The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg

Latest Episodes:

Where Every Hack Knows Your Name May 03, 2023

Show notes

If you feel like making your way in the world today takes everything you’ve got, then take a break from all your worries with today’s Remnant, which features the overdue return of esteemed screenwriter and satirist Rob Long. Unrestrained by the ramblings of John Podhoretz, Rob and Jonah discuss the Hollywood writers’ strike, and what it means for the future of TV. They also touch on how AI could change creative professions, the qualities that define great shows, and whether Tucker Carlson’s departure from Fox is more gripping than any serialized drama. Oh, and tune in to hear Rob challenge Jonah’s polygamous approach to podcasting.

Show Notes:

-WATCH: Jonah Goldberg interviews Rob Long

- GLoP, Jonah’s side podcast

- Rob’s assorted scribblings

- The Daily

- Jonah on A Simple Plan

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Deep Schmitt Apr 29, 2023

Show notes

A week filled with enough stunningly incorrect predictions to conclusively prove he isn’t psychic has left Jonah in an especially pensive mood. Consequently, today’s Ruminant quickly transforms into a rundown of the greatest hits from a string of misses. Jonah kicks things off with a discussion of Tucker’s firing—has Fox really changed?—before moving into a mea culpa surrounding the debt ceiling bill that passed in the House. Afterward, he addresses a veritable feast of populist asinities on subjects ranging from the boneheaded response to a new Barbie to the cult of the Uniparty. Let the great beclowning commence.

Show Notes:

-Talking Fox on the Dispatch Podcast

-Michael Brendan Dougherty and Noah Rothman on Megyn Kelley’s podcast

-MTG makes the Randi Weingarten hearing about herself

-Burke’s “Birds of Prey” speech

-Rudyard Kipling’s If

-MBD’s defense of Tucker

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The Show Jack Built Apr 27, 2023

Show notes

Braving the sweltering heat and practical limitations of the AEI podcasting studio, Jack Butler, the original Smithers to Jonah’s Monty Burns, makes his return to the Remnant to discuss the state of conservatism among young people. He and Jonah journey deep into the psyche of the hyper-online right, answering just about every question you could possibly have about the alt-right’s favorite thinkers and the appeal of pre-modern LARPing. What do national conservatives and integralists really want? Do any of them actually believe what they’re saying? And most importantly, can you argue with a Buick?

Show Notes:

- Jack’s author page at National Review

- Jack explains Bronze Age Pervert

- Jack: “9/11: An Atrocity Misused”

- Lighten up, Francis…

- Michael Anton’s review of Bronze Age Mindset

- Burke’s “Birds of Prey” Speech

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A Tale of Two Tonys Apr 26, 2023

Show notes

In spite of enough technical difficulties to make a grown man weep, today’s Remnant—featuring AEI senior fellow Tony Mills—delivers a thorough, punchy exploration of the COVID crisis and the cult of expertise in American politics. He and Jonah discuss increased specialization in liberal societies, the dreaded Dr. Fauci criticism, and how the idea of certainty colors our political discourse. How intertwined is the crisis of liberalism with our understanding of scientific authority?

Show Notes

- Tony’s page at AEI

- Tony’s last Remnant appearance

- Mike Duncan’s Revolutions podcast

- Tony: “Saving Liberalism from Itself”

- Tony: “Unmasking Scientific Expertise”

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Vlad to the Bone Apr 22, 2023

Show notes

Animated by a week’s worth of pent-up rage—inspired by the nonsensical prattling of would-be authoritarians and the dupes who love them—Jonah brings a cantankerous energy to today’s Ruminant, which quickly devolves into a rant of titanic proportions. He begins with some brief thoughts on Joe Biden’s rumored plans to announce his re-election campaign, before diving into an obscure Edmund Burke speech and its implications for the modern conservative movement. Then, an exceedingly curmudgeonly rant ensues against the totalitarian instinct driving factions of the Republican Party. When will the grownups return to American politics?

Show Notes:

- Christine Rosen’s Remnant appearance

- Edmund Burke’s “Speech in Commons on India, 1783”

- Jonah: “The Ties That Blind”

- Jonah rants about the New York Young Republican Club

- Learning from Vlad the Impaler?

- Noah Rothman’s piece on JD Vance

- The Bull Moose Project’s director being a jackanape

- Win a free Dispatch subscription!

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Friday Night Slights Apr 20, 2023

Show notes

Christine Rosen, senior fellow at AEI and—alleged—cohost of the Commentary podcast, makes an overdue Remnant return today. In this obstinate exercise in counter-programming, Christine and Jonah discuss just about every topic you could imagine besides Fox News’ settlement with Dominion. From the growing influence of the transgender debate on American politics to Ron DeSantis’ chances in the coming primaries, the two bounce between topics so controversial and toxic that poor David French might just get canceled by association.

Show Notes:

-Christine’s page at AEI

-The Commentary podcast

-Christine: “How Trauma Became a Political Tool”

-Christine: “The Mainstream Media Damaged Our Children”

-The Remnant with A.B. Stoddard

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The Bird Is The Ward Apr 19, 2023

Show notes

Yahoo News’ Jon Ward makes his Remnant debut to discuss his new book, Testimony: Inside the Evangelical Movement That Failed a Generation. The resulting conversation—which fuses highfalutin theology with just a dollop of rank punditry—touches on just about everything you could want to know about America’s crisis of Christianity. Topics range from spiritual abuse, to the history of American Christianity, to Trump’s effect on the integrity of evangelicalism, all of which are covered with the utmost nerdery.

Show Notes:

-Watch: Jonah interview Jon Ward

- Testimony: Inside the Evangelical Movement That Failed a Generation

- Jon: “Lead Us Not Into Temptation”

- The Long Game, Jon’s podcast

- Julien Benda’s The Treason of the Intellectuals

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Banana Republicans Apr 15, 2023

Show notes

Jonah’s off like a herd of turtles in today’s rambling, self-indulgent behemoth of a Ruminant. After opening with a positively riveting description of The Dispatch’s approach to media training, he deftly transitions into a discussion of the Pentagon leak and the subsequent fecal festival that has consumed MAGA media. From there, listen—with all appropriate deference and awe—as Jonah delicately dances through such light-hearted topics as Russian war crimes, Nazis marching in Skokie (yes, again), and the controversy surrounding Harlan Crow and Clarence Thomas.

This episode is sponsored by our friends at The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. Head to thefire.org/update and subscribe to The FIRE Update today.

Show Notes:

- The Dispatch Podcast covers the leak

- MTG beclowns herself once again

- Jonah’s Remnant free speech debate with Sarah

- Jonah’s previous defense of Harlan Crow

- Clarence Thomas failed to disclose the purchase of his old home

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Putin On The Blitz Apr 13, 2023

Show notes

Fred Kagan, senior fellow at AEI and director of the Critical Threats Project, makes his long awaited Remnant debut in today’s delectably nerdish discussion of Ukraine and Taiwan. After kicking things off with a deep dive into the state of the war in Ukraine, Jonah and Fred explore Russia’s military disorder, the influence of Soviet history on Russia’s modern military, and the origins of Putin’s ideology (no, he doesn’t just hear voices in his head). Stay until the end to hear some thoughts on Taiwan’s importance to American interests and our position on the world stage. Hint: It’s a pretty big deal.

Show Notes:

- Fred’s page at AEI

- AEI’s Critical Threats Project

- AEI’s Coalition Defense of Taiwan

- The Telegraph should really be sponsoring us at this point…

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Skokie and the Bandit Apr 12, 2023

Show notes

Brace yourselves, it’s a long one. Due to popular demand, Jonah has—graciously—pulled Sarah out of the world of obscure legal nerdery and onto The Dispatch’s flagship podcast to discuss the famous Nazis-marching-in-Skokie case. After a period of extended throat clearing—featuring a list of proposed baby names from Sarah that may inspire calls to CPS—the two set the stage for their debate. Sarah believes that this case was one of the proudest moments in American history; Jonah is unconvinced.

This episode is sponsored by our friends at The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. Head to thefire.org/update and subscribe to The FIRE Update today.

Show Notes

-WATCH: Jonah and Sarah debate free speech

- Sarah (and only Sarah’s) niche legal podcast

- John Mulaney at the Salt and Pepper Diner

- The Brisket’s favorite song

- Sarah brings David French onto Advisory Opinions to discuss Clarence Thomas

- The Skokie case

- George Will: “Nazis: Outside the Constitution” (found on page 13)

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