The Gist

Latest Episodes:

It's Partisanship, Stupid Dec 12, 2017

Show notes

On The Gist, the #MeToo movement is only influential insofar as its targets can feel shame and enact accountability.

In the interview, biographer Robert Dallek accounts for Franklin D. Roosevelt's ruthless pragmatism. As president, FDR made the decision to round up 120,000 Japanese Americans to "strike resonant chords with most Americans," and he was silent on anti-lynching bills to appease Democratic segregationists who would later help him pass New Deal legislation. Dallek's book is Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Political Life.

In the Spiel, the Alabama Senate election will come down to all registered voters, not just the roughly 26 percent who happen to be black and are reliably Democratic.

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The Abortion Fight Led Us Here Dec 12, 2017

Show notes

On The Gist, we can have sympathy for all kinds of people—just not the guy who loses all his money on bitcoin.

In the interview, Lenora Chu tells the story of her American family's rude awakening to Chinese education practices. When Chu moved her family to Shanghai, she eagerly enrolled her young son into an elite Chinese public school. She expected academic rigor and an emphasis on work ethic. But she was surprised to find authoritarian teachers and desperate, obsequious parents. What, if anything, should the U.S. borrow from the Chinese education model? Chu's book is Little Soldiers: An American Boy, a Chinese School, and the Global Race to Achieve.

In the Spiel, what the abortion issue did to sort the parties.

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Drama in Alabama Dec 08, 2017

Show notes

On The Gist, is President Trump to blame for today's violence in Gaza?

In the interview, columnist John Archibald surveys the Senate race in Alabama, where Doug Jones has become the abortion candidate and Roy Moore has become the Trumpism candidate.

In the Spiel, don't talk to Mike about Trump's slurred speech.

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Can You Win as the Party of Purity? Dec 08, 2017

Show notes

On The Gist, Walmart gets a new name.

In the interview, Slate's Dahlia Lithwick thought about one thing when Senate Democrats started calling for Al Franken's resignation: Merrick Garland, which she points to as the beginning in a trend of Democrats trying to be honorable and Republicans trying to win at all costs. Are Democrats abandoning process too readily, only to see Republicans surge ahead again? Dahlia is the host of Slate's Amicus.

In the Spiel, the FBI's testimony on Capitol Hill.

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Next Falls Franken? Dec 07, 2017

Show notes

On The Gist, Slate's Jim Newell explains the moral and political case for forcing out Sen. Al Franken. Dozens of Senate Democrats called on Franken to resign after a seventh woman accused him of sexual misconduct on Tuesday.

Bob Garfield has spent much of his journalism career talking to eccentrics. In his one-man show, Ruggedly Jewish, the quest to explore his own identity dovetails with the story of an uneasy America. The show is touring in Chicago on Saturday, Dec. 9.

And for the Spiel, why President Trump's Jerusalem announcement solidifies his reputation as the chaos candidate.

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The Boys Club on the Bus Dec 06, 2017

Show notes

On The Gist, why Alabama's decrepitude is not incidental to Roy Moore's competitive bid for Senate.

In the interview, Russell Shorto tells the stories of six people living through the Revolutionary War—one is George Washington; the other five, you've probably never heard of. Shorto's book is Revolution Song.

In the Spiel, a counterpoint to Jill Filipovic's New York Times column arguing that the sexual harassers who covered the election threw the whole thing to Donald Trump.

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Pete Souza's Photo Synthesis Dec 05, 2017

Show notes

Before Pete Souza became the most famous troll on Instagram, he was the White House photographer for the duration of the Obama administration. Souza explains his approach to capturing moments and shares why he doesn't consider his work to be propaganda. His book of pictures from the Obama presidency is Obama: An Intimate Portrait.

In the Spiel, should the store that sells you candy also sell you health care?

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Bob Saget Doesn't Think He's That Raunchy Dec 02, 2017

Show notes

Bob Saget has long been known as the cuddly, sitcom dad with a surprisingly raunchy side. The comedian talks about the two shows that launched his career and the very first jokes he wrote as a teenager. Bob Saget's comedy special is Zero to Sixty.

In the Spiel, Mike pays an overdue visit to mail from listeners, and awards a Lobstar.

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Life Is Like Pachinko Dec 01, 2017

Show notes

There hadn't been an English-language novel about ethnic Koreans living in Japan until this year's Pachinko. Author Min Jin Lee chalks it up to the complicated history of the Korean Japanese. They were colonized by Japan, they were forced or compelled to migrate, and they were targets of anti-Korean discrimination. But Lee was surprised to find that many Korean Japanese don't see themselves as victims of racism. "They would actually see it as, culturally, their norm," says Lee. "I think it's very hurtful to think that you're hated all the time, so you have to think of the story that you can live with."

In the Spiel, are President Trump's tweets worse than President Nixon's paranoia?

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A Founding Fathers Bromance Nov 29, 2017

Show notes

Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were very different guys representing opposing political parties. Jefferson was a wildly popular aristocrat from Virginia; Adams was a middling, dyspeptic lawyer from Massachusetts. But they were fast friends, and their relationship ultimately survived a presidential election in which they faced off as candidates. Historian Gordon S. Wood explains why their friendship should give us hope. Wood's book is Friends Divided: John Adams and Thomas Jefferson.

In lieu of a Spiel today, we're sharing a piece of The Gist's Washington live show. Mike talked to FiveThirtyEight senior writer Perry Bacon Jr. about the Alabama Senate race and the growing momentum behind the Republican tax bill.

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