The Political Conversation

Wally Knox
  • 4.0 (4)
  • Politics

The podcast in search of an honest conversation about the vast political changes going on in America.

  1. 08/14/2025

    From Conservative Economist Jessica Riedl: The Case Against Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill”

    Democrats like myself have exhaustively criticized Donald Trump’s so-called Big Beautiful Bill.  But coming from Democrats like me, folks say: “So what?  You’re just another Democrat who opposes Trump.  Big deal!”   My guest  today is an economist with impeccable conservative credentials — Jessica Reidl.  She is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, specializing in budget, tax, and economic policy. She previously served as chief economist for Senator Rob Portman (R‑OH) from 2011 to 2017, and worked as Staff Director of the U.S. Senate Finance Subcommittee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth. She spent a decade as the lead research fellow on federal budget and spending policy at the Heritage Foundation, served as director of budget and spending policy for Marco Rubio’s 2016 campaign and was the architect of Mitt Romney’s 10-year deficit-reduction plan during the 2012 campaign.  In sum, Riedl is a heavyweight, and one we can and should listen to -- especially now.

    53 min

  2. 05/15/2025

    Julie Pitta on the Billionaire-Led Campaign to Flip San Francisco

    A handful of ultra-wealthy donors have quietly fueled a campaign to swing San Francisco politics to the right -- according to Julie Pitta, the founder of The Phoenix Project.  In our conversation, she maps the forces transforming San Francisco, from tech billionaires funding ballot campaigns to the rise of YIMBY politics and a new mayor few had heard of a year ago. How has this city, long seen as a progressive beacon, become ground zero for privatized governance? Warning: no discussions of reopening Alcatraz included.

    38 min

  3. 02/19/2025

    Understanding Populism & The Trump Presidency's Chaos, with Chris Lehmann

    Chris Lehmann, Bureau Chief for The Nation in Washington, D.C., objects to the easy characterization of Trump as a populist by both left and right-leaning media, which misunderstands the term grossly. He explains that the idea of Trump as a populist is a tool in Trump's narrative—one that suggests he’s fighting for “the people.” This plays right into his hand, giving him a cloak of legitimacy that obscures his authoritarian nature.   The past weeks' barrage of executive orders are keeping most of us, including those in the media, feeling underwater. But we don't have to wait for Trump to set the tone, or the narrative. Instead of responding to Trump, Chris and I discuss what Democrats should be demanding to get control of the narrative right now.  Let me know if you agree with our idea.

    41 min

  4. 01/17/2025

    Are we just in a "crappy political period"? With Mo Fiorina

    The dust has settled. The inauguration is around the corner. In an effort not to disconnect, I turned to a wise friend for some insight and levity -- Mo Fiorina. A professor at Stanford, Mo is one of the most respected political scientists in our country, and he's navigating this season with an informed, blunt perspective and --thank God-- some lightheartedness.

    42 min

  5. 12/24/2024

    Breaking down the 2024 Election, with John Mark Hansen

    Pundits are, at the end of the day, motivated by attention. Their takes need to provoke and intrigue -- which is why, when looking for insight on this election, I prefer to turn to a people who are motivated instead by the drive to understand the moment, and to embed it in its context: Academics. I sat down with John Mark Hansen, a Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago. Hansen recently wrote a piece of post-election analysis that hit the mark for Project Syndicate, so I invited him onto TPC to continue the conversation.

    29 min

  6. 10/24/2024

    Can Democrats win big without the working class? with Timothy Shenk

    The last time Democrats won an election BIG was in 1964. Why? Just a few days out from the November 5 election in which the victor will win by one or two percentage points, that question becomes pressing. Timothy Shenk, an historian and assistant professor at George Washington University, who for years was co-editor of Dissent Magazine, has an answer and it is one that must be heard regardless of who wins the election on November 5th.

    53 min

  7. 07/30/2024

    The Latino Century, with Mike Madrid

    After months of panic and uncertainty, we Democrats have a candidate - Kamala Harris. Finally, we can get back to what we have roughly 100 days to accomplish: winning this election. So, who do we need to win over? Mike Madrid, a leading Latino political strategist and co-founder of the anti-MAGA Lincoln Project, urges us not to underestimate the power of the Latino vote. Latino voters well outnumber the margins of error in most swing states, giving them significant power in this election.  As we witness Republicans attempt to tie Biden's record on immigration to the Harris campaign, this conversation is pressing and relevant. Listen now.

    1h 7m

  8. 07/02/2024

    Has Biden knocked himself out of the race? With Molly Ball

    If you tuned into the debate, you may have done what I did —  wince, pace, and try to process the second-hand embarrassment. Even the most hardened partisans are having a hard time continuing to advocate for another four years for our rapidly declining President, even as Biden himself has rarely shown any signs of interest in stepping aside.The argument that Biden should step aside has been refueled by the debate, but well predates it. Even before this debate, Biden was losing.  No matter what comes next, no matter who our candidate will be, we have to understand where Biden went wrong.  Molly Ball, a Senior Political Correspondent at the Wall Street Journal covering the White House and Congress, zooms in on Biden's cross-pressured position between the more left-leaning elements in his voting coalition, and the centrist and swing voters that have decided the last few elections, and are likely to do so again. We discuss Biden's moves and mis-moves on immigration and the Israel-Hamas conflict.

    42 min
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The podcast in search of an honest conversation about the vast political changes going on in America.

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