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Retired Air Force Gen. Jay Santee takes us inside the high-stakes operation to dispose of Syria’s chemical weapons—on a ship. Plus, Trump’s grudge against Canada resurfaces, this time over fentanyl and trade. In The Spiel: How legitimate critiques of DEI programs got stupefied and weaponized into a political sledgehammer.

Produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara

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Each weekend on Best Of The Gist, we listen back to an archival Gist segment from the past, then we replay something from the past week. This weekend, though, we’re throwing that formula out the proverbial window and playing an episode of Very Serious with Josh Barro, on which Mike was a guest. He joined Josh, Ben Dreyfuss, and Megan McArdle to talk about Trump’s first week in office. 

 

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The Gist is produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara 

 

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Miriam Lewin, subject of the podcast The Burden: Avenger, spent a year in an Argentine torture center and has chronicled the stories of the “disappeared”—dissidents who were drugged and thrown into the Atlantic Ocean. Plus, Trump’s new tariffs: bold move or economic blunder? Also, an Antwentig, where stolen baby formula fuels underground economies.

GIST Coupon Codes ...

Truewerk: truewerk.com/thegist for 15% off your first order

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Produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara

Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com

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Michael Moynihan of The Fifth Column podcast returns to break down Europe’s immigration crisis and how right-wing parties are addressing concerns that classic moderates will not. Plus, Senate hearings heat up over the nominations of RFK Jr., Kash Patel, and Tulsi Gabbard. And Donald Trump reacts to a midair collision with a critique of diversity initiatives—all of which were in place during his first administration.

Watch our interview with Michael Moynihan on The Gist's YouTube channel.

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Produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara

Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com

To advertise on the show, visit: https://advertisecast.com/TheGist

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Sweden—once the left’s shining example of social democracy—is now grappling with far-right politics, immigrant buyouts, and a surge in gang violence. How did it get here? Journalist, raconteur, and Sweden expert Michael Moynihan breaks it all down. Plus, a deep dive into new data on affirmative action in college admissions, and a look at the latest conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

GIST Coupon Codes ...

Truewerk: truewerk.com/thegist for 15% off your first order

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Quince: quince.com/thegist for free shipping and free returns

Produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara

Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com

To advertise on the show, visit: https://advertisecast.com/TheGist

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Randall Woodfin, mayor of Birmingham, Alabama, is leading a city experiencing promising growth in wealth and education while also grappling with a troubling surge in homicides that defies national trends. Woodfin discusses his new book, Son of Birmingham, and the challenges of governing a city at a crossroads. Plus, a CNN stalwart has asked his last confrontational question to a combative president, and the current administration makes some highly questionable claims about condoms and Gaza.

GIST Coupon Codes ...

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Quince: quince.com/thegist for free shipping and free returns

Produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara

Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com

To advertise on the show, visit: https://advertisecast.com/TheGist

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Most North Dakotans may be skeptical about global warming, but they’re fully committed to making their state a leader in the carbon capture industry. Journalist Adam Willis, who covered the heated debate over carbon capture in North Dakota for Bloomberg, joins us to discuss. Also on the show: the renaming of Forts Benning and Bragg, the surprising presence of anti-vaxxers in the Pentagon, the exclusion of transgender service members, and a look back at the Great Colombian Tariff Tiff of 2025.

GIST Coupon Codes ...

Truewerk: truewerk.com/thegist for 15% off your first order

Marley Spoon: marleyspoon.com/offer/thegist for 27 free meals

Quince: quince.com/thegist for free shipping and free returns

Produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara

Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com

To advertise on the show, visit: https://advertisecast.com/TheGist

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Follow Mikes Substack at: Pesca Profundities | Mike Pesca | Substack 

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Each weekend on Best Of The Gist, we listen back to an archival Gist segment from the past, then we replay something from the past week. This weekend, we listen back to Mike’s 2022 interview with Kate Shaw, ABC Legal Analyst and co-host of the Strict Scrutiny podcast. It’s an extended interview about the Equal Rights Amendment, which, many of its backers claim, actually passed and should be the law of the land. Then we listen back to Mike’s Tuesday Spiel about the pardoned January 6th attackers. 

 

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The Gist is produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara 

 

Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com 

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Meghan Daum, writer and host of The Unspeakable podcast on Substack, joins us for an extended interview about the #MeToo movement, female agency, the efficacy of social movements, and evolving gender dynamics in society. She and Mike discuss women’s progress, exploring the intersection of cancel culture and empowerment within media and publishing. Also on the show, Harvard redefines “antisemitism” to include discrimination against Zionists.

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Produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara

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Today on The Gist, Mike is joined by Michael A. Cohen of the Truth and Consequences Substack and MSNBC, along with Matt Welch, Editor-at-Large of Reason magazine, for another installment of Not Even Mad. The trio discusses Trump’s inauguration, executive actions, refugee policy, DEI, and the eventful first few days of his second term as POTUS.

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Produced by Joel Patterson and Corey Wara

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