John McWhorter and I began our intellectual partnership at odds with each other. Back in 2007, he was perceived to be the conservative and I was perceived to be the liberal. We’ve since “switched sides,” or so our narrative goes. That wasn’t really the case. Neither John nor I ever fit neatly into the liberal and conservative boxes. We’ve always had more in common with each other than the convenient “liberal vs. conservative” label could accurately describe. In fact, as our relationship developed, we began to worry that we didn’t have enough to disagree about. We found ourselves taking the same side on more and more issues. What began as disputes evolved into agreements, as one of us coaxed the other over to his position.
I’ve been reviewing our 2024 shows in order to assemble this Best Of episode. If I can identify one through-line, it’s the reemergence of real, dramatic disagreement between us, especially regarding two topics: Donald Trump and Gaza. As you’ll know if you’ve been following along this year, John is an relentless critic of Trump and MAGA, while I’m open to the idea that the once and future president could usher in a new political and social orientation for a nation that desperately needs one. And John maintains his defense of Israel’s US-abetted war, while I believe that the conflict’s civilian casualty count passed the point of defensibility long ago.
Donald Trump will take office on January 20, and the situation in the Middle East is messier and more uncertain than it was at this time last year. Neither of us is likely to change our minds any time soon. At least that’s what I think now. If you had asked me back in 2007 whether this McWhorter guy was likely to change my mind about anything, I might have smirked. Now I know better. I don’t think John will win me over on Trump and Israel, and I’ll bet John feels the same way about me. But the length and depth of our relationship calls for a little humility. The future is uncertain, and that’s not always a bad thing.
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0:00 Intro
3:01 January 15, “Why Glenn wrote a memoir”
9:18 February 2, “The three dimensions of black conservatism”
15:50 Ground News ad
17:52 February 16, “Were Glenn and John too credulous about The Fall of Minneapolis?”
23:07 March 22, “What do we mean by 'colorblindness' today?”
34:39 April 5, “John: We weren’t wrong to ask the questions we asked, even if our answers came up short at first”
37:40 May 17, “Has Israel gone too far in Gaza?”
41:53 ACTA ad
44:07 June 14, “Inside the collapse of Ibram X. Kendi’s research center”
49:22 June 28, “Can John account for his 'emotional and irrational conclusions' about Trump and his recent conviction?”
59:35 August 16, “Glenn: Kamala Harris is no Barack Obama”
1:05:08 August 28, “Vladimir X asks Glenn and John about Gaza”
1:18:19 October 11, “Glenn: Ta-Nehisi Coates's book is brilliant”
1:26:32 October 25, “John: Coates is a beautiful writer, BUT …”
1:28:54 November 4, “A revisionist history of the Trump presidency (or presidencies)”
1:35:47 November 22, “Glenn: Wake up! It’s time to take Trump seriously!”
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