The Dispatch Podcast

The Dispatch’s associate editor and Morning Dispatch guru Declan Garvey joins Sarah to ask Oren Cass what his mission is with American Compass, a center-right organization of which he is the executive director. Cass thinks it’s time the conservative movement reforms itself and he is trying to do so from within. Cass says, “What has been missing from American politics and policy making is a conservatism that takes seriously the ways that public policy could really take on and address failures in our markets and things that are not going well in the economy.” Chief among the issues debated in this episode is Sen. Mitt Romney’s new child allowance proposal. The trio also discusses what Donald Trump’s lasting legacy will be in the Republican Party, and what it would mean for the party if he won again. Show Notes: -American Compass website -“The Once and Future Worker” by Oren Cass -Sen. Mitt Romney’s child allowance plan -Oren Cass’ op-ed in the New York Times Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Senate is set to debate the Biden administration’s COVID-19 relief package this week, and today the gang talks about the politics of getting it passed. Steve posits the administration’s strategy is more focused on public opinion, rather than what Republicans want: “They say ‘we care about bipartisanship outside the beltway, not inside the beltway.’” Along with the relief bill, the group discusses the ongoing situation in Afghanistan and debates whether an “endless war” in the country is a good idea or a bad one. Jonah and Sarah disagree on how important voting actually is. And finally, some good old-fashioned election punditry. The hosts talk about the strategy memo that came out from the GOP on how to retake the House in 2022. Show Notes: -The Remnant with Michael Strain -Morning Consult polling on COVID stimulus -“Last Exit From Afghanistan” by Dexter Firkins -SCOTUSblog write up of the Arizona voting rights case -House GOP 2022 strategy memo -Democratic Party autopsy - New York magazine Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is the Biden administration bungling their Covid-19 and vaccine messaging? As Steve put it to Jonah, “It’s awfully cynical of you to suggest that what they’re doing is withholding information because they want to pass their emergency relief bill, and you’re absolutely right to be that cynical.” Also up for discussion: why Xavier Becerra should have been the Biden nominee to have gotten the Neera Tanden treatment instead of Neera Tanden, U.S. relations with Iran and why Republicans who are not Trump loyalists cannot simply turn into Democrats. Show Notes: -The Case Against Xavier Becerra - The Dispatch’s David French -Audacity: How Barack Obama Defied His Critics and Created a Legacy That Will Prevail - Jonathan Chait -What about Joe? - Bill Kristol Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hot off of his latest policy proposal, Sen. Mitt Romney joins the podcast to discuss his and Sen. Tom Cotton’s plan to raise the minimum wage, a proposal that also mandates that businesses use E-verify to prevent the hiring of undocumented workers. Sarah asks him about partisanship in the Senate, what he thinks of the current state of the Republican Party, and whether he’ll start a third party. He said, “There’s no question I’m in the minority of the Republican party these days. … A lot of people talk about ‘Why don’t you start a third party?’ That’s just not realistic.” Then, the gang breaks down the interview. Everyone agrees that it’s nice to finally be talking about policy again. They also explore why Romney (and some others) is committed to staying in the Republican Party. Show Notes: -Romney’s Office Press Release - Minimum Wage Plan -Is It Time for the Republican Party to Split Apart? - The Dispatch’s Declan Garvey Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a call with European foreign ministers on Thursday, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said he would begin steps to restore the 2015 Iran nuclear deal that was abandoned by the Trump administration. Today’s guest, Tom Josclelyn, thinks a series of upfront concessions to Tehran before the country’s leaders even come to the negotiating table would be an unwise foreign policy move for the Biden administration. “I’ve taken to calling it ‘servile diplomacy’ because it is very much from a submissive position,”Joscelyn tells Sarah and Steve. Tune in to hear our hosts’ take on China’s ongoing genocide against the Uighurs in Xinjiang, and the latest rocket attack on a U.S. airbase in Iraq. Show Notes: -“Biden Administration Formally Offers to Restart Nuclear Talks With Iran” by Lara Jakes, Michael Crowley, David E. Sanger and Farnaz Fassihi in the New York Times. -“Biden dismisses Uighur genocide as part of China’s ‘different norms’” by Emily Jacobs in the New York Post. -“‘Genocide’ is the wrong word for the horrors of Xinjiang” by the Economist. -Tom Joscelyn’s Vital Interests newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At the beginning of the pandemic, Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York drew ire from lawmakers of all political stripes for sending COVID-19 positive patients back into nursing homes. But resentment against the governor reached a tipping point in late January, when New York Attorney General Letitia James released a blistering report showing that his office significantly underreported the number of COVID-19 deaths in New York nursing homes. Cuomo has brushed aside those criticisms as a partisan smear campaign, and went so far as to write a book bragging about his leadership during the pandemic. “What is unforgivable, and really, frankly, kind of evil is this alleged covering up of what they did,” Jonah says on today’s show. Tune in to hear the gang chat about K-12 school reopening efforts, the Senate’s acquittal of Donald Trump, and Tim Alberta’s Nikki Haley piece in Politico. Stick around to hear our hosts chat about their Myers Briggs test results. Show Notes: -American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic by Andrew Cuomo. -“Nikki Haley’s Time for Choosing” by Tim Alberta in Politico. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Joe Biden has recently drawn ire from GOP lawmakers for lagging behind his stated goal of getting K-12 children back into the classroom for in-person instruction. Liesl Hickey, a partner at Ascent Media and co-founder of N2 America, joins the show to chat with Sarah and Steve about teachers unions, remote learning’s effect on student well-being, and whether the NRSC will play a bigger role in GOP primaries during the next election cycle. Show Notes: -“Remote learning failed my third-grader miserably. I pulled her out of public school.” by Liesl Hickey in USA Today. -“Surge of Student Suicides Pushes Las Vegas Schools to Reopen” by Erica L. Green in The New York Times. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re on day two of the Senate’s second impeachment trial of Donald Trump and our hosts are here for the breakdown. On Tuesday, the House impeachment managers released a video montage of January 6 in an effort to tie former President Trump’s rhetoric and words to the storming of the Capitol. “[The video] had in many ways the effect that displaying a crime scene photograph has on a criminal trial,” David explains. “It tried to make it real again.” Tune in to hear Sarah and the guys chat about the constitutionality of impeachment, the mechanics of the trial, and the persuasiveness of Trump’s defense team. Stick around to hear our hosts chat about what National Pizza Day means to them. Show Notes: -Senate Impeachment Trial: House Managers’ January 6 Video Montage. -French Press: “The Impeachment Trial Vote Will Set a Precedent. Make It the Right One.” by David French in The Dispatch. -Brandenburg v. Ohio -“McConnell Signals Trump Conviction Is a GOP Conscience Vote” by Jennifer Jacobs in Bloomberg. -“The Constitution Doesn’t Bar Trump’s Impeachment Trial” by Chuck Cooper in the Wall Street Journal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Former Fox News Decision Desk team member Chris Stirewalt joins Sarah, Steve and Jonah to chat about GOP leadership members' struggle to police their own. Stick around for a chat about Joe Biden’s foreign policy agenda, Stirewalt’s take on why “the way America is getting its news is not working for America,” and … lima beans! And also for a very special announcement. Show Notes: -“How Kevin McCarthy fought off a party revolt” by Melanie Zanona in Politico. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the coronavirus stimulus package front, Biden has refused to compromise on his commitment to sending $1,400 checks to Americans. Is it wise for the president to push such a bill through Congress in spite of Republican opposition? As Steve argues on today’s episode, “If Joe Biden’s intransigence this early is pissing off people like Rob Portman and Anthony Gonzalez, that’s a tough place.” Also on the menu for today: GOP House Leader Kevin McCarthy’s intra-party spats with Rep. Liz Cheney, the media’s obsessive fixation on Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, and the United Kingdom’s decision to welcome Hong Kong citizens. Show Notes: -“The Challenge of Going It Alone” by Amy Walter in the Cook Political Report. -“An Interview With Sen. Rob Portman” by Steve Hayes in The Dispatch. -“Can We Have (Another) Conversation About Cancel Culture?” by David French in The Dispatch. -“Republicans Are Playing a Risky Game in Elevating QAnon” by Jonah Goldberg in The Dispatch. -“The GOP’s Conspiracy Theorist Problem” by Audrey Fahlberg in The Dispatch. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices