What does it mean to grow up a black Republican, and conservative in America? And especially as the right has increasingly relied upon race-baiting and white racial resentment for votes? On this week’s episode of Speak Out with Tim Wise, Tim speaks to someone who has been there, done that, and has emerged with a newfound political independence and determination to force both major parties to take seriously the concerns of people of color and the poor. Political consultant and writer Charles Badger has worked for such GOP figures as Mitch McConnell and New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, and worked as an outreach coordinator on the 2016 presidential campaign of Jeb Bush. But as the Republican Party finds itself in thrall to Trumpism, Charles has struck out in a different direction, hoping to bring his insights from a life on the right to a politics of inclusion, integration and serious policy analysis aimed at uplifting those most in need.

On this episode, Tim and Charles discus the state of the nation, the de-evolution of black conservatism, the forces behind Trumpism, and what policy prescriptions might begin to narrow the gaps between white folks and folks of color in America, and between the economic haps and have nots.

This episode also features Tim's commentary on the way conservatives are still trying to rationalize stop-and-frisk policing, even as crime has continued to plummet in New York City without it, despite their insistence that ending the practice would lead to chaos and bloodshed.