The Gist

Donald and the Don

Watching the rise of Don Blankenship is like witnessing the 2016 Republican presidential primaries all over again.

Student protesters demonstrate against Don Blankenship as he speaks at a town hall meeting at West Virginia University on March 1 in Morgantown.

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Listen to Episode 988 of Slate’s The Gist:

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On Tuesday’s Gist, the undoing of the Iran deal.

Democrats are tense. 2018 is supposed to be a banner year for the left, but the party is struggling to balance an energized base and an unpredictable general electorate. As a result, there have been a lot of bigfoot sightings in primaries across the country, as Democratic Party honchos step in to pick preferred candidates. Who’s wiser, the party or the voters? Alex Roarty, who covers the Democrats for McClatchy newspapers, says it’s not so simple.

In the Spiel, the gall of Don Blankenship.

After the Spiel, keep listening for a trailer of Slate’s upcoming podcast, Upon Further Review. It’s based on Mike Pesca’s book, Upon Further Review: The Greatest What-Ifs in Sports History.

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Twitter: @slategist