The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg

Latest Episodes:

Mitch Daniels for God-King Apr 08, 2022

Show notes

Live from the Windy City, Jonah returns to the Remnant driver’s seat. He’s joined by Washington Post columnist Megan McArdle, who has plenty of thoughts on America’s strange plague of mobocratic thinking and workplace safetyism. The pair also explore Jonah’s distaste for public sector unions, Megan’s opposition to student loan forgiveness, and the circumstances in which populism can be put to good use. Plus, for all you bingo cardholders, there’s plenty of dingo discussion and kvetching about primaries mixed in.

Show Notes:

- Megan’s page at the Washington Post

- Megan: “It’s time for major institutions to make their employees get off of Twitter”

- Grace Metalious’ Peyton Place

- Sleeping with the fishes

- The New Yorker “flyover country” cover

- Jonah and Elaine Kamarck talk primaries

- Megan on student loans

- The Remnant with David French and Jonathan Rauch

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No Campus For Old Men Apr 06, 2022

Show notes

While Jonah traverses the Virginia woodlands, David French assumes control of the Remnant. His guest is Jonathan Rauch, who returns to provide a refreshingly calm perspective on our debates over gender and inclusion. After breaking down the history of the LGBTQ movement, Jonathan and David evaluate the Lia Thomas situation, Florida’s controversial education bill, and how conservatives should approach radical gender ideology. They also discuss a potential academic pushback against cancel culture, and the dangers of misusing the term “groomer” for political gain.

Show Notes:

- Jonathan’s previous Remnant appearance

- Jonathan’s latest book, The Constitution of Knowledge

- The French Press

- Jonathan: “Walking the Transgender Movement Away from the Extremists”

- Jonathan: “What’s Happening on the Left Is No Excuse for What’s Happening on the Right”

- David reviews Andrew Sullivan’s Out on a Limb

- David and Nancy’s Kanakuk Kamps exposé

- Does the anti-woke right pose a threat?

- Scott Alexander on liberalism

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Drive-Time Ruminant 12: The Naked Truth Apr 02, 2022

Show notes

The drive-time Remnant format returns for another predictably eclectic broadcast. Today’s episode finds Jonah, Guy, and Ryan perplexed by Madison Cawthorn’s claims about D.C. debauchery, amused by conspiracy theories about Will Smith’s Oscar's slap, and fascinated by the lowest moments of otherwise great TV shows. They also touch on Jonah’s latent arachnophobia, Guy’s animated obsessions, and Ryan’s fondness for Lucky Charms. By the end of it all, the Remnant may have conclusively jumped the shark.

Show Notes:

- The Wednesday G-File

- Hungary eyes

- GLoP, slap edition

- The Dispatch’s guide to Oscar nominees

- The Remnant with Chris Stirewalt

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The Beltway Brothers Mar 31, 2022

Show notes

Chris Stirewalt, the Remnant’s official “break glass in case of emergency” guest, returns to explain why there actually is such a thing as a free lunch. Over a sumptuous breakfast of granola and omelettes, he and Jonah discuss Joe Biden’s dismal approval numbers and the state of the Democratic Party heading into the midterms. They also examine Madison Cawthorn’s wild claims about the GOP establishment, Ginni Thomas’ unfortunate texts, and the decline and fall of great TV shows. Stick around until the end to decide if “key bump” should be added to the Remnant bingo card.

Show Notes:

- Chris’ page at The Dispatch

- Jonah: “When Gaffes Become Policy”

- Could Trump blow the midterms for the GOP?

- Ohio’s Senate brawl

- The Wednesday G-File

- The Remnant with John Podhoretz

- The Remnant with Adam White

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Judging on Empty Mar 29, 2022

Show notes

Adam White, AEI senior fellow and Jonah’s trusted law-talkin’ guy, makes his long-awaited Remnant return. The pair take a deep dive into the Ketanji Brown Jackson hearings and assess what we can expect from her jurisprudence before turning to the state of legal conservatism. With originalism under attack, will common good constitutionalism soon consume legal academia? Is “insurrection” an appropriate term for January 6? And can Jonah suppress his disdain for Adam’s profession and all it represents?

Show Notes:

- Adam’s page at AEI

- Adam on the Ketanji Brown Jackson hearings

- Ketanji Brown Jackson, closet originalist?

- Adam: “Mueller Agnoistes”

- AEI’s nerdtastic event on Justice Alito

- The Remnant with Cass Sunstein

- Jonah: “Appetite for Power”

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Advanced Bovine Numismatics Mar 26, 2022

Show notes

On today’s Ruminant, Jonah, now recovered from Monday’s birthday revelry, has thoughts on everything from hamburger conspiracies to the history of great societies. After beginning with another deep dive into the evolution of media bias, he turns to the Ketanji Brown Jackson confirmation hearings, which have turned out to be surprisingly boring despite a few moments of painful stupidity. Stick around to hear Jonah evaluate Nikole Hannah-Jones’ argument that tipping is a product of slavery, and to find out why truth is currently winning the day in American politics.

Show Notes:

- The Remnant with Brian Riedl

- Michael Barone’s Our Country

- Wednesday’s “news”letter

- The media bias paradox

- The Cornell “guns on campus” crisis

- The Remnant with Kevin Williamson

- Mayor Quimby

- Noah Rothman on “credible accusation”

- The Economist on the siege of Mariupol

- Why Nations Fail

- Last Friday’s G-File

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A Fistful of Dust Mar 24, 2022

Show notes

Kevin Williamson, the Remnant’s cheeriest regular, is back for another voyage through the strange realm of contemporary America. A free society is messy, and life is all about contradictions, inconsistencies, and trade-offs. But this can be an uncomfortable truth for many to face. In a conversation that will send you scrambling for your bingo cards, Kevin and Jonah explore the problem with social homogeneity. They also touch on the weaknesses of autocratic regimes, realistic climate change solutions, and Kevin’s hatred of Ohio. Plus, tune in to hear Kevin give a rousing reading of “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.”

Show Notes:

- Kevin’s page at National Review

- Kevin: “Autocracy’s Fatal Flaws”

- Kevin: “Make Putin Pay”

- Hayek: “Why the Worst Get on Top”

- Christopher Caldwell’s The Age of Entitlement

- Yuval Levin’s The Great Debate

- Kevin’s The Smallest Minority

- The Remnant with Brian Rield

- Jonah and Deirdre McCloskey at the Cato Institute

- The Books of Jacob, by Olga Tokarczuk

- The Remnant with Shadi Hamid

- Jonah: “Rise of the Underminers”

- Unintentional confession

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Wizards of Finance Mar 22, 2022

Show notes

Brian Riedl, the Remnant’s “unofficial budget guy,” returns to discuss our economic woes. After kvetching about inflation, the deficit, and supply chains, he and Jonah dig into the mistaken idea that the president can control every needle of the economy. Brian has noticed an interesting trend: Since Reagan, we’ve consistently elected Republican presidents during booms and Democratic presidents during recessions. But what are the implications of that for the economy? Furthermore, did the New Deal make the Great Depression worse? Is Build Back Better dead? And should anyone take Rick Scott seriously?

Show Notes:

- Brian’s webpage

- Brian: “Presidents as Economic Managers”

- Jonah: “The Raw Deal”

- The forgotten depression of 1920

- Scott Lincicome on fixing our supply chains

- Velocity of Bahnsen

- Rick Scott’s “Rescue America” plan

- Last Friday’s G-File

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Rocket Mensch Mar 19, 2022

Show notes

After plotting world domination at AEI’s World Forum, Jonah is back in the D.C. swampland for today’s Ruminant. He begins by elaborating on the strange metaphysical ideas discussed in last week’s episode before turning to the war in Ukraine, and the baffling idea peddled by some on the right that Zelensky is trying to incite a global thermonuclear war. From there, things get nerdy, as Jonah explores whether populism may be falling out of style and indulges in a lengthy rant on Woodrow Wilson. Tune in for the cherished sound effects, but stick around to hear a few ideas for the Remnant’s 500th episode.

Show Notes:

- Last weekend’s bizarre Ruminant

- Metaxy

- The Wednesday G-File

- The Remnant with Shadi Hamid

- Ross Douthat: “Will the Ukraine War End the Age of Populism?”

- Michael Brendan Dougherty: “Wartime’s Macabre Predictions of a Populist Defeat”

- The Remnant with Vin Cannato

- The hater’s guide to Woodrow Wilson

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Bad Apples Mar 17, 2022

Show notes

Vincent Cannato, noted historian and Jonah’s fellow deracinated New Yorker, returns to the Remnant for a nerdily random discussion of cops, neoliberalism, and latent Russophobia. With tensions rising between East and West, Vin believes we are in the midst of an “ideological Cold War,” but Jonah (whose pronunciation of “Pokémon” may distract from any serious points he raises) is less convinced. How will America’s conflict with Russia and China unfold, and what strategy should the United States pursue? For that matter, is New York heading back to the ‘70s? What’s fueling America’s crime wave? And will safetyism soon destroy Vin’s university from within?

Show Notes:

- Vin’s webpage

- “The Editors” podcast on Russophobia

- Jonah: “A Tale of Two Cold Wars”

- Elliott Abrams: “The New Cold War”

- The Wild Man of 96th St.

- Biden’s New York crime speech

- Jonah: “The Problem With Claiming That Policing Evolved From Slave Patrols”

- Amazon’s Seattle relocation

- Jeff Jacoby: “Pushing Back Against Indoctrination at UMass Boston”

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