Future Hindsight

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 hea

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,

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 throu

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

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

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 mos

Richard L. Hasen is Professor of Law and Political Science at UCLA and director of UCLA Law’s Safeguarding Democracy Project. We discuss his most recent book, A Real Right to Vote: How a Constitutional Amendment Can Safeguard American Democracy. A country that believes that its people are equal should ensure equal voting rights. However, the US Constitution does not currently p

Phillip Atiba Solomon is the chair and Carl I. Hovland Professor of African American Studies, Professor of Psychology at Yale University, and co-founder of the Center for Policing Equity. We discuss policing equity, investing in communities, and taking police out of the mental health crisis business. Policing equity is multi-faceted and requires collaboration with communities. Pr

Sam Wang is the Director of the Electoral Innovation Lab and a professor of neuroscience at Princeton University. We discuss how we can better understand the current state of district maps across the US, and how they can be made more fair and representative of their constituents. Gerrymandering is not only unfair but also anti-democratic. It favors one party over another, effecti

Jess Piper is the Executive Director of Blue Missouri and the host of the Dirt Road Democrats podcast. We discuss the reality of living in rural Missouri, the state of education, and the dearth of Democratic candidates across the state. Rural candidates have little to no support from the state party, but Republicans enjoy the support of local churches. One-third of Missouri is ru