Robert Tracinski joins to discuss Trump's attack on government, his execrable appointees, and what Dems should do going forward. Highlights / Lowlights Damon: Russ Vought's appointment to OMB and the Nancy Mace / Sarah McBride performative cruelty. Linda: JD Vance appearing in all of those Senate meetings with Matt Gaetz, and A Free Press Conversation with Natan Sharansky Mona: Hong Kong's jailing of 45 democracy activists sparks criticism from foreign governments, rights groups (CBS) Bill: House passes bill that would allow Treasury to target nonprofits it deems to support terrorism Robert: The RFK Jr. McDonalds Photo

David French and Larry Diamond join the group to mull the nature of Trump's victory and the stupefying appointments to DOJ and DNI. Highlights / Lowlights David French: Politics are terrible and sports are terrible, at least for David. Kentucky Wildcats, Tennessee Titans, and Ja Morant’s injury. Damon Linker: A viral tweet and the disappointing Republican whataboutism. Larry Diamond: A vignette about Matt Gaetz’s selection and surprising a prominent Republican with the news. Bill Galston: The Onion has won the bid for Infowars’ assets Mona Charen: Season 2 of Bad Sisters.

The Atlantic's David Frum joins the group to analyze the election and consider the implications for domestic and foreign policy. Highlights / Lowlights: Damon: The work of Ruy Texiera and Nate Cohn Linda: My Manifesto for Despairing Democrats by Nick Kristof Bill: ‘Invisible’ older women speak up at the ballot box by Karen Tumulty Mona: Trump transition team co-chair endorses Kennedy anti-vax theories and says he would be able to access health data David: Earth experiencing warmest year on record – again, scientists say

Tim Miller joins to discuss the big picture about 2024, why Harris could not run as a change agent, and America's oligarchs. Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code BEGTODIFFER at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: http://incogni.com/begtodiffer Highlights / Lowlights Linda Chavez: The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton and the Dodgers World Series Victory (Highlights) Tim Miller: Trump wearing an orange vest and driving a trash truck. (Both) Mona Charen: Derrick Anderson's Fake Family (Lowlight) Bill Galston: The Dodgers (Highlight) Nikki Haley's Get Out the Vote Closing Argument (Lowlight) Damon Linker: Charlie Kirk: Harris Wants Women to Lie to Their Husbands (Lowlight)

New York Times columnist Ross Douthat joins the regular group to discuss his objections to Harris, the likelihood of a Trump fascistic reign, and which party has gone crazier. Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code BEGTODIFFER at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: http://incogni.com/begtodiffer Highlights / Lowlights Ross: Can AI be blamed for a teen’s suicide? (NYT) Damon: Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos (MAX) Linda: The Ghosts of John Tanton (ProPublica) Mona: The Envy of the World (The Economist) Bill: The Fight for a New Israel (Dahlia Scheindlin, Foreign Affairs)

The New Yorker's Susan Glasser joins the group (plus Philip Bump) to discuss Harris's Fox interview, Trump's spiraling mental state, and the oligarchy/corruption a second Trump term would usher in. Highlights / Lowlights Mona: Harris Needs a Closing Argument. Here's One. By Bret Stephens The FTC is making it easier to cancel subscriptions. Damon: Confessions of a Republican Exile by David Brooks A spate of recent content from Matthew Yglesias Susan: The Gates of Gaza by Amir Tibon Philip: A preview of this weekend's "How to Read This Chart" newsletter Linda: The General's Warning by Tom Nichols

NY Times columnist Bret Stephens joins to discuss the Iranian threat (to Israel and the US), the amazing Israeli penetrations of Hezbollah and Iran, and the fate of NATO, Ukraine, etc in a Trump 2.0 world. TV Recommendations of the panelists: Mona: Call My Agent Damon: Game of Thrones Bill: Babylon Berlin Linda: Slow Horses / Pachinko

The Financial Times's Ed Luce joins to discuss the VP debate, the future of MAGA, and the Israel/Iran war.

Mona’s highlight: The impartiality of the DOJ, indicting members of the sitting party in power when they commit crimes. Tim’s lowlight: The failure to have more than one debate. Tim’s highlight: The young, hungry, improbable turnaround of the Detroit Tigers. Sonny’s highlight / lowlight: Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis. Sam’s highlight: Ohtani’s historic 50-50 season. Sam’s lowlight: The indictment of Eric Adams. Bill’s highlight: VP Harris’s economic speech on building and permitting overhaul.

AEI's Kori Schake joins the group to discuss Trump's "crazy guy" strategy, the 111 GOP leaders endorsing Harris, and Hezbollah's exploding pagers. Show Notes: Referenced: U.S. Shrugs as World War III Approaches, by Walter Russell Mead (WSJ) Highlights / Lowlights Kori: Gov. Mike DeWine defending Ohio against MAGA’s lies about Springfield (ABC) Damon: The tired dance of the demagogue by Matthew Yglesias (Slow Boring) Mona: How an AI ‘debunkbot’ can change a conspiracy theorist’s mind (Popular Science) Linda: The Exotic Cat-Eaters of Springfield, Ohio by Kevin Williamson (The Dispatch) Bill: The Future of Free Speech by Lee C. Bollinger and Geoffrey Richard Stone (Dædalus)

Third Way's Matt Bennett joins to discuss the debate, Harris's centrism, and which candidate would be better on inflation. Highlights / Lowlights Mona: Why Mike Lee Folded by Tim Alberta, The Atlantic. Matt: The lies being pushed about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, and the political opportunism of a young boy’s death. Damon: Behind the Catholic Right's celebrity-conversion industrial complex (Vanity Fair) Linda: What led to rumors Trump shared about Venezuelan gangs taking over a Colorado building? (NBC) Bill: Stolen Pride: Loss, Shame, and the Rise of the Right by Arlie Russell Hochschild

Lawyer Kim Wehle discusses her book on the pardon power. The group then delves into Israel/Gaza, campus protests redux, and Tucker Carlson "Just asking questions" about Holocaust denialism. Highlights / Lowlights Mona: Andrew Egger's "Pennsylvania Man Speaks" reporting. Bill: The Rural Voter: The Politics of Place and the Disuniting of America Linda: Republicans Seize on False Theories About Immigrant Voting (NYT) Damon: DOJ alleges Russia funded US media company linked to right-wing social media stars (CNN)

The Atlantic's Peter Wehner joins the group to discuss the DNC and Harris's new tone, Trump's pivot on abortion, and the misfit toys (RFK Jr., Gabbard) of the Trump campaign. Highlights / Lowlights: Mona: Can We Be a Little Less Selective With Our Moral Outrage? by Bret Stephens in The New York Times. Peter: Lowlight: Trump Insists He Won California in Wild, Jesus-Filled Rant With Dr. Phil (Daily Beast) Damon: Highlight: Conservatism: The Fight for a Tradition by Edmund Fawcett Bill: Highlights: The Return of Hamiltonian Statecraft by Walter Russell Mead and Stopping the Next China Shock by Aaron L. Friedberg Linda: Highlight: Making Race Skin Deep by Quico Toro in Persuasion

Andrew Egger subs for the vacationing Mona, and A.B. occupies Damon's seat, as The Deseret News's Samuel Benson joins regulars Bill and Linda to discuss the unity and vibes at the Democratic Convention, while the panel weighs how RFK's exit from the race is likely to affect the November election. Highlights / Lowlights Andrew: Highlight: Gov. Tim Walz's Speech, and his family's reaction. A.B.: Highlight: Doug Emhoff's remarks on anti-semitism, and that protests did not disrupt the convention. Linda: Lowlight: Systemic Test Racism in Chicago (WSJ) Bill: The slow counting of ballots in Pennsylvania, and the failure to fix this glaringly obvious problem. Samuel: Lowlight: The slowness with which anti-semitism was addressed at the Democratic Convention. Highlight: A moment of prayer he witnessed by Jewish men at night outside of the convention hall.

MSNBC's Charlie Sykes joins the panel to discuss the rise of Harris, the decline of Trump (in more ways than one?), and the Iranian hack of Trump's campaign. Highlights / Lowlights Charlie: Highlight: 2 outspoken election deniers lose GOP primaries for state Legislature Lowlight: The ongoing stolen valor attacks on Gov. Walz Mona: Lowlight: How Trump's infatuation with a racist conspiracy theorist is impacting the campaign (Judd Legum and Noel Sims) Damon: Highlight: Ukraine’s Push Into Russia Met Early Success. Where Does It Go From Here? Bill: Lowlights: The Swiftboating of Tim Walz Netanyahu accuses defense minister of ‘anti-Israel narrative,’ exposing rift over war in Gaza Linda: Lowlight: Kamala Harris and the Election of Laughter and Forgetting (Eli Lake, The FP)

The regulars discuss Walz pick and shape of the race. David French joins to talk about Trump v. United States. highlights / lowlights Mona: The life of Penny Parker (1927-2024). David: Highlight: The USA's Medal Count Lowlight: China's Gold medal count Linda: What’s better than calling Trump weird? (David Broockman and Josh Kalla, Slow Boring) Damon: The Book of Illusions by Paul Auster. Bill: Highlight: He's still on Cape Cod Lowlight: Hamas names Yahya Sinwar, mastermind of the Oct. 7 attacks, as its new leader in show of defiance (AP)

A.B. Stoddard guest hosts for today’s discussion on Donald Trump’s NABJ interview. It was shocking and set the internet abuzz, but was that his intention all along? Plus, do VP picks actually matter? Highlights / Lowlights Bill’s highlight: Inside the Secret Negotiations to Free Evan Gershkovich (WSJ) Damon’s highlights: Pro-Wrestling Explains Why Trump Is Scared of Kamala, Donald Trump’s Cheap Heat (The Triad) Linda’s highlight: The America of Yesterday (Yascah Mounk) A.B.’s highlight: America’s New Political War Pits Young Men Against Young Women (WSJ)

Nick Grossman joins the group to discuss Biden's exit and Harris's rise, her strengths and weaknesses, VP possibilities, GOP blues, and Bibi's speech and protests. Highlights / Lowlights Nicholas's highlight: Biden's address to the nation. Nicholas's lowlight: Netanyahu's address to Congress. Mona's highlight: The Olympics You Remember Are Back Damon's highlight: The collective meltdown of right wing influencers who invented the "is Biden Dead?" conspiracy. Bill's highlight: Harris steps out on Israel as she navigates Biden and Netanyahu (Edward-Isaac Dovere, CNN) Linda's highlight: Fireside Chat with Condoleezza Rice and Robert M. Gates

The New Yorker's Susan Glasser joins the group (with Andrew Egger) to discuss the aftermath of the assassination attempt, JD Vance, and Biden digging in his heels. Highlights / Lowlights Mona: The Gunman and the Would-Be Dictator by David Frum in The Atlantic. Damon: Sohrab Ahmari's reaction to Trump's reaction to getting shot at. Ross Douthat's NYT column on Trump and Destiny. Andrew: President Biden messed up a key policy detail in Las Vegas speech. Linda: Are We Living in ‘Late Soviet America’? Niall Ferguson and Jonah Goldberg Debate.

A.B. Stoddard joins to discuss Biden's intransigence, the Democratic party's next moves, the pros and cons of anointing Harris, and more. Highlights / Lowlights A.B.: Trump is Planning for a Landslide Win by Tim Alberta in The Atlantic and her 2022 item: Why (and How) Biden Should Decline to Run Again Mona: What Lessons Do the Stunning Results of the French Election Offer? (New Yorker) Bill: Amid Doubts About Biden’s Mental Sharpness, Trump Leads Presidential Race (Pew) Damon: Time to Go, Joe, by Marc Leibovich in The Atlantic Linda: A Better Approach to Race in Medicine by Amy F.S. Lutz in Persuasion For What It's Worth by Linda Chavez