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On this week’s Slate Political Gabfest, Emily Bazelon, David Plotz, and John Dickerson discuss Donald Trump’s supposed “ceiling,” the Supreme Court’s hearing of Utah v. Strieff (the first case minus Justice Antonin Scalia), and the continued Apple versus FBI phone-unlocking feud.
Here are some of the links and references mentioned during this week’s show:
- Nevada was a walk for Trump. Does the Trump ceiling actually not exist? Is there instead a bandwagon effect?
- Why has the “shine” come off of Ted Cruz? Is there any model in which Cruz drops out after Super Tuesday? Will Rubio become more aggressive?
- Is the donor class going to embrace Trump, or is Trump going to head toward more traditional Republicanism?
- Could the Republican Party recover from Trump?
- Is the comparison of Trump to Arnold Schwarzenegger apt?
- Meanwhile, SCOTUS reconvened this week for the first time without Scalia. The justices confronted a contentious case, Utah v Strieff. The central question: Once your rights have been violated, what evidence becomes admissible? What is the “exclusionary rule”? Why does the U.S. have that when other countries don’t?
- How would Scalia have voted? What will happen once Obama has named someone as his replacement? Will Republicans actually refuse to meet with that nominee? Is the president’s floating of Brian Sandoval a move to make Republicans look ridiculous?
- The Apple versus FBI fight continues. Mark Zuckerberg and Google are vocally supporting Apple’s position. There are at least nine other phones the FBI wants Apple to unlock.
- Do we want to live in a world in which our phones lock up all our data and can never be broken into? (Would Congress even let us live in that world?)
David chatters about a new kissing rock commemorating Barack and Michelle Obama’s first date; he sneaks in a second chatter about an Atlas Obscura article about the first birthers, who claimed Chester Arthur was born in Canada.
John chatters about the “New Hampshire skiing furor” that threatened Gerald Ford’s run for president.
Topic ideas for next week? You can tweet suggestions, links, and questions to @SlateGabfest (#heygabfest). (Tweets may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
Podcast production by Mike Vuolo. Links compiled by Elle Bisgaard-Church.
