Episode

The National Review’s Defense of Todd Blanche Is So Bad It's Confusing

Podcast
Opening Arguments
Published
Jun 17, 2026
Duration seconds
4115
Processing state
not_requested
Canonical source
https://sites.libsyn.com/86258/the-national-reviews-defense-of-todd-blanche-is-so-bad-its-confusing
Audio
https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/pscrb.fm/rss/p/mgln.ai/e/35/clrtpod.com/m/traffic.libsyn.com/secure/openargs/VR35.mp3?dest-id=455562
JSON
/v1/public/podcasts/opening-arguments-1055646/episodes/the-national-review-s-defense-of-todd-blanche-is-so-bad-it-s-confusing
Markdown
/podcast/opening-arguments-1055646/the-national-review-s-defense-of-todd-blanche-is-so-bad-it-s-confusing.md

Actions

  • POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/opening-arguments-1055646/episodes/the-national-review-s-defense-of-todd-blanche-is-so-bad-it-s-confusing/transcription-requests
    Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
  • GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/opening-arguments-1055646/the-national-review-s-defense-of-todd-blanche-is-so-bad-it-s-confusing.md
    Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

Summary

VR35 - In this episode released on the 54th anniversary of the Watergate break-in, the Vapid Response team raids the archives of the New York Times to retrieve one of the single worst (and worst-timed!) contemporary takes on the scandal which would end Richard Nixon’s Presidency. We then return to a time in which a Watergate-style burglary would be a fun diversion to see how at least one conservative legal writer is defending Trump’s nomination of his former defense attorney to serve as Attorney General. “Comeback Time,” William Safire, The New York Times (4/19/1973) “Todd Blanche is Unfit for Office,” The Editorial Board, The New York Times (6/15/2026) “Blanche and the New York Time s,” Michael Fragoso, National Review (6/15/2026) Opening Arguments Linktree (Patreon, socials, and more): https://linktr.ee/openingarguments