Political Gabfest

This week, live from Sixth & I in Washington DC to celebrate 20 years of the Political Gabfest, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the contentious House Judiciary Committee hearing with AG Pam Bondi and the Trump administration’s violations of constitutional rights with guest Rep. Jamie Raskin, how Trump’s assaults on DC have radically transformed the city, and patriotism at the Olympics.For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David answer questions from the live audience at Sixth & I in Washington, DC to celebrate 20 years of the Political Gabfest. In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily Bazelon talks with author Curtis Sittenfeld about her short story collection, “Show Don’t Tell.” They discuss the recurring themes of the book from troubled marriages and middle age to the passage of time, and characters who are navigating moments of racial privilege and prejudice. Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Nina Porzucki Research by Emily DittoYou can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here. Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen. Find out more about David Plotz's monthly tours of Ft. DeRussy, the secret Civil War fort hidden in Rock Creek Park.   Follow@SlateGabfest on X / https://twitter.com/SlateGabfestSlate Political Gabfest on Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/Gabfest/

This week, Emily Bazelon, David Plotz, and guest host Juliette Kayyem discuss the juxtaposition between the devastating layoffs at The Washington Post and the exorbitant price owner Jeff Bezos and Amazon paid for the Melania movie, this week’s ominous foreshadowing of the Trump administration’s real threats to the 2026 elections with election law expert Nate Persily, and why the Clintons are facing deposition in House Epstein investigations.For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, David, and guest host Juliette Kayyem discuss a fascinating profile of anti-government militia leader Ammon Bundy, the contrast between Bundy’s and his former allies’ views on ICE tactics, and how messages about individual liberty and government intervention might be affecting the Trump administration’s narratives about immigration enforcement. In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily Bazelon talks with author Curtis Sittenfeld about her short story collection, “Show Don’t Tell.” They discuss the recurring themes of the book from troubled marriages and middle age to the passage of time, and characters who are navigating moments of racial privilege and prejudice. Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Nina Porzucki Research by Emily DittoYou can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here. Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen. Find out more about David Plotz's monthly tours of Ft. DeRussy, the secret Civil War fort hidden in Rock Creek Park.   Follow@SlateGabfest on X / https://twitter.com/SlateGabfestSlate Political Gabfest on Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/Gabfest/

 This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss how the shocking killing of Alex Pretti by federal agents could represent a real turning point for Trump’s immigration enforcement policies, the cognitive dissonance about constitutional rights and conservative principles displayed by political leaders in the wake of Pretti’s killing, and a new book by guest Jason Zengerle: Hated by All the Right People: Tucker Carlson and the Unraveling of the Conservative Mind.For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David discuss a landmark trial starting in California that aims to adjudicate between children and families who say that social media caused them immense harm because companies intentionally engineered addicting platforms, and social media giants like Meta who argue they’re not responsible for content protected by the First Amendment. In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily Bazelon talks with author Curtis Sittenfeld about her short story collection, “Show Don’t Tell.” They discuss the recurring themes of the book from troubled marriages and middle age to the passage of time, and characters who are navigating moments of racial privilege and prejudice. Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Nina Porzucki Research by Emily DittoYou can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here. Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen. Find out more about David Plotz's monthly tours of Ft. DeRussy, the secret Civil War fort hidden in Rock Creek Park.  

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss whether Trump’s lust for Greenland will break the world (or indeed, whether it already has), what this week’s arguments at the Supreme Court suggest about the future of Fed independence, and how FBI sources say the Bureau is being turned into a weapon of the president.For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David discuss a new memoir from Pennsylvania governor and likely presidential candidate Josh Shapiro, and what it tells us about his views on the presidency, his relationship with former VP Kamala Harris, and how he might approach a campaign. In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily Bazelon talks with author Curtis Sittenfeld about her short story collection, “Show Don't Tell.” They discuss the recurring themes of the book from troubled marriages and middle age to the passage of time, and characters who are navigating moments of racial privilege and prejudice.  Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Nina Porzucki Research by Emily DittoYou can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here. Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen. Find out more about David Plotz's monthly tours of Ft. DeRussy, the secret Civil War fort hidden in Rock Creek Park.   Follow@SlateGabfest on X / https://twitter.com/SlateGabfestSlate Political Gabfest on Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/Gabfest/

Emily Bazelon talks with author Curtis Sittenfeld about her short story collection, “Show Don't Tell.” They discuss the recurring themes of the book from troubled marriages and middle age to the passage of time, and characters who are navigating moments of racial privilege and prejudice. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com. (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)Podcast production by Nina Porzucki.

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss why Trump is stepping up his attacks on Fed Chair Powell and how it could backfire, the increasingly inflammatory actions of ICE and the slim likelihood of justice for Renee Good in Minneapolis, and the Trump administration’s unsettling efforts to sow doubt about election integrity ahead of the midterms.For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David discuss this week’s arguments at the Supreme Court in two cases about state bans on the participation of transgender kids in sports. In the latest Gabfest Reads, David Plotz talks with Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales about his new book The Seven Rules of Trust: A Blueprint for Building Things That Last. They discuss how Wikipedia’s culture of assuming good faith and shared purpose became a model for building trustworthy digital communities — and what lessons that holds for companies, social media, and politics today. Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Nina Porzucki Research by Emily DittoYou can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here. Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen. Find out more about David Plotz's monthly tours of Ft. DeRussy, the secret Civil War fort hidden in Rock Creek Park.   Follow@SlateGabfest on X / https://twitter.com/SlateGabfestSlate Political Gabfest on Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/Gabfest/

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss what the so-called “Donroe Doctrine” means for international order after the US military extracted Maduro from Venezuela amid rumblings over Greenland and Cuba, the background and evolving situation in Minnesota after an ICE agent killed a woman during a raid, and how changes to the federal recommended childhood vaccine schedule dangerously denormalize routine vaccines with guest Dr. Josh Sharfstein, Professor of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University.  For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David discuss reports that X chatbot Grok is making nonconsensual sexualized photos of women and children at user prompts, Elon Musk’s reaction, and how to stop it.   In the latest Gabfest Reads, David Plotz talks with Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales about his new book The Seven Rules of Trust: A Blueprint for Building Things That Last. They discuss how Wikipedia’s culture of assuming good faith and shared purpose became a model for building trustworthy digital communities — and what lessons that holds for companies, social media, and politics today.   Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)   Podcast production by Nina Porzucki   Research by Emily Ditto You can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here.   Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.   Find out more about David Plotz's monthly tours of Ft. DeRussy, the secret Civil War fort hidden in Rock Creek Park.     Follow @SlateGabfest on X / https://twitter.com/SlateGabfestSlate Political Gabfest on Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/Gabfest/

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz revisit several favorite segments from Gabfests past to celebrate their 20th anniversary: the consequential and eye-opening “don’t call the police” debate, the segment in which John shows Bill Clinton how to apologize with his characteristic eloquence and grace, and that time a data scientist definitively answered the important question: which host interrupts the others the most? For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David revisit one more favorite segment from 20 years of the Political Gabfest: that time in 2008 they fought about the John Edwards love affair scandal.   In the latest Gabfest Reads, David Plotz talks with Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales about his new book The Seven Rules of Trust: A Blueprint for Building Things That Last. They discuss how Wikipedia’s culture of assuming good faith and shared purpose became a model for building trustworthy digital communities — and what lessons that holds for companies, social media, and politics today.   Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)   Podcast production by Nina Porzucki Research by Emily Ditto You can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here.   Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.   Find out more about David Plotz's monthly tours of Ft. DeRussy, the secret Civil War fort hidden in Rock Creek Park.   Follow @SlateGabfest on X / https://twitter.com/SlateGabfestSlate Political Gabfest on Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/Gabfest/

This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, David Plotz, and special guest Stephen Colbert answer listeners’ conundrums of all kinds: the meaningful, the trivial, and the delightfully absurd. Thanks to all Conundrums contributors: Karl, Elodie, Mitchell, Brian, Phil, Eric, Christian, Kyle, Matthew, Katie, Jesse, John, Bjorn, David, Colin, Alan, Emily, Marie, and Liam! Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)   Podcast production by Nina Porzucki with live show support from Katie Rayford and the team at the New York Society for Ethical Culture   Research by Emily Ditto You can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here.   Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus to get access wherever you listen.   Find out more about David Plotz's monthly tours of Ft. DeRussy, the secret Civil War fort hidden in Rock Creek Park.   Follow@SlateGabfest on X / https://twitter.com/SlateGabfestSlate Political Gabfest on Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/Gabfest/