Debbie Cox Bultan is the CEO of the NewDEAL, a network of 150 rising state and local officials, and the NewDEAL Forum, which identifies and promotes innovative state and local pro-growth progressive policies. We discuss what it means to deliver good governance at the state and local level.

We have a big problem with our democracy right now, and it stems from people believing that the government is to blame for all of our problems. In 24-hour media cycles that fill airtime with the loudest voices instead of the voices with the most common sense, it's easy to see why. But our government can do good things, and it works best when public officials can find compromise and come together to find common ground.

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Host: Mila Atmos

Guests: Debbie Cox Bultan

Executive Producer: Mila Atmos

Producer: Zack Travis

Bill Weir is CNN's Chief Climate Correspondent and the author of Life As We Know It (Can Be). We discuss Carbon Godzilla, decarbonization, and the many existing and accessible technologies to mitigate climate change.

Decarbonization must start with big industry, but there are many ways for individuals to make a difference, too. Clean energy can be had with tax incentives, reducing costs for consumers. Energy efficient homes – passive houses and innovations in heating and cooling – reduce or even eliminate monthly energy bills. At the same time, utility and power companies in the US function as legal monopolies whose primary incentive is to build more infrastructure and raise rates. Fossil fuel companies – despite being the most profitable companies in human history – are still getting billions in direct and indirect subsidies.

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Host: Mila Atmos

Guests: Bill Weir

Executive Producer: Mila Atmos

Producer: Zack Travis

Mandela Barnes is the president of Power to the Polls Wisconsin. He also served as Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin from 2019 to 2023 and is the co-founder of The Long Run PAC. We discuss how grassroots voter outreach connects the dots for the voters on policy that impacts their lives.

Voters need to know what politicians have done for their constituents and why it is worth their time to vote. In order to be a part of the democratic process and to make things better, citizens need to show up on election day and beyond. People can exercise their power at city hall meetings, at the courthouse for county board, and even in state legislative hearing rooms. Voting is still crucially important and being a voter should be a part of everyone's personality!

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Host: Mila Atmos

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Executive Producer: Mila Atmos

Producer: Zack Travis

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick is the Policy Director at the American Immigration Council, a non-profit organization that strives to strengthen the United States by shaping immigration policies and practices. We discuss how out-of-date immigration laws are and why the only cure is comprehensive immigration reform from Congress.

US immigration laws have not changed since the 1990s. The current border enforcement and asylum system dates back to 1996, and in fact, one of the reasons that asylum seekers are living in shelters is because Congress decided in 1996 to make it illegal for them to get a work permit until six months after they apply for asylum. The asylum system is severely underfunded and is a major reason for processing delays. In addition, there are more than 4 million people who have already been approved for visas but the wait time to get the legal status is decades long.

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Host: Mila Atmos

Guests: Aaron Reichlin-Melnick

Executive Producer: Mila Atmos

Producer: Zack Travis

Jonathan M. Metzl is the Frederick B. Rentschler II Professor of Sociology and Psychiatry and the Director of the Department of Medicine, Health, and Society at Vanderbilt University. His most recent book is What We've Become: Living and Dying in a Country of Arms. We discuss lax gun laws and gun ownership as an identity.

The public health narrative is about how guns pose a health risk, a threat to mortality to our bodies. Those who vote based on guns see guns as symbols of power or protection. In fact, many people in the South own guns because they're afraid of government tyranny. Unfortunately, gun laws have become more and more lax in a country that has almost 500 million civilian-owned firearms. Metzl shares that "We've had a dramatic erosion in the ability of states and towns and the country itself to limit who can own and carry a firearm."

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Host: Mila Atmos

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Producer: Zack Travis

Philip K. Howard is the founder and chair of Common Good, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that advocates for simplifying government, and has advised both parties on needed reforms. His latest book is Everyday Freedom: Designing the Framework for a Flourishing Society.

Every community depends on democracy to deliver, whether that's government services, schools, hospitals, or housing. Howard argues that a democracy depends on people being able to take responsibility, to interpret guidelines and perform their jobs or service accordingly. In a time when a significant percentage of Americans no longer believe in democracy, we need a national movement to remake institutions that honor the capacity of humans.

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Host: Mila Atmos

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Executive Producer: Mila Atmos

Producer: Zack Travis

Danielle Allen is the author of Justice by Means of Democracy. She is also the James Bryant Conant University Professor at Harvard University and Director of the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation at Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation. We discuss power sharing liberalism as a new paradigm in the practice of democracy.

Whether it's through ballot measures to introduce ranked choice voting or open primaries, we are experiencing great innovation in democratic practice that make it more possible for us to bring our whole selves and to share political power within US democracy. Power sharing liberalism centers around the lived human experience, which needs foundations for flourishing. To that end, the economy should serve the ends of human flourishing. Allen envisions a "dynamic economy that supports people in their lives and to support people in their lives requires supporting their empowerment politically as well as supporting them materially."

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Host: Mila Atmos

Guests: Danielle Allen

Executive Producer: Mila Atmos

Producer: Zack Travis

Jeffrey Rosen is the president and CEO of the National Constitution Center and the author of The Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America. We discuss how the Constitution is a framework for a productive conversation for people with fundamentally different points of view.

For the Founders, personal self government was a pre-requisite for political self government. In order to deliberate with fellow citizens and vote wisely, citizens ought first be their best selves, which puts a high bar for citizens to educate themselves. In fact, the founders thought education was central to creating the perfect citizen. Thinking in constitutional terms opens citizens up to hear arguments they might disagree with, which in turn makes it possible to change their minds. Jeffrey Rosen stresses that "that openness, that curiosity to diverse points of view is exactly the point of the Constitution".

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Host: Mila Atmos

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Executive Producer: Mila Atmos

Producer: Zack Travis

Braxton Brewington is the Press Secretary of the Debt Collective. We discuss the origins of the Debt Collective in the Rolling Jubilee and its history in canceling student debt. Their example is a powerful model for canceling student debt, which continues to be important for all Americans in this election cycle and beyond.

Education is a public good, yet the cost of college over the past couple of decades has risen eight times faster than the average wages. The average student debt is $30,000-$35,000. Two thirds of student debt is owed by women, and a large number of student loan borrowers don't have a college degree. This means that they are paying down student debt on non-college degree wages. The Debt Collective started out as the Rolling Jubilee, which canceled tens of millions of dollars of debt and gave instant relief to borrowers. Canceling student debt creates millions of jobs, boosts the economy, and advances racial and gender justice. Although the Biden administration has canceled billions in student debt, it is only making a small dent in over $1.7 trillion worth of student loans.

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Credits:

Host: Mila Atmos

Guests: Braxton Brewington

Executive Producer: Mila Atmos

Producer: Zack Travis

Rachel Bitecofer is a political scientist and election forecaster turned political strategist. Her most recent book is Hit 'Em Where it Hurts: How to Save Democracy by Beating Republicans at Their Own Game. We discuss why it's time for Democratic Party candidates to embrace negative partisanship in their campaigns.

Half of America's electorate doesn't vote – even in the most consequential elections – because they aren't interested in politics. The Knight Foundation took a very large sample survey of non voters and discovered that the most commonly cited reason for not voting is lack of interest. The US has raised and created a political culture that encourages lack of civic participation and views politics as dirty. Turning the tide on disinterest and bolstering American democracy must include fixing the civic culture.

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Credits:

Host: Mila Atmos

Guests: Rachel Bitecofer

Executive Producer: Mila Atmos

Producer: Zack Travis