AI, Silicon Valley, and the Future of American Politics

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Mike talks with Pedro Domingos, Professor Emeritus of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Washington. He’s an AI researcher, tech industry insider, and author of the best-selling book The Master Algorithm: How the Quest for the Ultimate Learning Machine Will Remake Our World. Recently, he’s turned his hand to political fiction, in the often hilariously funny novel 2040: A Silicon Valley Satire, which is very funny but also has plenty to say about serious issues facing us concerning technology and politics/

Topics Mike and Pedro discuss include:
why we should speed up, not slow down AI development
– the serious AI dominance threat from China
– why our big concern should be incompetent AI
– AI transparency and bias
– how AI makes direct democracy possible
– the limits of AI direct democracy
– reasons to be optimistic about AI and politics

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FEMA Lies, SCOTUS Returns, Harris and 60 Minutes

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Mike and Jay open with a discussion of the lies told by Donald Trump and JD Vance about FEMA in the wake of disaster relief efforts for hurricanes Helene and Milton. They also get FEMA’s role and whether the agency should be doing more in advance of ever-increasing major natural disasters.

Next is a discussion of oral arguments in two major cases that opened the Supreme Court’s new term – one involving ghost guns and another in which the state of Oklahoma admits prosecutorial misconduct in a death penalty case.

They close with what may be a new media strategy from Kamala Harris, and a look at her 60 Minutes interview, as well as Donald Trump’s call for CBS to have its broadcast license revoked.

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The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

Faith and Community: Religious Engagement and Politics

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Mike talks with Rebecca Glazier, a Professor in the School of Public Affairs at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Professor Glazier is the Director of the Little Rock Congregations Study and the author of the book Faith and Community: How Engagement Strengthens Members, Places of Worship, and Society, which they discuss in this episode.

Topics Mike and Rebecca Cover Include:
– the forms of religious engagement
– religious engagement and political efficacy
– the tension between community engagement and partisanship
– engagement in liberal and conservative congregations
– declining institutional authority and religious organizations

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The Vice-Presidential Debate, Israel-Iran, Dockworkers’ Strike

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Trey and Ken start with the Vice-Presidential debate. The conversation begins with an explanation of rejecting the horse-race narrative of analyzing debates and how the VP debate won’t change voting patterns. They also discuss the stability of the presidential polling numbers despite assassination attempts and a candidate dropping out. Next, they look at Iran’s recent missile barrage on Israel. The hosts also discuss Israel’s tactics against Hezbollah. They end the show with a sharp debate over the dockworkers’ strike.

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Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

Zelensky Visit, Harris on Immigration, Adams and Robinson Scandals

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Jay and Justin start with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to the US, then move to Kamala Harris’s visit to the border to talk immigration policy. They wrap up with a pair of political scandals: New York Mayor Eric Adams and NC Gubernatorial Candidate Mark Robinson

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Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

Polarized by Degrees: The Diploma Divide in American Politics

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Mike talks with Matt Grossmann, Director of the Institute for Public Policy and Social Research and Professor of Political Science at Michigan State University. Matt was on the show in 2019 when we talked about his book on public policy change, Artists of the Possible, and he’s back again for a discussion of his latest book, co-authored with David Hopkins, Polarized by Degrees: How the Diploma Divide and the Culture War Transformed American Politics.

Topics Mike & Matt Discuss Include:
– the educultural realignment in American Politics
– the degree divide as an international phenomenon
– if the progressive left has moved too fast
– the dangerous ramifications of destroying institutional trust
– the political right and ‘woke capitalism’
– why liberals dominate popular culture
– conservatives’ attempts to set up parallel institutions

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The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

Political Violence, Springfield, Ducking the Media, Fed Rate Cut

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Mike and May open with a discussion of the 2nd attempt (that we know of) on Donald Trump’s life, which turns into a broader consideration of extremist rhetoric on both sides and political violence. May believes that Trump has been targeted more than any other figure, suggesting more of a problem on the left. Mike thinks that things will get considerably worse, no matter which candidate wins in November.

Next, they consider how events have unfolded in Springfield Ohio, in the wake of Donald Trump’s lie about Haitian migrants in Springfield stealing and then eating family pets. May believes that the real focus should be on the problems associated with immigration, while Mike argues that Trump and Vance have crossed an important line – from spinning and exaggerating to having seemingly no concern for truth, if baldfaced lies serve their cause.

From there it’s a look at media avoidance by Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. May and Mike agree that it’s a smart strategy, and Mike is more curious as to why JD Vance has been so prominent, given how much of what Vance has to say may turn off undecided voters (at least that’s Mike’s take).

They close with a discussion of the Federal Reserve’s first interest rate cut since 2020. Mike doesn’t buy the argument from Trump that it’s either a sign of a bad economy or that it was politically motivated. May points to how the cut is likely to help people hoping to buy a home.

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Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

Build, Baby, Build!

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Mike welcomes back to the show George Mason University economist Bryan Caplan to discuss his book, Build, Baby, Build: The Science and Ethics of Housing Regulation.

Topics Mike and Bryan discuss include:
– why housing prices are so high
– bipartisan agreement on housing deregulation
– the value of building more high-rise residential units
– the many costs of NIMBYism
– the Supreme Court and housing regulation
– government housing regulations that do make sense
– building and immigration
– which jurisdictions are moving in the right direction
– and lots more!

Bryan on X
Bryan’s Substack: Bet on It

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Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

Presidential Debate, Swifties for Harris, Trump’s Race to Lose

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Mike and Jay open with a discussion of the first (and possibly only) debate between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. Jay agrees with the conventional wisdom about the debate hurting Trump, and Mike agrees that it’s not likely to make a huge difference. But as Jay points out, in a race almost certain to be as close as this one is, a few thousand votes in the right places could mean a lot. Mike argues that Donald Trump’s untrue comment about Haitian migrants eating family pets is a disgusting dehumanization of migrants. Jay isn’t that worked up about it, and argues that Springfield, Ohio has had understandable difficulty handling the number of migrants it’s seen in the last few years.

Next, they move to endorsements of Harris by Dick & Liz Cheney, a number of prominent Republicans who say they can’t support Trump, and ‘childless cat lady’ Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Harris. Mike believes that all these Republicans either endorsing the opposition or refusing to support their party’s nominee is unprecedented. Jay reiterates that he’s likely to follow the lead of Romney and Pence, who aren’t voting for Harris but won’t vote for Trump either.

They close with a look at the state of the presidential race. Mike is a lot less confident in Harris’ chances than either Ken or Trey (both of whom last week felt that Harris will win). Mike believes that Trump will once again outperform his polling and figures his chances at winning to be around 60%. Jay largely agrees, wondering if Harris has peaked.

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Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.

enet Media, U.S. Senate Races, Hunter Biden’s Guilty Plea, Carlos Del Toro’s Violation of Hatch, SAVE Act

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Trey is again joined by Ken and they start the show looking at the U.S. Justice Department’s recent indictment of, presumably, Tenet Media. Ken argues this demonstrates the Justice Department is taking Russian election interference seriously, while Trey suggests this kind of revelation can be a place for considering one’s media content consumption.

Next, the duo dives into Montana’s U.S. Senate Race between Republican challenger Tim Sheehy and Democratic incumbent Jon Tester. Ken believes there is a chance that Democrats pick up enough seats to offset probable losses, but agrees with Trey that that the better odds are on Republicans taking the Senate by one to two seats. Trey and Ken differ though in the end because Trey believes Republicans will hold the House and Ken argues New York is enough to tip the scales to the Democrats.

After that, they move to Hunter Biden’s last-minute guilty plea. Trey finds Hunter Biden’s commentary to come off as whining and Trump-like and, ultimately, a win for justice. Ken believes the deck was stacked against Hunter and has more sympathy for the aggressive prosecution.

Then it is a quick conversation about U.S. Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro’s violation of the Hatch Act. The hosts overview what happened and the history of the Hatch Act. They also delve into Trump’s attempt via Executive Order at circumventing the Hatch Act by creating a new level of employee: Schedule F.

The pair close the show by discussing the SAVE Act. Here Trey muses that asking for ID, although not necessary, is not an undue burden in modern society. Ken argues that it would increase disenfranchisement. Trey counters by suggesting it would follow to eliminate ID requirements in other areas, especially in banking.

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Listener support helps make The Politics Guys possible. You can support us or change your level of support at patreon.com/politicsguys or politicsguys.com/support. On Venmo we’re @PoliticsGuys.

The Politics Guys is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it.