This week’s episode is a conversation between Michael Berkman, Chris Beem, and Michael Baranowski of The Politics Guys, a podcast that looks at political issues in the news through a bipartisan, academic lens.

Baranowski is an associate professor of political science at Northern Kentucky University. His focus is American political institutions, public policy, and media — which makes him a great match for our own Michael and Chris.

They discuss impeachment from the standpoint of political institutions and the legitimacy of our democracy. Regardless of what happens with the current impeachment inquiry, some of our government’s norms and institutions may be irreversibly damaged, while others may develop in response to the Trump administration.

They also touch on the growing epistemic divide we discussed with Nancy Rosenblum and Russell Muirhead in our episode on conspiracies. The Politics Guys is a bipartisan show, but Baranowski increasingly feels like he and his colleagues are talking past each other rather than having meaningful discussions.

As we head toward the end of the year, we are conducting a listener survey to find out how we can make the show even better in 2020.

Complete the survey for a chance to win a Democracy Works mug — the perfect holiday gift for the democracy enthusiast in your life.

The Politics Guys

Understanding impeachment — from the Federalist Papers to the whistleblower

Checking the President’s power

How conspiracies are damaging democracy