Emily, John and David discuss what it will take to save the Biden agenda, the abortion doctor's defiance of the Texas ban; and true crime mania. Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: Josh Marshall for Talking Points Memo: “Policy vs Positioning Has Dems in a Stalemate” Michael Dorf for Dorf on Law: “Texas Could Not Get Away With This Absent SCOTUS-Created Limits On Constitutional Adjudication” Emily Bazelon for The New York Times: “The Dawn of the Post-Clinic Abortion” Impeachment: American Crime Story  The Clinton Impeachment - Slow Burn: Season 2 Here’s this week’s chatter: Emily: Susan Dominus for The New York Times Magazine: “He Was the ‘Perfect Villain’ for Voting Conspiracists” John: Elizabeth Elkin for Bloomberg: “Food Prices Poised to Surge With Fertilizer at Highest in Years By”  David: CityCast: “City Cast Houston Launches Oct. 5”; “Evidence That A Cosmic Impact Destroyed Ancient City In The Jordan Valley”; Ted E. Bunch et al, for Scientific Reports: “A Tunguska Sized Airburst Destroyed Tall El-hammam A Middle Bronze Age City In The Jordan Valley Near The Dead Sea” Listener chatter from Jeffrey Itell: You Tube: “15 Unfinished Buildings in Kunming Were Demolished by Blasting” For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment John, David, and Emily discuss the merits of revisiting the stories of Bill Clinton’s impeachment. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Danny Lavery's show Big Mood, Little Mood and you’ll be supporting the Political Gabfest. Sign up now at slate.com/gabfestplus to help support our work. Tweet us your questions and chatters @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected] (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Jocelyn Frank. Research and show notes by Bridgette Dunlap. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Emily, John and David discuss the Biden’s administration’s vaccine rule, the legitimacy of the Supreme Court, and the new book from Bob Woodward and Robert Costa. Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: Isaac Stanley-Becker for The Washington Post: “Top General Was So Fearful Trump Might Spark War That He Made Secret Calls To His Chinese Counterpart, New Book Says” Peril, by Bob Woodward and Robert Costa  Susan B. Glasser for The New Yorker: “‘You’re Gonna Have a Fucking War’: Mark Milley’s Fight to Stop Trump from Striking Iran” I Alone Can Fix It: Donald J. Trump's Catastrophic Final Year, by Carol Leonnig and Philip Rucker Here’s this week’s chatter: Emily: Georgia Wells, Jeff Horwitz and Deepa Seetharaman for The Wall Street Journal: “Facebook Knows Instagram Is Toxic for Teen Girls, Company Documents Show” John: Harlem Shuffle, by Colson Whitehead David: “College Students Reported Record-High Marijuana Use and Record-Low Drinking in 2020, Study Says” Listener chatter from James Evans: Verity Stevenson for CBC News: “In Facing Death, Concordia Neuroscientist Nadia Chaudhri Has Built a Lasting Legacy and Inspired Thousands”;  @DrNadiaChaudhri’s Twitter feed For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment John, David, and Emily discuss the contentiousness of daylight saving time. If you enjoy the show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Danny Lavery's show Big Mood, Little Mood and you’ll be supporting the Political Gabfest. Sign up now at slate.com/gabfestplus to help support our work. Tweet us your questions and chatters @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected] (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Jocelyn Frank. Research and show notes by Bridgette Dunlap. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Emily, John and David reflect on 9/11; the fight for the infrastructure agenda, and declining college enrollment among men. Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: Garrett M. Graff for the Atlantic: “After 9/11, the U.S. Got Almost Everything Wrong” The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11, by Garrett M. Graff Ady Barkan for The New York Times: “Home Care Keeps Me Alive. It Should Be Fully Funded.” Jamelle Bouie for The New York Times: “$1 Trillion Isn’t as Much as It Sounds” Douglas Belkin for The Wall Street Journal: “A Generation of American Men Give Up on College: ‘I Just Feel Lost’” Emily Bazelon for The New York Times: “How Will America Recover From a Broken School Year?” Kevin Carey for The New York Times: “Men Fall Behind in College Enrollment. Women Still Play Catch-Up at Work.” The Case Against Education: Why the Education System Is a Waste of Time and Money, by Bryan Caplan Here’s this week’s chatter: John: Lee Drutman for The New York Times: “Quiz: If America Had Six Parties, Which Would You Belong To?”; John Dickerson for The Atlantic: “Every Dog Is a Rescue Dog” Emily: Ben Rothenberg for The New York Times: “At U.S. Open, Teen Spirit Rules and It’s Contagious” David: Wilson Wong for NBC News: “Original 'Blue's Clues' Host Steve Tells Millennials He Never Forgot Them. He Just Went To College.” Listener chatter from Michael Sagmeister: Philip Oltermann for The Guardian: “‘Scholz Will Sort It’ – The Catchphrase Winning the Hearts of German Voters” For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment John, David, and Emily discuss television’s most indelible characters in the wake of Michael K. Williams’ death. If you enjoy the show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Danny Lavery's show Big Mood, Little Mood and you’ll be supporting the Political Gabfest. Sign up now at slate.com/gabfestplus to help support our work. Tweet us your questions and chatters @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected] (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Jocelyn Frank. Research and show notes by Bridgette Dunlap. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John, Emily and David discuss SCOTUS letting the Texas abortion ban go into effect; the Afghanistan exit; and Dr. Atul Gawande joins the show to explain how Costa Rica has surpassed US life expectancy by getting serious about public health.  Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: Atul Gawande for the New Yorker: “Costa Ricans Live Longer Than Us. What’s the Secret?” Here’s this week’s chatter: John: Erin Donaghue for CBS News: “Officers and Paramedics Charged in Death of Elijah McClain”  Emily: Jed Kolko for The New York Times: “The Downtown Decade: U.S. Population Density Rose in the 2010s” David: The Very Nice Box, by Eve Gleichman and Laura Blackett; Nile Cappello for The Atavist: “The Girl In The Picture” Listener chatter from Karl Richter: A compilation of Nanci Griffith’s performances on Letterman For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment John, David, and Emily share their advice for people starting college. If you enjoy the show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Danny Lavery's show Big Mood, Little Mood and you’ll be supporting the Political Gabfest. Sign up now at slate.com/gabfestplus to help support our work. Tweet us your questions and chatters @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected] (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Jocelyn Frank. Research and show notes by Bridgette Dunlap. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jamelle, Emily and David discuss the Afghanistan evacuation, starting school during delta, and the path forward for infrastructure. Here are some notes and references from this week’s show: Jamelle Bouie for the New York Times: “$1 Trillion Isn’t as Much as It Sounds”  Here’s this week’s chatter: Jamelle: Godzilla: The Album Emily: Jessica Stoya for Slate: “What We Can Really Learn From the OnlyFans Debacle” David: Atul Gawande for the New Yorker: “Costa Ricans Live Longer Than Us. What’s the Secret?” Listener chatter from Nilo Garza: The Daily: “Why Mexico is Suing U.S. Gun Manufacturers”; James Fredrick for NPR: “Mexico's Suit Against U.S. Gun Companies May Seek More Than A Court Win”  If you enjoy the show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Danny Lavery's show Big Mood, Little Mood and you’ll be supporting the Political Gabfest. Sign up now at slate.com/gabfestplus to help support our work. For this week’s Slate Plus bonus segment Jamelle, Emily, and David talk about electric bikes and scooters. Tweet us your questions and chatters @SlateGabfest or email us at [email protected] (Messages may be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Jocelyn Frank. Research and show notes by Bridgette Dunlap. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices