Flux Podcasts (Formerly Theory of Change)

Episode Summary For decades, the American far-right has been screeching constantly that its activists and politicians are being censored by “cancel culture.” It’s nonsense, of course, because almost invariably everyone who supposed canceled ends up with a huge media following and a very profitable victim narrative. But the lies about mass censorship of reactionaries and conservatives aren’t just about manipulating the public into feeling sympathy for completely unsympathetic figures like Donald Trump. They’re also about power. In the so-called marketplace of ideas, right-wing ideas lost decades ago. Among many other things, well-educated people know that race is a social construct, that transgender people have existed for centuries, and that America’s most-influential founders were not Christian nationalists. Reactionaries have failed to make their case, and this is the main reason they don’t get hired by universities. You can’t have a credible biology department if “creation science” is the mandated policy. Anthropologists pushing discredited “race science” are regarded as disturbed freaks, and rightfully so. But instead of trying to come up with some better ideas, like they’d have to in an actual meritocracy, the American far right has decided to force them into the public square. This is what the cancel culture narrative is all about, establishing a false scenario to justify the gigantic censorship regime that the second Trump White House is establishing. Outside of the United States, right-wing parties have been envying the success Republicans have had, and they are applying the lessons to their own countries. Unfortunately, the mainstream media in other countries have not learned anything from the mistakes of American journalists in falling for these deceptions. Will the left in the United States and elsewhere ever be able to effectively counter these manipulations? And are the people at the top even aware of what’s going on? We discuss it on today’s episode with Adrian Daub, the author of a book on the subject called The Cancel Culture Panic. He’s also a professor of humanities at Stanford University and the host of the podcast “In Bed With the Right.” The video of our December 3, 2024 discussion is available, the transcript is below. Because of its length, some podcast apps and email programs may truncate it. Access the episode page to get the full page. Theory of Change and Flux are entirely community-supported. We need your help to keep doing this. Please subscribe to stay in touch. Related Content —Trump targets ‘improper ideology’ at Smithsonian museums —How the Trump administration is attacking science and scholarly merit at the National Institutes of Health —The forgotten history of how Republican college students invented canceling people —Inside the right-wing plan to ‘seize control of the administrative state’ —University administrators are totally ill-equipped for Trump’s massive censorship regime —Trump, Nietzsche, and the collapse of the Republican mind —Inspired by Trump, reactionary comedians are the most popular media figures in the Republican party —Charlie Kirk and Turning Point USA are building a reactionary cult for young people, does anyone on the center-left care? Audio Chapters 00:00 — Introduction 07:17 — Why 'cancel culture' rhetoric is more about affirmative action for illogical reactionary opinions 13:00 — Right-wing campus speakers are performance artists rather than academics 19:11 — Campus speech surveys rarely ask if people are afraid to disclose marginalized identities 22:39 — William F. Buckley Jr. and "God and Man at Yale" 28:12 — Insincere 'censorship' arguments as a hack of liberal epistemology 33:01 — Cancel culture narratives are about masking real power through fake populism 36:31 — Alan Bloom and "The Closing of the American Mind" 42:14 — Libertarianism and hierarchy in American politics 47:26 — Lies about cancel culture as permission structures for...

The Senate Finance Committee just advanced the nomination of Dr. Mehmet Oz to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), bringing his confirmation one step closer to reality. In this bonus episode, Jen Taylor-Skinner is joined by Nourbese Flint, president of All* Above All, for a critical conversation about what’s at stake. CMS oversees vital programs like Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act—making its leadership role one of the most powerful in shaping national healthcare policy. Dr. Oz, widely known for promoting unscientific treatments and holding controversial views, raises serious concerns—particularly for reproductive justice and the health of marginalized communities. Nourbese shares her perspective on the qualifications this role demands and reflects on the legacy of past CMS leaders, such as Chiquita Brooks-LaSure. We discuss the broader implications of Dr. Oz’s potential confirmation, including its impact on maternal health and the risks posed to vulnerable populations. Our conversation also explores the importance of grassroots resistance and political engagement in holding policymakers accountable. Nourbese offers strategies for community action and underscores why staying informed and involved is more important than ever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How can we combat disinformation in rural communities and empower voters with accurate information? In this episode, host Jen Taylor-Skinner sits down with Sarah Jaynes, Executive Director of the Rural Democracy Initiative, to explore how grassroots efforts, local media, and community influencers are pushing back against misinformation and mobilizing civic engagement in small towns across America. They discuss the shifting political landscape in rural areas, the economic consequences of recent policy decisions—such as cuts to USAID and Medicaid—and the power of local elections in reshaping the future. Sarah also dispels common myths about rural communities, highlighting their diversity and the often-overlooked support for progressive policies, LGBTQ rights, and workers' issues. With democracy at a crossroads, Sarah and Jen examine what it will take for Democratic leaders to show real strength, the impact of rural organizing in key swing districts, and why rural voices are essential in shaping national policy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Amber Nicole Thurman was a 28-year-old medical assistant, devoted mother from Georgia, and one of the first women to die following the Dobbs decision. In August 2022, she sought a medication abortion due to an unplanned pregnancy. Following the procedure, she experienced severe complications, including a grave infection. Despite her critical condition, medical staff at Piedmont Henry Hospital delayed performing a necessary dilation and curettage (D&C) procedure for over 20 hours, reportedly due to concerns about Georgia's restrictive abortion laws. In this episode, Amber Thurman's mother, Shanette Williams, speaks with Jen Taylor-Skinner about her daughter's death, the delayed care, and the urgency to restore reproductive rights across the country. Episode Resources: ProPublica: Abortion Bans Have Delayed Emergency Medical Care. In Georgia, Experts Say This Mother’s Death Was Preventable Free & Just is fighting to stop attacks on reproductive freedom and rights. We’re working with people across the country to share real stories to show the devastating consequences of attacks on our reproductive freedom. We all deserve the right to control our bodies and lives. That’s why we’re sharing our stories, raising our voices, and fighting for our future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Congressional Republicans have fast-tracked the SAVE Act (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act)—legislation that could disenfranchise tens of millions of American voters by imposing strict new citizenship verification requirements. Is this bill really about election integrity, or is it an unprecedented voter suppression effort? Host Jen Taylor-Skinner sits down with Eliza Sweren-Becker from the Brennan Center for Justice to break down the dangers of the SAVE Act, who it targets, and how it could reshape American democracy. From hidden costs to criminal penalties for election workers, this bill is more than just restrictive—it’s a direct attack on voting rights. This episode of The Electorette explores what’s at stake, why it’s happening now, and how you can take action before it’s too late. Learn more about the SAVE Act from The Brennan Center for Justice: https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/house-bill-would-hurt-american-voters 📢 Call your representatives and tell them to vote NO on the SAVE Act. ✉️ Subscribe for more in-depth discussions on voting rights, democracy, and justice. #SAVEAct #VotingRights #ElectionIntegrity #ElectorettePodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Natalie Davis, CEO of United States of Care, joins The Electorette host Jen Taylor-Skinner to examine the critical postpartum care crisis in the United States. Despite being a high-income nation, America’s maternal mortality rates highlight significant gaps in postpartum support. Davis discusses The 100 Weeks Project, a groundbreaking initiative designed to transform postpartum care by providing comprehensive, personalized support from conception through the first year postpartum. This initiative addresses the physical, mental, and social needs of mothers, fathers, and partners alike. The conversation shifts to the challenges of healthcare access for families, focusing on insurance disparities that disproportionately affect mothers. Davis and Taylor-Skinner explore cultural and societal barriers that hinder progress and discuss the need for a reimagined healthcare system—one that recognizes diverse family structures and guarantees essential care for all mothers. The discussion also highlights the emotional toll of navigating the healthcare system, particularly for mothers facing early motherhood struggles and NICU experiences. With the Supreme Court case Braidwood v. Becerra threatening to dismantle free preventive healthcare services under the Affordable Care Act, Davis underscores the urgent need for advocacy and systemic change. This episode offers an insightful and urgent call to action, emphasizing the importance of healthcare advocacy and the need for accessible, equitable postpartum care nationwide. 📢 Subscribe for more insightful conversations. Timestamps: (00:01) - Postpartum Care Crisis in America (14:06) - Reimagining Healthcare for Postpartum Mothers (24:47) - Threat to Free Preventive Health Services (34:59) - Healthcare Advocacy and Resources Episode Chapters: (00:01) Postpartum Care Crisis in America Maternal mortality rates and lack of support in postpartum care addressed through innovative 100 Weeks Project. (14:06) Reimagining Healthcare for Postpartum Mothers Insurance disparities and societal expectations hinder mothers' access to adequate postpartum care and highlight systemic issues in healthcare. (24:47) Threat to Free Preventive Health Services Mothers face emotional challenges in postpartum care, while a Supreme Court case threatens women's healthcare accessibility. (34:59) Healthcare Advocacy and Resources United States of Care addresses healthcare issues such as the 100 Weeks Project and the Preventive Services Court Case. #PostpartumCare #MaternalHealth #UnitedStatesofCare #NatalieDavis #HealthEquity #AffordableCareAct #BraidwoodvBecerra #HealthcareAdvocacy #Electorette #ReproductiveRights In this Episode United States of Care 100 Days of Care Listen to All Electorette Episodes https://www.electorette.com/podcast Support the Electorette Rate & Review on iTunes: https://apple.co/2GsfQj4 Also, if you enjoy the Electorette, please subscribe and leave a 5-star review on iTunes. And please spread the word by telling your friends, family, and colleagues about The Electorette! WANT MORE ELECTORETTE? Follow the Electorette on social media. Electorette Facebook Electorette Instagram Electorette Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For over a century, the NAACP has been a driving force in the fight for civil rights, shaping American democracy through groundbreaking legal victories, grassroots activism, and political advocacy. From dismantling segregation in Brown v. Board of Education to championing the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts, the NAACP’s impact is undeniable. And today, their fight continues. In this episode, I sit down with Patrice Willoughby, Chief of Policy and Legislative Affairs at the NAACP, for a powerful conversation about the organization's modern-day advocacy. We discuss their efforts to protect democracy during the 2024 presidential cycle, their response to Project 2025, and their strategy to mobilize Black voters. We also dive into the Kamala Harris campaign, the evolving role of Black women in politics, and how future campaigns can authentically engage with Black communities. In this Episode NAACP Our 2025 NAACP Our 2025 Toolkit NAACP Black Consumer Advisory Listen to All Electorette Episodes https://www.electorette.com/podcast Support the Electorette Rate & Review on iTunes: https://apple.co/2GsfQj4 Also, if you enjoy the Electorette, please subscribe and leave a 5-star review on iTunes. And please spread the word by telling your friends, family, and colleagues about The Electorette! WANT MORE ELECTORETTE? Follow the Electorette on social media. Electorette Facebook Electorette Instagram Electorette Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode Summary Donald Trump is now once again the president of the United States, but his victory in 2024 was more than just a victory for himself or the Republican Party, it actually is part of a larger advancement that is happening across many different countries around the globe for right-wing reactionary parties who are sometimes incorrectly referred to as populist. (These parties are not populist, in fact, because their policies that they pursue have no material benefit to the people who vote for them. But instead they use vulgarian rhetoric to pretend to be populist.) Despite the fact that these far-right parties have policies that are hurtful to their own voters and to their countries that have elected them, they have been able to win because the center-left and the further-left are caught up in a philosophical crisis of liberalism itself. And that's because liberalism as a philosophy has never actually been able to fight successfully against reactionary philosophy in the political realm in the English-speaking world. Instead, the last time that it won was 200 years ago when it defeated monarchism, which was an explicitly king-based approach. But reactionaries like Donald Trump and his henchmen are not explicitly pro-monarch—at least to the public. They certainly are that way in private, as many of their political theorists like Curtis Yarvin and JD Vance have freely admitted. That is why understanding how to defeat a form of monarchism that argues through democratic means is proving to be an incredible challenge for liberalism and socialism. On today's episode, I talk about some of these challenges and the historical origins of them with Matthew McManus. He’s a lecturer in political science at the University of Michigan, a previous guest on the show, and he’s got a new book out now called The Political Theory of Liberal Socialism. The video of our January 21, 2025 discussion is available, the transcript is below. Because of its length, some podcast apps and email programs may truncate it. Access the episode page to get the full page. Theory of Change and Flux are entirely community-supported. We need your help to keep doing this. Please subscribe to stay in touch. Related Content Inside the extremist ideology of JD Vance (McManus’s previous appearance on Theory of Change) The ‘post-left’ is the latest right-wing scam How Republicans became the party of the John Birch Society The Christian right was a theological rebellion before it became a political cause The disinformation techniques used by Trump and today’s Republicans were invented by tobacco companies in the 1970s How 90s libertarian billionaires transmogrified into the neo-reactionary extremists of the 2020s Audio Chapters 00:00 — Introduction 11:30 — How liberalism and the left grew apart during the Cold War 17:52 — Nietzsche and liberalism's meaning crisis 23:21 — Socialist traditions' better understanding of marginalization 30:49 — Charles Mills and critical race theory extend rather than reject Western philosophy 32:33 — Thomas Paine vs. Edmund Burke 36:54 — How socialists failed to build institutions 41:37 — Radical leftists haven't realized the necessity of persuasion 47:56 — Democrats also refuse to explain or persuade 53:12 — Liberalism has never developed the ability to politically defeat reactionism Audio Transcript The following is a machine-generated transcript of the audio that has not been proofed. It is provided for convenience purposes only. MATTHEW SHEFFIELD: I think before we get too far afield into that into the actual contents of the book, let's talk about what do you mean by liberal socialism as distinct from liberalism and as distinct from socialism. MATT McMANUS: Sure. Well, there are a couple of different things to say about that just being very simply. I follow people like Alan Ryan or Michael Friedan or Peter Lam on the socialist end of things who point out that it's very easy to take narrow...

Is it possible to turn Texas Blue? Especially considering the large Latino, and Black voters in the state who share political interests like climate justice, housing justice, and immigration reform. Brianna Brown of the Texas Organizing Project, or TOP, joins Jen Taylor-Skinner, on The Electorette, to discuss how they are using collective organizing to build community, grow political power, and build unstoppable coalitions in Texas. We also discuss how the organization seeks to repair fissures created between Black and Latino communities that were widened during the 2024 election cycle. In this Episode Texas Organizing Project Listen to All Electorette Episodes https://www.electorette.com/podcast Support the Electorette Rate & Review on iTunes: https://apple.co/2GsfQj4 Also, if you enjoy the Electorette, please subscribe and leave a 5-star review on iTunes. And please spread the word by telling your friends, family, and colleagues about The Electorette! WANT MORE ELECTORETTE? Follow the Electorette on social media. Electorette Facebook Electorette Instagram Electorette Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode Summary The second term of Donald Trump has officially begun, but despite all the things he’s unveiled in the past several weeks, we don’t know fully what his policies are going to be over the next four years. That is in part because Trump himself is a very erratic figure who says things that are nonsensical, even by his own standards. While there are documents such as Project 2025 which were created by Trump's ideological allies in the reactionary movement, that document itself is not particularly detailed in a number of ways. But one thing we can be sure is going to happen in the second Trump administration is that he will conduct a full-scale assault on America's colleges and universities. As a candidate, he promised repeatedly to create taxes on private university endowments. And he also talked about removing the funding for universities that don't bow to his various censorship demands, which are already being imposed on federal government agencies such as the National Institute of Health. Unlike a number of other Trumpian boasts and threats, he is very likely to follow through on his promised attacks on higher education because Republicans in a number of states and localities have enacted many of the policies that Trump talked about on the campaign trail. Joining me today to talk about all this is Nils Gilman, a friend of the show who is the chief operating officer at the Berggruen Institute, a think tank in Southern California that publishes Noema Magazine. He is also the former associate chancellor at the University of California-Berkeley, where he saw first-hand just what the [00:02:00] Republican vision for education in the United States is. He’s also the co-author of a new book called Children of a Modest Star, which we discuss at the end of the episode. The video of our December 18, 2024 discussion is available, the transcript is below. Because of its length, some podcast apps and email programs may truncate it. Access the episode page to get the full Theory of Change and Flux are entirely community-supported. We need your help to keep doing this. Please subscribe to stay in touch. Related Content —The forgotten history of how Republican college students invented “canceling” people —Inside the right-wing plan to ‘seize control of the administrative state’ —Charlie Kirk and Turning Point USA are building a reactionary cult for young people, does anyone on the center-left care? —MAGA media figures previewed Trump’s extreme priorities for his second term —Inspired by Trump, reactionary comedians are the most popular media figures in the Republican party —Jordan Peterson and the far-right’s war on education and sound epistemology Audio Chapters 00:00 — Introduction 03:31 — The Milo Yiannopoulos incident at Berkeley 13:34 — Trump has learned from other authoritarians' playbooks 22:36 — The crisis of legitimacy in higher education 32:24 — The role of sports in universities 34:55 — DeSantis's attack on Florida universities will be Trump's model 39:52 — Historical parallels: Germany in the 1930s and the rise of the American university 43:39 — Despite the right's wholesale assault on education, many academics still don't take it seriously 46:43 — The deadly myth of "non-partisanship" in an era where the far-right is assaulting all knowledge 51:17 — Liberalism's epistemic inability to use power politics 55:24 — 'Children of a Modest Star' and a future-oriented liberalism Audio Transcript The following is a machine-generated transcript of the audio that has not been proofed. It is provided for convenience purposes only. MATTHEW SHEFFIELD: So before we get too far into the topic of discussion for today, let's just briefly talk about your own personal direct experience with some of these issues and some of the ideas and people that are surely going to be a factor in what Trump is going to do with education. NILS GILMAN: Sure, well the last seven years, I've been working at a. Research...

The gun violence crisis in America has shown little signs of slowing, and even though most Americans are desperate to stop the violence, congressional gridlock prevents us from making progress. Guns Down America—an organization focused on building a future with fewer guns, weakening the gun industry, and building political and cultural support for policies that will keep us safe from gun violence—has a plan to circumvent that gridlock. Morgan Avrigean of Guns Down America discusses the organization's strategy, and how they've achieved victory's despite decades of inertia. In this Episode Business Must Act: Are your favorite businesses keeping you safe from gun violence? The Deadliest Places to Grocery Shop in America Business Gun Safety Scorecard Listen to All Electorette Episodes https://www.electorette.com/podcast Support the Electorette Rate & Review on iTunes: https://apple.co/2GsfQj4 Also, if you enjoy the Electorette, please subscribe and leave a 5-star review on iTunes. And please spread the word by telling your friends, family, and colleagues about The Electorette! WANT MORE ELECTORETTE? Follow the Electorette on social media. Electorette Facebook Electorette Instagram Electorette Twitter Resources A video from writer, and content creator, Franchesca Ramsey on grief was mentioned in the intro of the episode. The video can be found here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode Summary As Donald Trump’s second presidential administration takes shape with a host of controversial and unpopular executive orders and numerous unqualified and bizarre nominees like Fox News weekend host Pete Hegseth, it raises the question, is this what his voters asked for? That question is actually a lot more difficult to answer than it may seem, because people voted for Trump for a variety of different reasons, some of which were even contradictory. We'll get into that on today’s episode and also discuss why Democrats have been unwilling and unable to offer a different alternative to the politics of credentialism that they've been creating for the past several decades. My guest on today's episode is Chris Lehmann, the Washington bureau chief for The Nation magazine. He's also the author of the 2016 book, “The Money Cult: Capitalism, Christianity, and the Unmaking of the American Dream.” The video of our December 17, 2024 discussion is available, the transcript is below. Because of its length, some podcast apps and email programs may truncate it. Access the episode page to get the full text. Related Content --Centrist elites stalling necessary change made room for the reactionary right --Why January 6th was the inevitable product of the Christian Right’s hatred of America --How Pentecostal Christianity is taking over the world of religion, and why it matters --Ezra Taft Benson and the tangled history of Mormon and evangelical extremism --Lehmann article: Trump’s inauguration revealed whom he really serves: the billionaires and the crypto bros --Lehmann article: A guide to the lesser-known movers and shakers of Trump’s administration --Lehmann article: What happened to the Democratic Party? Audio Chapters 00:00 — Introduction 06:09 — Ultra-libertarians and religious zealots think the same way 09:09 — Friedrich Nietzsche is the ultimate inspiration for today's tech oligarchs 15:51 — Democrats don't know how to advocate against religious zealotry 19:55 — Far-right people lost in the marketplace of ideas, so they're trying to overthrow the marketplace 24:38 — Hypocrisy isn't a vice to rightwingers, and the left should stop using it as an argument 27:58 — Democrats refuse to retire failed leaders 31:01 — Despite Democrats' problems, progressives have not learned to persuade 36:03 — Democrats want to win at politics, but hate actually engaging in it 40:25 — Democrats' dilemma with working class representation 41:56 — Have wealthy Democrats reduced race and class advocacy into symbolic gestures? 48:46 — Adlai Stevenson as a Democratic archetype 49:53 — Will the new Democratic National Committee chair shake things up in the party? 55:49 — The role of employers in immigration issues 58:42 — Conclusion Audio Transcript The following is a machine-generated transcript of the audio that has not been proofed. It is provided for convenience purposes only. MATTHEW SHEFFIELD: Your book, I believe, kind of prefigured the final form of Trumpism which is what we're seeing now, a cabinet of oligarchs, despite the fact that he ran on being a populist supposedly, and this is not at all what people thought they were getting. So, just give us a little synopsis overall of the book if you could, and then we can go from there. CHRIS LEHMANN: The Money Cult is a sort of reinterpretation of American religious history. I won't bore you with the full sweep of the argument, but it's an argument that basically what we now see as the prosperity gospel, which is a Pentecostal tendency to equate wealth with Christian virtue is actually, it's long been sort of dismissed as a Huxley's grift, and the Elmer Gantry kind of, mode of fast [00:03:00] talking revivalists who take everyone's money, get embroiled in a sex scandal and then disappear. And my view it's much more central to religious and political history in America. And we've seen over time very pronounced movement of first sort of ambivalence about market...

Episode Summary Following her recent electoral defeat, many people have questioned why Kamala Harris didn't go on to the podcast of Joe Rogan, the standup comedian and sports commentator who has the number-one podcast in the world. For the record, Harris’s former advisers have said that they tried to coordinate a time with Rogan, but they very obviously did not make it a priority. The more interesting related question that other people have been asking post election is why is there no left-wing Joe Rogan? The immediate answer is that there is not a full-service Democratic ecosystem that includes media, legal, and local components. There are also some larger reasons why Rogan and other libertarian-oriented people have signed up with the Republican Party, after having hated it in the 1990s and 2000s when party was less radical. But there are some more specific reasons for why Rogan and people like him have become de facto Republicans that are especially relevant since Rogan himself once supported the presidential candidacy of Bernie Sanders—and they involve how the Democratic Party communicates, or rather, doesn’t, to the public. In recent decades, Democrats and the American left as a whole have moved to a communication strategy which focuses more on controlling the message in every possible way rather than trying to forcefully advocate and explain its ideas to people who have never heard them. On issues of science, economics, race, climate, gender, and regulation, Democrats have, by and large, resorted to blindly pointing to expert consensus rather than making the case to the uninformed. Joining me to discuss on this episode is Lisa Corrigan, she’s a professor of communications and gender studies at the University of Arkansas. She’s also the author of several different books, including Prison Power: How Prison Influenced the Movement for Black Liberation. The video of our December 9, 2024 discussion is available, the transcript is below. Because of its length, some podcast apps and email programs may truncate it. Access the episode page to get the full text. Related Content —How podcasts became a key source of news and entertainment for millions of Americans —Right-wing comedy isn’t particularly funny, but it’s extremely effective at persuading low-information voters —Joe Rogan and the epidemic of pseudo-expertise —Former establishment Republican have made the Democratic party more conservative, and less electorally successful —As libertarianism has radicalized, some of Silicon Valley's biggest names are turning toward fascism —Why Christian authoritarians and atheistic libertarians decided to meet in the middle —The ‘Intellectual Dark Web’ and the long history of right-wing rebranding —How the Donald Trump fandom completely reshaped the Republican media ecosystem Audio Chapters 00:00 — Introduction 03:24 — Democratic leaders' excessive desire to control all media encounters 08:42 — Howard Stern, Joe Rogan, and the rise to dominance of casual infotainment 14:05 — Democrats have lost the urge and the ability to debate 23:11 — Democrats' post-graduate economic bubble 27:06 — Republicans overthrew their obsolete party establishment, can Democrats? 31:38 — How "The West Wing" encouraged Democrats to adopt a fictional communications strategy 35:08 — Kamala Harris's initial media interview strategy and Democrats' total risk aversion 39:56 — Trump targeted disengaged Americans with media appearances, Harris with advertisements 42:39 — Why did Democrats lose ground with women despite the overturning of Roe v. Wade? 46:49 — The Democratic Party doesn't want to talk to low-information voters 54:40 — As Democrats have won more prosperous voters, they've become less interested in economic populism 59:20 — The ALEC behemoth outside the Beltway 01:03:19 — Conclusion Audio Transcript The following is a machine-generated transcript of the audio that has not been proofed. It is provided for convenience...

Episode Summary Kamala Harris’s loss to Donald Trump came as a huge surprise to many Democratic Party loyalists, especially since Republicans had a number of serious defeats in elections in 2018 and in 2022, and abortion rights ballot initiatives prevailed in every state where the public had voted on them since the Republican Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. So what happened? We've talked on this program at length in several episodes about how Democrats have failed enormously to invest in advocacy media to the degree that Republicans have. But a political ecosystem isn’t just about national media, it’s also about how things work at the local level as well. And in that regard, the Republican Party is also very superior to Democrats. Working together and individually in cities and towns across America, fundamentalist religious organizations and local talk radio hosts are constantly explaining Republican viewpoints to the public, taking the message to Americans who don’t follow politics closely. While they may not understand all the particulars, these citizens believe that there are people in their communities who are looking out for them. They can see and talk to people who explain the world and tell them what they can do about it. Within the Democratic Party, however, these types of local political institutions are sometimes regarded as antiquated or absurd. This was not always so. In the past, labor union halls and liberal religious communities were places where people were able to learn that progress isn’t something that happens, it’s something that’s made. The right’s huge advantage at the local level has been in place for a long time, as sociologist Theda Skocpol documented in 1995: “The Democratic party no longer has a national, locally rooted infrastructure of loyal local organizations and allied groups (such as labor unions) through which concerted grass-roots political campaigns can be run. The conservatives right now have such an infrastructure, in the form of grass-roots Christian fundamentalist groups and Rush Limbaugh-style talk radio. But Democrats depend on pollsters, media consultants, and television to get messages out to the citizenry. Yet pollsters and political consultants tend to think in terms of appealing labels (‘Health Security’) and advertising slogans (‘security that can never be taken away’) rather than in terms of explanatory discussions.” One person who understands how all of this worked in days of yore is our guest on today’s episode. His name is Eric Loomis, and he's a labor historian at the University of Rhode Island. He’s written several different books, including A History of America in Ten Strikes. And he’s also a writer at the blog Lawyers, Guns, & Money. The video of this discussion is available, the transcript is below. Because of its length, some podcast apps and email programs may truncate it. Access the episode page to get the full text. Theory of Change and Flux are entirely community-supported. We need your help to keep doing this. Please subscribe to stay in touch. Related Content How the decline of the Black church is helping Republicans make inroads with young people The middle class is being destroyed, Democrats need to stop saying everything is great The 2024 election was decided by people who disliked both Harris and Trump Democrats must do more than attack Donald Trump to win Republicans took over the judiciary while liberals were pretending that jurisprudence was a science Americans want progressive change, but to be able to deliver it, progressives will need to change first The science behind why Donald Trump loves the ‘poorly educated’ Audio Chapters 00:00 — Introduction 05:58 — Democrats only talk to their voters for three months every two years 10:28 — How local organizations preserve collective memory and protect democracy 13:50 — The decline of unions and liberal religion has significantly hurt the Democratic party 29:02 — Why reproductive...

Episode Summary Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 presidential election was a triumph of political ecosystems and how much better the right has been in the United States at creating a full-scale ecosystem to funnel people into their party, but it also took place within a larger political environment in which many Americans are unsatisfied with the way things are. For a decades, most Americans have felt that the country is headed in the wrong direction and that the economy is getting worse. But instead of realizing this and doing something about it, rhetorically and in terms of policy, many Democratic leaders have not responded to the discontent. As I’ve discussed repeatedly over the years, right-wing propaganda plays a huge role in gaslighting Americans for the benefit of Trump and his fellow Republicans, but the situation here is more than that. While Kamala Harris was able to motivate voters in the 7 main swing states through spending over a billion dollars, outside of those states, Democrats lost millions of voters compared to 2020. In many ways, the election was decided by people who stayed home. We’re going to talk about all of this and a lot more with our guest Maura Ugarte in this episode. She is a filmmaker and professor of film at George Mason University and is the co-director of a 2012 film called Divide, which told the story of a West Virginia Democrat who was campaigning for then-presidential candidate Barack Obama. Theory of Change and Flux are entirely community-supported. We need your help to keep doing this. Please subscribe on Patreon or Substack. The video of this discussion is available, the transcript is below. Because of its length, some podcast apps and email programs may truncate it. Access the episode page to get the full text. Related Content — The 2024 election was decided by people who disliked both Harris and Trump — Americans want progressive change, but to be able to deliver it, progressives will need to change first — Harris’s loss has permanently discredited timid Democratic approaches to the MAGA threat — Religious fundamentalism’s intellectual collapse powers Trump’s politics of despair — Bureaucratic obsessions are ruining America’s educational system — The science behind why Donald Trump loves the ‘poorly educated’ — Elon Musk and his fellow reactionary oligarchs are much more radical than people realize Audio Chapters 00:00 — Introduction 04:55 — Divide, Maura’s film about building left solidarity 07:54 — How left elites fell for JD Vance’s “Hillbilly Elegy” fraud 13:21 — Biden’s failure to inform the public of his popular policies 16:12 — Trump’s new voters strategy and the limits of a “protect democracy” message 19:56 — How Democrats missed real suffering 23:26 — The decline of public trust and Trump’s con artist pitch 29:55 — How Ross Perot foreshadowed Trump’s appeal 31:08 — Fascism’s critique of capitalism must be countered 36:51 — The power of solidarity to beat divide and conquer 45:09 — Blaming voters never works to win elections 49:22 — Hopeful messages for the future Audio Transcript The following is a machine-generated transcript of the audio that has not been proofed. It is provided for convenience purposes only. MATTHEW SHEFFIELD: So in this podcast and my writing at Flux, I've been trying to focus on the idea of ecosystems a lot in the response to the election outcome. But one thing I want to make clear. That it's easy to say, and it is absolutely true that right wing media was a huge part of why Donald Trump won. And also, some people's thoughts about the economy are a huge part as well. Now whether that was because of propaganda, that's another thing. But it's a mistake. It's overly simplistic to think that it was just. Only those two things or, her failure to, do this or that smaller thing, there were some other [00:04:00] bigger dynamics and well, and one of them is that besides the fact that Democrats don't talk to the public, they also...

In this final episode of the season, I have a casual and meaningful conversation with a friend: essayist and National Endowment for the Arts Fellow, Leta McCollough Seletzky. Leta joins me to discuss the impact Black women had on this election, on Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign, and we explore how the campaign affected us personally. We also discuss how the country's treatment of marginalized people, particularly Black women, is a bellwether for anti-democratic trends. This episode was made possible with a grant from the MacArthur Foundation through URL Media. In this Episode The Kneeling Man: My Father's Life as a Black Spy Who Witnessed the Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. KFF.org Report: Loneliness and Social Support Networks: Findings from the KFF Survey of Racism, Discrimination and Health Listen to All Electorette Episodes https://www.electorette.com/podcast Support the Electorette Rate & Review on iTunes: https://apple.co/2GsfQj4 Also, if you enjoy the Electorette, please subscribe and leave a 5-star review on iTunes. And please spread the word by telling your friends, family, and colleagues about The Electorette! WANT MORE ELECTORETTE? Follow the Electorette on social media. Electorette Facebook Electorette Instagram Electorette Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode Summary The Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson ending a national right to terminate a pregnancy came as an abrupt shock to millions of Americans. But if you had been paying attention beforehand, the verdict was no surprise at all. In fact, the repeal of Roe v. Wade was the culmination of a successful strategy that began in the 1970s to flood the American legal system with activist judges who would impose their viewpoints that were so radical that congressional Republicans didn’t even dare to try to enact them legislatively. As outrageous as the court’s recent rulings have been, what is perhaps even more outrageous is that the right-wing takeover of the judicial system took place almost entirely in full public view, as organizations like the Federalist Society and other deceptively named groups worked together to launder extremist viewpoints and disperse millions of dollars to everyone from law students to Supreme Court justices. It’s yet another instance where the sprawling Republican political ecosystem has overpowered neutral institutions with little resistance. David Brock, founder of Media Matters, is our guest in today’s episode and he lays out how this all happened in his new book, Stench: The Making of the Thomas Court and the Unmaking of America. Can anything be done about this dreadful situation? We discussed that as well. I hope you’ll enjoy. And if you get a chance, please do share this episode on social media to help spread the word. The video of this discussion is available, the transcript is below. Because of its length, some podcast apps and email programs may truncate it. Access the episode page to get the full text. Related Content —Democrats failed to create an advocacy ecosystem, Kamala Harris suffered for it —Trump’s re-election has permanently discredited timid Democrats’ approach to MAGA threat —Liberal law professors created a ludicrous cult of constitutional law while far-right Republicans were seizing control of the judiciary —Former Trump lawyer John Eastman says Satan is behind legal attempts to hold him accountable —Christian supremacists openly speaking about how they’ll use Supreme Court to install theocracy —The judicial system is rigged and it’s time Democrats told the public about it Audio Chapters 00:00 — Introduction 03:55 — The role of money in judicial campaigns 04:48 — The Powell memo and its impact 08:23 — The rise of false balance in media 18:55 — The Christian Right legal movement's overwhelming Roman Catholic dominance 26:24 — How the 1987 failed Robert Bork nomination was the catalyst for the Federalist Society 33:33 — Why the current SCOTUS is “the Clarence Thomas Court” 37:46 — Liberal leaders and donors have done very little to counteract the right's legal juggernaut 44:47 — Brock’s personal relationship to the right-wing judicial takeover 50:49 — Proposals for Supreme Court reform 54:13 — The importance of media and institutions 01:00:01 — Conclusion Audio Transcript The following is a machine-generated transcript of the audio that has not been proofed. It is provided for convenience purposes only. MATTHEW SHEFFIELD: I was saying before we recorded that it's a bit surreal for us to be talking [00:02:00] because the old me and the old you would have never imagined talking to evil apostates from the right that we both ended up being. But your book that we're going to be talking about here today, it is a really good illustration of how the right uses institutions to change politics, whereas the left uses institutions to make change, and the right is so focused on doing that from an institutional level and financial level. And your book just lays it all out there. DAVID BROCK: Yeah, absolutely. Beginning with a memo that Lewis Powell wrote before he went on the Supreme Court laying out what they want to achieve and then money moved. And you had a group like the Federalist Society, which was founded by three conservative law students...

Episode Summary The 2024 presidential election is over, and the results are not what many of us hoped for. Despite engaging in treason against the United States on January 6, 2021, Donald Trump will become president once again. While there are plenty of things that Kamala Harris could have done better, she was up against several larger obstacles, chief among them the price inflation that has troubled every country in the world after the Covid-19 pandemic and also the gigantic far-right media apparatus that relentlessly tells more than 100 million Americans that Democrats are controlled by Satan and falsely claims that the United States is currently in a recession. Undoubtedly, her being an Asian and Black woman was an obstacle as well. Despite all of these difficulties, however, Harris made a number of solid choices, including speaking clearly about the threat of Trump’s fascistic politics, proudly articulating why reproductive rights matter, picking populist Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, refusing to get dragged into the mud with Donald Trump’s bigotry, and running an incredible social media presence. But none of these tactical successes were sufficient to overcome Democrats’ refusal to invest in advocacy media or to ensure that social gains by one group do not negatively impact those of others. During their administration, Harris and President Joe Biden rolled out a number of policies that undeniably helped millions of regular Americans but instead of frequently and coherently explaining what these policies were and why they mattered, both seemed to think that good ideas would speak for themselves. They did not. Even if they had spoken about them earlier, whatever advantage Harris might have enjoyed from these policies was squandered, when she reoriented her campaign to prioritize outreach to Republicans over pressing the case against income inequality and social stagnation. Joining us to talk about what went wrong is Jim Carroll. He’s an associate editor at Flux and also has his own site, The Hot Screen. The video of this discussion is available, the transcript is below. Because of its length, some podcast apps and email programs may truncate it. Access the episode page to get the full text. Flux is a community-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, please stay in touch. Related Content * Trump’s victory isn’t a mandate for his authoritarian agenda, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise * Democrats failed to create an advocacy ecosystem, Kamala Harris suffered for it * The science of why the ‘poorly educated’ prefer Republicans * Unlikely voters decided the 2024 election, Trump bet his campaign that he could reach them * Searchable 2024 exit poll survey results * Compare the 2016, 2020, and 2024 exit polls * The mainstream media has been ‘sanewashing’ Republicans long before Trump came along * How Republican elites created a new, politicized version of the ‘Satanic Panic’ Audio Chapters 00:00 — Introduction 03:04 — Pro-democracy arguments and their effectiveness 04:52 — Economic conditions and their influence 11:08 — The role of media in shaping public opinion 14:22 — Trump’s fake economic proposals sounded more ambitious than Harris's at first glance 16:47 — Democrats cannot campaign on policy alone 19:32 — How media shape public opinion of the economy 22:24 — The right’s “regime” narrative is a powerful response to concerns about protecting democracy 30:44 — Why social justice needs economic justice to survive 32:39 — Kamala Harris's failed pivot toward disaffected Republicans 36:26 — The impact of non-voters and younger voters 38:00 — Surfing the media wave rather than trying vainly to control it 42:31 — Many lessons of Obama and Clinton victories are not relevant to today 46:40 — Mainstream media’s failure to tell the full truth about Republicans 48:20 — Democrats cannot rely on the mainstream media 53:01 — Cause for hope: There’s plenty of money to create a...

Transcript Election Day is upon us, and as you surely know, the presidential contest between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump is looking excruciatingly close. After Harris jumped to a small lead once she became the Democratic standard-bearer, Trump has tightened things up, primarily with the assistance of crazed former Democrat Robert Kennedy Junior. How much support each candidate is receiving is truly difficult to say. Normally, public opinion surveys could provide some useful information in this regard but with pretty much every pollster showing the race within their studies’ sampling margins of error, the polls cannot be a reliable guide, especially since many of them seem to be engaging in “herding,” i.e. modifying their results to be similar to previous surveys. With Trump and Harris each getting about 48 percent of the vote, the winner is going to be determined by how many of each candidate’s solid supporters actually turn in their ballots and also by what people who currently say they are undecided end up doing. Oftentimes, these undecided people end up not voting at all or leaving the presidential line blank. Given Trump’s historically tyrannical, corrupt, and incompetent leadership, this race should not be a close one. It is nonetheless. And yet, despite some significant advantages that Trump has on the economy and the approval rating of President Joe Biden, it is my belief that Harris is poised to win a small victory tomorrow. The primary reason I believe this is that Donald Trump is facing the classic celebrity problem: He’s overexposed. After dominating the political landscape for nearly a decade, Donald Trump seems to be losing his grip on some Americans’ minds. At long last, Trump’s never-ending stream of corruption scandals, his non-stop offensive remarks, his ever-expanding retinue of controversial advisers, and his constant grifting have made some of his fans tired of it all. As it has since the beginning of his political career, Trump’s strategy hinges on mobilizing his core supporters. However, the size of his base is not sufficient to secure victory. Realizing this, Trump has focused on attracting low-propensity voters who agree with him on certain issues but lack strong enthusiasm for his candidacy. But the disgraced ex-president is likely drawing on a depleting well. That’s because Trump’s strategy this year is the exact same one that he employed in 2020. While it wasn’t sufficient to get him the victory against Joe Biden, Trump was remarkably successful. After receiving 63 million votes in 2016, Trump juiced his total to 74 million in his re-election bid. But is it possible that Trump reached his ceiling in 2020? We can’t know at this juncture, but it’s possible that he may not have any more “unlikely voters” aside from young adults who have never voted before. The biggest indicator that his might be true is that Trump’s small-dollar donations are significantly lower than they were in 2020. As the Associated Press and Bloomberg reported last month, Trump has raised $260 million in donations of less than $200 each this year compared to $476 million in 2020. After nearly a decade of spamming his followers with endless (and even fraudulent) money requests, Donald Trump may have bled MAGA dry financially. We’ll know soon whether the decrease in donations correlates to Trump receiving fewer votes, but one indication that it might is that Democratic enthusiasm to vote has been consistently higher since Kamala Harris entered the presidential race. According to Gallup, in March of 2024, 57 percent of registered Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters said they were “more enthusiastic than usual” about casting a ballot this year. That jumped to 79 percent in August after Harris jumped in and was at 77 percent in a late October survey, a number even higher than the previous record for Democrats set during the groundbreaking candidacy of Barack Obama in 2008. Republicans, meanwhile are stuck at 67...

Pamela Smith, election security expert and President and CEO of Verified Voting, delves into the critical aspects of voting integrity, and gets into the weeds of voting equipment, voter purges, ballot audits, recount procedures, and the hand-counting process, while addressing every conceivable question on election security. We also revisit the historic 2000 Presidential Election between George W. Bush and Al Gore, exploring the notorious "hanging chad" incident. Finally, Pam offers practical advice on what to do if you encounter issues on Election Day—simply call or text 866-OUR-VOTE or visit 866OurVote.org for assistance. This episode was made possible with a grant from the MacArthur Foundation through URL Media. In this Episode Call/Text: 866-Our-Vote 866OurVote.org Verified Voting Listen to All Electorette Episodes https://www.electorette.com/podcast Support the Electorette Rate & Review on iTunes: https://apple.co/2GsfQj4 Also, if you enjoy the Electorette, please subscribe and leave a 5-star review on iTunes. And please spread the word by telling your friends, family, and colleagues about The Electorette! WANT MORE ELECTORETTE? Follow the Electorette on social media. Electorette Facebook Electorette Instagram Electorette Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices