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James Lileks
James is an American journalist, columnist, and blogger. He lives in Minnesota.
Series
Recent Episodes
September 2026
It's been a quarter century, but the fury and grief have not dimmed in the slightest. James, Steve, and Charles recall that fateful day and reflect on life in America since. A few recommended articles for commemoration: "The Martyred Towers," James Lileks - Substack "Look Back in Anger at 9/11," Charles CW Cooke - National Review "The Untold Pre-History of 9/11," Chris Naylor - National Interest "What Mohammed Atta Was Trying to Tell Us," Ayaan Hirsi Ali - Tablet Magazine Sound from this week's open and close: The Brooklyn Youth Chorus sings the national anthem at today's September 11th memorial in New York City.
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Ricochet
August 2026
It's just James and Charles this week at the post: Post-elections in Florida, Minnesota, and South Carolina - post-mortem on l'affaire de Arday - and the post-partum madness of Lindsay Clancy, who is on trial in Massachusetts for murdering her three children and receiving an inexplicably large amount of support. Opening sound this week: Sen. Darline Graham on American foreign policy and hospital chaplain Sheila Cavanaugh testifying in the Clancy trial. Music this week: Enigma Variations: Nimrod (via Motion Array)
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July 2026
Dr. Jay Bhattacharya
Harry EntenAs the late Johnny Thunders would say, "Rock and roll is simply an attitude." And we bring the attitude this week with Free Press contributor Eli Lake, as we talk Graham Platner's Maine implosion, underestimating the Ukranians and how Donald Trump may have stumbled to the right answer in Iran. All that and Eli leads us through a round of "What Are You Listening To?" and Charlie's collection of semi-pornographic album covers. Let's have ourselves a podcast...
Eli LakeJune 2026
Our hosts are out of sorts as they prep for the Independence Day celebration: Hayward is on the high seas with a wobbly internet connection, Lileks is in Boston with a travel mic, and ever-busy Cooke is even later than usual. But the gang had to get together once more before the holiday break to make their grumblings known about a less welcome revolutionary spirit. Outright communists taking over NYC congressional districts, disdain for SCOTUS respecting the separation of powers at home, and the gloomy disorder that's overtaken Britain. Opening sound this week: DSA candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier (NY13) on MSNOW vs. Rep. Tom Suozzi (D - NY03) on Fox News
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It's just James and Charles to recollect and swap rants about the goings-on of the land of the free and the home of oddball. The cast of characters includes the world's first billionaire, an Angeleno who lost an election for common sense, a lunatic posing as a model working man, and the deeply flawed judgment of Democratic voters about guys like these. Lileks and Cooke also delight in watching Europeans share their newfound love for America, and find something to embrace in Trump's alacrity on public beautification. Sound this week: CNBC announces the world’s first trillionaire, Jimmy Kimmel recoils, and Graham Platner continues to gaffe.
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May 2026
Lots and lots of burning questions dominate the news. Do we need a $250 bill, and what or who should be on it? Mamdani flexes his communist urges in NYC, so what could possibly go wrong? And can a state tax a "slush fund" at 100%? James and Charles have thoughts. But the question we really want an answer to is, "Do we have a deal with Iran or not?" To answer that, we welcome back our old friend Richard Goldberg, a senior advisor at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the former director for countering Iranian weapons of mass destruction for the White House National Security Council during the first Trump administration. It's an episode to get your Spidey senses tingling.
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Rich Goldberg
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James, Steve and non-stipendiary host Rob Long shoot the breeze as they face revolutionary changes big and small. From the impending phenomena of Pratt Summer and unstoppable AI to the DNC's stateside Commie drama and the Euros giving nationalism another go, the trio draws some important lessons: Local elections matter. They can even be fun! MAGA hats are optional. Political messaging is especially effective when your opponent is the weird one. Climate apocalypse is dumb. Everybody thinks so. You can be a people or a bureaucracy, not both. Artificial Intelligence is coming. Work on your human skills. Happy Memorial Day weekend, Ricochet!
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Donald Trump and Xi Jinping have ended their two day summit in Beijing with lots of talk and no announced breakthroughs. James and Steven break it all down. Speaking of breaking down, we welcome back National Review senior writer Noah Rothman to talk about the left's embrace of political violence that he covers in his new book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence in America. It's a riot.
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- NRNoah Rothman
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April 2026
The pitiful state of university sociology departments is an unfortunate thing, but to see tantrums at elite law schools over "controversial" speakers portends danger — or so says Ilya Shapiro, author of Lawless: The Miseducation of America’s Elites. He and the fellas discuss the illiberal takeover of higher education, most troublingly in the institutions that train the gatekeepers of our legal system. Plus, James, Charles, and Steve speculate on the midterms; see the potential for backfire from Virginia's redistricting referendum; smell controversy over the latest victory for the reefer movement; and begrudgingly admit the Americanness of gambling with top secrets.
- Guest:
Ilya Shapiro
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Moving concentrates the mind on the old days (good or otherwise). And who better to reminisce with than a good ole pal? James Lileks and Rob Long are back together, and they brought family heirlooms... Breezing through current events (a blockaded blockade abroad, a goon running Gotham, a papal-sovereign scrap), the duo takes in another week's worth of madness with the calm of mind that comes with grateful reception of one's inheritance.
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It's just Lileks and Cooke this week, back to gander at another quintessentially American week of this semiquincentennial year. The fellas cover the halted hostilities in Iran, an incredible rescue op, Mayor Mamdani's "Citywide Racial Equity Plan," the awaited splashdown of Artemis II astronauts, and all manner of transportation issues.
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