The Politics Guys

Giving listeners a much-needed break from conservative and liberal echo chambers through civil, rational, and evidence-based discussion.

ABOUT

The Politics Guys

The Politics Guys is an independent, bipartisan, ideologically diverse American politics and policy podcast hosted by a rotating team that includes two political scientists (one center-left, one evangelical-libertarian), a left-wing law professor, a conservative practicing attorney, and a former Trump administration official. Our mission is to give listeners a much-needed break from conservative and liberal echo chambers through civil, rational, and evidence-based discussion of American politics and policy from multiple perspectives

Featured Guests

Where To Start

Is Amazon good for consumers? The FTC has its doubts.

Mike talks with Adam Kovacevich, founder and CEO of the Chamber of Progress and former head of Google’s US policy strategy and external affairs team about the FTC’s antitrust lawsuit against Amazon.

Topics Mike and Adam Discuss Include:

- FTC Chair Lina Khan’s views on Big Tech and antitrust

- if Amazon is hurting consumers

- how dominant Amazon is in retai

l- potential effects of FTC lawsuits against tech firms

- if antitrust law needs to be updated for the 21st century

Heather Cox Richardson on the State of American Democracy

Mike talks with Heather Cox Richardson, a professor of history at Boston College and creator of the popular, award-winning “Letters from an American” Substack newsletter. She’s the author of the recently released book, Democracy Awakening: Notes on the State of America, which is the topic of their discussion.

Topics Mike and Heather Discuss Include:
– if America is on the brink of authoritarianism

– how and why authoritarian leaders come to power

– the breakdown of the American “Liberal Consensus

”– the transformation of the Republican Party

– GOP enablers of Trump

– whether liberal elites are to blame for Trump’s rise

The Big Myth: Loathing Government and Loving the ‘Free’ Market

Mike talks with Harvard historian of science Naomi Oreskes, and Cal Tech historian of science Erik Conway. They’ve -coauthored a number of books including Merchants of Doubt, and The Collapse of Western Civilization. Their latest book is The Big Myth: How American Business Taught Us to Loathe Government and Love the Free Market, which is the focus of this discussion.

Topics Mike, Naomi, and Erik discuss include:

– the Big Myth and the Tripod of Freedom

– why power companies once argued against electric power

– government regulation and fears of communism

– Friedrich Hayek and the influence of The Road to Serfdom

– fear of government vs fear of markets

– the Big Myth and our response to COVID-19

– the Big Myth and climate change

– combatting the Big Myth (for those who believe it’s a myth)

Meet The Hosts

Michael Baranowski

Host

Michael Baranowski is a political scientist with a Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky. His focus is American political institutions, public policy, and media. He spends most of his time indoctrinating students at Northern Kentucky University.

Jay Carson

Host

Jay Carson is an attorney specializing in commercial litigation. He’s served as a legislative aide in the Ohio House of Representatives, a judicial staff attorney and magistrate in the Medina County Common Please Court, and a law clerk to the Honorable Alice M. Batchelder on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

Harold Orndorff

Host

Harold “Trey” Orndorff is an associate professor of political science at Oklahoma Christian University. His research interests are presidential politics, communication and social media. In addition to his disciplinary research Trey also writes on teaching in higher education, specifically the impact of technologies on student outcomes. You can read more about him and his research here.

Ken Katkin

Host

Ken Katkin is a professor of law at Northern Kentucky University’s Chase Law School.He teaches and writes in the areas of Constitutional Law, Communications Law, Legislation, Federal Jurisdiction, and Entertainment Law. Before coming to Chase, he litigated constitutional and telecommunications law cases with the Washington D.C. firm Wiley, Rein & Fielding. Before entering private practice, Ken clerked for the Hon. David M. Ebel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, in Denver, Colorado.

May Mailman

Host

May Mailman served as Deputy Assistant to the President in the Trump administration, working in the Office of White House Counsel and advising on a with range of issues. Following her time in the White House, May served as Deputy Solicitor General of Ohio. She’s currently Vice President at Restoring Integrity & Trust in Elections (RITE) and Senior Fellow with the Independent Women’s Forum Law Center. Before working in politics, May practiced litigation in Denver with Wheeler Trigg O’Donnell, a trial defense firm. She graduated from Harvard Law School and served as President of the Harvard Federalist Society.

Where To Listen

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FEATURED BLOG ARTICLES

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November 25, 2024
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5
min read

Freedom in the World 2024: Armed conflict, election manipulation drive global freedom decline

We caught up with Freedom House Senior Research Analyst and co-author of the "Freedom in the World 2024" report Cathryn Grothe.

Read Post
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November 11, 2024
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5
min read

Election certification: What happens between now and Inauguration Day

Former President Donald Trump successfully secured a second presidential term with a victory that swept all seven battleground states on Tuesday, winning both the popular and electoral votes.

Read Post
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November 23, 2024
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5
min read

Democracy Discourse: Interactive curriculum addresses democratic erosion, inspires civic action

The Democracy Group and the McCourtney Institute for Democracy are thrilled to announce the release of Democracy Discourse, an interactive online course designed to delve into democracy, why it’s in decline and how you can help save it.

Read Post
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September 30, 2024
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5
min read

Introducing our Fall 2024 Podcast Fellowship Cohort

We welcome five students from around the country who are all about storytelling, civic engagement, and, most importantly, creating their own podcasts! These Gen Z leaders are ready to get to work!

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June 11, 2024
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5
min read

Meet Michael Baranowski from The Politics Guys

We caught up with one of our hosts Michael Baranowski about The Politics Guys, bridging differences across the political spectrum and the importance of meaningful conversations.

Jessie Nguyen
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May 7, 2024
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5
min read

Democracy Good News: The Role of Business in Democracy

The third episode of our Democracy’s Good News series takes us to New York City where we talk with American venture capitalist and author Patrick McGinnis.

Jessie Nguyen
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May 7, 2024
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5
min read

Strategies for Protest and Peacebuilding on College Campuses and Beyond

Waves of student protests against Israel’s actions in Gaza swept American campuses last week and along with them the debate of free speech and the freedom to peaceably assemble on campus grounds.

Jessie Nguyen
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May 7, 2024
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5
min read

Meet the newest members of The Democracy Group

We're super excited to officially welcome three amazing shows to our network of incredible organizations and podcasts: Bad Watchdog, The Politics Guys, and RCV Clips!

Jessie Nguyen
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