fox and Shows His Weakness
    Amy Howe for SCOTUSblog: Supreme Court skeptical of Texas, Florida regulation of social media moderation
    G.S. Hans for Balls and Strikes: How the Supreme Court’s Latest Big Tech Case Pits Cancel Culture Hysteria Against Corporate Power
    Michael C. Dorf for Dorf on Law: The Partial Facial Challenge Option in the Netchoice Cases
    Alan Feuer for The New York Times: In Taking Up Trump’s Immunity Claim, Supreme Court Bolstered His Delay Strategy
    John Dickerson for CBS News: Examining Mitch McConnell’s legacy as Senate Republican leader
    The Long Game: A Memoir by Mitch McConnell
    Mariana Alfaro for The Washington Post: Here’s who could replace Mitch McConnell as Senate’s top Republican
    Mark Sumner for the Daily Kos: Watch Tim Scott utterly humiliate himself for Trump
    Katelyn Caralle and Sarah Ewall-Wice for the Daily Mail: Lindsey Graham is mercilessly BOOED at Trump’s South Carolina victory party: Ex-president brings Senator on stage after introducing him as a ‘little further to the left’
    Saturday Night Live: Trump Victory Party Cold Open

    Here are this week’s chatters:
    Emily: Molly Ryan for WRKF 89.3 Baton Rouge Public Radio: House lawmakers advance bills targeting early release from prison – and more
    John: Aliza Chasan for CBS News: Cardboard box filled with unopened hockey cards sells for more than $3.7 million at auction and Joshua Rapp Learn for Discover: SchrƑdinger’s Cat Experiment and the Conundrum That Rules Modern Physics
    David: Plainsong by Kent Haruf and City Cast: Work with us.
    Listener chatter from Jacob in Chicago, Illinois: citiesbydiana on TikTok: Top 6 Best Stroads in America
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily discuss the Republican obsession with Hunter Biden and the possibility of impeaching President Joe Biden. See Matthew Yglesias for Slow Boring: Republicans can’t stop swallowing Russian propaganda. See also Ken Tran for USA Today: Hunter Biden denies Joe Biden involved in family business: ‘Destructive political charade’; Amy Taxin and Alanna Durkin Richer for AP: Ex-FBI informant charged with lying about Bidens to remain jailed while he awaits trial, judge rules; and Philip Bump for The Washington Post: Evaluating the anti-Biden case House Republicans offered on social media. 
     
    In the latest Gabfest Reads, David talks with Kiley Reid about her book, Come and Get It.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the tragic death of Alexei Navalny and the fallout in the US; Donald Trump’s civil fraud case and consequences; and Alabama’s new stance on frozen embryos.   
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Pam Belluck for the New York Times on A New Abortion Access Strategy
    Adam Liptak for the New York Times on Supreme Court Seems Ready to Block a Biden Plan on Air Pollution 
    Jeffrey Blehar for National Review on We Need to Talk about Tucker
    Brett Stephens for the New York Times on How Biden Can Avenge Navalny’s Death
    David Ignatius, for the Washington Post on Ukraine faces a valley of death. There’s a way Biden can help it get across.
    Neil MacFarquhar for the New York Times on Wife, Protector and Now Political Heir: Yulia Navalnaya Rallies Russians
    Jonah E. Bromwich and Ben Protess for the New York Times on What the Civil Fraud Ruling Means for Trump’s Finances and His Empire
    Jonathan O'Connell for the Washington Post on Hefty fines, penalties will rock Trump family's business and fortune
    Ruth Marcus for the Washington Post on Alabama’s frozen embryo ruling is misguided
    Jan Hoffman for the New York times on Alabama Says Embryos in a Lab Are Children. What Are the Implications?

    Here are this week’s chatters:
    Emily: The fight against the EPA’s “good neighbor” air pollution rule heats up at the Supreme Court. 
    John: Allison Russel’s Grammy Award win for Eve Was Black, which some members of the Tennessee legislature sought to reject a congratulatory resolution for the singer.  
    David: Closet beds in the Netherlands. 
    Listener chatter from Lee Underwood in Atlanta, Georgia: Caley Fretz for Escape Collective: Meet the man who rode more new roads than anyone else
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily are joined by Gongwer News Service Executive Editor and Publisher Zach Gorchow. Zach also co-hosts the Michigan politics podcast MichMash. They discuss the dustup among Democratic votes who may vote “uncommitted” in the primary because of Biden’s stance on Israel.  
     
    In the latest Gabfest Reads, John talks with Brad Stulberg about his book, Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything Is Changing – Including You.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Keya Bajaj
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • David Plotz talks with author Kiley Reid about her new book, Come & Get It. They discuss how money can work in the same way as language, writing realistic dialogue, and the things we can’t let go of. 

    Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected]. (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth.
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss Special Counsel Robert Hur’s description of President Joe Biden; House Republicans’ impeachment of DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and refusal on Ukraine aid; and Democrat Tom Suozzi’s win in the New York congressional special election. And in Slate Plus, Emily, John, and David talk local news with reporter Ellie Wolfe. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Matt Viser and Tyler Pager for The Washington Post: Biden responds angrily to special counsel report questioning his memory and Marianne LeVine: Trump says he’d disregard NATO treaty, urge Russian attacks on U.S. allies
    Politico Magazine: What Biden Needs to Do to Reassure the Public
    Elena Moore for NPR: Biden’s campaign gives in and joins TikTok. Blame the youngs
    Mike Lillis and Mychael Schnell for The Hill: Lawmakers scramble for Plan B on Ukraine
    Jake Tapper for CNN: Marco Rubio reacts to Trump threatening NATO country to ‘pay up’
    Zack Beauchamp for Vox: The moral and strategic case for arming Ukraine
    Joshua Matz, Michael J. Gerhardt, Amit Jain, and Laurence H. Tribe for Just Security: Why and How the Senate Should Swiftly Dismiss the Impeachment Charges Against Mayorkas
    Nate Cohn for The New York Times: Not an Ordinary Special Election, and Yet a Typical Result and Carl Hulse: How Senate Democrats Flipped the Border Issue on Republicans

    Here are this week’s chatters:
    Emily: American Fiction; Sam Sanders, Nadira Goffe, and Stephen Metcalf for the Slate Culture Gabfest podcast: American Fiction, Oscar Contender?; and Sam Sanders, Saeed Jones, and Zach Stafford for the Stitcher Vibe Check podcast: A Special Conversation with Cord Jefferson 
    John: Timeguessr and Matt Levine for Matt Levin’s Money Stuff: Lyft Had an Earnings Typo
    David: The Greatest Night in Pop on Netflix and USA for Africa: We Are the World 
    Listener chatter from J.T. Horn in Strafford, Vermont: Peter Frick Wright for the Outside Podcast: A Wild Conversation with E. Jean Carroll
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily discuss with Ellie Wolfe her local-news reporting as Education Reporter for the Arizona Daily Star. See Proposed law would limit shared governance at Arizona’s universities; U of A to ‘permanently eliminate’ $27 million worth of jobs in academic units; U of A’s Robbins talks about his pay, layoffs, athletics debt, more; and CFO: U of A must cut $200M in spending, rethink mission, accept layoffs. Thanks to listeners Alison, Anna, and David for the recommendation! 
     
    In the latest Gabfest Reads, John talks with Brad Stulberg about his book, Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything Is Changing – Including You.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the Republicans’ beginning and end of both the border bill and the impeachment of Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas; the criminal conviction of a mother for a school shooting by her son; and the D.C. Circuit Court decision on presidential immunity and the Supreme Court argument on the presidential ballot. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Rachael Bade for Politico: Schumer presses forward with Ukraine Plan B as GOP leaders reel and Burgess Everett: Behind the border mess: Open GOP rebellion against McConnell
    Cleve R. Wootson Jr. for The Washington Post: Biden vows to make GOP defeat of a conservative border bill a campaign issue and Jacqueline Alemany, Amy B Wang, Marianna Sotomayor, and Paul Kane: In stunning vote, House Republicans fail to impeach Secretary Mayorkas
    Former Rep. Charlie Stenholm in The Hill in 2015: How Tip O’Neill and Ronald Reagan would make this Congress work
    Tresa Baldas for the Detroit Free Press: Jennifer Crumbley guilty: Understanding involuntary manslaughter charge, possible sentenceand Paul Egan: Michigan’s gun laws change: Background checks, storage, temporary removal
    Michael Barbaro and Lisa Miller for The New York Times The Daily podcast: A Guilty Verdict for a Mass Shooter’s Mother
    Rachel Weiner for The Washington Post: Trump has no immunity from Jan. 6 prosecution, appeals court rules
    Ian Millhiser for Vox: The Supreme Court is about to decide whether to sabotage Trump’s election theft trial
    Amy Howe for SCOTUSblog: Supreme Court to decide whether insurrection provision keeps Trump off ballot
     
    Here are this week’s chatters:
    John: Ian Sample for The Guardian: AI helps scholars read scroll buried when Vesuvius erupted in AD79; Pierina Pighi Bel for the BBC: Bodegas: The small corner shops that run NYC; David Blank in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Philodemus; Moss and Fog; and Institute of Politics at Harvard Kennedy School: Theodore H. White Lecture with John Dickerson
    Emily: Sofia Resnick for News From The States: Study cited by Texas judge in abortion pill case retracted and Sage Publishing: A note from Sage on retractions in Health Services Research and Managerial Epidemiology
    David: Patrick Radden Keefe for The New Yorker: A Teen’s Fatal Plunge Into The London Underworld
    Listener chatter from Patrick Johnson in Anchorage, Alaska: Rhonda McBride for KNBA - Anchorage: Anchorage’s white raven becomes a local legend as a tracked trickster
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily discuss “Fast Car,” Tracy Chapman’s 1988 original, and Luke Combs’s 2023 cover.
     
    In the latest Gabfest Reads, John talks with Brad Stulberg about his book, Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything Is Changing – Including You.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss E. Jean Carroll’s $83.3 million win against Donald J. Trump; the events of 1920-1948 that shaped the current relationship of Israel and Palestine; and the tech-bro billionaires of techno-authoritarianism with Adrienne LaFrance of The Atlantic. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Eric Lach for The New Yorker: Nine Regular People Tell Donald Trump to Shut Up and Pay Up
    Monica Hesse for The Washington Post: Is it really sexism that Trump is showing? Or is it something worse?
    Maggie Haberman and Shane Goldmacher for The New York Times: Trump’s PACs Spent Roughly $50 Million on Legal Expenses in 2023
    Erik Larson for Fortune and Bloomberg: Most of Trump’s cash stockpile is at risk from possible $450m dual verdicts in E. Jean Carroll and New York business fraud cases
    CBS News: Face The Nation and Emily Tillett: Nikki Haley on Trump accusers: Women who accuse anyone “should be heard” and “dealt with”
    Gabriella Abdul-Hakim for ABC News: Tim Scott insists voters don’t care about Trump’s defamation loss, plays down ‘provocative’ Haley attacks
    Dietrich Knauth for Insurance Journal: Sandy Hook Denier Alex Jones Eyes Settlement With Families, Bankruptcy Exit
    Emily Bazelon for The New York Times: The Road to 1948 and Was Peace Ever Possible?
    Adrienne LaFrance for The Atlantic: The Rise of Techno-Authoritarianism
    Ezra Klein for The New York Times: The Chief Ideologist of the Silicon Valley Elite Has Some Strange Ideas
    Steven Levy for Wired: What the Techno-Billionaire Missed About Techno-Optimism
    Jonathan Taplin for Vanity Fair: How Musk, Thiel, Zuckerberg, and Andreessen—Four Billionaire Techno-Oligarchs—Are Creating an Alternate, Autocratic Reality
    Lisa Desjardins and Jonah Anderson for PBS Newshour: Lawmakers grill Big Tech executives, accusing them of failing to protect children
    The Dictator’s Learning Curve: Inside the Global Battle for Democracy by William J. Dobson
     
    Here are this week’s chatters: 
    Emily: The Fight to Save the Town: Reimagining Discarded America by Michelle Wilde Anderson
    John: PenTips; Toluse Olorunnipa and Liz Goodwin for The Washington Post: Biden vows to ‘shut down’ an overwhelmed border if Senate deal passes and Jacob Bogage and Jeff Stein: House votes to expand child tax credit, beef up corporate tax breaks
    David: Visual Arts, St. Albans School; John Buzbee for The Advocate: LSU students bare it all as nude art models: ‘It’s a very brave thing to be able to do.’; and Kim McGill for The Union: The naked truth: Art models at El Camino inspire students to portray humanity in all its forms
    Listener chatter from Jay Lloyd in Louisville, Kentucky: Eric Berger for Ars Technica: What happens when an astronaut in orbit says he’s not coming back?
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily discuss the Love Story of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce and the message for MAGA madness: You Need To Calm Down. See Mariana Alfaro for The Washington Post: Why Trump’s MAGA Republican movement dislikes Taylor Swift and Ross Douthat for The New York Times: Taylor Swift, Donald Trump and the Right’s Abnormality Problem.
     
    In the latest Gabfest Reads, John talks with Brad Stulberg about his book, Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything Is Changing – Including You.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
     
    Hosts
    Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the Trump v. Biden presidential rematch, the end of the “vibecession,” and the political fights over immigration. Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:Michael Scherer and Toluse Olorunnipa for The Washington Post: Trump, Biden pivot quickly to a 2024 campaign that many voters dreadLauren Irwin for The Hill: Trump says Tim Scott ‘must really hate’ HaleyAllison Pecorin and Caleigh Bartash for ABC News: Trump picks up endorsements from holdouts after New Hampshire winJohn E. Moser for Teaching American History: “Fireside Chat” on “Purging” the Democratic PartyBen Casselman for The New York Times: U.S. Economy Grew at 3.3% Rate in Latest Quarter and German Lopez: The End of Economic Pessimism?Jeff Stein for The Washington Post: As doomsday predictions dissipate, Biden aides savor booming economy and Trump promises to stop inflation. But would his plans actually help?Kyla Scanlon for Kyla’s Newsletter: The Vibecession: The Self-Fulfilling ProphecyBen Harris and Aaron Sojourner for The Brookings Institution: Why are Americans so displeased with the economy?David Montgomery for YouGov: How’s the economy doing? For many Americans, the answer is how their party’s doingPunchbowl News AM: McConnell bows to Trump on borderKaroun Demirjian for The New York Times: With Border Deal Near, Parole and Money Take Center Stage in Senate TalksMaria Sacchetti for The Washington Post: Explaining immigration parole, one sticking point in Ukraine aid-border dealRafael Bernal and Al Weaver for The Hill: Parole: What to know about the GOP’s latest border sticking point David J. Bier for the Cato Institute: New Data Show Migrants Were More Likely to Be Released by Trump Than BidenColleen Long for AP: Title 42 has ended. Here’s what it did, and how US immigration policy is changingHere are this week’s chatters: Emily: Yair Rosenberg for The Atlantic: What Did Top Israeli War Officials Really Say About Gaza? and Comics Kingdom: Sally ForthJohn: Tori Apodaca for CBS Sacramento: California writes cursive back into elementary school curriculum and Carmen Mayer, Stefanie Wallner, Nora Budde-Spengler, Sabrina Braunert, Petra A. Arndt, and Markus Kiefer in Frontiers in Psychology: Literacy Training of Kindergarten Children With Pencil, Keyboard or Tablet Stylus: The Influence of the Writing Tool on Reading and Writing Performance at the Letter and Word Level David: Erik Wemple for The Washington Post: At Gallery Place, it’s Ted Leonsis vs. one very loud street music actListener chatter from Annie O’Connor in St. Paul, Minnesota: LockPickingLawyer on YouTube For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily discuss Ezra Klein’s piece in The New York Times: I Am Going to Miss Pitchfork, but That’s Only Half the Problem. See Judy Woodruff, Sarah Clune Hartman, and Frank Carlson for PBS: The connections between decline of local news and growing political division; Steven Waldman for The Atlantic: The Local-News Crisis Is Weirdly Easy to Solve; and Penelope Muse Abernathy for the Hussman School of Journalism and Media, University of North Carolina: The Expanding News Desert: Finding Solutions. See also Press Forward; Sara Fischer and Cuneyt Dil for Axios: Scoop: D.C. lawmakers to introduce new bill funding local news via vouchers; and the Law & Justice Journalism Project. In the latest Gabfest Reads, John talks with Brad Stulberg about his book, Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything Is Changing – Including You. Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Cheyna Roth Research by Julie HuygenLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • On this month’s edition of Gabfest Reads, John Dickerson talks with author Brad Stulberg about his new book, Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything is Changing – Including You. They discuss how to make change itself a mindset, John’s notebooks, what we can learn from athletes, and more.

    Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected]. (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth.
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, John Dickerson re-joins Emily Bazelon and David Plotz to discuss the Republican presidential race, the Iowa caucuses, and the New Hampshire primary; the Loper Bright and Relentless cases at the Supreme Court and the possible end of Chevrondeference; and The Misguided War on the SAT with David Leonhardt of The New York Times. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Nate Cohn for The New York Times: Even the Battle for Second Turned Out Well for Trump in Iowa
    Ross Douthat for The New York Times: How Trump’s Opponents Made Iowa Easy for Him
    Amy Howe for SCOTUSblog: Supreme Court likely to discard Chevron; Supreme Court to hear major case on power of federal agencies; and Supreme Court curtails EPA’s authority to fight climate change
    Cornell Law School’s Legal information Institute: Administrative Procedure Act
    Jess Bravin for The Wall Street Journal: Conservatives Once Hailed This Case. Now They’re at the Supreme Court to Gut It.
    Ian Millhiser for Vox: The Supreme Court cases asking the justices to put themselves in charge of everything, explained and A new Supreme Court case seeks to make the nine justices even more powerful
    David Leonhardt for The New York Times: The Misguided War on the SAT
    Ileana Najarro for EdWeek: The SAT Is Making a Comeback. Here’s a Look at the Numbers and What They Tell Us
    Raj Chetty, David J. Deming, and John Friedman for Opportunity Insights: Diversifying Society’s Leaders? The Determinants and Causal Effects of Admission to Highly Selective Private Colleges

    Here are this week’s chatters:
    Emily: The Ringer’s podcast “Stick the Landing” and Andy Greenwald and Mallory Rubin: Did ‘Friday Night Lights’ Stick the Landing?
    John: Richard Baldwin for VoxEU: China is the world’s sole manufacturing superpower: A line sketch of the rise; Moss and Fog: Tree.fm is Your Aural Escape Into Nature; and tree.fm
    David: Steve Lopez for the Los Angeles Times: They take care of aging adults, live in cramped quarters and make less than minimum wage and ZipRecruiter: assisted living jobs in Washington, DC
    Listener chatter from Kevin Collins in San Antonio, Texas: Historic Vids on X
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David talks about his father, Dr. Paul Plotz. See Rachel Weller for The NIH Catalyst: Symposium Honors NIAM’s Paul Plotz and The New York Times: Judith A. Abrams Engaged to Wed Dr. Paul H. Plotz; Candidate for Ph.D. at Harvard Is Fiancee of Boston Interne. See also John G. Zinn for the Society for American Baseball Research: Ebbets Field (Brooklyn, NY); National Institutes of Health; Union of Concerned Scientists; and The Two Cultures and The Scientific Revolution by C. P. Snow.

    In the latest Gabfest Reads, John talks with Christine Coulson about her book, One Woman Show: A Novel.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
     
    Hosts
    Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon and David Plotz are joined by Jamelle Bouie of The New York Times to discuss the absence and silence of Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, school absenteeism with Alec MacGillis of ProPublica, and Donald Trump’s claim of absolute presidential immunity. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Politico: Austin’s hospital debacle: A timeline of events
    Fred Kaplan for Slate: Why the Secretary of Defense’s Mysterious Disappearance Means He Needs to Go
    Max Boot for The Washington Post: Lloyd Austin doesn’t deserve to be the piñata of the day in Washington
    Major General Patrick S. Ryder, Department of Defense Press Secretary
    Alec MacGillis for ProPublica and The New Yorker: Skipping School: America’s Hidden Education Crisis
    Jay Greene, Ph.D. and Jonathan Butcher for The Heritage Foundation: The Alarming Rise in Teacher Absenteeism
    Natalie Kitroeff and Adam Liptak for The New York Times Daily podcast: Trump’s Case for Total Immunity
    Bill Rankin and Katherine Landergan for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Could Willis allegations sink Trump case? Legal experts weigh in
    Mariana Alfaro and Amy B Wang for The Washington Post: Chris Christie caught on hot mic, says Nikki Haley will ‘get smoked’

    Here are this week’s chatters:
    Emily: Past Lives and Anatomy of a Fall
    Jamelle: Fist of the Condor
    David: Amsterdam; EnglishLearning on reddit: Is there any English word that has three or more same and consecutive letters?
     
    Listener chatter from Erin Bumgarner in Arlington, Massachusetts: The Art of Noticing by Rob Walker
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, Emily, and Jamelle talk about which presidents should be on a new Mount Rushmore. See The White House Historical Association: The Presidents; John Quincy Adams; Ulysses S. Grant; Franklin D. Roosevelt; Dwight D. Eisenhower; and Lyndon B. Johnson. See also National Park Service: Why These Four Presidents?; Mario Canseco for Research Co.: Americans Pick Four Presidents for “New Mount Rushmore”; Politico Magazine: Who Should Be on the Next Mount Rushmore?; and Chauncey Alcorn for Capital B: What to Do About Stone Mountain? Black Residents Talk Park’s Racist Past.

    In the latest Gabfest Reads, John talks with Christine Coulson about her book, One Woman Show: A Novel.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) 
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
     
    Hosts
    Jamelle Bouie, Emily Bazelon, and David Plotz
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz begin the year discussing the 2024 presidential election; Harvard President Claudine Gay’s resignation; and the 2023 decrease in homicides. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Steve Peoples for AP: Biden and Trump are posed for a potential rematch that could shake American politics
    Rob Crilly for the Daily Mail: Voters describe their 2024 choice between a Trump second term and a Biden second term as a choice between REVENGE or NOTHING in Daily Mail poll
    Brianne Pfannenstiel for the Des Moines Register: Iowa Poll: Donald Trump holds overwhelming lead; Ron DeSantis edges ahead of Nikki Haley
    Claudine Gay in The New York Times: What Just Happened at Harvard Is Bigger Than Me
    The Crimson Editorial Board for The Harvard Crimson: President Gay Plagiarized, but She Should Stay. For Now.
    Ian Ward for Politico: We Sat Down With the Conservative Mastermind Behind Claudine Gay’s Ouster
    Jeremy Duda for Axios: ASU continues streak as U.S. News’ most innovative school
    David Goldman for CNN: The 4 key events that led to UPenn President Liz Magill’s resignation
    Jeff Asher for Jeff-alytics: Crime in 2023: Murder Plummeted, Violent and Property Crime Likely Fell Nationally
    Bill Hutchinson for ABC News: ‘It is historic’: US poised to see record drop in yearly homicides despite public concern over crime
    Ken Dilanian for NBC News: Most people think the U.S. crime rate is rising. They’re wrong.

    Here are this week’s chatters:
    John: Library of Congress: Robert Cornelius, self-portrait; believed to be the earliest extant American portrait photo; National Gallery of Art: The Art of the American Snapshot, 1888-1978: From the Collection of Robert E. Jackson
    Emily: Ari Rabinovitch for Reuters: Israel’s Supreme Court strikes down disputed law that limited court oversight
    David: Brian Murphy for The Washington Post: Maureen Sweeney, weather watcher who influenced D-Day plans, dies at 100
     
    Listener chatter from Eric in Tuckahoe, New York: Christophe Haubursin for Vox: What’s inside this crater in Madagascar?
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily talk about New Year’s resolutions and self-help. See also Matthew Solan for Harvard Health Publishing: Thinking of trying Dry January? Steps for success; James Clear: Atomic Habits Summary; Renée Onque for CNBC: This is a tried-and-true way to break a bad habit, says wellbeing coach—so we’re putting it to the test in 2024; and Chandra Steele for PCMag: Annoyed With Instagram? Take Control of Your Feed With These Tips and Tricks.

    In the latest Gabfest Reads, John talks with Christine Coulson about her book, One Woman Show: A Novel.
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
     
    Hosts
    Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon and David Plotz are joined by Wesley Morris, critic at large for The New York Times and co-host of the Still Processing podcast, to cogitate on Conundrums 2023. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Thanks to everyone who submitted Conundrums, especially Alex, Brian, Mitchell Kosht, Patricia Gonzalez, Kali Rocha, Becca Nagorsky, Kevin Maginnis, Kevin Collins, Beth Kirsch, Brian Cechnicki, Chuck Terhark, Howard W, Brian, Mike Daugherty, Alan Dybner, Tim Falzone, Matthew Gill, Cynthia Weiner, and the incomparable Phil Goldstein. 
     
    Benjamin Wittes for Dog Shit Daily: My encounter with a shit-throwing neighborhood Karen
    Jon Mendelsohn for American Songwriter: The Real Reason Why Van Halen Asked Venues For Bowls of M&Ms Containing ‘No Brown Ones’ 
    The Sellout: A Novel by Paul Beatty
    Working: People Talk About What They Do All Day and How They Feel About What They Do by Studs Terkel
    Richard Scarry’s What Do People Do All Day? by Richard Scarry
    In Love: A Memoir of Love and Loss by Amy Bloom
    Amy Bloom for This American Life: Exit Strategy
    Gabfest Reads: He Wanted to Die Holding Hands
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, Emily, and Wesley tackle three more Conundrums. 

    In the latest Gabfest Reads, John talks with Brad Stulberg about Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything Is Changing – Including You.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Jared Downing and Cheyna Roth with live show support from Katie Rayford
    Research by Julie Huygen
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • John Dickerson talks with author Christine Coulson about her new book, “One Woman Show.” They discuss the moment that inspired Coulson to tell a story in museum wall labels, her 25-years working at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and why restraint can be an artist’s best friend. 

    Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected]. (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)

    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth.
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision to block Donald Trump from the ballot, the new Texas law to allow state and local authorities to arrest immigrants, and guest Amanda Ripley’s suggestions to survive 2024. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Colorado Supreme Court’s opinion in Anderson, et al. v. Griswold, et al.
    Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States
    John Dickerson for CBS News Prime Time: John Dickerson on Trump, Colorado and the 14th Amendment
    Adam Unikowsky for Adam’s Legal Newsletter: Is the Supreme Court seriously going to disqualify Trump?
    Mark A. Graber in The New York Times: Donald Trump and the Jefferson Davis Problem
    Lawfare: Tracking Section 3 Trump Disqualification Challenges
    Karoun Demirjian for The New York Times: Congress Abandons Ukraine Aid Until Next Year as Border Talks Continue
    Ashley Wu for The New York Times: Why Illegal Border Crossings Are at Sustained Highs
    Elizabeth Findell for The Wall Street Journal: Texas Spent Billions on Border Security. It’s Not Working
    Tom Cohen and Bill Mears for CNN: Supreme Court mostly rejects Arizona immigration law; gov says ‘heart’ remains
    Edgar Sandoval for The New York Times: Appellate Court Says U.S. Can’t Cut Through Texas Border Wire Along Rio Grande
    Gabriela Baczynska for Reuters: What’s in the new EU migration and asylum deal?
    Karen Musalo for Just Security: Biden’s Embrace of Trump’s Transit Ban Violates US Legal and Moral Refugee Obligations
    Amanda Ripley for Unraveled: How to Survive 2024
    Adam Mastroianni in The New York Times: Your Brain Has Tricked You Into Thinking Everything Is Worse and for Experimental History: Things could be better
    The Economist: What psychology experiments tell you about why people deny facts

    Here are this week’s chatters:
    John: Jason Bittel for National Geographic: A bonobo was separated from her sister for 26 years. She still remembers her.
    Emily: May December on Netflix
    David: Hiroaki Nakagawa and Yasushi Miyata in Internal Medicine: An Underdiagnosed Cause of an Itchy Back
     
    Listener chatter from Michael in Queens, New York: Irin Carmon for New York Magazine: A $45 Million Effort to Make Pregnancy Less Deadly in Brooklyn
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, Amanda joins David, John, and Emily to talk about their holiday plans, which include To Asia, With Love: Everyday Asian Recipes and Stories From the Heart by Hetty McKinnon, the DC Public Library, Purlie Victorious, the National Zoo, and Sara Lee’s Butter Streusel Coffee Cake. 

    In the next Gabfest Reads, John talks with Christine Coulson about her new book, One Woman Show.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the free-speech controversies that are roiling college campuses since the war in Gaza began; the questions related to Trump cases that the U.S. Supreme Court will answer; and the latest high-profile abortion case coming out of Texas that has real-life and political consequences. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show:
    Hannah Natanson and Susan Svrluga for The Washington Post: Harvard President Claudine Gay to remain after antisemitism testimony
    Michelle Goldberg for The New York Times: At a Hearing on Israel, University Presidents Walked Into a Trap
    Elad Simchayoff @Elad_Si on X 
    Danielle Allen for The Washington Post: We’ve lost our way on campus. Here’s how we can find our way back.
    David French for The New York Times: What the University Presidents Got Right and Wrong About Antisemitic Speech
    Santul Nerkar and Jonah E. Bromwich for The New York Times: How the Israel-Hamas War Tore Apart Public Defenders in the Bronx
    Michael Barbaro and Nicholas Confessore for The Daily: Antisemitism and Free Speech Collide on Campuses
    Zah Montague and Tracey Tully for The New York Times: Education Dept. Is Investigating Six More Colleges Over Campus Discrimination
    Mark Sherman and Eric Tucker for AP: Special counsel Jack Smith asks the Supreme Court to rule quickly on whether Trump can be prosecuted and Mark Sherman: Supreme Court will hear a case that could undo Capitol riot charge against hundreds, including Trump
    Bob Dylan on YouTube: Bob Dylan – Idiot Wind (Official Audio)
    Robert Legare and Robert Costa for CBS News: Investigators accessed Trump White House cellphone records and plan to use them at trial, special counsel says
    Sabrina Tavernise for The Daily: The Woman Who Fought the Texas Abortion Ban
    Carter Sherman for The Guardian: US abortion rates rise post-Roe amid deep divide in state-by-state access
    Kate Zernike for The New York Times: Texas Judge Says Doctors Can Use ‘Good Faith Judgment’ in Providing Abortions

    Here are this week’s chatters: 
    John: One Line A Day: A Five-Year Memory Book and James Barron for The New York Times: Bob Dylan Sings, and Talks, on These Tapes From 62 Years Ago 
    Emily: Sydney Lupkin and Danielle Kurtzleben on All Things Considered: The Supreme Court will decide the fate of abortion pill mifepristone
    David: Paul Schwartzman for The Washington Post: With sports teams primed for move to Va., downtown D.C. frets its future and City Cast: Work with us.
    Listener chatter from Margaret in Jersey City: Chair Watch on Facebook
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily talk about Why Are So Many American Pedestrians Dying at Night?by Emily Badger, Ben Blatt, and Josh Katz for The New York Times and Why pedestrian deaths in the US are at a 40-year high by Marin Cogan for Vox. See also Political Gabfest: “The World Is Burning” Edition and Vision and night driving abilities of elderly driversby Nicole Gruber, Urs P Mosimann, René M Müri, and Tobias Nef.

    In the next Gabfest Reads, John talks with Brad Stulberg about Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything Is Changing – Including You.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

  • This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz gather around John’s dining room table to discuss Liz Cheney, her book, and how far she’ll go to stop Donald Trump; Chris Christie, his presidential campaign, and whether he’ll stay in the race; and Purdue Pharma, the Sacklers, and if the Supreme Court will let the company go bankrupt to save the family fortune. 
     
    Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: 
    Oath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning by Liz Cheney
    John Dickerson for CBS News Sunday Morning: “Liz Cheney on why she believes Trump’s reelection would mean the end of our republic”
    Terry Gross for NPR Fresh Air: “Liz Cheney, focused on stopping Trump, hasn’t ruled out 3rd-party presidential run” 
    Kevin Liptak, David Wright, and Samantha Waldenberg for CNN: Biden tells donors he’s ‘not sure I’d be running’ in 2024 if Trump wasn’t in the race
    Ben Mathis-Lilley for Slate: When Chris Christie Is the Voice of Honesty and Reason, You’re in Trouble
    Lisa Lerer and Chris Cameron for The New York Times: “Some Republicans Have a Blunt Message for Chris Christie: Drop Out” 
    Ed Kilgore for the Intelligencer: “Christie Vows to Continue Doomed Campaign to the Bitter End”
    Amy Howe for SCOTUSblog: “Court conflicted over Purdue Pharma bankruptcy plan that shields Sacklers from liability”
    Abbie VanSickle and Jan Hoffman for The New York Times: “What to Know About the Purdue Pharma Case Before the Supreme Court”
    Jocelyn Mackie for Forbes Advisor: Prescription Opioid Lawsuit Guide (2023)
    Alexander Gladstone for The Wall Street Journal: Georgia-Pacific Wins Appeal to Maintain Chapter 11 Protection From Lawsuits
     
    Here are this week’s chatters:
    Emily: First: Sandra Day O’Connor by Evan Thomas 
    John: Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything Is Changing – Including You by Brad Stulberg; Monty Python – Silly Job Interview; and John Cleese on Creativity In Management
    David: Going Zero: A Novel by Anthony McCarten and Such a Fun Age: A Novel by Kiley Reid
    Listener chatter from Ryan White: Zaria Gorvett for the BBC: Tyrian purple: The lost ancient pigment that was more valuable than gold
     
    For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David, John, and Emily talk through a constitutional Conundrum. See also Wikipedia: Gouverneur Morris.

    In the next Gabfest Reads, John talks with Brad Stulberg about Master of Change: How to Excel When Everything Is Changing – Including You.
     
    Email your chatters, questions, and comments to [email protected]. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
     
    Podcast production by Cheyna Roth 
    Research by Julie Huygen
     
    Hosts
    Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz
    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices