On The Gist, Donald Trump is to "wall" as zombies are to "braaaains."
In his Broadway show (The New One) Mike Birbiglia tells you why procreation is a terrible idea, before waxing lyrical on the joys of raising a daughter—it’s complicated; he’s complicated. On The Gist, he spares a thought for how to tip at an Olive Garden, the future of email leaks, and Fox News’ underwhelming Christmas tree.
In the Spiel, abandoning arguments of good (or bad) faith.
For our last episode of the year, we get the answers to three of your questions: What's with the stars in Brisbane? Why does Millbrae BART station smell like chocolate? And is Red Rock Island for sale?
Amanda Holmes reads A. A. Milne’s poem, “The King’s Breakfast.” Have a suggestion for a poem? Email us: podcast@theamericanscholar.org. If we select your entry, you’ll win a copy of a poetry collection edited by David Lehman.
This episode was produced by Stephanie Bastek and features the song “Canvasback” by Chad Crouch.
What problem was the Federal Reserve meant to solve? How does that compare with its assumed mandate today? Jeffrey Lacker is a former head of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. He discusses the original Fed charter and the powers it now claims.
What problem was the Federal Reserve meant to solve? How does that compare with its assumed mandate today? Jeffrey Lacker is a former head of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. He discusses the original Fed charter and the powers it now claims.
Today's Rapid Response episode takes a look at the just-released Law'd Awful Memo written by Attorney General nominee Bill Barr and sent to Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein concerning the Mueller investigation. Are the argument(s) raised in the memo any good? What does this mean for the future of the Mueller investigation? Listen and find out!
We begin, however, with a brief foray into everyone's favorite show topic: BASEBALL LAW! Find out about the agreement reached between MLB and Cuba, and how (of course) Donald Trump can screw it up.
After that, it's time for an Andrew Was Wrong (and Maybe Not Wrong) on David Pecker and AMI. Along the way, we'll learn about the corruption case against Sun-Diamond Growers in connection with former Agriculture Secretary (and nearly-Senator) Mike Espy.
Then, we delve deeply into the Barr memo, taking apart the legal "arguments" and featuring a guest appearance from one Antonin Scalia!
Then, it's time to tackle the rather surprising decision by Judge Sullivan in the Michael Flynn sentencing phase. What happened? Did he go off the rails?
After all that, we end with an all new Thomas (and Matt!) Takes The Bar Exam #106 on how to best transport heroin from Kansas City to Chicago and what the judge can instruct the jury... it's complicated, but you won't want to miss it! And, as always, if you'd like to play along with us, just retweet our episode on Twitter or share it on Facebook along with your guess and the #TTTBE hashtag. We'll release the answer on next Tuesday's episode along with our favorite entry!
Appearances
None! If you'd like to have either of us as a guest on your show, drop us an email at openarguments@gmail.com.
A judge’s shock over Michael Flynn’s crimes destroys right-wing conspiracy theories, Trump is forced to shut down his fraudulent charity, Trump may get his government shutdown after all, and a criminal justice reform bill just may become law. Then CNN’s Van Jones talks to Jon and Dan about what’s in the First Step Act, and how a bipartisan coalition got it done.
