Category: Interviews

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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.

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Travis talks with political scientist and the CEO of PRRI, Dr. Melissa Deckman about her new book, The Politics of Gen Z: How the Youngest Voters Will Shape our Democracy, in which she explores the political activities of American Zoomers, especially among Gen Z women, including a robust analysis of survey data coupled with rich detail from focus groups and interview with young political entrepreneurs.

Topics Travis and Melissa cover include:

• The rise of women’s political participation and how it compares to historical participation
• The ideology of the new cohort of American women and a comparison to her previous research on the politics of conservative women
• What the future of politics looks like in America and how right-of-center actors can appeal to young voters

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Check out the Sustainable Planet podcast, as well as the free Sustainable Planet Substack.

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.

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Mike talks with Josh Cowen, a professor of education policy at Michigan State University about his recently released book, The Privateers: How Billionaires Created a Culture War and Sold School Vouchers.

Topics Mike & Josh Cover Include:
– how vouchers work
– Milton Friedman’s role as a voucher pioneer
– vouchers as a response to school desegregation
– why modern voucher programs are less accountable
– the ‘woke’ agenda of k-12 education
– vouchers and religious freedom
– Harris v Trump on vouchers

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Check out the Sustainable Planet podcast, as well as the free Sustainable Planet Substack.

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.

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Mike talks with Scott Klug, an Emmy award-winning journalist, former member of Congress, and currently co-chair of the Federal Public Affairs Practice at the national law firm of Foley & Lardner. He’s also a podcaster – the founder and host of Lost in the Middle: America’s Political Orphans – and writes the Lost in the Middle Substack.

Topics Mike and Scott Discuss Include:
– Scott’s move from journalism to Congress to lobbyist
– changes in the GOP from Reagan to Trump
– corruption in Congress
– the importance of local investigative journalism
– why neither party seems to focus much on the middle
– institutional factors driving partisanship
– if things are likely to get worse before they get better

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Check out the Sustainable Planet podcast, as well as the free Sustainable Planet Substack.

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.

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Castbox | PocketCasts | Overcast

Travis talks with political science professor (and mom!), Dr. Lindsey Cormack about her new book, How to Raise a Citizen (And Why It’s Up to You to Do It), in which she encourages parents to learn more about politics, civics, and government, and to take on a more active role in providing that education to their children.

Topics Travis and Lindsey cover include:

• Key features and functions of American civics that parents need to know and to teach their children
• How to talk to kids about controversial or hot-topic issues in an age-appropriate way
• Why schools have failed to provide this instruction to students and what they could do to improve

Follow Dr. Lindsey Cormack on X

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Check out the Sustainable Planet podcast, as well as the free Sustainable Planet Substack.

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.

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Mike talks with historian Anthony Gregory, author of multiple publications on national security, constitutionalism, and legal theory. His latest book is New Deal Law and Order: How The War on Crime Built The Modern Liberal State.

Topics Mike & Anthony Discuss Include:
– the origin of the “war on crime”
– how the war on crime paved the way for the modern liberal state
– FDR’s “creative constitutionalism”
– J. Edgar Hoover and the creation of the modern FBI
– the war on crime and the Civil Rights Movement
– consequences of New Deal law & order

Anthony Gregory on X

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Check out the Sustainable Planet podcast, as well as the free Sustainable Planet Substack.

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.

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Castbox | PocketCasts | Overcast

Mike talks with Zee Cohen-Sanchez, Founder and Executive Director of Sole Strategies,  a political organization building grassroots campaigns across the US for candidates who are passionate about change. After Bernie Sanders’ 2016 campaign, Zee committed to helping Democratic candidates win seats across the country. Since founding Sole Strategies in 2020, Zee and her team have worked on hundreds of nationwide campaigns.

Topics Mike and Zee Cover Include:
– the weirdness of politicians
– flipping seats
– the Democrats GOTV advantage
– Republican grass-roots success
– if Mike could run a positive campaign – and win

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Check out the Sustainable Planet podcast, as well as the free Sustainable Planet Substack.

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.

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Castbox | PocketCasts | Overcast

Mike talks with Berkeley political scientist Steven Fish, author of the recently released book, Comeback: Routing Trumpism, Reclaiming the Nation, and Restoring Democracy’s Edge.

Topics Mike & Steve Discuss Include:
– if Democrats are spoiled whiners
– low-dominance liberals vs high-dominance Trump
– why ignoring polls is a good thing (at times)
– pathologically risk-averse liberals
– high-dominance politics in a global perspective
– how Kamala Harris can project strength against Trump
– why Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear might be a good VP choice
– structural problems facing high-dominance Democrats
– Mike’s misgivings about high-dominance messaging

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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.

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Castbox | PocketCasts | Overcast

Mike talks with educator, researcher, and writer Sarah Towle about her latest book, Crossing the Line: Finding America in the Borderlands.

Topics Mike and Sarah Discuss Include:
– the historical roots of our current immigration issues
– the connection between trade policy and immigration
– why prevention through deterrence hasn’t worked
– if “remain in Mexico” is a viable approach to asylum seekers
– immigrants, crime, and American jobs
– helping border communities cope with the flow of migrants
– what a more efficient, effective, and humane border policy might look like

Sarah Towle on X

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Check out Mike’s other podcast –  Sustainable Planet, and the Sustainable Planet Substack.

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.

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Castbox | PocketCasts | Overcast

Mike talks with attorney, author, and historian Talmage Boston. His books include Cross-Examining History, Raising the Bar: The Crucial Role of Lawyers in History, and most recently, How The Best Did It: Leadership Lessons From Our Top Presidents, which is the focus of their discussion.

Topics Mike and Talmage cover include:
– the “Great 8” Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, TR, FDR, Ike, JFK, & Reagan
– key leadership strengths of those 8 presidents
– the main weakness of each of the 8 presidents
– most important presidential leadership skills
– if it’s harder to be a great political leader in today’s world
– strengths and weaknesses of Joe Biden and Donald Trump

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Check out TDG,  Mike’s other podcast –  Sustainable Planet, and the Sustainable Planet Substack.

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.