Does civics education in America need a rework in its content? On today's episode of Politics with Paul, Douglas Addison - the founder and president of the Center for Free, Fair, and Accountable Democracy - sits down to discuss the CFFAD's work in improving civics education in America.

Among our discussion points are representative democracy, public opinion trends, and declining trust in democratic institutions amid rising authoritarianism, political manipulation, whether to standardize civics education, the impact of partisanship, and overlooked areas in civic education. A fun question about US presidential hairstyles wraps up the discussion.

Other Works

(0:00) Introduction to Civics Education, Doug Addison

(2:05) Doug Addison's Journey into Civics Education

(5:47) What the Center for Free, Fair, and Accountable Democracy (CFFAD) Does

(10:45) Does Civics Effectively Teach the Preciousness of Democracy?

(18:37) Helping Americans Understand, Improve Foundations of Trust

(25:43) Should Civics Be More Standardized Across the States?

(28:56) Is Civics Education Being Consumed by Hyperpartisanship?

(33:21) Does Civics Properly Teach Our Relationship to the Government?

(38:06) Should These Points Be Added to Civics?

(46:19) Polarization Can Be Unmade By Ordinary People

(49:31) Random Question: Which President Had the Best Hair?

(52:05) Other CFFAD Links to Check Out, Closing

With this being the 100th episode of the podcast and falling around the 250th anniversary of American independence, today's discussion is about one of the most critical questions of all: What exactly is being an American about?

I'm not talking about the legal implications or pop culture. This is about the essence of the American spirit, and the basic promise of the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. This is about what American values are, free from partisan and ideological rhetoric. This is a call to civic renewal and to be good stewards of America to our fellow citizens and the people of the world. We can love our country and its foundational ideals while honestly appraising its flaws and the times it has come up short of fulfilling those ideals.

Join me in this conversation   and tell me what being an American means to you.

(0:00) Celebrating 100 Episodes: A Journey of Civic Education

(3:45) Criteria for Being "American"? What are American Values?

(7:36) Balancing Individualism vs. Collectivism

(11:16) Un-American Actions vs. Having Un-American Values

(15:04) Unclear Definition of American? A Strength and Weakness

(18:54) Historical Writings on Being an American

(23:45) The Uniqueness of Being American

(27:50) America's Relationship with the World

(31:40) Americans' Relationship with Each Other

(35:50) What Separates Patriotism from Nationalism, Jingoism

(39:01) Our Feelings About America as Americans

(44:40) My Take On What Being an American is

(51:00) Closing, Thank You to My Previous Guests

The Federalist Papers remain a cornerstone of American political thought, but what lessons do they hold for us today?

This episode delves into key essays, starting with Federalist Paper No. 10's exploration of factions and the implications of pluralism. Federalist Paper No. 39's discussion on federal and state power traces the evolution from dual to cooperative federalism. Federalist Paper No. 51 highlights checks and balances. No. 70 examines presidential power and the argues for an energetic executive. Federalist No. 78 addresses the judiciary's independence. And No. 84 argues against...a bill of rights?

(0:00) Introduction to the Federalist Papers

(2:35) Federalist #10: Dangers of Factions

(13:06) Federalist #39: Federalism - the Federal/State Divide

(18:38) Federalist #51: Checks and Balances, Separation of Powers

(24:28) Federalist #70: An "Energetic" and Unified Executive

(32:26) Federalist #78: Independent Judiciary - The Role of a Lifetime

(38:39) Federalist #84: No Need for a Bill of Rights?

(44:14) Have We Strayed From the Federalist Papers' Vision?

(47:11) Closing, Show Notes, Episode 100 Next!

250 years is a lot of time for change. So what has transformed the most in American politics in that time?

Many aspects have gotten better over 250 years. Some have gotten worse. And some are just as flawed as they were before. Regardless, this episode of Politics with Paul is about some of the most seismic, overarching changes that you might not know about -- from election formats to campaigning strategy to civil service reform -- and what may be in store for the next 250 years.

(0:00) 250 Years of Changes

(1:17) Improvements to Voting Rights and Citizenship

(6:04) Transformations of Elections and Nominating Processes

(7:28) Changes in How We Cast Votes and Ballots

(9:02) Directly Electing US Senators

(10:55) Nominations: Shifting From Caucuses to Primaries

(12:37) The Evolution of Presidential Campaigning

(16:42) Geographic and Demographic Shifts in Party Loyalties

(23:39) From Patronage to Civil Service Reform

(28:22) What Will Change Most in the Next 250 Years?

(29:49) Will 250 Years Improve Government Accessibility?

(33:35) How Will Artificial Intelligence Reshape Politics?

(35:31) What Shifts in Party Loyalties Will We See?

(38:41) How Will Election Rules and Formats Change?

(45:22) Closing, Call to Action, Show Notes

Redistricting is fraught with partisanship and underhanded tactics...but can it be 100% fixed?

Making fair districts and preventing gerrymandering is an extraordinarily difficult goal for a lot of reasons we don't realize...or want to admit. Today's episode explores the issues with rules that currently govern the redistricting process today, how we as citizens make it easier to gerrymander, several proposals for how to make redistricting fairer, and whether it is truly possible to make the redistricting process impartial.

(0:00) Introduction

(1:03) Recapping Current Criteria in Redistricting

(2:55) Issues with Current Criteria in Redistricting

(11:44) Considering the Future When Redistricting Now

(17:14) Do We Also Gerrymander Ourselves?

(21:32) How Do We Fix the Redistricting Process?

(25:22) Would Independent Redistricting Commissions Fix Gerrymandering?

(32:43) Would Expanding The US House Fix Gerrymandering?

(39:59) Would Proportional Representation Fix Gerrymandering?

(43:59) What Even is a "Fair" District?

(48:15) Can We Ever Ensure Fair Districts?

(50:38) Want More Fair Districts? Then Actually Hold Officials Accountable

(55:45) Closing, Please Share and Subscribe, Links

Redistricting in America is a broken process - but before we can fix it, we must understand its inner workings and how we got here.

In this first episode of a two-parter, I explore the background of redistricting, including its history, how its impacted today, and what currently goes into making new districts. Current attempts to redistrict have clearly partisan motives, but is that much different than the past? What needs to be considered when making new districts today? And what can redistricting of the past teach us going forward?

(0:00) Intro: What Goes Into Making New Districts

(2:01) A Brief History of Redistricting in Congress

(12:40) Current Methods of Redistricting: Federal, State, and Local

(16:44) 7 Main Criteria for Redrawing Districts

(19:14) Criterion #1: Equal Population

(22:10) Criterion #2: Racial Minority Representation

(23:55) Criterion #3: Contiguity

(26:04) Criterion #4: Consideration for Existing Political Boundaries

(28:31) Criterion #5: Compactness

(30:51) Criterion #6: Preservation of Communities of Interest

(31:43) Criterion #7: Preventing Overly Partisan Outcomes

(34:08) Other Potential Criteria for Redistricting

(36:16) Lessons of the Past for Today's Redistricting

(42:30) Teaser, Closer, Links

It’s a common sentiment: the country is going down the drain. But is it true?

Our perceptions of whether the country is “on the decline” or “entering a golden age” are shaped by a variety of factors and biases. We need to have an honest conversation about these problems, but how do we do that? Today’s episode explores the debate about whether America is truly in decline, the importance of honestly discussing the flaws and strengths of the country, and the importance of (reasonable) optimism.

(0:00) Is America Really on the Decline?

(1:31) The Specter of Declinism

(4:55) Political Biases that Impact Our Belief in Declinism

(14:42) What Aspects of America are (Supposedly) in Decline?

(21:55) Threats That Can Lead to Decline in America

(28:56) How Should We Talk About Our Country's Flaws, Potential Decline?

(35:28) American Capacity to Fix the Country's Problems

(42:02) Closing and Show Notes

On the cusp of America's 250th anniversary, would the nation's Founding Fathers be proud or disappointed in what America's become? I believe the answer isn't so simple.

Today's episode of Politics with Paul explores this question, discussing the biases that influences our answers, misconceptions about the Founding Fathers and how those misunderstandings impact our political thinking today, how politics during the Founding Fathers' time wasn't so different to now...and what it all means for America's 250th birthday.

(0:00) Introduction to the Founding Fathers' Perspectives

(1:44) Common Misunderstandings About the Founding Fathers

(7:12) How the Founding Fathers Would See Today's Divide in America

(19:43) How the Founding Fathers Would See Today's Political Parties

(26:21) How Bad Was Enmity Between the Earliest Political Parties?

(32:02) How the Founding Fathers Would See Today's Career Public Servants

(37:46) Founding Fathers and America's 250th Anniversary

(44:40) Closing, Call to Action, Links

Lobbying has a lot of issues…but you probably don't hate it as much as you think you do.

The term "lobbyist" often conjures up depictions of shadowy figures making corrupt deals with elected officials to manipulate public policy for the powerful few. It is true that more than a few are corrupt, unethical, or self-interested - and even lobbyists that don't fit this bill sometimes whitewash the profession. At the same time, however, the public often misunderstands what lobbying entails.

Today's episode of Politics with Paul pulls back some of the curtain surrounding lobbying, explaining more about the actual role of the lobbyist and discussing how lobbyists, politicians, and the public all can do better in more accurately portraying the industry.

(0:00) Intro to Lobbying

(1:49) Is There a Difference Between Lobbying and Advocacy?

(8:11) Legal vs. Practical Definitions of Lobbying and Advocacy

(13:16) The Role and Duties of the Lobbyist

(19:05) Public Perceptions of Lobbying

(22:49) Lobbyists Do Sometimes Sanitize Their Profession

(27:54) Why You Don't Hate Lobbying as Much as You Think

(36:34) Lobbyists are an Important (but Flawed) Part of Democracy

(39:57) Closing and Links

Do we want authentic candidates in elections as much as we say we do?

"Authenticity" is a favored buzzword by a politician's supporters to showcase why their candidate is the best, and by commentators who over-simplify the reason an election resulted the way it did. But can we actualyl say what "authenticity" is? Here's something crucial about how we judge politicians - our perception of their authenticity is deeply subjective and often influenced by biases we don't even realize we hold.

But can we more objectively define authenticity? Today's episode of Politics with Paul centers on the various explanations of what authenticity is, how our perceptions of it can be biased, and what it means (and should mean) for our politics.

(0:00) Introduction to Authenticity in Politics

(1:54) "Authenticity" in the Dictionary, Issues with Applying it to Politics

(3:52) Is Authenticity Always Consistent?

(7:08) Is Authenticity Always Truthful?

(9:23) Is Authenticity Always Relatable?

(13:09) Is Authenticity Just Code for "I Agree with This Person"?

(16:40) Scientifically Studying Authenticity

(18:52) The Proposal of 4 Dimensions of Authenticity

(24:03) How Our Perceptions of Authenticity Become Biased

(32:06) How Much Do People Really Value Authenticity in Politicians?

(37:31) Our Weaknesses in Assessing Politicians' Authenticity

(42:13) How Much SHOULD We Value Authenticity in Politics?

(47:35) Closing and Links