In the penultimate episode of our series America’s Public Health Experiment, Vox policy reporter Jerusalem Demsas talks to Arnab Datta, senior counsel at Employ America, about automatic stabilizers: what they are and how they could help during a crisis that affects the economy, such as a global pandemic.

References:

Vox's Emily Stewart on Democrats abandoning automatic stabilizers

Recession Ready: Fiscal Policies to Stabilize the American Economy

Structuring Federal Aid To States As An Automatic (And Autonomous) Stabilizer 

A Historic Decrease in Poverty

GOP Governors Reject Extra Federal Unemployment Payments


Host:
Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox

Credits:
Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer
Libby Nelson, editorial adviser
Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts

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America's Public Health Experiment: More checks, less politics

Politics is how people achieve power. Policy is what they do with it. Every week on The Weeds, host Jonquilyn Hill and guests break down the policies that shape our lives, from abortion to financial regulations to affirmative action to housing. We dive deep and we get wonky, but we have fun along the way. New episodes drop every Wednesday.
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Pretty much everyone is unhappy with food delivery these days. Prices are rising for customers; workers are barely making minimum wage; and restaurants feel gauged by delivery apps. Today on The Weeds: how the gig economy turned sour, and how you can still order your favorite food without feeling guilty. Vox senior reporter Whizy Kim explains.

Read More:
Food delivery fees have soared. How much of it goes to workers? 

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Credits:
Jonquilyn Hill, host
Sofi LaLonde, producer
Cristian Ayala, engineer
A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

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Those pesky delivery fees

Do you think crime is on the rise? You aren’t the only one. According to Gallup, over 75 percent of Americans think crime is up from last year. The crime rate, though, has actually been falling. So why do so many Americans think crime is getting worse? Vox policy correspondent Abdallah Fayyad joins Weeds host Jonquilyn Hill to discuss the disconnect and what the numbers tell us.

Read More:
Lawmakers are overreacting to crime 
The shoplifting scare might not have been real — but its effects are 
The cruel consequences of America’s aging prison population - Vox 

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Credits:
Jonquilyn Hill, host
Sofi LaLonde, producer
Cristian Ayala, engineer
A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

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Panic! At The Drugstore

Last week, the US Drug Enforcement Administration announced a move to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule III drug, after the Biden administration requested a review in late 2022. For decades, cannabis has been classified as Schedule I alongside drugs like heroin and LSD—and research on its effects and medical use has been limited. While rescheduling could lead to more clinical research on marijuana, the future is currently hazy. Today on The Weeds: what rescheduling cannabis means for medical research, and why it still might not be enough to push past the barriers that still exist. 

Read More:
Marijuana could be classified as a lower-risk drug. Here’s what that means. - Vox 
What marijuana reclassification means for the United States 

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Credits:
Jonquilyn Hill, host
Sofi LaLonde, producer
Cristian Ayala, engineer
A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

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A new era of cannabis research

Something is happening in Connecticut. Back in 2021, the state legislature passed a measure that would create something called baby bonds: trust accounts for children receiving government assistance. It’s an idea that started decades ago and was championed by Darrick Hamilton, the founding director of the Institute on Race, Power and Political Economy at the New School. On this week's episode of The Weeds, host Jonquilyn Hill sits down with Hamilton to discuss how the idea came to fruition, how a race-neutral policy can close the racial wealth gap, and the way we define economic value. 

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Credits:
Jonquilyn Hill, host
Sofi LaLonde, producer
Cristian Ayala, engineer
A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

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Are baby bonds a good investment?

If you’ve never used Amazon, you almost definitely know someone who has. Amazon is pretty much everywhere. In the three decades since its founding, Amazon has grown from a small startup to a trillion-dollar company, skirting rules, taxes, and accountability along the way. Then, in 2023, the Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit against the company for monopolistic business practices. Reporter Dana Mattioli has covered Amazon for years, and chronicled their rise to power in her new book, The Everything War: Amazon’s Ruthless Quest to Own the World and Remake Corporate Power.


Read More:
The Everything War: Amazon's Ruthless Quest to Own the World and Remake Corporate Power 


Submit your policy questions!
We want to know what you’re curious about.


Credits:
Jonquilyn Hill, host
Sofi LaLonde, producer
Cristian Ayala, engineer
A.M. Hall, editorial director of talk podcasts

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America's Public Health Experiment: More checks, less politics

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