The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg

While Jonah scrambles to escape the wilds of Alaska, Chris Stirewalt takes control of the Remnant to provide some exceedingly rank punditry. His guest is Josh Kraushaar, who joins to explore whether the Democrats really are doomed in the upcoming midterms and what we can expect from Republicans in the remaining primaries. Josh and Chris also consider some of the most pressing questions about the 2...

How does The Godfather relate to the January 6 hearings? Jonah has the answer on today’s early-morning Ruminant, which also features disquisitions on the Democrats’ economic malpractice, the asinine argument that those who didn’t vote for Trump are responsible for Biden’s failures, and the future of American democracy. Did January 6 create a constitutional crisis? Will the hearings embolden sane R...

Rev. Robert Sirico, co-founder and president of the Acton Institute, joins the Remnant to discuss his new book, The Economics of the Parables, which uses Biblical stories to offer economic advice. With many on the right now embracing theocracy, it’s tempting to argue that the Catholic intellectual tradition is inherently at odds with capitalism. But Rev. Sirico disagrees, and he also isn’t convinc...

Chris Stirewalt, America’s favorite rodeo expert, is back on the Remnant to provide an inside view of the January 6 hearings. He and Jonah explore how the hearings have played out so far and what we can expect the outcome to be, occasionally stopping for a few strange existential digressions. Will the hearings influence the midterms? What happened on election night when Fox decided to call Arizona...

Weird, overlong, and predictably devoid of substance, the drive-time Remnant format returns for another broadcast. Although today’s program begins with analysis of the January 6 hearings, it swiftly takes a turn for the eclectically surreal, as Jonah describes his obsession with pharmaceutical fine print, Ryan ponders the greatness of American dining halls, and Guy provides an account of his visit...

It’s been a while since a recovering Marxist joined the Remnant, but Ruy Teixeira, political demographer and senior fellow at American Progress, is here to fill that void. In predictably wonky fashion, he and Jonah examine the future of the Democratic Party and how the progressive movement has changed in recent years. They also explore racism in American life, wokeism in universities, and Jonah’s...

Armed with a smorgasbord of booze, Jonah reunites with Rep. Mike Gallagher for another half-baked extravaganza, in which the duo’s efforts to annex Greenland may finally come to fruition. Trap doors beneath escalators, dad-centric dating apps, and various bovine innovations are among the undercooked ideas proposed for your listening enjoyment, as well as a few novel solutions for the domestic cris...

Jonah plunges into the danger zone on today’s Ruminant, covering topics ranging from the somber to the downright bizarre. After offering a few thoughts on Wednesday’s indulgent “news”letter and the nature of writer’s block, he turns to television, republicanism, and superstition, providing exceptionally nerdy disquisitions on each. Does the djinn genie live on his back? How does Jonah really feel...

Tony Mills, a senior fellow at AEI whose work focuses on science policy and political theory, joins the Remnant for an ultra-nerdy exploration of the American political tradition. He and Jonah examine whether liberalism alone can sustain the United States and why our experts have fallen into such low repute. Is free market capitalism corrosive? Why is civic republicanism important? And what are th...

At long last, the Remnant-palooza celebrating Jonah’s 500th episode is here for your listening pleasure. Recorded live at the American Enterprise Institute before a crowd of Dispatch devotees, the episode features two panel discussions featuring three of the program’s most cherished guests. To begin, Sen. Ben Sasse joins Jonah for an hour of high-minded eggheadery, covering the merits of Bigfoot e...

It’s another very, very early morning Ruminant today, yet somehow Jonah is annoyingly bombarded with texts at the start of the podcast. After figuring out how to stop the interruptions, he delves into what he thinks are the essential books for all conservatives to read. Then, sadly, he shares his thoughts on shootings, guns, body armor, and more. Stick around to hear Jonah’s thoughts on the latest...

Jonah is both excited and sad for today’s Remnant guest because Stephen Gutowski might just be the smartest person in the media today to talk about guns and mass shootings, but that means there was another mass shooting to talk about. Gutowski, founder of The Reload, comes on to talk about guns, gun laws, and the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. What even is an AR-15? Should they be banned? What...

James “Jimmy P” Pethokoukis makes his long-awaited Remnant return to assure us that life really is better than it used to be. Alternating between gratuitous sci-fi references and shameless wonkery, he and Jonah explore dynamism in American life, the potential for a new Roaring ‘20s, and the future of technology. Is there a case for universal basic income? Will Elon Musk become the next Howard Hugh...

Jonah’s in especially ranty form on today’s Ruminant, which finds him once again deprived of sleep thanks to the wailings of a local fox. He begins by offering a few further thoughts on the relationship between religion and politics following Tim Alberta’s Remnant appearance. Afterward, rank punditry ensues, as Jonah explores how both parties are harming the United States through their concern for...

Tim Alberta of The Atlantic joins Jonah to talk about his latest piece How Politics Poisoned the Evangelical Church. The story and the evangelical church is personal to Alberta, as he grew up a “pastor’s kid” in Brighton, Michigan, and has witnessed a changing of the church from the frontlines. What surprised him about writing this piece? Why is he “angry”? Plus, stick around to the end for some r...

Yascha Mounk makes his second appearance on The Remnant, this time to discuss his new book, The Great Experiment: Why Diverse Democracies Fall Apart and How They Can Endure. In a conversation tailor-made for holders of the Remnant bingo card, Yascha and Jonah discuss the dangers of tribalism and populism, America’s crisis of community, and what patriotism should look like. They also examine Americ...

Haunted by the wailings of a local fox, Jonah brings an elevated degree of curmudgeonliness to today’s wide-ranging Ruminant. After offering some further thoughts on the hyper-politicization of American society and the erosion of institutions, Jonah turns to abortion, dispelling a few common myths and outlining what post-Roe law should look like. He also explores inflation, the ongoing Ukraine con...

Yuval Levin returns to the Remnant to provide his signature brand of edifying eggheadery. Institutions, the culture war, and the necessity of staying in your lane are all covered in this high minded conversation. Jonah and Yuval also discuss America’s unique fusion of liberalism and republicanism and what we can expect from abortion law if Roe v. Wade is overturned. Plus, tune in for an update on...

Beth Akers, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, joins The Remnant for extreme wonkery on student debt and the economics of higher education. Why have the Democrats become so fixated on the issue of forgiving student loan debt, and can a moral argument be made for forgiveness? Furthermore, are most graduate programs pointless? How can we fix America’s universities? And can anyone ma...

The drive-time Remnant format returns for another eclectic broadcast that, initially at least, comes dangerously close to providing actual substance. In predictably freewheeling fashion, Jonah, Guy, and Ryan explore the abortion debate and how the culture war manifests in various cultures, evaluate the merits of The Batman, and ponder when China’s influence on Hollywood will decrease. They also ma...

Fairy tales can come true, and it may happen to you on today’s Remnant, which sees Jonah reunite with Chris Stirewalt for more rank punditry, dated pop culture references, and gratuitous Clinton bashing. They begin by exploring the Roe leak, digging into what it means for abortion law and how Biden should handle the situation, before turning to J.D. Vance’s victory in Ohio and what we can expect f...

Retired Gen. H.R. McMaster—Hoover Institution senior fellow, former national security adviser, and foreign policy expert—makes his first appearance on the Remnant to discuss China, Russia, and Afghanistan. He and Jonah examine what led to the war in Ukraine, the likelihood of Xi Jinping invading Taiwan, and whether institutional failures were to blame for the chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal. They a...

On the mend from his sudden bout of illness, Jonah approaches today’s Ruminant with his standard level of nerdy panache. After offering a few thoughts on how The Tyranny of Clichés holds up today, he commences a lengthy rant on why canceling student debt would be a serious moral and political blunder, before turning to Francis Fukuyama’s work on liberalism. What does the relationship between virtu...

On today’s Remnant, Francis Fukuyama finally stops by to discuss his new book, Liberalism and its Discontents, and Jonah can barely contain his enthusiasm. The resulting conversation is a feast of philosophical nerdery, which explores the origins of the liberal tradition, the state of liberalism in contemporary America, and the future of the free world. How did “neoliberal” become such a popular p...

Sick with a nasty fever, Jonah approaches today’s Remnant not as an emergency podcast, but a podcast imbued with a sense of emergency. His guest is David French, who returns for a lengthy discussion of Ron DeSantis’ feud with Disney and what it reveals about American polarization. Also on the docket is what we can expect from Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter and how Jonah and David would change the...