Shows
Joan Esposito (Featured Interviews)WCPT 820 Candidate Interview: Jordan WoodJoan Esposito is joined by Jordan Wood, Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate running to unseat Republican incumbent Sen. Susan Collins of Maine. "I was born and raised in Lewiston, Maine, which is in the central part of the state, to a very working-class family," Wood told WCPT. "My father's a pastor, my mom a teacher, and when I was born my mom had to leave the workforce to provide childcare for my twin brother and I. I remember [her] having to go back to the workforce when I was in elementary school because the church my d...
2025-07-2613 min
Perth Dialogues#16. Australian politics, Duopoly, Crossbench, Welfare, Immigration, Scare Tactics | Vern HughesVern Hughes is the Convenor of Democracy First and a prominent figure in Australian civil society reform movements. Hughes emphasises "sensible conservatism" and civil society empowerment, positioning Democracy First as a balance-of-power alternative to major parties. His work critiques career politicians and promotes institutional accountability.https://democracyfirst.org.au/ #Democracy #TwoPartySystem #LiberalLabor #CrossBench #Independents Timestamps:00:00 Introduction to Democracy First and Historical Context05:04 The Decline of Major Political Parties10:05 The Rise of Minor Parties and Political Polarisation14:45 Challenges of Minority Governments and Cross-bench Influence19:30 Cost of Living Crisis and Housing Solutions29:18 Sustainability of Government Spending and Welfare Expenditures45:16 The Challenges...
2025-04-131h 28
On with Kara SwisherThe Onion’s Owner on Satire, Infowars, Defending Democracy & TrumpLast year, after pressure from activist investors, Jeff Lawson stepped down from his perch as CEO from Twilio, the cloud communications company he co-founded. But he didn’t spend any time twiddling his thumbs — that same spring, he bought the satirical news organization The Onion, and by the end of the year, they’d tried to buy Alex Jones’ Infowars at a bankruptcy auction. Jeff also stayed busy on the political front, continuing his work on DemocracyFirst, a political action committee he co-founded, in 2022, to support candidates committed to democracy. So there...
2025-04-0759 min
United to Preserve DemocracyBenjamin Carter Hett on "The Death of Democracy: Hitler's Rise to Power"Historian Benjamin Carter Hett and author of "The Death of Democracy: Hitler's Rise to Power and the Downfall of the Weimar Republic," is a leading expert on fascism, the alarmingly rapid decline of German democracy, and Hitler's rise to power. In this video, he discusses the future of American Democracy and the lessons we can learn from history. Join us for an insightful conversation on democracy, the rule of law, and the future of America! This event, hosted by United to Preserve Democracy and the Rule of Law, features a discussion between Benjamin Carter Hett and democracyFIRST...
2025-03-0642 min
United to Preserve DemocracySen. Jeremy Moss & Constitutional Scholar Richard PrimusRichard Primus works with constitutional law on the state level as well as the federal level. He has helped state governmental agencies, nonprofit organizations, His writing has appeared in many leading law reviews as well as in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Politico, The New Republic, and Foreign Affairs. Opinions of the justices of the US Supreme Court have cited his scholarship.
2025-02-071h 00
United to Preserve Democracy"How Democracies Die: A Discussion with Daniel Ziblatt & Conor Lamb"The United to Preserve to Democracy and the Rule of Law speaker series event is a conversation with Harvard Professor Daniel Ziblatt and former Pennsylvania Congressman Conor Lamb. The event is co-sponsored by DemocracyFIRST and was recorded in Harrisburg, PA. Daniel Ziblatt is a historian, expert on democracy, and the author of four books, including How Democracies Die (2018), co-authored with Steven Levitsky, a New York Times best-seller and described by The Economist magazine as “the most important book of the Trump era.” In 2023, he published Tyranny of the Minority, also with Steve Levitsky. The book is an anal...
2025-01-2832 min
United to Preserve DemocracyJason Stanley on "How Fascism Works"This United to Preserve Democracy and the Rule of Law event, sponsored by democracyFIRST, features Jason Stanley. Stanley is a Professor of Philosophy at Yale University and the author of How Propaganda Works and How Fascism Works.
2025-01-061h 09
United to Preserve DemocracyAnne Applebaum on the "Twilight of Democracy"Anne Applebaum is a staff writer for The Atlantic and a Pulitzer-prize winning historian. She is also a Senior Fellow at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and the SNF Agora Institute.
2025-01-0645 min
United to Preserve DemocracyJonathan Alter on "American Reckoning"This United to Preserve: Democracy and the Rule of Law event, sponsored by democracyFIRST and features Jonathan Alter, an award-winning author, political analyst, documentary filmmaker, columnist, television producer, and radio host. The moderated discussion with Montgomery County Commissioner Neil Makhija.
2025-01-0659 min
United to Preserve DemocracyCassidy Hutchinson, Sarah Matthews, Alyssa Farah Griffin, & Rep. Liz Cheney On Wednesday, October 9th, democracyFIRST hosted an event with former House GOP Conference Chair Liz Cheney and former Trump White House aides Alyssa Farah Griffin, Cassidy Hutchinson, and Sarah Matthews about the historic threats facing American democracy in 2024 and the importance of a broad cross-partisan coalition united to protect the future of our republic, Constitution, and the Rule of Law.
2025-01-0656 min
United to Preserve DemocracyBarbara F. Walter on "How Civil Wars Start"Barbara F. Walter is one of the world’s leading experts on civil wars, violent extremism and domestic terror. She is the author of five books and dozens of articles on these subjects and is a contributor to CNN, MSNBC, ABC, NBC, the BBC and the PBS NewsHour. She has written for The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, Time, The New Republic, Reuters and Foreign Affairs. She is a permanent member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a TED2023 speaker. Her most recent book on civil wars, New York Times bestseller “How Civi...
2024-11-1547 min
United to Preserve DemocracyTimothy Snyder "On Freedom" & "On Tyranny" with Stephen MarcheHistorian Timothy Snyder and author of the books "On Tyranny" and "On Freedom" is a leading expert on fascism and the threat authoritarians pose to the future of American Democracy and the Rule of Law. In this video, he discusses the future of American Democracy and alarming rise of Authoritarianism with Timothy Snyder and Stephen Marche. 📌 Join us for an insightful conversation on democracy, the rule of law, and the future of America! This event, hosted by United to Preserve Democracy and the Rule of Law, features a discussion between Timothy Snyder—author of "On Tyranny"—and Stephen Marche. Recorde...
2024-11-1455 min
United to Preserve DemocracyRuth Ben-Ghiat on "Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present"Ruth Ben-Ghiat is a Professor of History and Italian Studies at New York University. She writes about fascism, authoritarianism, propaganda, and the threats these present to democracies around the world.Her most recent book, Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present, looks at how illiberal leaders use propaganda, corruption, violence, and machismo, and how they can be defeated. She writes for CNN, The Economist, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, and The Atlantic. She has appeared in many documentaries about dictators and threats to democracy, such as Netflix’s How To Become a Tyrant and PBS’s The...
2024-11-121h 00
United to Preserve DemocracyJoanne Freeman on Political Violence in AmericaJoanne B. Freeman, Professor of History, specializes in the politics and political culture of the revolutionary and early national periods of American History. Her most recent book, The Field of Blood: Congressional Violence in Antebellum America, explores physical violence in the U.S. Congress between 1830 and the Civil War, and what it suggests about the institution of Congress, the nature of American sectionalism, the challenges of a young nation’s developing democracy, and the longstanding roots of the Civil War.
2024-11-121h 08
2024-11-121h 05
United to Preserve DemocracyDaniel Ziblatt & Steven Levitsky with the View's Alyssa Farah Griffin on the Future of DemocracyDaniel Ziblatt is a historian, expert on democracy, and the author of four books, including How Democracies Die (2018), co-authored with Steven Levitsky, a New York Times best-seller and described by The Economist magazine as “the most important book of the Trump era.” In 2023, he published Tyranny of the Minority, also with Steve Levitsky. The book is an analysis of American democracy in comparative perspective, also a New York Times bestseller.Steven Levitsky is a professor at Harvard and a Senior Democracy Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. His research focuses on democratization and authoritarianism, political parties, and...
2024-11-1244 min
United to Preserve DemocracyDoris Kearns Goodwin on the Stakes for American DemocracyJoin United to Preserve Democracy and the Rule of Law for a livestream event with world-renowned presidential historian, Pulitzer Prize-winning and New York Times #1 best-selling author Doris Kearns Goodwin. In this moderated discussion, Goodwin will provide insights from her five decades of scholarship and how our shared history can help guide us in navigating the current political climate.
2024-11-121h 04
2024-11-1258 min
United to Preserve DemocracyHeather Cox Richardson & Joanne Freeman on the Future of DemocracyJoin us for the United to Preserve Democracy and the Rule of Law event, co-sponsored by DemocracyFIRST, with historians Heather Cox Richardson and Joanne Freeman.
2024-11-121h 12
The Great BattlefieldProtecting the Republic with Jordan Wood of democracyFirstJordan Wood joins The Great Battlefield podcast to talk about his career in politics, as Chief of Staff for Katie Porter during January 6th and how democracyFirst is working to confront the anti-democracy movement and protect free and fair elections.
2024-11-081h 04