Checks and Balance from The Economist

Twice recently an eruption in middle America has shocked the world. Four years ago voters in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania were decisive in putting Donald Trump in the White House. Two months ago, George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis prompted debate on racism everywhere. 

In a special episode on the Midwest, the region’s role in the 2020 election and America’s future, we hear from Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, her predecessor Rahm Emmanuel, and get the latest from the Economist election forecast.

Charlotte Howard, The Economist's New York bureau chief, hosts with Washington correspondent Jon Fasman and Midwest correspondent Adam Roberts. 

For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: economist.com/2020electionpod 

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Plans to abolish the Minneapolis police department after the death of George Floyd are running into opposition, as Jon Fasman reports from the city. Meanwhile, President Trump has promised a surge of federal law enforcement beyond Portland. City commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty says people there will continue to protest the presence of unidentified armed officers. Might this turn into a law-and-order election?

John Prideaux, The Economist’s US editor, hosts with Charlotte Howard, New York bureau chief, and Washington correspondent Jon Fasman. 

For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: economist.com/2020electionpod 

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The United States is home to the world’s most renowned disease-fighting agency, the CDC. Americans might have expected its scientists to coordinate a testing programme, public health messaging and supplies to keep the pandemic under control. That hasn’t happened. America faces a secondary surge of coronavirus cases not seen anywhere else in the world. Can America beat covid-19?

This episode includes excerpts from CDC Director Dr Robert Redfield’s interview with the Economist Asks podcast.

John Prideaux, The Economist’s US editor, hosts with Charlotte Howard, New York bureau chief, and Washington correspondent Jon Fasman. 

For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: economist.com/2020electionpod  

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Congress must decide whether to extend federal aid for the unemployed beyond July. Ten million more Americans are out of work than in February, but evidence has emerged of falling poverty levels due to the stimulus. Could the coronavirus change the politics of poverty?

John Prideaux, The Economist’s US editor, hosts with Charlotte Howard, New York bureau chief, and Washington correspondent Jon Fasman. 

For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: economist.com/2020electionpod 

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President Trump is celebrating July 4th with four revered forerunners at Mount Rushmore. Anti-racist protests have brought down dozens of smaller monuments in the past month. The president says the left wants to “vandalise our history.” But Americans have never felt less proud of their national identity, according to Gallup. What is the political impact of this national soul-searching? 

John Prideaux, The Economist’s US editor, hosts with Charlotte Howard, New York bureau chief, and Washington correspondent Jon Fasman. 

For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: economist.com/2020electionpod

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Impartiality in political journalism is under scrutiny as never before. President Trump took a trademark pop at the “fakers” when he resumed his campaign rallies in Tulsa. Meanwhile the White House has begun decapitating state-funded global news agencies like Voice of America. Can fair-minded reporting survive hyper-partisan politics?

John Prideaux, The Economist’s US editor, hosts with Charlotte Howard, New York bureau chief, and Washington correspondent Jon Fasman. 

For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: economist.com/2020electionpod

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

America is in the midst of its worst civil-military crisis for a generation. President Trump’s call to use military force to quell protests caused alarm up and down the chain of command. What is the place of the military in political life? We speak to Shashank Joshi, The Economist’s defence editor, and Republican Congressman Mike Gallagher, an Iraq veteran.

John Prideaux, The Economist’s US editor, hosts with Charlotte Howard, New York bureau chief, and Washington correspondent Jon Fasman. 

For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: economist.com/2020electionpod

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Forecasters put Hillary Clinton’s chances of winning at 70 percent or more on the eve of the election in 2016. She was also the favourite to carry key states like Pennsylvania and Wisconsin that Donald Trump won on the night. This week The Economist data team launches its 2020 presidential election forecast. How useful are models at a time when politics can seem so out of control?

We speak to Elliott Morris, data journalist for The Economist, and pollster Cornell Belcher.

John Prideaux, The Economist’s US editor, hosts with Charlotte Howard, New York bureau chief, and Washington correspondent Jon Fasman. 

For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: economist.com/2020electionpod

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

America is engulfed in its most widespread, sustained unrest since the late 1960s. It was sparked by an act of police brutality caught on camera. In the days since, Americans have seen police forces look more like an invading army than public servants sworn to protect their fellow citizens. Who will the politics of police versus protestors favour in 2020?

We speak to Janeé Harteau, a former Minneapolis police chief, historian Khalil Gibran Muhammad, and Mitch Colvin, Mayor of Fayetteville, North Carolina.

John Prideaux, The Economist’s US editor, hosts with Charlotte Howard, New York bureau chief, and Washington correspondent Jon Fasman. 

For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: economist.com/2020electionpod

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

America has passed a grim milestone: 100,000 deaths from covid-19. Many Americans think the country has been hit uniquely hard and that the president’s bungled response is to blame. That view is not borne out by international comparisons. But, as all 50 states reopen with the virus still prevalent, Americans are right to be nervous. How will America’s efforts to recover impact the presidential race?

John Prideaux, The Economist’s US editor, hosts with Charlotte Howard, New York bureau chief, and Washington correspondent Jon Fasman. US policy correspondent Idrees Kahloon and Henry Curr, our economics editor, also join.

For access to The Economist’s print, digital and audio editions subscribe: www.economist.com/pod2020.

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