The Progress Pondcast
By Martin Longman and Brendan Skwire
Support our work on Patreon: www.patreon.com/ProgressPondcast
The Progress Pondcast Episode 28: Odds and Ends; What Rhymes With "Weimar?"; Shutdown and Teardowns
It's been quite a month. Brendan and Marty air some grievances and then focus in on how our current political situation resembles the Weimar Republic, as well as the ongoing government shutdown. Also, WTAF, Trump tore down the East Wing? WTAF?? Finally, Brendan finds time to speculate about the sex lives of prominent Republicans. Tune in!
Please support us on Patreon!
Progress Pond can be found on Substack.
The Progress Pondcast Episode 27: The Charlie Kirk Assassination (Mostly)
In this episode, Brendan and Martin discuss the Senate GOP going nuclear, and then focus on the murder of Charlie Kirk, and its aftermath. What does this tell us about the state of the nation? The media? And why is there so much pointless hatred and skapegoating of transgender people?
Please give us a like, share, and subscribe! As always, we'd love your support on Patreon.
Joe Walsh citations from the Welcome To The Party, Pal! podcast.
For more on the groypers, visit Wikipedia.
For more on Charlie Kirk, including quotes and activities, visit Media Matters.
The Progess Pondcast Episode 26: Down the Conspiracy Rabbithole!
Marty and Brendan go all conspiracy-minded on you, with explorations into the new JFK assassination revelations and—of course—the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.
For more on the Kennedy assassination, Marty recommends "What Jane Roman Said."
For more on Whitey Bulger, Brendan recommends both "Black Mass," by Dick Lehr and the first season of the "Crimetown" podcast.
Please support us on Patreon.
Find us online at Facebook and at the Progress Pond.
Music provided by The Royal Hounds, go see 'em!
The Progess Pondcast Episode 25: Lots To Talk About!
This episode: Trump's unhappy birthday; Re-renaming military bases; Both-sidesing the political assassination in Minnesota; blind squirrel Joe Rogan finds a nut; and how Israel's attack on Iran may be Trump's Bay of Pigs.
Please support us on Patreon.
Find us online at Facebook and at the Progress Pond.
Produced and edited by Brendan Skwire.
Music by permission of The Royal Hounds and Rick Fink.
The Progress Pondcast Episode 24: Some Reasons For Hope?
As the economy teeters, the GOP follows Trump into the threshing blades. Is it a good idea to cut FEMA? The civilized world rejects MAGA, as Texas doubles down. And, a plea to John Fetterman.
The Progress Pondcast Episode 23: (Almost) Everything Is Awful
Today's episode is chockful of topics!
Jesse Welles Sings About Tarrifs;
Tarrifs Eating Faces;
A Weimar-style Collapse in DC;
WTAF John Fetterman;
Free Kilmar Garcia;
Are We STILL going after DEI?; and
Hands Off Protests.
Tune in! Share with your friends! Share on social media! Subscribe! And please support us on Patreon!
The Progress Pondcast Episode 22: Reporter Bill Hangley Returns to Talk Parks, DOGE, Soviet-style "Governance," and Ukraine
Friend of the pod, Hall Monitor's Bill Hangley—who you may remember from last seaon—spent the mid-1990s reporting from eastern Europe. He's back to discuss how DOGE could affect Philly parks—and ultimately make it impossible to get anything done. Plus, Trump and Putin move to partition Ukraine. Marty has thoughts. It's two hours of fun!
Please support us on Patreon.
Produced and edited by Brendan Skwire.
The Progress Pondcast Episode 21: Hangin' With the Professional Left
The hosts of the Professional Left podcast, BlueGal and Driftglass, drop by to talk a whole lotta politics, from the golden-olden days of blogging, to Never Trumpers, to organizing and nurturing a progressive media ecosytem to counter the stumbling legacy media. Also knitting, and corn. Delicious, delicious corn.
Find us and support us on Patreon!
We need a new external hard drive, and those things cost money!
The Progress Pondcast Episode 20: How the GOP Will Come For Medicaid, with Marc Stier, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Policy Center
The Pennsylvania Policy Center's executive director Marc Stier drops by to chat with the guys about how the GOP is coming for Medicaid and more—and what we can do to stop them. Also, a special holiday post script!
Have a listen, like and subscribe, and please support us on Patreon.
The Progress Pondcast Episode 19: Washington Monthly's Philip Longman Discusses Antitrust, the Democrats, and Working Class Voters
We have a great one for you this episode, folks. Philip Longman, Senior Editor at the Washington Monthly and the Policy Director at the Open Markets Institute drops by to discuss how 50 years of weak antitrust policies has hurt the Democrats with working class voters—and what they should do to win them back.
If you like what we do at the Progress Pondcast, please support us on Patreon for as little as $5.00 a month. Thanks, and make sure to like and share our show!
The Progress Pondcast Episode 18: Rudy911 Blows a Gasket; Trump's Cabinet of Horrors; Hope Ya Like High Prices, MAGA morons; and It's All Blue Skies From Here
Rudy Giuliani keeps digging that hole, while his hero Trump doesn't lift a finger to help him. Maybe that's because Trump is too busy picking through the trash for cabinet members, because they're such garbage even Maggie Haberman can't keep up. The fellas also have a good laugh at the MAGA morons who think Trump is gonna lower prices—boy do they have a surprise coming! Finally, Brendan gets dragged back onto social media kicking and screaming, and finds it's not THAT bad at BlueSky.
The Progress Pondcast Episode 17: A Message to You Rudy; the Right Melts down Over Women's Sufrrage; and Trump Plots with Mike Johnson to Steal the Election
Rudy Giuliani faces a reckoning and loses all his stuff. Meanwhile, right wing gasbags bluster about married women voting! And the big story: Marty speculates on the secret plan hatched by Trump and Speaker Mike Johnson to steal the 2024 election.
Please support our work on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/progresspondcast
And as always, please like, follow, subscribe, and share with friends and family on social media.
Progress Pondcast Episode 16: Various Items, Trump Meltdowns, Low-Propensity Voters, and Other Stuff
Kind of a rambler this episode. The guys talk about getting old, Brendan has a birthday, Trump melts down several times in public, and Marty worries about low-propensity voters. Plus we're both naked.
BTW, this is hard-ass work. Not only are we using data (which ain't free), it takes me (Brendan) at least 2-3 hours to edit a single episode. No one's paying us to do this, so please support us and our work on Patreon, so we can take over the world: https://www.patreon.com/progresspondcast.
Thanks, Brendo and Marty
Progress Pondcast Episode 15: A Visit From PA State Representative Joe Hohenstein
PA State Rep (and lifelong Philadelphian) Joe Hohenstein drops by to talk about state politics—including the disgrace of PA Republicans booing the Capitol Police who defended the House and Senate on January 6—as well as the importance of constituent services, the 2024 election, and protecting our most vulnerable. Oh and his large menagerie of rescue pets.
Give us a listen! Like and subscribe! Share with your friends! Support us on Patreon! Like us on Facebook!
Progress Pond Episode 14: Kamala's In! And, The Return of Bill Hangley
We had such a good time last week with Bill Hangley, we invited him back for round two! The guys discuss Kamala Harris's historic candidacy and MAGA's predictable freakout, as well as Trump's racist remarks at the National Association of Black Journalists convention—was it a meltdown or more kayfabe? JD Vance has a lot of problems with furniture, cats, women, and childless people. Who should Harris pick for veep? How Biden's decision to drop out of the race is a real Obi-Wan Kenobi (Joe-bi-Wan Kenobi) move, and how the prisoner exchange with Russia helps Harris.
If you like what you hear, please support us on Patreon—and tell all your friends!
Progress Pondcast Episode 13: Marty and Brendan Are Way Ahead of the Game; Guest, Bill Hangley
Marty, Brendan, and guest Bill Hangley discuss the 2024 campaign, including call for Biden to drop out. Bill discusses his recent opinion piece, "The Case for Kamala" and plays a song off his new album!
Less than an hour after recording (but well before editing), Biden dropped out.
Please visit us online at the following links, and support us on Patreon!
https://progresspond.com/
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100094674335808
https://www.patreon.com/progresspondcast
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nbg2LJpn3yE
Progress Pondcast Episode 12: What Happens Now?
Martin and Brendan share their takes on the Biden/Trump debate, and what Democrats should do. Also, we now have a Patreon page where you can support us.
Need more politics and analysis between podcasts? Find us online at Progress Pond.
Progress Pondcast Episode 11: Memorial Day, American Songbook, Trump Trials, Michael Cohen, and Rudy's Selling Coffee
The guys celebrate Memorial Day! Brendan honors family and friends who served, Marty speculates on what verdict the jurors will render in Trump's New York trial, both of us make fun of thug-turned-schlub Michael Cohen, and we also have some fun with Rudy Giuliani's new barista gig.
Progress Pondcast Episode 10: Trump Trials, Day 2
The fellas laugh and laugh at Donald Trump's legal travails. Will Donald melt down if Stormy testifies?
Progress Pondcast Episode 9: Tryin' Something New with Guest Mike Norman
Mike from Ohio, longtime commenter at Progress Pond, drops by for our first guest visit. We crap on Vince McMahon; discuss politics and chili in Ohio; and savor the trifecta of the DeSantis collapse, Trump’s problems, and Rudy911’s continuing descent.
Intro/outro music, "The Walk," provided by The Royal Hounds. "Some Kinda Gold," provided by The No Good Crowd. Podcast written and produced (where not ad libbed) by Martin Longman and Brendan Skwire. Engineered, and edited by Brendan Skwire.
Visit us online at Progress Pond, or find us on Facebook.
Progress Pondcast Episode 8: Biden's Nickname for Trump, ICP, Trump on Trial, Libertine Moms for Liberty,
Brendan and Marty ponder magnets and how they work; Joe Biden saddles Trump with a hilariously obscene nickname; taking Trump down to the studs; and the Moms for Liberty are back and getting their freak on.
Progress Pondcast Episode 6: 2023 Election gloating, Speaker Mike Johnson is a pervert, deep thoughts on Israel and Gaza
Martin and Brendan discuss the fallout from the 2023 (dare we say it) Blue Wave. Then it's Speaker Mike Johnson, who wants everyone to know he doesn't watch porn, and has an app on his phone monitored by a special someone to make sure he keeps his filthy paws to himself. With all that porn-resistance, will the Speaker have time to avert a government shutdown, or will his hands be occupied? And on a serious note, some deep thoughts on Israel, Gaza, and Hamas.
Progress Pond Episode 5: Why the Republicans’ Speaker Hell Was SO Predictable and What Happens Next
Martin and Brendan are both fighting colds. Martin does a victory lap as the House GOP “majority” collapses.
Progress Pondcast Episode 4: Boneheads and Bigots
Boneheads and Bigots: Can the stupidest man in Washington keep his gavel and cling to power? And, chairs goes flying as a Pennsylvania school district descends into chaos over LGBTQ+ policies.
Kevin McCarthy sources: https://progresspond.com/2023/01/02/kevin-mccarthy-has-already-lost/
https://progresspond.com/2023/05/30/its-kevin-mccarthys-moment-of-reckoning/
https://progresspond.com/2023/06/29/kevin-mccarthy-hopes-cabinet-impeachments-will-save-him/
https://progresspond.com/2023/07/03/at-risk-house-republicans-are-getting-restless/
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/09/13/defense-bill-house-republicans-00115530
Central Bucks School District:
Progress Pondcast Episode 3: Republicans Get AWKWARD
Brendan's student loans get forgiven! Awkward Americans identify with/are disgusted by Ron DeSantis! Oliver Anthony Terhunes amorous Republican blowhards! And, who won the GOP debate thing (hint: not America)! All this week on the Progress Pondcast!
Brent Terhune: https://youtu.be/WYueFnyAWy0?si=6kzN78Qyo9QjXtPe
Oliver Anthony: https://youtu.be/cv9uMXiY29s?si=lTlob_xgJxgVmtaI
Awkward Americans: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2023/08/17/ron-desantis-awkward/
The Progress Pondcast, Episode 2: Joe Klein Sucks! And, Will Trump Go To Prison?
In this week's episode, we discuss perennial wanker Joe Klein's Washington Post column on Hunter Biden amounts to more wanking. Also, why are pundits trying to get Trump out of a jail sentence when the dude hasn't even been convicted yet?
The Progress Podcast: Episode 1
Welcome to the Progress Podcast with Martin Longman and Brendan Skwire. In our inaugural episode: Jason Aldean is a moron, and Brazil solves its Bolsonaro problem.