The “I Don’t Mean to Yell at You, but I Feel Good Doing It” Edition
Listen to Slate’s show about Seymour Hersh’s conspiratorial counter-narrative of the killing of Osama Bin Laden, the status of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, and Jeb Bush’s retrospective view of the Iraq war.
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To listen to the discussion, use the player below:
For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment, David and Emily discuss the tragic Amtrak accident in Philadelphia this week and the lowly status of rail transportation in the U.S. more generally. Slate Plus members get an ad-free version of this podcast with bonus segments. Visit slate.com/gabfestplus and try it free for two weeks.
On this week’s Slate Political Gabfest, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss Seymour Hersh’s controversial claims of a monumental conspiracy in the killing of Osama Bin Laden, President Obama’s ongoing battle with Democrats over Trade Promotion Authority and the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement, and Jeb Bush’s very bad week full of vacillating views on the Iraq war.
Here are some of the links and references mentioned during this week's show:
- Distinguished investigative journalist Seymour Hersh’s latest piece purports to uncover a monumental conspiracy in the killing of Osama Bin Laden. Is he persuasive or full of BS? And why wasn’t the piece in the New Yorker?
- A surly Sy Hersh is standing by his reporting. What happened to Sy Hersh?
- What is the big deal with the TPP and why are Democrats fighting President Obama over it? (And what are TPP and TPA anyway?)
- Why has Hillary Clinton been so silent on the issue? What’s the latest on the TPP/TPA and should we care? (And why don’t we know more about it?)
- Jeb Bush said what?! And then he said what? How bad was his week and what does it all mean?
- John argues for the import and utility of hypothetical questions.
- Read more of Slate’s coverage of Jeb Bush and the 2016 campaign.
Emily chatters about the 30th anniversary of the Move bombing and the documentary Let the Fire Burn, which chronicles the story.
John chatters about the day (May 14, 1789) Congress officially adopted the title “president of the United States.”
David chatters about Disney’s seemingly tone-deaf The Princess of North Sudan.
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Podcast production by Mike Vuolo. Links compiled by Tarik Barrett.