How national parties are breaking state politics
Over the past generation, the Democratic and Republican parties have each become nationally coordinated political teams. American political institutions, on the other hand, remain highly decentralized...
7 Feb 202242min
Can the courts save civics education?
Recent elections and the January 6, 2021 U.S. Capitol insurrection have underscored worrisome trends in the present state of our democracy: the extreme polarization of the electorate, the dismissal of...
31 Jan 202240min
When religion and democracy collide
Correction: In this episode, we referred to St. John's Church in Lafayette Square as a Presbyterian Church. It is an Episcopalian Church. We apologize for the error.Around the world, religion is being...
24 Jan 202237min
Sore losers are bad for democracy
We're back for a new season and our 200th episode! Penn State's Jim Piazza returns to the show this week to discuss a new study on why the loser's consent is a critical part of a healthy democracy — a...
17 Jan 202240min
On democracy's doomsayers
There's no shortage of articles these days about how democracy is doomed in 2022 and/or 2024. Michael, Chris, and Candis discuss them this week and work through how much weight to give the doomsayers ...
20 Des 202139min
What does it take to sustain democracy?
Political disagreements are everywhere these days and most experts agree that too much political polarization is bad for democracy in the long run. How do we move beyond those disagreements, or at lea...
13 Des 202139min
Fannie Lou Hamer's fight continues today
In her book Until I Am Free, Keisha N. Blain situates Fannie Lou Hamer as a key political thinker alongside leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and Rosa Parks and demonstrates how her i...
6 Des 202139min
Andrew Yang and Charlie Dent on the future of America's political parties
This week, we broadcast a recording from a virtual event with Andrew Yang and Charlie Dent on political parties and democracy reform. We discuss open primaries, ranked-choice voting, universal voting,...
29 Nov 20211h 14min
