The Gist

Latest Episodes:

The World Needs Better Men Oct 09, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, the vice presidential debate and expanding SCOTUS.

In the interview, Mike is joined by author, comedian, podcast host, and actor Michael Ian Black to talk about his latest book, A Better Man: A (Mostly Serious) Letter to My Son. Black was persuaded to write the book after publishing a New York Times op-ed on school shootings and gun control in 2018. Part advice and part memoir, A Better Man poses the question: why is it always boys and young men who are pulling the trigger? Black challenges readers to expand their definition of masculinity while refraining from denigrating qualities traditionally seen as feminine.

In the spiel, how the Hasidic community in New York City is handling COVID-19.

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

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Too Big to Govern? Oct 07, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, a vice presidential debate starring plexiglass.

In the interview, Mike hosts a roundtable discussion with journalist Richard Kreitner and Vox's Matthew Yglesias to talk about how each of their new books address the problem of an ever-increasing American population. They debate if the U.S. should split into more manageable nations, or if the country should keep pushing population growth. Yglesias' book is One Billion Americans: The Case for Thinking Big, and Kreitner's latest is Break It Up: Secession, Division, and the Secret History of America's Imperfect Union.

In the spiel, Delco, South Philly, and NY tri-state area Italian Americans for Joe Biden.

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

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Rebranding Schadenfreude Oct 06, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, a buffet of bad takes from Joe Piscopo.

In the interview, CNN chief legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin is here to discuss a topic the Gist can't seem to get enough of recently, the Mueller investigation. Toobin's new book, True Crimes and Misdemeanors: The Investigation of Donald Trump, explores the investigation and analyzes its failures, and he talks with Mike about Mueller's misplaced trust in institutions, and how sympathetic we should find him in light of that.

In the spiel, how do you feel about Trump's diagnosis?

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

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Iterations of Idiocy Oct 05, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, Trump's doctor has reasons.

In the interview, former FBI agent Peter Strzok is here to discuss his new book Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump. He and Mike discuss the investigation into Trump and Russia, the ways kompromat could push Trump to make decisions based on Russian interests, and how Trump vilified two federal agents over personal text messages that were leaked to the press by the Justice Department.

In the spiel, even the president can catch COVID, but what does that even mean?

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Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

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Hoisted By His Own Petard Oct 03, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, Trump's mask strategy.

In the interview, Mike is joined by David Priess, COO of the Lawfare Institute, an organization and online magazine which focuses on national security issues. Priess posits some worst case scenarios in light of President Trump contracting Covid-19, the unexpected vulnerabilities and uncertainties that lay ahead, historical norms of disclosure for a president, and the ultimate Continuity of Government Plan - the election. Priess is a former CIA officer, and author of The President's Book of Secrets and How to Get Rid of a President: History's Guide to Removing Unpopular, Unable, or Unfit Chief Executives.

In the spiel, Trump has no one to blame but himself.

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Podcast production by Margaret Kelley and Jamila Bey.

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You Gotta Believe Oct 02, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, Trump's falsehoods.

In the interview, Mikes talks with neuroscientist, Stanford University professor and best-selling author, David Eagleman, about his latest book Livewired: The Inside Story of the Ever-Changing Brain. Eagleman says that the way the brain is able to change and adapt to adversity is still inspiring new developments and new questions.

In the spiel, making a political comeback.

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Podcast production by Margaret Kelley and Jamila Bey.

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Dastardly Debate Oct 01, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, there were a great many missteps last night on the presidential debate stage, but despite the rhetorical slips, Biden stayed on his feet to glide past Trump.

In the interview, Mike and Slate's national correspondent, Will Saletan, recap the first presidential debate. They dissect the prep and implemented strategies of both the Trump and Biden camps, the gratuitous exchanges between the two candidates, Chris Wallace's performance as moderator, and how to curb the electoral nightmare scenarios looming on the horizon.

In the spiel, Donald Trump did not say, "Yes!" when asked if he repudiated white supremacy. But was it because he wouldn't do it, or was it because he has the inability to articulate?

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Podcast production by Margaret Kelley and Jamila Bey.

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Drawing Districts Sep 29, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, using poker logic to analogize the upcoming presidential debates with Annie Duke. She is a former professional poker player, cognitive scientist and author of the forthcoming How to Decide: Simple Tools for Making Better Choices.

In the interview, Mike passes the baton to Annie Duke once more to dig into gerrymandering. Duke talks with Moon Duchin, a mathematician and professor at Tufts University, about her research into understanding how voting districts work. Through redistricting analysis at the Metric Geometry and Gerrymandering Group, an organization Duchin co-founded, she describes how in this democracy, fairness isn't always as easy to find when you're considering where people live and vote.

In the spiel, messing up several thousand absentee ballots was inevitable.

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Podcast production by Margaret Kelley and Jamila Bey.

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Deliver Us From Trump Sep 29, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, the attack on the Knights of Columbus.

In the interview, Mike talks with Philippe I. Reines, political consultant, longtime aid and former staffer of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. In light of the upcoming presidential debates between Trump and Biden, Reines details his debate preparation in 2016, shares some possible strategies that the Biden camp may be using to prepare, and what sort of tactics Biden could use to go for the jugular.

In the spiel, cult of Trump.

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Podcast production by Margaret Kelley and Jamila Bey.

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Reconsidering Comey Sep 26, 2020

Show notes

On the Gist, a Twitter bug.

In the interview, actor Jeff Daniels and writer Billy Ray are here to discuss the new two-night mini-series The Comey Rule on Showtime. The mini-series focuses on the story James Comey in the fall of 2016, and even though both Daniels and Ray had certain perceptions of how poorly James Comey handled it all, working on this project really revealed the humanity and struggle of this public servant. Mike talks with them about the creative process, adapting such recent history, and their new views on the man. The Comey Rule premieres on Showtime on Sunday, September 27.

In the spiel, Daniel Cameron's wife is white.

Email us at thegist@slate.com

Podcast production by Daniel Schroeder and Margaret Kelley.

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