In our lifetime and in the 246-year history of the republic, there was a time when great men walked astride the United States Senate. It was the crucible of democracy. Once referred to as the greatest deliberative body, and a cooling saucer to modulate the nation's passions, it now fails on all counts.
Today it’s filled with small-minded men and women, whose desire for reelection, money, and partisan advancement over the interests of the people, rules the day. And while there may be more crazies and corruption on one side, the other side has proven itself to be weak freckles and lacking in imagination. All of which makes them just bad at politics.
Certainly, the “how we got here” is a complicated story. There is plenty of blame to go around. However, since 2006, when he became minority leader, Mitch McConnell has sucked dry any moral compass the Senate might have. McConnell's actions during the Obama and Trump presidency may mark the end of the Senate as we know it. Whether it also marks the end of democracy is for today at least, an open question.
That's the question that Senate historian Ira Shapiro takes up in his new look at McConnell Betrayal How Mitch McConnell and the Senate Republicans Abandoned America.
My conversation with Ira Shapiro:
Religious Nationalism and the Reopening of America
China and Its Ongoing Industrial Espionage
"When Someone Tells You Who They Are, Believe Them"
Our Evolution Is A Graveyard of Ancient Viruses.
When We Come Back, Every Business Could Be A Startup: Here Are Some Rules
A Look At What Real Leadership Skills Might Look Like
Can Journalism Be Saved: A Conversation with Nicholas Lemann
David Plouffe on Beating Donald Trump
A Bank Behind Every Crime: Dark Towers: Deutsche Bank, Donald Trump, and an Epic Trail of Destruction
When Will The Boomers Leave the Stage?
Hong Kong on the Brink
You Say You Want A Revolution
Nicholas Kristoff & Sheryl WuDunn: Tightrope: Americans Reaching for Hope
Can We Distance Ourselves From the Sins of Our Parents? A Conversation with the Daughter of George Wallace
If You Spend Hours Watching Cable News, You Are Just A Political Hobbyist
How Can We Avoid A New Generation of Brett Kavanaughs and Harvey Weinsteins
Australia's Climate Apocalypse: Up Close and Personal
Silicon Valley and the Quest for Immortality
Saving America From Trump, and Democrats From Themselves
It's Ok To Compromise and Maybe Even to Sellout Sometimes
Join Podbean Ads Marketplace and connect with engaged listeners.
Advertise Today
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Jim & Bill (It‘s Another Day)
HauntingLive
Dr. Paul’s Worldviews
The Ben Shapiro Show
Morning Wire