Political divisions, policy quagmires over the budget and affordability, as well as the uncertainty fueled by the fighting in the Middle East are shaping America's future. Theda Skocpol—a preeminent scholar of American politics—analyzes the current and future directions and uncertainties as the 2026 mid-term elections approach.

Half a century ago Walter Mondale joined a push to create a predictable and rational budgeting process in Congress. What happened to those high expectations? Congress rarely adopts annual budgets as intended, with government spending and tax cuts driving America's deficit toward the breaking point. The country's operations now rely on dare-devil bargaining that shuts the government down and unsettles vital programs. And just around the corner, Social Security insolvency looms. What can be done to bring sanity to congressional budgeting?

About the series:

The Mondale Dialogues is a series of events that project the decency and fairness that guided the public life of Walter F. Mondale and the principles he long fought for. They feature prominent local, national, and international luminaries working on pressing issues of our time. Students, faculty, community members, as well as our online global audience, will find the Mondale Dialogues engaging, informative and thought-provoking.

Event made possible by Penny and Bill George and the George Family Foundation.

The Polycene era, which we have just entered, will be the first era in human history in which humanity must govern, innovate, collaborate and coexist at a planetary scale to thrive, because all of our key challenges -- governing A.I., curbing nuclear proliferation, managing climate change and managing a world where more people than ever will be living outside their birth nations are planetary in scale. It will take everyone, everywhere, rowing together. “The decisive test of our age,” Oxford economist Eric Beinhocker remarked to me, “is whether we will recognize this in time.” We will only pass that test if America takes the lead. No other nation has (or at least had) the respect and power to do so than America. But America can only lead if we get back to our great national project of making ``out of many, one.'' We are off our project. We need to model how to create 'one' from 'many' again, especially since the 'many' is now far more diverse. We look more like the world and the world looks more like us than ever before. If we go first and model that for the world, everything is possible.

Health care costs are now rising faster than inflation, wages, and the overall economy. Government programs are being scaled back rather than expanding to cover these costs. To make progress, we need to focus on the delivery of medical care and insist that payment be tied to the value of the services. Two of the country’s leading experts on redesigning U.S. health care to focus on value will join us for a discussion with Minnesota legislators to identify a practical agenda for action.

About this series:

For over ten years the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance has convened a series of public forums to explore health care reform issues. By fostering discussions among policy makers, stakeholders, and citizens, these forums examine the challenges and opportunities in health care reform and help ensure Minnesota’s legacy as a leader in individual and community health. This series is sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota.

Donald Trump's reliance on racial resentments and coercion are not new to America but familiar to its history. Slavery and enduring racial disparities, the expulsion of immigrants including legal residents, and suspension of constitutional rights are recurring themes since the Republic's founding. America is not defined, however, by backlash alone. Again and again, Americans recovered by fighting for the rights to speak, assemble, and vote and demanding civic inclusiveness and representative institutions of governance. What are the lessons of America's history of illiberalism and democratic resurgence in the age of Donald Trump?

This Event was held in collaboration with Westminster Town Hall Forum

American politics faces enormous challenges. Partisan divisions are at historic levels not seen since the Civil War. Some politicians are using redistricting to choose their voters and elections are awash in money. Russ Feingold, former US Senator from Wisconsin, joins us to talk about America's future. In addition to his Senate career, he served as a U.S. special envoy to Africa and taught in the law schools of Stanford, Harvard, Yale, and Marquette. He also served as president of the American Constitution Society. In 2022, he co-authored The Constitution in Jeopardy.

St Augustine forged the sacred foundations of Western Christianity – from original sin to God’s grace. Pope Leo’s spiritual home is in the Augustinian religious order.

Augustine was born in Africa and his identity as an African permeates his founding role in Christianity’s beginnings. Catherine Conybeare’s Augustine the African tells his life story, revealing profound questions about Christianity and identity that bear on contemporary debates about race.

Professor Conybeare is joined by scholars of premodern religion and contemporary debates about race.

Joining the conversation will be:

-Professor Andrea Sterk

-Professor Andrew Gallia

-Professor Dwight Lewis Jr.

Over the past 40 years, the campaign to “get tough on crime” has been redesigned to generate vast revenue streams for governments and corporations. Today, practices that criminalize, police, and punish serve a second purpose as tools of resource extraction, disproportionately targeting low-income communities of color.

Legal Plunder by Joshua Page and Joe Soss investigates the origins, operations, and consequences of this enterprise.

The authors are joined by a panel of policy makers, researchers, and commentators that span the ideological spectrum from the left to libertarian including Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison and George Mason University Law Professor Ilya Somin in an event moderated by University of Minnesota Professor Karen Ho.

President Biden's National Security Advisor - Jake Sullivan - reflects on the administration's policies and on the future of America on the world stage.

About the series:

The Nakasaka Dialogues stimulate conversations about the state of public life and encourage progress toward our shared bonds.

This event series is made possible by a generous contribution from Humphrey School of Public Affairs alumnus Kiyoshi Nakasaka.

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This recording has been edited for brevity and clarity, including a 2-minute disruption during the remarks. Inquiries about the event can be directed to [email protected].

Speech on campus is treacherous. It is scrutinized by universities unnerved by the risk of punishment by the federal government. Speech faces another threat – a left-oriented conformist spirit on many campuses that recognizes certain ideas and rules out others on such topics as Israel and Gaza, “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion,” transgender issues, and more.

Pamela Paul, a courageous New York Times columnist who bucks the progressive cannon from the left, visits to implore students and faculty to be advocates for debate – and provides support for those willing to take the risks of speaking up.