Political Gabfest - The Domestic Terrorist
Political Gabfest
Slate Podcasts
4.4 • 8.5K Ratings
🗓️ 18 September 2025
⏱️ 69 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss the government’s intimidation tactics aimed at chilling free speech after Charlie Kirk’s assassination, why Trump seems intent to provoke armed conflict with Venezuela, and how the president and his Republican allies are upending DC self-governance with guest Michael Schaffer (City Cast DC, Politico).
For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David discuss the extraordinary corruption revealed by a new investigation into two major deals between Trump’s team and the United Arab Emirates.
In the latest Gabfest Reads, Emily talks with Jonathan Mahler about his new book, The Gods of New York. They discuss the unraveling of Mayor Ed Koch’s New York City; how the city’s current mayoral race is mirroring the past; and more.
Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)
Podcast production by Nina Porzucki
Research by Emily Ditto
You can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hello and welcome to the Slate Political Gab Fest. |
| 0:07.2 | September 18th, 2025, the domestic terrorist edition. |
| 0:21.4 | I'm David Klotz of CityCast. |
| 0:22.6 | I'm in Washington, D.C., from New Haven, Connecticut, where she is with Yale University of Law |
| 0:28.9 | School and the New York Times Magazine, at least unless she's been canceled. |
| 0:32.9 | I don't think she has yet. |
| 0:34.1 | Emily Bazelon, hello. |
| 0:35.4 | Working on it. |
| 0:36.6 | Hello. |
| 0:38.4 | Don't say that. |
| 0:40.5 | Who's a joke? |
| 0:42.0 | Nope. |
| 0:42.5 | From Manhattan where he co-anchors the CBS Evening News and CBS Evening News Plus, Plus, Plus, Plus, Plus, Plus, Plus. |
| 0:49.4 | John Dickerson, hey John. |
| 0:50.8 | Hi. |
| 0:52.4 | This week on the Gab Fest, the aftershocks of Charlie Kirk's assassination, |
| 0:56.6 | including the cancellation or the, I don't know if it's cancellation exactly of Jimmy Kimmel, |
| 1:01.9 | something of Jimmy Kimmel, and the Trump administration's plan to retaliate for the assassination |
| 1:07.6 | by going after left-wing groups. Then are we at war with Venezuela? And if we are |
| 1:12.9 | not, can Trump keep blowing up Venezuelan ships? And killing people. And killing people, yes. |
| 1:20.4 | Then we will discuss the Trump administration's disturbing anti-democratic maximalist effort to control |
| 1:26.5 | my dear home city of Washington, D.C., with, |
... |
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