The John Batchelor Show

The John Batchelor Show

 

On September 12, 2001, the day after the fall of the Twin Towers, WABC-AM in New York City recruited John Batchelor to go on the air until Osama bin Laden was either killed or captured. John has been on ever since, offering insightful commentary on such issues as the war on terrorism, the presidency, the national and global economies, and defending our civilization. On March 12, 2003, one week before the attack on Iraq, ABC Radio Networks invited John to bring his expertise to syndication. Since then John has reached out nationwide, focusing his concerns on a world at war.

The John Batchelor Show is an essential tool for understanding the new order in the 21st Century. The world is now facing a dangerous and fanatical enemy determined to destroy Western civilization on both political and military fronts. In this, the first great ideological battle of the new millennium, it is imperative to know the major players and the theaters in which they operate.

The John Batchelor Show features a multitude of distinctive elements. John's themes cover every detail - from military battles, presidential campaigns, planetary exploration, and Hollywood politicos to his own international travel. John has broadcast from many corners of the world and in his program he calls out to all points, including New York, Jerusalem, Des Moines, Kazakhstan, Orlando, Manchester, Morocco, Boston, Taipei, Washington, and Baghdad.

John is a veteran novelist, author of seven political romances as well as a short history of the Republican Party. Born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, in 1948, John attended Lower Merion High School and Princeton University. In 1976 he was graduated from Union Theological Seminary. John is married and has two children.

S8 Ep345: PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Joseph Sternberg. Sternberg discusses the conflict between the White House and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. While the President correctly argues that high interest rates make federal debt service costly, Sternberg

S8 Ep344: PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Judy Dempsey. Dempsey contrasts Europe's expensive but secure power supply with the dire situation in Kyiv, where Russian bombing has destroyed heating and water infrastructure. While the EU struggles with disunity over gas

PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Judy Dempsey. Dempsey contrasts Europe's expensive but secure power supply with the dire situation in Kyiv, where Russian bombing has destroyed heating and water infrastructure. While the EU struggles with disunity over gas supplies and U.S.-Greenland relations, Ukraine faces a freezing winter with schools closed and a state of emergency.
1920 ODESSA

S8 Ep344: PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Lance Gatling. Gatling analyzes the gamble taken by Takaichi Sanae, Japan's first female prime minister, in calling a snap election for February. Despite the ruling party's low polling due to scandals, she boasts a personal

PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Lance Gatling. Gatling analyzes the gamble taken by Takaichi Sanae, Japan's first female prime minister, in calling a snap election for February. Despite the ruling party's low polling due to scandals, she boasts a personal approval rating of over 75 percent and seeks a parliamentary mandate to enact long-term policy goals.
1931 MATSUYA DEPARTMENT STORE, TOKYO

S8 Ep344: PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Mary Kissel. Kissel describes the President's focus on Greenland as a political diversion from domestic inflation and foreign policy criticisms. However, she notes the move highlights a genuine security issue, citing a forme

PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Mary Kissel. Kissel describes the President's focus on Greenland as a political diversion from domestic inflation and foreign policy criticisms. However, she notes the move highlights a genuine security issue, citing a former ambassador's claim that Denmark failed to honor a $200 million defense commitment to the island.
1940 GREENLAND

S8 Ep344: PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Elizabeth Peek. Peek argues that the recent drop in gasoline prices to an average of $2.80 acts as a major tax cut for American consumers. She notes that unlike the anger caused by $5-a-gallon gas under previous leadership,

PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Elizabeth Peek. Peek argues that the recent drop in gasoline prices to an average of $2.80 acts as a major tax cut for American consumers. She notes that unlike the anger caused by $5-a-gallon gas under previous leadership, the current retreat in oil prices is significantly benefiting the driving public.
1920 LANGLEY AERODROME WASHIGTON DC.

S8 Ep344: PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Gregory Copley. Copley explains that European states fear the United States will dictate terms regarding Greenland, viewing this as a continuation of post-WWII history. He argues Washington has systematically subordinated al

PREVIEW FOR LATER TODAY Guest: Gregory Copley. Copley explains that European states fear the United Stateswill dictate terms regarding Greenland, viewing this as a continuation of post-WWII history. He argues Washington has systematically subordinated allies by compromising their defense industries and autonomy, leaving them as dependent states liable to be "insulted at will."
1914 AUSTRALIA IN FRANCE

S8 Ep343: SHOW SCHEDULE 1-19-2026 Guest: Professor Richard Carwardine. Carwardine discusses President James Buchanan's January 4, 1861, national fast day, intended to unite a fracturing nation through prayer and repentance. While old-school Presbyterians like Cha

SHOW SCHEDULE
1-19-2026
1914 FLAG DAY WITH WILSON, BRYAN, ROOSEVELT

  1. Guest: Professor Richard Carwardine. Carwardine discusses President James Buchanan's January 4, 1861, national fast day, intended to unite a fracturing nation through prayer and repentance. While old-school Presbyterians like Charles Hodge supported this call for divine intervention, the effort largely failed to forestall war. The event highlighted three distinct groups of religious nationalists: conservative Unionists, anti-slavery Republicans viewing slavery as a national sin, and pro-slavery theologians defending the institution on scriptural grounds.

  2. Guest: Professor Richard Carwardine. Carwardine explains that President-elect Lincoln did not view Republicans as overly aggressive, positioning himself as a constitution-respecting centrist rather than a radical. Lincoln opposed slavery's expansion but acknowledged its constitutional protection where it already existed, believing the South was misled by elites and would eventually return to the Union. Ironically, Lincoln and Buchanan, though political opposites, worshiped at the same Washington church, sharing an old-school Presbyterian background.

  3. Guest: Professor Richard Carwardine. In September 1861, Lincoln proclaimed a fast day, carefully avoiding specific references to slavery to maintain political unity. Carwardine details the conflict surrounding General Frémont's unauthorized emancipation order, which Lincoln revoked to prevent losing loyal border states like Kentucky. Consequently, anti-slavery nationalists used the pulpits to criticize Lincoln's caution, demanding the war become an explicit crusade against the "gigantic crime" of slavery rather than just a restoration of the Union.

  4. Guest: Professor Richard Carwardine. The discussion turns to Confederate Vice President Alexander Stephens' "Cornerstone Speech," which explicitly defined racial inequality as the Confederacy's foundation, a stance widely condemned in the North. Carwardine notes that despite earlier tensions, Lincoln viewed his fast days as successful, utilizing them and meetings with religious delegations to gauge public sentiment and prepare the ground for eventual emancipation. Lincoln valued these interactions to influence and learn from denominational leaders.

  5. Guest: Professor Richard Carwardine. Carwardine details the intense political opposition Lincoln faced in 1863 following the Emancipation Proclamation. He highlights Clement Vallandigham, a "Peace Democrat" leader who viewed the war as unwinnable and Lincoln as a "Puritan despot." Carwardine explains that the Democraticcoalition was fractured by religion, specifically between Catholics and Protestants, yet united in opposing the administration. Lincoln ultimately banished Vallandigham to the Confederacy to neutralize his influence.

  6. Guest: Professor Richard Carwardine. Carwardine discusses James McMaster, the Catholic editor of the Freeman's Journal, characterizing him as an extraordinary polemicist who was imprisoned for his "vituperations" against the war. McMaster argued the war denied the rights of free men and refused to retract his views upon release. The segment also features Samuel "Sunset" Cox, a Democrat who famously attacked New England Puritanism as the source of the nation's meddling and moral extremity.

  7. Guest: Professor Richard Carwardine. The discussion turns to the Union's "low point" in August 1864, where Lincoln expected to lose the election to Democrat George McClellan. Carwardine describes the Democraticcampaign as "brokenbacked" for pairing a general with a peace platform. However, the fall of Atlanta revived Union hopes. Carwardine emphasizes how pastors articulated a "higher cause"—the preservation of a unique republican government—to justify the war's terrible "bloodletting" and sacrifice.

  8. Guest: Pr

S8 Ep342: Guest: Brenda Wineapple. The trial ended abruptly with a guilty verdict, denying Bryan his closing speech; he died days later, likely due to heat, stress, and diabetes. John Scopes eventually became a geologist and lived a reclusive life, refusing to exp

Guest: Brenda Wineapple. The trial ended abruptly with a guilty verdict, denying Bryan his closing speech; he died days later, likely due to heat, stress, and diabetes. John Scopes eventually became a geologist and lived a reclusive life, refusing to exploit his fame. Darrow's later career fluctuated, including a controversial defense in the racially charged Massie trial in Hawaii, before his death in 1938, leaving behind a complex legacy beyond the "Inherit the Wind" narrative.
1925 BRYAN'S FUNERAL AT ARLINGTON

S8 Ep342: Guest: Brenda Wineapple. During a stifling heatwave, the trial moved outdoors where Darrow executed a shocking maneuver by calling prosecutor William Jennings Bryan to the witness stand. Darrow interrogated Bryan on his literal interpretation of the Bible

Guest: Brenda Wineapple. During a stifling heatwave, the trial moved outdoors where Darrow executed a shocking maneuver by calling prosecutor William Jennings Bryan to the witness stand. Darrow interrogated Bryan on his literal interpretation of the Bible, questioning stories like Jonah and the whale. Bryan faltered, admitting creation "days" might be metaphorical periods, which undermined his fundamentalist position and allowed Darrow to humiliate him regarding his knowledge of history, geology, and world religions.
1860 SPENCER TRACY AS CLARENCE DARROW, "INHERIT THE WIND."

S8 Ep342: Guest: Brenda Wineapple. The defense suffered a major setback when the judge ruled that their scientific experts could not testify before the jury, forcing them to read affidavits into the record instead. H.L. Mencken, the acerbic journalist who dubbed th

Guest: Brenda Wineapple. The defense suffered a major setback when the judge ruled that their scientific experts could not testify before the jury, forcing them to read affidavits into the record instead. H.L. Mencken, the acerbic journalist who dubbed the event the "Monkey Trial," covered the proceedings. Sympathetic to Darrow and critical of Bryan's"fanatic" views, Mencken influenced public perception, though the jury remained shielded from the scientific evidence the defense hoped to present.
1960 FREDERIC MARCH AS WILLIAM JENNINGS BRYAN "INHERIT THE WIND"