This week, Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz discuss what Trump is actually trying to buy with his blatantly corrupt "anti-weaponization" slush fund and self-dealing, why Trump can exact primary election revenge on his Republican critics when his own popularity is so low, and how the federal government is obstructing attempts to hold ICE agents involved in shootings accountable with guest Mary Moriarty [https://x.com/HennepinAtty?s=20], Hennepin County DA. For this week’s Slate Plus bonus episode, Emily, John, and David discuss the Slow Burn [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/slow-burn/id1315040130] podcast's new season, Becoming Justice Gorsuch [https://slate.com/podcasts/slow-burn/s11/becoming-justice-gorsuch],with host Susan Matthews [https://slate.com/author/susan-matthews]. They talk about the conservative legal project he was built for, his splits with the president who appointed him, and his seeming conviction that he's the only justice who's doing it right.   In the latest Gabfest Reads [https://slate.com/podcasts/gabfestreads], John Dickerson talks with Bloomberg columnist Adrian Wooldridge about his new book The Revolutionary Center: The Lost Genius of Liberalism [http://www.amazon.com/dp/1639369376/?tag=slatmaga-20]. In a moment when American democracy is under assault from authoritarian populists and dogmatic progressives, Wooldridge argues that liberalism itself offers the most resilient framework for pluralistic, self-correcting societies.   Email your chatters, questions, and comments to gabfest@slate.com. (Messages may be referenced by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)   Podcast production by Nina Porzucki   Research by Emily Ditto You can find the full Political Gabfest show pages here [https://slate.com/podcasts/political-gabfest].   Want more Political Gabfest? Join Slate Plus to unlock weekly bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. You can subscribe directly from the Political Gabfest show page on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/political-gabfest/id158004641]and Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/2oXS9kkKiXdkkCYB3YfqYZ]. Or visit slate.com/gabfestplus [http://slate.com/gabfestplus] to get access wherever you listen.   Find out more about David Plotz's monthly tours of Ft. DeRussy, [http://secretfortdc.com/] the secret Civil War fort hidden in Rock Creek Park.     Follow @SlateGabfest on X / https://twitter.com/SlateGabfest [https://twitter.com/SlateGabfest] Slate Political Gabfest on Facebook / https://www.facebook.com/Gabfest/ [https://www.facebook.com/Gabfest/] Need to set up your Slate Plus feed? If you subscribed through Slate.com, check out our FAQ [https://slate.com/podcastfaqs#plusbenefits] at slate.com/podcastfaqs for easy instructions. Members subscribed via Apple Podcasts get automatic access—no setup required. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy [https://acast.com/privacy] for more information.