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How to Save a Country

Roosevelt Institute

On "How to Save a Country," hosts Felicia Wong (Roosevelt Institute) and Michael Tomasky (The New Republic) introduce you to the people and ideas moving America forward in uncertain times. How did we get to this inflection point for our democracy and economy, and how do we move ahead? How do we protect democracy from its attackers? How do we change the fundamentals of our economy so jobs pay more and wealth is shared? How do we forge a path to a high-care, low-carbon future?

“How to Save a Country” answers these questions by connecting dots across economics, law, and politics—and shows that there is a way forward for our democracy.

New episodes every Thursday. Presented by the Roosevelt Institute, The New Republic, and PRX. Generous funding for this podcast was provided by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and Omidyar Network. Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of its funders.

You can find transcripts and related resources for every episode at howtosaveacountry.org.

Roosevelt Institute 2022

On "How to Save a Country," hosts Felicia Wong (Roosevelt Institute) and Michael Tomasky (The New Republic) introduce you to the people and ideas moving America forward in uncertain times. How did we get to this inflection point for our democracy and economy, and how do we move ahead? How do we protect democracy from its attackers? How do we change the fundamentals of our economy so jobs pay more and wealth is shared? How do we forge a path to a high-care, low-carbon future?

“How to Save a Country” answers these questions by connecting dots across economics, law, and politics—and shows that there is a way forward for our democracy.

New episodes every Thursday. Presented by the Roosevelt Institute, The New Republic, and PRX. Generous funding for this podcast was provided by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and Omidyar Network. Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of its funders.

You can find transcripts and related resources for every episode at howtosaveacountry.org.

Roosevelt Institute 2022
17hr 37min
Thumbnail for "Season 2 Trailer ".
Returning April 6: Season 2 of How to Save a Country
March 30, 20232min 13sec3.2 MB
Thumbnail for "The Unfinished Business of Saving Democracy".
And a look back at our favorite moments
June 29, 202335min 19sec50.88 MB
Thumbnail for "Fascism Disguised as Freedom (with Jefferson Cowie) ".
How can progressives reclaim the concept of freedom?
June 22, 202348min 15sec69.49 MB
Thumbnail for "Capital in the 2020s (with Thomas Piketty)".
The inequality expert on the policies we need now
June 15, 202344min 2sec63.42 MB
Thumbnail for "The Deep[ly Necessary] State (with K. Sabeel Rahman)".
Why a little-known federal agency is crucial for our democracy
June 8, 202349min 23sec71.13 MB
Thumbnail for "In Pursuit of the Climate-Proof City (from the Politics of Everything) ".
Does the climate-proof city exist?
June 1, 202332min 27sec46.74 MB
Thumbnail for "How Feminist Economics Brought Us the Care Agenda (with Nancy Folbre) ".
What happens when we value unpaid labor?
May 25, 202347min 56sec69.04 MB
Thumbnail for "An Academic Walks into a Diner (with Danielle Allen)".
What a political philosophy professor learned on the campaign trail
May 18, 202344min 47sec64.5 MB
Thumbnail for "Red Nation, Blue Nation (with Michael Podhorzer) ".
How can progressive strategies address our country’s deep divisions?
May 11, 202344min 57sec64.74 MB
Thumbnail for "The Neoliberal Order Is Over. What Comes Next? (with Gary Gerstle)".
What the next political order will look like
May 4, 202349min 46sec71.68 MB
Thumbnail for "How Culture Warriors Seized the Right (with Julie Kohler)".
Why shifting power dynamics in the right-wing movement put democracy at risk
April 27, 202349min 51sec71.79 MB
Thumbnail for "We Can Defeat Zero-Sum Politics (with Heather McGhee)".
How cross-racial solidarity can create a better America for all
April 20, 202342min 8sec60.69 MB
Thumbnail for "What Drives Our Political Behavior (with Dr. Lilliana Mason) ".
How group psychology is making partisanship worse
April 13, 202353min 15sec76.7 MB
Thumbnail for "The Art of Progressive Persuasion (with Maurice Mitchell)".
How progressives can change minds in a polarized era
April 6, 202341min 55sec60.36 MB
Thumbnail for "BONUS: Who Really Ended the Cold War? (with Brad DeLong) ".
Did the end of the Cold War extend neoliberalism’s shelf life?
February 16, 202310min 50sec15.62 MB
Thumbnail for "BONUS: Sen. Elizabeth Warren on crypto’s cold, dark winter ".
Will recent turmoil in the crypto markets lead to more oversight?
January 19, 202311min 25sec16.44 MB
Thumbnail for "BONUS: The future of the House with Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries ".
And what are we supposed to think about the Kevin McCarthy thing, anyway?
January 5, 202313min 26sec19.35 MB
Thumbnail for "BONUS: Talking democracy and oligarchy with Dorian Warren ".
Are democracy and inequality actually compatible?
December 22, 202215min 28sec22.28 MB
Thumbnail for "That '70s Show (from The Politics of Everything) ".
What's so scary about the 1970s?
December 15, 202224min 48sec35.73 MB
Thumbnail for "Good Policy, Good Politics (with Sen. Elizabeth Warren) ".
How government can deliver—and why it must.
December 8, 202235min 13sec50.73 MB
Thumbnail for "A Tale of Two Recoveries: What’s Changed since the Great Recession".
Two Labor Department chief economists explain what’s different about today’s economic recovery.
December 1, 202241min 45sec60.12 MB
Thumbnail for "Why Neoliberalism Is Finally on the Way Out (with Brad DeLong)".
An economist’s apology for his generation
November 17, 202239min 16sec56.55 MB
Thumbnail for "Making Meaning from the Midterms".
Michael and Felicia discuss the policies that underlie the politics of the midterms.
November 10, 202227min 41sec39.87 MB
Thumbnail for "How the Green New Deal Changed the Conversation (with Rhiana Gunn-Wright)".
What Rhiana Gunn-Wright wants to build next.
November 3, 202235min 59sec51.82 MB
Thumbnail for " House Leadership: The Next Generation (with Rep. Hakeem Jeffries)".
Priorities of the next generation of House leadership
October 27, 202233min 34sec48.34 MB
Thumbnail for "An Immigration Plan for the Climate Change Era (with Deepak Bhargava)".
We need a new narrative for immigration.
October 20, 202236min 28sec52.52 MB
Thumbnail for "The Supreme Court Is Back in Session. What's the Progressive Plan?".
Plus, how law shapes our economy, and how we can create a more equitable marketplace.
October 13, 202235min 20sec50.9 MB
Thumbnail for "Why Labor Unions Are Back, and How They Can Save Democracy (with Dorian Warren)".
Workers are organizing in powerful and creative ways; is this the beginning of a 21st-century labor renaissance?
October 6, 202237min 14sec53.63 MB
Thumbnail for "Our Democracy Is in Trouble, But We’ve Been Here Before (with Heather Cox Richardson)".
Make no mistake, America's experiment in popular sovereignty is in jeopardy—here's how this moment compares to past crises.
September 29, 202231min 36sec45.51 MB
Thumbnail for "Why the Biden Economy Is Better Than You Think (with Brian Deese)".
Every week is infrastructure week now (no, really).
September 22, 202237min 46sec54.4 MB
Thumbnail for "Welcome to How to Save a Country".
The big ideas behind a new vision for America
September 15, 20222min 33sec3.69 MB

Season 2 Trailer

Thumbnail for "Season 2 Trailer ".
March 30, 20232min 13sec

In season 1 of How to Save a Country, hosts Felicia Wong (Roosevelt Institute) and Michael Tomasky (The New Republic) spoke to progressive luminaries about democracy-saving ideas at the intersection of economics, law, and politics.

Today, thanks to some surprising legislative successes, some of those big ideas are a lot more real. In Season 2, Felicia and Michael ask: what happens when ideas hit the real world? Where are they working? How can we do better? What ideas might work tomorrow? 

New episodes beginning April 6. Presented by the Roosevelt Institute, The New Republic, and PRX. 

Thumbnail for "Season 2 Trailer ".
Season 2 Trailer
00:00
02:13