The Dispatch Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Biden Makes a Move on Student Loan Debt Aug 26, 2022

Show notes

President Joe Biden announced a plan to provide tens of millions of Americans with student loan debt relief. The fallout was swift. Our hosts are here with their reactions. Plus: Jonah, David, and Declan discuss the results of this week’s primary elections.

Show Notes:

-TMD: Biden’s Base Gets a Student Loan Gift

-The Dispatch: The GOP Is Shrink-Wrapping Itself Around Trump

-The Dispatch: Tim Ryan Keeping the Pressure on J.D. Vance in Ohio

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What’s With These GOP Senate Candidates? Aug 25, 2022

Show notes

This week's Dispatch Live, which is a weekly live stream for Dispatch members only, ran into some issues because Substack was completely down on Tuesday. So, because most members did not get to hear it we are offering it in its entirety as The Dispatch Podcast. If you're not a member of The Dispatch and liked what you heard here, click the link below to join so you can tune into Dispatch Live weekly on Tuesdays at 8pm ET.

In this episode, David, Declan, Andrew, and Audrey discuss the Senate GOP candidates for the midterm elections, the latest in the Mar-a-Lago search, and the chances of DeSantis 2024.

Show Notes:

- Join The Dispatch Community

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Liz Cheney Defeated in Wyoming, Ukraine Fights On Aug 19, 2022

Show notes

Rep. Liz Cheney lost her re-election bid to her Trump-backed primary challenger in the Wyoming Republican primary on Tuesday. Sarah, Steve, Jonah, and David discuss the result, and share their thoughts as the primary season wraps up. Plus: What’s the latest from Ukraine? Our hosts discuss the state of the conflict.

Show Notes:

-The Dispatch: Liz Cheney: ‘There Is Actually Precedent for ... Vice Presidents to Testify’

-The Dispatch: Choosing to Lose

-The Sweep: Warning Signs for the GOP’s Senate Hopes

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The Inflation Reduction Act, a Libertarian Nightmare Aug 18, 2022

Show notes

On Tuesday, President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law. Scott Lincicome, director of general economics at the Cato Institute, joins Declan to help us better understand the legislation. What’s actually in the law? How questionable is the budget math?

Show Notes:

-Uphill: Breaking Down the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022

-Read Declan in The Morning Dispatch

-Read Scott in Capitolism

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FBI Searches Mar-a-Lago, Trump Takes the Fifth Aug 12, 2022

Show notes

It was a busy week for the former president, the FBI searched his home at Mar-a-Lago, he invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination in a New York deposition, and Attorney General Merrick Garland moved to make public the legal authorization for the FBI’s search. Sarah, Jonah, and David are here to discuss the fallout. Plus: Our hosts have new inflation numbers, and primary results to chew on.

Show Notes:

-TMD: The FBI Raids Trump’s Home

-French Press: Thinking Through the Trump Search

-G-File: Yearning for a Banana Republic

-Stirewaltisms: Of Presidents and Precedents

-The Dispatch: A Tale of Two GOP Responses to the Trump Search

-TMD: A Hint of Inflation Relief

-The Dispatch: Trump-Endorsed Tim Michels Prevails in Wisconsin Gubernatorial Primary

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FBI Raids Mar-a-Lago: What Does it Mean? Aug 09, 2022

Show notes

Sarah and David get together for this special Advisory Opinions crossover episode to discuss the FBI’s search of former President Donald Trump’s home at Mar-a-Lago on Monday. What does it all mean? How does a federal investigation of a senior official work, and what happens next? Plus: some possible theories and explanations that might shed some light on the events of yesterday.

Show Notes:

-TMD: The FBI Raids Trump’s Home

-Andy McCarthy in National Review: The FBI’s Mar-a-Lago ‘Raid’: It’s about the Capitol Riot, Not the Mishandling of Classified Information

-Marc Elias Twitter thread

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Fallout of Kansas Rejecting Abortion Amendment Aug 05, 2022

Show notes

Sarah, David, Steve and Jonah are back for an action-packed show today including the primary elections, Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, and the demise of al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri on Sunday. Will tensions over abortion issues cause bigger voter turnouts in the future? Plus: The Senate overwhelmingly voted to approve Sweden and Finland for acceptance into NATO on Wednesday with a lone dissent from Sen. Josh Hawley.

Show Notes:

-The Sweep: What We Learned

-TMD: Another Blockbuster Primaries Tuesday

-The Current: Killing Zawahiri: How the CIA Hunts Monsters

-TMD: Tensions Flare in the Taiwan Strait

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David Axelrod Previews the Midterms, 2024 Aug 04, 2022

Show notes

David Axelrod, chief strategist for former President Barack Obama’s presidential campaigns and host of The Axe Files and co-host of Hacks on Tap podcasts, joins Steve to tackle the complex questions about the midterm primary elections this week. What’s up with the Democrat Party’s tactic of funding extremist Republican candidates? And what is the outlook for the upcoming general elections? Plus: Axelrod gives listeners the big picture of what’s happening in Kansas as well as what the abortion rights issue means to both sides of the political aisle.

Show Notes:

-The Axe Files with David Axelrod

-TMD: Another Blockbuster Primaries Tuesday

-The Dispatch: Peter Meijer Falls to Trump-Endorsed John Gibbs in Michigan

-The Dispatch: Eric Schmitt Wins the Missouri GOP Senate Primary

-The Sweep: What We Learned

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Economy Contracts, Manchin Makes a Deal Jul 29, 2022

Show notes

Sarah, Steve, Jonah, and David are back to discuss big pieces of legislation coming down the pipeline. Will the Inflation Reduction Act find footing in the House? The White House’s stretched definition of a recession is digging the administration into a deeper hole of messaging problems. Plus, Is President Biden gunning for another term in 2024, and are ordinary Democrats distancing themselves from his leadership?

Show Notes:

-The Dispatch: Who Decides What a Recession Is?

-G-File: Merrick Garland’s Playing It Right

-The Current: The CHIPS Act: Far From Perfect, but Still Very Good

-The Dispatch: Dem Campaign Chiefs Tell Different Stories on GOP Primary Meddling

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Mo Elleithee Talks New Battleground Poll Jul 28, 2022

Show notes

Mo Elleithee, founding executive director of Georgetown University’s Institute of Politics and Public Service, joins Sarah to talk about the complexities of politics. Results from a new Battleground Poll are in, and it’s clear that most Americans believe that the state of our politics is “really bad.” What happened and what can we do to fix it? Also on the agenda: Alaska’s interesting nonpartisan primary system, and the Democratic National Committee’s recent decision to make states bid for early waivers.

Show Notes:

-Georgetown Institute of Politics & Public Service Battleground Civility Poll

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