Best Extol Podcasts (2025)

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Week 46 - A Week Summarized by a Brazen Trump Extolling, “I Hate My Opponents” and “Your Countries Are Going to Hell" 22:24

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4d ago22:24

22:24

This was quite a week! What strikes me the most in summarizing one of the longest lists of broken norms so far is the lack of pushback that persists. Trump is by all accounts unilaterally making decisions on foreign policy, economic policy, healthcare issues, censorship, prosecutorial discretion, and more. He has become so brazen that he feels comf…

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Week 45 - Trump Creates a Vast Left Wing Conspiracy in His Continued Attempt to Silence Dissent and Seize Power 24:57

12d ago24:57

24:57

The main story this week was continued political violence in the nation, as conservative activist Charlie Kirk was murdered while giving a speech on a college campus. While the killing was one in a long list of bipartisan violence and threats, Trump and his regime seized on it to baselessly promote conspiracy theories about a vast left-wing effort,…

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Week 44 - An Epstein Letter Comes Back to Haunt Trump, While Republicans and the Supreme Court Have His Back 26:48

19d ago26:48

26:48

This week, Congress is back in session, and so is the Jeffrey Epstein files story. Congress was greeted upon their return by Epstein survivors, who called for the release of files and accountability. This has been the one story Trump has not been able to spin or control, and he found himself, his regime, and most Republicans contorting themselves t…

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Week 43 - Three Major Court Loses Could Imperil Trump’s Agenda 24:25

26d ago24:25

24:25

This week Trump lost three major court cases, which could have major implications on the regime’s ability to enact his agenda. Perhaps the most consequential was a 7–4 ruling by a federal appeals court, finding that he had overstepped his authority by invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act in his trade war, a ruling that could imp…

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Week 42 - Trump Says He is a Dictator, and Acts Like One 27:49

1M ago27:49

27:49

So much for what typically would be a slow news week in August. With Congress still on recess, this week it felt as if Trump was running the country on his own. He even mused at a half-day-long cabinet meeting about being a dictator! He certainly is increasingly acting like one, continuing a shocking and very public retribution campaign against his…

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Week 41 - Trump’s Authoritraian Tools: Diversion, Seizing Equity, Rewriting History and Revising Data 25:05

1M ago25:05

25:05

This week we continue the storyline of Trump’s efforts to rewrite history and manipulate data to fit his narratives, both hallmarks of authoritarianism. Last week Bureau of Labor Statistics data was under siege; this week Trump’s U.S. Attorney in D.C. launched a probe into so-called manipulation of violent crime data in D.C., when reality of the da…

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Week 40 - Two Truths, Two Sets of Data 25:58

2M ago25:58

25:58

What strikes me most this week is not the number of broken norms, but the nature of what Trump is getting away with. This week he assumed control of the nation’s capital; ordered a mid-decade census amid mid-decade gerrymandering; shook up the way the federal government collects job data; and unilaterally imposed an export tax on two U.S. chip comp…

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Week 39 - Is the Dwindling Media Losing Track of Some of the Most Important Stories? 24:04

2M ago24:04

24:04

Noteworthy this week is that several of the most important stories received little media coverage and attention. Part of this is the continued gutting of U.S. journalism, not only in our public broadcasting, but also in mastheads taken private by billionaires. For example, the Washington Post, an important source of breaking stories about the first…

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Demonology Episode 4.5: God's Solution 38:48

2M ago38:48

38:48

In this episode, we share a sermon titled God's Solution to Man's Problem to provide hope in Jesus Christ for those who are in a season of struggle (Genesis 3).

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While the Epstein Files Story Dominates, Trump and His Regime Become Increasingly Irreverent 25:49

2M ago25:49

25:49

This week, the Epstein Files scandal continued to dominate the news, despite Trump and his regime’s best efforts to distract with shiny coins and conspiracy theories. Trump didn’t help himself much in the effort to change the subject, and he continued to bring up the topic while visiting Scotland. Notably, in Scotland he showcased his golf courses …

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Week 37 - Trump Loses Control as the Epstein Files Dominate, while Polling Shows the Country Souring on Him and His Policies 26:41

2M ago26:41

26:41

This week the Epstein files, which have turned into the biggest scandal of Trump’s second regime, continued to be front and center. As I wrote in my Substack article here, up until now, Trump has been extremely successful at throwing shiny coins to distract and change the subject. This scandal marks his first failure to control the narrative. In th…

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Week 36 - Trump Moves to Consolidate Power, While the MAGA Coalition Continue to Fray 28:09

2M ago28:09

28:09

This week, Trump continued to consolidate power within his regime, even as public opinion and parts of his MAGA base turned against him on key issues. On Trump’s signature issue, immigration, public opinion has turned sharply against him, with just 35% approving. Notably, the country is experiencing a broad shift in attitudes on immigration, with n…

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Week 35 - Real Consequences of Trump’s Moves on Federal Agencies and His Tax Bill 24:49

3M ago24:49

24:49

This week we are seeing the impacts of Trump’s staffing cuts and selection of unqualified sycophants to run federal agencies. Tragedy struck in Texas, as flooding caused by a storm in Kerr County claimed more than 100 lives, with at least 173 still missing five days later. Questions arose about Trump’s and Elon Musk’s DOGE’s cuts to agencies and de…

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Week 34 - New Information on Iran, a Supreme Court Decision, and a Not So Beautiful Bill 25:27

3M ago25:27

25:27

This week was a lot! The week opened with debate over Trump’s attack on Iran front and center, as increasing evidence came forward (I wrote more here) that the strikes did not in fact “obliterate” Iran’s nuclear sites. Trump and his regime sought to change and control the narrative on Iran by attacking the media, and calling those who questioned th…

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Week 33 - With Approval Falling, Trump Strikes Iran 23:19

3M ago23:19

23:19

The biggest story of this week is Trump potentially taking us to war, after ordering strikes on Iran. I have urged readers of my Substack to follow the facts, and maintain a healthy amount of skepticism, because on face value, and knowing Trump’s patterns, a lot of things we have been told initially do not make sense. First off, was there any doubt…

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Demonology Episode 4: Assault 31:00

3M ago31:00

31:00

In this episode, we examine the nature, limitations, and scriptural teachings about the assault from Satan and demons on God's people (1 Tim. 4:1; 1 Cor. 10:20-21; 1 Sam. 16:14-15; Acts 19:13-16; 2 Cor. 12:7; 1 Kings 22:19-23; Job 2:7; Matt. 4; Luke 4; 20:34-36; Eph. 2:2; 6:10-20; 2 Cor. 4:4).

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Week 32 - Political Acts of Violence, a Failed Military Parade, and Trump Stands Alone 24:24

3M ago24:24

24:24

This was a troubling and chaotic week for our country. At home, political violence continued to unfold, as a Minnesota man carried out a gruesome assassination of a Democratic state representative and her husband, and injured another Democrat as well, both on his long list of targeted individuals. An act of political violence would normally be a mo…

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30. Secret! 31:26

3M ago31:26

31:26

Great grass growing, a hunky vicar and mistaken identities.By Michael Pryor and Stephen Higgins

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Week 31 - Trump Manufactures a Crisis to Change the Subject 25:24

4M ago25:24

25:24

This week the country finds itself on the brink of the biggest crisis of Trump’s presidency, as he deployed both the California National Guard and U.S. Marines to the city of Los Angeles, amid anti-ICE protests. As protests also start to pop up in other cities across the country, the question becomes whether Trump will take things one step further …

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Week 30 - Trump’s Trade War and Big, Beautiful Bill Hit Speed Bumps 22:58

4M ago22:58

22:58

This was one wild week! We are approaching the two-third mark for Trump’s 90-day pause of his Liberation Day. He and his regime, despite their weekly start-of-week promises that deals are close at hand, have yet to sign a single one! Negotiations will not be getting any easier, as this week, the U.S. Court of International Trade struck down Trump’s…

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29. Suppressed! 29:41

4M ago29:41

29:41

The Bligh Diaries Hoax, the tomato tsunami and the persistent poet.By Michael Pryor and Stephen Higgins

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Week 29 - The TACO Trade, Law Firm Karma, and Putin Calls Trump ‘Emotional' 18:38

4M ago18:38

18:38

This marks the second consecutive week in which Trump’s pace of breaking norms slowed considerably. Trump finds himself on the losing end of a number of court cases, which are pausing or nullifying many of his early actions. Trump is still in search of wins of any kind, as he is failing or falling short on major issues including foreign policy, imm…

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Week 28 - Desperate for a Win, Trump Finds None 22:25

4M ago22:25

22:25

This week has the fewest broken norms since Trump’s inaugural. As in the prior four weeks, Trump finds himself struggling for wins on his main issues — the economy, immigration and foreign policy — and in many ways, his presidency is floundering and in retreat. Reminiscent of the first regime, when Trump was failing he would strike out to release a…

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Demonology Episode 3: Possession 22:00

4M ago22:00

22:00

In this episode, we examine the biblical teachings regarding demon-possession (2 Corinthians 4:16; Matthew 8:28-32; Luke 8:1-3; Mark 5:4; 1 John 4:4). The Wiles of Satan by William Spurstowe

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28. Unrecognised! 29:34

4M ago29:34

29:34

Variable borders, game time and the king of the noddies.By Michael Pryor and Stephen Higgins

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Week 27 - Grifts, Librarians and Trade Retreats 23:30

5M ago23:30

23:30

This week, the growing number of Trump’s conflicts of interest and grifts, which we have been documenting each week, at long last took center stage! What did it take to finally get Republicans in Congress to react? It wasn’t the billions that the Trump family is pocketing in plain sight in the crypto market. What it took was Trump accepting a $400 …

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Week 26 - Grifting in Plain Sight 21:15

5M ago21:15

21:15

The most noteworthy stories this week revolve around Trump’s grift. We’ve been covering Trump’s irreverence around conflicts of interest in the second regime, as well as examples each week of his using the office of the presidency to line his pockets; this week it seemed to all come together with some great reporting by the Times. If you want a goo…

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27. Obscure! 30:13

5M ago30:13

30:13

Ignored instrumentalists, lethal foodstuffs and digging into the depths.By Michael Pryor and Stephen Higgins

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Week 25 - I Run the Country and the World 18:46

5M ago18:46

18:46

Falling approval and a faltering economy help explain why approaching 100 days, Trump found himself in retreat. On at least seven major issues, Trump has capitulated or reversed his actions in recent weeks. Notably, his pace of breaking norms has markedly slowed as of late, first in Week 24 and even more so this week. We have reached another inflec…

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Week 24 - Trump's Really Bad Week 16:07

5M ago16:07

16:07

This is the week it all started to fall apart for Trump. He ended what was a disastrous week for his regime, having to capitulate with a public statement that he did not intend to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and softening his tone on China. His statements came after Wall Street dubbed a broad sell-off of U.S. stocks, U.S. government de…

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26. Underappreciated! 31:04

5M ago31:04

31:04

Dog kennel architect, chicken wrangling and a pigeon racing outrage.By Michael Pryor and Stephen Higgins

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The Gospel Part 4: Response 17:30

5M ago17:30

17:30

In this episode, we complete our series on the Gospel of Jesus Christ by examining the righteous response to hearing this message.

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Week 23 - A Shocking Abuse of Power 26:14

6M ago26:14

26:14

This week, host Amy Siskind discusses how Trump pushed the boundaries of the legal system, flouting a ruling by the Supreme Court on Kilmar Abrego Garcia and other immigration related moves seemed aimed at distracting attention from economic matters.

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The Gospel Part 3: Christ 13:00

6M ago13:00

13:00

In this episode, we teach the atoning work of Christ on behalf of the sinner (Isaiah 59:2; 1 Peter 3:18).

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Week 22 - Trump Veers Toward Ending US Exceptionalism 28:03

6M ago28:03

28:03

Host Amy Siskind discusses US news during the last week including Trump’s tariff war declaration and the global disruption that ensued and the importance of the Hands Off protests which took place on Saturday.

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25. Snubbed! 31:45

6M ago31:45

31:45

Microscopic wonders, flying flounders and directional shenanigans.By Michael Pryor and Stephen Higgins

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The Gospel Part 2: Man 10:00

6M ago10:00

10:00

In this episode, we explore Man; his duty, his sin, and his penalty (Romans 3:23; 6:23).

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Week 21 - A Rebuke of Trump and Musk in Wisconsin 27:58

6M ago27:58

27:58

Host Amy Siskind discusses US news for the last week of March including the involvement of Elon Musk and his so-called Department of Government Efficiency.

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The Gospel Part 1: God 31:04

6M ago31:04

31:04

In this episode we begin a four-part series examining the Gospel of Jesus Christ, what it is and what it does (Isaiah 59:1-2).

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Week 20 - Nobody Was Texting War Plans 36:00

6M ago36:00

36:00

Host Amy Siskind discusses notable news events of the week including a shocking breach of national security, as a journalist from The Atlantic was mistakenly added to a Signal group chat discussing a pending attack in Yemen.

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24. Unsung! 31:24

6M ago31:24

31:24

Fascinating physical features, a stargazer and a mysterious medical condition.By Michael Pryor and Stephen Higgins

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Week 19 - An Intrusion on the President’s Authority 30:58

6M ago30:58

30:58

This week, host Amy Siskind discusses another inflection point in Trump’s pace of breaking norms, and unfortunately a turn for the worse.

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Week 18 - I’m Not Even Looking at the Market 27:08

7M ago27:08

27:08

This week, host Amy Siskind discusses the country’s angst and anger over mass firings, frozen federal funding, and cuts in entitlement programs converged on Elon Musk and his so-called DOGE.