Political argument with historical memory.
The Ricochet Podcast works through the week’s politics with a dry, historically minded panel rhythm. Iran, oil exports, rockets, Democratic Socialists, moon launches, and Florida weather all become material for argument rather than tidy recap.
PRESS PLAY
The Ricochet Podcast is a political current-events panel show with a taste for argument, history, and dry mischief. It does not simply sort the week into approved and disapproved headlines. It asks what the headlines reveal about competence, seriousness, doctrine, and political culture. Recent episodes spend considerable time on Iran, American air power, oil exports, drones, military escalation, and the problem of leaders telling stories when events require hard operational judgment. The show also looks outward. China’s weapons, Russia’s example, Kosovo, Afghanistan, and the old Cold War wager on superior American technology all become pressure points in the conversation. Then, with very little ceremony, the subject can swing to the Artemis II moon mission. That shift is part of the format. A president’s speech, a Florida traffic story, the weather in Minneapolis, or the absurdity of video-podcast backdrops can sit beside war powers and ideological radicalism. Episodes featuring Noah Rothman, H.R. McMaster, and Tal Fortgang lean into war aims, regime pressure, Democratic Socialists, revolutionary politics, and the long institutional afterlife of older radical movements. The recurring voices do not smooth over disagreement for the sake of symmetry. They question, qualify, correct, interrupt, and move on when a claim needs more evidence than the moment allows. That gives the show a lived-in feel, closer to a serious political salon with jokes than a cleanly packaged news explainer. Its audience will recognize the assumptions, but the show’s real pleasure is in the method: historical analogy, legal and military distinctions, civilizational worry, and comic asides held in the same conversational frame. It suits listeners who want politics argued in full sentences, with enough impatience to keep things moving and enough memory to make the present feel less unprecedented than it first appears.
Made for: For politically engaged listeners who like analysis, foreign-policy argument, and dry panel chemistry. It suits people who would rather hear claims tested than headlines summarized.
What sets it apart: The show’s strength is its range: Iran strategy, Democratic Socialist politics, moon launches, energy markets, and video-call banter can all occupy the same hour without losing the argumentative thread.
Weekly episodes of Ricochet’s flagship podcast feature our hosts James Lileks, Steve Hayward, Charles C. W. Cooke, and guests discussing the issues of the week. Listen to The Ricochet Podcast, along with more than 40 other original podcasts, at Ricochet.com. No paid subscription required.
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Conservative conviction meets internal argument as the hosts test political strategy, legal authority, and foreign-policy claims in real time.
James Lileks steers a conversational roundtable through the week's political arguments, mixing pointed questions with humor, disagreement, and room for co-hosts to challenge one another. Steve Hayward and Charles C. W.
A $5 million missile for a $500,000 drone? Your inner cost accountant has found a politics podcast.
Press play if you want
Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A brisk, skeptical argument about war, energy, and the distance between talk and governing.
This Ricochet episode takes a long, argumentative look at leadership, war, oil, and the gap between rhetoric and reality. James Lilacs and Rob Long keep the exchange lively with dry, digressive back-and-forth that feels conversational and expects the listener to stay alert.
A brisk Ricochet argument about whether air power can do the work of regime change.
This Ricochet conversation takes up the familiar question of whether air power can break a regime, with Stephen Hayward, Charles C.W. Cook, and Noah Rothman moving through Kosovo, Iran's oil infrastructure, possible ground options, and what Trump ought to be saying.
A brisk war-power discussion where drone economics tests American technological confidence.
PlayNext frames the episode as a brisk, unsettled tour through American power at its most theatrical and most exposed. James Lilex starts with a hard-edged military scenario involving Iran, Khomeini, senior officials, the Department of War, and Maduro, then uses that charged…
A pointed debate over the DSA, revolutionary politics, and the legacy of 1960s radicalism.
The Ricochet Podcast frames the Democratic Socialists of America as a test case for a broader argument about revolutionary politics, anti-American sentiment, and the afterlife of radical movements from the 1960s and 1970s.
A pro-Trump argument for discipline, anchored in history and softened by Washington memory.
The Ricochet Podcast's "Message Discipline" makes a pro-Trump case for restraint around Donald Trump, with James Lylas and Stephen Hayward using Daniel Mahoney's argument to test tone against purpose.
John Yoo tests the administration's Alien Enemies Act case against constitutional limits and the facts alleged.
The Ricochet Podcast frames the fight over the Alien Enemies Act as more than a technical legal dispute. James Lattice and Charles C.W. Cook press John Yoo on the administration's claim that Tren de Aragua was sent by Maduro's government to cause mischief and mayhem, then turn…
A memoir conversation traces Kachigian's go-between role for Nixon and Reagan when the political risks were hard to ignore.
The Ricochet Podcast bonus hour uses Ken Kachigian's memoir to revisit the private channel between Richard Nixon and Reagan. Steve Hayward begins with the long delay behind the book, then steers toward its more distinctive material: a memoir shaped partly by diary entries and by…
Armenia-centered analysis for a volatile region.
Steve Hayward hosts a special bonus episode of The Ricochet Podcast featuring Ken Kachigian, former speechwriter for Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan.
The hosts discuss the arrest of a suspect in a shooting incident, analyzing the shooter's motives by categorizing assassins into types like zealots and losers.
Hosts James Lileks and Charles C.W.
Episode 785 opens with the old slogans and the title joke, then James Lilacs and Rob Long settle into the familiar Ricochet cadence.
The hosts discuss how Floridians view the influx of tourists, particularly around Disney World, balancing economic benefits with personal inconveniences.
The hosts discuss the successful Artemis II moon mission launch and its implications, while also touching on a recent presidential speech and political commentary.
The Ricochet Podcast hosts introduce an episode about misery while discussing military objectives and community engagement.
The Ricochet Podcast hosts Steve Hayward and Charles C.W.
The panel opens with its usual mix of teasing and alarm.
The episode opens with an announcement-style declaration about major United States combat operations in Iran.
James Lileks and Stephen Hayward open with Gallup data showing Democratic pride in America falling to 36 percent from 88 percent over 20 to 25 years, while Republicans stay stable.
The Ricochet Podcast #777 ranges from a 170-page Supreme Court tariff ruling to Daniel Mahoney's case for "discipline at a moment of power." James Lylas and Stephen Hayward debate IEPA, Section 301, and whether the Court's major questions doctrine also weakens EPA climate plans.
The Ricochet Podcast hosts interview former Attorney General Bill Barr about his career, legal opinions, and current political issues.
A host and guests discuss a recent mass shooting near the Annunciation Church in Minneapolis, comparing its impact to 9-11 and expressing hopes for healing among victims and the community.
This episode features an interview with Ellen Fantini discussing the diverse landscape of European conservative movements and ideologies.