Our favorite interviews from 2019.  Fighting for the rights of felons to vote.  Why walls don’t work. Plus, why 2020 won’t be won by centrists     The racist roots of denying felons the right to vote.  Everything Donald Trump gets wrong about walls. Plus Robert Reich on the choice that has to be made between oligarchy and an America that works for everyone.   Tierra Bradford The history of denying felons the right to vote is rooted in the history of African American voter suppression. And while restoring that right is gaining traction in the 2020 campaign,  Tierra Bradford says many Democratic hopefuls still don’t get the point.   Adam Smith President Trump often sites The Great Wall of China as evidence that a wall will solve our immigration problems. Adam Smith says it’s a claim that history simply cannot support.   Robert Reich Robert Reich is one of our nation’s leading economists. He says the widening gap between the wealthy and everyone else is the defining issue of our time. And that’s why Democrats have to choose a side.   Jim Hightower The other Mexican migration

#460 : The Best of 2019

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Rebuilding our nation’s manufacturing muscle.   The supply chain is in the news lately, with most stories about it focusing on the end results for consumers. But how can government look out for the interests of American manufacturing workers in a way that protects their rights while strengthening domestic manufacturing? This week, we talk to two experts about how to achieve those goals.  John Pouland John Pouland explains a study that details how the conventional political wisdom has completely missed the biggest electoral earthquake of the last decade, specifically highlighting how both Democratic and Republican parties have discounted and misjudged their appeals to voters in manufacturing-heavy working-class towns.  Tom Conway As head of North America’s largest industrial union, Tom Conway speaks for over 800,000 workers. He says now more than ever, we need to protect working people and fight to rebuild our nation’s manufacturing muscle.  Jim Hightower   Enthroning Corporate Power Over America   “Equal Justice Under Law.” That’s the noble principle carved into the marble façade of the temple-like Supreme Court building.   Today, though, six right-wing, corporate-dominated activist judges control the present Court, and they’re implementing an elitist creed mocking that ideal. By putting the interests and power of the wealthy over the rest of us. Bill Press The Second Amendment is About Slavery   Elie Mystal returns to the Bill Press Pod with a withering takedown of the Second Amendment, Justice Alito and Supreme Court Ethics. He is The Nation Magazine’s Justice Correspondent. He's a frequent guest on MSNBC commenting on the intersection between the legal and the political. A graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School, he gave up Big Law to fight for justice.   If you'd like to hear the entire episode, visit BillPressPods.com.  

Rebuilding our nation’s manufacturing muscle.

The legacy of Woody Guthrie   Ten years later, we revisit a show celebrating the Centennial of the birth of Woody Guthrie with interviews from Pete Seeger and former Senator Fred Harris. Pete Seeger Our first guest today was a truly great American, perhaps the leading progressive icon of our times. In honor of the centennial of the birth of Woody Guthrie, Pete had some fun telling stories on Woody, and revealing the history of the anthem “This Land is Your Land.”  http://www.peteseegermusic.com/  http://www.woodyguthrie.org/   Fred Harris Fred Harris was a populist when he was the U.S. senator from Oklahoma. He talked with us about the legacy of Woody Guthrie and the lessons we learned from the Dust Bowl Era of American history. Jim Hightower   An Angry Public Will Overcome Arrogant Officials   Donald Trump’s criminal attempt to steal the 2020 election failed, but it’s not the only recent coup attack on our democracy. In the last few years, a cabal of right-wing zealots have plotted to seize control of the US Supreme Court. By hook and crook, they’ve installed a six-judge majority, and now they’re using them as a political cudgel to try stealing not just a constitutional right, but an inherent human right from American women – the right to make their own reproductive decisions. By judicial fiat, the right-wing judges have decreed that the state will make birth decisions, regardless of what mothers want. This is the Republican Party’s current concept of “small government.” Bill Press The Man Who Could Primary Sen. Sinema   Congressman Ruben Gallego of Arizona. This is his fourth term in Congress where he focuses on national security issues and the health and welfare of veterans. He's a veteran himself having served in Iraq as an infantryman in the Marines. He is the son of Hispanic immigrants and the first in his family to attend college, in this case Harvard University.   If you'd like to hear the entire episode, visit BillPressPods.com.  

The legacy of Woody Guthrie

Building infrastructure that is just and sustainable. Bill Press on flight attendants facing airline violence.   Kevin DeGood on the impact infrastructure projects can have on the goals of opportunity, equity, and sustainability. Plus Bill Press with Sara Nelson, President of the Association of Flight Attendants. Kevin DeGood  Kevin DeGood says the recently passed infrastructure bill is a powerful investment in jobs for American workers.  But the work is not over. It’s now up to us to make sure those investments advance inclusive economic growth and national climate goals.   Sara Nelson Bill Press talks with Sara Nelson, President of the Association of Flight Attendants. If you'd like to hear the entire episode, visit BillPressPods.com.  Jim Hightower Making Work Work for Workers As a writer, I get stuck every so often straining for the right words to tell my story. Over the years, though, I’ve learned when to quit tying myself into mental knots over sentence construction, instead of stepping back and rethinking where my story is going.   This process is essentially what millions of American working families are going through this year as record numbers of them are shocking bosses, politicians, and economists by stepping back and declaring: “We quit!”

Building infrastructure that is just and sustainable.

Why it matters to have a Native American cabinet secretary. The recurring crises of American democracy and why this time it’s different.    Julian Brave NoiseCat on the significance of Representative Deb Haaland's nomination as Secretary of the Interior. Suzanne Mettler on the unprecedented danger threatening our democracy.    Julian Brave NoiseCat President Biden has nominated Congresswoman Deb Haaland to lead the Department of the Interior. If confirmed, she will become the first Native American cabinet secretary. Julian Brave NoiseCat says it’s a rare opportunity for the Biden Administration to restore trust with Native people and prioritize their concerns.   Suzanne Mettler In her newest book, co written with Robert C. Lieberman, Suzanne Mettler explores four threats that weaken democracy. And what is alarming about this American moment is that never before have they come together at the same time.   Bill Press Bill Press with two Politico reporters who have been covering the Biden transition.  If you'd like to hear the entire episode, visit BillPressPods.com.   Jim Hightower The Plasticization of Planet Earth

#516 : Why it matters to have a Native American cabinet secretary.

A powerful history of workers’ strikes in America. How unions will shape the future of democracy.  Eric Loomis Historian Eric Loomis says if we truly want to understand the history of labor movements in the United States, look to the moments when workers went on strike. Loomis reminds us of the powerful change that can happen when workers are willing to fight. Jim Hightower   Corporate Sponsors Win Olympic Gold in “Downhill Ethical Backflip”   In this year’s Beijing Olympics, the top team performance has been Corporate America’s breathtaking “Double-twist Ethical Backflip.”   This group of corporate giants loudly tout their code of ethics, pledging to stand against repressive regimes that abuse human rights. But here came the Olympics, posing a direct test… and they flopped! Sarah Longwell   Defending Democracy with Republican Sarah Longwell   Sarah Longwell is a veteran Republican Political Strategist who is at the center of key never-Trump organizations. She heads Defending Democracy Together, The Republican Accountability Project, and is Publisher of The Bulwark. And is very outspoken about the GOP today.   If you'd like to hear the entire episode, visit BillPressPods.com.  

#460 : The Best of 2019

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