Glenn Loury
The Glenn Show
John McWhorter – Last Words before the Election
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John McWhorter – Last Words before the Election

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This is the last time John and I will record before the election. Though we probably won’t have a final result on election night, we will hopefully have one before our next scheduled sit-down in two weeks. So this is our last opportunity to have our say before the final ballots are cast, and we find out whether we’re getting the mentally unstable game show host or the mealy-mouthed empty suit as our next president. I kid, but I should also note that I’m not voting for either of them. As my lovely wife says, “Voting for the lesser of two evils is still a vote for evil,” and that’s more or less how I feel about it, too.

Nevertheless, I cannot countenance those who portray Trump as a threat to democracy, even my friend John. We debate whether fears about Trump’s second term are justified or overblown. I suggest later that, should Trump win and serve out his second term, future historians may see him as a far more estimable figure than today’s historians do. Still, John just can’t see how intelligent, well-informed voters can bring support Trump at all, never mind supporting him enthusiastically. His campaign trail behavior has gotten a bit odd of late, but even John says that’s probably because he’s bored, not because he’s losing his mind. On election night, John will be attending a party thrown by the Free Press, and I’ll be watching old sitcoms with LaJuan, flipping over to CNN only during commercials in order to take in the minimum amount of cable news necessary to keep track of the returns. However things shake out over the coming week, both John and I are hoping that everyone remains peaceful and orderly.

And one more thing. If you subscribe only to the free version of this newsletter, you’ll notice this episode has arrived a few days early. I figured that by Friday, when the episode normally drops for the general public, it will be out of date already, so we’re releasing it to everyone today. If you find you enjoy starting your week with The Glenn Show, consider becoming a paying subscriber, which will get you early access to episodes, along with a host of other benefits. And if you’re already a paying subscriber, thank you so much for your support. I couldn’t do it without you.

[Note: In the episode, John mistakenly referred to the author of a biography of Ronald Reagan as George Will. He meant to reference Max Boot’s Reagan: His Life and Legacy.]

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1:39 Pre-election jitters

3:23 Will Democrats contest the election if it goes Trump’s way?

4:44 A crisis for democracy, maybe, but not the end of democracy

10:02 John’s case against Trump’s proposed second administration

15:36 Ground News ad

17:28 The Obamas’ attempted intervention and post-presidential performance

26:58 The mind of the informed Trump voter

34:20 A revisionist history of the Trump presidency (or presidencies)

41:15 Is Trump losing it or just tired of campaigning?

44:25 The Washington Post and the LA Times decline to endorse

47:48 Glenn and John’s election night plans

50:48 The nightmare scenario

Recorded November 3, 2024


Links and Readings

Shelby Steele’s book, A Bound Man: Why We Are Excited about Obama and Why He Can’t Win

Jimmy Carter’s book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid

John’s NYT column, “Donald Trump Is Bored”

Max Boot’s book, Reagan: His Life and Legacy

Everybody Loves Raymond: The Complete Series DVD box set

Douglas Murray’s Free Press piece, “Things Worth Remembering: Whoever Loses, They Should Lose Like Nixon”


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Glenn Loury
The Glenn Show
Race, inequality, and economics in the US and throughout the world from Glenn Loury, Professor of Economics at Brown University and Paulson Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute