Democratica

The polling could not be better for Biden and Democrats, but the Republican cheating could not be worse. Still, a historically fired-up electorate seems primed to seal the deal for Biden. But with the tremendous damage done over the last four years, can it make a difference?

YES!

Stu gets into some of AJ's deepest fears about the long term damage done by Trump and Republicans — specifically regarding the courts and census — and breaks down why Democrats are feeling really good.

TAKE ACTION: You don't have to live in a swing state to make a difference in one, or even all, of them. Check out SwingLeft's SuperStates and find out how to bring home the election for Democrats at the state and federal level.

MOMENT OF UPLIFT: The Pope endorsed same sex civil unions and said LGBTQ couples deserve family. Yes, that Pope. The freakin' Pope!

This is your country for the week of October 26, 2020!

Produced by Sam Graber

Recorded in Louisville, KY

Music by Mike Michel

Stu and AJ from the heart of Louisville bring different perspectives to the horrifying aftermath of Breonna Taylor's death at the hands of city police.

Breonna Taylor is dead, no arrests have been made against the offending officers who killed her, and Mitch McConnell's handpicked attorney general is waffling to secure charges with a grand jury.

But we got you covered. From the backyard of the incident to the foreground of the problem, Stu and AJ take a deep and powerful look at how a society system built on fear continues to plague American progress.

Meanwhile, an election is coming. Your Call To Action is to make the click and register to become a poll worker where you live.

Moment of Uplift: The NFL season is being played without fans and entire teams (!!) are taking a knee during the pre-game ceremony.

This is your country for the week of September 20, 2020!

Produced by Sam Graber

Recorded in Louisville, KY

Music by Mike Michel

Again, in case you missed it: Do. Not. Ingest. Disinfectant.

Four words AJ and Stu never thought they'd have to string together for adults, especially not in response to the President of the United States. And yet here we are. This week, the duo breaks down just how bad things could get as a result of Trumpers' revolt against sheltering in place and the media's responsibility when the president is advising Americans' to defy even his own experts' advice.

Take Action: Contact your Members of Congress and demand funding for vote-by-mail in the coming election.

Moment of Uplift: Kentucky's governor had to apologize to Tupac Shakur and New York's governor expressed heart-felt thanks for a single N-95 shipped to him by an elderly Kansas farmer trying to do his part.

This is your country for the week of May 1, 2020!

Produced by Sam Graber

Recorded in Louisville, KY

Music by Mike Michel

This week, Stu and AJ try to resist the temptation to call shutdown protesters idiots. Spoiler: They fail.

Yes, even as Trump's own administration is issuing lifesaving guidance to control a once-in-a-century deadly pandemic, he is encouraging his followers to defy and protest that guidance. Spoiler 2: People will die because of this. At the same time, Trump is refusing to do his job and help states get the supplies they need to save lives, and some governors are going to incredible lengths to get things done despite him.

Take Action: Contact your governor and tell them to release nonviolent offenders who are in increasingly unsanitary and often deadly conditions as a result of the pandemic.

Moment of Uplift: As short-sighted protestors take to the street in protest, making challenges to health care providers even more difficult, a few brave nurses took to the street (in between 18-hour shifts saving lives) to confront protestors and make a bold statement.

This is your country for the week of April 24, 2020!

Produced by Sam Graber

Recorded in Louisville, KY

Music by Mike Michel

Stu and AJ discuss the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on communities of color and why, when we say Trump's response was inept, we're giving him way too much credit.

Take Action: Contact your state senator and representative (202-224-3121) and tell them to investigate Trump for firing seven inspectors general under the shadow of the pandemic in an un-American effort to eliminate accountability and oversight.

Moment of Uplift: In a chance encounter, Stuart witnesses a caravan celebrating the birthday of a new student who had never attended his school or made any friends. The kindness of those strangers warmed his heart and may just warm yours.

This is your country for the week of April 15, 2020!

Produced by Sam Graber

Recorded in Louisville, KY

Music by Mike Michel

This week, Stu gets mad. Really mad. As he and AJ break down the ways Donald Trump and his allies have sealed the untimely deaths of the Americans they were elected to serve, Stu goes on an epic rant about the ways this coldblooded president has broken his own already unthinkable records for cruelty.   Take Action: Contact your state senator and representative (https://odaction.com/findmyreps/) and tell them it's time for secure, nationwide vote-by-mail!   Moment of Uplift: In much of the world, work outside the house has been limited to essential services. This is awakening many around the world to just how essential jobs are that used to be considered "menial," and a living wage and true appreciation are gaining momentum that won't go away when the pandemic is over.   This is your country for the week of April 1, 2020!   Produced by Sam Graber Engineered by Mark Charles, recorded at the Ramshackler Room and AJ's apartment in Louisville, KY Music by Mike Michel

Stu and AJ phoned it in this week (literally, while sheltering in place) as they broke down how Trump and Republicans have taken a natural crisis and turned it into a man-made disaster.   Take Action: Call your Senators at 202-224-3121 and tell them to reject Mitch McConnell's so-called emergency response bill, which is really just another giveaway to the wealthy, and demand they pass something that will actually help workers and struggling families!   Moment of Uplift: We may be facing a once-in-a-century pandemic, but around the country and planet, people are rising to the occasion in surprising and inspiring ways.   This is your country for the week of March 23, 2020!   Produced by Sam Graber Engineered by Mark Charles, recorded at the Ramshackler Room, Louisville, KY Music by Mike Michel

Trump has made a global pandemic into a national catastrophe. Stu and AJ explain how Trump lied, avoided, manipulated and deceived America to help his reelection chances while selling out his country. And the worst is yet to come.

But the best is also yet to come. Because Americans are taking this medical malaise seriously, and banding together to reduce the rate of transmission. That is, unless you're a Republican governor like Jeff Kottkamp who is just devastated his ski vacation got canceled.   So the worst and the best is yet to come. Which one will it be? The choice is ours.   Take Action: Call your Senators at 202-224-3121 and tell them to pass the Emergency Response legislation immediately!   Moment of Uplift: Deep Canvassing works! Find out how compassionate conversations on the doorsteps of voter homes flipped the House in 2018 and can vote Trump out of office.   This is your country for the week of March 16, 2020!   Produced by Sam Graber Engineered by Mark Charles, recorded at the Ramshackler Room, Louisville, KY Music by Mike Michel

There was voting last Tuesday. Oh, was there voting. But what does it mean now that the dust has settled and it's a two person race for the Democratic nomination?   It means Democratic voters across the country turned out in record numbers. Stu and AJ discuss one Super Tuesday statistic that should make Trump afraid. Terrified even. Does an energized Democratic base signal doom for Trump and his swarm of lying Republican sycophants?   Meanwhile! Republicans use the term 'politicization' to skirt their responsibility for their inept and corrupt actions. Our government's response to the coronavirus is appalling, risking American lives, and we list how Trump has politicized his way to making a bad situation much worse.   Take Action: using www.votefwd.org you can write postcards to voters in key states reminding them to take action at the November polls and to get Trump out of office!   Moment of Uplift: In Tennessee, following the city's destruction by a deadly hurricane, Nashville moms with their young kids waiting in long lines to vote have water brought to them by caring neighbors.   This is your country for the week of March 9, 2020!   Produced by Sam Graber Engineered by Mark Charles, recorded at the Ramshackler Room, Louisville, KY Music by Mike Michel

America has been hit by a deadly disease, and every one of us has been infected by what scientist are calling "Trump." This week, Stu and AJ break down why Coronavirus has not given us reason to panic, but Trump and his enablers have made a grave situation worse through incompetence, arrogance, and dangerously misaligned priorities.   Plus! South Carolina's primary was a dramatic departure from the previous three contests and may have changed the shape of the race completely. Or not. (NOTE: This episode was recorded just before the candidates' mass exodus and a flurry of endorsements for Biden on the eve of Super Tuesday.   Take Action: AJ breaks down the things we can do to protect ourselves from the spread of coronavirus, and panic is not one of those things. See for yourself at ODAction.com/WHO   Moment of Uplift: Harvey Weinstein is convicted! This could have some seriously uplifting ramifications for how sexual assault cases are treated in the future.   This is your country for the week of March 3, 2020!   Produced by Sam Graber Engineered by Mark Charles, recorded at the Ramshackler Room, Louisville, KY Music by Mike Michel