Claim OwnershipPolitics with Paul
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Approachable, nonpartisan, and nonideological analysis of various political topics by nonpartisan political analyst, writer, researcher, and speaker Paul Rader.
62 Episodes
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Common ground in politics seems more and more like a fleeting dream, a relic of the past. But it is attainable--and there are actionable ways for all of us to get there.
This week's Politics with Paul guest, Nathan C. Smolensky, discusses what these practical tips are. Nathan also talks about how to make constructive dialogue more conducive to winning elections, whether you can have a civil conversation with anyone, and why hostile reactions to political views (even if justified) don't help solve anything.
The US House of Representatives has remained at 435 members for over a century, despite significant population growth. Could adding more members fix Congress' issues with responsiveness and representativeness of the American people?
In today's episode, we explore that question. Included is the vision of the Framers of the Constitution for the US House, a brief history of the size of the chamber, the biggest arguments made for and against increasing its membership, why it's tricky to expand it, and the ultimate goals of advocates for expanding the US House.
The freedom of speech is at the core of American civic life, but it has also been constantly tested and refined over the course of the nation's history.
Today, we delve into what is and isn't free speech, how the government has tested its boundaries, how the US Supreme Court has ruled on certain free speech cases, why it is so important we promote free speech in our daily lives (not just in relation to the government), and more.
If we're going to turn back the tide of political violence, it's going to take all of us. Fortunately, there are simple steps any of us can take to start pushing against the acceptance and use of violence to achieve political goals.
Today's episode of Politics with Paul covers some of the reasons why people feel justified in using or supporting political violence. If we are going to fix this problem, we need to know why it occurs in the first place. At the end, I give actionable ways that we can fix the political climate and highlight some of the groups working to build bridges.
Join the movement for a non-toxic political climate.
Ideological labels are common appeals in political campaigns and battles. For various reasons, however, the actual meaning of conservative, liberal, and moderate have been intentionally and unintentionally obfuscated.
Today's episode explores the most basic meanings of conservative, liberal, and moderate; how elites and voters variously define the terms and why; the difference between party and ideology; how you should view ideological labels; and more.
The vast majority of today’s political discourse focuses on extremes and polarized voices. But is moderation the solution? More specifically, is "radical moderation" the kind of moderation we should be striving for?
On today's episode, Professor Lauren Hall joins the show to discuss her concept of radical moderation. She talks about what radical moderation is and isn't, how to apply its principles, how it addresses polarization, and more.
NOTE: I do not endorse or oppose any guest's political views or groups they support.
In today's episode, activist and author Luis-Enrique Marquez sits down to discuss his involvement in political protests. What's it like to be on the front lines of a protest? What are the biggest challenges in forming protests? How do protesters feel about their media coverage? How do protesters engage with opposition and critics?
Luis-Enrique gives his takes on these questions and much more. At the end, he also discusses his book, and what he feels liberals, conservatives, and moderates alike can take away from it.
It's important to have political convictions that you believe in and will fight for. Yet political discourse is also rife with stubbornness and an inability to consider opposing views. You have to stand for something but you must also be willing to compromise.
What is the dividing line between being strong in your convictions and being willing to compromise? What does public opinion polling say about citizens' desire for compromise? What factors hinder the likelihood of compromise and where do we see compromise most often? How do we move as a country toward a willingness to compromise? These questions and more are explored on today's podcast.
Shaka Mitchell joins the podcast today to discuss how we can change education policy to positively improve civic engagement among both students and parents. Shaka is a senior fellow with the American Federation for Children, a professor of constitutional law at Belmont University, and an attorney.
How does how we teach our kids (and adults) about the political process affect how invested people are in politics? Where are the areas most in need of improvement? How can parents better facilitate civic engagement in students? How do we use education to reconnect citizens to the political process. Tune in to hear Shaka's insights on these questions and much more!
On today's episode, guest Alex Vassar discusses some of the biggest challenges facing the preservation and teaching of political history and civics, and how we can make these better. Alex is the founder of JoinCalifornia.com (a repository of election data and facts for the State of California), the founder of the One Voter Project, and the communications manager for the California State Library.
How do we best preserve political history? How do we make that history accessible and engaging for other people, especially if they are not as interested in history? What are some of the biggest obstacles to improving civic and historical understanding amongst the public? What is some advice for groups in other states looking to build political history databases? Tune in to hear Alex's insights on these questions and much more!
On today's guest episode, Guy and Heidi Burgess of the Conflict Information Consortium share 40 years of insights into the broken state of America's political discourse and how to fix it. Among their works are the Beyond Intractability Knowledge Base, Moving Beyond Intractability, and the Constructive Conflict Initiative, projects dedicated to making our conversations about the most divisive issues more productive and encouraging.
How do we improve America's political dialogue? What are intractable conflicts that need more constructive ways to be discussed? How do we come to a better understanding of each other and take steps to solve our intractable conflicts? Are we more polarized than ever? Tune in to hear Guy and Heidi's expertise on these questions and more!
It's episode 50! There are some Americans who simply don't care about politics, or at least not nearly to the extent they should. In some respects, these citizens have a responsibility to care about politics, and to inform themselves about what is going on. At the same time, however, there are understandable reasons why some citizens throw up their hands and tune out politics. To effectively tackle the problem of political apathy, we must examine all these root causes and how to address each of them, not just simply blame people for their apathy.
How do we measure political apathy? Which citizens tend to be more apathetic? In what ways does political apathy manifest? Why are some voters apathetic? And: Why does political apathy pose such a threat, including unintentionally contributing to our nation's polarization? All this and more is on tap for today's podcast.
What goes into advocating for bills in state legislatures? How do you reach out to different interests of both lawmakers and activists to build a bipartisan coalition? What are the toughest parts of the legislative process to deal with as an advocate?
Here to talk about that and more on today's episode are two members of the Florida Student Policy Forum, Graham Bernstein and Jacob Kaplan. They discuss their work on Florida bills involving expedited foreclosures on abandoned properties, phone calls for prisoners on good behavior, and school corporal punishment reform. At the end, they also give advice for other advocates, especially college students, looking to make a difference in the legislative process...and an incorrect take on whether hot dogs are sandwiches.
Is split-ticket voting is US elections dead? How do we measure split-ticket voting? What impacts our analysis of it? What does split-ticketing look like from historical data and how did it shape up in the 2024 election? Is there any cause for concern? And: Will split-ticketing make a comeback?
Today we explore not only data behind split-ticketing but the more descriptive aspects of how we study it and some philosophical implications behind it. Is split-ticketing really on the decline as much as some political observers have said? And how different - or similar - is it to years past? What does it all mean? What does the future hold? Let's find out.
Polling consistently indicates that large majorities of people believe a third major party is needed because the Democratic and Republican Parties do not adequately represent the American people. Despite this, third parties rarely win any elections, even at the local and state levels.
Why do we not see 3rd parties be more regularly competitive in US elections despite immense dissatisfaction with the Republican and Democratic Parties? Have we had 3rd parties that were competitive in the past? What makes a 3rd party competitive? Will we soon see a 3rd party become a regular contender for big-time elected offices in the near future? All this and more are on tap for today’s episode.
Is it better to have an efficient government or a deliberative government? Can a government be both swift-acting and thoughtful in responding to the needs of citizens? Constituents often lament government as inefficient, taking too long to respond to crises before or when they arise. They also often decry government action as not taking into account their wants and opinions.
Today's episode explores this seeming dichotomy between efficiency and deliberation. What makes a government efficient or deliberative? How did the Founding Fathers view this debate? How does this debate shape our conversations about the function of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches today? Are efficient and deliberation inherently at odds?
Most people can see that American politics is rife with polarization. It's led to countless examples of enmity, strife, harsh rhetoric, broken relationships…and violence. But what many people don't realize is that polarization takes on multiple forms, and thus manifests and foments in different ways.
And one of the most unfortunate truths is that there is one particular type of polarization that any of us can display.
What are the different types of polarization? Why is it important to understand the different types? How do we measure them? How long has America been polarized? And which particular type of polarization is one that can, unfortunately, be exhibited by any one of us? All this and more is on tap for today's episode.
It's time for us all to take a step back and reevaluate how we approach politics.
The national debt has ballooned to $36 trillion. Just about everybody agrees that it's a major issue...but yet we have significant trouble tackling it. We agree that the deficit and debt are not sustainable forever, but we often have much different ideas on how they need to be lowered. It's a complicated issue to sufficiently address because of a variety of financial, structural, and political factors.
What is the history of the national debt? What makes up our national debt? How is it viewed as a campaign issue? Why is it so difficult to cut spending? Is a Balanced Budget Amendment to the US Constitution on the horizon? All this and more is on tap for today’s episode.
Recall elections are a unique democratic process allowing citizens to remove elected officials before the end of their term. The mechanism has existed since before the independence of the US, but didn't become popularized until the beginning of the 20th century. Many state and local-level officials have been subjected to recall campaigns, but some political observers have increasingly called into question the reasoning behind such efforts.
Today's episode explores the history of the recall in America, how recall elections work, how recalls even get on the ballot, and the normative and philosophical questions behind their use. Are political recalls being overused as partisan or ideological tools? If they are, does that mean they shouldn't be used?
Everybody has knowledge gaps when it comes to politics, no matter how much we know. There is just too much information to pay attention to, and not all of it is good. Unfortunately, that leaves the door open for political actors to try to exploit our biases or lack of understanding.
Fortunately, however, there are ways to protect yourself against these attempts to manipulate our behavior and thought processes. Today covers some of the ways you can protect yourself by decreasing engagement with clickbait/ragebait, tips for researching political info, healthy skepticism about political arguments, and how to disagree in a more effective and healthy fashion. With these tools, we can better protect ourselves from manipulation by those with vested political interests.
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