Last week, John McWhorter made his first appearance on the livestream, and I don’t think I’m bragging when I say it was a great success. A considerable part of that success is due to the new ways that streaming has allowed me to connect with viewers and viewers to connect with each other. For example, the second part of last week’s stream consisted of my monthly Q&A with John, where we take questions from full subscribers. Since we did this one live, we were able to speak directly with a couple of the question-askers (thanks, Stan and Susanna!) and afford them the opportunity to ask follow-ups, rather than merely read their questions off the screen. I loved it, and we’ll be doing more of it. If you didn’t get a chance to see it live, go check out the video!
This episode was recorded before Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the New York City mayor’s race, so I asked John about the young, energetic candidate. As of last week, Mamdani’s unapologetic anti-Zionism remained a sticking point for John, though it wasn’t a dealbreaker for the million-plus New Yorkers who voted for him. The larger question is whether Mamdani’s astonishing win can tell us anything about the future of the Democratic Party, which seems to have no clear national leader. Nancy Pelosi just announced her retirement from Congress, and Gavin Newsom seems a little too slick to meet the moment. Can newcomers, like the charismatic, inconveniently tattooed Mainer Graham Platner, give direction to a rudderless party? Kamala Harris couldn’t in 2024, and neither John nor I believe she’ll be able to do it in the future. You’d think Barack Obama would step in to provide some guidance, but in my view, he’s squandering his post-presidency. Perhaps the first black president’s voice carries less weight in a country that seems to be done with race politics. And yet much work remains if we’re to get Black America up to speed. Who’s up to that job?
0:00 John’s misgivings about Zohran Mamdani’s anti-Zionism
7:22 Is anti-Zionism reducible to “good black people vs. bad white people”?
11:53 Ground News ad
13:40 Democrats try to pull out of a death spiral
20:05 John: If Trump can end some wars, I’ll take it
22:49 What do Kamala Harris fans see in her?
30:09 Here’s what Obama should be doing in his post-presidency
40:11 Mourning the end of race
50:15 Glenn: Eliminating racial disparities requires developing communities
Recorded October 31, 2025
Links and Readings
Tressie McMillan Cottom’s NYT column, “A Nazi Tattoo Exposes Democrats’ Greatest Weakness”
Kamala Harris’s book, 107 Days
David Brooks’s NYT column, “Hey Lefties! Trump Has Stolen Your Game.”
