The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg

What can and can’t the government do? Can it ban softball on Sundays? Or perhaps prohibit little old ladies from having Bible study at the local library? What about drag queen story hour? Can it—horror of horrors—tell you that you have to mow your lawn? Joining The Remnant to help us sort through these thorny political thickets is Stephanie Slade, author of a popular new book about fusionism. Listen in as Stephanie and Jonah Goldberg cover the dissident right, Frank Myer, Brent Bozell, liberalism, libertarianism, virtue, and everything in between. Show Notes: —Stephanie Slade - Fusionism: Liberty, Virtue, and the Future of the American Right —Reason magazine —Dan Flynn’s Frank Myer biography —Fusionism excerpt in The Dispatch —Slade on David Bahnsen’s podcast —Jacob Levy - Rationalism, Pluralism, and Freedom —Helena Rosenblatt - The Lost History of Liberalism: From Ancient Rome to the Twenty-First Century The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a nonpartisan perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including the Saturday Ruminant, audio versions of all our articles and newsletters, and Jonah’s twice-weekly G-File—⁠click here⁠. Instructions on how to set up your members-only feed can be found here, and if you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As faithful Remnant listeners know, we try to avoid having politicians on the show. It just gets kinda awkward when you have to publicly rake them over the coals for eating mac and cheese on camera. But being good Burkeans, we know that all rules have their exceptions. Gov. Spencer Cox is one of those exceptions. He joins Jonah Goldberg on the show to talk about his new book, Off Ramp. Along the way, they cover political division, technology, Mormonism, social media, local politics, the 10th Amendment, executive power, contempt, cancel culture, congressional reform, coalition building, governorships, and the greatness of Utah. Show Notes: —Cox: Off Ramp: How to Be a Peacemaker in an Age of Contempt —Ben Sasse Remnant The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a nonpartisan perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including the Saturday Ruminant, audio versions of all our articles and newsletters, and Jonah’s twice-weekly G-File—⁠click here⁠. Instructions on how to set up your members-only feed can be found here, and if you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gentle listeners, we know you’ve had a hard week, and we want to bring you a pick-me-up. Today’s episode has a little something for everyone: a riveting cult story, nudity, sports gambling, racist-bigot bashing, fanatic Texans, AI-pocalypse, an epic history of progressivism, and, most tantalizing of all, a detailed discussion of the myth of left and right. Tune in to hear Jonah Goldberg ruminate about being a grown-up, the long-forgotten BDX Cult, originalism, AI torts and liability, the social question, Bo French, bourgeois morals, Indian Americans, racism, the AP stylebook, and the left-right spectrum. Show Notes: —9/11 G-File —Jonah’s “Canines of 9/11” piece in National Review —AO pod wherein David French defends George Bush —The Sweeney G-File —Jonah yapping about AI —Jonah’s first book, Liberal Fascism —Tim Carney: The Big Ripoff —DisPod on AI —Erick Erickson’s newsletter —NR editorial on Indian bigotry —Lewis brothers: The Myth of Left and Right —Jonah dunks on Macklemore The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a nonpartisan perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including the Saturday Ruminant, audio versions of all our articles and newsletters, and Jonah’s twice-weekly G-File—⁠click here⁠. Instructions on how to set up your members-only feed can be found here, and if you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Despite repeated floggings, First Mate Steve Hayes is once again up to no good. With Capt. Jonah Goldberg having gone ashore to purchase more books about Abraham Lincoln, Hayes has seized the helm of the HMS Remnant and is once again joy-cruising with his friends. And while most of the freeloaders Steve invites aboard are scalawags and ne’er-do-wells, there is one particular exception. Jim VandeHei, the co-founder and CEO of Axios, is on deck to talk about how to simplify our lives in an increasingly complicated world. Jim and Steve cover how to confront and eliminate unnecessary tasks, prioritize what matters, and achieve informational simplicity in the age of AI, and discuss what the future of news reporting holds. Show Notes: —Simplify: Do 50 Percent More with 50 Percent Less —Smart Brevity: The Power of Saying More With Less —The CEOs of C-SPAN, Axios, and The Dispatch on journalism and civil discourse The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a nonpartisan perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including the Saturday Ruminant, audio versions of all our articles and newsletters, and Jonah’s twice-weekly G-File—⁠click here⁠. Instructions on how to set up your members-only feed can be found here, and if you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Remnant has many dear old friends: Yuval Levin is the best-looking; Chris Stirewalt is the best kisser. But the oldest, going back to Episode 1, is Ben Sasse. Ben joins today’s pod for a conversation that traverses the high and the low, the sacred and the profane, starting with Gilligan’s Island and running through the healthcare system, scientific research, morphine, affluenza, being an adult, the effects of different media on our brains, screens, schools, the need for strong institutions, good and bad parenting, primaries, AI and work, and Senate reform. Show Notes: —Not Dead Yet podcast —Neil Postman: Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business —The Dispatch editors: “The Coming Post-Trump Reality” —Jonah’s 9/11 G-File —Napoleon III Remnant The Remnant is a production of ⁠The Dispatch⁠, a digital media company covering politics, policy, and culture from a nonpartisan perspective. To access all of The Dispatch’s offerings—including the Saturday Ruminant, audio versions of all our articles and newsletters, and Jonah’s twice-weekly G-File—⁠click here⁠. Instructions on how to set up your members-only feed can be found here, and if you’d like to remove all ads from your podcast experience, consider becoming a premium Dispatch member ⁠by clicking here⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices