Political Breakdown KQED

Authoritarianism is rising around the globe … but why? Marisa and Scott are joined by Ben Raderstorf, a policy advocate at Protect Democracy who helps direct policy and communications work around systemic threats to American democracy. They talk about the seven basic tactics used by modern authoritarians, how a Trump 2.0 presidency will bring the U.S. closer to autocracy and some reasons for hope.
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Kamilah Moore chairs California’s Reparations Task Force, which is charged with addressing the legacy of slavery and systemic racism in the Golden State. The task force is supporting a package of 14 bills aimed at education, health care, criminal justice and more, and the deadline for bill passage is quickly approaching in Sacramento. Scott is joined by Chair Moore and KQED's Annelise Finney, who covers reparations.
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Republicans gather in Milwaukee one month from today, and between now and then Donald Trump will settle on a running mate. Scott and Marisa discuss the list of finalists, which includes several people of color, and what Trump needs to win in November with POLITICO's Brakkton Booker. 
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The state legislature passed its plan on Thursday to close a $45 billion budget shortfall, but negotiations continue with Governor Gavin Newsom on a final state spending plan. 
Plus, a controversial proposal to crack down on retail and drug crime by rolling back parts of California’s landmark criminal justice reform law is heading to the ballot … for now. Guy is joined by Lara Korte, state politics reporter and co-author of the California Playbook for POLITICO, and Lindsey Holden, legislative reporter for The Sacramento Bee. 
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San Francisco voters will choose their next mayor this November, and we are going to bring you interviews with all of the top candidates.
Marisa and Scott sat down recently with Daniel Lurie, founder of the nonprofit Tipping Point Community to talk about his roots in philanthropy, Tipping Point's initiatives to reduce homelessness and whether that work has prepared him for the mayor's office.
We want to hear your questions! If you have a burning question that you want us to ask the mayoral candidates, you can send us an email: politicalbreakdown@kqed.org.
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The single largest cut in Gavin Newsom’s budget proposal is payments to health care providers who treat low-income Californians on the state’s Medicaid program, known as Medi-Cal. Guy talks about that with CalMatters reporter Kristen Hwang, as well as how the back-room budget negotiations at the state capitol are closely linked to the ballot measure campaigns going before voters in November.
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