About this episode
The episode discusses the implications of the Iran war, California's election processes, and a controversial reproductive decision, featuring guest Mike Schaffer.
This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss whether this week's resumption of open hostilities in the Iran war has changed the likelihood of an imminent end to the conflict, what to do about how California's slow vote-counting emboldens Trump's cries of election foul, and the most hotly contested D.C. mayoral election in a generation with guest Mike Schaffer from City Cast DC . For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David discuss how the online shaming of one couple for their reproductive decision has deformed an already hard conversation about disability, quality of life, and what we owe each other. The hosts try to hold all of it at once as they consider this viral story that sits at the intersection of disability rights and reproductive autonomy. In the latest Gabfest Reads , John Dickerson talks with Bloomberg columnist Adrian Wooldridge about his new book The Revolutionary Center: The Lost Genius of Liberalism . In a moment when American democracy is under assault from authoritarian populists and dogmatic progressives, Wooldridge argues that liberalism itself offers the most resilient framework for pluralistic, self-correcting…
People in this episode
Hosts: Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, David Plotz
Guest: Mike Schaffer
Topics covered
- Iran war
- California vote-counting
- D.C. mayoral election
- disability rights
- reproductive autonomy
- liberalism
Keywords
- Iran war
- California
- election
- disability rights
- reproductive autonomy
- D.C. mayoral election
- liberalism
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Slate Podcasts, City Cast DC
Books & works: The Revolutionary Center: The Lost Genius of Liberalism
More episodes of Political Gabfest
- Man-Child Graham Platner · June 4, 2026 · 1h 3m
- They Messed with Texas · May 28, 2026 · 53 min
- Corruption Never Stops · May 21, 2026 · 1h 2m
- Gabfest Reads | Why Liberalism Needs to Reclaim the Center · May 16, 2026 · 48 min
- Nevertheless, Xi Persisted · May 14, 2026 · 57 min
- Are Republicans Actually Souring on Trump? · May 7, 2026 · 55 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Political Gabfest podcast page.