The Funeral Etiquette of Empire: Podcast
What the reaction to John McCain's death tells us about the values of Washington's political class
This being 2018, the national political discussion at this very moment is about President Donald Trump's insufficiently lowered flag mast following the death of the longtime senator, former prisoner of war, and noted Trump foil John McCain. It's a momentary skirmish in a week-long battle over funeral manners in the wake of a powerful person's death, and so yes we go there on today's editor-roundtable edition of the Reason Podcast.
You will also hear in this episode a spirited argument between Peter Suderman, Nick Gillespie, Katherine Mangu-Ward, and me over whether Trump should fire Attorney General Jeff Sessions, whether Reason will become the president's biggest defender if he's run up on campaign finance charges, and whether the "Bill Clinton" option of impeachment is the best case for the country.
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Audio production by Ian Keyser.
'Aspirato' by Kai Engel is licensed under CC BY NC 4.0
Relevant links from the show:
"John McCain, the Senate's Most Influential Hawk, Is Dead," by Matt Welch and Todd Krainin
"Press Goes Wild Over President 'Snubbing' John McCain But Barely Blinks Over $82 Billion Boost to War Spending," by Elizabeth Nolan Brown
"John McCain's Lessons About Torture," by Matt Welch
"A Libertarian Take on John McCain's Restless Wave and the Legacy of an 'Authoritarian Maverick': Podcast," by Nick Gillespie
"John McCain: Iraq War 'Can't Be Judged as Anything Other Than a Mistake'," by Matt Welch
"Will McCain-Style Conservatism Live On?" by Matt Welch
"McCain Semi-Recants Bailout Support; Hopes Arizonans Have Short-Term Memory Loss," by Matt Welch
"Conservatives Would Use Mollie Tibbetts' Murder To Build the Police State They Once Denounced," by Nick Gillespie
"Rep. Justin Amash: Don't Impeach Trump Just Because You 'Dislike' Him," by Joe Setyon
"Americans Should Impeach Presidents More Often," by Gene Healy
"Is Everyone in Washington Lying? Cohen, Manafort, Trump, and More," by Elizabeth Nolan Brown
"The Unindicted Co-Conspirator in the Oval Office," by Steve Chapman
"Trump Might Be a Criminal. But So Is Everyone Else.," by Clark Neily
"Michael Cohen and Paul Manafort Are a Reminder That Donald Trump Surrounds Himself With Crooks," by Peter Suderman
"Donald Trump Should Stick it to Jeff Sessions and the 'Deep State' by Pardoning Reality Winner," by Scott Shackford
"Criminal Justice Reform in Congress Is On Hold, but Advocates Remain Hopeful," by C.J. Ciaramella
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