Politicology

“Let Them Eat Tariffs”—The Weekly

In this episode, Ron is joined by Lucy Caldwell (Board Advisor to the Renew Democracy Initiative) to confront the question hanging over Democratic politics: Can the Democratic Party keep pretending we’re not in a populist era?  Lucy breaks down the party’s internal struggle between centrists and insurgents—and why both sides are wildly overinterpreting recent election results. Using the Maine Senate race as a case study, they examine how primaries reward disruption and narrative power, often at the expense of general-election viability, and why nationalized politics makes it harder than ever for candidates to outrun the Democratic brand. Finally, Ron and Lucy dig into affordability—the disconnect between elite economic narratives and everyday experience—and why dismissing those pressures only fuels the kind of toxic populism Democrats say they fear.    In Politicology+ they talk about the current healthcare landscape and the ongoing debate about how we pay for healthcare. They critique the ACA’s effectiveness, the challenges of health insurance coverage and explore market-based solutions. They also highlight the importance of personal advocacy in navigating healthcare and the evolving discourse around health and wellness, particularly in the context of AI's role in healthcare advocacy. DONATE FOR UKRAINE To support equipment requests for our frontline communicators and psyop-ers in Ukraine, you can use this link: paypal.me/MollyKMcKew [http://paypal.me/MollyKMcKew] POLITICOLOGY+ Not yet a Politicology+ member? Don’t miss all the extra episodes on the private, ad-free version of this podcast. Upgrade now at politicology.com/plus [http://politicology.com/plus]. CONTRIBUTE TO POLITICOLOGY politicology.com/donate [http://politicology.com/donate] SPONSORS & PROMO CODES https://bit.ly/44uAGZ8 [https://bit.ly/44uAGZ8] Get 15% off OneSkin with the code RON at  https://www.oneskin.co/ [https://www.oneskin.co/] #oneskinpod Send your questions and ideas to podcast@politicology.com [podcast@politicology.com] or leave a voicemail at ‪(703) 239-3068‬ Listen to The Last Invention: https://bit.ly/4pob891 [https://bit.ly/4pob891] Follow this week’s panel on X (formerly Twitter): https:/x.com/RonSteslow [https://twitter.com/RonSteslow] https://x.com/lucymcaldwell [https://x.com/lucymcaldwell] Related Reading:  Noah Smith - The "$140,000 poverty line" is very silly [https://www.noahpinion.blog/p/the-140000-poverty-line-is-very-silly] The Free Press - Big-Tent Politics Won’t Save the Democrats [https://www.thefp.com/p/big-tent-politics-wont-save-the-democrats] The Free Press - Has the Democratic Tea Party Arrived? - by Gabe Fleisher [https://www.thefp.com/p/has-the-democratic-tea-party-arrived] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

LIVE from Unscripted: A Politicology Gathering

For the ad-free version of this episode, subscribe to Politicology+ at https://politicology.com/plus [https://politicology.com/plus] Last weekend, eleven Politicology listeners from all over the country joined Ron and Mike in person for a salon style retreat called Unscripted: A Politicology Gathering. They explored big questions like “What is the point of America?” and “What does it mean to be a citizen in the digital age?”  In this episode, those same listeners share what they learned and how it’s changing how they think about the evolving world we’re all living in. Stay in the loop about Unscripted gatherings: https://bit.ly/3XK4tub [https://bit.ly/3XK4tub] Find our sponsor links and promo codes here: https://bit.ly/44uAGZ8 [https://bit.ly/44uAGZ8] Get 15% off OneSkin with the code RON at  https://www.oneskin.co/ [https://www.oneskin.co/] #oneskinpod Send your questions and ideas to podcast@politicology.com [podcast@politicology.com] or leave a voicemail at ‪(703) 239-3068‬ Follow Ron and Mike on X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/RonSteslow [https://twitter.com/RonSteslow] https://x.com/madrid_mike Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

ENCORE: Your Face Belongs To Us — Part 2

Have you ever thought about what it means to be anonymous?  Have you considered what it means that you can walk down the street or go to the grocery store or out to dinner without someone you’ve never met knowing your name, everything you’ve posted online, or your political leanings? Or when you go on a first date with someone, they’d walk in knowing your dating history, your political affiliations, your credit score or what groceries you buy? Advancements in facial recognition and a secretive startup could end privacy as we know it.  In this two-part conversation, New York Times Tech Reporter Kashmir Hill joins host Ron Steslow to discuss privacy, anonymity, facial recognition software and her book Your Face Belongs to Us: A Secretive Startup’s Quest to End Privacy as We Know It. In part 2: (01:40) “Technical sweetness” and the lack of ethical considerations by the people building these new technologies  (12:30) Privacy laws in the U.S. and Europe  (15:24) The trend of law enforcement agencies skirting constitutional protections by buying information from private companies. (27:20) Balancing security and privacy in the age of ubiquitous surveillance (30:50) What the future of privacy might look like  Read Your Face Belongs to Us: https://bit.ly/49qsbQm [https://bit.ly/49qsbQm] Follow Ron and Kashmir  on X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/RonSteslow [https://twitter.com/RonSteslow] https://twitter.com/kashhill [https://twitter.com/kashhill] Email your questions and thoughts to podcast@politicology.com [podcast@politicology.com] or leave us a voicemail at ‪(202) 455-4558‬. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

ENCORE: Your Face Belongs To Us — Part 1

Have you ever thought about what it means to be anonymous?  Have you considered what it means that you can walk down the street or go to the grocery store or out to dinner without someone you’ve never met knowing your name, everything you’ve posted online, or your political leanings? Or when you go on a first date with someone, they’d walk in knowing your dating history, your political affiliations, your credit score or what groceries you buy? Advancements in facial recognition and a secretive startup could end privacy as we know it.  In this two-part conversation, New York Times Tech Reporter Kashmir Hill joins host Ron Steslow to discuss privacy, anonymity, facial recognition software and her book Your Face Belongs to Us: A Secretive Startup’s Quest to End Privacy as We Know It. In part 1: (01:43 ) Ron and Kashmir discuss anonymity and privacy and the erosion of both in our daily lives  (00:00 ) Balancing convenience and privacy  (11:00) The origins of ClearviewAI  (13:30) Genetic determinism in the development of facial recognition  (18:20) Kashmir dives deep into the history of facial recognition software and how it developed.  (22:37) How Facebook crowdsourced training facial recognition technology (25:00) How much privacy should we have and who should be able to use facial recognition software?  Read Your Face Belongs to Us: https://bit.ly/49qsbQm [https://bit.ly/49qsbQm] Follow Ron and Kashmir  on X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/RonSteslow [https://twitter.com/RonSteslow] https://twitter.com/kashhill [https://twitter.com/kashhill] Email your questions and thoughts to podcast@politicology.com [podcast@politicology.com] or leave us a voicemail at ‪(202) 455-4558‬. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

TAPPED: The Art of the Deal Behind the Deal

For the ad-free version of this episode, subscribe to Politicology+ at https://politicology.com/plus [https://politicology.com/plus] Molly McKew (writer and lecturer on Russian influence and information warfare) joins Ron to break down a whirlwind of revelations about Trumpworld’s back-channel contacts with the Kremlin—and what they mean for Ukraine’s survival.  Molly explains the leaked call where envoy Steve Witkoff coached the Kremlin on how to influence Donald Trump. She details why this behavior is wildly outside diplomatic norms and directly weakens Ukraine on the battlefield.  Then, they unpack Russia’s rejection of a new “19-point plan,” what Putin actually wants, and how these negotiations are designed to drive a wedge between the U.S. and Europe.  Molly shares harrowing firsthand updates from Ukrainian units living under “complete drone saturation,” and delivers a clear message from the front: Ukraine is still fighting for its democracy—and they need U.S. support now more than ever. Giving thanks for Ukraine! To support equipment requests for our frontline communicators and psyop-ers in Ukraine, you can use this link: paypal.me/MollyKMcKew [http://paypal.me/MollyKMcKew] Related Reading:  WSJ - Make Money Not War: Trump’s Real Plan for Peace in Ukraine [https://www.wsj.com/world/russia/russia-u-s-peace-business-ties-4db9b290?st=TT9TPt&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink] Find our sponsor links and promo codes here: https://bit.ly/44uAGZ8 [https://bit.ly/44uAGZ8] Get 15% off OneSkin with the code RON at  https://www.oneskin.co/ [https://www.oneskin.co/] #oneskinpod Send your questions and ideas to podcast@politicology.com [podcast@politicology.com] or leave a voicemail at ‪(703) 239-3068‬ Follow Ron and Molly on X (formerly Twitter): https://twitter.com/RonSteslow [https://twitter.com/RonSteslow] https://x.com/MollyMcKew [https://x.com/MollyMcKew] Email your questions to podcast@politicology.com [podcast@politicology.com] or leave us a voicemail at ‪‪(703) 239-3068‬ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]