384 episodes
The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg The Dispatch
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4.8 • 5.2K Ratings
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In “The Remnant," Jonah Goldberg, the founder and editor-in-chief of The Dispatch, syndicated columnist, best-selling author, and AEI/NRI Fellow enlists a “Cannonball Run”-style cast of stars, has-beens, and never-weres to address the most pressing issues of the day and of all-time. Is Western Civilization doomed? Is nationalism the wave of the future? Is the Pope Catholic? Will they ever find a new place to put cheese on a pizza? Is Die Hard a Christmas movie? Who is hotter: Ginger or Mary-Ann? Was Plato really endorsing the Republic as the ideal state? Mixing history, pop culture, rank-punditry, political philosophy, and, at times, shameless book-plugging, Goldberg and guests will have the kinds of conversations we wish they had on cable-TV shout shows. And the nudity will (almost) always be tasteful.
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School’s Out
Chris Stirewalt is back in the driver’s seat on today’s Remnant in place of Jonah. This time, his guest is Robert Pondiscio, a newly minted fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and expert on education policy. Together, they explore how various deficiencies in American schooling can be overcome. Can patriotic civics and history be taught without indoctrinating pupils? How significant of a threat is critical race theory? And will discussing their own high school experiences force Chris and Robert to confront painful repressed memories?
Show Notes:
- Robert’s page at AEI
- The National Assessment of Educational Progress
- Robert: “How U.S. Schools Became Obsessed with Race”
- The influence of Horace Mann
- Robert on what the critical race theory debate overlooks
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Survey Says
Jonah’s vocal double Chris Stirewalt seizes control of The Remnant today in Dostoyevskian fashion. His guest? CNN’s Harry Enten, who shares Chris’ obsession with polling data. The two explore why polling in 2020 was so inaccurate, the quirks of online polling, and why Republicans who answer polls tend not to represent Republicans at large. They also dig into demographic divisions over vaccine uptake and how vaccine skeptics can be swayed. Tune in for incisive political analysis, but stick around for a considered discussion of which diet cola is America’s finest.
Show Notes:
- Harry’s author page at CNN
- Jeff Bezos casually visits outer space
- 2020’s major polling blunders
- Inaccurate polling in 1980 and 2012
- How the polls did in 2018
- Max Boot complains about vaccination rates in Republican states
- Demographic trends in the vaccine rollout
- The vaccine rollout’s partisan divide
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Liberal Fights and History
Get your bingo cards ready, because Yuval Levin is back on The Remnant today to counteract Alex Tabarrok’s libertarian influence. Which side is the aggressor in the culture war? How will history remember the Trump era? And why is the left substituting relativism for absolutism? Tune in for answers to these vital questions (which include plenty of ostentatious references to Leo Strauss), but stick around to hear Yuval deliver a heartening affirmation of American exceptionalism. The United States is facing challenges, and we have much to fix, but we have even more to be proud of. As any immigrant would tell you, there really is no greater country than America today.
Show Notes:
- The week’s first Remnant with Alex Tabarrok
- Kevin Drum: “If You Hate the Culture Wars, Blame Liberals”
- Tim Miller: “Who’s Actually Responsible for the ‘Culture War?’”
- Jonah’s G-File responding to both Drum and Miller
- Yuval’s third book, The Great Debate
- CPAC attendees applaud Biden’s missed vaccine goal
- Jonah’s Twitter debate with Nikole Hannah-Jones
- The New York Times’ tragic January 6 video
- Leo Strauss on liberal education
- Gen. Mark Milley feared a Trump “Reichstag moment”
- Fame and the Founding Fathers, by Douglass Adair
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Marginal Revolutionaries
Alex Tabarrok, perhaps the world’s sole Canadian libertarian, joins The Remnant today for the first time. Inflation is on the rise, the vaccine rollout is stalling, and illiberalism is resurgent. In other words, there are plenty of demanding issues for Americans to be concerned about. Thankfully, Tabarrok has a range of considered policy solutions for Jonah to explore. How can we revitalize democracy? Would open borders work? And should we abandon advanced civilization now before the machines destroy us all?
Show Notes:
-Alex’s website
-“Inflation, no chance …”
-Jonah on the wackiness of vaccine paranoia
-Newsmax outcrazies itself
-The Mayor Quimby of anti-vaxxers
-Jonah on the importance of character
-Ezra Klein on the good old days
-Alex’s case for open borders
-“Born American, but in the Wrong Place”
-The Baumol effect
-Home Economics, by Nick Shulz
-The elite master’s degrees that don’t pay off
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No Hands Clapping
On today’s Ruminant, Jonah discusses everything from obscure existentialist philosophy to the realism of zombie TV. Rank punditry is first on the docket, as Jonah examines Biden’s poor handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal and Republican efforts to whitewash the events of January 6. Afterward, Jonah defends his recent comments about Tucker Carlson and explores the world’s progress on vaccinations. Is Western civilization buckling under the weight of liberal guilt? Should America be the world’s policeman? And will Ramesh Ponnuru ever persuade Jonah to change his mind about the death penalty?
Show Notes:
- Biden brings the Afghanistan withdrawal date forward
- The New York Times’ devastating January 6 video
- The latest Dispatch Podcast
- Jonah’s debate with Joshua Tait
- Jonah’s final word on critical race theory
- The week’s second Remnant with Will Saletan
- “I’m not getting anything…”
- Jonah’s Tucker tweet, which caused no controversy
- Trouble in Tokyo
- Republican craziness over Biden’s push to “knock on doors”
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The Reality Rebellion
Slate’s Will Saletan joins The Remnant once again to discuss Trump’s lunatic lawsuit against big tech, Biden’s first six months, and the endless debate over critical race theory in education. Plus, in a shocking turn of events, Will challenges Jonah on his oft-repeated line that America has two minority parties, instead arguing that both Democrats and Republicans are engaging in a war on reality fueled by the strangeness of the internet. Be ready with your bingo cards, because Jonah’s references to defunding the police, the term “Latinx,” and the annoyingness of teachers’ unions arrive at an unprecedented rate.
Show Notes:
- Will’s page at Slate
- Will on Trump’s crusade against democracy
- Trump’s insane press conference
- Jonah: “Yes, progressives. You really do need Joe Manchin”
- Yesterday’s “news”letter
- Tourism in 2021
- “The American Mythology of Racial Progress”
- Trigger warnings are triggering
- Facebook’s astonishing list of genders
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Customer Reviews
One of My Go-To Podcasts
The Remnant is everything a political podcast should be—informative, thoughtful, authentic, and entertaining.
Great show
Jonah is authentic and original. His ideas are founded in a good understanding of human nature and he approaches the topics of the day with decency and thoughtfulness.
Terrific podcast
Episode with Yuval Levin even surpassed the typical excellence of The Remnant. Outstanding conversation!