Author: Commentary Magazine

Today, John returns to discuss the life of his father, Norman Podhoretz. Give a listen.

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Today, we discuss the life, work, and ideas of longtime COMMENTARY editor and intellectual giant Norman Podhoretz, who died yesterday at age 95. From there, we move on to the strange developments in the Brown University shooting investigation, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles's unusual interview with Vanity Fair, and the Trump administration generally. Give a listen.

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Eli Lake joins the podcast to discuss  "The Palestine Firsters," his lead article in the January issue of COMMENTARY. Why do Ben Rhodes and a cast of others on the left and right want America to work against its core interests by breaking the U.S.-Israel alliance? Give a listen.

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The attack on Bondi Beach is not an isolated incident; it's the export of the Islamist war against the Jews to areas far from Gaza. Give a listen.

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Is Trump losing the thread as we head into 2026? And what's this—secular saint Oliver Sacks, the man who brought empathy to discussions of human weakness, made a lot of stuff up? Give a listen.

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With the boarding and seizure of a Venezuelan oil tanker, the United States's confrontation with Venezuela ascends to a higher level. What's going on? And why are Democrats making crazy commercials and going with crazy candidates for 2026? And why am I recommending a movie from 1946–It's a Wonderful Life—that everyone has already seen? Give a listen.

 

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Eli Lake joins us for a conversation that begins with Christmas music and ends with man's search for meaning. Today's COMMENTARY RECOMMENDS: The Bible. Give a listen.

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Today's podcast tries to make sense out of the incoherent Trump administration posture toward China, AI chips, tariffs, farmers, and the economy. Also, Christine Rosen recommends Chip War by Chris Miller and Philip A. Wallach's Why Congress? Give a listen.

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A full house today takes up Pete Hegseth's speech on American defense and the national security strategy document released by the administration—Good? Bad? Ugly? And how about that New York Times story revealing the way the Biden administration self-destructed on immigration? Plus, I recommend (with the provisos that it's very very very long and very very very violent) Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair—a merger of his two Kill Bill films from 20 years ago. Give a listen.

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Enough with the pomposity about gerrymandering—each party does it and the other one has a cow and then they switch positions and do it all over again. Latest example: Texas. Also, Tom Cotton defends the boat strike, JD Vance puts a "Golden Noel" label on an event celebrating a Jewish holiday, and we answer listener mail. Plus I recommend the hilarious performances of Walter Matthau in The Sunshine Boys and Edith Evans in The Importance of Being Earnest. Give a listen.

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