Mike & Jay kick off the show with a look at what seems to be the “it’s only a matter of time” Russian invasion of Ukraine. Jay thinks that the Biden administration’s approach has been very good to this point, while Mike attempts to present the non-interventionist, “America First” case for staying out of Russia’s (and possibly China’s) spheres of influence.
Then it’s on to two lawsuits - the first being the Department of Justice’s suit against Missouri’s “Second Amendment Protection Act” and the second Texas’s suit against the CDC for the federal travel hub mask mandate. Mike & Jay agree that Missouri doesn’t get to nullify federal law, and that their law is almost certain to fall. They think Texas may have a stronger case on the mask mandate, but that it’s important to separate what may be good public policy from what’s within the power of a government agency to do absent specific congressional authorization.
Following that, they look at a pretrial motion filed by Special Counsel John Durham in his investigation of the federal government’s investigation of Russian influence in the 2016 elections. They agree that the allegations are serious, but that it’s easy to reach bad conclusions so early in the process.
The show winds up with discussion of “prestige television”, class, and politics followed by an appreciation of the late P. J. O’Rourke, and then some thoughts on ballot harvesting.
Jay’s Recommendation
The Americanization of Benjamin Franklin. Gordon Wood
Mike’s Recommendations
A Mencken Chrestomathy and Notes on Democracy. H. L. Mencken
The Autobiography of Theodore Roosevelt. Theodore Roosevelt
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The Federalist Papers: What They Are & Why They Matter
Durham Report, Title 42, GOP Presidential Field, SCOTUS Tech Decisions
Mike & Jay Respond to Listener Questions
The Constitution: Article II, Section I
Title 42, Defamation, Trump Town Hall, Santos Indictment, EPA Rules, Dormant Commerce Clause
Oklahoma Execution, Housing & Socializing Risk, Changing American Values
Proud Boys Convictions, Debt Limit, The End of Chevron, Zooey Zephyr
The Big Myth: Loathing Government and Loving the ‘Free’ Market
Carlson Out at Fox, Biden 2024, Trump Rape Trial, Supreme Court Ethics
SCOTUS Mifepristone Ruling, House Debt Ceiling Bill, Disney Sues DeSantis
Bud Light & Dylan Mulvaney, Justice Thomas & Corruption, Tax Day
Fox Settles, Should Feinstein Resign, SCOTUS & Religious Protection
The Constitution: Article I, Section 10
Justice Thomas, Mifepristone, Leaked Documents, Tennessee House, Trump’s Appeal
Elections in Wisconsin & Chicago, Transgender Policy
Abortion Pill Rulings, Net Neutrality, Trump Indictment
Supreme Court & Free Speech, Nebraska Filibuster, Iraq War 20th Anniversary
Trump Indictment, Nashville School Shooting, Regulating A.I.
The Constitution: Article I, Section 9, The Powers Denied States
Trump Investigations, DeSantis, Xi Jinping & Vladimir Putin, TikTok, French Riots
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