Podcast
The Fifth Column
Hosted by Kmele Foster, Michael Moynihan, and Matt Welch · EN
Your weekly rhetorical assault on the on the news cycle, the people who make it, and occasionally ourselves. Kmele Foster (Freethink), Michael Moynihan (Vice), and Matt Welch (Reason) talk and laugh and drink their way to at least quasi-sanity in a world gone mad, often with the aid of clean and articulate guests. Weekly Members Only subscription edition often comes with listener mail and professional-quality (if inappropriate) singing. Analysis. Commentary. Sedition.
www.wethefifth.com
www.wethefifth.com
80episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
When Political Violence Has the Right Enemies w/ Noah Rothman (Members Only #326)
Jun 500:18:22Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comNoah’s new book is Blood and Progress… not to be confused with “Blood and Soil,” a phrase Moynihan has been muttering to himself around the office.-A book squarely in the TFC wheelhouse-The teens, the twenties, the sixties, the seventies, and now-The forgotten history of left-wing violence-Italian anarchists and “propaganda of the deed”-Is Noah handwavi…
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Populism for Morons, Journalism for Martyrs (Episode #560)
Jun 301:36:51Tap to summarize-a dog is on set and Kmele should be wearing a helmet-Bernie Sanders wants to collectivize AI-The boys bask in the warmth of collectivism-Never trust a politician giving something back to “the people”-The centrist Democrat goes missing-It’s still a Nazi tattoo, goddammit-Character is out. Winning is in-Andy the Ogre Ogles has thoughts on the gays and Ted Cruz answers the question and keeps walking-A few more problems for the Oyster Man from Maine-Welch was the victim of a French flag hate crime-Speaking of Nazis, let’s talk about Bari Weiss-Scott Pelley defends democracy from the new guy and privileged peacocking at CBS-Ali Velshi feels weird about America’s birthday-Defending America through the Bob Crane storyThe Fifth Column (A Podcast) is a viewer/listener-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Follow The Fifth ColumnYouTube: @wethefifthInstagram: @we.the.fifthX: @wethefifthTikTok: @wethefifthFacebook: @thefifthcolumn This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe
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Senator Chris Murphy Wants You to Join a Cult (Members Only #325)
May 3100:15:41Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comChris Murphy’s book, Crisis of the Common Good, is out now-Murphy opens his book by dunking on his son’s NHL prospects-Pitching the common good-Trump is not the disease. He’s the symptom-Buy more stuff, feel worse, repeat until democracy collapses-Kids, phones and the algorithmic hell machine-Congress wants to regulate tech. Congress may want to log on first-Can In…
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A Great Nation in Decline Welcomes Australia’s Finest w/ Josh Szeps (Members Only #324)
May 2900:18:25Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comBe sure to check out Uncomfortable Conversations with Josh Szeps, Australia’s greatest podcaster and interviewer, which apparently counts.-90 minutes of Kmele cleaning his glasses-Josh is on drugs now-RIP Jack Karlson, hero of democracy manifest-we will be referring to limp penis throughout this show-Erect until the end-Kmele doesn’t really know the Beach Boys-Who is the best Australian to ever …
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Ben Rhodes and the Evil Empire State of Mind (#559)
May 2701:52:29Tap to summarizeThis is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribeCheck out Ben Rhodes new book: All We Say: The Battle for American Identity: A History in 15 Speeches-Ben Rhodes, wounded ’90s Knicks fan-Are we winning in Iran yet?-what should the President do with Iran right now?-Sanctions suck, mostly-Cuba and the Obama opening-Libya and the regime-change trap-Kosovo worked-ish-Responsibility to protect yourself from over-learning lessons-Rhodes wants institutions, not impulse wars-Is Ben Rhodes Tucker-adjacent?-Soft power, hard questions-Navalny didn’t want America’s money-When Reagan said “Evil Empire”-Reagan also change his mind-Moynihan accuses Rhodes of America pessimism-Ben says it’s because he loves America-Private equity killed the vibes-Nostalgia-nomics-The left-populist temptation-JD Vance talks pretty-National identity without a monoculture-Ben Franklin and the virtue of doubt-Experts are annoying but sometimes usefulRead All We Say: The Battle for American Identity: A History in 15 Speeches(Bookshop | Amazon)Prefer to watch & chat live with other members of the Fifdom? This episode premieres over on our YouTube channel at 12PM EST.After 10 years, we’ve finally found a sponsor we actually like. Ground News pulls coverage of the same story into one place so you can compare headlines across sources and see how framing changes depending on the outlet.Subscribe for 40% off our Vantage plan using our unique link https://groundnews.com/fifth
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Why'd You Gag Me, Preet Bharara! (Members Only #323)
May 2500:19:59Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comThe podcast is called Stay Tuned with Preet, and if you find yourself wanting more legal analysis from someone who knows the system from the inside and still has a sense of humor about it.-Trump 2.0 & the frictionless DoJ-The one thing Jeff Sessions did right-Even Bill Barr had his limits-Why do smart lawyers follow stupid instructions?-You don’t have to win to scare people…
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TFC LIVE in DC at w/ Lulu Garcia-Navarro & Robby Soave - Members Only #322
May 2400:22:51Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comAfter 10 years of doing this podcast, this week we had our first ever DC show at the Miracle Theatre on Capitol Hill. We were joined onstage by Robby Soave of Reason, and Lulu Garcia-Navarro of The New York Times’ The Interview. Join us as we wax nostalgic about the city we love to hate, and so much more.•The Curse of The Fifth•Thomas Massie takes the L…
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Matt Yglesias on Cancellation, Mamdani, and the AI Panic (Members Only #321)
May 2200:17:44Tap to summarizeThis is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.wethefifth.comMatthew Yglesias is a liberal policy writer and longtime blogger. He co-founded Vox, now writes the Slow Boring newsletter, and is known for wonky-but-readable takes on housing, economics, Democratic politics, foreign policy, and the abundance agenda.-Matty finally makes it through the firewall-What type of gay is Kmele?-Yglesias says Welch gave him his career-Substack’s right-wi…
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The Youngest Guy in the Worst Room in America w/ Rep. Maxwell Frost (Episode #558)
May 2001:03:17Tap to summarizeWe talk about broken housing markets, broken healthcare, broken Congress, Trump’s corruption, a broken Cuba, Epstein, UAPs, and the tragedy of being a drummer with no place to practice.-Making music is for rich kids now-From jazz drummer to Hillary field organizer-Sandy Hook, March for Our Lives, and the road into politics-Florida’s felon disenfranchisement fight-Guns, swamps, Confederate flags, and talking to people who don’t like you-Florida’s politics are red… its ballot issues are a lot messier.-Gaining political power is easy. Keeping it is the hard part.-The case for going big, whether Congress likes it or not-Housing abundance, rent hikes, and the great pet-fee wars-Donald Trump’s extremely lucrative career in public service-Biden’s DOJ, Brazil’s crackdown, and the problem with accountability theater-Political violence, Trump’s rhetoric, and blaming the victim-UAPs, Epstein files, and the bipartisan hunt for weird stuff-Cuba, war powers, and why Frost doesn’t want another Venezuela-style adventurePrefer to watch & chat live with other members of the Fifdom? This episode premieres over on our YouTube channel at 12PM EST.Thanks for reading The Fifth Column (A Podcast)! This post is public so feel free to share it.Follow The Fifth ColumnYouTube: @wethefifthInstagram: @we.the.fifthX: @wethefifthTikTok: @wethefifthFacebook: @thefifthcolumn. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe
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When Everyone Stops Pretending w/ Steven Pinker (Episode #557)
May 1401:45:12Tap to summarizeThis is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.wethefifth.com/subscribe- Steven Pinker on why “common knowledge” is much stranger than it sounds-The social machinery behind weddings, money, and power-How a norm starts to die once someone breaks it and gets rewarded-Trump as the great destroyer of polite restraints-The institutions that lost the authority to enforce trust-How new taboos appear without anyone admitting who created them-T…
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