The Gist

Latest Episodes:

A Wolf in Wolf's Clothing May 01, 2018

Show notes

On today's Gist, President Trump's Nobel in the making.

There is no market quite like the boomers—that was true when they were young, and it remains true as they enter their 60s and 70s. So how do you market to the olds? The answer lies in a few busted bits of conventional wisdom, the millennial lifestyle, and probably your mom's iPad. Joseph F. Coughlin explains it all in his book The Longevity Economy: Unlocking the World's Fastest-Growing, Most Misunderstood Market.

In the Spiel, what happened at the White House Correspondents' Dinner?

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ISIS Isn't Done With Apr 27, 2018

Show notes

On The Gist, when your sympathy for the poor goes beyond platitudes, Paul Ryan fires you.

In the interview, the New York Times' Rukmini Callimachi has a new podcast. Caliphate lays out how she knows what she knows about ISIS. Through her reporting in Iraq, she's learned how the group endeared itself to locals with services as simple as garbage collection. And though the would-be Islamic State has fallen, the extremists behind it persist as an insurgency.

In the Spiel, there is no Spiel!

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Old Man Donald Apr 27, 2018

Show notes

On Thursday's Gist, EPA chief Scott Pruitt's behavior is too plainly unethical to sweep under the rug.

What does a Malaysian party boy have to do with President Trump's potential breach of the Emoluments Clause? Reveal's Amy Walters and WAMU's Patrick Madden can explain everything in their story for Reveal, "Check into Trump's Washington Hotel."

In the Spiel, how about that batshit crazy rant courtesy of our president on Thursday morning?

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Korematsu, Revisited? Apr 26, 2018

Show notes

On Wednesday's Gist, you didn't think Trump's latest political nominee was scandal-free, did you?

And as the Supreme Court weighs Trump's travel ban on Muslim-majority countries, one of its most notorious decisions still stands. Korematsu v. United States upheld America's wartime internment of thousands of Japanese Americans, and it's still cited as legal precedent today. Harvard Law School's Martha Minow recently wrote about the decision and its relevance in 2018.

In the Spiel, president Trump's approval ratings are highest in West Virginia. Senate candidate (and former convict) Don Blankenship is rolling with it.

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The Plain Prince Apr 24, 2018

Show notes

On Tuesday's Gist, Donald Trump's win has inspired a whole bunch of down-ballot Republicans, and boy, are they lame.

What is retroactive classification, and is it going to get former FBI Director James Comey in trouble? Bradley P. Moss specializes in litigation related to security clearance law. He explains why Comey may need to worry about prosecution for leaking government secrets. Moss is the deputy executive director of the James Madison Project to promote government accountability and reduction of secrecy.

In the Spiel, is third-time dad Prince William ugly? We ask the question, for science!

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The State of State Apr 24, 2018

Show notes

On The Gist, Sen. Bob Corker's definition of a "gotcha question" is a bad sign for public discourse these days.

Before his Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation into the rampant sexual abuse allegations against Harvey Weinstein, Ronan Farrow worked in the State Department. His new book, War on Peace, documents the department's loss of personnel and prestige under every recent president—especially the current one.

In the Spiel, banning high-capacity magazines would save lives. The foiled shooting in Nashville just proved it.

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The Zen of Cohen Apr 21, 2018

Show notes

On today's Gist, the retroactively classified memos of James Comey.

New Yorker writer Adam Davidson says the raids on Michael Cohen's offices signal the beginning of the end for the Trump presidency. Here's why: Cohen is the key to learning about Trump's personal peccadillos as well the international expansion of the Trump Organization, which Davidson says should be "ridiculously rich hunting ground" for prosecutors. He also thinks we're about to learn a lot more about Trump's sex life.

In the Spiel, we insult our friends: When podcasts root out artifice, starting with the edifice.

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Comey Can't Confess Apr 19, 2018

Show notes

On The Gist, if Chuck Schumer gets his way with decriminalizing marijuana, we can finally say goodbye to the lowest-hanging fruit: pot jokes.

Crooked Media founder Jon Lovett finds the James Comey book deeply frustrating—to read, to hear about, to contemplate. "But, you know," says Lovett, "I'm a political self-harmer so I have downloaded the audiobook." He explains the logical fallacy at the heart of one of Comey's most frequent recitations and does a little free campaign consulting. Listen to his shows, Pod Save America and Lovett or Leave It.

In the Spiel, let's draw a lesson from Meghan McCain's faux pas (and real props) regarding J. Edgar Hoover.

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A Fuller Obituary for Barbara Bush Apr 18, 2018

Show notes

On today's Gist, don't all these senators know the depths of CIA Director Mike Pompeo's patriotism?

Plus, why are chemical weapons useful to Bashar al-Assad? "They're really weapons of terror," explains Aaron Stein, co-host of the Arms Control Wonk podcast. Stein is the author of Turkey's New Foreign Policy.

And filmmakers Tony Gilroy and Brad Anderson tell us what it was like filming their latest movie, Beirut, during a particularly long and hot Ramadan.

In the Spiel, a few more words about the late Barbara Bush.

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The Taint Team Cometh Apr 17, 2018

Show notes

On Tuesday's Gist, that old Watergate maxim, "the cover-up is worse than the crime," should be revised to recognize the Michael Cohen effect.

Plus, we take a closer look at the vertical merger of AT&T and Time Warner, and why the Justice Department has sued to stop it. Wall Street Journal reporter Brent Kendall walks us through the case so far.

And in the Spiel, who is the "famous Houston sketch artist" drawn into the Stormy Daniels affair?

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