Conversations with Bill Kristol

Apr 09 2025 296 ep. 72 mins 6.2k
Conversations with Bill Kristol Podcast artwork

Conversations with Bill Kristol features in-depth, thought-provoking discussions with leading figures in American public life.

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Jason Furman on the Trump Tariffs and the US Economy

Apr 09 2025 44 mins  
What are the likely effects of Trump’s tariffs, and what do they mean for the US economy? To discuss, we are joined again by Harvard economist Jason Furman, who was Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers in President Obama’s second term. According to Furman, Trump’s tariffs represent an enormous "shock to the system” likely to produce both short- and long-term economi

A.B. Stoddard on Trump’s Second Term

Apr 03 2025 72 mins  
Where do things stand five months after Election Day? According to veteran reporter and commentator A.B. Stoddard, Trump’s second term has been far more radical than many anticipated. As she puts it: “The more power you give [Trump], the more he’ll take. And the less pushback that he gets, the freer he is. So I think what we’ve seen in the last couple of months is that he

Steve Vladeck on the Trump Administration, the Courts, and the Rule of Law

Mar 13 2025 71 mins  
Where do things stand fifty days into Trump’s second term? According to Georgetown Law professor Steve Vladeck: “We’ve never seen such a wholesale attempt on the part of a president [to] hollow out the executive branch [and] install loyalists in all of the relevant positions of government.” Amid a blizzard of lawsuits in response to Trump’s executive actions, Vladeck a

Anne Applebaum: Ukraine, Europe, and the US

Feb 25 2025 47 mins  
Where do things stand on the third anniversary of the war in Ukraine? What is the situation in European politics after the German elections? How should we think about the continued challenge of countering autocracy at home and abroad? To discuss these questions we are joined again by Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Anne Applebaum. As Applebaum explains, despite difficulties on th

Renée DiResta on Social Media, Political Power, and Elon Musk

Feb 14 2025 70 mins  
What is the role of social media in our politics today? To discuss, we are joined by Renée DiResta, a leading analyst of the internet and its effects on politics and society. As DiResta explains, social media platforms today are significant sources of political power that are fundamentally different from traditional media like newspapers, radio, and television. Social media m

Ryan Goodman: The Trump Administration and the Rule of Law

Feb 05 2025 80 mins  
What have we learned from the first two weeks of the Trump administration’s approach to executive actions? Ryan Goodman is a professor of law at New York University, former special counsel in the Department of Defense, and co-editor of NYU Law’s Just Security blog. According to Goodman, behind the Trump administration’s Executive Orders and actions is a claim of executive a

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick on Immigration in Trump’s Second Term: What Will Happen?

Jan 15 2025 89 mins  
What will immigration policy look like in the second Trump administration? How will it affect the country? To discuss, we are joined by Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a leading expert on immigration and Senior Fellow at the American Immigration Council. In a wide-ranging analysis that covers the complex situation at the border—as well as the political and policy choices facing Trump and

Eric Edelman on the World Trump Inherits

Dec 21 2024 82 mins  
Donald Trump will face major geopolitical challenges when he takes office. In this Conversation, Eric Edelman, former ambassador to Turkey and Finland and Under Secretary of Defense, shares his perspective. As he explains, Trump will face major decisions on all areas of the geopolitical landscape early in his term. Edelman argues that Israel’s military successes have weakened I

Harvard’s Jack Goldsmith on the Coming Trump Presidency

Dec 12 2024 68 mins  
How well might the political and legal norms of constitutional government fare in the second Trump administration? To discuss, we are joined by Jack Goldsmith, distinguished law professor at Harvard and former Assistant Attorney General in the Office of Legal Counsel. As Goldsmith explains, Trump has expressed ambitions to exercise unprecedented control over the federal government

John Bolton on Trump’s Cabinet Picks and What to Expect in His Second Term

Nov 28 2024 59 mins  
What should we expect in Donald Trump’s second term? To discuss, we are joined by John Bolton, who served as National Security Advisor in the Trump White House from 2018 to 2019 and with distinction in many prior Republican administrations. Drawing on insights from working closely with Trump in his first term, Bolton shares his perspective on what the second term might look lik