The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg

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Director Continetti Sep 27, 2023

Show notes

Jonah’s travels have concluded and he’s back on the homefront, which can only be good news for holders on the Remnant bingo card. To celebrate his return, the ever-reliable Matthew Continetti is back on the program for some piping hot punditry on the latest in political dysfunction. Matt recently abandoned Jonah’s department at the American Enterprise Institute to become the director of its domestic policy division, and this betrayal won’t go unpunished. But when they aren’t viciously attacking one another’s office allegiances, the duo is able to provide incisive answers to a host of political questions. Is a government shutdown incoming? What’s going wrong with conservative institutions? How can populism be a good thing? And what will it take for politicians to stop beclowning themselves?

Show Notes:

- Matt’s page at AEI

- National Review: “Pence’s Populism Speech Was Admirable, but It Misidentified the Target”

- Jack Butler on Pence and populism

- How much do voters trust both parties?

- Jonah: “Uniform Stupidity”

- The Remnant with Tom Nichols

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All Rants Lead to Rome Sep 23, 2023

Show notes

Frank Sinatra once observed that “you’ve either got or you haven’t got style,” but when you’re living out of an RV in the wilds of Iowa—or, for that matter, representing your state in the halls of the US Senate—that doesn’t really matter. Jonah’s still on the road today, but he can’t outrun his existential dread. To drown it out for a while instead, he delivers yet another unfocused, inordinately long Ruminant to end the week. This time, much of his irritation is directed toward the renewed jackassery of Matt Gaetz and the politics of a potential Biden impeachment, but plenty of righteous indignation is also reserved for the Senate’s new dress code and the increasingly shaky prospect of a second Biden term. Plus, tune in to hear Jonah elaborate on why men spend so much time thinking about Rome (almost as much, in fact, as they spend thinking about Nixon).

Show Notes:

- Jonah: “Why Rome?”

- Mike Duncan’s Revolutions podcast

- Jerry Muller’s The Mind and the Market

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The Texas Rib Meat Massacre Sep 21, 2023

Show notes

Jonah’s vision quest isn’t ending anytime soon, which means there’s an opening for a continuing stream of guest hosts to captain the lumbering vessel that is the Remnant. Today, Sarah Isgur takes the leading role, and her guest is fellow Texan Kevin Williamson, who joins primarily to discuss everything you could imagine about the Lone Star State. Topics include recent impeachment drama, Ted Cruz’s chronic case of annoying-itis, the strange state of local politics in the state, and the heresy that is sauce on Texas smoked ribs. Stick around until the end to hear what all of this has to do with Ken Paxton’s crusade against the mystical deep state.

Show Notes:

- Kevin and David French field listener questions

- The Wall Street Journal on why Ken Paxton was acquitted

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Last Exit to Wheeling Sep 20, 2023

Show notes

Hurry up and pay your union dues, because today’s Remnant is all about labor. It’s been more than a week since his departure, but Jonah’s still lost in the wilds of the heartland, vainly attempting to overcome his mid-life crisis from an RV living room. In these desperate times, Chris Stirewalt reassumes control of the program to bend it to his West Virginian will, but thankfully, he’s joined by a special guest who brings some leaven to the Goldberg-less loaf. That guest is renowned historian Amity Shlaes, who’s here to discuss the origins of labor unions, Lyndon B. Johnson’s relationship with industry, and the elections of the 1960s and ‘70s. It’s a crash course in US history that’ll leave you significantly more pro-Coolidge.

Show Notes:

- Amity’s page at National Review

- The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression

- Coolidge

-The Great Society: A New History

- Chris’ book on populism, Every Man a King

-Video version of this episode

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Grizzly Man Sep 16, 2023

Show notes

In a brief respite from his latest cross country adventure, Jonah camps out beneath the Idaho mountains to record another rambling Ruminant. As usual, the questions raised cover a little of everything: How should we think about Mitt Romney’s legacy? Is Russia still a terrible country (spoiler alert: Jonah’s answer is yes)? What’s the difference between authoritarianism and totalitarianism? And will Jonah’s ignorance of music allow him to discuss Nicaraguan Sandinistas without once referencing the Clash?

Show Notes:

- Phil Klein: “Mitt Romney Was No Profile in Political Courage”

- Nick Catoggio: “The Party’s Over”

- McKay Coppins: “What Mitt Romney Saw in the Senate”

- The Dispatch Podcast on Putin’s bromance

- Mike Duncan’s podcast on the Russian Revolution

- Claire Berlinski: “Dear Linda Yaccarino”

- The Remnant with Megan McArdle

- The Remnant with Scott Lincicome

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I, Nacho Sep 14, 2023

Show notes

Having ascended from the proletariat to the ruling class in the hierarchy of the Cato Institute, Scott Lincicome returns to the Remnant not simply to flaunt his success, but to issue an urgent defense of an embattled concept: globalization. In these troubled times, many of the left and right alike have become hostile to the relatively free movement of people, goods, and ideas across national borders. But Scott maintains that globalization is an unequivocal force for good, and that the most common criticisms of it are rooted in myths. With that in mind, Cato has launched “Defending Globalization,” a new multimedia initiative dedicated to—shockingly enough—combating anti-globalization narratives. Can Scott make a compelling case for the project in the Remnant arena, or will he melt like nacho cheese under Jonah’s intense scrutiny?

Show Notes:

- Scott’s page at The Dispatch

- Scott’s work at the Cato Institute

- “Defending Globalization,” Cato’s new initiative

- Cato’s Green Card Game

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Bad Idea, Old Idea Sep 13, 2023

Show notes

Megan McArdle returns to the Remnant today for a discussion that has the luxury of being detached from current events. Things operate at a high level of abstraction throughout—even the rank punditry is more nerdishly academic than usual—as she and Jonah analyze and debate a handful of topics that seem to render him increasingly despondent. Can resentment among elites explain Donald Trump’s success? Do ideas actually matter, or have all intellectuals wasted their lives? Just how ugly should we expect 2024 to be? And can Jonah outrun his ongoing mid-life crisis in a ramshackle RV?

Show Notes:

-Megan’s page at the Washington Post

-Fusion, a new magazine from the American Institute for Economic Research

-The Remnant with Tom Nichols

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Follow the Loser Sep 09, 2023

Show notes

Jonah’s in a distracted state of mind on today’s Ruminant, but that can’t stop him from rambling at a wholly unnecessary length. Springing haphazardly between subjects, he offers thoughts on the distinction between populism and conservatism, the brain-killing stupidity of our election, and the role ideologues should play in society. He also reflects on his discussion with Tom Nichols about the state of the right from earlier in the week, and clarifies a few key points. In these troubled times, you can’t keep a good pundit down.

Show Notes:

- Mike Pence attacks populism

- The Dispatch Podcast on our stupid election

- The Remnant with Tom Nichols

- The Remnant with Jean Twenge

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Cledus the Country Pundit Sep 07, 2023

Show notes

Chris Stirewalt can be many things—caveman lawyer, Southern fried good old boy, etc.—but today, he’s a simple pundit from the backwoods who’s back on the Remnant to dispense some rank insights on the state of our parties and how the 2024 election is shaping up. The resulting conversation is exactly what you’d imagine: an onslaught of pop culture references tempered by a modicum of sobering political analysis. How clear is it that Biden can defeat Trump? What do the current Democratic and Republican coalitions look like? And should the Department of Energy move to West Virginia (Chris’ answer won’t surprise you)?

Show Notes:

- Chris’ page at The Dispatch

- Chris: “Five Known Unknowns for 2024”

- The Remnant with Tom Nichols

- Steven Teles and Robert Saldin: “The Future Is Faction”

- Chris’ book on populism, Every Man a King

- Michael Lind: “America’s Woke Elite Monoculture”

- The Remnant with Robert P. George

- Jonah: “Democrats Are Making a Risky Bet With Biden”

- Mike Duncan’s The Storm Before the Storm

- Kevin Williamson: “The Whited Sepulcher”

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Nichols on the Dime Sep 06, 2023

Show notes

The Remnant’s streak of obvious guests who have inexplicably never appeared on the program continues today, as professor turned Atlantic staff writer Tom Nichols joins the show to provide some uncut, fiercely nerdy analysis of our current political malaise. Much of his conversation with Jonah concerns the ongoing conflict in Ukraine—namely, how America has handled it, and what’s really motivating Putin. But after that, the stage is set for an epic debate between the duo on what it means to be “Never Trump” in 2023, and where principled conservatives should go from here. Also, fans of Succession may recognize Tom from his appearances on the show; tune in to learn some behind the scenes secrets.

Show Notes:

- Tom’s page at The Atlantic

- Tom’s latest book, Our Own Worst Enemy

- Orlando Figes’ The Story of Russia

- Tom: “The Ukrainian Counteroffensive Is Not an Action Movie”

- Tom: “I Was a Pundit on Succession”

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