The Gist - RFK Jr.: Sophist, Saboteur, Snake Oil Secretary

Historian Daniel Immerwahr eviscerates RFK Jr. as a master of glib misinformation—“profoundly informed,” yet wielding that knowledge in bad faith to undermine truth and public trust. Kennedy is the conductor of an orchestra of error. Also discussed: how science became political dogma during COVID, how Fauci’s certainty helped fuel backlash, and why a provocateur like Kennedy thrives in epistemological gray zones. Also on the show: Trump’s obscure-commission chess moves, as he "Truths" his way through any Epstein flak. Produced by Corey Wara Production Coordinator Ashley Khan Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠thegist@mikepesca.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠ad-sales@libsyn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist⁠⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe to The Gist: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe to The Gist Youtube Page: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe to The Gist Instagram Page: ⁠⁠⁠⁠GIST INSTAGRAM⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow The Gist List at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Pesca⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Profundities | Mike Pesca | Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠

The Source - The Texas homeowners insurance crisis

Texas is experiencing a home insurance crisis. This has led to skyrocketing insurance premiums, making homeownership increasingly unaffordable for many Texans. This is due to increased frequency and severity of extreme weather events, rising costs of materials and labor, and the impact of inflation. Some insurers are leaving Texas leaving more homeowners exposed to risk.array(3) { [0]=> string(20) "https://www.tpr.org/" [1]=> string(0) "" [2]=> string(1) "0" }

1A - ‘If You Can Keep It’: The Layoffs At The Departments Of State And Education

This month, two Supreme Court decisions allowed the Trump administration to move forward with significant federal layoffs, including many at the Departments of Education and State.

The State Department laid off senior intelligence analysts specializing in Russia and Ukraine, right as the U.S. ramps up its maneuvering to encourage Vladimir Putin to agree to a peace deal.

And at the Department of Education, the Federal Student Aid office, responsible for administering student loans and Pell Grants, lost hundreds of people.

We break down both situations.

Want to support 1A? Give to your local public radio station and subscribe to this podcast. Have questions? Connect with us. Listen to 1A sponsor-free by signing up for 1A+ at plus.npr.org/the1a.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy

The Bulwark Podcast - Bill Kristol: It’s the Crimes and the Cover-Up

Our government disappeared hundreds of Venezuelans to a hellish Salvadoran prison for 125 days. When Trump's and Stephen Miller's whole CECOT plan even became too much for the dictator who runs El Salvador, Marco Rubio helped orchestrate a political win for Venezuela's strongman, Nicolas Maduro—who gets to look like a white knight in the hostage exchange. Meanwhile, the administration still has not recovered from its rake-step claim that there was no Epstein list. Did Bondi release her memo because the 1,000 FBI personnel who were made to review the Epstein documents kept finding Trump's name? Cover-ups are hard. Plus, now the Dems have new reasons to not cooperate with Republicans.

Bill Kristol joins Tim Miller.

show notes

The Commentary Magazine Podcast - The Information War Against Israel

More false stories about how Israel is killing the very Gazans it's trying to feed are suggestive of a new turn in the information war on the Jewish state—and how the fact that Israel is not finishing up its task in Gaza is having deleterious consequences. Also, a tribute to a great and modest figure who revolutionized the right in the United States. Give a listen.


Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bad Faith - Episode 493 Promo – “A Rational Hope” (w/ Norman Finkelstein)

Nearly two hours with America's favorite podcast guest, Norman Finkelstein, on Epstein, Tucker Carlson & the conservative conflation of anti-Zionism w/ actual antisemitism, whether the left is too sanguine about Zohran Mamdani, how not to repeat Bernie's failures, and a debate on the effect of the political assassinations of the 60s on the lefts' progress.

Subscribe to Bad Faith on YouTube for video of this episode. Find Bad Faith on Twitter (@badfaithpod) and Instagram (@badfaithpod).

Produced by Armand Aviram.

Theme by Nick Thorburn (@nickfromislands).

The Daily - How the Epstein Story Revealed Cracks in the MAGA Base

For the past two weeks, President Trump has been trying and failing to get his supporters to stop talking about Jeffrey Epstein.

David Enrich, a deputy investigations editor for The New York Times, and Shawn McCreesh, a Times White House correspondent, explain why MAGA won’t let go of this scandal, how the president misread his own base — and what all this shows about the limits of Mr. Trump’s power.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

The Source - Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ could mean bigger electric bills for Texans

A report from the Texas Reliability Entity shows that the ERCOT grid is increasingly reliable. And That’s mostly because of solar and battery storage additions to the state’s energy portfolio. That directly contradicts President Trump’s Department of Energy. Also at the summer heat comes back ERCOT expects to approach record peak demand this week. And the state’s booming solar and storage will keep the power on—just as GOP politics takes aim at renewables.array(3) { [0]=> string(20) "https://www.tpr.org/" [1]=> string(0) "" [2]=> string(1) "0" }

The Daily - ‘Modern Love’: How to Keep Love Alive, With Rob Delaney of ‘Dying for Sex’

When we meet Rob Delaney’s character, “Neighbor Guy,” in FX’s limited series “Dying for Sex,” he’s scarfing down a burrito in an elevator, dripping food on his face and the floor. But Delaney’s performance reveals that under Neighbor Guy’s messy exterior is a man capable of deep vulnerability and empathy.

“Dying for Sex” follows a woman named Molly, played by Michelle Williams, who is dying of cancer and desperate to experience sexual pleasure before it’s too late. At first, Molly thinks Neighbor Guy is disgusting, but the two soon discover they make sense together, sexually and emotionally. Williams and Delaney received Emmy nominations for their roles.

On this episode of Modern Love, Delaney tells host Anna Martin why exposing the messy and painful parts of ourselves to other people can be rewarding and hilarious. He talks about tending his own relationship and reads a Modern Love essay about a couple who decides to try some role play to avoid getting too comfortable with each other.

For more Modern Love, search for the show wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes every Wednesday.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

The Gist - Live From America with Mike Pesca

On this Saturday we play some of Mikes conversation on the podcast Live From America Hatem Gabr, one of the cohosts talks to Mike about NPR and the media landscape. Produced by Corey Wara Production Coordinator Ashley Khan Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠thegist@mikepesca.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠ad-sales@libsyn.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/TheGist⁠⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe to The Gist: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe to The Gist Youtube Page: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe to The Gist Instagram Page: ⁠⁠⁠⁠GIST INSTAGRAM⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow The Gist List at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠Pesca⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠Profundities | Mike Pesca | Substack⁠⁠⁠⁠