The Federalist Radio Hour

Mary Katharine Ham and Bre Payton host the Inauguration Day episode of The Federalist Radio Hour, discussing their initial reactions to this weeks inaugural events, President Trumps speech, protestors in D.C., and why Americans cant trust the media to cover the Trump administration. At the end of his address, he explicitly says that it aint about words anymore. Its about action and that is central to his message, Ham said. There is so much merit in throwing the deck in the air and confusing this town, and the fact that you and I, who mostly agree on policy, can have wildly different reactions to him. The media continued to embarrass themselves in the coverage of Gov. Rick Perrys and Betsy DeVos confirmation hearings. The media coverage of the Trump transition seems to signal often that no one learned anything from the campaign, Ham said.

Bill McMorris, reporter at The Washington Free Beacon, returns to the Federalist Radio Hour to update the whos who and whos not of ultimate bros. They discuss female bros, Ryan Lochte becoming a father, and what kind of bros we will see in Washington under the new administration. Key things that bros need to know is that being a dad is awesome, McMorris said. The kids are exactly like your buddies in college. They scream all night. They poop their pants and they hug you... and I think Ryan Lochte has all of the tools to actually be fantastic father. Is Tucker Carlsons ascension to Fox News prime time an ascension for bros everywhere? Tucker is a hallmark of the WASPs in that he admits the only person he is scared of in his life is his wife, Domenech said.

Sean Davis, co-founder of The Federalist, joins Federalist Radio to dispel some common myths and misconceptions about guns and gun laws. Davis gave advice on self-defense practices, suppressors, and factors consumers should consider before buying a gun. Military style means it looks black and scary. Either something is an assault rifle -- a military issue rifle capable of select fire-- or its not, and if its not, its not military style, he said. Journalists continually cover gun issues and gun-related stories inaccurately.  Among a lot of the gun-control left, the lack of knowledge is seen as a virtue, he said. Its a signal that they dont have to get their hands dirty with these nasty killing machines in order to know how evil they are. andnbsp;

Bram Weinstein, former SportsCenter host and now host of the Bram Weinstein show on ESPN 980, discussed the changing landscape of sports media, behind the scenes of ESPN, and how our political media overlaps with sports news. They discussed the extent to which non-sports conversations, specifically political topics, are becoming more frequent in sports media. [ESPN] toggles between a very tough place of being a news organization and also being an entertainment purveyor and finding that middle ground with the talent and content is very difficult, Weinstein said. ESPN has lost millions of subscribers this year as more customers cut the cord. Theyre the biggest and they have a large portion of money that comes from cable subscribers that effects their bottom line, he said. So when 10 million people stop paying that monthly, their bottom line gets affected more than anybody else.

Emily Esfahani Smith is the author of a new book, The Power of Meaning: Crafting a Life That Matter. She joined Ben Domenech in studio to discuss the psychology and philosophy of happiness, purpose, and why so many working Americans feel alone or left behind. One of the indicators of this meaning crisis that I write about is the rising rate of social isolation and loneliness, she said. People list their relationships to others as the most powerful builders of meaning in their lives. As American communities fall apart, the rates of suicide, drug-use, and depression continue to rise. When other people treat you like you matter, then you feel like your life matters too, Smith said. But if you have no institutions in society that are reinforcing you or giving you a role to play, then you start to wonder, What value does my life have?

Jonathan Rauch is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and contributor at The Atlantic, and has been writing about the state of American politics and institutions. Rauch and Domenech discuss the ways in which communities have degraded and their expectations for the new incoming elite class in Washington D.C. Congress now is so disorganized because any individual or group can stop things. Its so disorganized that its very hard for them to do the basic work of governing, Rauch said. Meanwhile, over on the political side you also have chaos. The runner-up for the Democratic nomination was not a Democrat, Bernie Sanders. The winner for the Republican nomination was not a Republican in any meaningful sense. Despite Donald Trump having shown no opposition to gay and lesbian rights, the level of outrage from the LGBT community remains extreme. This is not someone who is anti-gay, Rauch said. Of course, presidents have to build coalitions. Evangelicals were a key element of support for President Trump.

Mollie Hemingway and David Harsanyi, senior editors at the Federalist, discussed Donald Trumps press conference, the self-destructing media, and the controversial dossier. Our media are so completely out-of-their-minds hysterical, that they couldnt even pick 10 things to be concerned about, much less one, Hemingway said of the way reporters are attempting to cover Trump. If the media want to be taken seriously right now... they need some discipline and they need to calm down. Later in the hour, our hosts discuss their weekly round up of the television and movies theyve been watching. The other night before we started watching Dial M for Murder, we found ourselves watching a sort of long portion of Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives, Hemingway said.

Matt Kibbe is an economist, libertarian, and president of freethepeople.org. Domenech and Kibbe discuss the cause and effects of CNNs and Buzzfeeds reporting on Donald Trump and the intelligence community in the last 24-hour news cycle. I think were learning with disintermediation of media that every journalist has an agenda and its more honest to wear that on your sleeve, but that doesnt free you from the facts, Kibbe said. Later in the hour, Kibbe shares his experiences with the Tea Party, community organizing, and how to look outside the cultural bubbles we find ourselves in. I think we should force ourselves to get out there and to understand what matters to real people, he said.

Gene Healy, vice president of the Cato Institute, joins Ben Domenech in studio to discuss the expansion of executive power, President Obamas legacy, and the position that Donald Trump will now occupy. One of Obamas central aspects of his legacy is expanding the imperial presidency in certain ways  more significantly than George W. Bush had, Healy said. Adding new weapons, new powers to the imperial presidency and then paying it forward to Donald Trump. Obama will become the first two-term president to preside over a nation at war everyday of his presidency. Obama has made presidential war permanent and normalized, he said. The gravity of what hes done is coming home to him in these last few weeks before he turns the keys over to Donald Trump.

On the first Federalist Radio Hour of 2017, Emily Miller, senior political correspondent at One America News Network joins Mary Katharine Ham to discuss New Years resolutions, Hollywood, Meryl Streeps Golden Globes speech, and the new season of The Bachelor. Marie Kondo is the author of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up and a champion of the KonMari method, a drastic way to simplify and organize your home. Its to get rid of all the stuff that you dont need and doesnt make you happy, Miller said. Just this morning I threw out the toaster, the blender, the spatula... Later in the hour, they discuss how Hollywood and celebrities continue to speak out while simultaneously staying in their elite bubble. Meryl Streep delivered among the more predictable, reflexively liberal, condescending speeches, Ham said.

Senior Editors Mollie Hemingway and David Harsanyi discuss why 2016 was actually a good year. They review the positives coming out of Congress, political realignments, television, movies, and what we should expect from the first 100 days of Donald Trumps presidency. I do think there was a big realignment in the Republican party. A painful, very public realignment, Hemingway said. And that there is a realignment in the country therefore...it might seem small and insignificant, but I think that it is the beginning of something. They talk Westworld, Man in the High Castle, Luke Cage, and more. I think Westworld has lots of promise. Ill watch the next season, obviously what else am I going to do? Harsanyi said. andnbsp;

Walter Russell Mead, editor of The American Interest and fellow at the Hudson Institute, joins Ben Domenech in studio to discuss foreign policy schools of thought, Jacksonianism, and the future of education and religion in America. Mead labels the type of people who voted for Donald Trump in key Democratic states as Jacksonians, Mead said. Jacksonians are often, in foreign policy and domestic policy, they are often more motivated by threat than by opportunity, he said. Theyre often surprisingly unmotivated by stories of political corruption, but perversion of government is a different thing and that reaches them on a different level. Mead discusses how Trumps cabinet and national security advisors view Americas role in the world, and how their views will overlap or collide. Tillerson and Trump will both face the problem that government isnt the same as corporate governance, he said. When you bring Jacksonians into government, they generally have less experience with government, less understanding of the people around them.

Siraj Hashmi, assistant editor at Red Alert politics, joins the Federalist Radio Hour to share perspectives on Donald Trump and foreign policy from American Muslims. Hashmi and Domenech discuss recent terrorist attacks, fake hate crimes on social media, and the radicalization of Islam. YouTube Star Adam Saleh posted a video Wednesday morning of him apparently being removed from an airplane for speaking Arabic. If it came from literally any other person who is not know for prank videos and hoaxes, you would have taken that video at face value and not thought twice about the authenticity of it. Hashmi said. Hashmi said he believes one of Donald Trumps best allies in fighting terrorism could be American Muslims. If Trump really extended an olive branch to American-Muslims to at least incorporated them, he will get a greater understanding of the Islamic faith, he said. Rather than saying Islam hates us, [Trump] will say, terrorists hate us and thats the difference. andnbsp;

Mollie Hemingway and David Harsanyi, senior editors at The Federalist, discuss the electoral college, Russia, Donald Trumps relationship with the media, and Star Wars. Leading up to the electoral college voting this week, the Left has tried to reiterate that Hillary Clinton won the national popular vote. Its an incredibly stupid argument because if there was a popular vote... people would campaign differently, Harsanyi said. There are tons of Republicans in California and New York and in big states that dont vote because their vote doesnt count. Harsanyi said he hopes that The Force Awakens is a table setting for the Star Wars movies to come. This is what Im proposing to Lucas Films: I think they need to go back and re-do the prequels, he said. I would like to see them give us the whole Anakin Skywalker story from the beginning and dive into these villains.

Ilya Shapiro, senior fellow in constitutional studies at the Cato Institute, joins Ben Domenech to talk celebrities post-election freak-outs, filibusters, Supreme Court justice nominees. They also discuss whether the government gets to determine whats a slur, such as the Redskins. If the Supreme Court affirms the federal circuit, then that part of the Lanham Act is struck down, and trademark examiners will no longer have the power to not allow as trademark registration as being disparaging, Shapiro said. Come 2017, senators will being the process of confirming or filibustering one of Donald Trumps SCOTUS nominees. Currently a number of Republicans--Jeff Flake, Lindsey Graham, Susan Collins-- have said theyre not ready to get rid of the filibuster right now, he said. But if the rubber hits the road, and the Democrats filibuster is on the table, will they change their minds? andnbsp;