Death Panel for Ryancare in a Frantic News Week: The Fifth Column

Hate-crime hoaxes, Tony Blair's testicles, real estate racism, and more

A couple of hours after Ryancare went down to a dusty death on Friday, The Fifth Column, your weekly podcast troika of Kmele Foster, Michael C. Moynihan, and me, popped open some Flying Dog and Johnnie Walker and let 'er rip. You can listen right here:

Among the cud chewed: President Donald Trump's possible post-Ryancare pivots, Republican confusion on Obamacare, this article by Peter Suderman, the Israeli anti-JCC bomb-threat caller, media susceptibility to hoaxes, Moynihan's forthcoming HBO documentary on American foreign policy post-"New World Order" speech, Kmele's weird experiences in New York real estate, some Masshole named Steve, and much more.

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Comments

[Not a True MJG]

"We'll virtue signal in our own way, while declaiming all virtue signalling, of course, by saying, 'Why aren't you paying attention to story 17B!?'"

I for one have never observed this behavior in life. Frankly, it sounds made up.

[Scarecrow Repair & Chippering]

The don't-give-a-shit in me wonders if Trump let RyanCare go down to defeat because he really doesn't care about ObamaCare one way or the other.

The curious in me wonders what else he doesn't care about. The Wall was, in some ways, the centerpiece of his frothing, but I think there's even less chance of it getting authorized or built, let alone making Mexico pay for it. More military is a shoo-in even with Democrats, though maybe some will fight it because it's his plan. Trade wars I think are a lost cause; he'd rather just bluster and tweet than actually do anything which would take away opportunities to bluster and tweet, and all those treaties would be much more work than TrumpCare.

If this is typical of the next four years, then bring it on! I'd rather government sat on its thumbs that actually tried to do anything. Congress can still do small things, like roll back some Obama regs, undo a lot of his pen-and-phone hatred, such as for guns, Title IX, new parks and monuments, drilling regs, pipelines, EPA overstepping, CAFE mileage stuff. But I somehow get the impression that actually working on new regs is harder than repealing Obama regs. Repealing O-regs is a simple bill which Repubs can unite behind; new ones is subject to Dem heckling and GOP infighting.

[YourMom]

It's safe to say the one thing Donald Trump cares about is Donald Trump. Anything else is a means to an end.

[Warren]

You can safely skip everything after they pour the JW.

[Wasteland Wanderer]

In vino veritas, but in Johnny Walker falsitas?

[Buddy Bizarre]

Really? I would think that's when it starts to get good.

Put the cookie down Moynihan!

[Warren]

Oh it's entertaining enough. Just not so much insightful nuanced commentary on the news of the week.

[Brian_Trdina]

The show is always good, and it's more entertaining the more they drink. Last week's offering wasn't quite as funny as the time they had Cat Timpf on and you could hear her vaping every few minutes after minute 40, but it was close.

You guys need to bring Michael Malice back, and where's Katherine Mangu Ward....?

Keep up the great work.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Without Welch there last week, Foster got a word in edgewise. Somehow Welch's presence allows Moynihan to dominate the conversation, and without him it's more even. Conclusion: Welch is an enabler.

[Warren]

Perhaps. But Welch rants are the high water marks for the show.

[Fist of Etiquette]

Correction: drunken rants.