Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer
We are living through a paradigm shift from trickle-down neoliberalism to middle-out economics — a new understanding of who gets what and why. Join zillionaire class-traitor Nick Hanauer and some of the world’s leading economic and political thinkers as they explore the latest thinking on how the economy actually works.
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Back to Basics Series: Why do we call it Pitchfork Economics? (with Ganesh Sitaraman & Walter Scheidel)
In 2014, Nick Hanauer sounded the alarm: if economic inequality kept growing, the pitchforks would come—for him, and for the rest of America’s wealthy elite. Then 2016 happened. Donald Trump was elected president on a wave of economic populism that correctly identified massive inequality as a problem, but which offered all the wrong solutions.
The inaugural episode of Pitchfork Economics lays the groundwork for everything that followed. We revisit the urgent warning that launched the show, explore the deep myths that still shape our economy, and explain why telling a better story about how the economy works is the first step toward building one that works for everyone.
Part of our Back-to-Basics summer series—essential listening for anyone ready to ditch trickle-down and think middle-out.
Ganesh Sitaraman is a law professor at Vanderbilt University and a leading expert on constitutional law, economic inequality, and political economy. He’s the author of several influential books, including The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution, The Great Democracy, and Why Flying Is Miserable and How to Fix It. Sitaraman has served as a policy advisor to Senator Elizabeth Warren and co-founded the Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator.
Walter Scheidel is a historian at Stanford University whose work explores inequality, economic history, and the rise and fall of civilizations. He’s best known for his acclaimed book The Great Leveler, which argues that throughout history, extreme inequality has only been reduced through violent shocks like war, revolution, or plague.
This episode originally aired December 11, 2018.
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Further reading:
The Pitchforks Are Coming… For Us Plutocrats by Nick Hanauer
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The Truth About Immigration and the American Worker (with Rogé Karma)
Conventional wisdom says immigration drives down wages and takes jobs from American workers. But what if that story is fueled by bad economics? Journalist Rogé Karma joins Nick and Goldy to challenge the Econ 101 logic that supercharges anti-immigrant rhetoric—and to explain what the data actually shows. Drawing on research from the U.S., Denmark, and beyond, Karma makes the case that immigrants don’t steal jobs—they grow the economy. In a moment when political leaders are pushing mass deportations in the name of “economic populism,” this conversation reveals what’s really at stake.
Rogé Karma is a staff writer at The Atlantic. He was previously the senior editor of The Ezra Klein Show at The New York Times. At The Atlantic, he covers economics and economic policy.
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Further reading:
The Truth About Immigration & The American Worker
The Most Dramatic Shift in U.S. Public Opinion
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America Adrift: Inequality, Power, and the Fight to Fix It (with Scott Galloway)
With inequality rising, housing out of reach, and young Americans falling further behind, some argue the American Dream is dead. But NYU professor Scott Galloway has a different take: America hasn’t fallen—it’s adrift. Originally recorded in late 2022, this episode features a candid conversation about what’s really hollowed out the middle class: generational wealth hoarding, runaway corporate consolidation, and a political system rigged for the rich. As billionaires push for yet another round of tax cuts and working families continue to struggle, Galloway’s message is more relevant than ever: America can still right the ship—but only if we change course.
Scott Galloway is a clinical professor of marketing at NYU’s Stern School of Business, a bestselling author, and a tech entrepreneur. He’s the host of the Prof G Show and co-host of Pivot. Galloway is a leading voice on the need to rein in corporate power and rebuild the middle class.
This episode originally aired December 6, 2022.
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Further reading:
Adrift: America in 100 Charts
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From Reagan to Reality: The Case Against Tax Cuts for the Rich (with Bruce Bartlett)
As Republicans work at break-neck speed to push another round of massive tax cuts for the wealthy, we thought it would be a good idea to revisit our 2019 conversation with Bruce Bartlett, a Reagan policy adviser and key architect of the 1981 tax cuts. Bartlett explains how the trickle-down logic he once championed turned out to be economic snake oil, because tax breaks for the wealthy don’t grow the economy—they just grow inequality.
Bruce Bartlett is an American historian and former economic adviser who helped draft the 1981 Reagan tax cuts. He served in senior roles under Presidents Reagan and George H.W. Bush, including at the Treasury Department and the Joint Economic Committee of Congress. Once a champion of supply-side economics, Bartlett is now a leading critic of trickle-down tax policy.
This episode originally aired January 29, 2019.
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Further reading:
Trump tax bill will add $2.4 trillion to the deficit and leave 10.9 million more uninsured, CBO says
The secret saga of Trump’s tax cuts
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Why Gutting SNAP Makes the Economy Worse for Everyone (with Lily Roberts)
The GOP’s new tax bill isn’t just a massive giveaway to the rich—it’s an all-out assault on SNAP, one of the most effective anti-poverty programs in the U.S. That’s because SNAP is more than just a program designed to end hunger. It’s also a powerful economic engine, stabilizing local economies as well as supporting retailers and farmers. Lily Roberts from the Center for American Progress joins us to break down how these proposed cuts will deepen poverty, weaken economic resilience, and hurt millions—especially in the very communities whose lawmakers are pushing them.
Lily Roberts is the managing director for Inclusive Growth at American Progress. Her work focuses on raising wages, combating economic inequality linked to race, gender, and geography, and building wealth and stability for American families.
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Further reading:
SNAP Cuts Are Likely To Harm More Than 27,000 Retailers Nationwide
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Good Company: Ending the Era of Shareholder Supremacy (with Lenore Palladino)
What makes a company good—and who gets to decide? Economist Lenore Palladino joins Nick and Goldy to dismantle the myth of shareholder primacy and explain how our current system of corporate governance has warped innovation, deepened inequality, and undermined democracy. Drawing from her new book Good Company: Economic Policy after Shareholder Primacy, Palladino outlines a bold vision for how we can redesign the rules of the game—so corporations serve workers, communities, and the public good, not just wealthy shareholders.
Lenore Palladino is an assistant professor of economics and public policy at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, a senior fellow of the Roosevelt Institute, and a research associate at the Political Economy Research Institute.
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Further reading:
Good Company: Economic Policy after Shareholder Primacy
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The Empire Strikes Back—With More Billionaire Tax Breaks (with Samantha Jacoby)
With Trump’s second major tax bill clearing committee and heading to the House floor—packed, as promised, with massive giveaways to the ultra-wealthy—we’re revisiting our timely conversation with Samantha Jacoby of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Originally recorded before Trump’s reelection, this episode breaks down the real impact of the tax bill that Trump signed into law back in 2017: trillions added to the deficit, corporations and billionaires cashing in, and working families left behind.
Spoiler alert: the rich get richer, and everybody else gets screwed. As Congress considers doubling down on the same failed policies, this conversation couldn’t be more relevant.
Samantha Jacoby is the Deputy Director of Federal Tax Policy with the Center’s Federal Fiscal Policy division. Samantha focuses on U.S. federal income tax issues, including corporate and business taxation, individual income taxation, and climate tax policy.
This episode originally aired March 19, 2024.
Social Media:
Further reading:
Ten Questions on House Republicans’ Upcoming Tax Bill
The 2017 Trump Tax Law Was Skewed to the Rich, Expensive, and Failed to Deliver on Its Promises
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Greedflation 2.0: How Tariffs Could Become an Excuse for Corporate Price Gouging (with Hal Singer)
During COVID, corporations blamed supply chain shocks for rising prices while quietly raising prices higher than costs, thereby boosting their profits to record levels. We know they did this because they bragged about doing it on corporate earnings calls. Economist Hal Singer warns that Trump’s proposed tariffs could spark a repeat, giving corporations another “golden opportunity” to jack up prices under the guise of higher costs. He explains why tools like antitrust enforcement and interest rate hikes aren’t enough to stop price gouging—and why failing to curb greedflation could carry a steep political price.
Hal Singer is an economist, antitrust expert, and Managing Director at Econ One Research, where he specializes in competition policy, regulatory economics, and consumer protection. He’s a professor at the University of Utah and a leading voice on market power, price gouging, and the intersection of antitrust and inequality.
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Further reading:
Hal’s recent OpEd in The Sling: Progressives Need a New Toolkit to Fight Inflation
How Corporations “Get Away With Murder” to Inflate Prices on Rent, Food, and Electricity
How Trump Is Helping Price Gougers Exploit His Tariffs
President John F. Kennedy News Conference on April 11, 1962
Antitrust Policy for the Conservative
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Why Democracy Needs a New Operating System (with K. Sabeel Rahman)
Decades of trickle-down thinking hollowed out our government—and now the anti-democracy crowd is finishing the job. This week, legal scholar and former Biden advisor K. Sabeel Rahman joins Nick and Goldy to talk about what happens when the rule of law becomes optional, what the Biden administration got right (and what it didn’t,) and why simply restoring the old system isn’t enough. If we want a real democracy—one that can stand up to corporate power and actually deliver for people—we need to stop playing by outdated rules and start constructing a government that's faster, fairer, and fit for the modern world.
K. Sabeel Rahman is a legal scholar, policy expert, and former senior advisor in the Biden administration, where he served as Associate Administrator at the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. A leading voice on democracy, governance, and economic justice, he is Demos's former president and a law professor at Cornell University.
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Further reading:
Civic Power: Rebuilding American Democracy in an Era of Crisis
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Democracy in Chains (with Nancy MacLean)
This week, we’re revisiting a critical conversation we had back in 2020 with author and historian Nancy MacLean, in which she exposes how today’s threats to democracy were decades in the making. Based on her groundbreaking book Democracy in Chains, MacLean traces how Nobel Prize-winning economist James Buchanan worked with billionaire donors to rig the rules of government to expand corporate power and protect extreme wealth. From public choice theory to voter suppression, this episode reveals the coordinated strategy to undermine democracy—and explains why understanding it is essential to fighting back.
Nancy MacLean is an award-winning historian and the William H. Chafe Distinguished Professor of History and Public Policy at Duke University. Her book, Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America was a National Book Award finalist and winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize.
This episode originally aired on July 21, 2020.
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The Abundance Doctrine (with Mike Konczal)
What does “abundance” actually mean—and who is it really for? In this episode, Goldy and Paul welcome back economic policy expert Mike Konczal to unpack the big new idea dominating political discourse: abundance. They dive into the buzz around Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson’s book “Abundance,” and Konczal’s sharp critique of its deregulatory leanings, missed opportunities, and neoliberal undertones. From housing policy to green energy to the myth that deregulation alone can fix America’s problems, this episode challenges the idea that more is always better, and asks what it would really take to build a future that’s abundant for everyone—not just the rich.
Mike Konczal is the Senior Director of Policy and Research at the Economic Security Project, where he oversees policy development, research, and strategic analysis to advance its ideas. Previously, he served as a Special Assistant to President Biden for Economic Policy and Chief Economist for the National Economic Council.
Social Media:
Further reading:
Democracy Journal - The Abundance Doctrine
Abundance By Ezra Klein & Derek Thompson
Why Nothing Works: Who Killed Progress—and How to Bring It Back By Marc Dunkelman
NBER Working Paper - Supply constraints do not explain house price and quantity growth across U.S. cities
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Why Nothing Works: Who Killed Progress—and How to Bring It Back (with Marc Dunkelman)
Why does it feel like we can’t build anything anymore? In this episode, Nick and Goldy talk with author Mark Dunkelman about his new book Why Nothing Works, which examines how well-intentioned progressive reforms created a “vetocracy” that makes major public projects nearly impossible. From Seattle’s decades-long waterfront rebuild to the dysfunction of Penn Station, they explore the messy trade-offs between accountability and action—and ask what it would take to make progress possible again.
Marc Dunkelman is a fellow at Brown University’s Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs and a former fellow at NYU’s Marron Institute of Urban Management. During more than a decade working in politics, he worked for Democratic members of both the Senate and the House of Representatives and as a senior fellow at the Clinton Foundation.
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Further reading:
Why Nothing Works: Who Killed Progress—and How to Bring It Back
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Live From DC: Turning Middle-Out Economics into Good Politics
Timid tweaks won’t fix a broken economy. From Nick Hanauer’s blunt critique of Democratic incrementalism to a candid conversation with Representatives Ro Khanna, Delia Ramirez, and Jim Himes on how Democrats can reclaim working-class trust by embracing economic populism and fighting for real change, this episode brings you inside the 2025 Middle Out Economics conference, where the message was clear: Go big or get out of the way.
Moderator: Harold Meyerson, The American Prospect
Rep. Jim Himes, 4th congressional district, Connecticut
Rep. Ro Khanna, 17th congressional district, California
Rep. Delia Ramirez, 3rd congressional district, Illinois
Further reading:
Measuring the Income Gap from 1975 to 2023
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America Needs an Economic Bill of Rights (with Mark Paul)
Trickle-downers want you to believe that in America, freedom is a narrow idea—freedom from taxes, from regulation, from government itself. But what good is that kind of freedom if you can’t afford rent, see a doctor, or feed your family?
So, this week we’re revisiting one of our favorite conversations—our interview with economist Mark Paul about his book, The Ends of Freedom: Reclaiming America's Lost Promise of Economic Rights. In it, he challenges the myth of economic freedom and offers a bold alternative: a 21st-century Economic Bill of Rights. Drawing on the unfinished work of FDR and Martin Luther King Jr., Paul argues that true freedom means more than just being left alone—it means having access to the basic goods that make life possible: housing, healthcare, education, and a decent job. From the lasting damage of neoliberalism to a vision for a fairer, more humane economy, this conversation reframes what freedom really means—and what it will take to build an economy that works for everyone.
Mark Paul is an assistant professor at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University and a member of the Rutgers Climate Institute. His work has been featured in publications such as The New York Times, The American Prospect, The Washington Post, and The Financial Times. In 2023, he published his first book, The Ends of Freedom: Reclaiming America’s Lost Promise of Economic Rights.
This episode originally aired on May 16, 2023.
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The Middle-Out Moment Is Still Here
Twelve months ago, Democracy Journal announced we were entering the "Middle-Out Moment." A year later—after a brutal election and rising uncertainty—the question isn’t whether neoliberalism is over, but what comes next. In a new symposium titled “It’s Still the Post-Neoliberal Moment,” Democracy brings together leading voices to answer that question. In this episode, we hear directly from some of the smartest contemporary thinkers on how to dismantle corporate power, rebuild trust in government, center care as a public good, and make policy that actually reaches the people it's meant to serve. The stakes couldn’t be higher—and the decisions we make in this moment could mean the difference between widespread prosperity or a negative feedback loop that will be felt for generations to come.
Guests include: Nidhi Hegde, Charles Davidson, Shilpa Phadke & Shayna Strom, Harry Holzer, Mary Beth Maxwell, Bilal Baydoun, and Melissa Morales.
Further reading:
The Middle-Out Moment Is Still Here - Nick Hanauer
Anti-Monopoly Is the Path Forward - Nidhi Hegde
Financial Secrecy Is a Middle-Out Issue - Charles Davidson
Do Not Abandon the Care Agenda - Shilpa Phadke & Shayna Strom
Taking the Spending-Inflation Problem Seriously - Harry Holzer
Time for People-Centered Policy - Mary Beth Maxwell
Good Political Stories Need Heroes—and Villains - Bilal Baydoun
On the Need to Go Bigger - Melissa Morales
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Why Working-Class Voters Are Turning Away from the Democratic Party (with Lainey Newman)
For decades, unions were more than just labor organizations—they were community anchors that shaped working-class identity and political loyalty. But what happens when an entire generation loses its economic and social foundation? The Rust Belt’s working-class voters were once a Democratic stronghold, but that’s no longer the case. Lainey Newman, co-author of Rust Belt Union Blues, joins Paul and Goldy this week to explain how the erosion of union power helped shift working-class voters away from Democrats, and why economic fixes alone won’t be enough to win them back.
Lainey Newman is an author and J.D. candidate at Harvard Law School. She is a graduate of Harvard College and a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
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Further reading:
Rust Belt Union Blues: Why Working-Class Voters Are Turning Away from the Democratic Party
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Wall Street’s War on Workers (with Les Leopold)
Mass layoffs have become a routine corporate strategy—not because companies are struggling, but because Wall Street demands it. In Wall Street’s War on Workers, labor educator and author Les Leopold exposes how stock buybacks, deregulation, and financialized capitalism have made job cuts a tool for enriching CEOs and hedge funds at the expense of workers and communities. He joins Nick and Goldy this week to explain how this happened, why both political parties have failed to stop it, and what we can do to fight back.
Les Leopold is a labor educator, author, and co-founder of the Labor Institute, where he has spent decades advocating for economic justice and worker rights. He is the author of several books, including Runaway Inequality and Wall Street’s War on Workers, which exposes how financial elites have rigged the economy in their favor.
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Further reading:
Civic Ventures Produced Comic on Stock Buybacks: Trillion Dollar Heist
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Breaking Up Big Econ (with David Deming)
A small group of elite universities holds an outsized influence over the field of economics, shaping research, policy, and the broader economic narrative. But is that concentration of power stifling innovation and reinforcing the status quo? This week, Harvard economist David Deming joins Nick and Goldy to discuss his recent Atlantic article, in which he argues that Big Econ functions like a monopoly—limiting competition, excluding diverse perspectives, and making it harder for new ideas to take hold.
David Deming is the Isabelle and Scott Black Professor of Political Economy at the Harvard Kennedy School. Deming is also a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research and Associate Editor of the Journal of Economic Perspectives.
Social Media:
Further reading:
DOGE Is Failing on Its Own Terms
David Deming’s Substack Forked Lightning
The Trouble With Macroeconomics
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Poverty for Profit: How Corporations Get Rich off America’s Poor (with Anne Kim)
The U.S. spends billions on programs designed to fight poverty, but it appears that much of that money is actually making corporations richer instead of helping people. This week, Nick and Goldy sit down with Anne Kim, author of Poverty for Profit: How Corporations Get Rich off America's Poor, to talk about the vast industry that siphons public dollars from anti-poverty programs.. From tax prep companies skimming off the Earned Income Tax Credit to private Medicaid contractors denying care to boost their bottom line, Kim exposes the hidden ways corporations profit off economic hardship. How did we end up with an anti-poverty system that enriches shareholders instead of helping people? More importantly—how do we fix it?
Anne Kim is a writer, lawyer, public policy expert, and contributing editor at Washington Monthly. She’s also the author of Poverty for Profit: How Corporations Get Rich off America’s Poor and Abandoned: America’s Lost Youth and the Crisis of Disconnection.
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Further reading:
Poverty for Profit: How Corporations Get Rich off America’s Poor
Abandoned: America’s Lost Youth and the Crisis of Disconnection
The TurboTax Trap: How the Tax Prep Industry Makes You Pay
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Why the Economy Feels Rigged—and How to Fix It (with Senator Chris Murphy)
This week, Senator Chris Murphy joins Nick and Goldy to discuss the political failure of neoliberalism and what comes next for the Democratic Party. For decades, both parties embraced free trade and deregulation, promising that economic growth would benefit everyone. But that promise went unfulfilled as wages stagnated, industries collapsed, and inequality soared. Murphy explains how these policies left millions of Americans economically adrift, why Biden’s shift toward industrial policy is a step in the right direction, and how Democrats can remake their economic narrative by focusing on unrigging the system rather than handing out subsidies.
Chris Murphy is the junior United States Senator for the State of Connecticut.
Social Media:
Further reading:
The Senator Warning Democrats of a Crisis Unfolding Beneath Their Noses
How Neoliberalism Cuts Off Community
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The Gilded Age of White Collar Crime (with Michael Hobbes)
Only a few weeks into his second term, Donald Trump and his billionaire buddies are doing their best to dismantle the federal government's regulatory agencies. So today, we're revisiting a compelling conversation we had in 2020 with journalist and podcast host Michael Hobbes about a piece he wrote in HuffPost titled "The Golden Age of White-Collar Crime." Initially reported against the backdrop of Trump’s first presidency and its alarming erosion of regulatory oversight, Hobbes breaks down the staggering prevalence of elite deviance—where the wealthy evade accountability for crimes that cause immense social harm—and also offers insight into why white-collar crime often goes unchecked. It’s a timely reminder of the consequences of allowing the ultra-wealthy to operate above the law.
This episode originally aired on March 10, 2020.
Michael Hobbes is a journalist, podcaster, and former senior reporter for HuffPost, known for his in-depth investigations into social issues, economics, and media narratives. He is the co-host of If Books Could Kill and Maintenance Phase, and previously co-hosted You're Wrong About, where he debunked cultural myths and misconceptions. Hobbes has also contributed to outlets like The New Republic, Pacific Standard and Slate covering topics ranging from housing policy to moral panics.
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The Golden Age of White Collar Crime
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How America Ceased to Be the Land of Opportunity (with Yoni Appelbaum)
This week, Nick and Goldy are joined by journalist and historian Yoni Appelbaum to discuss his forthcoming book, Stuck: How the Privileged and the Propertied Broke the Engine of American Opportunity. They explore how decades of failed economic policies and zoning regulations have restricted mobility, stifled economic growth, and worsened inequality—revealing the historical roots of our current housing and economic inequality crises. Appelbaum argues that the decline in housing affordability isn't just a housing problem but a mobility problem, as many Americans are increasingly unable to afford to move to areas of the country where they can pursue better opportunities for themselves or their children.
Yoni Appelbaum is a deputy executive editor of The Atlantic and a social and cultural historian of the United States. Before joining The Atlantic, he was a lecturer on history and literature at Harvard University.
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Further reading:
Stuck: How the Privileged and the Propertied Broke the Engine of American Opportunity.
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The Rise of the Billionaire Oligarchy (with Thom Hartmann)
With billionaires pouring unprecedented sums of money into politics, corporate interests shaping policy, and the revelation that Trump has appointed a record 13 billionaires to top administration roles in the wealthiest cabinet in American history, it's clear how much sway the ultra-wealthy hold over our democracy. So, we’re re-airing our 2021 conversation with Thom Hartmann, which offers timely insights into how the ultra-wealthy consolidate power, and how concentrated wealth undermines economic fairness and democratic governance.
Thom Hartmann is a New York Times bestselling author and America’s #1 progressive talk show host for over a decade.
This episode originally aired on February 2, 2021.
Social Media:
Bluesky @hartmannreport.com
Twitter @Thom_Hartmann
Further reading:
The Hidden History of American Oligarchy
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How Mexico’s Post-Neoliberal Policies Offer a Blueprint for U.S. Democrats (with Kurt Hackbarth)
This week, Paul and Goldy sit down with journalist Kurt Hackbarth to discuss the recent electoral success of Mexico's Morena party and their progressive economic agenda. The conversation explores how Morena’s focus on middle-out policies, such as significant minimum wage increases and sweeping social safety net programs and reforms, has lifted millions out of poverty and challenged decades of neoliberal orthodoxy. Hackbarth also highlights the effective communication strategies employed by Morena's leaders, particularly their innovative use of social media, and the importance of staying connected to the base while appealing to a broad spectrum of voters, offering insights into what U.S. Democrats can learn from Mexico's left-leaning Morena party.
Kurt Hackbarth is a writer, playwright, and freelance journalist who contributes to Jacobin Magazine and co-founded the independent media project “MexElects.” His writing often explores the complexities of global affairs and the impact of neoliberalism on society.
Social Media:
Further reading:
Jacobin Magazine- Mexico’s Lessons for the International Left
Soberanía: The Mexican Politics Podcast
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The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order (with Gary Gerstle)
This week, Nick and Goldy sit down with historian Gary Gerstle, author of The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order, for an in-depth exploration of neoliberalism—its origins, dominance, and decline. Their conversation examines the shifting political landscape shaped by recent presidential administrations, including the Biden administration’s efforts to promote a more equitable “middle-out” economic framework. With a focus on historical context and the enduring power of neoliberal institutions, this episode offers a compelling analysis of the pathways to a new economic order and the critical role of innovative thinking in navigating today’s economic challenges.
Gary Gerstle is an author, historian, and scholar of American political and economic history. He is the Paul Mellon Professor of American History Emeritus at the University of Cambridge and a Professor Emeritus of History at Vanderbilt University.
Social Media:
Further reading:
1984 Super Bowl APPLE MACINTOSH Ad
The Rise and Fall of the Neoliberal Order: America and the World in the Free Market Era
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Revisiting Trickle-Down's Stubborn Refusal to Die (with Mark Blyth)
With a second Trump administration on the horizon, we’re bracing for a return to the same failed trickle-down policies that have dominated our politics for 50 years—policies that enrich the wealthy few at the top while leaving everyone else behind. That’s why we’re resharing our 2022 conversation with Mark Blyth, a political economist who explains why trickle-down economics refuses to die and how it continues to shape our world. In this episode, Mark exposes the myths behind these harmful ideas and makes a compelling case for a new economic paradigm.
This episode originally aired on October 11, 2022.
Mark Blyth is a political economist, professor, author and the Director of the William R. Rhodes Center for International Economics and Finance at Brown University. He is the author of several influential books, including Austerity: The History of a Dangerous Idea and Angrynomics (co-authored with Eric Lonergan), and he’s the co-author of a forthcoming book, Inflation: A Guide for Users and Losers.
Further reading:
Inflation: A Guide for Users and Losers
Austerity: The History of a Dangerous Idea
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How AI Could Help Rebuild The Middle Class (with David Autor)
This week, Nick and Goldy discuss the future of AI and its potential impact on labor markets and society with MIT professor and economist David Autor. While many pundits predict that AI will bring economic misery to working Americans, Autor optimistically argues that AI could empower the middle class by augmenting human expertise, unlocking new solutions to complex problems, and enabling individuals with fewer formal skills to excel in areas requiring advanced knowledge. Professor Autor also underscores the need for targeted investments, labor market supports, and thoughtful regulations to ensure the benefits of AI are widely and equitably distributed rather than concentrated among a privileged few. It’s a fascinating discussion about the future of AI that tackles the pressing questions about its ethical deployment, the risks of monopolization, and the societal shifts required to harness it for the greater good.
David Autor is a labor economist and professor of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who studies how technological change and globalization affect workers. He is also co-director of the MIT Shaping the Future of Work Initiative and the National Bureau of Economic Research Labor Studies Program.
Social Media
Twitter: @davidautor
Further reading:
NOEMA - AI Could Actually Help Rebuild The Middle Class
New York Times - How One Tech Skeptic Decided A.I. Might Benefit the Middle Class
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Is America’s Healthcare System Having Its Own Pitchforks Moment? (with Dr. Abdul El-Sayed)
This week, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed joins Nick and Goldy to discuss how the recent assassination of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson has thrown a harsh spotlight on the public's visceral anger toward our exploitative healthcare system. Dr. El-Sayed outlines the stark contrasts between the profit-driven U.S. healthcare system and those of other developed nations, arguing that we need a public option to alleviate the burdens of skyrocketing costs and access issues. Goldy also explains how the warnings from Nick’s viral POLITICO piece from 10 years ago, “The Pitchforks Are Coming For Us Plutocrats,” feel eerily prescient, as the public reaction to Thompson’s death was a mix of hailing the shooter as a hero, outrage, and people sharing their personal healthcare horror stories online. Is it possible that America’s healthcare system is having its own pitchforks moment?
Dr. Abdul El-Sayed is a physician, epidemiologist, and public servant whose work focuses on health equity, resiliency, and environmental justice. He is the host of America Dissected, Crooked Media’s podcast that explores the intersection of health and society with leading experts in science, public health, and policy. Abdul is also the author of Healing Politics and Medicare for All: A Citizen’s Guide, and he serves as a visiting scientist at Harvard’s FXB Center for Health & Human Rights, as well as a Scholar in Residence at Wayne State University and American University.
Social Media
BlueSky: @abdulelsayed.bsky.social
Instagram: abdulelsayed
Threads: abdulelsayed
Twitter: @AbdulElSayed
Further reading:
Healing Politics: A Doctor's Journey Into the Heart of Our Political Epidemic
Medicare for All: A Citizen's Guide
Nick’s OpEd in POLITICO: The Pitchforks Are Coming… For Us Plutocrats
Nick’s Ted Talk: Beware, fellow plutocrats, the pitchforks are coming
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
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Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
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The Middle-Out President (with President Joe Biden)
This week, Nick and Goldy interview a Pitchfork Economics first: a sitting President of the United States. President Joe Biden joins the podcast for a conversation about the transformative economic vision at the heart of his presidency. Biden shares how his groundbreaking middle-out economic policies—investing in workers, rebuilding infrastructure, and revitalizing American industries—are reshaping the economy and creating a legacy of shared prosperity. From empowering unions to creating good-paying jobs and boosting wages, the President underscores why a thriving middle class isn’t just the foundation of a strong economy—it’s the engine that drives it. This is an insightful discussion with the leader who has helped turn the page on five decades of failed economic theory, breaking the suffocating DC economic consensus in favor of prioritizing working Americans.
Joseph R. Biden is the 46th President of the United States.
Social Media:
Facebook: Joe Biden
Instagram: joebiden
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Twitter: @JoeBiden
Further reading:
President Biden in The American Prospect: From the Middle Out and Bottom Up
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The Market Alone Can’t Fix the U.S. Housing Crisis (with Brian Callaci & Sandeep Vaheesan)
This week, Nick and Goldy explore why the market alone can’t solve the U.S. housing crisis with Sandeep Vaheesan and Brian Callaci from the Open Markets Institute. The guests discuss their recent article in the Harvard Business Review, which explains how profit-driven private markets fail to address housing affordability, particularly for lower-income individuals. Their discussion underscores the drawbacks of deregulation and the need for strong antitrust enforcement, second-generation rent controls, enhanced tenant protections, and a public option for housing to ensure stability and affordability. Vaheesan and Callaci also stress the significance of understanding the interconnected issues of supply, demand, and the socioeconomic factors driving the crisis, arguing that without proactive governmental intervention the housing market cannot effectively meet the needs of those seeking affordable housing.
Sandeep Vaheesan is the legal director at the Open Markets Institute. He leads the institute’s legal advocacy and research on a range of anti-monopoly topics, including antitrust law’s role in structuring labor markets and promoting fair competition. Before working at the Open Markets Institute, he served as regulations counsel at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, where he helped develop rules on payday and title lending and debt collection practices.
Brian Callaci is the chief economist at the Open Markets Institute. He researches and writes about market structure, antitrust law, and their relationship to worker and employer power. In addition to peer-reviewed academic research, he publishes articles in news outlets such as The Atlantic, Harvard Business Review, and The New Republic. Before working at the Open Markets Institute, he worked at the Strategic Organizing Center and Workers United/SEIU.
Social Media:
Sandeep Vaheesan on Twitter: @sandeepvaheesan
Brian Callaci on Twitter: @brian_callaci
Open Markets Institute on BlueSky: @openmarkets.bsky.social
Open Markets Institute on Twitter: @openmarkets
Further reading:
The Market Alone Can’t Fix the U.S. Housing Crisis
Zoning change: Upzonings, downzonings, and their impacts on residential construction,
housing costs, and neighborhood demographics
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Homelessness is a Housing Problem (with Gregg Colburn)
This week, Gregg Colburn, co-author of "Homelessness is a Housing Problem," joins Nick and Goldy to dissect the complex factors fueling America’s homelessness crisis. Colburn presents compelling evidence that challenges common misconceptions around homelessness, revealing that it stems primarily from the rising costs of housing rather than issues like addiction or mental illness. He explains that evidence shows comprehensive strategies—combining affordable housing, rental assistance, and supportive services—can meaningfully reduce numbers in the unhoused population. While acknowledging the long-term nature of the challenge, Colburn reframes housing as essential infrastructure, calls for big investments in building more housing units, and offers a compelling, data-driven case for rethinking America’s approach to homelessness and housing affordability.
Gregg Colburn is an associate professor of real estate at the University of Washington’s College of Built Environments. He publishes research on topics related to housing and homelessness and is co-author of the book Homelessness is a Housing Problem: How Structural Factors Explain U.S. Patterns. Professor Colburn is co-chair of the University of Washington’s Homelessness Research Initiative and is a member of the National Alliance to End Homelessness Research Council.
Further reading:
Homelessness is a Housing Problem: How Structural Factors Explain U.S. Patterns
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Scaling Affordability and Breaking the Stigma: Local Innovations in Public Housing (with Rachel Cohen)
This week, Nick and Goldy discuss the concept of social housing with Vox Policy Correspondent Rachel Cohen. They explore how local government investments in mixed-income housing can keep cities affordable for the middle class. Drawing from her reporting, Cohen spotlights the innovative social housing experiment in Montgomery County, Maryland, which demonstrates how well-designed public housing can rival private market options without falling prey to stigma or inefficiency. They also explore the financial benefits of publicly owned housing and its potential to alleviate the widespread housing crisis by providing a sustainable, scalable solution that benefits low- and middle-income earners by delivering lasting affordability.
Rachel Cohen is a policy correspondent for Vox Media. She focuses on U.S. social policy, covering issues such as education, abortion, economic policy, and housing. Rachel has been covering social policy issues for more than a decade, with her reporting published in more than two dozen national outlets, including the New York Times, the Atlantic, Bloomberg, the Daily Beast, and the Washington Post.
Social Media:
Further reading:
What if public housing were for everyone?
One possible housing crisis solution? A new kind of public housing for all income levels
An Innovative Financing Model for Affordable Housing
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How Big Oil Rigged the System and Stuck You With the Bill (with Faiz Shakir)
This week, Nick And Goldy are joined by Faiz Shakir, Executive Director of A More Perfect Union, to discuss the shocking revelation of an international oil price-fixing conspiracy. Their conversation explores how the collusion between American oil companies and the foreign nations that make up OPEC significantly contributed to inflation, costing American families between $500 and $1,000 annually. Shakir explains how the Federal Trade Commission uncovered this conspiracy and highlights the urgent need for increased regulatory oversight and harsher penalties to protect consumers from corporate malpractice.
Faiz Shakir is the Executive Director of the nonprofit education, advocacy, and journalism organization, More Perfect Union, and former campaign manager of Senator Bernie Sanders’ 2020 Presidential Campaign. Prior to his work with Senator Sanders, Shakir held various leadership positions within the Democratic Party and progressive organizations, working to advance social and economic justice issues.
Social Media:
Further reading:
An Oil Price-Fixing Conspiracy Caused 27% of All Inflation Increases in 2021
A 2024 Timeline of Big Oil Greed
House Democrats investigate whether Big Oil colluded with OPEC to inflate gas prices
The Truth Behind the Latest Oil Price-Fixing Scandal
Gas Price Fixing Scandal Grows as Another US Oil Exec 'Caught Colluding With OPEC'
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The Guarantee (with Natalie Foster)
This week, Natalie Foster, co-founder of the Economic Security Project, joins Nick and Goldy to discuss her book The Guarantee: Inside the Fight for America's Next Economy. Foster argues that as the world’s wealthiest nation, the U.S. can ensure a basic economic floor for all by guaranteeing essentials like housing, healthcare, higher education, family care, good jobs, and income, regardless of race, religion, or location. Foster explains how giving people money might just be the key to growing the economy for everyone. Their wide-ranging conversation covers topics including the wealth gap, housing affordability, baby bonds, and the political dynamics surrounding guarantee programs.
Natalie Foster is the president and co-founder of the Economic Security Project and author of the book The Guarantee: Inside the Fight for America’s Next Economy. Natalie previously founded the sharing economy community Peers, and co-founded Rebuild the Dream, and served as Digital Director for President Obama’s Organizing for America.
Twitter: @nataliefoster
Further reading:
The Guarantee: Inside the Fight for America’s Next Economy
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
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Revisiting How to Stand Up for Voting Rights (with Andrea Hailey)
Voting is the cornerstone of a functioning democracy, yet access to the ballot is increasingly under threat in America. No matter who wins the Presidential race, it should be a priority to strengthen and expand accessible and secure voting. This election day, we’re revisiting a conversation we had in 2021 with Andrea Hailey, CEO of Vote.org, where we unpack the ongoing fight for voting rights and discuss how restrictive policies disproportionately impact marginalized communities. Hailey shares insights into the tools and strategies we can all use to ensure that every American has an equal voice at the polls. She also explains why voting access matters more than ever and how we can stand up for democracy by defending the right to vote.
This episode originally aired on October 21, 2021.
Andrea Hailey is the CEO of Vote.org, the nation’s largest nonpartisan digital voter engagement organization.
Twitter: @votedotorg
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Project 2025 is All Trick, No Treat (with Peggy Bailey)
As Election Day approaches, Peggy Bailey from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities joins Paul and Goldy to discuss the devastating potential effects of the House Republican agenda and the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025. The proposals, supported by candidates who will be on your ballot this November, include a wholesale dismantling of federal government programs, cutting benefits, shifting costs to states, and penalizing working families in order to slash taxes for the rich. Bailey reveals the massive economic disinvestment and inherent racism and discrimination in the trickle-down agenda of Project 2025 and the House Republican agenda, even as she emphasizes the need for the federal government to revitalize the economy from the bottom up with investments in those who have been marginalized.
Peggy Bailey is the Executive Vice President of Policy and Program Development at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. She previously served in the Biden-Harris Administration as the Senior Advisor on Rental Assistance to HUD Secretary Marcia L. Fudge. She also served as the Director of Health and Housing Integration for the Corporation for Supportive Housing, where she focused on Medicaid expansion and finding sustainable funding sources for the services that people with histories of homelessness and chronic health conditions need to maintain their housing.
Twitter: @PeggyBaileyDC @CenterOnBudget
Further reading:
Report from the Center on Budget & Policy Priorities: House Republican Agendas and Project 2025 Would Increase Poverty and Hardship, Drive Up the Uninsured Rate, and Disinvest From People, Communities, and the Economy
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Acemoglu on Automation: The Nobel Laureate Vs. the Robots (with Daron Acemoglu)
Since Daron Acemoglu just won the 2024 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences alongside MIT Sloan professor Simon Johnson and University of Chicago professor James Robinson, we’re revisiting this powerful episode featuring Acemoglu’s insights from 2023. In his groundbreaking book Power and Progress, Acemoglu exposes how the elite have weaponized technology to tighten their grip on wealth and influence, and explains how we can ensure that technological progress works for everyone, not just the wealthy few.
This episode originally aired on August 22, 2023.
Daron Acemoglu is the Institute Professor of Economics at MIT, the university’s highest faculty honor, and a 2024 Nobel laureate. For the last twenty-five years, he has been researching the historical origins of prosperity, poverty, and the effects of new technologies on economic growth, employment, and inequality. He is an author (with James Robinson) of The Narrow Corridor and the New York Times bestseller Why Nations Fail.
Twitter: @NarrowCorridor
Further reading:
Trio of professors win Nobel economics prize for work on post-colonial wealth
Democracy is in a ‘tough stretch.’ New Nobel winners explain how to strengthen it
Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity
The Narrow Corridor: States, Societies, and the Fate of Liberty
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Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
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Stop the Steal: Revisiting Private Equity’s Plan to Pillage America (with Brendan Ballou)
Private equity is looting America by exploiting vulnerable companies and extracting profits at the expense of workers, communities, and the broader economy. They've been buying up companies in every industry in the U.S. Economy and stripping them for parts. These massive firms have vast holdings across critical industries essential to the health and well-being of everyday people. Some recent examples include private equity's role in education, utilities, housing, and even in the healthcare sector, which led to the closure of hospitals and nursing homes, endangering public health. We thought it would be a good time to revisit this episode from 2023 with Brendan Ballou, a federal prosecutor and the author of Plunder: Private Equity’s Plan to Pillage America. In this episode, he explains how we can stop private equity’s plan to pillage America.
This episode originally aired on July 25, 2023.
Brendan Ballou is a federal prosecutor and served as Special Counsel for Private Equity in the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. Previously, he worked in private practice, and before that, in the National Security Division of the Justice Department, where he advised the White House on counterterrorism and other policies.
Twitter: @brendanballou
Further reading:
Plunder: Private Equity’s Plan to Pillage America
The Guardian - Slash and burn: is private equity out of control?
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
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Sometimes You Just Have to Ignore the Economists (with Zephyr Teachout)
This week, Nick and Goldy are joined by Fordham Law professor Zephyr Teachout, who explains the urgent need for federal action on corporate price-gouging. Professor Teachout identifies misconceptions about price controls and highlights the failure of mainstream economists to recognize that price-gouging is a common practice, especially in light of skyrocketing corporate profit margins during the pandemic. Their conversation also unpacks the need for stronger antitrust enforcement, decreased market concentration, and more regulations aimed at protecting consumers in times of crisis.
Zephyr Teachout is a Professor of Law at Fordham Law School, where she focuses on the intersection of corporate and political power. She is also the author of multiple books, including Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin's Snuff Box to Citizens United and Break 'Em Up: Recovering Our Freedom from Big Ag, Big Tech, and Big Money.
Twitter: @ZephyrTeachout
Further reading:
The Atlantic - Sometimes You Just Have to Ignore the Economists
More Perfect Union - Why Are Diaper Prices Up 184 Percent? Two Corporations are Preying on Parents
The New Republic - A Very Good Sign: Kamala Harris Is Going Right at Corporate Greed
Find out if your state has a price gouging law here: NCSL Price Gouging State Statutes
Books By Professor Teachout:
Break 'Em Up: Recovering Our Freedom from Big Ag, Big Tech, and Big Money
Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin's Snuff Box to Citizens United
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Threads: pitchforkeconomics
YouTube: @pitchforkeconomics
Substack: The Pitch
Coming of Age in American Poverty (with Nikhil Goyal)
This week, Nick and Goldy welcome sociologist Nikhil Goyal to discuss his new book, Live to See the Day: Coming of Age in American Poverty, which highlights the deep-rooted effects of generational poverty in America by focusing on the experiences of three young people in Kensington, Philadelphia. Their stories illustrate how systemic inequality and poor economic policies perpetuate a cycle of despair and intergenerational poverty. Goyal explains the limitations of traditional anti-poverty solutions like promoting higher educational attainment. Instead, he spotlights the need for direct cash transfers, robust public goods, and a public option for programs like healthcare, affordable housing, or even publicly owned grocery stores that directly address the causes of poverty.
Nikhil Goyal is a sociologist and former senior policy advisor on education and children for Senator Bernie Sanders on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and Committee on the Budget. He also developed a tuition-free college program for incarcerated people and correctional workers in Vermont. He is the author of the book LIVE TO SEE THE DAY: Coming of Age in American Poverty.
Twitter: @drgoyalnikhil
Further reading:
LIVE TO SEE THE DAY: Coming of Age in American Poverty
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Why do you continue to do this work?
It’s our 300th episode! To mark this milestone, we’ve gathered some of the most thoughtful and inspiring answers to one of our favorite questions: Why do you do this work? Plus, Nick and Goldy share what keeps them in the fight for a better economy. We're deeply grateful for the wisdom of our incredible guests and, most of all, for YOU—our listeners—who’ve supported us along the way. Here’s to many more conversations unpacking who gets what and why in our economy, and how to build the economy from the middle out.
Love what you’re hearing on the pod? Follow us on social media using the links below for updates and spicy takes on the economy! And if you haven’t already, make sure to follow the show so you never miss an episode. While you’re at it, give us a rating and leave a review wherever you get your podcasts—it helps us reach more people interested in rethinking or better understanding the economy and want to build a better future. Thanks for listening!
Guests Featured:
Jared Bernstein - Chair, White House Council of Economic Advisors
Reshma Saujani - Founder, Girls Who Code and the Marshall Plan for Moms
Mark Blyth - Political Economist and author of Diminishing Returns: The New Politics of Growth and Stagnation
Rohit Chopra - Director, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
Joseph Stiglitz (3-time guest) - Economist and author of The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society
Caitlin Myers - Professor of Economics at Middlebury College and Co-Director of the Middlebury Initiative for Data and Digital Methods.
Kim Stanley Robinson - American Science Fiction writer and author of The Ministry for the Future
Marshall Steinbaum (2-time guest) - Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Utah and a Senior Fellow in Higher Education Finance at Jain Family Institute.
Elizabeth Anderson - Professor of Public Philosophy at the University of Michigan and author of Hijacked: How Neoliberalism Turned the Work Ethic against Workers and How Workers Can Take It Back
Bharat Ramamurti - Former Deputy Director of the White House National Economic Council
Elizabeth Wilkins - Senior Fellow at the American Economic Liberties Project and former Director of the Office of Policy and Planning at the Federal Trade Commission
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
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Economics Needs More Socioeconomic Diversity (with Anna Stansbury)
This week, Nick and Goldy are joined by MIT economist Anna Stansbury to discuss the troubling lack of socioeconomic diversity within the economics profession. Stansbury discusses her research from a paper she co-authored with Robert Schultz titled “The Economics Profession’s Socioeconomic Diversity Problem”, which reveals that a strikingly low percentage of economists come from less-advantaged backgrounds. They have a thoughtful discussion about how that lack of diversity affects the profession's ability to address issues of power, inequality, and social problems, and they highlight the need for more diverse perspectives in the profession to ensure a more inclusive and equitable approach to economic analysis. They also point out that diversifying the field is not just a matter of equity but is crucial for fostering innovative solutions to economic challenges.
Anna Stansbury is an economist and Assistant Professor of Work and Organization Studies at MIT Sloan School of Management. She is also a nonresident senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. Her research primarily focuses on labor economics, with a particular emphasis on wage inequality, labor market power, and the dynamics of worker power within organizations. She recently co-authored a paper with Robert Schutls, “Socioeconomic Diversity of Economics Ph.Ds,” published by the Journal of Economic Perspectives.
Twitter: @annastansbury
Further reading: Socioeconomic Diversity of Economics PhDs
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Substack: The Pitch
Capitalism and Crises (with Colin Mayer)
This week, Nick and Goldy talk to esteemed economist Colin Mayer, author of the book Capitalism and Crises: How to Fix Them, to explore the deep-seated issues plaguing modern capitalism, including rising inequality and environmental degradation. Mayer argues that the current profit-driven mindset of corporations often leads to societal harm, and he advocates for a paradigm shift towards a model where businesses profit by solving real human problems rather than creating them. Their conversation dissects the historical evolution of corporate responsibility, critiques neoliberal economics, and proposes solutions that redirect corporate focus toward societal benefit, and the urgent need for a more equitable economic structure that uplifts the middle class.
Colin Mayer is a distinguished academic in the field of finance and economics. He is the Peter Moores Professor of Management Studies at the Saïd Business School at the University of Oxford. With a background in economics and finance, Mayer has conducted extensive research on corporate finance, governance, and the role of business in society. His work has been widely published in academic journals, and he is the author of several books, including "Capitalism and Crises."
Further reading: Capitalism and Crises: How to Fix Them
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Threads: pitchforkeconomics
YouTube: @pitchforkeconomics
Substack: The Pitch
Kamala Harris and the New Democratic Economic Paradigm
In the wake of the Democratic National Convention, Nick and Goldy take a close look at how middle-out economics has become the new center of the Democratic Party's economic policies, championing a new era of economic thinking that puts workers, families and taking on corporate power at the center, and breaking away from decades of top-down, trickle-down approaches. With echoes of President Joe Biden’s—and now former President Bill Clinton’s—call to build the economy from the bottom up and the middle out, Vice President Harris is seizing the middle-out mantle by declaring that building the middle class will be a defining goal of her presidency because in her words, “When our middle class is strong, America is strong.” Join us as we discuss how invigorating it was to see the Democratic Party coalescing around the idea that their economic policies should benefit the vast majority of working people in order to grow the economy.
Further reading:
The New Kamala - The American Prospect
Kamala Harris and the New Democratic Economic Paradigm - The New Yorker
Say It to My Face -The American Prospect
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Threads: pitchforkeconomics
YouTube: @pitchforkeconomics
Substack: The Pitch
Revisiting the Legacy of the Fight for $15 (with Yannet Lathrop and Dr. T. William Lester)
Over ten years ago, activists and civic leaders ignited the Fight for $15, a movement that was once seen as radical—even Forbes labeled Nick's support for a $15 minimum wage as “near-insane.” Today, the movement's achievements are undeniable: Higher wages for millions of workers, increased union membership, reducing the racial wealth gap, and now raising the federal minimum wage to $15/ hr is one of the central issues in the 2024 presidential campaign, with two-thirds of voters in support. We thought it would be a good time to revisit this episode from 2023, where Yannet Lathrop and Dr. T. William Lester discuss their report from the National Economic Law Project examining the legacy of the movement and all it has accomplished over the last decade.
This episode originally aired on January 24, 2023.
Yannet Lathrop is a Senior Researcher and Policy Analyst for the National Employment Law Project.
Dr. T. William Lester is Professor and Acting Chair of Urban and Regional Planning at San José State University and Research Professor at UNC Chapel Hill.
Twitter: @NELPnews
Further reading:
Ten-Year Legacy of the Fight for $15 and a Union Movement
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Threads: pitchforkeconomics
YouTube: @pitchforkeconomics
Substack: The Pitch
The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism (with Martin Wolf)
Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator at the Financial Times, joins Nick and Goldy to discuss his new book, "The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism." They explore the important-yet-fragile connection between capitalism and democracy, particularly in the context of rising inequality and political instability. Wolf articulates how the perceived success of democratic capitalism has begun to falter under the onslaught of economic policies favoring the wealthy and eroding the middle class. Ultimately, Wolf advocates for stronger social safety nets to ensure that democratic systems, as well as working and middle-class families, can thrive in an era dominated by economic upheaval.
Martin Wolf is the chief economics commentator at the Financial Times, known for his incisive analyses and authoritative perspectives on global economics and policy. With a distinguished career spanning several decades, Wolf has shaped public discourse on economic matters through his insightful columns and books. His latest book, "The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism," details how and why the marriage between democracy and capitalism is coming undone and what can be done to reverse this terrifying dynamic.
Twitter: @martinwolf_
Further reading: The Crisis of Democratic Capitalism
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Threads: pitchforkeconomics
YouTube: @pitchforkeconomics
Substack: The Pitch
How the Anti-Tax Movement Hijacked America (with Michael Graetz)
This week, Nick and Goldy are joined by Michael Graetz to discuss his new book, "The Power to Destroy: How the Anti-Tax Movement Hijacked America.” Graetz asserts that while the anti-tax movement is often overlooked, it has shaped policy by intertwining with issues of race and economic ideology, diverging from Keynesian economics in favor of neoliberal supply-side economics that results in extreme wealth accumulation at the top. He argues for major tax reforms, including a carbon tax and the implementation of a value-added tax, as potential solutions to creating a more equitable and sustainable tax code that would benefit the middle class. Their conversation also revisits the historical origins of the anti-tax movement in the United States and highlights how tax policy is not just shaped by economic theory— it’s also shaped by cultural and social differences.
Michael Graetz is a professor emeritus at Columbia Law School and Yale Law School and a leading authority on tax politics and policy. He served in the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Tax Policy and is the author and co-author of many books, including Death by a Thousand Cuts: The Fight over Taxing Inherited Wealth and The Burger Court and the Rise of the Judicial Right.
Further reading:
The Power to Destroy: How the Antitax Movement Hijacked America
The Graetz Competitive Tax Plan, Updated for 2022
Death by a Thousand Cuts: The Fight over Taxing Inherited Wealth
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Threads: pitchforkeconomics
YouTube: @pitchforkeconomics
Substack: The Pitch
2024 Summer Reading List
It’s Paul and Goldy’s summer reading list! In this week’s special episode, Civic Ventures Senior Fellow David “Goldy” Goldstein and Civic Ventures Writer Paul Constant recommend some of the hottest new economic and political books for your beach reading pleasure.
We want to know what you’re reading, too. Leave us a comment on Instagram, Twitter, Threads or YouTube!
Remember to shop local and small when you can, or order from IndieBound or Bookshop.org—both of which support independent bookstores! All of these books are also likely available through your local library.
Every book mentioned in this episode:
In This Economy?: How Money & Markets Really Work - Kyla Scanlon
End Times: Elites, Counter-Elites, and the Path of Political Disintegration - Peter Turchin
The Chile Project: The Story of the Chicago Boys and the Downfall of Neoliberalism - Sebastian Edwards
Our Malady: Lessons in Liberty from a Hospital Diary - Timothy Snyder
Growth: A History and a Reckoning - Daniel Susskind
Empty Planet: The Shock of Global Population Decline - Darrell Bricker & John Ibbitson
A Fabulous Failure: The Clinton Presidency and the Transformation of American Capitalism - Nelson Lichtenstein & Judith Stein
The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York - Robert A. Caro
The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society - Joseph E. Stiglitz
Work, Retire, Repeat: The Uncertainty of Retirement in the New Economy - Teresa Ghilarducci
New Nigeria County - Clare Brown
Unruly: The Ridiculous History of England's Kings and Queens - David Mitchell
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon, @NickHanauer, @civicaction
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Threads: pitchforkeconomics
YouTube: @pitchforkeconomics
Substack: The Pitch
How Outsized Corporate Profits Raised Prices (with Lindsay Owens)
This week, Nick and Goldy are joined by Lindsay Owens, Executive Director of the Groundwork Collaborative, to discuss Groundwork’s recent reports on corporate profiteering and price gouging during and after the pandemic. Owens attributes the record increases in corporate profits in the last few years to growing corporate concentration and lack of competition. She argues that these two factors gave companies an unprecedented level of market power, and therefore pricing power, which allowed them to exploit the supply chain crisis caused by COVID to drastically raise prices. Owens stresses the need for policy interventions to promote competition, transparency, and fair pricing in the market to ensure a more competitive and consumer-friendly economy.
Lindsay Owens is the Executive Director of the Groundwork Collaborative, known for her expertise in economic policymaking and her work on exposing corporate profiteering in price increases. She leads the organization's mission to create a more equitable economy, providing media commentary and advising policymakers such as Senator Elizabeth Warren, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal.
Twitter: @owenslindsay1
Further reading:
New Groundwork Report Finds Corporate Profits Driving More Than Half of Inflation
Inflation Revelation: How Outsized Corporate Profits Drive Rising Costs
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Connecting the dots on Biden's middle-out economic policies (with Heather Boushey)
This week Nick & Goldy are joined by Heather Boushey, Chief Economist for President Biden's Invest in America Cabinet, for a deep dive into the transformative economic policies of the Biden administration. Boushey discusses the paradigm shift towards a middle-out economic approach to crafting economic policy and the impact of legislation like the American Rescue Plan, CHIPS Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and Inflation Reduction Act. Their conversation explores the importance of investing in infrastructure, clean energy, and manufacturing to drive growth and create good jobs. They also discuss the challenges of implementation, the success of the administration’s industrial policy, and its remarkable economic outcomes including record low Black unemployment, high new business applications, and equitable wage growth.
Even though this episode was recorded before President Biden announced he was withdrawing from the presidential campaign and endorsing Vice President Harris, this wide-ranging conversation offers plenty of valuable insight into the past, present, and future of middle-out economics.
Heather Boushey is a distinguished American economist who specializes in economic inequality and public policy. She serves on President Biden’s Council of Economic Advisers and is the Chief Economist for the Invest in America Cabinet. Before joining the Biden Administration, she was the co-founder and President of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth, a research organization dedicated to advancing evidence-backed ideas and policies that promote economic growth and reduce inequality.
Twitter: @HBoushey
Further reading:
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The Road to Freedom (with Joseph Stiglitz)
Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz joins Nick and Goldy to talk about his new book, "The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society.” Stiglitz challenges the orthodox economic theories that have shaped our understanding of capitalism and argues for a new approach called progressive capitalism. Stiglitz also discusses the flaws of neoliberalism, popular misconceptions about freedom, and the widespread benefits of addressing issues like climate change and inequality. He shares insights on the need for a broader set of economic policies that prioritize the well-being of all people, not just the wealthy. Their discussion sheds light on the evolving landscape of economic thought and the hope for a more equitable and sustainable future.
Joseph Stiglitz is a Nobel Prize-winning economist and the best-selling author of multiple books on economics. He was also chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President Clinton and chief economist of the World Bank. He now teaches at Columbia University and is chief economist of the Roosevelt Institute. His latest book, The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society, delves into the failures of the neoliberal economic model and presents a comprehensive critique of how "free" markets have led to various crises, including financial instability, inequality, and social unrest.
Twitter: @JosephEStiglitz
Further reading:
The Road to Freedom: Economics and the Good Society
More from Joseph Stiglitz:
People, Power, and Profits: Progressive Capitalism for an Age of Discontent
For Good Measure: An Agenda for Moving Beyond GDP
Globalization and Its Discontents Revisited: Anti-Globalization in the Era of Trump
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Making Sense of Chaos (with Doyne Farmer)
This week, Nick and Goldy talk to Doyne Farmer, a renowned physicist and mathematician, to discuss his new book, "Making Sense of Chaos: A Better Economics for a Better World." Farmer, who is a professor at the Institute for New Economic Thinking, challenges traditional orthodox economic frameworks by applying complex systems theory. Their conversation explores the limitations of mainstream economic models, the importance of incorporating uncertainty into economic thinking, and the potential for complexity economics to provide better guidance for policymakers in addressing pressing issues like climate change and inequality. It’s a thoughtful discussion that explores more effective approaches to understanding and managing complex economic systems.
Doyne Farmer is a renowned physicist and mathematician who is currently a Professor at the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the University of Oxford and the Director of the Complexity Economics program. He is also an author known for his groundbreaking work in the field of complex systems and chaos theory. His recent book, "Making Sense of Chaos: A Better Economics for a Better World," delves into how chaos theory can be applied to understand and address the complexities of modern economic systems.
Twitter: @doyne_farmer
Further reading:
Making Sense of Chaos: A Better Economics for a Better World
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The Code of Capital (with Katharina Pistor)
This week, Nick and Goldy talk to Katharina Pistor, a legal scholar and professor at Columbia Law School, about her book "The Code of Capital: How the Law Creates Wealth and Inequality.” Pistor sheds light on how the law shapes the distribution of power and wealth in society. They explore the way that law's prioritization of capital has changed over time and its contribution to rising economic inequality within and between nations. Pistor also explains how we can reconfigure the legal playing field to address economic inequality.
Katharina Pistor is a legal scholar and author known for her expertise in the fields of law and finance. She is currently the Edwin B. Parker Professor of Comparative Law at Columbia Law School, where she also serves as the Director of the Center on Global Legal Transformation. Pistor has published extensively on topics such as property rights, financial regulation, and the role of law in shaping economic systems.
Her most recent book, "The Code of Capital: How the Law Creates Wealth and Inequality," explores the ways in which legal systems around the world have been designed to benefit capital owners and perpetuate wealth inequality.
Further reading:
The Code of Capital: How the Law Creates Wealth and Inequality
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The Failed Southern Economic Development Model (with Chandra Childers)
This week, Goldy and Paul talk to Chandra Childers, a senior policy and economic analyst at the Economic Policy Institute and author of their recent report on the Southern economic development model. Although the Southern economic development model is touted as a business-friendly strategy, it has devastating consequences for workers and families in Southern states. Childers explains how this economic model is rooted in racism and economic exploitation and has led to lower wages, weaker safety nets, and fewer opportunities for workers. They also discuss how some Southern states are bucking this trend and attempting to adopt more progressive policies, as well as the potential impact of renewed unionization efforts in the region.
Chandra Childers is a senior policy and economic analyst with the Economic Analysis and Research Network (EARN) at the Economic Policy Institute. Her work is primarily focused on supporting EARN’s state and local policy research and advocacy network in the Southern United States. Before joining the EARN team at EPI, Childers was a Study Director at the Institute for Women’s Policy Research.
Twitter: @ChandraChilders
Further reading:
Breaking down the South’s economic underperformance
The evolution of the Southern economic development strategy
Rooted in racism and economic exploitation
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Democracy in Default (with Brian Judge)
This week, Nick and Goldy are joined by political scientist Brian Judge, author of "Democracy in Default: Finance and the Rise of Neoliberalism in America." They delve into the historical roots of our current democratic crisis, exploring the role of liberalism in depoliticizing distributive conflicts and paving the way for the rise of neoliberalism. Judge sheds light on the impact of neoliberal ideologies on American policymaking and how liberalism's attempts to manage distributive conflict through the market have shaped our economic and political landscape—which gave leaders the opportunity to use the economic slowdown of the 1970s to install neoliberal policies that enriched the wealthy few for decades.
Brian Judge is an author and policy fellow at the Center for Human-Compatible Artificial Intelligence and the Berkeley Roundtable on the International Economy at the University of California, Berkeley. He is recognized for his recently published book, "Democracy in Default: Finance and the Rise of Neoliberalism in America," which delves into the intricate relationship between finance and politics in shaping the neoliberal economic landscape in the United States
Twitter: @realbrianjudge
Further reading:
Democracy in Default: Finance and the Rise of Neoliberalism in America
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The FTC's Renewed Fight Against Corporate Power (with Elizabeth Wilkins)
After decades of slow and cautious movement, the Federal Trade Commission has suddenly kicked into overdrive. You’ve likely seen headlines about the FTC challenging corporate mergers and monopolies, loosening Big Tech’s chokehold on our digital lives, and fighting power imbalances that favor big corporations over American consumers. Elizabeth Wilkins, former Chief of Staff and Director of the Office of Policy and Planning at the FTC, joins Nick and Goldy to give a status update on the FTC's renewed focus on competition and broader antitrust enforcement, and to explain how the historical evolution of the agency has led to a lack of regulation and oversight in maintaining fair competition and consumer protection.
Elizabeth Wilkins is an expert in consumer protection and competition policy and a newly minted Senior Fellow at the American Economic Liberties Project. Previously, she was the Chief of Staff to the Chair and Director of the Office of Policy and Planning at the Federal Trade Commission. Before joining the FTC, Wilkins served as Senior Advisor to White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain.
Twitter: @ewwilkins
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Ours Was the Shining Future (with David Leonhardt)
This week, Nick and Goldy are joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist David Leonhardt to discuss his latest book, Ours Was the Shining Future: The Story of the American Dream. They discuss the relationship between academic economics and the forces that sought to dismantle the mid-century consensus that promoted shared economic growth in the post-World War II era. Leonhardt shares anecdotes from his extensive research, highlighting what lessons from the past could guide us toward a more equitable future.
David Leonhardt is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and columnist for The New York Times, where he writes its flagship newsletter, “The Morning.” He has also been the newspaper’s Washington bureau chief, an op-ed columnist, a staff writer for The New York Times Magazine, and the founding editor of “The Upshot.”
Twitter: @DLeonhardt
Further reading:
Ours Was the Shining Future: The Story of the American Dream
New York Times: Why Are Republican Presidents So Bad for the Economy?
The Great Exception: The New Deal and the Limits of American Politics
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
What Does Obama’s Chief Economist Think About Bidenomics? (with Jason Furman)
This week, Nick and Goldy have a wide-ranging conversation with Jason Furman, who served as Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President Obama. Furman brings a wealth of experience to the discussion, which covers America’s post-pandemic recovery, the global inflation crisis, and reviving industrial policy. He also provides insight into the overall impact of President Biden's policies on the broader economic landscape.
Jason Furman is a prominent economist who served as the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under President Obama from 2013 to 2017. He is currently a Professor of the Practice of Economic Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School and a Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. Furman is known for his expertise in economic policy, particularly in the areas of tax policy, healthcare, and labor markets.
Twitter: @jasonfurman
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Unpacking America’s Housing Affordability Crisis (with Whitney Airgood-Obrycki)
This week, Nick and Goldy are joined by Whitney Airgood-Obrycki from the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University to discuss the urgent issue of housing affordability in the United States. Despite its status as the wealthiest country in the world, America is grappling with a housing crisis, marked by record-high levels of homelessness and a growing number of individuals spending between 30% to 50% or more of their income on rent. Together, they unpack the housing affordability crisis, discuss how it contributes to the perception of a struggling economy, and explore the innovative solutions local governments are proposing to address it.
Whitney Airgood-Obrycki is a Senior Research Associate at the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University. She conducts research on affordable rental housing for low-income households and served as the project manager and lead author of their recent report on America’s Rental Housing. Dr. Airgood-Obrycki's latest research includes affordable housing policy, housing affordability measures, rental housing markets, and suburban neighborhood change.
Twitter: @airbrycki, @Harvard_JCHS
Montgomery County has found a way to reinvigorate public housing in America
What if public housing were for everyone?
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Junking Junk Fees (with Rohit Chopra)
This week, Nick and Goldy sit down with Rohit Chopra, the Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, to explore the agency's efforts to lower financial costs for working Americans. From cracking down on credit card late fees to tackling medical debt on credit reports and regulating bank overdraft charges, Director Chopra sheds light on the CFPB's various initiatives to promote transparency and competition in financial products and services. Chopra argues that by advocating for consumer rights and protections, the CFPB is shaping a more equitable economic landscape for all Americans.
UPDATE: This episode was recorded before yesterday’s breaking news that a Texas judge issued a last-minute order temporarily blocking the CFPB’s plan to cap credit card late fees. Find more information about the injunction, and the Chamber of Commerce’s case against the cap, here: https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/11/business/credit-card-late-fees-regulation-cfpb/index.html
Rohit Chopra is the Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), a federal agency dedicated to protecting consumers in the financial marketplace. Prior to leading the CFPB, he served as a Commissioner at the Federal Trade Commission, where he focused on promoting fair competition and protecting consumers from deceptive practices.
Twitter: @chopracfpb, @CFPB
Further reading:
Submit a complaint about a financial product or service
CFPB Bans Excessive Credit Card Late Fees, Lowers Typical Fee from $32 to $8
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Decoding the Tech Layoff Panic of 2024 (with Jeffrey Shulman)
Even though the American labor market is currently stronger than it has been in decades, earlier this year Big Tech companies were laying off workers at an alarming pace. Economists struggled to understand why some 25,000 tech workers were losing their jobs, even as the media panicked about whether those layoffs were a warning sign of an oncoming recession. University of Washington Professor Jeff Shulman joins us to uncover the real reasons behind Big Tech’s layoffs, and to explain their implications for workers.
Jeffrey Shulman is a professor at the Foster School of Business at the University of Washington. He’s also a podcaster and filmmaker with a diverse range of expertise in pricing, entrepreneurial marketing, and product management. As a professor, he is known for his innovative research and teaching methods that delve into the intricacies of economic principles and their practical applications in the business world. Recently, Shulman has gained recognition for his insightful commentary on the highly publicized layoffs in the tech industry.
More from Professor Shulman:
Nearly 25,000 tech workers were laid off in the first weeks of 2024. Why is that?
Why widespread tech layoffs keep happening despite a strong U.S. economy
How To Succeed In Product Management on Apple Podcasts
How To Succeed In Product Management on Spotify
Seattle Growth Podcast on Apple Podcasts
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How to Build a Just Economy (with Nick Romeo)
Journalist Nick Romeo joins us to discuss his new book "The Alternative: How to Build a Just Economy." Romeo argues that the conventional economic wisdom has fostered political and economic instability, resulting in widening inequality, environmental degradation, and the exploitation of workers. He also highlights innovative solutions and success stories—including worker cooperatives, public-option marketplaces, and job guarantee programs— that paint a picture of how we can design systems in a market economy that truly work for everyone.
Nick Romeo is a journalist, critic, and essayist who has spent years covering policy and ideas for The New Yorker magazine. He also teaches at the Graduate School of Journalism at UC Berkeley.
The Alternative: How to Build a Just Economy
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The Case Against Extreme Wealth (with Ingrid Robeyns)
This week, Nick and Goldy sit down with ethics professor Ingrid Robeyns to discuss her groundbreaking new book, Limitarianism: The Case Against Extreme Wealth. Robeyns challenges the idea that it’s acceptable to allow extreme wealth concentration and inequality to persist, advocating instead for a hard cap on wealth accumulation. Nick and Goldy navigate the moral and practical implications of wealth limits on society, democracy, and ecological sustainability.
Ingrid Robeyns is a distinguished scholar and Professor of Ethics of Institutions at Utrecht University, and author of the new book, Limitarianism: The Case Against Extreme Wealth. Professor Robeyns’ research in the field of Ethics and Political Philosophy focuses on issues of justice, inequality, well-being, and the ethical dimensions of societal structures and policies.
Twitter: @IngridRobeyns
Limitarianism: The Case Against Extreme Wealth
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
LIVE from DC: Redefining the Center (with Heather Boushey)
This special episode of Pitchfork Economics features a live conversation from the "Redefining the Center: How to Make Middle-Out Economics the New Mainstream" conference hosted by Democracy Journal in Washington, D.C. Heather Boushey, a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisors, joins Nick for a wide-ranging discussion moderated by Michael Tomasky, editor of Democracy Journal. Hanauer & Boushey explore the policy initiatives being pursued by the Biden administration that prioritize working families and promote economic growth from the middle out and discuss the crucial role of the middle out as a paradigm shift in how people think about economic cause and effect. This dynamic and thought-provoking discussion was a great start to an outstanding conference.
Heather Boushey is an economist and policy advisor who serves as a key member of President Biden's White House Council of Economic Advisors and Chief Economist for the President’s Invest in America Cabinet. Prior to joining the Biden administration, she was the President and CEO of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth, a think tank focused on advancing evidence-based policies to reduce inequality. In her role in the White House, she plays a crucial role in shaping economic policy and advising the President on issues related to labor, income inequality, and economic opportunity.
Twitter: @hboushey46
Further reading: The Middle-Out Moment Is Here
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The True Crime of Wage Theft (with Terri Gerstein)
In the shadows of corporate greed and exploitation lies a sinister crime that is silently perpetrated, leaving countless victims in its wake—a crime that affects millions of hardworking Americans every year and sucks billions out of our economy —Wage Theft. No industry is immune to this insidious crime, from restaurant workers to construction laborers. On this episode of Pitchfork Economics, we are joined by Terri Gerstein, Director of the Labor Initiative at NYU Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, to unpack the chilling truth behind these workplace crimes, learn who the perpetrators are, and uncover how they get away with it. Most importantly, what can be done to stop them?
Terri Gerstein is the Director of the NYU Wagner Labor Initiative, at NYU’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, which explores and helps activate the often-untapped potential of government in safeguarding and advancing workers' rights. Previously, Terri enforced labor laws in New York for 17 years, including as Labor Bureau Chief in the New York State Attorney General’s Office.
Crime music bed by Power Music Factory
News clips from CBS News, CBS Miami, and CBS Philadelphia
Twitter: @TerriGerstein
Further reading:
Report mentioned in the episode from the National Coalition Against Insurance Fraud: The Costly Crime and Impact of Workers’ Comp Premium Fraud
The Role of State Attorneys General in Protecting Workers’ Rights
Report: How district attorneys and state attorneys general are fighting workplace abuses
More states should follow new Colorado policy on wage theft
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Productivity is a Policy Choice (with Preston Mui)
Preston Mui, Senior Economist at Employ America, recently authored a report titled "The Dream of the 90s is Alive in 2024: How Policy Can Revive Productivity Growth." The report offers a blueprint for policymakers seeking to emulate the successes of an unparalleled period of productivity in the United States. Mui joins us to examine and reflect on the policy decisions which drove the strong productivity growth of the 1990s, and he also identifies dynamic new strategies for revitalizing American production in the present.
Preston Mui is a Senior Economist at Employ America, a macroeconomic policy research and advocacy organization committed to achieving and sustaining full employment outcomes.
Twitter: @PrestonMui
Three Motivations for Interest Rate Normalization: A Playbook for Fed Policy in 2024
The Dream of the 90's is Alive in 2024: How Policy Can Revive Productivity Growth
Preston Mui's thread on the “Dream of the 90's” series and report by Employ America
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why Wages Are Growing From the Bottom Up and Middle Out (with Arin Dube)
Today, Arin Dube, Professor of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, joins us to discuss his latest research, which suggests that the American labor market is undergoing a remarkable transformation. The widespread wage inequality that rapidly expanded between 1980 and 2019 is finally reversing, and American paychecks are growing again—especially at the bottom end of the income scale. In this enlightening conversation, Dube explains how and why the labor market has changed, how that's affecting wages, and how it all contributes to a virtual cycle of middle-out economic growth.
Arin Dube is a Professor of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, well-known for his expertise in labor economics and public policy and his groundbreaking empirical research on minimum wage. His work often involves empirical analysis and utilizes large-scale datasets to provide evidence-based insights into the effects of various policy interventions. Dube's research has been widely recognized and cited, contributing to the ongoing discussions among policymakers and economists around labor market dynamics and policy design.
Twitter: @arindube
The Unexpected Compression thread https://twitter.com/arindube/status/1724147807563477440
NBER Working Paper https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w31010/w31010.pdf
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The True Cost of Trump’s Tax Plan (with Samantha Jacoby)
In his State of the Union Address, President Biden made it clear that taxes and tax policy were his next big target for a middle-out makeover. However, we can't talk about the future of taxes without discussing the potential expiration of Trump’s’ 2017 tax law. Samantha Jacoby, a senior tax analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, joins us today to help us understand the repercussions of Trump's tax policies and the opportunities ahead. Trump’s tax law was marketed as a boon for every working American, promising an average annual benefit of $4,000. But Jacoby unveils the true economic reality behind the Trump tax law: the primary beneficiaries were the wealthiest individuals and corporations; they did not pay for themselves as promised; and despite the trillions of tax giveaways to people at the top, most Americans saw no tangible economic benefit.
Samantha Jacoby is a Senior Tax Analyst with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Before joining the Center in 2018, she practiced tax law at two international law firms in New York and Washington, D.C. Previously, she worked as a policy and research analyst at the Solar Energy Industries Association, where she focused on the impact of tax incentives on the renewable energy industry.
Twitter: @jacsamoby
The 2017 Trump Tax Law Was Skewed to the Rich, Expensive, and Failed to Deliver on Its Promises
IRS Funding thread by Samantha on Twitter
https://x.com/jacsamoby/status/1752088112291807298?s=20
After Decades of Costly, Regressive, and Ineffective Tax Cuts, a New Course Is Needed Bipartisan Senate Action Passes Minimal Test for IRS Funding While Multiple House Republican Bills Fail
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Middle Out to Mainstream
Eleven years ago, Democracy Journal released a special issue on "The Middle Out Moment" that explored the implications of what was then the brand-new theory of middle-out economics. The moment may not have fully arrived back in 2013, but no doubt it's here now. So this week, Democracy Journal is publishing a follow-up edition called "The Middle Out Moment Part Two," marking the fact that what was once a new idea has now gone mainstream. In this episode, we'll hear from several of the economists, researchers, and former administration officials who contributed to the special issue as they explore how middle-out economics has been put into practice — and discuss the work that lies ahead as middle-out economics becomes the new mainstream.
Guests include: Felicia Wong, Bharat Ramamurti, Tara McGuinness, Sandeep Vaheesan, Todd Tucker, Ronnie Chatterji, Neale Mahoney, and Heidi Shierholz
The Middle-Out Moment is Here: https://democracyjournal.org/category/magazine/72
Twitter:
Michael Tomasky - @mtomasky
Felicia Wong - @FeliciaWongRI
Bharat Ramamurti - @BharatRamamurti
Tara McGuinness - @taradmcguinness
Sandeep Vaheesan - @sandeepvaheesan
Todd Tucker - @toddntucker
Ronnie Chatterji - @RonnieChatterji
Neale Mahoney - @nealemahoney
Heidi Shierholz - @hshierholz
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why Americans are so displeased with the economy (with Aaron Sojourner)
The latest economic indicators show a historically strong economy. Over the past couple of years, the unemployment rate has consistently stayed below 4%, real wages have been growing faster than they have in decades, and economic growth has been strong. And yet, public opinion surveys consistently show dissatisfaction with economic conditions. Aaron Sojourner, a labor economist from the Upjohn Institute, joins us to discuss his research findings into why Americans are so displeased with the economy. Aaron helps us unpack the complicated relationship between news coverage of the economy and its effect on consumer sentiment.
Aaron Sojourner is a labor economist and senior researcher at the Upjohn Institute for Employment Research. His research focuses on the effects of labor-market institutions, policies to promote efficient and equitable development of human capital, and behavioral economic approaches to consumer finance decisions. He’s also served as the senior economist for labor on the U.S. Council of Economic Advisers for Presidents Obama and Trump.
Twitter: @aaronsojourner
BlueSky: @aaronsojourner.bsky.social
Threads: aaronsojourner
Why are Americans so displeased with the economy?
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/why-are-americans-so-displeased-with-the-economy
Aaron’s thread on within-worker real wage growth on Threads:
https://www.threads.net/@aaronsojourner/post/C3OVo8FrDgV/?igshid=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==
Tax Subsidies for Journalism Are Only for Rich People: Perry Bacon Edition
https://cepr.net/tax-subsidies-for-journalism-are-only-for-rich-people-perry-bacon-edition
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
A Tale of Two Tax Systems (with David Cay Johnston)
While the average American worker is subject to a progressive income tax system where tax rates increase as income rises, the wealthy often exploit a range of loopholes and deductions that significantly reduce their tax burden—sometimes to the point where the biggest corporations and one-percenters pay nothing at all. David Cay Johnston, a tax policy expert and former investigative journalist for the New York Times, joins us today to help unravel the complexity of the American tax system, which has functionally created two different tax systems: One for the wealthy and powerful and one for everyone else.
David Cay Johnston is an award-winning investigative journalist and author known for his expertise in tax policy and economic inequality. Johnston worked as a tax reporter for The New York Times for over a decade. At the Times, he won the Pulitzer Prize for Beat Reporting in 2001 for his coverage of tax loopholes and corporate tax evasion. Throughout his career, Johnston has authored several critically acclaimed books, including "Perfectly Legal: The Covert Campaign to Rig Our Tax System to Benefit the Super Rich—and Cheat Everybody Else" and “Divided: The Perils of Our Growing Inequality.”
Twitter: @DavidCayJ
The Whiteness of Wealth: How the Tax System Impoverishes Black Americans--and How We Can Fix It by Dorothy Brown
https://bookshop.org/a/101360/9780525577331
More from David Cay Johnston:
“Alvin Bragg’s roadmap to convict Donald Trump”
https://www.nydailynews.com/2023/01/08/alvin-braggs-roadmap-to-convict-donald-trump/
Perfectly Legal: The Covert Campaign to Rig Our Tax System to Benefit the Super Rich--and Cheat Everybody Else
https://bookshop.org/a/101360/9781591840695
Free Lunch: How the Wealthiest Americans Enrich Themselves at Government Expense (and Stick You with the Bill)
https://bookshop.org/a/101360/9781591842484
Divided: The Perils of Our Growing Inequality
https://bookshop.org/a/101360/9781595589231
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why Flying Is Miserable And How to Fix It (with Ganesh Sitaraman)
Ganesh Sitaraman joins us today to discuss his new book, Why Flying Is Miserable And How to Fix It. Air travel has become an increasingly frustrating experience, with countless horror stories of cancellations, delays, lost baggage, cramped seats, and poor service. For most of the 20th century flying was luxurious and fun, so it’s especially baffling that air travel is plagued by these problems in the 21st century. Sitaraman delves into the reasons behind this dismal state of affairs, tracing it back to a deliberate choice made by elected leaders in the 1970s to roll back regulations, supposedly in order to increase competition and improve the experience of flying for everyone. After enduring half a century of turbulence caused by deregulation, people are fed up with the state of air travel, and Sitaraman gives us some insight into how we can begin to fix it.
Ganesh Sitaraman is a law professor and the director of the Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator for Political Economy and Regulation. He was previously a senior advisor to Senator Elizabeth Warren on her presidential campaign and is a member of the Administrative Conference of the United States and the FAA’s Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee. Sitaraman is the author of several influential books, including "The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution," "The Public Option: How to Expand Freedom, Increase Opportunity, and Promote Equality," and his most recent book, “Why Flying Is Miserable And How to Fix It.”
Twitter: @GaneshSitaraman
Why Flying Is Miserable And How to Fix It https://bookshop.org/a/101360/9798987053584
Book Website https://globalreports.columbia.edu/books/why-flying-is-miserable/
More from Ganesh Sitaraman:
The Atlantic - Airlines Are Just Banks Now https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/09/airlines-banks-mileage-programs/675374/
The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution https://bookshop.org/a/101360/9781101973455
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The Future of Bidenomics (with Jared Bernstein)
President Biden’s economic policies mark a paradigm shift away from the trickle-down economics that have held sway over Washington DC for the past 40 years. Bidenomics recognizes that a strong and inclusive economy grows from the middle class outwards, centering working Americans and their families rather than relying on a top-down approach that benefits the wealthy first and foremost. In this episode, President Biden’s chief economic advisor, Jared Bernstein, joins us to unpack the key ideas behind this middleout understanding of how the economy really works, and to explain how Bidenomics is reshaping the economy to truly work for all Americans—not just a wealthy few at the top. After helping to engineer a best-in-the-world economic recovery from the pandemic, Bernstein explains what's next for Bidenomics and the American economy.
Jared Bernstein is a prominent economist and author who is widely recognized for his expertise in labor economics and income inequality. As the chair of the United States Council of Economic Advisers, he serves as President Biden’s top economic adviser. From 2009 to 2011. From 2009 to 2011, he served as Chief Economist and Economic Advisor to then-Vice President Biden. Bernstein is a prolific writer and commentator whose work emphasizes the importance of addressing income inequality and promoting policies that benefit working families and the broader economy.
Twitter: @econjared46
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Making a case for the inheritance tax (with David Stasavage)
Over the next two decades, $30 trillion of wealth is expected to be transferred from Baby Boomers to their heirs. Journalists and financial experts have been referring to this event as the “Great Wealth Transfer,” and it's important that we understand the policies that make such a monumental transferral of generational wealth possible—not to mention the tremendous economic and societal implications of this unprecedented economic activity. In this episode, we have the privilege of speaking with David Stasavage, a renowned expert in taxation, inequality, and political economy, to help us unpack the origins and rationale behind the creation of the inheritance tax, and to explore the policies we can use to lessen economic inequality and put some of the Great Wealth Transfer to work for all Americans—not just the children of the wealthy few.
David Stasavage is a prominent political scientist known for his expertise in taxation, inequality, and political economy. He is currently the Julius Silver Professor of Politics at New York University and a Fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University. He has conducted extensive research on taxation, particularly on the taxation of the wealthy and the role of inheritance taxes in addressing income inequality. His collaboration with Kenneth Scheve on inheritance taxes has shed light on public opinion and the potential effectiveness of these taxes in promoting economic fairness. He’s also the author of several books, including "States of Credit: Size, Power, and the Development of European Polities,” "Taxing the Rich: A History of Fiscal Fairness in the United States and Europe,” and “The Decline and Rise of Democracy.”
Twitter: @stasavage
Democracy, War, and Wealth: Lessons from Two Centuries of Inheritance Taxation https://kfscheve.files.wordpress.com/2020/09/schevestasavage_twocenturies_apsr_2012.pdf
States of Credit: Size, Power, and the Development of European Polities https://bookshop.org/book/9780691166735
Taxing the Rich: A History of Fiscal Fairness in the United States and Europe https://bookshop.org/book/9780691165455
The Decline and Rise of Democracy https://bookshop.org/book/9780691228976
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How a New Economics Went Mainstream (with Suzanne Kahn)
Over the past few decades, economists have gathered a lot of empirical evidence supporting the underlying truth of middle-out economics: that a thriving middle class is the cause of economic growth. Our friends at the Roosevelt Institute have produced a new report which outlines the events that led to our new understanding of how the economy really works. Suzanne Kahn, Vice President of the Think Tank at the Roosevelt Institute, joins us to talk about what's in the report and share how the progressive economic policies of the Biden Administration could mark a lasting shift away from neoliberal, trickle-down economics and toward a new era of middle-out economics.
Suzanne Kahn serves as the Vice President of the Think Tank at the Roosevelt Institute, where she oversees and manages projects to develop critical research and policy to rebalance power in our society and economy. Previously, Suzanne was Roosevelt’s director of education, jobs, and worker power and the Great Democracy Initiative. Her research and writing focus on building a network of robust public goods—for example public higher education—and labor organizations that together can empower workers to counter corporate power in the labor market and public sphere.
Suzanne Kahn @SuzMKahn
Roosevelt Institute @rooseveltinst
Think Tank at the Roosevelt Institute @RooseveltFwd
Sea Change: How a New Economics Went Mainstream
https://rooseveltinstitute.org/publications/sea-change
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Revisiting the Child Tax Credit (with Wendy Bach)
A bipartisan group of lawmakers has agreed to expand the Child Tax Credit again, but it will be smaller than the pandemic-era credit was. If this version of the Child Tax Credit is passed by Congress and signed into law, it would benefit 16 million children in low-income families and lift at least half a million kids out of poverty. We thought it would be a good time to revisit this episode from 2021 with professor Wendy Bach, in which she explains everything you need to know about what the Child Tax Credit actually is, why it's a good policy, and how it impacts people's lives.
This episode originally aired on August 24, 2021.
Wendy Bach is a legal scholar and professor specializing in poverty law, criminal justice, and social welfare policy. She is currently a professor of law at the University of Tennessee College of Law. Bach's work focuses on the intersection of poverty, race, and the criminal justice system, with a particular emphasis on the rights and experiences of low-income individuals. She is the author of the book Prosecuting Poverty, Criminalizing Care. She is a nationally recognized expert on poverty law and criminal justice issues.
Twitter: @wendyabach
Congress is close to expanding the child tax credit again − with a smaller boost for families this time https://theconversation.com/congress-is-close-to-expanding-the-child-tax-credit-again-with-a-smaller-boost-for-families-this-time-221382#
What’s in the New Child Tax Credit Proposal https://newrepublic.com/article/178131/bipartisan-expanded-child-tax-credit
Prosecuting Poverty, Criminalizing Care https://bookshop.org/p/books/prosecuting-poverty-criminalizing-care-wendy-a-bach/18739149?ean=9781108465533
Biden’s child tax credit is a step away from a discriminatory system https://qz.com/2034199/how-does-the-us-child-tax-credit-work
Two-thirds of people now receive monthly benefit checks https://www.peoplespolicyproject.org/2021/07/19/two-thirds-of-people-now-receive-monthly-benefit-checks
The time tax https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/07/how-government-learned-waste-your-time-tax/619568
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Medicare Drug Price Negotiations with (Margarida Jorge)
The pharmaceutical industry is one of the most opaque industries in America, and they take advantage of this lack of transparency by setting ever-higher prices for lifesaving prescription drugs like insulin. But provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act are curtailing the exorbitant price-gouging strategies that the pharmaceutical industry uses to pump up their profit margins at the expense of seniors and people with disabilities who use Medicare. This week, we’re talking to Margarida Jorge, the Executive Director of Health Care for America Now, to help us understand more about drug pricing and the impact that drug price negotiations will have on Medicare and its recipients.
We apologize for the background noise you hear during this episode. We strive to provide you with the best possible audio quality, but sometimes external factors (like construction nearby) are beyond our control.
Margarida Jorge is the Executive Director of Health Care for America Now. She has been a prominent advocate for affordable and accessible healthcare for three decades, and she was the chief architect of the 47-state field program that helped win the Affordable Care Act under President Obama. Margarida has played a key role in shaping healthcare policy and has been instrumental in shaping policy discussions, advocating for reforms that prioritize the needs of patients over the profits of pharmaceutical companies, lowering drug prices, and ensuring access to life-saving medications for all.
Twitter: @MargaridaJorg17
Health Care for America Now: https://www.healthcareforamericanow.org
Lower Drug Prices Now: https://www.lowerdrugpricesnow.org
Explaining the Prescription Drug Provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act: https://www.kff.org/medicare/issue-brief/explaining-the-prescription-drug-provisions-in-the-inflation-reduction-act/#bullet01
Big Drug Companies Are in Court to Stop Medicare Negotiation and Protect Their Sky-High Profits: https://www.protectourcare.org/big-drug-companies-are-in-court-to-stop-medicare-negotiation-and-protect-their-sky-high-profits
How Prices for the First 10 Drugs Up for U.S. Medicare Price Negotiations Compare Internationally: https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/2024/jan/how-prices-first-10-drugs-medicare-negotiations-compare-internationally
Drug Companies Continue To Hike Prices Above Inflation: https://www.americanprogress.org/article/drug-companies-continue-to-hike-prices-above-inflation
U.S. Prescription Drug Prices Are 2.56 Times Those in Other Countries: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR2956.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Three Economic Issues that Could Shape the 2024 Elections
National elections are won and lost on the economy. Of course they are: the state of the economy affects individuals' job security, income levels, access to healthcare, education, and overall quality of life, so it's not surprising that voters evaluate candidates based on their proposed economic policies and their ability to address pressing economic challenges. As we kick off a big year for elections and the economy, we take time in this episode to discuss the three most important economic issues that could shape the 2024 elections, especially at the presidential level. These are big challenges our country currently faces, and big challenges ought to be met with big transformative ideas that will improve people’s lives and grow the economy from the middle out.
Subscribe to Civic Ventures President Zach Silk’s Substack, The Pitch: civicventures.substack.com
Dig into the biggest economic stories by visiting the Civic Ventures YouTube channel Who Gets What and Why: youtube.com/@WGWAW
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Seizing the Middle Out Moment
When Pitchfork Economics was started, our ideas about economic cause and effect were way outside the economic mainstream, and so much has changed in the last ten years. The economic world is shifting its thinking away from neoclassical ideas, and the primary middle-out economics messenger driving this paradigm shift is in the Oval Office. In this episode, Nick and Goldy explain how the podcast will sharpen our focus on how best to build the economy from the middle out. They’ll also distinguish the difference between Middle-Out Economics and Bidenomics and how Bidenomics is a departure from the trickle-down economics of Reaganism.
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Middle-Out Wins
2023 was a big year for middle-out policy and research, so we are recapping some of the biggest middle-out moments that are improving people's lives and helping us close the book on America’s neoliberal era. Today, Civic Ventures writer Paul Constant joins Goldy to help recap the biggest middle-out successes of 2023 that have benefited workers, and are changing the way people think about economic cause and effect. This episode shines a light on policies, movements, labor actions/strikes, groundbreaking reports, and research that have made a real difference in people's lives and is changing the way economists and policymakers think about and manage economic policy.
Voicemail: 731-388-9334
Email: pitch@pitchforkeconomics.com
Bidenomics is Real Economics https://time.com/6343967/bidenomics-is-real-economics
The Transformation at the Heart of Biden’s Middle-Out Economic Agenda https://prospect.org/economy/2023-02-09-biden-middle-out-agenda
Minimum Wage Effects and Monopsony Explanations https://justinwiltshire.com/minimum-wage-effects-and-monopsony-explanations
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How the UAW strike benefits all workers (with Kate Bahn)
Business reporting on labor unions tends to focus on speculation about how much striking workers might hurt the economy. But the reality is that successful strikes have a long-term positive impact on economic growth because they raise wages for all workers. Economist and researcher Kate Bahn, Director of Research from WorkRise argues that strikes, especially historic strikes such as the recent UAW strike, benefit both unionized and non-union workers, and have much broader ripple effects across the whole economy because they increase worker power and competition for workers across various sectors and industries.
Kate Bahn is an economist and researcher, currently serving as the Director of Research for WorkRise, a research-to-action network hosted by the Urban Institute. Bahn's expertise lies in labor markets, gender economics, and income inequality. She has conducted extensive research on topics such as the gender wage gap, paid family leave, and the impact of automation on employment. Bahn's work combines rigorous analysis with a commitment to addressing the needs and challenges faced by marginalized communities.
Twitter: @LipstickEcon
How the UAW strike might benefit all workers: https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/15/opinions/union-member-negotiations-uaw-pay-bahn/index.html
Labor unions are good for workers, and here’s why they also make good business sense: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/labor-unions-are-good-for-workers-and-heres-why-they-also-make-good-business-sense-a39f3697
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How Economists Invented Austerity and Paved the Way to Fascism (with Clara Mattei)
We already know that many mainstream economists advocate against the economic interests of the majority of working Americans and for the benefit of a tiny handful of super-rich people and corporations. But Clara Mattei argues that economists are actually guilty of something even more insidious: By promoting austerity measures that destabilize working people and consolidate wealth and power at the very top of the income scale, economists have created the perfect conditions for fascism to take root around the world. Is it too late to rebuild our democratic institutions through a new economic understanding?
Clara Mattei is a distinguished academic in the field of economics and an Associate Professor of Economics at The New School for Social Research in New York City. Her research examines the history of capitalism, exploring the critical relationship between economic ideas and technocratic policymaking. She’s the author of the book, The Capital Order: How Economists Invented Austerity and Paved the Way to Fascism.
Twitter: @claraemattei
The Capital Order: How Economists Invented Austerity and Paved the Way to Fascism https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/C/bo181707138.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Revisiting the history of Middle-Out Economics (with Michael Tomasky)
We’ve lived in the shadow of trickle-down economics for over 40 years. During that time, our leaders unquestioningly embraced economic policies that prioritize the wealthiest and most powerful, with the idea that their wealth will eventually “trickle down” to everyone else.Of course, that wealth never has trickled down. Thankfully, our economic understanding has finally started to shift. This has been a landmark year in passing middle-out economic policies that prioritize the vast majority of working Americans over the wealthy few. In a future episode we’ll be discussing the middle-out research and policies that are making a real difference in people's lives, thereby changing the way we think about economic cause and effect. But before we look ahead to the glorious middle-out future, it’s important to revisit the history of middle-out economics via a conversation with journalist Michael Tomasky, author of a recent book detailing the rise of progressive economics in the United States.
This episode originally aired on October 18, 2022
Michael Tomasky is a journalist and author. He’s top editor of The New Republic. He’s editor of Democracy: A Journal of Ideas, as well as a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times.
Twitter: @mtomasky
The Middle Out https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/671443/the-middle-out-by-michael-tomasky
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Working Toward a Full Employment Economy (with Arnab Datta)
In its quest to combat inflation the Federal Reserve has seemingly done everything in its power to engineer a recession, which would throw millions of people out of work. Rather than question the Fed’s actions, mainstream economists cheered them on, claiming that we need multiple months of high unemployment to bring inflation down. But do we really need to immiserate America’s working class in order to save the economy? Today’s guest, Arnab Datta, and his colleagues at Employ America are producing research that suggests we should instead be using macroeconomic policies to steer the economy to high employment and robust wage growth—which would reduce inequity, spur economic development, and expand the availability of good-paying jobs for all Americans.
Arnab Datta serves as the Senior Counsel for Employ America, which is an organization focused on economic policy research and advocacy that prioritizes full employment, wage growth, and economic stability. Employ America seeks to influence economic policy discussions and shape the narrative around employment and economic well-being.
Twitter: @ArnabDatta321, @employamerica
Website: www.employamerica.org
The Fed Is Trying To Engineer A Recession https://www.employamerica.org/blog/the-fed-is-trying
In The Right Context, Full Employment Can Support A Pickup In Productivity https://www.employamerica.org/blog/in-the-right-context-full-employment-can-support-a-pickup-in-productivity
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Understanding the Sahm Rule (with economist Claudia Sahm)
Mainstream economists have been predicting a recession on the horizon for over a year, with some doomsayers even making up something called “a non-recession recession” to characterize the state of the economy. There’s no better person to cut through all this bluster and nonsense than the creator of one of the most reliable economic indicators created in the last few decades: the Sahm Rule, which aims to predict and track recessions in real time. Former Federal Reserve economist Claudia Sahm joins the podcast to walk us through the Sahm Rule’s methodology and explains how it utilizes timely data to provide early warnings of economic downturns, offering policymakers, businesses, and individuals a valuable tool for proactive decision-making.
Claudia Sahm is an esteemed economist and policy expert who has served as director of macroeconomic policy at the Washington Center for Equitable Growth, Senior Economist at the Federal Reserve, and economist for the White House Council of Economic Advisers under President Obama. She’s known for her contributions to macroeconomics and the development of the Sahm Rule, her research on monetary policy, labor markets, and macroeconomic stabilization has made her a trusted advisor and consultant to policymakers and organizations seeking evidence-based insights.
Twitter: @Claudia_Sahm
Claudia Sahm Substack: https://stayathomemacro.substack.com/
‘We do not need a recession, but we may get one’: https://www.ft.com/content/3213f700-26a7-4d84-aca0-d7cc5bf11484
Nick's new book, Corporate Bullsh*t, is out now! https://www.corporatebsbook.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Exploring American Inequality (with Nobel Laureate Angus Deaton)
No matter which indicator you’re using, American inequality has been increasing in recent decades. Whether you’re measuring the growing wealth gap, the stagnant wages of the middle class, or the concentration of wealth and power among a small group of elites, every indicator unfailingly suggests that inequality is getting worse. Nobel Laureate Angus Deaton joins the podcast to talk about his recent book on the subject, Economics in America: An Immigrant Economist Explores the Land of Inequality, in which he explains how his own experience as an immigrant has shaped his understanding of American inequality and its impact on upward mobility.
Angus Deaton is a renowned economist and author known for his groundbreaking work in the fields of poverty, inequality, and health. He is a 2015 Nobel Prize Laureate and is currently a Senior Scholar and the Dwight D. Eisenhower Professor of Economics and International Affairs Emeritus at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University.
Twitter: @DeatonAngus
Economics in America: An Immigrant Economist Explores the Land of Inequality https://bookshop.org/p/books/economics-in-america-an-immigrant-economist-explores-the-land-of-inequality-angus-deaton/19785471?ean=9780691247625
Nick's new book, Corporate Bullsh*t, is out now! https://www.corporatebsbook.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The return of child labor (with Nina Mast and Jennifer Sherer)
At a time when violations of child labor laws are on the rise nationally, state lawmakers around the country are successfully rolling back child labor protections. Jennifer Sherer and Nina Mast from the Economic Policy Institute have authored an article that insists lawmakers must act to strengthen standards, not erode the existing minimal standards designed to safeguard children from exploitation. They share insights into why weakening child labor protections could have detrimental effects on the middle class and the overall economy.
Nina Mast is an economic analyst for the Economic Analysis and Research Network (EARN) at EPI. She also worked on issue campaigns at The Hub Project and efforts to advance a progressive economic worldview at the Groundwork Collaborative.
Jennifer Sherer is the director of the Economic Analysis and Research Network (EARN) State Worker Power Initiative. Her work focuses on expanding the ability of working people to achieve racial, gender, and economic justice through organizing, collective bargaining, and public policies that promote worker voice.
Twitter: @EconomicPolicy
Florida legislature proposes dangerous rollback of child labor protections https://www.epi.org/blog/florida-legislature-proposes-dangerous-roll-back-of-child-labor-protections-at-least-16-states-have-introduced-bills-putting-children-at-risk
Nick's new book, Corporate Bullsh*t, is out now! https://www.corporatebsbook.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The path of political disintegration (with Peter Turchin)
When Nick warned back in 2013 that the pitchforks were coming, he meant that if we continued immiserating the majority of citizens by enriching a wealthy few at the expense of everyone else, an uprising was inevitable. Unfortunately, this warning is still just as relevant ten years later. Peter Turchin joins the podcast to discuss his new book, End Times: Elites, Counter-Elites, and the Path of Political Disintegration, which looks to history (as well as the current turmoil in the United States) to better understand exactly what causes political communities to fall apart.
Peter Turchin is Project Leader at the Complexity Science Hub in Vienna, Research Associate at University of Oxford, and Emeritus Professor at the University of Connecticut.
End Times https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/703238/end-times-by-peter-turchin
Nick's new book, Corporate Bullsh*t, is out now! https://www.corporatebsbook.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Corporate Bullsh*t (with Joan Walsh and Donald Cohen)
Politicians and business interests have lied to the American people for centuries in order to protect their power and profits—and they tell the exact same lies every single time. Nick has co-written a book titled Corporate Bullsh*t with Joan Walsh and Donald Cohen, which reveals this trickle-down duplicity as plain as day by placing egregious past quotes from corporate executives and politicians next to equally outrageous contemporary arguments—all of which justify outcomes that line the pockets of the wealthy and powerful while harming everyone else. Joan and Donald join the show to discuss why they wrote this book and to explain why it’s a must-read for anyone who's tired of getting conned, bamboozled, and ripped off.
Joan Walsh is national affairs correspondent for The Nation, the co-producer of the Emmy-nominated documentary The Sit-In: Harry Belafonte Hosts the Tonight Show, and the author of What’s the Matter with White People?
Donald Cohen is the founder and executive director of the research and policy center In the Public Interest and the co-author (with Allen Mikaelian) of The Privatization of Everything.
Pre-Order Nick's new book, Corporate Bullsh*t https://www.corporatebsbook.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The economics of belonging (with john a. powell)
If you’re a long-time listener, you’ve definitely heard us discuss the golden rule of middle out economics: The more people you include in the economy, the faster and more prosperous it grows for everybody. The Director of the Othering & Belonging Institute, john a. powell, agrees that inclusion is the key to a thriving economy, and he joins us to explain why the concept of belonging is so important for a healthy community.
This episode originally aired on May 24, 2022.
john a. powell is the Director of the Othering & Belonging Institute at the University of California, Berkeley.
Twitter: @profjohnapowell
Targeted universalism: a solution for inequality? https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/california/targeted-universalism/509-2127090b-7f50-4a91-91e7-04c47acf3309
Othering & Belonging Institute https://belonging.berkeley.edu/john-powell
Pre-Order Nick's new book, Corporate Bullsh*t https://www.corporatebsbook.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How neoliberalism turned the work ethic against workers (with Elizabeth Anderson)
The majority of U.S. workers aren’t compensated anywhere near the value that they actually create for society, while the few who make the most money often work the least and contribute very little. Decades of neoliberal thinking has twisted one of the foundational American beliefs—the idea that hard work eventually reaps great rewards—into a celebration of greed and a dismissal of those of us who work the hardest. Returning guest Elizabeth Anderson explains how we can reclaim the American work ethic in order to once again center workers as the true heroes of the American economy.
Professor Elizabeth Anderson specializes in moral, social and political philosophy, feminist theory, social epistemology, and the philosophy of economics and the social sciences. She is the author of several books including Private Government: How Employers Rule Our Lives and, most recently, Hijacked: How Neoliberalism Turned the Work Ethic against Workers and How Workers Can Take It Back.
Hijacked: How Neoliberalism Turned the Work Ethic against Workers and How Workers Can Take It Back https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/hijacked/E7E4A7D850C1E7289BA7AAF910455136#fndtn-information
Pre-Order Nick's new book, Corporate Bullsh*t https://www.corporatebsbook.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Setting the record straight on inflation (with Mike Konczal)
There have been a lot of bad takes on inflation out there in the media, from wild speculation about its causes to absurd predictions about when and how the wave of price increases would finally come to an end. But now just about everyone agrees that after two years of rising prices, inflation has finally slowed down. And while there’s still a long way to go, the situation is dramatically better now than it was even six months ago. Mike Konczal from the Roosevelt Institute recently did some research into the disinflation we’ve been seeing, and he returns to the show to tell us what’s really bringing prices back down to earth.
Mike Konczal is director of Macroeconomic Analysis at the Roosevelt Institute, where he focuses on full employment, inequality, and the role of public power in a democracy.
Twitter: @mtkonczal
Supply-Side Expansion Has Driven the Decline in Inflation
How Goldilocks Came to the U.S. Economy https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/11/opinion/inflation-unemployment-phillips-recession.html
Pre-Order Nick's new book, Corporate Bullsh*t https://www.corporatebsbook.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The Tyranny of Merit (with Michael Sandel)
In this wide-ranging conversation with one of our favorite authors, philosopher Michael Sandel explains how the concept of meritocracy has helped to create such a massive divide in American politics and culture.
Michael Sandel is a world-renowned philosopher who teaches political philosophy at Harvard University. His course “Justice” is the first Harvard course to be made freely available online and has been viewed by tens of millions of people around the world. Sandel’s books relate enduring themes of political philosophy to the most vexing moral and civic questions of our time. They include The Tyranny of Merit (2020), Democracy’s Discontent (2022), and more.
The Tyranny of Merit: What's Become of the Common Good https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780374289980/thetyrannyofmerit
Democracy’s Discontent: A New Edition for Our Perilous Times https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674270718
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
What the new Draft Merger Guidelines could mean for the economy (with Maggie Goodlander)
Earlier this summer, the Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released a draft update of their Merger Guidelines, “which describe and guide the agencies’ review of mergers and acquisitions to determine compliance with federal antitrust laws.” Maggie Goodlander from the Justice Department joins the podcast to discuss why mergers can weaken competition and harm consumers and workers, and how these proposed guidelines can help bring competition back by making it harder for big corporations to swallow each other up.
Maggie Goodlander is the Deputy Assistant Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice where she oversees the international, appellate, and policy work of the Antitrust Division.
Twitter: @TheJusticeDept
Justice Department And FTC Seek Comment on Draft Merger Guidelines https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-and-ftc-seek-comment-draft-merger-guidelines
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The CHIPS Act, explained (with Ronnie Chatterji)
It’s been a little over a year since President Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act, which invested $231 billion into semiconductor manufacturing in the United States, into law. Despite the fact that those investments are already creating economic growth around the country, most Americans don’t recognize the impact that the CHIPS Act is already having on the national economy. Today, Ronnie Chatterji, the former CHIPS Coordinator at the White House, joins the pod to provide a better understanding of what the CHIPS Act really does and why it matters.
Aaron Chatterji is the Duke University Professor of Business and Public Policy. He was previously the White House CHIPS Coordinator and Acting Deputy Director of the National Economic Council in the Biden Administration.
Twitter: @RonnieChatterji
CHIPS Act: National security is priority for funding, analyst says https://finance.yahoo.com/video/chips-act-national-security-priority-150516934.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
What labor shortage? (with Heidi Shierholz)
When employers say they can’t find workers, what they really mean is that they can’t find enough people willing to work for what they want to offer. The so-called “labor shortage” we’ve heard so much about these last few years is actually just a wage shortage. And the solution is simple: pay people more. Labor Day weekend felt like a good time to revisit this subject with EPI President, Heidi Shierholz.
This episode originally aired on May 25, 2021.
Heidi Shierholz is the president of the Economic Policy Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank that uses the power of its research on economic trends and on the impact of economic policies to advance reforms that serve working people, deliver racial justice, and guarantee gender equity.
Twitter: @hshierholz
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why don't we fight poverty by just giving people money? (with Paul Niehaus)
We saw during the pandemic that giving people cash is good for individuals and the economy as a whole. It makes sense: When people have more money, they spend it in their communities and stimulate the local economy. So why don’t we give people money all the time? Our guest today started a charity that combats poverty by giving people cash, with no strings attached, to use how they wish. The results have been really encouraging. Paul Niehaus, co-founder of GiveDirectly, explains how his program works—and more importantly, why it works.
Paul Niehaus is an economist at UCSD and an entrepreneur working to accelerate the end of extreme poverty. He is co-founder, former president, and current director at GiveDirectly, the leading international NGO specialized in digital cash transfers and consistently rated one of the most impactful ways to give.
Twitter: @PaulFNiehaus
GiveDirectly https://www.givedirectly.org
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Power, progress, and technology (with Daron Acemoglu)
New technologies are sold as a net benefit to society as a whole, but the truth is that technological progress is only loosely correlated to the improved welfare of the majority of citizens. This is not to say that technology and innovation are bad—we’re big supporters of both—but when tech CEOs hold all the power to make decisions that affect all of us, that becomes a problem. For a long time, technology has been used by the rich and powerful to further enrich themselves and consolidate their own power. Is there a way to ensure that everyone benefits from innovation—not just the wealthy few? Returning guest Daron Acemoglu shares insight from his new book on the subject, Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity.
Daron Acemoglu is the Institute Professor of Economics at MIT, the university’s highest faculty honor. For the last twenty-five years, he has been researching the historical origins of prosperity, poverty, and the effects of new technologies on economic growth, employment, and inequality. He is an author (with James Robinson) of The Narrow Corridor and the New York Times bestseller Why Nations Fail.
Twitter: @NarrowCorridor
Power and Progress https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/daron-acemoglu/power-and-progress/9781541702530
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Ask Nick Anything
Nick and Goldy answer more of your questions! What happens to current economic systems if world population growth goes to zero? Should I feel guilty for wanting my stocks to do well? What could be a good methodology to measure how progressive a tax is? And more!
If you have questions for a future “Ask Me Anything” episode, leave us a voicemail at 731-388-9334.
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Wages need a revolution (with Michael Lind)
Today we’re talking about wages—specifically, how the widespread suppression of wages is destroying the American economy. Author, professor, and fellow traveler Michael Lind just published a new book titled “Hell to Pay” that argues America is in need of a revolution in the way we think about work and wages. Lind warns that if American worker power isn’t restored to its previous highs, there’ll be hell to pay. (Sounds a bit like “the pitchforks are coming,” doesn’t it?)
Michael Lind is the author of more than a dozen books. He is a columnist for Tablet and has been an editor or staff writer for The New Yorker, Harper’s, The New Republic, and The National Interest. He’s one of the founders of the New America Foundation. He has taught at Harvard and Johns Hopkins and is currently a professor of practice at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.
Hell to Pay https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/690656/hell-to-pay-by-michael-lind
“Hell To Pay”: Michael Lind On A True Good Jobs Strategy https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelbernick/2023/05/16/hell-to-pay-michael-lind-on-a-true-good-jobs-strategy/?sh=c4e0c584d160
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How Industrial Policy actually works (with Isabel Estevez)
Industrial Policy (IP) has dominated conversations in economic and political circles thanks to President Biden’s big investments in manufacturing, infrastructure, and working Americans. But according to today’s guest, development economist Isabel Estevez, the conversation around IP is too narrow. IP is not just about manufacturing and clean energy, she argues—smart IP also encompasses policies that improve outcomes for people, like reducing child poverty and cleaning our drinking water.
Isabel Estevez is the Deputy Director of Industrial Policy and Trade at the Roosevelt Institute. She conducts research at the intersection of industrial and trade policy, with a focus on the transformation and decarbonization of heavy industries, such as steel and aluminum.
Twitter: @Isabel_Estevez_
Industrial Transformations https://www.phenomenalworld.org/analysis/industrial-transformations
The American Industrial Policy Series https://rooseveltinstitute.org/think-tank/climate-and-economic-transformation/the-american-industrial-policy-series
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Private equity’s plan to pillage America (with Brendan Ballou)
Over the last decade, private equity firms wiped out nearly 600,000 jobs in the retail sector by taking over and bankrupting major retailers like Toys R Us and Payless Shoes. But in that same time, private equity also destroyed companies in healthcare, housing, medicine, and many other industries that affect our everyday lives. Today’s guest, federal prosecutor Brendan Ballou, explains how we can stop private equity’s plan to pillage America.
Brendan Ballou is a federal prosecutor and served as Special Counsel for Private Equity in the Justice Department's Antitrust Division. Previously, he worked in private practice, and before that, in the National Security Division of the Justice Department, where he advised the White House on counterterrorism and other policies.
Twitter: @brendanballou
Plunder: Private Equity's Plan to Pillage America https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/brendan-ballou/plunder/9781541702103
Private Equity is Out of Control and Looting America. This Prosecutor Says We Can Fix It. https://www.ineteconomics.org/perspectives/blog/private-equity-is-out-of-control-and-looting-america-this-prosecutor-says-we-can-fix-it
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Bidenomics (with Bharat Ramamurti)
“Bidenomics” is closely aligned with many—probably even most—of the middle-out economic principles that we discuss on this podcast every week. Much to our surprise and delight, Joe Biden has become the first President in 40 years to reject trickle-down economics in favor of building the economy from the middle out, and the results speak for themselves: Since the pandemic began, America has seen the strongest growth of any leading economy in the world. The economy has added 13 million jobs, inflation has fallen for 12 straight months, and a recession is no longer on the horizon. National Economic Council Deputy Director Bharat Ramamurti returns to the show to explain why Bidenomics has been so successful.
Bharat Ramamurti is the Deputy Director of National Economic Council (NEC) for The White House. He previously served as a Member of the Congressional Oversight Commission for the CARES Act, and as the Managing Director of the Corporate Power program at the Roosevelt Institute.
Twitter: @BharatRamamurti
Bidenomics is Working https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/06/28/bidenomics-is-working-the-presidents-plan-grows-the-economy-from-the-middle-out-and-bottom-up-not-the-top-down
The Transformation at the Heart of Biden’s Middle-Out Economic Agenda https://prospect.org/economy/2023-02-09-biden-middle-out-agenda
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why good jobs are good for business (with Zeynep Ton)
Low pay is obviously terrible for workers, but a growing body of research proves that it’s bad for businesses, too. Smaller paychecks lead to higher turnover, decreased productivity, and poor sales. Will low-wage employers in the grocery, retail, and restaurant industries ever understand that their employees are their most important asset? Zeynep Ton hopes so. She’s written a book explaining how labor investments can pay for themselves, and she joins us today to explain why better-paying jobs are good for everyone in the long run.
Zeynep Ton is a Professor of the Practice in the Operations Management group at MIT Sloan School of Management. She is also president of the nonprofit Good Jobs Institute, where she works with companies to improve their operations in a way that satisfies employees, customers, and investors alike.
Twitter: @zeynepton
Good Jobs are Good Business https://time.com/6285516/good-jobs-good-business
The Case for Good Jobs: How Great Companies Bring Dignity, Pay, and Meaning to Everyone’s Work https://store.hbr.org/product/the-case-for-good-jobs-how-great-companies-bring-dignity-pay-and-meaning-to-everyone-s-work/10579
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How economics can create a more sustainable planet (with Sarah Bloom Raskin)
In the 21st century, summertime isn’t just for lounging on the beach and trips to the ice cream shop. Climate change has made summer much more unpleasant—and even dangerous. This year alone, New York City and Chicago have been choked with wildfire smoke and the southern U.S. suffered through a wave of record-breaking high temperatures. That’s why we’re revisiting our conversation with financial regulation expert Sarah Bloom Raskin about how fiscal policy can help save the environment. She explains what levers already exist to steer monetary policy toward lasting sustainability, and which proposed regulatory strategies could create transformative climate outcomes.
This episode originally aired on July 20, 2021.
Sarah Bloom Raskin is the former Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Treasury and a former Governor of the Federal Reserve Board. She is currently a visiting professor and distinguished fellow at Duke Law School’s Global Financial Markets Center, and a member of President Biden’s Regenerative Crisis Response Committee.
Twitter: @SBloomRaskin
News clips from: CBS News, PBS NewsHour, and TODAY
Learn more about the Regenerative Crisis Response Committee here: https://regenerativecrisisresponsecommittee.org
Does environmental regulation kill or create jobs? https://policyintegrity.org/files/media/Jobs_and_Regulation_Factsheet.pdf
Do regulations really kill jobs? https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/01/regulations-jobs/513563
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Summer Reading List
It’s Paul and Goldy’s summer reading list!
We want to know what you’re reading, too. Leave us a comment on Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Remember to shop local and small when you can, or order from IndieBound or Bookshop.org—both of which support independent bookstores! All of these books are also likely available through your library.
Every book mentioned in this episode:
Corporate Bullsh*t - Nick Hanauer, Joan Walsh, and Donald Cohen
The Ministry for the Future - Kim Stanley Robinson
A Spectre, Haunting - China Miéville
The City & the City - China Miéville
Fight Like Hell - Kim Kelly
Rich White Men - Garrett Neiman
The 9.9 Percent - Matthew Stewart
When the President Calls - Simon W. Bowmaker
Capitalism and Freedom - Milton Friedman
Essential - Jamie K. McCallum
The Journey of Humanity - Oded Galor
SPQR - Mary Beard
The Death and Life of Great American Cities - Jane Jacobs
When McKinsey Comes to Town - Walt Bogdanich & Michael Forsyth
Humanly Possible - Sarah Bakewell
Bloodlands - Timothy Snyder
The Road to Unfreedom - Timothy Snyder
On Tyranny - Timothy Snyder
Black Earth - Timothy Snyder
Pre-Order Nick’s new book with Joan Walsh and Donald Cohen, Corporate Bullsh*t from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Corporate-Bullsh-Exposing-Half-Truths-Protect/dp/1620977516
Pre-Order Nick’s new book with Joan Walsh and Donald Cohen, Corporate Bullsh*t from Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/p/books/it-s-never-our-fault-and-other-shameless-excuses-a-compendium-of-corporate-lies-that-protect-profits-and-thwart-progress-donald-cohen/18096544?ean=9781620977514
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Doughnut Economics (with Andrew Fanning)
On its website, the Doughnut Economics Action Lab describes Doughnut Economics as “a compass for human prosperity in the 21st century.” Its proponents prioritize economic solutions that meet both the basic needs of all people—food, housing, equity, democratic inclusion—and the ecological needs of the planet that we all call home. Economist Andrew Fanning joins the show to discuss how Doughnut Economics can redefine economics for the 21st century, and he doesn’t sugarcoat the importance of implementing the doughnut model in order to successfully combat climate change.
Andrew Fanning is an ecological economist and the Data Analysis & Research Lead at Doughnut Economics Action Lab at the University of Leeds.
Twitter: @AndrewLFanning, @DoughnutEcon
Doughnut Economics Action Lab (DEAL) https://doughnuteconomics.org
Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist https://www.chelseagreen.com/product/doughnut-economics-paperback
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How the franchise system is rigged (with Marshall Steinbaum)
In the 20th century, big corporations sold franchising to Americans as a less risky way to buy into business ownership. But in recent years, the franchise industry has tipped hugely in favor of franchisors, extracting wealth from both franchisees and the employees who work for them through complicated contracts that kill competition and rig the system. Economist Marshall Steinbaum returns to the podcast to share the findings from his deep dive into the (intentionally) complex and arcane franchise system, and to explain the latest data from Washington State’s recent enforcement campaign against no-poach clauses in franchising contracts.
Marshall Steinbaum is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Utah and a Senior Fellow in Higher Education Finance at Jain Family Institute.
Twitter: @Econ_Marshall
Vertical Restraints and Labor Markets in Franchised Industries https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4155571
The Effect of Franchise No-poaching Restrictions on Worker Earnings https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4155577
Coercive Rideshare Practices: At the Intersection of Antitrust and Consumer Protection Law in the Gig Economy https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4196215
Shared Security, Shared Growth https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/37/shared-security-shared-growth
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Americonned (with Sean Claffey and Dave Pederson)
Americonned, a new documentary featuring our own Nick Hanauer, examines the inequality crisis currently plaguing the United States. The film shows the hidden struggles of American families and dissects the elite’s calculated political maneuvers to preserve and even grow their own wealth at everyone else’s expense. The filmmakers join us to share their experience documenting the long-overdue uprising of American workers, and explain how the process of making their film gave them hope for the future.
Americonned is playing in select theaters & will be available via VOD on June 13th.
Sean Claffey is the Director, Producer, and Executive Producer of Americonned. He has more than 25 years in the film industry spanning feature films, industry documentaries and commercials.
Dave Pederson is the Producer and Writer of Americonned. He’s an entertainment professional for over 20 years with expertise in Film & Television production, development, sales and distribution.
Twitter: @americonneddoc, Instagram: @americonneddocumentary
Americonned: The Documentary https://americonned.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Can the economy be liberated? (with Jeremie Greer)
Even when our nation's prosperity was most broadly shared in the 1950s and 1960s, Black people and other communities of color were purposefully denied the shared prosperity that white families enjoyed. And because inclusion drives economic growth, excluding anyone from the economy is bad for all of us. Jeremie Greer, Liberation in a Generation’s co-director, explains how racism is profitable under our current economic system, and breaks down how we can build a Liberation Economy that truly includes—and benefits—everyone.
Jeremie Greer is the Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of Liberation in a Generation, a national movement-support organization, building power for POC and demanding a Liberation Economy.
Twitter: @liberation_gen, @JeremieGreer
Liberation in a Generation https://www.liberationinageneration.org
Racism is Profitable Podcast https://www.liberationinagenerationaction.org/podcast
The Road to Zero Wealth https://ips-dc.org/report-the-road-to-zero-wealth
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Higher minimum wages are creating more jobs (with Michael Reich)
Ten years ago, Nick was called "near insane" for saying that substantially raising the minimum wage would create jobs. In retrospect, it seems obvious: After all, if no one has any money, who will buy all the stuff? Researchers at University of California, Berkeley have found more data to support this theory in a first-of-its-kind study on the effects of the $15 minimum wage. Michael Reich, one of the economists who worked on this exciting report, shares his findings with us.
Michael Reich is Professor of Economics and Chair of the Center on Wage and Employment Dynamics (CWED) at the Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE) of the University of California at Berkeley.
Twitter: @IRLEUCB
High Minimum Wages and the Monopsony Puzzle https://irle.berkeley.edu/publications/working-papers/high-minimum-wages-and-the-monopsony-puzzle
New Study Finds a High Minimum Wage Creates Jobs https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2023/05/new-study-finds-a-high-minimum-wage-creates-jobs.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Do we need an Economic Bill of Rights? (with Mark Paul)
We learn in grade school that American citizens are endowed with certain inalienable rights, but basic necessities like housing and education aren’t protected by the Constitution. Imagine how different this country might be if affordable health care and guaranteed employment were included in our Bill of Rights. That’s the vision that economist Mark Paul outlines in his new book, The Ends of Freedom.
Mark Paul is an assistant professor of economics at the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University. His research and writing have appeared in the New York Times, Economist, Washington Post, Nation, American Prospect, and Financial Times, among other publications.
Twitter: @MarkVinPaul
The Ends of Freedom https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/E/bo195791875.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The case for inclusive growth (with JP Julien)
At the core of middle-out economics is the idea that the more people we include in the economy, the faster and more prosperous it grows. And this inclusionary principle isn’t something we just made up—there’s actual data to support it. Our conversation with JP Julien from McKinsey and Company outlines what inclusion can mean in the context of an economy that works for everyone.
This episode originally aired on July 6, 2021.
JP Julien is a Partner at McKinsey & Company, where he serves US federal, state, and city governments on inclusive economic-development topics and supports private-, public-, and social-sector organizations in advancing racial equity. He is a leader of the McKinsey Institute for Black Economic Mobility, a global economic think tank focused on inclusive economic development and racial equity topics.
Twitter: @McKinsey
The case for inclusive growth: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-and-social-sector/our-insights/the-case-for-inclusive-growth
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Can economics save the world? (with Erik Angner)
We all want to live happier, more fulfilling lives and build a better future for ourselves, but can economics help to make that dream a reality? Economist and philosopher Erik Angner is so confident that economics can save the world that he wrote a whole book about it. Erik helps Nick and Goldy overcome their usual cynicism by pointing out all the amazing progress that has been made in the economics profession, and he explains how economics can help build an even more glorious future for everyone.
Erik Angner is Professor of Practical Philosophy at Stockholm University, where he directs the PPE Program. He is the author of several books including A Course in Behavioral Economics and How Economics Can Save the World.
Twitter: @ErikAngner
How Economics Can Save the World https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/321644/how-economics-can-save-the-world-by-angner-erik/9780241502693
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How college broke the American dream (with Will Bunch)
This week we’re continuing our exploration into the ways that higher education contributes to America’s political, cultural, and economic divisions. Goldy chats with author Will Bunch about how our leaders almost established a university education as a public good, why the so-called “knowledge economy” has caused inequality to grow, and how we can possibly fix our educational divide.
Will Bunch is a national opinion columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer and author of several books. He has won numerous journalism awards and shared the 1992 Pulitzer Prize for spot news reporting with the New York Newsday staff.
Twitter: @Will_Bunch
After the Ivory Tower Falls https://www.harpercollins.com/products/after-the-ivory-tower-falls-will-bunch
Better Public Schools Won’t Fix America https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/07/education-isnt-enough/590611
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Econ 101 is failing college students (with Abigail Acheson and Nouhaila Oudija)
Universities across America are still teaching an outdated, neoclassical way of economic thinking. The trickle-down curriculums taught in Econ 101 classrooms aren’t just bad for students—they have had disastrous, far-reaching effects on the economy. Decades of bad education has left students adrift: A new study from Rethinking Economics reveals that the majority of college students are critical of the US economic system, with a large majority believing it needs to change. Can we redesign economic curriculums to better reflect how the economy really works?
Abigail Acheson is network coordinator and staff organizer with the US Rethinking Economics National Network. A recent graduate, Abigail is dedicated to revitalizing student organizing for curriculum change at universities.
Nouhaila Oudija is a researcher and consultant at RE-USA. She recently published a research project about college students' attitudes around the US economic system and about the lack of diversity of thought in economics curricula.
Twitter: @RethinkEcon_USA, @rethinkecon
Economics is Failing US College Students https://www.rethinkeconomics.org/2022/10/18/econ-failing-us-students
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How rich people dodge taxes (with Gabriel Zucman)
As Tax Day approaches in the United States, we’re revisiting our conversation with Gabriel Zucman, the authority on wealth taxes. For the last 40 years, trickle-down politicians have slashed tax rates on the rich, benefiting the wealthy few at the expense of the American middle class. Zucman explains how the rich manage to dodge taxes, and how we can fix this broken system.
This episode originally aired on November 26, 2019.
Gabriel Zucman is now Professor of Economics at the Paris School of Economics and Ecole Normale Supérieure – PSL, Associate Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley, Director of the EU Tax Observatory, and Director of the James M. and Cathleen D. Stone Center on Wealth and Income Inequality at UC Berkeley.
Twitter: @gabriel_zucman
The Triumph of Injustice: https://wwnorton.com/books/the-triumph-of-injustice
The Wealth Detective Who Finds the Hidden Money of the Super
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Banning noncompetes is good, actually (with Evan Starr)
One in five American workers has signed a noncompete clause. The FTC believes that the elimination of these clauses would generate extra job opportunities for 30 million workers and raise wages by $300 billion—a huge win for the average American worker. Economist Evan Starr shares findings from his new report on noncompetes and their enforceability in court, which uses data from our home state of Washington.
Evan Starr is an Assistant Professor of Management & Organization at the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland. He received a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Michigan.
Twitter: @evanpstarr
Do Firms Value Court Enforceability of Noncompete Agreements? https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4364674
The Transformation at the Heart of Biden’s Middle-Out Economic Agenda
https://prospect.org/economy/2023-02-09-biden-middle-out-agenda
Why your noncompete clause is probably illegal https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/why-your-non-compete-clause-is-probably-illegal-with-attorney-general-bob-ferguson
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How we all fell for The Big Myth (with Naomi Oreskes and Erik Conway)
When did ordinary people come to believe that free market solutions are always better than government intervention? How do we create a future where markets serve democracy instead of stifling it? In this episode we’re talking about the “magic” of the marketplace and the myth that the free market is ruthlessly efficient and always knows best. The co-authors of The Big Myth explain exactly how American business taught us to loathe government and love the free market.
Naomi Oreskes is Professor of the History of Science at Harvard University. Her opinion pieces have appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, and many other outlets.
Erik M. Conway is a historian of science and technology and works for the California Institute of Technology. He is the author of seven books and dozens of articles and essays.
Twitter: @NaomiOreskes, @ErikMConway
The Big Myth https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/big-myth-9781635573572
The Silicon Valley Bank Bailout Didn’t Need to Happen https://prospect.org/economy/2023-03-13-silicon-valley-bank-bailout-deregulation
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Slouching towards economic utopia (with Brad DeLong)
Between 1870 and 2010 an unprecedented explosion of material wealth transformed the globe, but that wave of prosperity failed to create a fully functioning and equal society. How did we manage to create an economic pie large enough for everyone to share, but then fumble dividing that pie up equally? Brad DeLong explores this question in his new book, Slouching Towards Utopia, which looks at the economic history of the twentieth century and why it matters today.
J. Bradford DeLong is an economic historian and a professor of economics at the University of California, Berkeley. He was a deputy assistant secretary of the U.S. Treasury during the Clinton administration. He writes a widely read economics blog, now at braddelong.substack.com
Twitter: @delong
Slouching Towards Utopia https://www.basicbooks.com/titles/j-bradford-delong/slouching-towards-utopia/9780465019595
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The problem with unequal cities (with Richard McGahey)
We've released dozens of episodes exploring how to improve the lives of Americans that live in rural areas, but we don’t often discuss how cities (and the folks that live in them) are being left behind by state lawmakers and federal policies. This is a problem because cities are key to innovation and economic growth. Richard McGahey's new book explores how to overcome anti-urban bias in order to reduce inequality in cities throughout the United States.
Richard McGahey is an economist and senior fellow at the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis and the Institute on Race, Power, and Political Economy, both within The New School.
Twitter: @rickmcgahey
Unequal Cities http://cup.columbia.edu/book/unequal-cities/9780231173346
Redefining Rural America https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/redefining-rural-america-with-olugbenga-ajilore/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The high price of misclassification (with Heidi Shierholz)
A new report from the Economic Policy Institute found that anywhere from 10 to 30 percent of employers are essentially stealing thousands of dollars from their workers every year by misclassifying them as independent contractors. In addition to lower pay, those misclassified workers are also deprived of employer-provided benefits like health care and labor rights like basic safety regulations. Returning guest Heidi Shierholz walks us through the report and explains how to figure out if your employer is stealing from you by classifying you as an independent contractor.
Heidi Shierholz is the president of the Economic Policy Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank that uses the power of its research on economic trends and on the impact of economic policies to advance reforms that serve working people, deliver racial justice, and guarantee gender equity.
Twitter: @hshierholz
The economic costs of worker misclassification https://www.epi.org/publication/cost-of-misclassification
Shared security, shared growth https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/37/shared-security-shared-growth
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why Walmart workers are still broke (with Rick Wartzman)
Goldy and Paul interview author Rick Wartzman about how America’s biggest employer (Walmart) began taking better care of its workers (by raising wages)—and why that decision might be too little, too late. According to Wartzman, Walmart has gone through a remarkable transformation, but there are limits to how much positive change this brand of socially conscious capitalism can create.
Rick Wartzman is co-president of Bendable Labs, a technology, consulting and research firm that builds and tests social innovations in the areas of lifelong learning, workforce development and job quality. He’s the author of several books that meet at the intersection of business and society including Still Broke: Walmart's Remarkable Transformation and the Limits of Socially Conscious Capitalism, The End of Loyalty: The Rise and Fall of Good Jobs in America, Obscene in the Extreme: The Burning and Banning of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, and The King of California: J.G. Boswell and the Making of a Secret American Empire.
Twitter: @RWartzman
Still Broke https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/rick-wartzman/still-broke/9781549156250
Walmart and McDonald’s have the most workers on food stamps and Medicaid, new study shows https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/11/18/food-stamps-medicaid-mcdonalds-walmart-bernie-sanders
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why stock buybacks should be taxed more (with Cory Booker)
Stock buybacks are one of the worst excesses of modern capitalism, which naturally means they're one of our favorite subjects to cover on the podcast. And since they’re in the news again, we thought it would be a good time to revisit one of our first episodes, from 2019. How much has changed over the past 4 years? President Biden’s proposal to raise taxes on buybacks to 4% is the most promising update so far, but much of our conversation with Senator Cory Booker remains relevant today.
This episode originally aired on February 26, 2019.
Cory Booker is the U.S. Senator from New Jersey. Since 2013, Cory has written and championed dozens of bills aimed at fixing our broken criminal justice system, expanding economic opportunity, and fighting for equal justice for everyone.
Twitter: @CoryBooker
The Transformation at the Heart of Biden’s Middle-Out Economic Agenda https://prospect.org/economy/2023-02-09-biden-middle-out-agenda
Stock buybacks are soaring to record levels — and Cory Booker wants to stop it https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/3/6/17083398/booker-buyback-populist
Stock Buybacks Are Killing the American Economy https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/02/kill-stock-buyback-to-save-the-american-economy/385259
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How Biden is restoring economic competition (with David Dayen)
In July 2021, President Biden signed an executive order directing government agencies to rewrite policies to encourage competition in the U.S. economy. Returning guest David Dayen has compiled 18 months’ worth of actions resulting from this order. After more than four decades of unrestrained corporate power, Dayen explains, competition is finally returning to the economy—and that’s good news for everyone.
David Dayen is the executive editor of The American Prospect. His work has appeared in The Intercept, The New Republic, HuffPost, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, and more. His most recent book is ‘Monopolized: Life in the Age of Corporate Power.’
Twitter: @ddayen
A Pitched Battle on Corporate Power https://prospect.org/economy/2023-01-25-pitched-battle-corporate-power
The Transformation at the Heart of Biden’s Middle-Out Economic Agenda https://prospect.org/economy/2023-02-09-biden-middle-out-agenda
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why canceling student debt makes great economic sense (with Fenaba Addo)
When the Biden Administration announced last year that they would forgive up to $20,000 student loan debt per individual, millions of people celebrated—and for good reason. The student loan debt that Americans carry has ballooned to $1.8 trillion in recent decades, threatening the economic security of American households from coast to coast and up and down the income scale. Unfortunately, the Biden forgiveness plan has been tied up in several lawsuits, and the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments for these lawsuits at the end of February, with a final decision expected later this spring.
As the conversation over student loans heats back up, we’re revisiting our conversation with Associate Professor Fenaba Addo. Addo helps us explore the merits and shortcomings of student debt cancellation, and explains why canceling student debt would actually be good for the economy. You’ll also hear from Pitchfork listeners who share how student loan forgiveness would change their lives.
This episode originally aired on December 22, 2020.
Fenaba Addo is an Associate Professor of Public Policy at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. She specializes in debt and racial wealth inequality. Her first book, A Dream Defaulted: The Student Loan Crisis Among Black Borrowers, is available now by Harvard Education Press.
Twitter: @FenabaAddo
The Biden-Harris Administration’s Student Debt Relief Plan Explained https://studentaid.gov/debt-relief-announcement
Is Student Debt Forgiveness Still Going to Happen? https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/loans/student-loans/debt-relief-lawsuits-qa
Forget fairness: Canceling all student debt makes great economic sense for America — here's why https://www.businessinsider.com/why-canceling-student-debt-makes-great-economic-sense-for-america-2020-12
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The many benefits of a guaranteed job program (with Max Kasy and Lukas Lehner)
Oxford economists are currently running the world’s first Universal Job Guarantee program in Austria, and so far the results are very promising. When unemployed people have guaranteed access to training and/or a job, those people feel more in control of their lives and become more financially secure…and happier, too. The study’s co-authors join us to explain why they believe a guaranteed jobs program like this could work in other countries—including the United States.
Maximilian Kasy is a Professor of Economics at the University of Oxford
Lukas Lehner is an Economist at the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School (INET Oxford) and the Department of Social Policy and Intervention, University of Oxford
Twitter: @maxkasy, @LukasLehner_
World’s first universal job guarantee boosts wellbeing and eliminates long-term unemployment https://www.inet.ox.ac.uk/news/worlds-first-universal-job-guarantee-boosts-wellbeing-and-eliminates-long-term-unemployment
Does the future of work include a Federal Jobs Guarantee? https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/does-the-future-of-work-include-a-federal-jobs-guarantee-with-pavlina-tcherneva-and-representative-ro-khanna
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The legacy of the Fight for $15 (with NELP)
Exactly one decade ago, activists and civic leaders launched the Fight for $15. It’s hard to recall now, but the idea was wildly controversial at the time—Forbes called Nick’s support of a $15 minimum wage “near-insane,” for example. A new report from the National Employment Law Project (NELP) examines the legacy of the movement and all that it has accomplished in the last 10 years. Two of the report’s authors join us to discuss the Fight for $15’s impact beyond growing paychecks, including its effect on the racial wealth gap, union participation, and the economy overall.
Yannet Lathrop is a Senior Researcher and Policy Analyst for the National Employment Law Project.
Dr. T. William Lester is Professor and Acting Chair of Urban and Regional Planning at San José State University and Research Professor at UNC Chapel Hill.
Twitter: @NELPnews
Ten-Year Legacy of the Fight for $15 and a Union Movement https://www.nelp.org/publication/10-year-legacy-fight-for-15-union-movement/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Sci-Fi Economics (with Kim Stanley Robinson)
We can’t tear down the existing economic framework and replace it with a better one without first telling a persuasive story about how the economy actually works. And few people in the world are more compelling storytellers than science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson.
In his speculative near-future novel The Ministry for the Future, Stan explains complicated economic theories better than most economists. He joins Nick and Goldy for a fascinating conversation about the role of economics in both climate change fiction and climate change reality.
Kim Stanley Robinson is a New York Times bestseller and winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus awards. He is the author of more than twenty books, including the bestselling Mars trilogy and the critically acclaimed New York 2140 and The Ministry for the Future.
Facebook: Kim Stanley Robinson
The Ministry for the Future https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/kim-stanley-robinson/the-ministry-for-the-future/9780316300148
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The real reasons why inflation soared last year (with Ira Regmi)
For most of last year economists and pundits engaged in a long, circular debate about why inflation was spiking around the world, and who was to blame for those skyrocketing prices. Economic experts at the Roosevelt Institute (including past guest Joseph Stiglitz) have finally revealed the root causes of global inflation in a new report. Stiglitz’s co-author, Ira Regmi, shares what they’ve learned.
Ira Regmi is the Program Manager for the Macroeconomic Analysis program at the Roosevelt Institute. They support the team’s work on fiscal and monetary policy, unemployment, and growth to ensure an economy that works for all.
Twitter: @Regmi_Ira
The Causes of and Responses to Today’s Inflation https://rooseveltinstitute.org/publications/the-causes-of-and-responses-to-todays-inflation
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
New Year, New AMA
Nick and Goldy kick off the New Year by answering more of your questions! Has there ever been a time period with strong deflation? Should folks prepare for an upcoming recession? Why aren’t we allowed to question the free market? And much more.
If you have questions for a future “Ask Me Anything” episode, leave us a voicemail at 731-388-9334.
Don’t forget to follow the show wherever you listen and if that happens to be on Apple or Spotify, please give us a 5 star rating or review!
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Revisiting the economics of abortion (with Caitlin Myers)
Out of all the topics we discussed in 2022 one stayed at the top of headlines all year long: abortion. We spoke to Professor Caitlin Myers in February of this year, months before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade. She shared data from her research and provided examples of the causal links between abortion access and economic outcomes in women’s lives. It’s an illuminating episode, and one that will be just as relevant in 2023 as it was for all of 2022.
This episode originally aired on February 22, 2022.
Caitlin Knowles Myers is the John G. McCullough professor of economics at Middlebury College and Co-Director of the Middlebury Initiative for Data and Digital Methods. She’s known for her recent research on the impact of contraception and abortion policies in the United States.
Twitter: @Caitlin_K_Myers
Opinion: Economists can tell you that restricting abortion access restricts women’s lives https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/11/29/abortion-economics-supreme-court
Lack of abortion access will set US women back, economists warn https://www.ft.com/content/61251b31-0041-461c-bd33-aacf2f13fe10
What can economic research tell us about the effect of abortion access on women’s lives? https://www.brookings.edu/research/what-can-economic-research-tell-us-about-the-effect-of-abortion-access-on-womens-lives
The economic reality behind a Mississippi anti-abortion argument
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/02/business/mississippi-abortion-law-economy.html
The Economic Consequences of Being Denied an Abortion https://www.nber.org/papers/w26662
The Turnaway Study https://www.ansirh.org/research/ongoing/turnaway-study
Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Revisiting corporate greed’s effect on the supply chain (with Rakeen Mabud)
Judging by the amount of downloads for this episode, we’d say it was our listeners’ favorite from the past year. “Did Corporate Greed Break the Supply Chain?” with Rakeen Mabud from the Groundwork Collaborative exposes how the supply chain was actually designed: not for reliably getting goods to people, but for maximizing profit. Unfortunately, that’s something many Americans came to realize in 2022 as prices skyrocketed and store shelves were left empty.
This episode originally aired on March 22, 2022.
Rakeen Mabud is the Chief Economist and Managing Director of Policy and Research at the Groundwork Collaborative.
Twitter: @rakeen_mabud
How We Broke the Supply Chain https://prospect.org/economy/how-we-broke-the-supply-chain-intro/
Corporations Raise Prices as Consumers Spend ‘With a Vengeance’
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/27/business/economy/price-increases-inflation.html
Opinion: Larry Summers Shares the Blame for Inflation https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/28/opinion/larry-summers-inflation.html
Inflation causing financial strain for nearly half of U.S. households, poll finds
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/12/02/inflation-gallup-financial-hardship/
Stock Buybacks Beat Capital Spending for Many Big Companies
https://www.wsj.com/articles/stock-buybacks-beat-capital-spending-for-many-big-companies-11631611802
The stock market is punishing Walmart and Target for keeping costs low while the rest of the corporate sector prioritizes profits and makes inflation worse
Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
CEO Pay is out of control (with Mark Kreidler)
A new report from the Economic Policy Institute looks into the salary and stock packages of America’s most overcompensated corporate titans and the numbers are staggering. According to journalist Mark Kreidler, who recently covered the report for Capital + Main, CEO paychecks are a huge contributor to inequality. He joins the podcast to share why more people would do better if CEOs were paid less.
We want your questions for another “Ask Me Anything” episode with Nick and Goldy! Call and leave us a voicemail at 731-388-9334.
Mark Kreidler is a California-based writer, journalist, and broadcaster. He’s the author of three books, including Four Days to Glory.
Twitter: @MarkKreidler
For America’s Top-Ranked CEOs, Too Much Is Never Enough
https://capitalandmain.com/for-americas-top-ranked-ceos-too-much-is-never-enough
CEO pay has skyrocketed 1,460% since 1978
https://www.epi.org/publication/ceo-pay-in-2021
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
America isn’t lost, it’s Adrift (with Scott Galloway)
Inequality has grown so large that a number of pessimists believe America is lost. But Professor Scott Galloway argues that our nation is actually adrift, and in his latest book he explains what needs to be done to fix this imbalance and rebuild America’s foundations. Galloway joins Nick and Goldy for an honest conversation about age inequality, the middle class, corporate consolidation, and more.
Scott Galloway is Professor of Marketing at NYU Stern School of Business and a serial entrepreneur. He is the bestselling author of Post Corona, The Four, The Algebra of Happiness, and most recently Adrift.
Twitter: @profgalloway
Adrift: America in 100 Charts https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/713560/adrift-by-scott-galloway
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Fair Social Contracts (with Eric Beinhocker)
Human society is built on social contracts, but decades of neoliberalism have left many of our most fundamental contracts—worker power, social safety nets, trust in key institutions— in tatters. It’s no wonder that people are pissed off: without fairness, we can’t have cooperation, and without cooperation, we can’t have a strong economy… or a strong democracy. Can we restore the social contracts that served us so well, or has our sense of fairness been damaged beyond repair? Oxford economics professor Eric Beinhocker shares his latest research into the psychology and economics of cooperation.
Eric Beinhocker is a Professor of Public Policy Practice at the Blavatnik School of Government and the Executive Director of the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the University of Oxford’s Martin School.
Twitter: @EricBeinhocker, @INETOxford
Fair Social Contracts and the Foundations of Large-Scale Collaboration https://www.inet.ox.ac.uk/publications/no-2022-26-fair-social-contracts-and-the-foundations-of-large-scale-collaboration
INET Oxford https://www.inet.ox.ac.uk
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Charting a new path forward (LIVE from EconCon Presents)
In one of the highlights of last week’s EconCon Presents event in Washington D.C., Washington Post columnist Perry Bacon Jr. convened an all-star panel of political experts. Maurice Mitchell, Faiz Shakir, and Anna Greenberg joined Bacon to share lessons learned from the midterm elections, and debate strategies for driving the progressive economic agenda forward in 2023 and beyond.
Thanks to our friends at EconCon for sharing audio of this event for Pitchfork Economics listeners. For more information about upcoming EconCon events, follow them on Twitter: @EconConPresents.
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why we can't let Kroger buy Albertsons (with Stacy Mitchell)
Kroger wants to buy Albertsons and effectively become the second-largest grocery chain in the United States. This merger would result in less competition, rising grocery prices, and lower wages. Corporate greed has gotten us into this mess, but new federal anti-merger guidelines, and some tenacious Attorneys General, may just get us out. Returning guest Stacy Mitchell explains why mergers like this one are bad news for workers and shoppers alike.
Stacy Mitchell is Co-Executive Director of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, a research and advocacy organization that challenges concentrated corporate power and works to build thriving, equitable communities.
Twitter: @stacyfmitchell
Institute for Local Self-Reliance: https://ilsr.org
Stacy Mitchell Responds to Kroger’s Bid to Buy Albertsons https://ilsr.org/statement-kroger-albertsons-merger
Report: How New Federal Anti-merger Guidelines Can Roll Back Corporate Concentration and Build Local Power
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The reality of voter suppression in America (with Andrea Hailey)
If there's one thing we learned from the far-right campaign against voting rights following the 2020 election, it's how fragile our democracy really is. That’s why we’re celebrating Election Day 2022 by revisiting our conversation with Vote.org CEO Andrea Hailey, who explains how voter suppression happens and what reforms would help ensure a truly inclusive democracy. Don’t forget to vote!
This episode originally aired in October 2021.
Andrea Hailey is the CEO of Vote.org, the nation’s largest nonpartisan digital voter engagement organization.
Twitter: @AndreaEHailey
Vote.org: https://www.vote.org
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Chokepoint Capitalism (with Cory Doctorow and Rebecca Giblin)
Corporate concentration has strained the labor market for virtually all workers, but the resulting lack of competition has caused unique harm to the creative economy. Increasingly exploitative monopolies have rendered artists, authors, musicians, and other creative workers all but powerless. Novelist Cory Doctorow and intellectual property expert Rebecca Giblin discuss their new book, Chokepoint Capitalism, which documents the increasing tensions between extractive corporations and creative laborers, and offers solutions to help fight back against the devaluation of creativity.
Cory Doctorow is a science fiction writer and activist, as well as a special advisor to the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a visiting professor of computer science at the Open University and of library science at the University of North Carolina, and an MIT Media Lab research affiliate.
Rebecca Giblin is an ARC Future Fellow and Professor at Melbourne Law School. She is Director of the Intellectual Property Research Institute of Australia and heads up the Author’s Interest and eLending projects.
Chokepoint Capitalism: How Big Tech and Big Content Captured Creative Labor Markets and How We'll Win Them Back http://www.beacon.org/Chokepoint-Capitalism-P1856.aspx
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Middle-Out Messaging for the Midterms (with Melissa Morales and Bobby Clark)
Economics is another form of storytelling—specifically, it’s the story of who gets what and why. And as the rise of trickle-down and middle-out economics shows us, telling the right story at the right time can transform the economy for a generation. The same is true for politics, but simple and easy-to-understand narratives are notoriously not a strength of Democratic politicians. That’s what the folks at the Winning Jobs Narrative Project are trying to fix. On this must-listen episode before the midterm elections, Bobby Clark and Melissa Morales explain why messaging matters to voters.
Bobby Clark is a Communications Strategist who advises philanthropic and progressive advocacy organizations on investments in communications research, structures, and campaigns. Bobby led the team that developed the Winning Jobs Narrative.
Twitter: @bobbyprogress
Melissa Morales is the Founder and President of Somos Votantes (C4) & Somos PAC (527), which are currently running multi-million dollar Latino-focused electoral programs in battleground states ahead of the 2022 midterm elections.
Twitter: @Melissa_in_DC
The Winning Jobs Narrative Project https://winningjobsnarrative.org
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
A brief history of Middle-Out Economics (with Michael Tomasky)
We’ve lived in the shadow of trickle-down economics for over 40 years. During that time, our leaders unquestioningly embraced economic policies that prioritize the wealthiest and most powerful, with the idea that their wealth will eventually "trickle down" to everyone else. Finally, a contrasting progressive economic understanding is beginning to take hold. Middle-out economics—the idea that prioritizing the working- and middle-class is better for everyone in the economy—is having a moment. But where did middle-out come from? Michael Tomasky’s new book chronicles the history of middle-out and the rise of progressive economics in the United States.
Michael Tomasky is a journalist and author. He’s top editor of The New Republic, editor of Democracy: A Journal of Ideas, and a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times.
Twitter: @mtomasky
The Middle Out https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/671443/the-middle-out-by-michael-tomasky
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why won't trickle-down die? (with Mark Blyth)
While President Biden has embraced middle-out economics here in the states, the UK’s new leaders have decided to enthusiastically revive trickle-down economics. Political economist Mark Blyth, who teaches International Economics, shares his thoughts on the United Kingdom’s troubling new budget policies, certainty’s role in building an economy, and much more on this wide-ranging episode.
Mark Blyth is Director of the William R. Rhodes Center for International Economics and Finance. He’s a professor, author, and political economist. His latest book, Diminishing Returns, is out now.
Twitter: @MkBlyth
Forget trickle down, what the UK needs is middle-out economics https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2022/sep/25/forget-trickle-down-what-the-uk-needs-is-middle-out-economics
Angrynomics by Mark Blyth and Eric Lonergan https://angrynomics.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How to repair the housing crisis (with Jenny Schuetz)
The United States is in the midst of a housing crisis. Prices are skyrocketing, supply is dwindling, and wages haven't kept up with cost of living. It's a complicated problem, but the good news is that many of its solutions are relatively simple. Jenny Schuetz literally wrote the book on how good policy solutions can help resolve some of the worst pressures on our stressed housing market.
Jenny Schuetz is a Senior Fellow at Brookings Metro, and is an expert in urban economics and housing policy. She’s also the author of a new book, Fixer-Upper: How to Repair America’s Broken Housing Systems.
Twitter: @jenny_schuetz
Fixer-Upper: How to Repair America's Broken Housing Systems https://www.brookings.edu/book/fixer-upper
Don’t Think of a Recession https://civicventures.substack.com/p/dont-think-of-a-recession
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How student loan forgiveness rebuilds the economy from the middle out (with Marshall Steinbaum)
President Biden recently announced his plan for student loan forgiveness. It’s a policy that helps build the economy from the middle out by erasing some of the 1.7 trillion dollars in debt that’s holding Americans back. Economist Marshall Steinbaum, who has spent most of his career researching student debt, explains why this forgiveness plan is a great start—and why Biden can, and should, do more.
Marshall Steinbaum is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Utah and a Senior Fellow in Higher Education Finance at Jain Family Institute.
Twitter: @Econ_Marshall
The Student Debt Crisis is a Crisis of Non-Repayment
https://www.phenomenalworld.org/analysis/crisis-of-non-repayment
A Middle-Out Education https://civicventures.substack.com/p/a-middle-out-education
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Measuring long Covid's impact on the labor market (with Katie Bach)
Millions of Americans are being kept out of the workforce due to the lingering effects of Covid, resulting in billions of dollars in lost wages and productivity. How is this affecting our economy? Returning guest Katie Bach shares the findings from her new report which outlines just how severe the labor market effects of long Covid have become.
Kathryn Bach is a Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institute and the CBO of &pizza.
Twitter: @kathrynsbach
New data shows long Covid is keeping as many as 4 million people out of work https://www.brookings.edu/research/new-data-shows-long-covid-is-keeping-as-many-as-4-million-people-out-of-work
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
We need to fix overtime pay in America (with Marcus Baram)
If you're a salaried worker, chances are you're no longer eligible for the overtime pay that you would have received 40 years ago. A robust federal overtime standard used to serve as a kind of minimum wage for the middle class, providing both a valuable source of extra income and a shield of protection for the 40-hour workweek. When he interviewed workers around the country, Journalist Marcus Baram learned firsthand why we must raise the overtime threshold and restore overtime protections for American workers.
Marcus Baram is a journalist and author who has written for The New Yorker, The WSJ, Capital & Main, and more
Twitter: @mbaram
(Full disclosure: Civic Ventures is a partial funder of Capital & Main's inequality reporting project.)
Who Killed Overtime Pay? https://capitalandmain.com/latest-news/the-50-100-pay-gap/who-killed-overtime-pay-the-50-100-pay-gap
America Gave Up on Overtime https://time.com/6168310/overtime-pay-history
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How the Inflation Reduction Act benefits the middle class (with Rose Khattar)
The Inflation Reduction Act may be smaller than the original Build Back Better plan, but it still represents a huge leap forward in middle-out economic thinking. The IRA addresses out-of-control healthcare costs, it helps build a fairer tax code, and it combats the climate crisis. It’s a huge win for the Biden administration and, more importantly, for the middle class. Economist Rose Khattar breaks down the many benefits of the IRA on our first episode back from summer break.
Rose Khattar is the Associate Director of Economic Analysis at the Center for American Progress.
Twitter: @rose_khattar
Top 11 Benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act
https://www.americanprogress.org/article/top-11-benefits-of-the-inflation-reduction-act
I Helped Coin the Phrase “Middle-Out Economics”, Biden is Making It a Reality https://newrepublic.com/article/167506/biden-middle-out-economics
How the Inflation Reduction Act could help normal Americans fight rising costs https://www.businessinsider.com/democratic-budget-bill-inflation-reduction-act-could-fight-intrest-rates-2022-8
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The limits of the market (with Joseph Stiglitz)
One of the central theories of classical economics is that markets respond quickly and efficiently to changes in demand. But the supply chain disruptions that left store shelves empty for much of the pandemic demonstrate that the markets aren’t the efficient adapters that classic economists believe them to be. Nobel laureate economist Joseph Stiglitz explains why the tendency to believe in the market is one of the most deeply rooted trickle-down myths, and why government intervention is the best way to respond to economic downturns.
This episode was originally released in May 2020.
Joseph Stiglitz is a Nobel laureate economist and a professor at Columbia University. He is also the co-chair of the High-Level Expert Group on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress at the OECD, and the Chief Economist of the Roosevelt Institute.
Twitter: @JosephEStiglitz
People, Power, and Profits: Progressive Capitalism for an Age of Discontent: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781324004219
Four Priorities for Pandemic Relief Efforts: https://rooseveltinstitute.org/four-priorities-for-covid19-pandemic-relief-efforts/
Why Our Affluent Society Is Facing Shortages in the Face of the Coronavirus Pandemic: https://time.com/5811505/affluent-society-shortages-coronavirus-pandemic
Deficit Lessons for the Pandemic From the 2008 Crisis: https://prospect.org/economy/deficit-lessons-pandemic-2008-crisis/
How the Economy Will Look After the Coronavirus Pandemic: https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/04/15/how-the-economy-will-look-after-the-coronavirus-pandemic/
Top economist: US coronavirus response is like ‘third world’ country: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/apr/22/top-economist-us-coronavirus-response-like-third-world-country-joseph-stiglitz-donald-trump
Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why essential work is essentially forced labor (with Suresh Naidu)
What became known as “essential work” during the pandemic was really just forced labor, according to labor market economist Suresh Naidu. He shares employers' secret tricks for manipulating the labor market and explains how powerless most workers have become as a result.
This episode was originally released in September 2020.
Suresh Naidu is a professor of economics and international and public affairs at Columbia University as well as a fellow at the Roosevelt Institute, external faculty at the Santa Fe Institute, and a research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research.
Twitter: @snaidunl
‘Essential’ workers are just forced laborers: https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/05/21/essential-workers-pay-wages-safety-unemployment
Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How inequality cost workers $50 trillion (with Carter Price)
Did you know that since 1975 a staggering $50 trillion has been diverted from the paychecks of working Americans to the pockets of the wealthiest 1%? That shocking number was discovered in a groundbreaking study done by the RAND Corporation that finally put a price tag on the massive inequality we’ve seen in America over the last 40 years.
This episode was originally released in September 2020.
Carter C. Price is a senior mathematician at the RAND Corporation.
Twitter: @CarterCPrice
The Top 1% of Americans Have Taken $50 Trillion From the Bottom 90% – And That’s Made the U.S. Less Secure: https://time.com/5888024/50-trillion-income-inequality-america/
“We were shocked”: RAND study uncovers massive income shift to the top 1%: https://www.fastcompany.com/90550015/we-were-shocked-rand-study-uncovers-massive-income-shift-to-the-top-1
Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Reclaiming conservative economics (with Oren Cass)
These days "conservative economics" can mean anything from strict libertarianism to formless Trumpism. But what were the foundations of American conservatism? According to Oren Cass, the executive director of a think tank called American Compass, the answer is simple: family, community, and industry. He shares his mission to reclaim American conservatism and joins Nick and Goldy in a search for some common ground.
This episode was originally released in December 2020.
Oren Cass is the executive director of American Compass, whose mission is to restore an economic orthodoxy that emphasizes the importance of faith, community, and industry to the nation’s liberty and prosperity. He is the author of ‘The Once and Future Worker: A Vision for the Renewal of Work in America’.
Twitter: @oren_cass
Workers of the World: https://americancompass.org/essays/workers-of-the-world
The elite needs to give up its GDP fetish: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/27/opinion/us-gdp-coronavirus.html
Oren Cass on the future of economics and society: https://www.manhattan-institute.org/economics-after-partisanship-markets-society
Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Mission Economy (with Mariana Mazzucato)
What do the internet and COVID vaccines have in common? Neither would be possible without the work of DARPA, a mission-focused federal agency responsible for funding research and development. Professor Mariana Mazzucato explains that our economy would be better off if more government agencies adopted DARPA’s mission-oriented approach.
This episode was originally released in May 2021. You can find the show notes and transcript for that episode here.
Mariana Mazzucato is a Professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value at University College London, where she is Founding Director of the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose. She is the author of three highly-acclaimed books: The Entrepreneurial State, The Value of Everything, and Mission Economy.
Twitter: @MazzucatoM
Mission Economy: https://marianamazzucato.com/books/mission-economy
It’s 2023. Here’s how we fixed the global economy: https://time.com/collection/great-reset/5900739/fix-economy-by-2023
DARPA’s early investment in COVID-19 antibody identification producing timely results: https://www.darpa.mil/news-events/2020-11-10
Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick's twitter: @NickHanauer
How American tax policy fosters racial inequality (with Dorothy A. Brown)
While most Americans know that our tax system advantages wealthy white families, not as many people realize how much it also actively disadvantages Black families. Tax law professor Dorothy Brown breaks down how racial inequality is built into U.S. tax policy and how we can try to fix it.
This episode was originally released in November 2021.
Dorothy A. Brown is professor of law at Emory University School of Law. She is a nationally recognized scholar in tax policy, race, and class and has published extensively on the racial implications of federal tax policy. She is the author of The Whiteness of Wealth: How the Tax System Impoverishes Black Americans — And How We Can Fix It.
Twitter: @DorothyABrown
The Whiteness of Wealth: https://bookshop.org/books/the-whiteness-of-wealth-how-the-tax-system-impoverishes-black-americans-and-how-we-can-fix-it/9780525577324
Black families pay significantly higher property taxes than white families, new analysis shows: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/07/02/black-property-tax/
Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
We can redefine worker power (with Elizabeth Anderson)
What are the ethical limits of the market? How do we shift the balances of power back towards workers? What does true freedom really look like? Nick and Goldy explore these questions and more in a fascinating conversation with Philosophy Professor, Elizabeth Anderson.
This episode was originally released in September 2020.
Elizabeth Anderson is the Arthur F. Thurnau Professor and John Dewey Distinguished University Professor of Philosophy and Women’s Studies at the University of Michigan. She is the author of Private Government: How Employers Rule Our Lives (and Why We Don’t Talk About It), and a recipient of the 2019 MacArthur Fellowship.
Private Government: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691176512/private-government
The philosopher redefining equality: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/01/07/the-philosopher-redefining-equality
Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Can corporations help repair society? (with Ben & Jerry)
Business leaders can use their power and resources to make meaningful change, but should they? Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, the founders of iconic ice cream brand Ben & Jerry’s, have navigated the landscape between business and activism since the 1970’s. They share their thoughts and experiences as well as their latest mission: ending qualified immunity.
This episode was originally recorded and released in April 2021.
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield are the co-founders of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream. They’re also leaders of the Campaign to End Qualified Immunity, a police reform and criminal justice campaign.
Ben’s twitter: @YoBenCohen
https://campaigntoendqualifiedimmunity.org
Website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Ask Nick Anything
Nick and Goldy answer more of your questions! What’s the deal with cryptocurrency? How are people still saying that inflation was caused by the stimulus? Is capitalism better than market socialism? Plus some summer reading recommendations and an important podcast announcement.
If you have questions for a future AMA episode, leave us a voicemail at 731-388-9334.
Why This Computer Scientist Says All Cryptocurrency Should “Die in a Fire” https://www.currentaffairs.org/2022/05/why-this-computer-scientist-says-all-cryptocurrency-should-die-in-a-fire
Consumers deserve an inflation rebate (with Congressman Ro Khanna) https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/consumers-deserve-an-inflation-rebate-with-congressman-ro-khanna/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Has Chile defeated neoliberalism? (with Marcelo Casals)
Chile has a proud tradition of protests, but the unrest of 2019 was different. More than a million people took to the streets to protest their nation’s vast inequality. The uprising made international news, unseated a neoliberal dictatorship, and led to the election of a new president—but did it also create lasting change? Chilean historian Marcelo Casals catches us up on the latest developments in Chile’s battle against neoliberalism.
Marcelo Casals is an independent scholar based in Santiago. He holds a PhD in Latin American history from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and recently wrote an article for Dissent Magazine titled, ‘The End of Neoliberalism in Chile?’
Twitter: @Palquelea
The End of Neoliberalism in Chile? https://www.dissentmagazine.org/online_articles/the-end-of-neoliberalism-in-chile
Gabriel Boric: From student protest leader to Chile’s president: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-59694056
‘Chile Woke Up’: Dictatorship’s Legacy of Inequality Triggers Mass Protests: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/03/world/americas/chile-protests.html
The texture piece is from 2019 and is courtesy of Gustavo de la Piedra, a listener from Santiago, Chile. The news clips are sourced from the news station France 24.
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Marshall Plan for Moms (with Reshma Saujani)
Millions of Americans lost their jobs because of the pandemic. While men have returned to their pre-pandemic level of employment, a million women are still missing from the workforce. Without access to paid maternity leave and affordable child care, women are choosing to stay home – or being forced to. It’s time for a more inclusive economic recovery. Reshma Saujani, the Founder of Girls Who Code and the Marshall Plan for Moms, has a plan to get us there.
Reshma Saujani is the founder of Girls Who Code and the Marshall Plan for Moms. She’s also an author of several books, her latest is called Pay Up: The Future of Women and Work (and Why It's Different Than You Think)
Twitter: @reshmasaujani
McKinsey - Meeting the challenge of moms’ ‘double double shift’ at home and work: https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/sustainable-inclusive-growth/future-of-america/meeting-the-challenge-of-moms-double-double-shift-at-home-and-work
The Business Case for Child Care: https://marshallplanformoms.com/childcare-report/
Marshall Plan for Moms https://marshallplanformoms.com
Pay Up https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Pay-Up/Reshma-Saujani/9781982191573
House Resolution 121 https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/house-resolution/121
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The inequality of progress (with Oded Galor)
What can the history of human progress teach us about modern inequality? In his new book, ‘The Journey of Humanity: The Origins of Wealth and Inequality,’ economist Oded Galor explores that question, as well as why human progress was stagnant for so much of history, if growth is still possible without ruining the planet, and what this all means for our future.
Oded Galor is a Professor of Economics at Brown University and the founding thinker behind Unified Growth Theory. He’s also the author of The Journey of Humanity: The Origins of Wealth and Inequality.
Twitter: @GalorOded
The Journey of Humanity https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/679024/the-journey-of-humanity-by-oded-galor/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How thinking like economists holds us back (with Elizabeth Popp Berman)
When it comes to crafting economic policy, cost-effectiveness, efficiency, choice, and competition have reigned supreme among policymakers for decades. Sociologist Elizabeth Popp Berman says that this style of economic reasoning—prioritizing efficiency above all else—makes good ideas seem like bad policy. She walks us through how that short-sighted style of thinking took hold in DC and explains when policymakers are right to lean on purely economic thinking—and when they should reject it in favor of prioritizing more fundamental values.
Elizabeth Popp Berman is a sociologist at the University of Michigan and the author of “Thinking Like an Economist: How Efficiency Replaced Equality in U.S. Public Policy”.
Twitter: @epopppp
Economics: Looking Back to Move Forward https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/64/economics-looking-back-to-move-forward
Thinking Like an Economist: How Efficiency Replaced Equality in U.S. Public Policy
https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691167381/thinking-like-an-economist
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Exploring global solutions to inequality (with Faiza Shaheen)
Reducing inequality is not only possible, but it’s actually happening all across the globe. Faiza Shaheen, the Inequality Program Lead at NYU, has been researching the conditions and policies that can lower inequality for years. She shares which countries have successfully done so, and speculates about whether the United States has a shot at joining them.
Dr. Faiza Shaheen is the Program Head for the Inequality and Exclusion Grand Challenge of the Pathfinders for Peaceful, Just and Inclusive Societies.
Twitter: @faizashaheen
Solutions to inequality https://medium.com/sdg16plus/solutions-to-inequality-962306388018
From Rhetoric to Action: Delivering Equality & Inclusion https://www.sdg16.plus/delivering-equality-and-inclusion
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Inclusion is an economic necessity (with john a. powell)
john a. powell, the Director of the Othering & Belonging Institute, explains why the concept of belonging is so important for a healthy community and why inclusion is the key to a thriving economy.
john a. powell is the Director of the Othering & Belonging Institute at the University of California, Berkeley.
Twitter: @profjohnapowell
Targeted universalism: a solution for inequality? https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/local/california/targeted-universalism/509-2127090b-7f50-4a91-91e7-04c47acf3309
Othering & Belonging Institute https://belonging.berkeley.edu/john-powell
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Consumers deserve an inflation rebate (with Congressman Ro Khanna)
Gas prices have reached record highs in the United States. Is inflation actually to blame, or is it the greed of Big Oil, which is enjoying record profits? Congressman Ro Khanna walks us through his proposal for a Big Oil Windfall Profits Tax, which he says will help curb profiteering while reducing gas prices.
Congressman Ro Khanna represents California’s 17th Congressional District. He’s the author of Dignity in a Digital Age: Making Tech Work for All of Us.
Twitter: @RoKhanna
Big Oil Windfall Profits Tax would protect consumers from giant oil companies taking advantage of world events to jack up prices https://khanna.house.gov/media/press-releases/release-gasoline-prices-sky-high-khanna-whitehouse-announce-curb-big-oil
Dignity in a Digital Age https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Dignity-in-a-Digital-Age/Ro-Khanna/9781982163341
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How Biden’s budget proposal takes on corporate power (with Niko Lusiani)
The Biden Administration’s 2023 budget proposal includes a Billionaire Minimum Income Tax and a rewrite of stock buyback practices. Will these changes actually take effect? If so, will they do enough to curb runaway corporate power? Niko Lusiani from the Roosevelt Institute breaks down what’s inside Biden’s budget.
Niko Lusiani is the Director of Corporate Power at the Roosevelt Institute.
Twitter: @NikoLusiani
Budget of the U.S. Government https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/budget_fy2023.pdf
Roosevelt Institute Responds to Billionaire Minimum Income Tax Proposal in Biden Administration FY 2023 Budget https://rooseveltinstitute.org/2022/03/28/statement-roosevelt-institute-responds-to-billionaire-minimum-income-tax-proposal/
Starbucks Halts Stock Buybacks as Schultz Returns https://www.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2022-04-04/starbucks-halts-stock-buybacks-as-schultz-pivots-to-workers#:~:text=Starbucks%20announced%20late%20last%20year,the%20company%20announced%20in%202018
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Pirate equity (with Jim Baker)
The idea behind private equity firms—to buy failing companies and turn them around for a profit—is not inherently bad. So why is private equity such a major driver of economic inequality? Jim Baker, the Executive Director for the Private Equity Stakeholder Project, explains these Wall Street pirates’ risky business practices and shows how workers are paying the price.
Jim Baker is the Executive Director for the Private Equity Stakeholder Project
Twitter: @PEstakeholder
Pirate Equity: How Wall Street Firms are Pillaging American Retail https://pestakeholder.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Pirate-Equity-How-Wall-Street-Firms-are-Pillaging-American-Retail-July-2019.pdf
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Companies can't self-regulate their way to inclusive capitalism (with Katie Bach)
In 2019, a group of business leaders signed a high-profile pledge promising that they would voluntarily move toward a more inclusive stakeholder-focused version of capitalism. But throughout the pandemic, those same companies reported record profits while workers were left behind. Brookings Institute Senior Fellow Katie Bach walks us through her new report examining the pandemic labor practices of 22 companies, spanning nearly every sector, and employing more than 7 million frontline workers.
Katie Bach is a Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institute and the CBO of &pizza.
Twitter: @kathrynsbach
As shareholder wealth soared, workers were left behind https://www.brookings.edu/research/profits-and-the-pandemic-as-shareholder-wealth-soared-workers-were-left-behind
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why your non-compete clause is probably illegal (with Attorney General Bob Ferguson)
Non-compete clauses, and the lesser-known no-poach agreements between franchises, are shockingly common for low-wage workers. Although these contracts were originally intended to protect trade secrets among high-level executives, they have spiraled into an unfair labor practice that keeps wages low, limits employee mobility, and decreases competition. Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson explains how non-competes and no-poach agreements violate the law in many states, what his team did to get hundreds of huge employers across the country to cease and desist, and why you should tell your state’s Attorney General if you know of any low- or middle-income workers who are being forced into signing these agreements.
This episode was originally recorded and released in May 2021.
Bob Ferguson is Washington State’s 18th Attorney General. As the state’s chief legal officer, Bob is committed to protecting the people of Washington against powerful interests that don’t play by the rules.
Twitter: @BobFergusonAG
Noncompete agreements have pushed U.S. wages even lower, says
a new Biden administration report: https://www.fastcompany.com/90729820/noncompete-agreements-have-pushed-u-s-wages-even-lower-says-a-new-biden-administration-report
Why aren’t paychecks growing? A burger-joint clause offers a clue: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/27/business/pay-growth-fast-food-hiring.html
Workers in Washington state win big under new non-compete law: https://www.emeryreddy.com/2019/09/workers-in-washington-state-win-big-under-new-non-compete-law/
Attorney General Bob Ferguson stops King County coffee shop’s practice requiring baristas to sign unfair non-compete agreements: https://www.atg.wa.gov/news/news-releases/attorney-general-bob-ferguson-stops-king-county-coffee-shop-s-practice-requiring
AG Report: Ferguson’s initiative ends no-poach practices nationally at 237 corporate franchise chains: https://www.atg.wa.gov/news/news-releases/ag-report-ferguson-s-initiative-ends-no-poach-practices-nationally-237-corporate
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How neoliberalism happened (with George Monbiot and Binyamin Appelbaum)
It’s trendy to mock the malicious pervasiveness of neoliberalism now, but have you ever wondered what its origins are? This week, George Monbiot and Binyamin Appelbaum join the show to uncover just where the dominant economic theory of our time came from and how it took hold. This episode was originally recorded and released in October 2019.
George Monbiot writes a weekly column for The Guardian and is the author of a number of books, most recently ‘Out of the Wreckage: A New Politics for an Age of Crisis’. As an investigative journalist and self-described “professional troublemaker,” George uncovers the complicated truths behind the world’s most persistent problems.
Twitter: @GeorgeMonbiot
Binyamin Appelbaum writes about economics and business for the editorial page of The New York Times. From 2010 to 2019, he was a Washington correspondent for the Times, covering economic policy in the aftermath of the 2008 crisis. His new book, ‘The Economists’ Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society’ is a Wall Street Journal Business Bestseller.
Twitter: @BCAppelbaum
Further reading:
Out of the Wreckage: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781786632890
The Economists’ Hour: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780316512329
Neoliberalism - the ideology at the root of all our problems: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/apr/15/neoliberalism-ideology-problem-george-monbiot
Games Economists Play: http://bostonreview.net/class-inequality/marshall-steinbaum-games-economists-play
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The economics of mass incarceration (with Robynn Cox)
What role does the criminal justice system play in economic inequality? How does economic inequality cause mass incarceration? And how do we tease those two questions apart? Robynn Cox, an expert in the economics of mass incarceration, talks about her research uncovering the links between economic inequality and the criminal justice system.
Robynn Cox is an assistant professor at the University of Southern California School of Social Work. She is an economist and inequality researcher, and her work focuses on understanding the social and economic consequences of mass incarceration.
Twitter: @RobynnCox
Overcoming social exclusion: Addressing race and criminal justice policy in the United States https://equitablegrowth.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Cox.pdf
The Impact of Mass Incarceration on the Lives of African American Women
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1007/s12114-011-9114-2
Identifying the Link Between Food Security and Incarceration
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/soej.12080
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/pam.22277
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07418825.2019.1709883
http://www.jameinpcunningham.com/uploads/1/1/2/0/112070441/black_lives_ccow.pdf
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why a $15 minimum wage is no longer enough (with Dean Baker)
Ever wondered what the minimum wage would be if it had kept pace with inflation and productivity like it used to? Here’s a hint: $7.25, and even $15.00, don’t come close. Economist Dean Baker has been crunching the numbers on the minimum wage for years. He joins the podcast this week to share what he’s found and why it matters. Since the publication of this episode, the Center for Economic and Policy Research issued a correction to Dean Baker’s August 2021 report that a minimum wage that kept up with productivity would be $26 per hour. In fact, it would be $23 per hour.
Dean Baker is a Senior Economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research.
Twitter: @DeanBaker13
Further reading:
This is What Minimum Wage Would Be If It Kept Pace with Productivity https://cepr.net/this-is-what-minimum-wage-would-be-if-it-kept-pace-with-productivity/
Work Should Pay: A $15 an Hour Minimum Wage Is a Start
https://cepr.net/work-should-pay-a-15-an-hour-minimum-wage-is-a-start/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Did corporate greed break the supply chain? (with Rakeen Mabud)
While many Americans struggle to make ends meet, corporate America’s 2021 profits were higher than ever. So why are corporations making more money while supply chain issues are still driving up inflation for the rest of us? The Groundwork Collaborative’s Chief Economist, Rakeen Mabud, wants you to know that the supply chain is working exactly as it was designed: for maximum profit, rather than reliably getting goods to people. And that’s the problem.
Rakeen Mabud is the Chief Economist and Managing Director of Policy and Research at the Groundwork Collaborative.
Twitter: @rakeen_mabud
How We Broke the Supply Chain https://prospect.org/economy/how-we-broke-the-supply-chain-intro/
Corporations Raise Prices as Consumers Spend ‘With a Vengeance’
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/27/business/economy/price-increases-inflation.html
Opinion: Larry Summers Shares the Blame for Inflation https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/28/opinion/larry-summers-inflation.html
Inflation causing financial strain for nearly half of U.S. households, poll finds
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/12/02/inflation-gallup-financial-hardship/
Stock Buybacks Beat Capital Spending for Many Big Companies
https://www.wsj.com/articles/stock-buybacks-beat-capital-spending-for-many-big-companies-11631611802
The stock market is punishing Walmart and Target for keeping costs low while the rest of the corporate sector prioritizes profits and makes inflation worse
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Free lunch thinking (with Tom Bergin)
Investigative financial analyst Tom Bergin cut his teeth investigating corporate wrongdoing. When he turned his attention to the economics profession, he learned that eight major economic theories—used by experts to shape policy across the globe—entirely lack factual basis. He joins the pod to explain how those theories wormed their way into dominant economic thinking, the evidence against them, and why he believes economists are finally starting to shift toward studying the world as it actually is.
Tom Bergin is an Investigative Financial Journalist for Reuters and the Author of Free Lunch Thinking: How Economics Ruins the Economy
Twitter: @tombergin_News
Further reading:
Economics is Once Again Becoming a Worldly Science https://aeon.co/essays/economics-is-once-again-becoming-a-worldly-science
Free Lunch Thinking https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/111/1118880/free-lunch-thinking/9781847942739.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Congress looks to the CBO for economic expertise. Is that a mistake? (with Mark Paul)
The Congressional Budget Office, the institution that furnishes cost-benefit analyses for federal legislation under consideration by Congress, has a really hard job. But some of the assumptions they rely on to predict economic consequences are just plain weird. Economist Mark Paul leads us through the strangest practices at the CBO, including their (untrue) claim that public investment is only half as productive as private investment and the complete lack of peer-reviewing of reports that can signal the death knell for a bill.
Mark Paul is an Economist at the New College of Florida and a Fellow at the Berggruen Institute.
Twitter: @MarkVinPaul
Further reading:
The Pitch: Economic Update for February 10th, 2022 https://civicventures.substack.com/p/bidens-big-union-push
Mark’s tweet about the CBO: https://twitter.com/MarkVinPaul/status/1491165138288005121
The Macroeconomic and Budgetary Effects of Federal Investment https://www.cbo.gov/publication/51628
CBO issues score on how much Build Back Better would cost if programs were permanent https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/10/politics/build-back-better-cbo-score/index.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How Davos Man devours the world (with Peter Goodman)
Billionaires have looted economies, hidden from tax bills, and destabilized democracies for decades. But the subset of billionaires who make a show of pretending to be good citizens have to be the worst among them. They’re called “Davos Man'' and according to New York Times Global Economics Correspondent Peter Goodman, they’re devouring the world we live in.
Peter S. Goodman is the Global Economics Correspondent at the New York Times. He is a two-time winner of the Gerald Loeb Award for Distinguished Business and Financial Journalism. His new book Davos Man: How the Billionaires Devoured the World is available now.
Twitter: @petersgoodman
Further reading:
Davos Man: How the Billionaires Devoured the World
https://www.harpercollins.com/products/davos-man-peter-s-goodman?variant=39325320282146
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The economics of abortion (with Caitlin Myers)
We often discuss abortion as an issue of bodily autonomy, personal rights, and reproductive justice. Of course it’s all of those things, but it’s also an economic issue. Access (or lack thereof) to an abortion profoundly affects women’s lives by determining if, when, and under what circumstances they become mothers. Whether or not women have access to abortion can change the direction of their lives, affecting educational attainment, labor force participation, and overall earnings. Economist Caitlin Myers breaks down her research into the subject and provides examples of the causal link between abortion access and economic outcomes in women’s lives.
Caitlin Knowles Myers is the John G. McCullough professor of economics at Middlebury College and Co-Director of the Middlebury Initiative for Data and Digital Methods. She’s known for her recent research on the impact of contraception and abortion policies in the United States.
Twitter: @Caitlin_K_Myers
Opinion: Economists can tell you that restricting abortion access restricts women’s lives https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/11/29/abortion-economics-supreme-court
Lack of abortion access will set US women back, economists warn https://www.ft.com/content/61251b31-0041-461c-bd33-aacf2f13fe10
What can economic research tell us about the effect of abortion access on women’s lives? https://www.brookings.edu/research/what-can-economic-research-tell-us-about-the-effect-of-abortion-access-on-womens-lives
The economic reality behind a Mississippi anti-abortion argument https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/02/business/mississippi-abortion-law-economy.html
The Economic Consequences of Being Denied an Abortion https://www.nber.org/papers/w26662
The Turnaway Study https://www.ansirh.org/research/ongoing/turnaway-study
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Ask Nick Anything
Nick and Goldy answer your questions! How is any form of union busting legal? Why can’t America be more like the Nordic countries? Is taxing unrealized capital gains a good idea? And more!
Thanks to Brad from Pennsylvania, Larry from Boston, Julie from Arizona, Duncan from California, Zach from Minnesota, and Dave from Illinois who left the great voicemails included in this episode. If you have any questions for a future AMA episode, leave us a voicemail at 731-388-9334.
Show us some love by leaving a rating or a review! RateThisPodcast.com/pitchforkeconomics
Further reading:
The Velocity of Money https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/the-velocity-of-money-with-ann-pettifor
Two new studies published about the Seattle minimum wage ordinance https://www.washington.edu/news/2019/02/06/two-new-studies-published-about-the-seattle-minimum-wage-ordinance
U.S. employers are charged with violating federal law in 41.5% of all union election campaigns https://www.epi.org/publication/unlawful-employer-opposition-to-union-election-campaigns
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Debunking deficit myths (with Stephanie Kelton)
Modern Monetary Theory is an attempt to accurately describe how government debt and complex financial systems actually work and it can help us responsibly use our resources. No one is more knowledgeable on the subject than returning guest, Professor Stephanie Kelton. On this episode, originally released in 2020, Kelton explains the myths surrounding MMT and what a new understanding of the budget could do for our economy.
Stephanie Kelton is a Professor of Economics and Public Policy at Stony Brook University. She is the leading expert on Modern Monetary Theory. Her book, The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of the People’s Economy, shows how to break free of flawed deficit thinking.
Twitter: @StephanieKelton
The Deficit Myth: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781541736184
Learn To Love Trillion-Dollar Deficits: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/09/opinion/us-deficit-coronavirus.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The economic case for universal health care (with CA Assemblymember Ash Kalra)
The United States spends far more on healthcare costs than other industrialized countries, yet we continue to have wider gaps of coverage and report worse health outcomes. California Assemblymember Ash Kalra is paving the way for a better system in his state through the California Guaranteed Health Care for All Act, which at the time of recording had been advancing through the state legislature for nearly a year. The night before this episode posted, the Bill died in the Assembly — but Assemblymember Kalra's thoughts on how a state-based single payer system would work, the hurdles it faces, and how such a program could become the blueprint for national health care reform can still inspire future lawmakers and activists to find new paths forward for health care in America.
Ash Kalra represents California’s 27th District. In 2016 he became the first Indian American to serve in the California Legislature in state history and was re-elected to his third term in 2020.
Twitter: @Ash_Kalra
Single-payer healthcare proposal fizzles in California Assembly: https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-01-31/single-payer-healthcare-proposal-fizzles-in-california-assembly
Assemblymember Ash Kalra, Author of AB 1400 CA Guaranteed Health Care for All Act, Releases Statement: https://a27.asmdc.org/press-releases/20220131-assemblymember-ash-kalra-author-ab-1400-ca-guaranteed-health-care-all-act
Universal health care bill advances in California Assembly: https://www.kpbs.org/news/local/2022/01/12/universal-health-care-bill-advances-california-assembly
‘CalCare’ begins its long crawl to passage:
California Democrats Revive Universal Health Care Bill, Paid For By Tax Increase:
Fundamental health reform like ‘Medicare for All’ would help the labor market:
https://www.epi.org/publication/medicare-for-all-would-help-the-labor-market/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why privatizing public goods is bad for democracy (with Donald Cohen)
Even in the middle of a pandemic, trickle-down politicians still love to claim that the free market is the best way to resolve human problems and that the government can't be trusted to serve the public good. But when we privatize public health, utilities, and other shared necessities, we hand over control of those public goods—the things that we all need and that we need everyone to have— to for-profit entities that don’t answer to the public. Donald Cohen, an expert on privatization, shares examples and talks about the consequences of privatization in America.
Donald Cohen is the founder and executive director of In The Public Interest, a national resource and policy center on privatization and responsible contracting. He's also co-author of the new book The Privatization of Everything: How the Plunder of Public Goods Transformed America and How We Can Fight Back.
Twitter: @donaldrcohen12
The Privatization of Everything: https://bookshop.org/books/the-privatization-of-everything-how-the-plunder-of-public-goods-transformed-america-and-how-we-can-fight-back/9781620976531
Why Privatization is Worse Than You Know: https://publicseminar.org/2022/01/why-privatization-is-worse-than-you-know/
Opinion: The pandemic proved that privatization can’t provide enough public goods—like vaccines, education, justice, and a sustainable planet: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-pandemic-proved-that-privatization-cant-provide-enough-public-goodslike-vaccines-education-justice-and-a-sustainable-planet-11640027547
The Privatization of Everything: How the Plunder of Public Goods Transformed America and How We Can Fight Back: https://nextbigideaclub.com/magazine/privatization-everything-plunder-public-goods-transformed-america-can-fight-back-bookbite/31594/
A Conversation With Donald Cohen, Author of ‘The Privatization of Everything’: https://capitalandmain.com/a-conversation-with-donald-cohen-author-of-the-privatization-of-everything
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s Twitter: @NickHanauer
Ending the tipped minimum wage (with Saru Jayaraman)
In most states, tipped workers are not subject to the minimum wage. Why? Because it’s legal to pay tipped workers a subminimum wage as low as the federal minimum of $2.13 per hour. As long as any worker in the country can be paid less than the minimum wage, the minimum wage is meaningless. Saru Jayaraman, a leader in the national fight for one fair wage, lays out the path forward.
Saru Jayaraman is the President of One Fair Wage, an organization that fights to raise wages and working conditions for all tipped and service workers She is also the Director of the UC Berkeley Food Labor Research Center and the author of One Fair Wage: Ending Subminimum Pay in America.
Twitter: @SaruJayaraman
New Year to bring higher minimum wages in record number of states and cities: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/higher-minimum-wages-2022-in-record-number-of-states/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter_axiospm&stream=top
Arkansas waitress fired after $4,400 tip shows why tipping at restaurants has to stop: https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/arkansas-waitress-fired-after-4-400-tip-shows-why-tipping-ncna1286076
When the minimum wage isn’t enough: https://commonwealthmagazine.org/economy/when-the-minimum-wage-isnt-enough/
Seven facts about tipped workers and the tipped minimum wage: https://www.epi.org/blog/seven-facts-about-tipped-workers-and-the-tipped-minimum-wage/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Did the Federal Reserve’s policies make inequality worse? (with Christopher Leonard)
When the Federal Reserve makes money, where does it go? Turns out, the Fed’s hands are tied—it can’t do anything other than assume that the new money will trickle down into the hands of ordinary Americans through Wall Street’s coffers. And according to journalist Christopher Leonard, that’s put the United States’ economic stability at risk and accelerated income inequality.
Christopher Leonard is a business reporter and executive director of the Watchdog Writers Group at the University of Missouri School of Journalism. He is the author of Kochland: The Secret History of the Koch Industries and Corporate Power in America. His new book is The Lords of Easy Money: How the Federal Reserve Broke the American Economy.
Twitter: @CLeonardNews
The Lords of Easy Money: https://bookshop.org/books/the-lords-of-easy-money-how-the-federal-reserve-broke-the-american-economy/9781982166632
How Nov. 2, 2010 Made the Rich So Much Richer: https://time.com/6112931/federal-reserve-wealth-inequality-recession/
The Fed’s Doomsday Prophet Has a Dire Warning About Where We’re Headed: https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2021/12/28/inflation-interest-rates-thomas-hoenig-federal-reserve-526177
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How the radical right weaponized ideology (with Nancy MacLean)
If it seems to you like the ultimate goal of the most extreme conservatives is to undermine democracy and cripple democratic institutions—well, according to historian Nancy MacLean, you’re right. This week, MacLean unpacks the meteoric rise in popularity of the radical right’s ideas, and offers a way forward for progressives, based on lessons from successful social movements throughout American history. This episode was originally released in July 2020.
Nancy MacLean is an award-winning scholar of the twentieth-century U.S. and the William H. Chafe Distinguished Professor of History and Public Policy at Duke University. Her book, Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America, was a New York Times bestseller and finalist for the National Book Award, and The Nation magazine named it the “Most Valuable Book” of the year.
Twitter: @NancyMacLean5
Democracy in Chains: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781101980965
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How opportunity zones create windfalls for the uber-rich (with David Wessel)
The 2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs Act included a little-known provision establishing something called opportunity zones. The plan, which was lauded as a way to direct investments into under-developed communities in the U.S., created 8,764 tax havens that were almost immediately exploited by the wealthy to gobble up capital gains tax breaks. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist David Wessel explains how opportunity zones came to be, who is profiting off of them, and why it’s so difficult to tweak the tax code without creating windfalls for the rich.
David Wessel is a senior fellow in Economic Studies at Brookings and director of the Hutchins Center on Fiscal and Monetary Policy. He is the author of two New York Times bestsellers: “In Fed We Trust: Ben Bernanke’s War on the Great Panic” (2009) and “Red Ink: Inside the High Stakes Politics of the Federal Budget” (2012). His most recent book is “Only the Rich Can Play: How Washington Works in the New Gilded Age” (2021). He has shared two Pulitzer Prizes, one in 1984 for a Boston Globe series on the persistence of racism in Boston and the other in 2003 for Wall Street Journal stories on corporate scandals.
Twitter: @davidmwessel
The Rich Have Found Another Way to Pay Less Tax: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/10/opinion/opportunity-zones-tax-loopholes.html?referringSource=articleShare
Only the Rich Can Play: https://bookshop.org/books/only-the-rich-can-play-how-washington-works-in-the-new-gilded-age/9781541757196
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Are you in the 9.9 percent? (with Matthew Stewart)
In the U.S., inequality is often framed as the 99% versus the wealthiest 1%. But that’s not quite the right matchup. While the bottom 90% has done dramatically worse over the last several decades and the top 0.1% has done dramatically better, the 9.9% in between those groups still controls more than half of the wealth in the United States. Author and philosopher Matthew Stewart thinks that the 9.9% are not innocent bystanders, and he joins Nick and Goldy to discuss how this group is entrenching inequality and warping our culture.
Matthew Stewart is an author and philosopher. He is the author, among other books, of Nature’s God and The 9.9 Percent.
The 9.9 Percent: https://bookshop.org/books/the-9-9-percent-the-new-aristocracy-that-is-entrenching-inequality-and-warping-our-culture/9781982114183
The 9.9 percent is the new American aristocracy: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2018/06/the-birth-of-a-new-american-aristocracy/559130/
Who are the 9.9% A closer look at the math of American inequality: https://lithub.com/who-are-the-9-9-percent-a-closer-look-at-the-math-of-american-inequality/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Moving beyond racial liberalism (with Kyle Strickland)
How can we center the role of race in our economic policy and in our politics in a way that will drive real change? Kyle Strickland, the deputy director of race and democracy at the Roosevelt Institute, explains how our leaders have fallen under the sway of racial liberalism, which focuses solely on disavowing personal bigotry and overt discrimination. In order to realize true racial and economic justice, he argues we should move beyond racial liberalism and toward a greater understanding of the systemic injustices built into our political and economic systems.
Kyle Strickland is the Deputy Director of Race and Democracy at the Roosevelt Institute. He is also the Senior Legal Analyst at the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race & Ethnicity and the Director of My Brother’s Keeper Ohio.
Twitter: @kstrickland_
A New Paradigm for Justice and Democracy: https://rooseveltinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/RI_A-New-Paradigm-for-Justice-and-Democracy_Report_202111-1.pdf
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The hidden costs of banking while poor (with Mehrsa Baradaran and Cate Blackford)
The average family earning $25,000 a year in the U.S. spends about $2,400 on financial transactions. Whether it’s the astronomical interest rates of a payday loan or the costs that come with being unbanked, the extractive practices of the financial services industry are effectively keeping the poor in poverty. Lawyer and author Mehrsa Baradaran and economic mobility expert Cate Blackford join Nick and Steph this week to explain why banking while poor is so expensive, and what states can do to rein in the people who profit from it. This episode was originally released in February 2020.
Mehrsa Baradaran is a professor of law at UC Irvine. She writes about banking law, financial inclusion, inequality, and the racial wealth gap. Her scholarship includes the books How the Other Half Banks and The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap.
Twitter: @MehrsaBaradaran
Cate Blackford was the Director of Outreach and Donor Development at the Bell Policy Center when we recorded this episode, but she is now the Public Policy Director at Maine People’s Alliance. She was the Co-Chair of the 2018 Proposition 111 campaign in CO to limit the interest lenders could charge on payday loans and eliminate fees from payday lending products, which passed with 75% of the vote.
Twitter: @catetiller
Further reading:
Capitol One to end overdraft penalties as CFPB takes aim at ‘exploitative junk fees’: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/12/01/capital-one-overdraft-fees/
How the Other Half Banks: https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674983960
The Color of Money: https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674237476
If the U.S. Government Treated Poor People as Well as It Treats Banks: https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/10/if-the-us-government-treated-poor-people-as-well-as-it-treats-banks/410614/
CO’s Prop 111 explained: https://coloradosun.com/2018/10/22/proposition-111-colorado-2018-explained/
Briefed by the Bell - Predatory Economy: https://www.bellpolicy.org/2018/09/10/predatory-economy/
How Do Payday Loans Work? https://www.incharge.org/debt-relief/how-payday-loans-work/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Make the clean stuff cheap (with Eric Beinhocker & Doyne Farmer)
Until very recently, the prevailing wisdom cautioned that transitioning to a clean energy economy would be extremely expensive, and therefore only possible if undertaken slowly. New research upends that thinking—when it comes to going green, the faster we go, the cheaper it will be. University of Oxford professors Eric Beinhocker and Doyne Farmer talk with Nick about a new strategy for clean technology that could transform the climate fight.
Eric Beinhocker is a Professor of Public Policy Practice at the Blavatnik School of Government and the Executive Director of the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the University of Oxford’s Martin School. He is also a Supernumerary Fellow in Economics at Oriel College, and External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute.
Twitter: @EricBeinhocker
Doyne Farmer is Director of the Complexity Economics program at the Institute for New Economic Thinking. He is Baillie Gifford Professor in the Mathematical Institute at the University of Oxford and an External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute.
Website: http://www.doynefarmer.com/
Going big and fast on renewables could save trillions in energy costs: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/energy/going-big-and-fast-on-renewables-would-save-trillions-in-energy-costs/
A new strategy for climate: make the clean stuff cheap - https://democracyjournal.org/arguments/a-new-strategy-for-climate-make-the-clean-stuff-cheap/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why can’t we talk about homelessness? (with Josephine Ensign)
The number of unhoused Americans is at a historically high rate right now. This podcast is produced in Seattle, a city with the third highest homeless population in the U.S. Though many Seattleites identify as progressive, we can’t reach a consensus on how to help our most vulnerable populations—or even find agreement on the root causes of the housing crisis. Why are perspectives on homelessness, and possible solutions to it, so polarized? Josephine Ensign, a University of Washington nurse and health care provider for people experiencing homelessness, shares some of her insights from her career on the frontlines of this crisis.
Josephine Ensign is a professor in the School of Nursing and an adjunct professor in the Department of Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies at the University of Washington. Her most recent book is Skid Road: On the Frontier of Health and Homelessness in an American City.
Twitter: @josephineensign
Homelessness Rises Faster Where Rent Exceeds a Third of Income: https://www.zillow.com/research/homelessness-rent-affordability-22247/
WA Department of Commerce: http://www.commerce.wa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/hau-why-homelessness-increase-2017.pdf
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How taxpayers subsidize corporate profits (with Rana Foroohar and David Dayen)
Every company you can think of has benefitted from a public investment. Whether it’s direct handouts through the tax code, government research efforts, or employee reliance on programs like EITC or TANF, taxpayers are subsidizing wildly profitable companies. David Dayen, the executive editor of The American Prospect, and Financial Times associate editor Rana Foroohar join Nick and Zach to explain how we let corporate parasites get so out of control—and what we can do about it. This episode was originally recorded and released in January 2020.
Rana Foroohar is Global Business Columnist and an Associate Editor at the Financial Times. She is also CNN’s global economic analyst. She is the author of Makers and Takers: The Rise of Finance and the Fall of American Business and Don’t Be Evil: How Big Tech Betrayed Its Founding Principles and All of Us.
Twitter: @RanaForoohar
David Dayen is the executive editor of The American Prospect. He is the author of Monopolized: Life in the Age of Corporate Power and Chain of Title: How Three Ordinary Americans Uncovered Wall Street’s Great Foreclosure Fraud.
Twitter: @ddayen
Confronting the parasite economy: https://prospect.org/labor/confronting-parasite-economy/
Makers and Takers: https://www.ranaforoohar.com/makersandtakers
How to Cure Corporate America’s Selfishness: https://newrepublic.com/article/150695/cure-corporate-americas-selfishness
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How the tax system impoverishes Black Americans (with Dorothy A. Brown)
We know that the tax system is set up to advantage people with money. And we know that in the U.S., people with money are disproportionately white. But what many people don’t realize is that the tax system actively advantages white families. Tax law professor Dorothy Brown explains how racial inequality is baked into tax policy in non-obvious ways, and how that affects wealth-building.
Dorothy A. Brown is professor of law at Emory University School of Law. She is a nationally recognized scholar in tax policy, race, and class and has published extensively on the racial implications of federal tax policy. She is the author of The Whiteness of Wealth: How the Tax System Impoverishes Black Americans — And How We Can Fix It.
Twitter: @DorothyABrown
The Whiteness of Wealth: https://bookshop.org/books/the-whiteness-of-wealth-how-the-tax-system-impoverishes-black-americans-and-how-we-can-fix-it/9780525577324
Black families pay significantly higher property taxes than white families, new analysis shows: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/07/02/black-property-tax/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The free market economics of synthetic opioids (with Sam Quinones)
The opioid crisis in the United States is a textbook example of free market economics. The powerful lie, manipulate, and skirt regulations to make buckets of money, while innocent people suffer. Journalist Sam Quinones joins Goldy and Paul to unpack the economics behind the opioid crisis, and the new threat of synthetic opioids like fentanyl.
Sam Quinones is a journalist best known for his reporting in Mexico and on Mexicans in the United States. He is the author of the award-winning Dreamland: The True Tale of America’s Opiate Epidemic. His new book, The Least of Us: True Tales of America and Hope in the Time of Fentanyl and Meth, is out today.
Twitter: @samquinones7
The Least of Us: https://bookshop.org/books/the-least-of-us-true-tales-of-america-and-hope-in-the-time-of-fentanyl-and-meth/9781635574357
What did the Sacklers know? https://newrepublic.com/article/162148/sacklers-know-patrick-radden-keefe-purdue-opioid-crisis-review
The 'Secret History' Of The Sackler Family & The Opioid Crisis: https://www.npr.org/2021/04/14/987195464/the-secret-history-of-the-sackler-family-the-opioid-crisis
State-Level Economic Costs of Opioid Use Disorder and Fatal Opioid Overdose: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/70/wr/mm7015a1.htm
Massive Costs of the US Opioid Epidemic in Lives and Dollars: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/2780313
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How to stand up for voting rights (with Andrea Hailey)
Behind every aspect of the voting system that makes it harder to vote, there’s a policy that made it that way. Andrea Hailey, the CEO of Vote.org, joins Nick and Goldy to explain how voter suppression happens, and what reforms would help ensure a truly inclusive democracy.
Andrea Hailey is the CEO of Vote.org, the nation’s largest nonpartisan digital voter engagement organization.
Twitter: @AndreaEHailey
Vote.org: https://www.vote.org/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Thanks to unemployment insurance, poverty declined last year (with Amy Goldstein and Elliott Morris)
It’s been a little over a month since the unemployment benefits programs that were established by the CARES Act expired, so we’re taking a look at how well they worked. Washington Post writer Amy Goldstein and Elliott Morris, a data journalist at The Economist, deliver the facts to Jessyn and Paul.
Amy Goldstein is a staff writer at The Washington Post, where much of her work has focused on social policy. She is the author of Janesville: An American Story.
Twitter: @goldsteinamy
Elliott Morris is a data journalist at The Economist.
Twitter: @gelliottmorris
Further reading:
Poverty fell overall in 2020 as result of massive stimulus checks and unemployment aid, Census Bureau says: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/09/14/us-census-poverty-health-insurance-2020/
Welfare rolls decline during the pandemic despite economic upheaval: https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2021/08/01/welfare-roles-during-the-pandemic/
Why now is the time to fix the UI system: https://www.epi.org/publication/introduction-why-now-is-the-time-to-fix-the-ui-system/
The racial disparity in unemployment benefits: https://www.rand.org/blog/2020/07/the-racial-disparity-in-unemployment-benefits.html
Unpacking Inequities in Unemployment Insurance: https://www.newamerica.org/pit/reports/unpacking-inequities-unemployment-insurance/introduction/
Ending pandemic unemployment aid has not yielded extra jobs—yet: https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2021/08/28/ending-pandemic-unemployment-aid-has-not-yielded-extra-jobs-yet
Janesville: An American Story: https://bookshop.org/books/janesville-an-american-story-9781508283966/9781501102264
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How corporate concentration hurts the economy (with Stacy Mitchell)
Anti-monopoly and pro-local advocate Stacy Mitchell joins the show to talk about small business, big business, and decentralizing economic power.
Stacy Mitchell is the co-director of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. She directs ILSR’s Independent Business Initiative, which produces research and analysis and partners with a broad range of allies to design and implement policies to reverse corporate concentration and strengthen local enterprise.
Twitter: @stacyfmitchell
Further reading:
Small Business Rising: https://www.smallbusinessrising.net/
Institute for Local Self-Reliance: https://ilsr.org/
Senate Testimony: Concentration is at the Root of Rural Distress: https://ilsr.org/stacy-mitchells-senate-testimony-on-state-of-rural-economy/
As Amazon rises, so does the opposition: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/18/technology/athena-mitchell-amazon.html
Why the left should ally with small business: https://www.thenation.com/article/society/democrats-labor-business-monopoly/
Report: Amazon’s stranglehold: How the company’s tightening grip on the economy is stifling competition, eroding jobs, and threatening communities: https://ilsr.org/amazon-stranglehold/
Don’t let Amazon get any bigger: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/08/opinion/amazon-antitrust.html
Amazon doesn’t just want to dominate the market - it wants to become the market: https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/amazon-doesnt-just-want-to-dominate-the-market-it-wants-to-become-the-market/
The rise and fall of the word ‘monopoly’ in American life: https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/06/word-monopoly-antitrust/530169/
Big box swindle: https://stacymitchell.com/front-page/
Voters want to curb the influence of big tech companies: https://www.wsj.com/articles/voters-want-to-curb-the-influence-of-big-tech-companies-new-poll-shows-11632405601
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why philanthropy isn’t the answer (with Anand Giridharadas)
Few books have shaken the philanthropy world more than ‘Winners Take All’, Anand Giridharadas’s blistering critique of wealthy do-gooders. Global elites who ostentatiously give away hundreds of millions of dollars, he argues, are actually just preserving the status quo that grants them power in the first place. On this episode, originally recorded and released in October 2019, Anand joins Nick and Goldy to explain how do-gooding can perpetuate inequality.
Anand Giridharadas is a writer. His most recent book, ‘Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World,’ is a national bestseller. He is an editor-at-large for TIME, an on-air political analyst for MSNBC, and a visiting scholar at the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at New York University.
Twitter: @AnandWrites
Further reading:
Winners Take All: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/539747/winners-take-all-by-anand-giridharadas/9780451493248
Beware Rich People Who Say They Want to Change the World: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/24/opinion/sunday/wealth-philanthropy-fake-change.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Redefining skill (with Nichola Lowe)
Who are the winners and losers in our skill development system? How can we move the onus of skill further into the purview of employers and away from our education system? UNC Professor Nichola Lowe talks to Goldy about the future of “skill” as we know it in the economy, and what’s at stake if we get it wrong.
Nichola Lowe is a professor in City and Regional Planning at UNC-Chapel Hill. Her work focuses on the institutional arrangements that lead to more inclusive forms of urban and regional economic development.
Twitter: @lowe_nichola
Putting Skill to Work: How to Create Good Jobs in Uncertain Times: https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/putting-skill-work
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Capitalism is working better in Finland (with Anu Partanen and Trevor Corson)
Contrary to popular belief, Nordic countries aren’t actually socialist! No, friends, the Nords are capitalists—but they pull it off much better than we do. To help re-imagine American capitalism, writers Anu Partanen and Trevor Corson join us this week all the way from Finland. This episode was originally recorded and posted in February 2020.
Anu Partanen is a journalist and the author of The Nordic Theory of Everything. The book debunks some of the most common myths about Nordic societies and discusses what the United States might be able to borrow from aspects of Nordic success in the twenty-first century. She has written for The New York Times and The Atlantic.
Twitter: @anupartanen
Trevor Corson is an award-winning author and editor. His articles and essays have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and many more.
Twitter: @TrevorCorson
Further reading:
The Nordic Theory of Everything: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780062316547
Finland Is a Capitalist Paradise: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/07/opinion/sunday/finland-socialism-capitalism.html
What Americans Don’t Get About Nordic Countries: https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/03/bernie-sanders-nordic-countries/473385/
Capitalism Redefined: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/31/capitalism-redefined/
Safe, happy and free: does Finland have all the answers? https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/feb/12/safe-happy-and-free-does-finland-have-all-the-answers
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Right-to-work is bad for workers (with Shane Larson)
Right-to-work laws, which make unionizing more difficult in 28 states, could more accurately be referred to as right-to-work… for less. Why? On average, worker pay drops 3.1% when right-to-work laws are passed. Shane Larson from CWA, the largest communications and media labor union in the U.S., joins Goldy to explain why right-to-work laws are so harmful, how they came to be, and why it’s so important to pass the PRO Act to fight for workers’ rights.
Shane Larson is the Senior Director for Government Affairs and Policy for the Communications Workers of America.
Twitter: @ShaneLarsonCWA @CWAUnion
https://www.epi.org/publication/so-called-right-to-work-is-wrong-for-montana/
https://aflcio.org/issues/right-work
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How neoliberalism captured Democrats (with James Kwak)
Democrats used to be known as the party of the working people—so how did they get so off track? Who took over the party, and why? Author and professor James Kwak joins Nick and Paul in a blistering analysis of the decline of the Democratic Party, and explains how we can get it back on track. This episode originally aired in January 2020.
News clips credit: C-SPAN, ProfGP, CNN
James Kwak is a professor at the UConn School of Law and the chair of the board of the Southern Center for Human Rights. He is the author or co-author of 13 Bankers, White House Burning, and Economism. His latest book, Take Back Our Party: Restoring the Democratic Legacy, is available for free online at The American Prospect.
Twitter: @jamesykwak
Read Take Back Our Party on The American Prospect:
Introduction - Restoring the Democratic Legacy: https://prospect.org/politics/take-back-our-party-restoring-the-democratic-legacy/
Chapter 1 - Their Democratic Party: https://prospect.org/takebackourparty/chapter-1-their-democratic-party/
Chapter 2 - Bad Policy: https://prospect.org/takebackourparty/chapter-2-bad-policy/
Chapter 3 - Bad Politics: https://prospect.org/takebackourparty/chapter-3-bad-politics/
Chapter 4 - Our Democratic Party:
https://prospect.org/takebackourparty/chapter-4-our-democratic-party/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why restaurants can’t find workers (with restaurateur Mark Bucher)
DC restaurateur Mark Bucher explains what’s behind the “labor” shortage (hint: it’s the wages), the role that restaurant owners need to play in stopping the “churn and burn” model of low-wage workers, and the future of the restaurant industry post-Covid.
Mark Bucher is the co-owner of Medium Rare, a decade-old steakhouse with three locations in D.C., Arlington, and Bethesda. During the pandemic, he established “Feed the Fridge”, a project that places refrigerators around the DC metro area and pays local restaurants to fill them with fresh meals daily.
Twitter: @MediumRareDC
DC restaurateur: There’s no staffing crisis. There’s a wage crisis. https://wtop.com/business-finance/2021/07/dc-restauranteur-theres-no-staffing-crisis-theres-a-wage-crisis/
Feed the Fridge: https://feedthefridge.org/
Minimum wage hike boosts customer experience: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2021/08/minimum-wage-hike-boosts-customer-experience
Restaurant industry unharmed by modest minimum wage hikes: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2016/01/restaurant-industry-unharmed-modest-minimum-wage-hikes
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
What convinces people to act in the interest of others? (with Margaret Levi)
What does it take for someone to act in the interest of others? What constitutes trust in general, and trust in government in particular? Margaret Levi, a professor of political and behavioral sciences, shares her research on how people can be persuaded to act in the interest of others if they don’t already want to. The conversation covers vaccines, unions, citizen confidence in government, and a lot more.
And make sure not to miss these Pitchfork-adjacent opportunities:
Sign up for Econ Con, an upcoming progressive economy conference put on by our friends at the Groundwork Collaborative in partnership with other awesome organizations. It’s free, it’s online, and we’ll be there, so… what are you waiting for? Sign up here: https://econcon.com/
Nick is on TikTok! You have to see it for yourself to believe it: https://www.tiktok.com/@realnickhanauer
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Margaret Levi is the Sara Miller McCune Director of the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences (CASBS), Professor of Political Science, and Senior Fellow of the Woods Institute, Stanford University. She is Jere L. Bacharach Professor Emerita of International Studies in the Department of Political Science at the University of Washington. One of her most recent books, In the Interest of Others (Princeton, 2013), co-authored with John Ahlquist, explores how organizations provoke member willingness to act beyond material interest. In other work, she investigates the conditions under which people come to believe their governments are legitimate and the consequences of those beliefs for compliance, consent, and the rule of law.
Twitter: @margaretlevi
Margaret Levi: Citizen confidence in government - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBbq7izCslU&ab_channel=WZBlive
In the Interest of Others: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691158563/in-the-interest-of-others
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How Covid shook the world’s economy (with Adam Tooze)
There have been far more lethal pandemics than Covid-19, but the scale of our response to Covid-19 is dramatically new. For the first time in human history, our civilization made a collective decision to shut much of the world economy down. Contemporary historian Adam Tooze helps us understand what happened, why it happened, and how we can learn from it.
Sign up for our new weekly newsletter, The Pitch: https://civicventures.substack.com/
Adam Tooze holds the Shelby Cullom Davis chair of History at Columbia University and serves as Director of the European Institute. In 2019, Foreign Policy Magazine named him one of the top Global Thinkers of the decade. His most recent book, Shutdown: How Covid Shook the World’s Economy, is out now.
Twitter: @adam_tooze
Shutdown: How Covid Shook the World’s Economy: https://bookshop.org/books/shutdown-how-covid-shook-the-world-s-economy/9780593297551
Check out the Unf*cking The Republic podcast at https://www.unftr.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why is getting out of poverty so hard? (with Felicia Wong)
Roosevelt Institute President Felicia Wong and writer Hanna Brooks Olsen join Nick and Goldy to explore how the intense burdens of poverty make it nearly impossible to even think about climbing the economic ladder. This episode was originally recorded and released in 2019.
Sign up for our new weekly newsletter, The Pitch: https://civicventures.substack.com/
Felicia Wong is the President and CEO of the Roosevelt Institute.
Twitter: @FeliciaWongRI @rooseveltinst
Hanna Brooks Olsen is a writer and the co-host of Spotless, a podcast about cleaning.
Twitter: @mshannabrooks
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why is the child tax credit good economic policy? (with Wendy Bach)
Everything you need to know about what the expanded child tax credit actually is, why it’s good policy, and how it will impact people’s lives.
Wendy Bach is a Professor of Law at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She is a nationally recognized expert in poverty law.
Twitter: @wendyabach
Biden’s child tax credit is a step away from a discriminatory system: https://qz.com/2034199/how-does-the-us-child-tax-credit-work/
Two-thirds of people now receive monthly benefit checks: https://www.peoplespolicyproject.org/2021/07/19/two-thirds-of-people-now-receive-monthly-benefit-checks/
The time tax: https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/07/how-government-learned-waste-your-time-tax/619568/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How the credit market drives up housing prices (with Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman)
What’s the next generation of access to credit? Why are home prices and rents so out-of-whack with each other? And how can we approach the discord between what liberals say they want for their community versus what housing and development policies they’ll actually support? Glenn Kelman, the CEO of real estate brokerage website Redfin, helps us examine the future of housing and the best ways that companies like his can contribute to solving the housing crisis.
And if you’re wondering why this episode sounds so good, or why nobody mentions the pandemic… it’s because this conversation is from our archives of interviews that we recorded in-studio, just before the pandemic hit. But don’t let that discourage you—this is still just as relevant today as the day it was recorded. Enjoy!
Glenn Kelman is the CEO of Redfin.
Twitter: @glennkelman
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Ask Nick Anything, continued!
Is inflation bad? What’s the difference between a neoliberal and a conservative? If large corporations were held to higher labor standards than small employers, wouldn’t Walmart get all the talent? And more!
Thanks to Mark from Nashville, David from Japan, Mike from Dallas-Fort Worth, Mary from Pennsylvania, Steve from Austin, and Pete from Boston, who left the great voicemails included in this episode! If you have any questions for a future AMA episode, leave us a voicemail at 731-388-9334.
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Everything you need to know about the Frito-Lay Strike (with KS Rep Jason Probst)
Workers at a Frito-Lay factory in Topeka, Kansas made national headlines when they went on strike to protest dismal labor conditions including forced overtime and 84-hour workweeks. (Frito-Lay's parent company, PepsiCo, made $10.5 billion in profit last year.) The strike ended after 19 days on July 26th, but it’s an important part of a national conversation about labor and corporate profits. Kansas state Representative Jason Probst joins the show to explain the details of the strike and how these insidious labor practices affect his state’s economy.
Jason Probst serves in the Kansas House of Representatives.
Twitter: @thatguyinhutch
Substack: https://thatguyinhutch.substack.com/
Kansas Frito-Lay workers end strike: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/07/26/frito-lay-strike-topeka/
Striking information - what PepsiCo’s annual report tells us about the Frito Lay strike: https://thatguyinhutch.substack.com/p/striking-information
The Backbreaking Work That Goes Into a Bag of Chips: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/07/frito-lay-workers-on-their-strike.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Ask Nick Anything
Nick and Goldy answer your questions! If we had progressive taxation, would we still need means testing? Can we send ultra-rich people away to their own economy? What are the best economic indicators for the progressive economy? And more!
Thanks to Lisa from Indianapolis, Rick from Baltimore, Jacob from Portland, Sean from Philadelphia, Linda from Seaside, and Frank from Georgia who left the great voicemails included in this episode! If you have any questions for a future AMA episode, leave us a voicemail at 731-388-9334.
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Fiscal policy can help save the environment (with Sarah Bloom Raskin)
Can we create transformative climate outcomes by adopting new regulatory strategies? Financial regulation expert Sarah Bloom Raskin helps us explore what levers exist to steer fiscal and monetary policy toward lasting sustainability.
Sarah Bloom Raskin is the former Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Treasury and a former Governor of the Federal Reserve Board. She served as the Commissioner of Financial Regulation for the State of Maryland from 2007 to 2010. She is currently a visiting professor and distinguished fellow at Duke Law School’s Global Financial Markets Center, and a member of President Biden’s Regenerative Crisis Response Committee, which recommends changes in fiscal, monetary, and financial regulatory policies that are likely to enable the U.S. to achieve net carbon neutrality before 2050.
Twitter: @SBloomRaskin
Learn more about the Regenerative Crisis Response Committee here: https://regenerativecrisisresponsecommittee.org/
Does environmental regulation kill or create jobs? https://policyintegrity.org/files/media/Jobs_and_Regulation_Factsheet.pdf
Do regulations really kill jobs? https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/01/regulations-jobs/513563/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why billionaires are paying no taxes (LIVE from CAP)
Our friends at the Center for American Progress put on a great virtual event last week with Senator Sherrod Brown, discussing how the U.S. tax codes favors the wealthy and the tools Congress plans to use to rebalance the tax system.
Twitter: @amprog
You can watch video of the event here: https://www.americanprogress.org/events/2021/06/21/500822/billionaires-paying-no-taxes/
The Secret IRS Files: Trove of Never-Before-Seen Records Reveal How the Wealthiest Avoid Income Tax: https://www.propublica.org/article/the-secret-irs-files-trove-of-never-before-seen-records-reveal-how-the-wealthiest-avoid-income-tax
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
We all do better when we all do better (with JP Julien)
Contrary to fears that economic inclusion must come at the expense of economic growth, global management consulting firm McKinsey & Company's research and empirical evidence supports the idea that economic growth is at its best when it is most inclusive – but that equity needs to be embedded in systems from the start in order to be effective. What does ‘inclusion’ mean in the context of an economy that works for everyone? McKinsey's JP Julien explains how policymakers and companies can ensure that economic growth goes hand-in-hand with – and is enhanced by – reducing inequality.
JP Julien is an Associate Partner at McKinsey & Company, where he serves US federal, state, and city governments on inclusive economic-development topics and supports private-, public-, and social-sector organizations in advancing racial equity. He is a leader of the McKinsey Institute for Black Economic Mobility, a global economic think tank focused on inclusive economic development and racial equity topics.
Twitter: @McKinsey
The case for inclusive growth: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/public-and-social-sector/our-insights/the-case-for-inclusive-growth
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Summer Reading List!
It’s Nick and Goldy’s summer reading list!
We want to know what you’re reading, too. Let us know on Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics.
Remember to shop local and small when you can, or order from IndieBound or Bookshop.org—both of which support independent bookstores! All of these books are also likely available at your library.
Every book mentioned in this episode:
The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous by Joseph Henrich
Escape from Rome: The Failure of Empire and the Road to Prosperity by Walter Scheidel
The Tyranny of Merit: What’s Become of the Common Good? by Michael J. Sandel
Success and Luck: Good Fortune and the Myth of Merit by Robert H. Frank
The Black Swan and Fooled by Randomness by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Democracy, Race, and Justice: The Speeches and Writings of Sadie T. M. Alexander by Nina Banks
Why Buddhism is True by Robert Wright
Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
His Truth Is Marching On: John Lewis and the Power of Hope by Jon Meacham
The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together by Heather McGhee
1491 by Charles C. Mann
Nature’s God: The Heretical Origins of the American Republic by Matthew Stewart
The Second World War by Winston Churchill
Lafayette in the Somewhat United States by Sarah Vowell
Debt by David Graeber
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Post-pandemic booms (with Callum Williams)
Callum Williams from The Economist predicts what we can expect from the economy in the coming months based on past periods of massive non-financial disruption, including past pandemics and major world wars.
Callum Williams is a senior economics writer at The Economist.
Twitter: @econcallum
What history tells you about post-pandemic booms: https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2021/04/29/what-history-tells-you-about-post-pandemic-booms
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol is a trickle-down clown
You probably saw the news that Chipotle is raising its menu prices by 4 percent, and that leadership is blaming the price increase on the fact that they had to raise their starting pay to $15 per hour. It’s not at all surprising to see a large employer like Chipotle blame rising wages for everything, but what was disappointing was the media’s willingness to repeat Chipotle’s story without looking deeper into the numbers: namely, none of the stories covering the price increases mentioned that Chipotle gave its CEO a $24 million raise last year, and that the company is in the middle of enacting a $153 million stock buyback program to enrich a handful of shareholders. Around here, that type of trick will land you the title of Trickle-Down Clown! This week Goldy has a few choice words to say about Chipotle’s behavior, and then we thought it would be a good time to revisit our stock buybacks episode with Senator Cory Booker for an explanation of the pervasiveness and dangers of the practice.
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Inequality is bad for everyone (with Djaffar Shalchi)
We’re back to our favorite topic this week—TAX THE RICH! Beyond all the benefits that come from a well-funded social safety net, taxing the wealthy would lessen inequality, which would make most people—including the extravagantly wealthy—happier. Super-rich Danish entrepreneur Djaffar Shalchi shares the wisdom that Denmark understands: Inequality is bad for everyone.
Djaffar Shalchi is an entrepreneur from Denmark and founder of Millionaires for Humanity, a network of wealthy people who advocate for raising taxes on wealthy people. He is also the founder and Executive Director of Move Humanity, a global initiative to mobilize at least one percent of the wealth of the world’s super-rich for the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Twitter: @djaffarshalchi
OPINION: I’m a millionaire who wants to be taxed to pay for COVID-19: https://news.trust.org/item/20210329080742-gpnj6/
The American dream is now in Denmark: https://the.ink/p/the-american-dream-is-now-in-denmark
Dear Mr. Deutsch: Come to “F***ing Denmark.”: https://medium.com/@humanact/dear-donny-deutsch-come-to-f-ing-denmark-ea6995bb684d
Biden will seek tax increase on rich to fund child care and education: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/22/business/economy/biden-taxes.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How U.S. policy was designed to suppress wages (with Larry Mishel and Josh Bivens)
Radical and rising economic inequality is no secret — and now, thanks to new research from the Economic Policy Institute, neither is its price tag nor its cause. There’s never been a study quite like this — one which places specific, real dollar amounts on every trickle-down policy American politicians have embraced. The study’s authors, Larry Mishel and Josh Bivens, explain how their work reveals that the massive upward redistribution of income our nation has suffered these past four decades can largely be attributed to policies intentionally designed to suppress the wages of American workers.
Lawrence Mishel is a distinguished fellow at EPI after serving as president from 2002-2017. In the more than three decades he has been with EPI, Mishel has helped build it into the nation’s premier research organization focused on U.S. living standards and labor markets.
Twitter: @LarryMishel
Josh Bivens is the director of research at EPI. His areas of research include macroeconomics, fiscal and monetary policy, the economics of globalization, social insurance, and public investment.
Twitter: @joshbivens_DC
Middle-class pay lost pace. Is Washington to blame? https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/13/business/economy/middle-class-pay.html
Identifying the policy levers generating wage suppression and wage inequality: https://www.epi.org/unequalpower/publications/wage-suppression-inequality/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
It’s not a labor shortage, it’s a wage shortage (with Heidi Shierholz)
You have no doubt seen the scary headlines warning of a “labor shortage” caused by the additional pandemic unemployment insurance payments. The coverage of this story is widespread, even though most economics reporters can find no credible evidence linking unemployment checks to a labor shortage. EPI economist Heidi Shierholz joins us to explain why UI and stimulus payments aren’t causing a “labor shortage”, and why the answer to this made-up problem is so clear: it’s the low wages, stupid.
Heidi Shierholz is the Senior Economist and Director of Policy at the Economic Policy Institute.
Twitter: @hshierholz
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Unemployment benefits are not creating a worker shortage: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/worker-shortage-unemployment-benefits_n_609056c3e4b09cce6c21a850
Is unemployment insurance behind the fast-food labor shortage? https://prospect.org/labor/is-unemployment-insurance-behind-fast-food-labor-shortage/
Restaurant labor shortages show little sign of going economywide: https://www.epi.org/blog/restaurant-labor-shortages-show-little-sign-of-going-economywide-policymakers-must-not-rein-in-stimulus-or-unemployment-benefits/
U.S. Labor Shortage? Unlikely. Here’s why: https://policydialogue.org/opinions/worker-shortages/
It’s not a ‘labor shortage’. It’s a great reassessment of work in America: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/05/07/jobs-report-labor-shortage-analysis/
The Myth of Labor Shortages: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/20/briefing/labor-shortages-covid-wages.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Your non-compete clause is probably illegal (with WA Attorney General Bob Ferguson)
Non-compete clauses, and the lesser-known no-poach agreements between franchises, are shockingly common for low-wage workers. Although these contracts were originally intended to protect trade secrets among high-level executives, they have spiralled into an unfair labor practice that keeps wages low, limits employee mobility, and decreases competition. Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson explains how non-competes and no-poach agreements violate the law in many states, what his team did to get hundreds of huge employers across the country to cease and desist, and why you should tell your state’s Attorney General if you know of any low- or middle-income workers who are being forced into signing these agreements.
Bob Ferguson is Washington State’s 18th Attorney General. As the state’s chief legal officer, Bob is committed to protecting the people of Washington against powerful interests that don’t play by the rules.
Twitter: @BobFergusonAG
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Why aren’t paychecks growing? A burger-joint clause offers a clue: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/27/business/pay-growth-fast-food-hiring.html
Workers in Washington state win big under new non-compete law: https://www.emeryreddy.com/2019/09/workers-in-washington-state-win-big-under-new-non-compete-law/
Attorney General Bob Ferguson stops King County coffee shop’s practice requiring baristas to sign unfair non-compete agreements: https://www.atg.wa.gov/news/news-releases/attorney-general-bob-ferguson-stops-king-county-coffee-shop-s-practice-requiring
AG Report: Ferguson’s initiative ends no-poach practices nationally at 237 corporate franchise chains: https://www.atg.wa.gov/news/news-releases/ag-report-ferguson-s-initiative-ends-no-poach-practices-nationally-237-corporate
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why we need a mission-driven economy (with Mariana Mazzucato)
What do the internet and COVID vaccines have in common? Neither would be possible without the work of DARPA, a mission-focused federal agency responsible for funding research and development. Professor Mariana Mazzucato is with us this week to argue that our economy will be better off if more government agencies adopt DARPA’s mission-oriented approach.
Mariana Mazzucato is a Professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value at University College London, where she is Founding Director of the UCL Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose. She is the author of three highly-acclaimed books: The Entrepreneurial State, The Value of Everything, and Mission Economy.
Twitter: @MazzucatoM
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Mission Economy: https://marianamazzucato.com/books/mission-economy
It’s 2023. Here’s how we fixed the global economy: https://time.com/collection/great-reset/5900739/fix-economy-by-2023/#new_tab
DARPA’s early investment in COVID-19 antibody identification producing timely results: https://www.darpa.mil/news-events/2020-11-10
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Is the economy at a turning point? (with Anusar Farooqui)
Essayist Anusar Farooqui makes the case that we are witnessing the final break from neoliberalism in the United States.
Anusar Farooqui writes on Substack as Policy Tensor.
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The Making of the Mother of All Economic Booms: https://policytensor.substack.com/p/the-making-of-the-mother-of-all-economic
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Can businesses help repair society? (with Ben & Jerry)
Can business leaders use their power and resources to make meaningful change? Should they? Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, the founders behind iconic ice cream brand Ben & Jerry’s, help map the landscape between business and activism and introduce their new project, the Campaign to End Qualified Immunity.
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield are the co-founders of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream. Most recently, they are the leaders of the Campaign to End Qualified Immunity, a new police reform and criminal justice campaign.
Ben’s twitter: @YoBenCohen
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https://campaigntoendqualifiedimmunity.org/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
There’s no such thing as a race-neutral policy (with Valerie Wilson)
EPI economist Valerie Wilson joins us for a conversation about the economic costs of racism, and which policies could help further racial equality.
Valerie Wilson is the Director of the Program on Race, Ethnicity, and the Economy at the Economic Policy Institute. Prior to joining EPI, she was an economist and vice president of research at the National Urban League Washington Bureau.
Twitter: @ValerieRWilson
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Racism and the Economy: https://www.epi.org/blog/racism-and-the-economy-fed/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Diving into March’s giant jobs report (with Austan Goolsbee)
The latest monthly report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed massive gains in March—the strongest in seven months—indicating that economic growth is gaining speed. Economist Austan Goolsbee explains why he’s optimistic, what kind of numbers we need to keep seeing to realize a full recovery, and how the report proves that even though some think high unemployment insurance payments will disincentivize people from returning to work, a lack of jobs is actually what’s driving unemployment rates.
Austan Goolsbee is the Robert P. Gwinn Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He previously served as the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers and a member of President Obama’s Cabinet.
Twitter: @Austan_Goolsbee
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Strong job growth in March as vaccine distribution expands and the American Rescue Plan ramps up: https://www.epi.org/blog/strong-job-growth-in-march-as-vaccine-distribution-expands-and-the-american-rescue-plan-ramps-up/
The soft underbelly to a looming economic boom: Millions will miss out: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/03/30/fed-inflation-bad-economy-low-wage/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Winning back our freedom from the market (with Mike Konczal)
The relationship between time, work, and freedom has always been a battleground in the American economy. Could our devotion to free-market fundamentalism in fact be making Americans less free? Author Mike Konczal joins the show to talk about positive versus negative freedom and the policies that would make us more free, in a real sense.
Mike Konczal is the Director of Progressive Thought at the Roosevelt Institute. His latest book is Freedom from the Market: America’s Fight to Liberate Itself from the Grip of the Invisible Hand.
Twitter: @rortybomb
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Freedom from the Market: https://bookshop.org/books/freedom-from-the-market-america-s-fight-to-liberate-itself-from-the-grip-of-the-invisible-hand/9781620975374
Time is the universal measure of freedom: http://bostonreview.net/class-inequality-law-justice/mike-konczal-time-universal-measure-freedom
Our episode with Elizabeth Anderson: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/coercion-in-the-workplace-with-elizabeth-anderson/
Our episode with Anu Partanen and Trevor Corson: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/re-imagining-capitalism-with-anu-partanen-and-trevor-corson/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Andrew Yang interviews Nick!
On his podcast Yang Speaks, former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang asks Nick about pervasive economic myths, the next big labor standards fight (the overtime threshold), and the early days of the Fight for $15. Plus, they debate whether a higher minimum wage or a universal basic income would be better for society.
The episode from Yang Speaks: https://shows.cadence13.com/podcast/yang-speaks/episodes/f017e270-cc82-40ab-b4a2-6b90b1a564e0
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Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Atlas Hugged (with David Sloan Wilson)
If you’re one of the many people who have asked us to take down the concepts in Atlas Shrugged, which argues that we’re a fundamentally selfish species, this episode is for you! If you’re not one of those people, well, this episode is ALSO for you! Evolutionary biologist David Sloan Wilson has infused the idea of prosociality (the desire to help others) into his new book, Atlas Hugged, and he joins us to explain why Atlas Hugged is a better predictor of how people act than Atlas Shrugged.
David Sloan Wilson is an evolutionary biologist and SUNY Distinguished Professor of Biology and Anthropology at Binghamton University. His books include This View of Life: Completing the Darwinian Revolution and the recently published Atlas Hugged.
Twitter: @David_S_Wilson
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Ayn Rand Meets Her Match: David Sloan Wilson Fights Fiction with Fiction: https://evonomics.com/rand-meets-david-sloan-wilson-atlas-hugged/
Get Atlas Hugged for free: https://atlashugged.world/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Can’t stop, won't stop, GameStop (with Congressman Ro Khanna)
When GameStop’s stock skyrocketed early this year, Wall Street was pissed. A group of Redditors had manipulated the stock market—and everyone knows only professional hedge fund managers are allowed to do that! We couldn’t ignore the market news that took the world by storm, so Nick and Goldy called up CA Congressman Ro Khanna to talk about what happened with GameStop, what it means for financial regulations, and what the government’s response signals about a changing tide in our country’s leadership.
Congressman Ro Khanna is a Representative of California’s 17th District. Rep. Khanna sits on the House Committees on Agriculture, Armed Services, and Oversight and Reform. He is the Deputy Whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus; serves as an Assistant Whip for the Democratic Caucus and is the Democratic Vice Chair of the House Caucus on India and Indian Americans.
Twitter: @RoKhanna
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Further reading:
A leading progressive Democrat slams Robinhood’s move to restrict trading on some stocks after Reddit-fueled surge: https://www.businessinsider.com/ro-khanna-slams-robinhood-trading-restriction-reddit-traders-amc-gamestop-2021-1
Lawmakers call for regulation after Robinhood halts trading: https://www.marketplace.org/shows/marketplace-tech/lawmakers-want-regulation-after-robinhood-halts-trading/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
No, the relief bill won’t cause inflation (with Austan Goolsbee)
This weekend, the Senate passed the coronavirus relief bill—and the House is scheduled to debate the bill, and widely expected to pass it, on the day this episode is published (Tuesday, March 9th). While the Senate debated what would be the largest disaster-relief legislation in American history, moderate Democrats and ultra-conservative Republicans alike repeated one common criticism—that infusing so much money into the economy would cause inflation. Austan Goolsbee, past Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, explains why those fears are misplaced in this episode that will answer every question you’ve ever had about inflation, stimulus checks, and disaster relief.
Austan Goolsbee is the Robert P. Gwinn Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He previously served in Washington as the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers and a member of President Obama’s Cabinet.
Twitter: @Austan_Goolsbee
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Further reading:
Biden and the Fed Leave 1970s Inflation Fears Behind: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/15/business/economy/biden-fed-inflation-covid.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The idea for a National Investment Authority, explained (with Saule Omarova)
Tackling existential threats to our future like climate change and economic inequality is a huge undertaking, and building the future is going to require massive public investment. Cornell Law Professor Saule Omarova calls for a National Investment Authority that would work inside private markets as a soup-to-nuts problem-solving operation.
Saule Omarova is the Beth and Marc Goldberg Professor of Law at Cornell Law School. She specializes in financial sector regulation, banking law, international finance, and corporate finance.
Twitter: @STOmarova
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Further reading:
Public Investment Reimagined: A National Investment Authority - https://prospect.org/economy/public-investment-reimagined-a-national-investment-authority/
Key benefits of a National Investment Authority: https://www.dataforprogress.org/a-national-investment-authority
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The velocity of money (with Ann Pettifor)
Over the last century, the velocity of money—the rate at which money changes hands through the economy—has declined. Today, money moves at one of the slowest rates on record, meaning every dollar today generates 70% less economic activity than a dollar did just ten years ago. That has big implications for our economy. Political economist Ann Pettifor joins Nick and Goldy to explain how the velocity of money is related to money creation, and why taxing the rich is ultimately pro-growth (it’s all related, we promise!).
Ann Pettifor is a political economist, author, and public speaker, and the Director of PRIME (Policy Research in Macroeconomics). Her work focuses on the global financial system, sovereign debt restructuring, international finance, and sustainable development. She is the author of many books, including The Production of Money and The Case for the Green New Deal.
Twitter: @AnnPettifor
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Further reading:
Want to expand the economy? Tax the rich!
https://prospect.org/power/want-expand-economy-tax-rich/
A world awash in money: https://media.bain.com/Images/BAIN_REPORT_A_world_awash_in_money.pdf
What does money velocity tell us about low inflation in the U.S.? https://www.stlouisfed.org/on-the-economy/2014/september/what-does-money-velocity-tell-us-about-low-inflation-in-the-us
Vultures are circling our fragile economy… https://www.annpettifor.com/2020/06/vultures-are-circling-our-fragile-economy/
Decades of empirical research finds no inverse correlation between top tax rates and growth:
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Re-post: Does the market pay you what you’re worth? (with Marshall Steinbaum and Saru Jayaraman)
The theory of marginal product of labor says that every worker is paid exactly what they’re worth—the value that their labor generates. Employers cite marginal productivity to legitimize paying the lowest wages possible, but that’s just another trickle-down scam. Economist Marshall Steinbaum and food labor expert Saru Jayaraman expose the lie of marginal productivity, and show how it’s been used to exploit workers for centuries.
Marshall Steinbaum is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Utah and a Senior Fellow of Higher Education Finance at the Jain Family Institute. He studies market power in labor markets and its policy implications.
Twitter: @Econ_Marshall
Saru Jayaraman is President of One Fair Wage and Director of the Food Labor Research Center at UC Berkeley.
Twitter: @SaruJayaraman
No, Productivity Does Not Explain Income: https://evonomics.com/no-productivity-does-not-explain-income/
ROC United Diners’ Guide App: https://rocunited.org/diners-guide/
Saru Jayaraman: How Restaurant Workers Are Inheriting a Legacy of Slavery in the U.S.: https://bioneers.org/saru-jayaraman-restaurant-workers-inheriting-legacy-slavery-u-s-ztvz1712/
Evidence and Analysis of Monopsony Power, Including But Not Limited To, In Labor Markets: https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/public_comments/2018/08/ftc-2018-0054-d-0006-151013.pdf
Antitrust and Labor Market Power: https://econfip.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Antitrust-and-Labor-Market-Power.pdf
Why Are Economists Giving Piketty the Cold Shoulder?
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Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
What’s the deal with the CBO report?
The big news in the minimum wage world this week is the brand new CBO report—which, among many benefits, also found that a $15 federal minimum wage would cost jobs, increase the deficit, and raise prices. How can that be, when most modern minimum wage studies suggest the opposite? Goldy and Paul explain how CBO arrived at their numbers.
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Further reading:
The CBO report: https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2021-02/56975-Minimum-Wage.pdf
General coverage and analysis -
CBO report finds $15 minimum wage would cost jobs but lower poverty levels: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/02/08/minimum-wage-hike-15-an-hour-by-2025-would-result-14-million-unemployed-nonpartisan-congressional-budget-office-says/
CBO analysis confirms that a $15 minimum wage raises earnings of low-wage workers, reduces inequality, and has significant and direct fiscal effects: https://www.epi.org/blog/cbo-analysis-confirms-that-a-15-minimum-wage-raises-earnings-of-low-wage-workers-reduces-inequality-and-has-significant-and-direct-fiscal-effects-large-progressive-redistribution-of-income-caused/
Raising the federal minimum wage to $15 by 2024 would lift pay for nearly 40 million workers: https://www.epi.org/publication/raising-the-federal-minimum-wage-to-15-by-2024-would-lift-pay-for-nearly-40-million-workers/
We still need stimulus: How the CBO’s new report captures the urgency of this moment: https://rooseveltinstitute.org/2021/02/01/still-need-stimulus-cbo-report-captures-urgency-of-moment/
Minimum wage and employment -
Impacts of minimum wages: review of the international evidence: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/impacts-of-minimum-wages-review-of-the-international-evidence
The effect of minimum wage on low-wage jobs: https://academic.oup.com/qje/article/134/3/1405/5484905?login=true
The new wave of local minimum wage policies: Evidence from six cities: https://irle.berkeley.edu/the-new-wave-of-local-minimum-wage-policies-evidence-from-six-cities/
They said Seattle’s higher base pay would hurt workers. Why did they flip? https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/22/business/economy/seattle-minimum-wage-study.html
Minimum wage shocks, employment flows, and labor market frictions: https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/685449?journalCode=jole
Myth or measurement: What does the new minimum wage research say about minimum wages and job loss in the United States? https://www.nber.org/papers/w28388
Minimum wage and prices -
The impact of a city-level minimum wage policy on supermarket food prices by food quality metrics: A two-year follow up study: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/1/102
Wages, minimum wages, and price pass-through: The case of McDonald’s Restaurants: https://dataspace.princeton.edu/bitstream/88435/dsp01sb397c318/4/646.pdf
Minimum wage and the federal budget -
Effects of a federal minimum wage increase to $15 by 2025 on the federal budget: https://irle.berkeley.edu/effect-of-a-federal-minimum-wage-increase-to-15-by-2025-on-the-federal-budget/
Raising the minimum wage would boost an economic recovery - and reduce taxpayer subsidization of low-wage work: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/news/2021/01/27/495163/raising-minimum-wage-boost-economic-recovery-reduce-taxpayer-subsidization-low-wage-work/
A $15 minimum wage would have significant and direct effects on the federal budget: https://www.epi.org/publication/a-15-minimum-wage-would-have-significant-and-direct-effects-on-the-federal-budget/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Ask Nick Anything
You know the drill: Nick and Goldy answer your questions! Did we see ‘pitchforks’ at the Capitol insurrection? What should people who subscribe to the economic theories we talk about in this podcast call themselves? What are the smartest investments the average person can make for a stronger, more prosperous, more democratic America? And more!
To ask Nick and Goldy a question for a future AMA, leave us a voicemail at (731) 388-9334.
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The Pitchforks are Coming… For Us Plutocrats: https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/06/the-pitchforks-are-coming-for-us-plutocrats-108014
CORE Economics: https://www.core-econ.org/
Evonomics: https://evonomics.com/
Institute for New Economic Thinking: https://www.ineteconomics.org/
Rethinking Economics network: https://www.rethinkeconomics.org/
Raising the minimum wage leads to significant gains for workers, not to ‘benefits cliffs’: https://www.nelp.org/publication/raising-minimum-wage-leads-significant-gains-workers-not-benefits-cliffs/
Study finds increasing minimum wage does not cause loss of jobs: https://www.dailycal.org/2018/09/10/study-finds-increasing-minimum-wage-does-not-cause-loss-of-jobs/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Repost: How to spot a bogus minimum wage study (with Ben Zipperer)
Here’s another resource from the archive that will help you wade through the loud and often misleading coverage of the Raise the Wage Act.
Not all minimum-wage studies are equal. Some of the most headline-grabbing negative reports on the effects of the minimum wage were commissioned and promoted by right-wing organizations looking to legitimize trickle-down policies that hurt workers. How can you spot studies that aren’t worth their salt? Economist Ben Zipperer joins Nick and Jasmin to reveal some of the tricks that economists pull, and to help us understand how some studies can conclude that raising wages will kill jobs—even though, as we know, the opposite is true.
Ben Zipperer is an economist at the Economic Policy Institute. His areas of expertise include the minimum wage, inequality, and low-wage labor markets. He has published research in the Industrial and Labor Relations Review and has been quoted in outlets such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, Bloomberg, and the BBC.
Twitter: @benzipperer, @EconomicPolicy
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Further reading:
Gradually raising the minimum wage to $15 would be good for workers, good for businesses, and good for the economy: https://www.epi.org/publication/minimum-wage-testimony-feb-2019/
Six reasons not to put too much weight on the new study of Seattle’s minimum wage: https://www.epi.org/blog/six-reasons-not-to-put-too-much-weight-on-the-new-study-of-seattles-minimum-wage/
Studies mentioned in the episode:
New EPI study: The Effect of Minimum Wages on Low-Wage Jobs: Evidence from the United States Using a Bunching Estimator: https://www.nber.org/papers/w25434
Card and Krueger: Minimum Wages and Employment: A Case Study of the Fast-Food Industry in New Jersey and Pennsylvania: http://davidcard.berkeley.edu/papers/njmin-aer.pdf
University of Washington study - Minimum Wage Increases, Wages, and Low-Wage Employment: Evidence from Seattle: https://www.nber.org/papers/w23532
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Do wealthy Americans have too much power? (with Thom Hartmann)
Is the U.S. an oligarchy, or does it just have a bunch of super-rich people living in it? Is there a difference? Author Thom Hartmann joins Nick and Paul to explain the relationship between wealth and American political power and share some of the research that went into his latest book, ‘The Hidden History of American Oligarchy.’
Thom Hartmann is the #1 progressive radio talk show host in the US and a New York Times bestselling author.
Twitter: @Thom_Hartmann
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The Hidden History of American Oligarchy: https://bookshop.org/books/the-hidden-history-of-american-oligarchy-reclaiming-our-democracy-from-the-ruling-class/9781523091584
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Repost: Why raising the minimum wage doesn’t raise unemployment (with Mayor Eric Garcetti and Alan Krueger)
You may have noticed that the trickle-downers are out in full force again spouting bad ideas in response to the Raise the Wage Act, which will raise the federal minimum wage to $15/hour. To set the record straight, we’re reposting one of our first-ever episodes, from early 2019, that reveals what the research proves (no, raising the minimum wage doesn’t affect employment), and asks why changing public perception around the minimum wage has been so difficult.
Eric Garcetti is the Mayor of LA, where he signed a $15 minimum wage ordinance into law in 2015.
The late Alan Krueger was a leading labor economist best known for his work on the effects of the minimum wage.
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Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How can Democrats win back rural America? (with Bill Hogseth)
Democrats used to win elections in rural areas, but that seems like a distant memory now. This week, Zach is joined by Bill Hogseth, a political organizer from rural Wisconsin, to talk about the difference between making promises and delivering change—and how Democrats can win rural America back again.
Bill Hogseth is a political organizer from rural Wisconsin, where he works for the Wisconsin Farmers Union. He is the former Chair of the Dunn County Democrats.
Twitter: @billhogseth
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Opinion: Why Democrats Keep Losing Rural Counties Like Mine: https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/12/01/democrats-rural-vote-wisconsin-441458
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Zach's twitter: @zachariahsilk
The sounds of the new administration
Celebrate the end of inauguration week with this compilation of fun soundbites from past guests who are now serving in the Biden Administration!
Featuring:
Jared Bernstein, from ‘What can a board game teach us about capitalism? https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/what-can-a-board-game-teach-us-about-capitalism/
Chris Lu, from ‘Whatever happened to overtime?’ https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/whatever-happened-to-overtime/
Felicia Wong, from ‘Why is getting out of poverty so hard?’ https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/why-is-getting-out-of-poverty-so-hard/
Lisa D. Cook, from ‘Economic Woman’: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/economic-woman-with-katrine-marcal-lisa-d-cook-and-anna-gifty-opoku-agyeman/
Mehrsa Baradaran, from ‘The hidden costs of banking while poor’: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/the-hidden-costs-of-banking-while-poor-with-mehrsa-baradaran-and-cate-blackford/
Ron Klain, from ‘Leadership failure made the U.S. pandemic worse’: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/leadership-failure-made-the-u-s-pandemic-worse-with-ronald-klain/
Heather Boushey, from ‘Inequality and coronavirus’ and ‘Whatever happened to the middle class?
https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/whatever-happened-to-the-middle-class/
Joelle Gamble, from ‘How Econ 101 upholds racist systems’: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/how-econ-101-upholds-racist-systems-with-joelle-gamble/
Bharat Ramamurti, from ‘The case for a True New Deal’: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/the-case-for-a-true-new-deal-with-bharat-ramamurti/
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Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The economic challenges Biden faces (with Idrees Kahloon)
Idrees Kahloon from The Economist joins us for inauguration week to assess the daunting economic challenges that the Biden-Harris administration will face the second they take office.
Idrees Kahloon is the Washington correspondent for The Economist. He covers US policy, poverty, and COVID-19 stimulus packages.
Twitter: @imkahloon
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Further reading:
President Joe Biden will face two extraordinary economic challenges: https://www.economist.com/leaders/2020/11/14/president-joe-biden-will-face-two-extraordinary-economic-challenges
Joe Biden is taking office amid a poverty crisis: https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/21582005/joe-biden-poverty-covid
Here’s a look at the economy Biden will inherit next month: https://www.nytimes.com/live/2020/12/17/us/joe-biden-trump#heres-a-look-at-the-economy-biden-will-inherit-next-month
Joe Biden’s Four-Year Plan: https://prospect.org/day-one-agenda/joe-bidens-four-year-plan/
The three progressive policies voters seem to love: https://slate.com/business/2020/11/progressives-election-minimum-wage-marijuana-medicaid.amp
Top charts of 2020: https://www.epi.org/publication/top-charts-of-2020-the-economic-fallout-of-covid-19/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The case for a True New Deal (with Bharat Ramamurti)
In a recent report, The Roosevelt Institute called for a new set of policies to mitigate the economic suffering caused by the pandemic. Taken all together, these policies are as sweeping as the New Deal was—but unlike the New Deal, they’re truly representative of America’s race, class, and gender diversity. Attorney Bharat Ramamurti, the incoming Deputy Director of the Biden administration’s National Economic Council and a co-author of the report, joins Nick and Goldy to make the case for a True New Deal.
Bharat Ramamurti is the incoming Deputy Director of the National Economic Council. At the time of our interview, he was the managing director of the Corporate Power Program at the Roosevelt Institute and a member of the COVID-19 Congressional Oversight Commission. He was previously an economic advisor to Senator Elizabeth Warren.
Twitter: @BharatRamamurti
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A True New Deal: https://rooseveltinstitute.org/publications/true-new-deal-for-the-covid-19-era/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How banking deregulation makes you unsafe (with Anat Admati)
No matter what some politicians may claim, there’s actually no such thing as ‘less regulation’ — there are only regulations that favor the powerful, and those that don’t. Stanford economist Anat Admati walks us through the deregulation of the banking industry and explains how she would overhaul financial regulations to make them work well for society, not just for the rich and powerful.
Anat Admati is the George G.C. Parker Professor of Finance and Economics at Stanford University Graduate School of Business, a director of the Corporations and Society Initiative, and a senior fellow at Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research. She has written extensively on information dissemination in financial markets, portfolio management, financial contracting, corporate governance, and banking. She is the co-author of ‘The Bankers’ New Clothes: What’s Wrong with Banking and What to Do About It’.
Twitter: @anatadmati
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Making financial regulation work for society: https://www.ineteconomics.org/events/finance-society/agenda/making-financial-regulation-work-a-conversation-with-anat-admati-and-brooksley-born
When she talks, banks shudder: https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/10/business/when-she-talks-banks-shudder.html
Financial crises, corporate scandals and blind spots: who is responsible? https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessreview/2018/01/25/financial-crises-corporate-scandals-and-blind-spots-who-is-responsible/
The Bankers’ New Clothes: http://bankersnewclothes.com/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Tax me more, I’m rich (with Abigail Disney and Chye-Ching Huang)
Trickle-down economics would have you believe that the rich are job creators. For decades we’ve been told that the more money the wealthy have to invest in creating jobs, the better the economy will be for everybody. This lie has had catastrophic effects: the top 0.1% of Americans now own more wealth than the bottom 90% of Americans combined. As debates rage among our leaders over stimulus bills and Americans battle their way through this economic crisis, the case for taxing the wealthy has never been as strong as it is now—so this week we’re re-surfacing this episode, originally published in 2019. Class traitor Abigail Disney and tax expert Chye-Ching Huang make the case for taxing the rich.
And we highly recommend Abigail Disney’s podcast, All Ears: https://www.forkfilms.com/all-ears/
Abigail Disney is a documentary filmmaker, philanthropist, and social activist. She is the granddaughter of Roy Disney, the co-founder of the Walt Disney Company.
Twitter: @abigaildisney
Chye-Ching Huang is the Director of Federal Fiscal Policy at the Center on Budget Policy Priorities, where she focuses on the fiscal and economic effects of federal tax and budget policy. She rejoined the Center in 2011 after working as a Senior Lecturer at the University of Auckland, where she taught tax law and conducted research in tax law and policy.
Twitter: @dashching
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Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why should we cancel student debt? (with Fenaba Addo)
The CARES Act delayed student loan payments as a form of stimulus, raising an important question: if forgiving student loan debt is good policy and broadly popular with Americans, should we just cancel student debt altogether? University of Wisconsin Madison Associate Professor Fenaba Addo, who researches debt and wealth inequality, helps us explore the merits and shortcomings of student debt cancellation.
Fenaba Addo is the Lorna Jorgensen Wendt Associate Professor of Money, Relationships, and Equality at the University of Wisconsin Madison. Her research examines the role of debt and increasing wealth inequality over the past forty years within communities of color and among economically vulnerable populations in the U.S.
Twitter: @FenabaAddo
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Six stupid arguments against forgiving student loan debt: https://prospect.org/day-one-agenda/six-stupid-arguments-against-forgiving-student-loan-debt/
The Racialization of the Student Debt Crisis: http://1xfsu31b52d33idlp13twtos-wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Student-Debt_essay_individual.pdf
I paid off all my student loans. I still support student loan forgiveness: https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/first-person/2019/5/2/18527036/biden-millennials-cancel-student-debt-forgiveness
Forgiving student debt would boost economy, economists say: https://www.npr.org/2019/11/25/782070151/forgiving-student-debt-would-boost-economy
Writing off student debt is one way biden can build black wealth: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-11-12/writing-off-student-debt-is-one-way-biden-can-build-black-wealth
Student debt is hitting African Americans the hardest. These experts have a plan to fix it: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/student-debt-is-hitting-african-americans-the-hardest-these-experts-have-a-plan-to-fix-it/2019/09/20/5f786e48-d0fb-11e9-b29b-a528dc82154a_story.html
Constrained after College: Student Loans and Early Career Occupational Choices: https://www.nber.org/papers/w13117
Is student debt cancellation regressive? No. https://www.currentaffairs.org/2019/06/is-student-debt-cancellation-regressive-no
Who owes all that student debt? And who’d benefit if it were forgiven? https://www.brookings.edu/policy2020/votervital/who-owes-all-that-student-debt-and-whod-benefit-if-it-were-forgiven/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why conventional wisdom is finally pushing for higher wages (with Binyamin Appelbaum)
Six years after the beginning of the Fight for $15 movement, conventional wisdom is finally waking up to economic reality. How do we know? Because the New York Times recently published an editorial titled ‘Let’s Talk About Higher Wages’ calling on the incoming Biden administration to focus on higher wages for everyone. They couldn’t be more right on. Binyamin Appelbaum, the lead writer on business and economics for the Editorial Board, helps us understand the change in consensus on wages.
Binyamin Appelbaum is the lead writer on business and economics for the Editorial Board of The New York Times. From 2010 to 2019, he was a Washington correspondent for the Times, covering economic policy. His book, ‘The Economists’ Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society’ is a Wall Street Journal Business Bestseller.
Twitter: @BCAppelbaum
Nick on Marketplace: https://www.marketplace.org/2020/12/08/new-rand-study-quantifies-cost-of-rising-us-inequality/
Binyamin has been a guest on our show before! Here’s our episode with him and George Monbiot, ‘How neoliberalism happened’, from October 2019: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/how-neoliberalism-happened-with-george-monbiot-and-binyamin-appelbaum/
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Further reading/listening:
Let’s talk about higher wages: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/28/opinion/wages-economic-growth.html
Do higher wages kill jobs? (with Mayor Eric Garcetti and Alan Krueger): https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/do-higher-wages-kill-jobs/
The top 1% of Americans have taken $50 trillion from the bottom 90% - and that’s made the U.S. less secure: https://time.com/5888024/50-trillion-income-inequality-america/
And as promised by Annie and Ashley, you can find the last 100+ years of New York Times Editorial Board pieces on the minimum wage here: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/why-conventional-wisdom-is-finally-pushing-for-higher-wages-with-binyamin-appelbaum
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Author Interview: Competition is Killing Us (with Michelle Meagher)
Neoliberal economics says free trade is always good, and its followers try to lower trade barriers without discretion. Freedom is an essential ingredient for successful international trade—but that doesn’t mean all trade should be unregulated. Competition law expert Michelle Meagher joins Goldy to debunk common competition myths and talk about strategies to hold powerful monopolies accountable.
Michelle Meagher is a Senior Policy Fellow at the University College London Centre for Law, Economics, and Society, and co-founder of the Inclusive Competition Forum, a think tank focused on democratizing corporate power and the enforcement of competition law.
Twitter: @MichMeagher
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Competition is Killing Us: https://uk.bookshop.org/books/competition-is-killing-us-how-big-business-is-harming-our-society-and-planet-and-what-to-do-about-it/9780241423011
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Restoring conservative economics (with Oren Cass)
“Conservative economics” in the U.S. has become synonymous with libertarian principles. But that’s not what American conservatism was originally about. Oren Cass, the executive director of a new think tank called American Compass, is on a mission to restore conservative economics to its roots in family, community, and industry—and he joins Nick and Goldy to find common ground.
Oren Cass is the executive director of American Compass, whose mission is to restore an economic orthodoxy that emphasizes the importance of faith, community, and industry to the nation’s liberty and prosperity. He is the author of ‘The Once and Future Worker: A Vision for the Renewal of Work in America’.
Twitter: @oren_cass
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Further reading:
Workers of the World: https://americancompass.org/essays/workers-of-the-world/
The elite needs to give up its GDP fetish: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/27/opinion/us-gdp-coronavirus.html
Oren Cass on the future of economics and society: https://www.manhattan-institute.org/economics-after-partisanship-markets-society
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
What would you do if you were benevolent dictator?
We’re continuing to celebrate our 100th episode this week with another compilation — the best of the benevolent dictator question. What would you do to fix the world’s most intractable problems if you had no restraints? Our guests from over the last two years weigh in.
Show us some love by leaving a rating or a review! RateThisPodcast.com/pitchforkeconomics
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why do you do this work?
It’s our 100th episode! To celebrate, we pulled together some of our favorite answers to the question we love to ask our guests: Why do you do this work? Plus, Nick answers the question too. We’re thankful this week for the thoughts shared by these inspiring people, and for YOU — thanks for listening to the show. We’re excited for the next 100.
Show us some love by leaving a rating or a review! RateThisPodcast.com/pitchforkeconomics
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
What happens when unemployment benefits run out? (with Ioana Marinescu)
Right now, 26.3 million workers are either on unemployment or waiting to be approved for unemployment benefits. But for many of these jobless workers, the clock is running out on their eligibility to receive unemployment — and with no stimulus bill in sight, we could be entering a grim new phase of this recession. What will happen to the economy when unemployment insurance runs out? What will happen to the people who rely on those benefits? Economist Ioana Marinescu helps Nick and Goldy understand what the near-future of unemployment benefits looks like in the U.S.
Ioana Marinescu is an assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice, and a Faculty Research Fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research. She studies the labor market to craft policies that can enhance employment, productivity, and economic security.
Twitter: @mioana
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Further reading:
Emergency unemployment programs will expire at year’s end, putting millions at risk: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/11/business/emergency-unemployment-programs-will-expire-at-years-end-putting-millions-at-risk.html
Policy Basics: How many weeks of unemployment compensation are available?: https://www.cbpp.org/research/economy/policy-basics-how-many-weeks-of-unemployment-compensation-are-available
30 weeks into the COVID-19 pandemic and workers desperately need stimulus: https://www.epi.org/blog/30-weeks-in-to-the-covid-19-pandemic-and-workers-desperately-need-stimulus/
Unemployment insurance and job search behavior: http://www.marinescu.eu/publication/marinescu-unemployment-2020/
You can’t afford to live anywhere in the United States solely on unemployment insurance: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/news/2020/09/10/490265/cant-afford-live-anywhere-united-states-solely-unemployment-insurance/
With millions of people out of work, the Senate’s inaction is not only cruel, it’s bad economics: https://www.epi.org/blog/with-millions-of-people-out-of-work-the-senates-inaction-is-not-only-cruel-its-bad-economics/
Scraping by on benefits and part-time work, but a cutoff looms at year’s end: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/29/business/scraping-by-on-benefits-and-part-time-work-but-a-cutoff-looms-at-years-end.html
How America gave up on fighting the pandemic and saving the economy: https://www.vox.com/21523204/coronavirus-unemployment-stimulus-economy
8 million have slipped into poverty since May as federal aid has dried up: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/15/us/politics/federal-aid-poverty-levels.html
Pelosi sends letter to Secretary Mnuchin on areas still awaiting responses from White House: https://www.speaker.gov/newsroom/102920
Slowdown in jobs added means we could be years away from a full recovery: https://www.epi.org/press/slowdown-in-jobs-added-means-we-could-be-years-away-from-a-full-recovery/
Exclusive: America’s true unemployment rate: https://www.axios.com/americas-true-unemployment-rate-6e34decb-c274-4feb-a4af-ffac8cf5840d.html
Young workers hit hard by the Covid-19 economy: https://www.epi.org/publication/young-workers-covid-recession/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Who is Ron Klain?
In the first major staffing announcement of his incoming administration, President-elect Biden named Ron Klain, Obama’s ebola czar, as his chief of staff. We had a great conversation with Klain back in April, in which he argued that leadership failure and government unpreparedness made the pandemic much worse in the U.S. Now’s a great time to refresh yourself on this episode if you’re wondering how the Biden-Harris administration will respond to the coronavirus and approach wide-spread economic recovery.
Ronald Klain is a lawyer who served as the White House Ebola response coordinator for President Obama. He has held a wide variety of legal and policy positions in government, including his service as chief of staff to VPs Biden and Gore, chief of staff to the attorney general, associate counsel to the president, and chief counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee. After serving as an advisor to the Biden 2020 campaign, he was named chief of staff for the incoming Biden administration.
Twitter: @RonaldKlain
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Further reading:
Confronting the Pandemic Threat: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/40/confronting-the-pandemic-threat/
Biden Names Ron Klain as White House Chief of Staff: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/11/us/politics/ron-klain-biden.html
We’re past ‘if’ on the coronavirus. We’re on to ‘how bad will it be?’: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-coronavirus-has-landed-in-the-us-heres-how-we-can-reduce-the-risk/2020/01/22/afebe9ee-3d53-11ea-baca-eb7ace0a3455_story.html
Trump says US has coronavirus ‘completely under control’ as Washington state confirms first case outside of Asia: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/trump-coronavirus-china-wuhan-disease-outbreak-airport-screening-travel-a9296926.html
Obama’s ebola czar on what strong federal response looks like: https://www.wired.com/story/ebola-czar-ron-klain-federal-coronavirus-response/
The huge cost of waiting to contain the pandemic: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/14/opinion/covid-social-distancing.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The case for a millionaires tax (with Governor Phil Murphy)
This September, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy enacted a budget deal with his legislature that increased state taxes on incomes over $1 million. As the country’s second-richest state, this is a big win for progressive taxation. Governor Murphy explains what the tax revenue will go to, how it won’t hurt businesses or cause wealthy people to leave the state, and why it’s the right thing to do in the midst of a national economic crisis .
Phil Murphy is the Governor of New Jersey. He was the U.S. Ambassador to Germany from 2009 to 2013.
Twitter: @PhilMurphyNJ and @GovMurphy
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Further reading:
Deal reached in N.J. for ‘Millionaires Tax’ to address fiscal crisis: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/17/nyregion/nj-millionaires-tax.html
Why these millionaires are staying put despite a new tax on them: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/02/your-money/wealthy-millionaires-tax-states.html
Who pays? A distributional analysis of the tax systems in all 50 states: https://itep.sfo2.digitaloceanspaces.com/whopays-ITEP-2018.pdf
Do millionaires migrate when taxes are raised? https://inequality.stanford.edu/sites/default/files/media/_media/pdf/pathways/summer_2014/Pathways_Summer_2014_YoungVarner.pdf
N.J. will borrow $4.5 billion as pandemic pain hits states: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/24/nyregion/new-jersey-coronavirus-budget.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Election Day AMA Special (with Cristina Uribe)
When are we going to know the results of this election? What can we do about voter suppression? And are Democrats finally giving up on trickle-down economics? Zach and political strategist Cristina Uribe answer these questions and more as they discuss what this election means for our economy and the health of our democracy.
It’s not too late to vote! If you’re unsure how, go to vote.org. And if you already voted by mail, track your ballot and make sure it was accepted!
Cristina Uribe is a veteran political strategist and manager working at the intersection of advocacy and politics. She has held senior management roles at several organizations, including California Director of the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center (BISC), Senior Advisor for Strategic Initiatives at the National Education Association (NEA), and Western Regional Director at EMILY’s List. She has led campaigns and civic engagement efforts in dozens of states across the country.
Twitter: @curibeca
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Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
BONUS: The Haunting of Buchanan Manor
This strange Halloween, we bring to you the harrowing tale of two young trick-or-treaters who dare to stop at James Buchanan’s house. To learn more about the real-life horrors of Buchanan, read Jane Mayer’s ‘Dark Money’ — the spooky real-life story of the right-wing trickle-down machine.
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Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The real looting in America (with Robert Reich)
The real looting in America is the looting of the wages and savings of the bottom 90% by the wealthiest 1%. And although it’s not in the news nearly as much as other types of looting recently, our rigged economic system causes far more harm to our society. Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich joins Nick and Jessyn to explain who rigged the system, and what it will take to stop the real looting.
To contact your elected leaders about the transfer of $50 trillion over the past 45 years from working Americans to the top 1%, text RAND to 67076 or go to www.civicaction.com/rand.
Robert Reich is Chancellor’s Professor of Public Policy at the University of California at Berkeley and Senior Fellow at the Blum Center. He served as Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration, for which Time Magazine named him one of the 10 most effective cabinet secretaries of the twentieth century. He has written 18 books, the latest of which is “THE SYSTEM: Who Rigged It, and How To Fix It.” He is a founding editor of the American Prospect magazine, founder of Inequality Media, a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and co-creator of the award-winning documentaries “Inequality for All” and “Saving Capitalism,” both now streaming on Netflix.
Twitter: @RBReich
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Further reading:
Protesters criticized for looting businesses without forming private equity firms first:
https://www.theonion.com/protestors-criticized-for-looting-businesses-without-fo-1843735351
Banks gave richest clients ‘concierge treatment’ for pandemic aid: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/business/sba-loans-ppp-coronavirus.html
Who is really “looting” America? https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2020/06/9852642/billionaires-rich-looting-america-tax-law-money
The top 1% have taken $50 trillion from the bottom 90%, and that’s made the U.S. less secure: https://time.com/5888024/50-trillion-income-inequality-america/
The golden age of white collar crime: https://www.huffpost.com/highline/article/white-collar-crime/
Some companies seeking bailouts had piles of cash, then spent it: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/24/business/coronavirus-bailouts-buybacks-cash.html
U.S. billionaires got $845 billion richer since the start of the pandemic: https://www.fastcompany.com/90551712/u-s-billionaires-got-845-billion-richer-since-the-start-of-the-pandemic
The rich really do pay lower taxes than you: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/10/06/opinion/income-tax-rate-wealthy.html
What is private equity, and why is it killing everything you love? https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2020/1/6/21024740/private-equity-taylor-swift-toys-r-us-elizabeth-warren
When Wall Street is your landlord: https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2019/02/single-family-landlords-wall-street/582394/
Many companies pay nothing in taxes. The public has a right to know how they pull it off: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/10/22/many-companies-pay-nothing-taxes-public-has-right-know-how-they-pull-it-off/
Purdue Pharma admits to crimes for its OxyContin marketing. But no one is going to prison: https://www.vox.com/2020/10/21/21526868/purdue-pharma-oxycontin-opioid-epidemic-department-of-justice
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The pro-business case for reimagining capitalism (with Rebecca Henderson)
Harvard Business School professor Rebecca Henderson tells Nick and Goldy why businesses should reject the idea that the sole purpose of the corporation is to maximize shareholder value, and how businesses can help reform the market system.
Rebecca Henderson is a professor at the Harvard Business School, a research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and a fellow of both the British Academy and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She is an expert on innovation and organizational change, and her research explores the degree to which the private sector can play a major role in building a more sustainable economy.
Twitter: @RebeccaReCap
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Further reading:
Reimagining Capitalism in a World on Fire: https://www.publicaffairsbooks.com/titles/rebecca-henderson/reimagining-capitalism-in-a-world-on-fire/9781541730137/
Do managers have a role to play in sustaining the institutions of capitalism? https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/BrookingsInstitutionsofCapitalismv5.pdf
Ending shareholder primacy in corporate governance: https://rooseveltinstitute.org/publications/ending-shareholder-primacy-in-corporate-governance/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Author Interview: How to rebuild the middle class (with Jim Tankersley)
Why did the American middle class boom after WWII, and how do we get it booming again? New York Times economics reporter Jim Tankersley joins Paul to lay out the thesis of his new book, ‘The Riches of This Land’—that the economy will thrive when everyone can fully participate in it.
Jim Tankersley covers economic and tax policy for The New York Times. Over more than a decade covering politics and economics in Washington, he has written extensively about the stagnation of the American middle class and the decline of economic opportunity in wide swaths of the country.
Twitter: @jimtankersley
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The Riches of This Land: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781541767836
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Ask Nick Anything
What’s the opposite of neoliberal economics? What would the manifesto of the perfect political party look like? How much money do corporations spend lobbying against taxes, and is it even worth it? Nick and Goldy answer these questions (and more!) from listeners.
To ask us a question, use the contact page on our website: https://pitchforkeconomics.com/contact/
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Further reading:
Economism: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781101871195
The Curse of Econ 101: https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/01/economism-and-the-minimum-wage/513155/
Arguing with Zombies: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781324005018
Nick’s publications: https://nickhanauer.com/publications/
Trends in income from 1975 to 2018: https://www.rand.org/pubs/working_papers/WRA516-1.html
The Top 1% of Americans Have Taken $50 Trillion From the Bottom 90%—And That's Made the U.S. Less Secure: https://time.com/5888024/50-trillion-income-inequality-america/
Money spent on lobbying skyrocketed during tax overhaul: https://apnews.com/article/bd8a878c5fe84ea48ffbcf05b4edba0e
The 4 companies that lobbied most on tax overhaul - and what they got for it: https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/12/7/16709586/republican-tax-bills-lobbying
Corporations now spend more lobbying Congress than taxpayers spend funding Congress: https://www.vox.com/2015/4/20/8455235/congress-lobbying-money-statistic
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The future of health care (with Abdul El-Sayed)
This week, Biden-Sanders unity task force appointee Dr. Abdul El-Sayed walks Nick and Goldy through the Biden transition team’s health care plan.
Abdul El-Sayed is a physician, epidemiologist, public health expert, and progressive activist. He is the Chair of Southpaw Michigan and a contributor at CNN. He is the author of ‘Healing Politics’ and the co-author of the upcoming ‘Medicare for All: A Citizen’s Guide’. He also hosts “America Dissected,” a podcast by Crooked Media.
Twitter: @AbdulElSayed
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Further reading:
Coronavirus is exploiting an underlying condition: our epidemic of insecurity: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/mar/19/coronavirus-insecurity-anxiety-us-epidemic
Biden-Sanders Unity Task Force Recommendations: https://joebiden.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/UNITY-TASK-FORCE-RECOMMENDATIONS.pdf
Healing Politics: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781419743023
Health insurance and the COVID-19 shock: https://www.epi.org/publication/health-insurance-and-the-covid-19-shock/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The powerlessness of forced labor (with Suresh Naidu)
This week, labor market economist Suresh Naidu explains how his field attempts to account for the influence of power while studying employee/employer relationships, and unveils the hidden tricks of the coercive labor market.
Suresh Naidu is a professor of economics and international and public affairs at Columbia University as well as a fellow at the Roosevelt Institute, external faculty at the Santa Fe Institute, and a research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research.
Twitter: @snaidunl
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Further reading:
'Essential' workers are just forced laborers: https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/05/21/essential-workers-pay-wages-safety-unemployment/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Inequality is costing workers $50 trillion (with Carter Price)
Yesterday, a groundbreaking study by the RAND Corporation put the first-ever price tag on how much income inequality costs American workers. The bill? $50 trillion. You read that right: $50 trillion has been diverted from working Americans to the wealthiest 1% since 1975. To make sense of this staggering number, Nick and Goldy are joined by mathematician Carter Price, the study’s co-author.
Carter C. Price is a senior mathematician at the RAND Corporation.
Twitter: @CarterCPrice
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Further reading:
The Top 1% of Americans Have Taken $50 Trillion From the Bottom 90% - And That’s Made the U.S. Less Secure: https://time.com/5888024/50-trillion-income-inequality-america/
“We were shocked”: RAND study uncovers massive income shift to the top 1%: https://www.fastcompany.com/90550015/we-were-shocked-rand-study-uncovers-massive-income-shift-to-the-top-1
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Redefining rural America (with Olugbenga Ajilore)
Economist Olugbenga Ajilore explains how policymakers should be thinking about rural America (it’s not a monolith), and what interventions we should pursue to provide what he calls a “different kind of help.”
Olugbenga Ajilore is a senior economist at the Center for American Progress. His expertise includes regional economic development, macroeconomic policy, and issues in diversity and inclusion.
Twitter: @gbenga_ajilore
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Further reading:
COVID and Rural America: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/covid-and-rural-america/
Congress Must Help Rural America Respond to the Coronavirus: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/reports/2020/07/27/488129/congress-must-help-rural-america-respond-coronavirus/
Economic Recovery and Business Dynamism in Rural America: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/reports/2020/02/20/480129/economic-recovery-business-dynamism-rural-america/
Rural Americans are Vulnerable to the Coronavirus: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/news/2020/03/05/481340/rural-communities-vulnerable-coronavirus/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Coercion in the workplace (with Elizabeth Anderson)
What would the workplace look like if workers were truly free? Elizabeth Anderson, a leading theorist of democracy and social justice, joins Nick and Goldy for an exploration of the ethical limits of market, theories of value and rational choice, and true freedom.
Elizabeth Anderson is the Arthur F. Thurnau Professor and John Dewey Distinguished University Professor of Philosophy and Women’s Studies at the University of Michigan. She is the author of Private Government: How Employers Rule Our Lives (and Why We Don’t Talk about It), and a recipient of the 2019 MacArthur Fellowship.
Further reading:
Private Government: https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691176512/private-government
The philosopher redefining equality: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/01/07/the-philosopher-redefining-equality
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Winning on growth (with Michael Linden)
In this special bonus episode, Zach talks to political expert Michael Linden about the message that progressives can, and must, hammer home to win.
Michael Linden is the Executive Director of the Groundwork Collaborative, an organization working to advance an economic vision for strong, broadly shared prosperity and true opportunity for all.
Twitter: @MichaelSLinden
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Author Interview: Money, Democracy, and the Life of John Maynard Keynes (with Zachary Carter)
Neoliberalism arose in the 1970s as a response to the failure of Keynesianism to deal with the effects of stagflation. But what is Keynesianism—and who is John Maynard Keynes? In this author interview, Goldy learns from the Keynes expert, HuffPost senior reporter Zachary Carter, how Keynes’ idea defined American liberalism for much of the 1900s.
Zachary Carter is a senior reporter at HuffPost, where he covers economic policy and American politics. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller, ‘The Price of Peace: Money, Democracy, and the Life of John Maynard Keynes’.
Twitter: @zachdcarter
The Price of Peace: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780525509035
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
A long walk off a short economic cliff (with Trevon Logan)
Recessions are inevitable—but the complete economic catastrophe that we’ve experienced for the last five months was not. Professor Trevon Logan explains where we went wrong, debunks myths about the federal unemployment benefit (no, it doesn’t disincentivize people from returning to work!), and calls on Congress to steer us away from this economic cliff.
Trevon Logan is a Professor of Economics and Associate Dean at Ohio State University, and Director of the American Economic Association Mentoring Program. He is also a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. He specializes in economic history, economic demography, and applied microeconomics.
Twitter: @TrevonDLogan
Further reading:
Vox: We are sleepwalking toward economic catastrophe
Wall Street Journal: Lapse in Extra Unemployment Benefits to Hurt U.S. Recovery, Economists Say
PBS NewsHour: The economics behind racial coronavirus disparities
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
You can’t starve your way out of a recession (with Kitty Richards)
We know that state budget cuts and other austerity policies worsened the 2008 recession and led to a prolonged, uneven recovery. With state and local leaders already clamoring to meet the impending revenue shortfall caused by the COVID crisis, what have we learned, and what can we do differently? In this bonus episode, Paul talks to Groundwork Collaborative strategic advisor Kitty Richards about how states can act now to invest in their residents, bolster their economies, and push back against skyrocketing inequality.
Kitty Richards is a freelance policy consultant and strategic advisor to the Groundwork Collaborative. She has previously worked on federal budget and tax policy at several think tanks, including the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and the Center for American Progress, and has served as an economic policy staffer on Capitol Hill and in the White House.
Twitter: @KittyRichardsDC
Bolstering state economies by raising progressive taxes: https://rooseveltinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/RI_BolsteringStateEconomies_IssueBrief_072020.pdf
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Care work is more valuable than ever (with Kate Bahn)
Child care in the U.S. has been in crisis mode for a long time. It’s wildly expensive for families to afford, and difficult for providers to make ends meet. But now, in the age of COVID-19, even the future existence of child care in America is in doubt. Jessyn and Nick tackle the value of care work, the impossibility of finding affordable child care, and the importance of feminist economics with economist Kate Bahn.
Kate Bahn is the director of labor market policy and economist at the Washington Center for Equitable Growth. Her areas of research include gender, race, and ethnicity in the labor market, care work, and monopsonistic labor markets. Previously, she was an economist at the Center for American Progress. Bahn also serves as the executive vice president and secretary for the International Association for Feminist Economics.
Twitter: @LipstickEcon
Further reading:
A feminist economic policy agenda in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and the quest for racial justice: https://equitablegrowth.org/a-feminist-economic-policy-agenda-in-response-to-the-covid-19-pandemic-and-the-quest-for-racial-justice/
America’s child care problem is an economic problem: https://www.vox.com/2020/7/16/21324192/covid-schools-reopening-daycare-child-care-coronavirus
Where is the American Child Care Bailout?
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-07-22/u-s-child-care-providers-need-a-bailout-fast
Women’s work-life economics: https://equitablegrowth.org/womens-work-life-economics/
Child care is still the missing ingredient for a fast economic recovery: https://www.latimes.com/politics/story/2020-06-08/lack-of-childcare-options-missing-ingredient-fast-economic-recovery
After coronavirus, nearly half of the day care centers in the U.S. could be gone: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/coming-child-care-crisis-coronavirus-covid-19_n_5ea1fab4c5b6bb28aa34b642?guccounter=1
Why child care is so ridiculously expensive: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/11/why-child-care-so-expensive/602599/
Senator Murray introduces $50 billion child care stabilization fund legislation: https://www.murray.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/newsreleases?ContentRecord_id=6CA6719F-5CF4-46F8-B3DC-05630F7C0AF1
Biden announces $75 billion plan to fund universal child care and in-home elder care: https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2020/07/21/biden-to-unveil-775-billion-plan-to-fund-child-care-and-elder-care.html
Public education should be a birthright: https://crooked.com/articles/public-education-birthright/
If you support public schools, you should support universal child care: https://civicskunk.works/if-you-support-public-schools-you-should-support-universal-child-care-4944041934b1
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
It’s time to stop relying on crisis legislation (with Lindsay Owens)
In 12 years, we’ve seen two economic crises with devastating long-term impacts. It seems by now we should be prepared to expect the unexpected… but instead, we’re relying on hastily prepared crisis legislation to save our economy. Again. Economist Lindsay Owens proposes an alternative plan: a standing, off-the-shelf program to stabilize the economy in the event of an economic emergency.
Lindsay Owens is a Fellow at the Great Democracy Initiative, where her writing and research centers on a progressive economic agenda for housing, climate, labor, and healthcare. She previously served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Legislative Director to Representatives Pramila Jayapal and Keith Ellison and as Senior Economic Policy Advisor to Senator Elizabeth Warren.
Twitter: @owenslindsay1
No more bailouts: https://greatdemocracyinitiative.org/document/no-more-bailouts/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
2020 Election AMA (with Cristina Uribe)
It’s less than 100 days until Election Day. What are the chances of political realignment? Is vote-by-mail a panacea? And how can despairing citizens contribute to real change? Civic Ventures President and campaign expert Zach Silk and veteran political strategist Cristina Uribe are joining forces to answer your questions about the 2020 election this week.
Cristina Uribe is a veteran political strategist and manager working at the intersection of advocacy and politics. She has held senior management roles at several organizations, including California Director of the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center (BISC), Senior Advisor for Strategic Initiatives at the National Education Association (NEA), and Western Regional Director at EMILY’s List. She has led campaigns and civic engagement efforts in dozens of states across the country.
Twitter: @curibeca
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
BONUS: Nancy MacLean - Unedited Conversation
Enjoy the full conversation with historian Nancy MacLean, with an extra twelve minutes that didn’t make it into this week’s episode.
Nancy MacLean is an award-winning scholar of the twentieth-century U.S. and the William H. Chafe Distinguished Professor of History and Public Policy at Duke University. Her book, Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America, was a New York Times bestseller and finalist for the National Book Award, and The Nation magazine named it the “Most Valuable Book” of the year.
Twitter: @NancyMacLean5
How the radical right weaponized ideology (with Nancy MacLean)
If it seems to you like the ultimate goal of the most extreme conservatives is to undermine democracy and cripple democratic institutions—well, according to historian Nancy MacLean, you’re right. This week, MacLean unpacks the meteoric rise in popularity of the radical right’s ideas, and offers a way forward for progressives, based on lessons from successful social movements throughout American history.
Nancy MacLean is an award-winning scholar of the twentieth-century U.S. and the William H. Chafe Distinguished Professor of History and Public Policy at Duke University. Her book, Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America, was a New York Times bestseller and finalist for the National Book Award, and The Nation magazine named it the “Most Valuable Book” of the year.
Twitter: @NancyMacLean5
Democracy in Chains: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781101980965
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How Econ 101 upholds racist systems (with Joelle Gamble)
The foundational metaphor of neoliberalism is that a rising tide lifts all boats. But, like many other assumptions in economic thought, that idea willfully ignores racism. Economist Joelle Gamble joins Jessyn and Nick to explain that when economists fail to scrutinize theories through the lens of race, they perpetuate racist outcomes. Plus, The Sadie Collective co-founder Fanta Traore describes how the economics field can take deliberate measures to address the exclusion of Black economists.
Joelle Gamble is a principal with the reimagining capitalism team at Omidyar Network, where she focuses on topics related to building the power of working people and shaping a new economic paradigm. Joelle writes on topics of race, labor, and technology, and sits on the board of directors of the Roosevelt Institute.
Twitter: @joelle_gamble
Fanta Traore is a Senior Research Assistant at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors and the co-founder and COO of The Sadie Collective.
Twitter: @TheFantaTraore
Further reading:
How economic assumptions uphold racist systems: https://www.dissentmagazine.org/online_articles/how-economic-assumptions-uphold-racist-systems
An Open Letter to Economic Institutions In The Face of #BlackLivesMatter: https://medium.com/@sadiecollective/open-letter-to-economics-blm-5b38100e59b5
What the Big New Study About Race and Mobility Doesn’t Tell Us: https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/what-the-big-new-study-about-race-and-mobility-doesnt-tell-us/
Neoliberalism and Race: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/53/neoliberalism-and-race/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
There’s no herd immunity to greed (with Thomas Friedman)
Our global system is fragile because we made decisions that made it that way. Where did we go wrong? This week, New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman joins Nick and Goldy to suggest that greed and unfettered globalization are to blame for our vulnerable system, and to discuss what we need to do to get back on track.
Thomas Friedman is a New York Times columnist, the author of six bestselling books, and a three-time Pulitzer Prize winner.
Twitter: @tomfriedman
Further reading:
How We Broke the World: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/30/opinion/sunday/coronavirus-globalization.html
America, We Break It, It’s Gone: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/02/opinion/trump-george-floyd-america.html
Let’s Change Our Motto to ‘Out of Many, We’: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/09/opinion/trump-united-states.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Debunking deficit myths (with Stephanie Kelton)
Modern Monetary Theory is an attempt to accurately describe how government debt and complex financial systems actually work. MMT can help us responsibly use our resources, and no one is more knowledgeable on the subject than our returning guest this week, Professor Stephanie Kelton. As Congressional debates over the need for a new stimulus package heat up, Kelton explains the myths surrounding MMT and what a new understanding of the budget could do for our economy.
Stephanie Kelton is a Professor of Economics and Public Policy at Stony Brook University. She is the leading expert on Modern Monetary Theory. Her new book, The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of the People’s Economy, shows how to break free of flawed deficit thinking.
Twitter: @StephanieKelton
Further reading:
The Deficit Myth: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781541736184
Learn To Love Trillion-Dollar Deficits: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/09/opinion/us-deficit-coronavirus.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
People are basically good (with Rutger Bregman)
The fundamentals of economic thought are built on the idea that humans are fundamentally self-interested. But, according to historian Rutger Bregman, that’s a misconception — in fact, humans are fundamentally good, and if we want to realistically address our greatest challenges, we need to reconsider our view of our own human nature.
Rutger Bregman is a historian. He has published four books on history, philosophy, and economics, including Utopia for Realists and his latest book, Humankind: A Hopeful History.
Twitter: @rcbregman
Further reading:
Humankind: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780316418539
The neoliberal era is ending. What comes next? https://thecorrespondent.com/466/the-neoliberal-era-is-ending-what-comes-next/61655148676-a00ee89a
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Vaccine development needs new incentives (with Tahir Amin)
COVID-19 has exposed the limits of the pharmaceutical market model. This week, patent law expert Tahir Amin joins the show to explain why vaccine development needs new incentives.
Tahir Amin is an attorney dedicated to reshaping patent law to better serve the public. He is the Co-Founder and Co-ED of the Initiative for Medicines, Access, and Knowledge (I-MAK), a global nonprofit organization of attorneys, scientists, and health experts working on systemic changes to intellectual property and the political economy of pharmaceutical innovation.
Twitter: @realtahiramin
Further reading:
Covid-19 has exposed the limits of the pharmaceutical market model: https://www.statnews.com/2020/05/19/covid-19-exposed-limits-drug-development-model/
No vaccine in sight: https://newrepublic.com/article/157594/no-coronavirus-vaccine-big-pharma-drug-patent-system
Democrats punt on drug-pricing overhaul in virus relief measure: https://news.bloomberglaw.com/health-law-and-business/democrats-punt-on-drug-pricing-overhaul-in-virus-relief-measure
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Re-imagining public safety (with King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay)
Budgets are a reflection of our values, and the money we budget for the police is no exception. Our state and local budgets for what we call “safety” are not getting outcomes that reflect our morals. Seattle-area King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay joins Nick and Jessyn to lay out five policies elected officials should be pledging to support right now to re-imagine public safety.
Girmay Zahilay is a member of the King County Council from District 2. He is an attorney, non-profit founder, and organizer.
Twitter: @GirmayZahilay
Further reading:
City council will consider defunding Seattle Police: https://crosscut.com/2020/06/city-council-will-consider-defunding-seattle-police
Washington state’s other epidemic: Mass incarceration: https://crosscut.com/2020/03/washington-states-other-epidemic-mass-incarceration
Defund the police? Here’s what that really means: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/06/07/defund-police-heres-what-that-really-means/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Podcast Blackout
This week, we are participating in #PodcastBlackout to amplify the seriousness of the need for action to address institutional racism and police violence. After a brief note from Nick, this episode will air 8 minutes and 46 seconds of silence. Below, we've included organizations that are doing the anti-racist work to reform power structures in this country — we hope that you'll turn your attention to them.
8 Minutes and 46 Seconds: How George Floyd Was Killed in Police Custody: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/us/george-floyd-investigation.html
Donate to, follow, support, and learn from:
Black Lives Matter: https://blacklivesmatter.com/
Campaign Zero (police accountability): https://www.joincampaignzero.org/
The Bail Project: https://bailproject.org/
National Bail Fund Network (find bail funds in your area): https://www.communityjusticeexchange.org/nbfn-directory
NAACP Legal Defense Fund: https://www.naacpldf.org/
Know Your Rights Camp Covid-19 Relief Fund: https://www.knowyourrightscamp.com/covid19
Fair Fight (organizing against voter suppression): https://fairfight.com/
The Innocence Project: https://www.innocenceproject.org/
ACLU: https://www.aclu.org/
George Floyd Memorial Fund: https://www.gofundme.com/f/georgefloyd
Justice for Ahmaud Arbery Fundraiser: https://www.gofundme.com/f/i-run-with-maud
Justice for Breonna Taylor Petition and Fundraiser: https://www.change.org/p/andy-beshear-justice-for-breonna-taylor
Why Wall Street gets a bailout and you don’t (with Matt Stoller)
Why are rich corporations getting more stimulus money from the government, and getting it faster, than small businesses and individuals? Matt Stoller returns to the show to explain how recovery funds are distributed: Money isn’t neutral, and how money travels matters.
Matt Stoller is the author of BIG, a newsletter about monopoly and finance, and the Director of Research at the American Economic Liberties Project. His recent book, ‘Goliath: The 100-Year War Between Monopoly Power and Democracy’, examines how concentrated financial power and consumerism transformed American politics.
Twitter: @matthewstoller
Further reading:
Subscribe to BIG: https://mattstoller.substack.com/welcome
The Cantillon Effect: Why Wall Street gets a bailout and you don’t: https://mattstoller.substack.com/p/the-cantillon-effect-why-wall-street
Congress “CARES” for Wealthy with COVID-19 Tax Policy Provisions: https://itep.org/congress-cares-for-wealthy-with-covid-19-tax-policy-provisions/
The Relief Package Ushers in Trump’s Planned Economy: https://www.wired.com/story/the-relief-package-ushers-in-trumps-planned-economy/
End Shareholder Primacy Once and For All: http://bostonreview.net/class-inequality/lenore-palladino-end-shareholder-primacy-once-and-all
We All Have a Stake in the Stock Market, Right? Guess Again: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/08/business/economy/stocks-economy.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Why the market fails in a crisis (with Joseph Stiglitz)
One of the central theories of classical economics is that markets respond quickly and efficiently to changes in demand. But the pandemic clearly demonstrates that the markets aren’t the efficient adapters that classic economists believe them to be. Nobel laureate economist Joseph Stiglitz explains why the tendency to believe in the market is one of the most deeply rooted trickle-down myths, and why government intervention is the best way forward through this economic downturn.
Joseph Stiglitz is a Nobel laureate economist and a professor at Columbia University. He is also the co-chair of the High-Level Expert Group on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress at the OECD, and the Chief Economist of the Roosevelt Institute. In 2011, Stiglitz was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. Known for his pioneering work on asymmetric information, Stiglitz focuses on income distribution, risk, corporate governance, public policy, macroeconomics, and globalization. His most recent book, People, Power, and Profits, was just released in paperback.
Twitter: @JosephEStiglitz
Further reading:
People, Power, and Profits: Progressive Capitalism for an Age of Discontent: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781324004219
Four Priorities for Pandemic Relief Efforts: https://rooseveltinstitute.org/four-priorities-for-covid19-pandemic-relief-efforts/
Why Our Affluent Society Is Facing Shortages in the Face of the Coronavirus Pandemic: https://time.com/5811505/affluent-society-shortages-coronavirus-pandemic/
Deficit Lessons for the Pandemic From the 2008 Crisis: https://prospect.org/economy/deficit-lessons-pandemic-2008-crisis/
How the Economy Will Look After the Coronavirus Pandemic: https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/04/15/how-the-economy-will-look-after-the-coronavirus-pandemic/
Top economist: US coronavirus response is like ‘third world’ country: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2020/apr/22/top-economist-us-coronavirus-response-like-third-world-country-joseph-stiglitz-donald-trump
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Author Interview: Inside the Secret War on Voting with Thom Hartmann
Paul is joined this week by radio host Thom Hartmann to introduce Thom’s most recent book, ‘The Hidden History of the War on Voting: Who Stole Your Vote and How to Get It Back’. In this poignant interview, Thom explains the strategies and tactics that elites have long employed to disenfranchise American citizens and suppress votes.
Thom Hartmann is a progressive national and internationally syndicated talk show host. Talkers magazine named him America's most important progressive host and has named his show one of the top ten talk radio shows in the country every year for over a decade. A four-time recipient of the Project Censored Award, Hartmann is also a New York Times bestselling author of twenty-six books, translated into multiple languages.
Twitter: @Thom_Hartmann
Further reading:
The Hidden History of the War on Voting: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781523087785?aff=penguinrandom
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Inequality and coronavirus (with Heather Boushey and Michelle Holder)
The burdens of this pandemic are not borne equally. Economists Heather Boushey and Michelle Holder join the show this week to expose how the coronavirus is exacerbating the already-deep inequalities in our society.
Heather Boushey is the President & CEO and co-founder of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth. She is one of the nation’s most influential voices on economic policy and a leading economist who focuses on the intersection between economic inequality, growth, and public policy. Her latest book is Unbound: How Economic Inequality Constricts Our Economy and What We Can Do About It.
Twitter: @HBoushey
Michelle Holder is an Assistant Professor of Economics at John Jay College, City University of New York. Prior to joining the John Jay faculty, she worked professionally as an economist for over a decade in both the nonprofit and government sectors. Her research focuses on blacks and women in the American labor market, and her economic policy reports have been covered by the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Amsterdam News, and El Diario. Her first book African American Men and the Labor Market during the Great Recession was released from Palgrave Macmillan in 2017. Michelle’s educational background includes master’s and doctoral degrees in economics from the New School for Social Research in NYC, and a Bachelor’s degree in economics from Fordham University.
Twitter: @mlholder999
Further reading:
Unbound: https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674919310
The coronavirus recession and economic inequality: a roadmap to recovery and long-term structural change: https://equitablegrowth.org/the-coronavirus-recession-and-economic-inequality-a-roadmap-to-recovery-and-long-term-structural-change/
The “Double Gap” and the Bottom Line: https://rooseveltinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/RI_DoubleGap_Report_202003.pdf
Before COVID-19, corporate America shortchanged black women $50 billion annually: Why all women should care: https://msmagazine.com/2020/04/07/before-covid-19-corporate-america-shortchanged-black-women-50-billion-annually-why-all-women-should-care/
Inequality and poverty were destroying America well before Covid-19: https://www.thenation.com/article/society/inequality-and-poverty-were-destroying-america-well-before-covid-19/
Our uniquely American virus:
https://prospect.org/coronavirus/our-uniquely-american-virus/
Black Americans face alarming rates of coronavirus infection in some states: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/07/us/coronavirus-race.html
The coronavirus pandemic and the racial wealth gap: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/race/news/2020/03/19/481962/coronavirus-pandemic-racial-wealth-gap/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Austerity will make this recession worse (with Mike Konczal)
When revenues and expenses don’t add up in times of crisis, governments often turn to budget cuts and other austerity measures to balance their accounts. But economists widely agree that the most valuable lesson from the Great Recession is that austerity made the recession worse and slowed down recovery. Mike Konczal joins the show this week to explain why, in a recession, stimulus is particularly powerful and austerity is particularly harmful.
Mike Konczal is the Director of Progressive Thought at the Roosevelt Institute, where he works on financial reform, unemployment, inequality, and a progressive vision of the economy. He is a columnist at Vox, a contributor to The Nation, and a contributing editor at Dissent.
Twitter: @rortybomb @rooseveltinst
Further reading:
A forward-thinking policy response to the coronavirus recession: https://rooseveltinstitute.org/forward-thinking-policy-response-coronavirus-recession/
The stimulus plan that we need now: https://www.thenation.com/article/economy/coronavirus-stimulus/
With a uniquely fragile economy, stimulus is not enough: https://bostonreview.net/class-inequality-politics/mike-konczal-felicia-wong-uniquely-fragile-economy-stimulus-not-enough
Portugal dared to cast aside austerity. It’s having a major revival: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/22/business/portugal-economy-austerity.html
Worst recovery in postwar era largely explained by cuts in government spending: https://www.epi.org/blog/worst-recovery-in-post-war-era-largely-explained-by-cuts-in-government-spending/
What have we learned about austerity since the Great Recession? https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/reports/2014/05/30/90621/what-have-we-learned-about-austerity-since-the-great-recession/
The United States is not ready for a recession, but it can be: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/reports/2019/09/27/475075/united-states-not-ready-recession-can/
Austerity is hammering state economies: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/economy/reports/2012/06/21/11672/austerity-is-hammering-state-economies/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Labor regulations in the gaming industry (with Jennifer Hale)
Prolific voice actor Jennifer Hale joins Paul and Stephen to discuss her work in two very different fields: the video game industry, which largely isn't unionized, and the animated film industry, which enjoys strong union protections.
Jennifer Hale is a voice actress known for her work in video game series including Baldur’s Gate, Mass Effect, Halo, World of Warcraft, Spider Man, and many more. In 2013, she was recognized by Guinness World Records as the most prolific female video game voice actor.
Twitter: @jhaletweets
Further reading:
As video games make billions, the workers behind them say it’s time to unionize: https://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-video-game-union-movement-20190412-story.html
Game makers stare down major union drive: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/video-game-makers-stare-down-major-union-drive-1269510
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Leadership failure made the U.S. pandemic worse (with Ronald Klain)
Pathogens are inevitable—but the scale of disaster accompanying this pandemic was not. Ronald Klain, President Obama’s Ebola czar, joins Nick and Goldy to discuss why the extent of economic collapse and deaths we’ve seen from COVID-19 is borne of government unpreparedness and leadership failure, not fate.
Ronald Klain is a lawyer who served as the White House Ebola response coordinator for President Obama. He has held a wide variety of legal and policy positions in government, including his service as chief of staff to VPs Biden and Gore, chief of staff to the attorney general, associate counsel to the president, and chief counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee. He is currently an advisor to the Biden 2020 campaign.
Twitter: @RonaldKlain
Further reading:
Confronting the Pandemic Threat: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/40/confronting-the-pandemic-threat/
We’re past ‘if’ on the coronavirus. We’re on to ‘how bad will it be?’: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-coronavirus-has-landed-in-the-us-heres-how-we-can-reduce-the-risk/2020/01/22/afebe9ee-3d53-11ea-baca-eb7ace0a3455_story.html
Trump says US has coronavirus ‘completely under control’ as Washington state confirms first case outside of Asia: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/trump-coronavirus-china-wuhan-disease-outbreak-airport-screening-travel-a9296926.html
Obama’s ebola czar on what strong federal response looks like: https://www.wired.com/story/ebola-czar-ron-klain-federal-coronavirus-response/
The huge cost of waiting to contain the pandemic: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/14/opinion/covid-social-distancing.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
What’s happening in professional sports right now? (A curiosity break with Andrew Brandt)
What does the future of American sports look like? Okay, okay—we know this is out of our wheelhouse. But this week, we’re examining how the global pandemic has affected one very specific corner of the economy: professional sports leagues. Expert Andrew Brandt lays out the scale of losses due to cancellations in an industry that generates $80 billion a year just in direct revenue for North American leagues—plus several hundreds of billions more in indirect revenue for ancillary businesses (like the folks who staff the arenas).
Andrew Brandt is Professor of Practice and Executive Director of the Moorad Center for the Study of Sports Law at Villanova Law School. A contributor to ESPN and Sports Illustrated, he is also the host of the ‘Business of Sports’ podcast.
Twitter: @AndrewBrandt
Clips from CBS Evening News, NBC Sports, and ABC News.
Further reading:
The Coronavirus’s Economic Effect On Sports Could Be Staggering: https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-coronaviruss-economic-effect-on-sports-could-be-staggering/
Nearly 75% of Americans Wouldn’t Attend Games If No COVID-19 Vaccine Is Developed, Poll Says: https://www.si.com/sports-illustrated/2020/04/09/poll-sports-coronavirus-return
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
What’s changed since the 1918 pandemic? (A history lesson with Nancy Bristow)
How does our response to the coronavirus pandemic compare to our response 100 years ago, when what is commonly known as the “Spanish Flu” swept through America? Historian Nancy Bristow helps Annie understand the lessons American society learned from the 1918 influenza epidemic, and what we haven’t yet gotten right.
Nancy Bristow is the History Department Chair at the University of Puget Sound, where she teaches twentieth-century American history with an emphasis on race, gender, and social change. She is the author of ‘American Pandemic: The Lost Worlds of the 1918 Influenza Epidemic’.
Twitter: @univpugetsound
Further reading:
American Pandemic on Bookshop.org, an independent site that’s raising money for independent bookstores that are closed during the pandemic: https://bookshop.org/books/american-pandemic-the-lost-worlds-of-the-1918-influenza-epidemic/9780190238551
Or on IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780190238551
Cities that went all in on social distancing in 1918 emerged stronger for it: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/03/upshot/coronavirus-cities-social-distancing-better-employment.html
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Understanding the CARES Act (with Heidi Shierholz)
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) is big—but not big enough to protect working people. Economist Heidi Shierholz joins the show to explain where CARES falls short, and to recommend the safeguards we need to include in future bailout packages.
Heidi Shierholz is a Senior Economist and Director of Policy at the Economic Policy Institute. Her team monitors wage and employment policies coming out of Congress and the administration, and advances a worker-first policy agenda.
Twitter: @hshierholz
(News clip from FOX 17 VXMI)
Further reading:
Despite some good provisions, the CARES Act has glaring flaws and falls short of fully protecting workers during the coronavirus crisis: https://www.epi.org/blog/despite-some-good-provisions-the-cares-act-has-glaring-flaws-and-falls-short-of-fully-protecting-workers-during-the-coronavirus-crisis/
A widening toll on jobs: ‘This thing is going to come for us all’: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/02/business/economy/coronavirus-unemployment-claims.html
Does the stimulus package pass the test? https://civicskunk.works/does-the-stimulus-package-pass-the-test-a070bf4922dc
3.5 million workers likely lost their employer-provided health insurance in the past two weeks: https://www.epi.org/blog/3-5-million-workers-likely-lost-their-employer-provided-health-insurance-in-the-past-two-weeks/
Nearly 20 million workers will likely be laid off or furloughed by July: https://www.epi.org/blog/nearly-20-million-jobs-lost-by-july-due-to-the-coronavirus/
The CARES Act’s aid to state and local governments isn’t enough to shield vital public services from the coronavirus shock: https://www.epi.org/blog/the-cares-acts-aid-to-state-and-local-governments-isnt-enough-to-shield-vital-public-services-from-the-coronavirus-shock-lessons-from-the-great-recession-tell-us-why/
States get billions in record stimulus - but say it’s not enough: https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/albany/story/2020/03/26/states-get-billions-in-record-stimulus-but-say-its-not-enough-1269230
Here are safeguards needed in bailout packages to protect working people and fight corporate greed: https://www.epi.org/blog/any-industry-bailout-package-must-include-meaningful-protections-for-working-people-and-guardrails-against-corporate-greed/
A portrait of disaster: https://www.epi.org/press/a-portrait-of-disaster-initial-ui-claims-jump-from-211000-to-6-6-million-in-three-weeks/
Policymakers twice missed the chance to avert widespread job loss, now they should act to avoid more layoffs: https://www.epi.org/blog/policymakers-twice-missed-the-chance-to-avert-widespread-job-loss-now-they-should-act-to-avoid-more-layoffs/
Congress “CARES” for wealthy with COVID-19 tax policy provisions: https://itep.org/congress-cares-for-wealthy-with-covid-19-tax-policy-provisions/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
AMA: COVID-19 and the Economy
How bad will this recession be? Why is Congress bailing out big corporations that had record profits last year? What would happen if stock buybacks were permanently eliminated? This week, Nick and Goldy answer your questions about the economy in the time of COVID-19.
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Killing zombie ideas (with Paul Krugman)
In his latest book, Nobel Prize-winning economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman argues that economics has been eaten from within by bad assumptions he calls “zombie ideas.” You’ve encountered these zombies before: the idea that cutting taxes creates growth, or that providing healthcare for an entire country is too expensive. This week, Krugman joins Nick and Goldy in the fight to win economic models back from the neoclassical undead.
Paul Krugman is a professor of economics and international affairs at Princeton University, Centenary Professor at the London School of Economics, and an op-ed columnist for The New York Times. In 2008, he was the recipient of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his work on international trade theory. He is the author or editor of 23 books, including the recently published Arguing with Zombies: Economics, Politics, and the Fight for a Better Future.
Twitter: @paulkrugman
Arguing with Zombies: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/625526/arguing-with-zombies-by-paul-krugman/9781324005018
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Disaster Economics
As the world shelters in place from the coronavirus pandemic, an economic crisis is growing. This week, Nick and Goldy pull the curtain back on why trickle-down has made us extra vulnerable to disasters like COVID-19. Our focus always, but especially now, should be on building a more resilient and inclusive economy that can actively protect people from ruin and tragedy. The only limit to our ability to address this crisis is our imagination and our willingness to act.
Further reading:
Hurricanes hit the poor the hardest: https://www.brookings.edu/blog/social-mobility-memos/2017/09/18/hurricanes-hit-the-poor-the-hardest/
Insult to Injury: Natural Disasters and Residents’ Financial Health: https://www.urban.org/research/publication/insult-injury-natural-disasters-and-residents-financial-health
How natural disasters can increase inequality: https://www.pbs.org/newshour/economy/making-sense/how-natural-disasters-can-increase-inequality
Poverty and Death: Disaster and Mortality 1996-2015: https://reliefweb.int/report/world/poverty-death-disaster-and-mortality-1996-2015
Poll: Nearly 1 in 5 Households Have Lost Work Because of Pandemic: https://www.npr.org/2020/03/17/817158521/poll-nearly-1-in-5-households-have-lost-work-because-of-pandemic
Mnuchin warns senators of 20% US unemployment without coronavirus rescue, source says: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/18/mnuchin-warns-senators-of-20percent-us-unemployment-without-coronavirus-rescue-source-says.html
Coronavirus shock will likely claim 3 million jobs by summer: https://www.epi.org/blog/coronavirus-shock-will-likely-claim-3-million-jobs-by-summer/
News clips from CBS News and ABC News
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The federal budget is a theory of growth (with Bob Greenstein)
A budget is a moral document that reflects what we value and prioritize. But to most people, the budget-making process is convoluted and confusing. Budget expert Bob Greenstein joins Nick and Jasmin this week to explain how a budget is made, and how these mind-bogglingly huge numbers impact everyday life.
Bob Greenstein is the Founder and President of the Center of Budget and Policy Priorities, a nonpartisan research and policy institute that analyzes federal budget priorities. Greenstein is considered an expert on the federal budget and a range of domestic policy issues, including anti-poverty programs and various aspects of tax and health care policy.
Twitter: @GreensteinCBPP
Further reading:
Trump’s budget will wreak havoc on the American economy: https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/20/perspectives/trump-budget-economy/index.html
2021 Trump Budget Would Increase Hardship and Inequality: https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-budget/2021-trump-budget-would-increase-hardship-and-inequality
News clips from PBS NewsHour and Bloomberg Politics.
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Welcome to the golden age of white collar crime (with Michael Hobbes)
Why is right now the easiest time in modern history for the wealthy to get away with whatever they want? HuffPost reporter and fellow Seattleite Michael Hobbes joins Zach in the studio for a deep dive into his most recent article about white collar crime.
Michael Hobbes covers the new economy for HuffPost and is the co-host of the podcast “You’re Wrong About”.
Twitter: @RottenInDenmark
Further reading:
The Golden Age of White Collar Crime: https://www.huffpost.com/highline/article/white-collar-crime/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The emerging economic problems of the next decade (with futurist Kevin Kelly)
Pretend every economic problem we’ve ever discussed on this podcast has magically been solved. What’s next? What are the economic problems that we’ll face a decade from now? This week, Nick and Goldy are joined by futurist Kevin Kelly for a conversation based on a voicemail left by Pitchfork Economics listener Cody from Florida. Thanks, Cody!
You can call and leave us a voicemail, too—in fact, we would love it if you did! Our number is (731) 388-9334.
Kevin Kelly is Senior Maverick and co-founder at Wired. He has written for The New York Times, The Economist, Science, Time, and The Wall Street Journal among many other publications. His most recent book, The Inevitable: Understanding the 12 Technological Forces That Will Shape Our Future, is a New York Times Bestseller.
Twitter: @kevin2kelly
Further reading:
The Inevitable: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780525428084
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
From generosity to justice (with Darren Walker)
You can’t talk about philanthropy without mentioning Darren Walker. As the president of the Ford Foundation, Walker has been charged with reimagining one of the largest philanthropic endowments in the world. This week he joins Nick and Jessyn in a conversation about transforming philanthropy to meet the challenges of structural inequality.
Darren Walker is president of the Ford Foundation. He chaired the philanthropy committee that brought a resolution to the city of Detroit’s historic bankruptcy and is co-founder and chair of the US Impact Investing Alliance. Before joining Ford, Darren was vice president at the Rockefeller Foundation.
Twitter: @darrenwalker
Further reading:
From Generosity to Justice: https://www.fordfoundation.org/ideas/ford-forum/the-future-of-philanthropy/from-generosity-to-justice/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Paul’s Book Review: Democracy in Chains
Democracy in Chains is required reading around the Civic Ventures office, and Paul is happy to explain why it’s earned must-read status. Listen, be convinced, go read!
Democracy in Chains: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781101980965
Paul’s twitter: @paulconstant
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Debunking economics (with Steve Keen)
We’re continuing the conversation about reimagining capitalism this week with Professor Steve Keen, one of the biggest names in alternative economics. What would society look like if we stopped believing in long-held economic fictions like meritocracy and the equilibrium system?
Steve Keen has spent his career working to develop an alternative, realistic economics. He is the author of Debunking Economics and the designer of Minsky, an open source dynamic modelling program that makes it possible for anyone to build and understand monetary models of the economy. He was one of the first economists to correctly predict the 2008 financial crisis and its causes.
Twitter: @ProfSteveKeen
Steve Keen’s work is funded through Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ProfSteveKeen
Make sure you check out Majority.FM’s AM Quickie, the morning news podcast for progressives in the know: amquickie.com
Further reading:
Debunking Economics: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10303367-debunking-economics---revised-and-expanded-edition
Minsky download: https://sourceforge.net/projects/minsky/
Inequality, Debt, and Credit Stagnation: https://www.debtdeflation.com/blogs/2016/07/05/inequality-debt-and-credit-stagnation/
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
BONUS: Class warfare in Finland (a history lesson with Tuomas Tepora)
On Tuesday’s episode, Anu Partanen mentioned the Finnish civil war, which divided the country between elite land-owners and the working class. That’s right up our pitchforks alley - so we called an expert, Finnish professor Tuomas Tepora, for a history lesson.
Tuomas Tepora is a lecturer in history at the University of Helsinki. His research deals with a wide variety of topics related to the cultural history of war and the history of emotions.
Twitter: @TTepora
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Re-imagining capitalism (with Anu Partanen and Trevor Corson)
Contrary to popular belief, Nordic countries aren’t actually socialist! No, friends, the Nords are capitalists—but they pull it off much better than we do. To help re-imagine American capitalism, writers Anu Partanen and Trevor Corson join us this week all the way from Finland.
Anu Partanen is a journalist and the author of The Nordic Theory of Everything. The book debunks some of the most common myths about Nordic societies and discusses what the United States might be able to borrow from aspects of Nordic success in the twenty-first century. She has written for The New York Times and The Atlantic.
Twitter: @anupartanen
Trevor Corson is an award-winning author and editor. His articles and essays have appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, and many more.
Twitter: @TrevorCorson
Further reading:
The Nordic Theory of Everything: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780062316547
Finland Is a Capitalist Paradise: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/07/opinion/sunday/finland-socialism-capitalism.html
What Americans Don’t Get About Nordic Countries: https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/03/bernie-sanders-nordic-countries/473385/
Capitalism Redefined: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/31/capitalism-redefined/
Safe, happy and free: does Finland have all the answers? https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/feb/12/safe-happy-and-free-does-finland-have-all-the-answers
Make sure you check out Majority.FM’s AM Quickie, the morning news podcast for progressives in the know: amquickie.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Voicemails with Goldy
Goldy’s in the studio today answering your questions! Up for debate this time: What’s the line between needing to budget more and just not making enough money? Will raising the minimum wage hurt small, rural businesses? And how is public opinion about the difference between worker and CEO pay changing?
Find Goldy on Twitter: @GoldyHA
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The hidden costs of banking while poor (with Mehrsa Baradaran and Cate Blackford)
The average family earning $25,000 a year in the U.S. spends about $2,400 on financial transactions. Whether it’s the astronomical interest rates of a payday loan or the costs that come with being unbanked, the extractive practices of the financial services industry are effectively keeping the poor in poverty. Lawyer and author Mehrsa Baradaran and economic mobility expert Cate Blackford join Nick and Steph this week to explain why banking while poor is so expensive, and what states can do to rein in the people who profit from it.
Mehrsa Baradaran is a professor of law at UC Irvine. She writes about banking law, financial inclusion, inequality, and the racial wealth gap. Her scholarship includes the books How the Other Half Banks and The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap.
Twitter: @MehrsaBaradaran
Cate Blackford is the Director of Outreach and Donor Development at the Bell Policy Center, where she leads the Financial Equity Coalition to eradicate systemic discrimination and hold financial predators accountable. She was the Co-Chair of the 2018 Proposition 111 campaign in CO to limit the interest lenders could charge on payday loans and eliminate fees from payday lending products, which passed with 75% of the vote.
Twitter: @catetiller @BellPolicy
Further reading:
How the Other Half Banks: https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674983960
The Color of Money: https://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674237476
If the U.S. Government Treated Poor People as Well as It Treats Banks: https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/10/if-the-us-government-treated-poor-people-as-well-as-it-treats-banks/410614/
CO’s Prop 111 explained: https://coloradosun.com/2018/10/22/proposition-111-colorado-2018-explained/
Briefed by the Bell - Predatory Economy: https://www.bellpolicy.org/2018/09/10/predatory-economy/
How Do Payday Loans Work? https://www.incharge.org/debt-relief/how-payday-loans-work/
Make sure you check out Majority.FM’s AM Quickie, the morning news podcast for progressives in the know: amquickie.com
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How neoliberalism captured Democrats (with James Kwak)
Democrats used to be known as the party of the working people—so how did they get so off track? Who took over the party, and why? Author and professor James Kwak joins Nick and Paul in a blistering analysis of the decline of the Democratic Party, and explains how we can get it back on track.
News clips credit: C-SPAN, ProfGP, CNN
James Kwak is a professor at the UConn School of Law and the chair of the board of the Southern Center for Human Rights. He is the author or co-author of 13 Bankers, White House Burning, and Economism. His latest book, Take Back Our Party: Restoring the Democratic Legacy, is available for free online at The American Prospect.
Twitter: @jamesykwak
Read Take Back Our Party on The American Prospect:
Introduction - Restoring the Democratic Legacy: https://prospect.org/politics/take-back-our-party-restoring-the-democratic-legacy/
Chapter 1 - Their Democratic Party: https://prospect.org/takebackourparty/chapter-1-their-democratic-party/
Chapter 2 - Bad Policy: https://prospect.org/takebackourparty/chapter-2-bad-policy/
Chapter 3 - Bad Politics: https://prospect.org/takebackourparty/chapter-3-bad-politics/
Chapter 4 - Our Democratic Party:
https://prospect.org/takebackourparty/chapter-4-our-democratic-party/
Paul’s Book Review: Neighborhood Defenders
You’re probably aware of the term ‘NIMBY’, which refers to the folks who show up at their neighborhood meetings to fight development. The ‘Not In My Backyard’ argument is pervasive in urban and rural areas alike, and it’s notorious for impeding much-needed housing reform. This week, Paul recommends ‘Neighborhood Defenders: Participatory Politics and America’s Housing Crisis’, a book that dives into the NIMBY mind and explains the connections between these neighborhood defenders and America’s growing housing crisis.
Paul’s twitter: @paulconstant
Neighborhood Defenders: https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/neighborhood-defenders/0677F4F75667B490CBC7A98396DD527A
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Corporate parasites: how taxpayers subsidize profits (with Rana Foroohar and David Dayen)
Every company you can think of has benefitted from a public investment. Whether it’s direct handouts through the tax code, government research efforts, or employee reliance on programs like EITC or TANF, taxpayers are subsidizing wildly profitable companies.
David Dayen, the executive editor of The American Prospect, and Financial Times associate editor Rana Foroohar join Nick and Zach to explain how we let corporate parasites get so out of control—and what we can do about it.
News clips credit: CNBC, KING 5, NPR, Democracy Now!
Rana Foroohar is Global Business Columnist and an Associate Editor at the Financial Times. She is also CNN’s global economic analyst. She is the author of Makers and Takers: The Rise of Finance and the Fall of American Business and Don’t Be Evil: How Big Tech Betrayed Its Founding Principles and All of Us.
Twitter: @RanaForoohar / @FT / @CNN
David Dayen is the executive editor of The American Prospect. His work has appeared in The Intercept, The New Republic, HuffPost, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, and more. His is the author of Chain of Title: How Three Ordinary Americans Uncovered Wall Street’s Great Foreclosure Fraud.
Twitter: @ddayen / @theprospect
Further reading:
Confronting the parasite economy: https://prospect.org/labor/confronting-parasite-economy/
Makers and Takers: https://www.ranaforoohar.com/makersandtakers
How to Cure Corporate America’s Selfishness: https://newrepublic.com/article/150695/cure-corporate-americas-selfishness
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Ask Nick Anything (Part 2)
Up this week in listener questions: How much should you tip when you’re using a company credit card? What’s the difference between democratic socialism and the ideas we talk about? Who holds our national debt, and what does that even mean? And more!
Website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Naomi Klein - Unedited Interview
This fall, Naomi Klein joined the show to warn that economic orthodoxy may be the downfall of significant efforts against climate change like the Green New Deal and other big, sweeping reforms we need to combat it. Enjoy our full, unedited conversation with her.
Naomi Klein is an award-winning journalist and New York Times bestselling author. She is Senior Correspondent for The Intercept, a Puffin Writing Fellow at Type Media Center, and the inaugural Gloria Steinem Chair in Media, Culture and Feminist Studies at Rutgers University. Her most recent book, ‘On Fire: The (Burning) Case for a Green New Deal’, published worldwide in September, was an instant New York Times bestseller and a #1 Canadian bestseller.
Twitter: @NaomiAKlein
Our website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Our twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Our instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How big pharma keeps drug prices high (with Priti Krishtel and John Arnold)
The American pharmaceutical industry is rigged to make a handful people fabulously wealthy while everyone else gets screwed over. Because of intricate patent laws, we pay double what people in 29 other rich countries pay. Experts and change-makers Priti Krishtel and John Arnold join Nick and Jasmin to explain how we got into this mess (Monopolies! Patent law!), and what we can do about it.
Priti Krishtel is the Co-Founder and Co-Executive Director of I-MAK, a global organization that works to increase access to lifesaving medicine. A 15-year veteran of the global access to medicines movement, she helped lead the movement to a pivotal moment in treatment access history with the passage of a health-friendly patent law.
Twitter: @pritikrishtel
John Arnold is a former hedge fund manager who, with his wife Laura, now focuses on advocacy through their organization Arnold Ventures. Arnold Ventures has distributed more than $175 million in grants to over 80 healthcare nonprofit organizations, universities, and institutes with the ultimate goal to lower healthcare spending without compromising quality.
Twitter: @JohnArnoldFndtn
Further reading:
It’s Time for Pharmaceutical Companies to Have Their Tobacco Moment: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/24/opinion/drug-prices-congress.html
A Humira Prescription Costs $38,000 A Year Because Our Patent System Is Being Abused: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/opinion-humira-costs-patents_n_5bd0c893e4b0a8f17ef3961f
How Big Pharma Reaps Profits While Hurting Everyday Americans: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/democracy/reports/2019/08/30/473911/big-pharma-reaps-profits-hurting-everyday-americans/
Comprehensive Reform to Lower Prescription Drug Prices: https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/healthcare/news/2019/01/29/465621/comprehensive-reform-lower-prescription-drug-prices/
A Supreme Court victory for lowering drug prices: https://thehill.com/opinion/judiciary/385326-why-scotus-ruling-in-oil-states-v-greenes-energy-group-is-a-win-for-working
How a billionaire couple greased the skids for Nancy Pelosi’s drug pricing bill: https://www.statnews.com/2019/11/26/laura-john-arnold-billionaire-greased-the-skids-for-drug-pricing-bill/
Billionaire Philanthropist John Arnold On Drug Prices: Congress Needs to Act: https://www.forbes.com/sites/denizcam/2018/11/29/billionaire-philanthropist-john-arnold-on-drug-prices-the-congress-needs-to-act/#b6097ee57a25
Millions in U.S. Lost Someone Who Couldn’t Afford Treatment: https://news.gallup.com/poll/268094/millions-lost-someone-couldn-afford-treatment.aspx
Our website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Our twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Our instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Ask Nick Anything (Part 1)
Nick and Goldy are back to answer more of your voicemails! They’re tackling questions about housing, what our economic theory is actually called, portable benefits for gig economy workers, and more. Enjoy, and happy new year!
Resources:
TED Talk reading list: https://www.ted.com/talks/nick_hanauer_the_dirty_secret_of_capitalism_and_a_new_way_forward/reading-list?language=en
TED Talk references: https://www.ted.com/talks/nick_hanauer_the_dirty_secret_of_capitalism_and_a_new_way_forward/footnotes?language=en
Our website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Our twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Our instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Paul’s Book Review: Weapons of Math Destruction
Our resident book nerd Paul Constant is back with another book recommendation. This week, it’s ‘Weapons of Math Destruction: How Big Data Increases Inequality and Threatens Democracy.” Check it out for a greater understanding of how our biases shape the seemingly impartial numbers we use to measure the world.
Paul’s twitter: @paulconstant
Weapons of Math Destruction: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780553418811
Our website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Our twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Our instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
What’s the trick in trickle-down? (with Yuval Noah Harari and Molly Crockett)
What is the “trick” in “trickle down” economics? It’s how wealthy elites and their neoliberal lackeys convince you that what’s good for them (tax cuts, deregulation, etc.) is good for you… and that policies like the minimum wage, overtime, and paid sick leave will ruin the economy. Economics is a story we tell ourselves to help explain who gets what, and why. In this episode, which we’re re-issuing for the holidays because it’s just so dang good, we explore how to tell a better story.
Yuval Noah Harari is the author of international bestsellers: Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow, and 21 Lessons for the 21st Century. He is a professor in the Department of History at Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Twitter: @yuvalharari
Facebook: @Prof.Yuval.Noah.Harari
Instagram: @yuval_noah_harari
Molly Crockett is the director of the Crockett Lab and an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Yale University. She is also a Distinguished Research Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Neuroethics.
Twitter: @mollycrockett
Further reading:
A threat, not a theory: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/41/a-threat-not-a-theory/
To my fellow plutocrats: you can cure Trumpism: https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/07/18/to-my-fellow-plutocrats-you-can-cure-trumpism-215347
Our website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Our twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Our instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
The pitchforks are here (with Cesar Hidalgo)
In nations around the world, people are protesting economic inequality and taking to the streets in political frustration. We said it here first: The pitchforks are coming. This week, Cesar Hidalgo joins Nick and Paul to discuss the unrest in Chile and explain how his political organizing app is helping protestors prioritize the policies they want government to address.
The texture piece is courtesy of Gustavo de la Piedra, a listener from Santiago, Chile. The news clips are sourced from the news station France 24.
Cesar Hidalgo is a Chilean-Spanish physicist, author, and entrepreneur. He currently holds an ANITI (Artificial and Natural Intelligence Toulouse Institute) Chair at the University of Toulouse, an Honorary Professorship at the University of Manchester, and a Visiting Professorship at Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. From 2010 to 2019, Hidalgo led MIT’s Collective Learning group. He is known for the creation of the field of Economic Complexity, which uses disaggregate data and network methods to explain and predict economic development dynamics, for his work on the creation of data visualization and distribution systems, and for advancing ideas on the use of Artificial Intelligence in democracy.
Twitter: @cesifoti
Further reading:
The pitchforks are coming... for us plutocrats: https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/06/the-pitchforks-are-coming-for-us-plutocrats-108014
‘Chile Woke Up’: Dictatorship’s Legacy of Inequality Triggers Mass Protests: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/03/world/americas/chile-protests.html
Global protests share themes of economic anger and political hopelessness: https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2019/10/25/global-wave-protests-share-themes-economic-anger-political-hopelessness/
Chile announces $5.5 billion economic recovery plan as protests bite: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/03/chile-announces-5point5-billion-economic-recovery-plan.html
Does media have an economics problem? (with Charles Mudede)
Earlier this week, we examined whether journalists live up to their responsibility to discuss economic issues fairly and intelligently. Here, we continue that conversation with Charles Mudede, a local economics reporter here in Seattle. Charles joins Paul to examine the ways that media has let economics down, as well as the deep economic implications of films like Alien and Pretty in Pink.
Charles Mudede writes about film, books, music, and his life in Rhodesia, Zimbabwe, the USA, and the UK for The Stranger, Seattle’s alternative biweekly newspaper. He is also a filmmaker.
Twitter: @mudede
Further reading:
A Note on the Movie ‘Alien’ and Self-Checkout Machines: https://www.thestranger.com/blogs/slog/2015/02/13/21707530/the-future-of-work-in-the-21st-century-self-checkout-in-a-no-service-economy
Piketty Gives Good Economics: https://www.thestranger.com/seattle/piketty-gives-good-economics/Content?oid=19281392
And viewing:
Charles Mudede, “Adventures with Thomas Piketty”: https://vimeo.com/channels/smokefarmsymposium/108752151
Our website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Our twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Our instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
Does economics have a media problem? (with Matt Gertz)
Most people understand the economy through the news—how it’s doing, what the new laws are, and what experts predict for the future. For better or for worse, that means journalists largely dictate our common knowledge of economics issues. What’s the media’s responsibility as they cover the economy? Media Matters senior fellow Matt Gertz joins Steph and Paul to ponder the question: does economics have a media problem?
Matt Gertz is a senior fellow at Media Matters, a progressive research and information center dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media. Matt’s work focuses on the relationship between Fox News and the Trump administration, news coverage of politics and elections, and media ethics. His writing on the Trump-Fox feedback loop has appeared in The Daily Beast, HuffPost, and Politico Magazine, and he has discussed his analysis on MSNBC, NPR, and Comedy Central.
Twitter: @MattGertz
Further reading:
Media Matters website: https://www.mediamatters.org/
Who Fact-Checks the Fact-Checkers? https://civicskunk.works/who-fact-checks-the-fact-checkers-da45dc63e00c
How local ‘fake news’ websites spread ‘conservative propaganda’ in the US: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/nov/19/locality-labs-fake-news-local-sites-newspapers
Study: Major media outlets show improvement at debunking Trump misinformation on Twitter: https://www.mediamatters.org/donald-trump/study-major-media-outlets-show-improvement-debunking-trump-misinformation-twitter
Our website: http://pitchforkeconomics.com/
Our twitter: @PitchforkEcon
Our instagram: @pitchforkeconomics
Nick’s twitter: @NickHanauer
How monopolies feed plutocracy (with Matt Stoller)
In his new book ‘Goliath’, author Matt Stoller explains how the 2016 election heralded the return of authoritarianism and populism to American politics, due largely to concentrated financial power and rampant consumerism. This week, Matt joins Nick and Goldy for a conversation about creating a new democracy.
Matt Stoller is the author of ‘Goliath: The Hundred-Year War Between Monopoly Power and Democracy’ and a fellow at the Open Markets Institute. He is a former policy advisor to the Senate Budget Committee, and also worked for a member of the Financial Services Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives during the financial crisis.
Twitter: @matthewstoller
Further reading:
Goliath: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Goliath/Matt-Stoller/9781501183089
How Democrats Killed Their Populist Soul: https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/10/how-democrats-killed-their-populist-soul/504710/
Tech Companies Are Destroying Democracy and the Free Press: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/17/opinion/tech-monopoly-democracy-journalism.html
Boeing’s travails show what’s wrong with modern capitalism: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/sep/11/boeing-capitalism-deregulation
BONUS: George Monbiot - Unedited Conversation
George Monbiot joined us on our ‘How neoliberalism happened’ episode last month. Enjoy our full, unedited conversation with him!
George Monbiot writes a weekly column for The Guardian and is the author of a number of books, most recently ‘Out of the Wreckage: A New Politics for an Age of Crisis’. As an investigative journalist and self-described “professional troublemaker,” George uncovers the complicated truths behind the world’s most persistent problems.
Twitter: @GeorgeMonbiot
How to make the rich pay their taxes (with Gabriel Zucman)
Tax rates on the wealthy have steadily eroded in the United States over the last forty years, leaving us with an upside-down tax code that benefits the rich. And it’s surprisingly easy for powerful people to evade the taxes that they do owe, which inevitably inspires another round of harsh budget cuts from conservative lawmakers. Gabriel Zucman, the authority on wealth taxes, joins us this week to explain how the rich dodge taxes, and how we can fix the tax system.
Gabriel Zucman is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley. His research focuses on the accumulation, distribution, and preservation of wealth, with a global and historical perspective. He is the author of ‘The Hidden Wealth of Nations: The Scourge of Tax Havens’, and the co-author, with Emmanuel Saez, of the new book ‘The Triumph of Injustice: How the Rich Dodge Taxes and How to Make Them Pay’.
Twitter: @gabriel_zucman
Further reading:
The Triumph of Injustice: https://wwnorton.com/books/the-triumph-of-injustice
The Wealth Detective Who Finds the Hidden Money of the Super Rich: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2019-05-23/the-wealth-detective-who-finds-the-hidden-money-of-the-super-rich
Economic woman (with Katrine Marçal, Lisa D. Cook, and Anna Gifty Opoku-Agyeman)
We’ve heard all about economic man, but what happened to economic woman? Women are noticeably absent in theoretical economic models and—perhaps not so coincidentally—they're also massively underrepresented in the field of economics itself. This week, we’re joined by journalist Katrine Marçal and economists Dr. Lisa Cook and Anna Gifty Opoku-Agyeman in an examination of why women are excluded from economics, and what we can do about it.
Katrine Marçal is a journalist for Dagens Nyheter, Sweden’s most prestigious daily newspaper. Her book Who Cooked Adam Smith’s Dinner? was shortlisted for the August Prize in 2012 and has been translated into 19 languages.
Twitter: @katrinemarcal
Dr. Lisa D. Cook is an Associate Professor of Economics and International Relations at Michigan State University. Among her current research interests are economic growth and development, financial institutions and markets, innovation, and economic history. As a Senior Economist at the President’s Council of Economic Advisers during the 2011-2012 academic year, Dr. Cook worked on the euro zone, financial instruments, innovation, and entrepreneurship.
Twitter: @drlisadcook
Anna Gifty Opoku-Agyeman is a Research Scholar in Economics at Harvard University working at the Blair Economics Lab, a Visiting Research Fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and a pre-doctoral trainee of the NYU/Schmidt Futures Program. She is the co-founder and CEO of The Sadie Collective, a group that supports greater representation of black women in economics and related fields.
Twitter: @itsafronomics
Further reading:
Who Cooked Adam Smith’s Dinner? https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781681771427
Opinion: It Was a Mistake for Me to Choose This Field: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/30/opinion/economics-black-women.html
The Sadie Collective: https://www.sadiecollective.org/our-mission.html
Why are there so few women economists? https://review.chicagobooth.edu/economics/2019/article/why-are-there-so-few-women-economists
Women’s Economic Agenda: https://www.epi.org/womens-agenda/
Listener voicemails! (with Nick and Goldy)
It’s three answers to three voicemails! Nick and Goldy field questions about self-interest in Congress, CEO accountability to shareholders, and if inflation is inevitable when you raise the minimum wage.
Is economic orthodoxy evolving? (with Luigi Zingales)
‘Chicago School’ is a descriptor often used to signify conventional economic thinking. This week, our friend Luigi Zingales, a finance professor at the Chicago Booth School of Business, joins Nick and Goldy to find out where they agree—and where they disagree. They discuss wealth taxes, health care, student loan forgiveness, shareholder value maximization, the Green New Deal, and more.
Luigi Zingales is a Professor of Entrepreneurship and Finance and the Director of the Stigler Center at the Chicago Booth School of Business. He is the author of two books: ‘Saving Capitalism from Capitalists’, with Raghuram G. Rajan, and ‘A Capitalism for the People: Recapturing the Lost Genius of American Prosperity’. Luigi is also the co-host of the podcast ‘Capitalisn’t’.
Twitter: @zingales @zingales_it
A Capitalism for the People: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780465085958
Can we hold big corporations to higher standards? (with Mayor Dave Bieter and E.J. Dionne)
Nick pitches a big idea to the mayor of Boise and political commentator E. J. Dionne: a suite of progressive labor standards that would hold large employers to higher standards nationwide. Is this the way to bring progressive, inclusive economic growth to rural America?
Dave Bieter is the Mayor of Boise, Idaho. Now serving his fourth term, he is the longest serving Mayor in Boise’s history.
Twitter: @MayorBieter
E. J. Dionne writes about politics in a twice-weekly column for The Washington Post. He is also a government professor at Georgetown University, a visiting professor at Harvard University, a senior fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution and a frequent commentator on politics for NPR and MSNBC. He is a New York Times bestselling author, and his newest book ‘Code Red: How Progressives and Moderates Can Unite to Save Our Country’ is out next year.
Twitter: @EJDionne
Further reading:
Progressive Labor Standards: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/51/progressive-labor-standards/
HALLOWEEN SPECIAL: Trickle-Down or Treat
We asked our guests and listeners: what’s the spookiest, sneakiest, and scariest trickle-down trick? Find out what’s making Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, Professor Stephanie Kelton, author Matt Stoller, and more good witches and wizards quake in their boots this Halloween.
Tax me more, I’m rich (with Abigail Disney and Chye-Ching Huang)
Trickle-down economics would have you believe that the rich are job creators—the more money they have to invest in creating jobs, the better the economy is for everybody. This lie has had catastrophic effects: the top 0.1% of Americans now own more wealth than the bottom 90% of Americans combined. Class traitor Abigail Disney and tax expert Chye-Ching Huang are on this week to make the case for taxing the rich.
Abigail Disney is a documentary filmmaker, philanthropist, and social activist. She is the granddaughter of Roy Disney, the co-founder of the Walt Disney Company.
Twitter: @abigaildisney
Chye-Ching Huang is the Director of Federal Fiscal Policy at the Center on Budget Policy Priorities, where she focuses on the fiscal and economic effects of federal tax and budget policy. She rejoined the Center in 2011 after working as a Senior Lecturer at the University of Auckland, where she taught tax law and conducted research in tax law and policy.
Twitter: @dashching CenteronBudget
Further reading:
For the first time in history, U.S. billionaires paid a lower tax rate than the working class last year: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/10/08/first-time-history-us-billionaires-paid-lower-tax-rate-than-working-class-last-year/
In Open Letter, Billionaires Co-Sign New Wealth Tax Proposal: ‘Revenue Should Come From the Most Financially Fortunate’: https://time.com/5613228/billionaires-calling-for-wealth-taxes/
Want to grow the economy? Tax rich people like me: https://www.businessinsider.com/nick-hanauer-defends-wealth-tax-grow-economy-create-jobs-2019-7
Disney Heiress Calls for Wealth Tax: ‘We Have To Draw A Line’: https://www.npr.org/2019/06/28/736993245/disney-heiress-calls-for-wealth-tax-we-have-to-draw-a-line
Tax Code Can Do More to Narrow Racial Gaps in Income and Wealth: https://www.cbpp.org/blog/tax-code-can-do-more-to-narrow-racial-gaps-in-income-and-wealth
Wealth tax explainer: Why Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren and billionaires like George Soros alike are calling for a specialized tax on the ultra-wealthy: https://www.businessinsider.com/wealth-tax-definition-explained-elizabeth-warren-2019-7
Fundamentally Flawed 2017 Tax Law Largely Leaves Low- and Moderate-Income Americans Behind: https://www.cbpp.org/federal-tax/fundamentally-flawed-2017-tax-law-largely-leaves-low-and-moderate-income-americans
The Rich Can’t Get Richer Forever, Can They? https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/09/02/the-rich-cant-get-richer-forever-can-they
The Disney heiress who’s begging for a wealth tax says income inequality has created a ‘superclass’ in the US -- and it’s putting the American dream at risk: https://www.businessinsider.com/abigail-disney-income-inequality-american-dream-wealth-tax-2019-6
How the Federal Tax Code Can Better Advance Racial Equity: https://www.cbpp.org/research/federal-tax/how-the-federal-tax-code-can-better-advance-racial-equity
Will bad economics kill the Green New Deal? (with Naomi Klein and J.W. Mason)
The only thing holding us back from big, bold, progressive change is ourselves. When critics wonder if we can afford to pay for the Green New Deal, they couch their concerns in the language of neoliberal economics: they say that investing in the middle class, raising wages, and doing too much too quickly will ruin the economy. This week, Naomi Klein and J.W. Mason join us to explain why the economic status quo is the greatest barrier to the Green New Deal becoming a reality, and how we actually can afford to change our economy so drastically.
Naomi Klein is an award-winning journalist and New York Times bestselling author. She is Senior Correspondent for The Intercept, a Puffin Writing Fellow at Type Media Center, and the inaugural Gloria Steinem Chair in Media, Culture and Feminist Studies at Rutgers University. Her most recent book, ‘On Fire: The (Burning) Case for a Green New Deal’, published worldwide in September, was an instant New York Times bestseller and a #1 Canadian bestseller.
Twitter: @NoamiAKlein
J.W. Mason is a Fellow at the Roosevelt Institute, where he works on the Financialization Project, and an assistant professor of economics at John Jay College, CUNY. His current research focuses on the history and political economy of credit, including the evolution of household debt and changing role of financial markets in business investment. He also works on the history of economic thought, particularly the development of macroeconomics over the twentieth century.
Twitter: @JWMason1
Further reading and resources:
On Fire: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781982129910
Can We Afford a Green New Deal? http://jwmason.org/slackwire/can-we-afford-a-green-new-deal/
Decarbonizing the US Economy: Pathways Toward a Green New Deal: https://rooseveltinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Roosevelt-Institute_Green-New-Deal_Digital-Final.pdf
A Message from the Future with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9uTH0iprVQ
With a Green New Deal, Here’s What the World Could Look Like for the Next Generation: https://theintercept.com/2018/12/05/green-new-deal-proposal-impacts/
Paul’s Book Review: Kochland
Be still, our hearts—it’s another book review, straight from the glittering literary mind of Paul Constant. This week, Paul recommends the New York Times Bestseller ‘Kochland’ by Christopher Leonard, a deeply reported investigation of Koch Industries’ secretive corporate power, smarmy public influence, and weird libertarian agenda. Plus: literal back-stabbing!
Kochland: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781476775388
Twitter: @paulconstant
Paul’s website, The Seattle Review of Books: https://seattlereviewofbooks.com/
The trade-offs of global trade (with Dean Baker and Port Commissioner Ryan Calkins)
In the 1990s and early 2000s, free trade was considered an unalloyed good. But now, policymakers and economists agree that global trade creates winners and losers—and they acknowledge that we've never really tried to fairly compensate the losers. Economist Dean Baker and Seattle Port Commissioner Ryan Calkins help us try to imagine a more equitable way forward on international trade.
Dean Baker is a senior economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, an organization he co-founded in 1999. His areas of research include housing, consumer prices, intellectual property, trade, employment, Social Security, and Medicare. He is the author of several books, including ‘Rigged: How Globalization and the Rules of the Modern Economy Were Structured to Make the Rich Richer,’ and his blog, ‘Beat the Press,’ provides commentary on economic reporting. He is currently a visiting professor at the University of Utah.
Twitter: DeanBaker13
Ryan Calkins is a Port of Seattle Commissioner specializing in sustainable economic development, ensuring that our region's prosperity is shared among all of our communities. Commissioner Calkins also works as a nonprofit professional at Ventures, a charitable organization that supports low income entrepreneurs who are starting and growing businesses in the Puget Sound Area.
Twitter: @ryancalkinsSEA
How neoliberalism happened (with George Monbiot and Binyamin Appelbaum)
It’s trendy to mock the malicious pervasiveness of neoliberalism now, but have you ever wondered what its origins are? This week, George Monbiot and Binyamin Appelbaum join the show to uncover just where the dominant economic theory of our time came from and how it took hold.
George Monbiot writes a weekly column for The Guardian and is the author of a number of books, most recently ‘Out of the Wreckage: A New Politics for an Age of Crisis’. As an investigative journalist and self-described “professional troublemaker,” George uncovers the complicated truths behind the world’s most persistent problems.
Twitter: @GeorgeMonbiot
Binyamin Appelbaum writes about economics and business for the editorial page of The New York Times. From 2010 to 2019, he was a Washington correspondent for the Times, covering economic policy in the aftermath of the 2008 crisis. His new book, ‘The Economists’ Hour: False Prophets, Free Markets, and the Fracture of Society’ is a Wall Street Journal Business Bestseller.
Twitter: @BCAppelbaum
Further reading:
Out of the Wreckage: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781786632890
The Economists’ Hour: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780316512329
Neoliberalism - the ideology at the root of all our problems: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/apr/15/neoliberalism-ideology-problem-george-monbiot
Games Economists Play: http://bostonreview.net/class-inequality/marshall-steinbaum-games-economists-play
BONUS: Rewriting the rules for an inclusive economy (with Darrick Hamilton)
As we reimagine the rules of our political and economic institutions, it is essential that racial justice be centered in the conversation. Darrick Hamilton explains how neoliberalism exploits existing structures of racism and power in America, and shares his optimism for a course-correction that will promote broadly shared prosperity.
Darrick Hamilton is the Executive Director of the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity at The Ohio State University, and a fellow at the Roosevelt Institute. As a stratification economist, his research focuses on the causes, consequences, and remedies of racial and ethnic inequality in economic and health outcomes, which includes an examination of the intersections of identity, racism, colorism, and socioeconomic outcomes.
Twitter: @DarrickHamilton
Further reading:
New Rules for the 21st Century: Corporate Power, Public Power, and the Future of the American Economy:
https://rooseveltinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Roosevelt-Institute_2021-Report_Digital-copy.pdf
Why philanthropy can’t undo this mess (with Anand Giridharadas)
Few books have shaken the philanthropy world more than ‘Winners Take All’, Anand Giridharadas’s blistering critique of wealthy do-gooders. Global elites who ostentatiously give away hundreds of millions of dollars, he argues, are actually just preserving the status quo that grants them power in the first place. This week, Anand joins Nick and Goldy to explain how do-gooding perpetuates inequality.
Anand Giridharadas is a writer. His most recent book, ‘Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World,’ is a national bestseller. He is an editor-at-large for TIME, an on-air political analyst for MSNBC, and a visiting scholar at the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute at New York University.
Twitter: @AnandWrites
Further reading:
Winners Take All: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/539747/winners-take-all-by-anand-giridharadas/9780451493248
Beware Rich People Who Say They Want to Change the World: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/24/opinion/sunday/wealth-philanthropy-fake-change.html
BONUS: Saru Jayaraman - Unedited Conversation
Food labor expert Saru Jayaraman joined us earlier this month to expose the lie of marginal productivity, and to reveal how it’s used to take advantage of workers. For the sake of time, we cut a fascinating tangent on the minimum wage and the restaurant industry from that episode, but it’s so insightful we just had to share it with you. Catch it here, with Saru and Goldy’s full conversation.
Saru Jayaraman is the Co-Founder and President of the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC United) and Director of the Food Labor Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley. Saru authored ‘Behind the Kitchen Door’, a national bestseller, and her most recent book is ‘Forked: A New Standard for American Dining.’
Twitter: @SaruJayaraman
Saru Jayaraman: How Restaurant Workers Are Inheriting a Legacy of Slavery in the U.S.: https://bioneers.org/saru-jayaraman-restaurant-workers-inheriting-legacy-slavery-u-s-ztvz1712/
Author Interview: Chris Arnade
In an effort to rethink the conversation around poverty, author Chris Arnade’s new book, ‘Dignity: Seeking Respect in Back Row America’, pushes aside decades of academic detachment, instead encouraging those who have been left out of prosperity to describe their own experiences. This week, Chris joins Goldy for a wide-ranging conversation about poverty, addiction, and inequality.
Chris Arnade is a writer and photographer covering addiction and poverty in America. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, The Guardian, and the Washington Post, among many others.
Twitter: @Chris_arnade
Further reading:
Our forgotten towns: struggle, resilience, love and respect in ‘back-row America’: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/jun/05/america-dignity-chris-arnade-book-extract-poverty
Dignity on IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9780525534730
Paul’s Book Review #2: Janesville, An American Story
Everyone’s favorite human library, Paul Constant, is back with a review of ‘Janesville, An American Story’ by Pulitzer Prizewinning journalist Amy Goldstein. Pair with a Wisconsin-brewed beer.
Buy Janesville on IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781501102233
Behind the scenes of Nick’s new TED Talk: The dirty secret of capitalism—and a new way forward
In July, Nick took the stage at TEDSummit in Edinburgh, Scotland to make the case for a new economics that recognizes people, not capital, as the driver of economic growth. The talk, released by TED last week, explains why unchecked greed will inevitably lead to the collapse of society. In this episode, Nick takes us behind the scenes of the making of the speech and shares his hopes for its impact, and TED Business Curator Corey Hajim gives us insight into the making of a TED conference. To hear Nick's full speech, visit the links below.
Video of Nick’s TED Talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/nick_hanauer_the_dirty_secret_of_capitalism_and_a_new_way_forward
Audio of Nick’s talk on the TED Talks Daily podcast: https://podcasts.google.com/?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5mZWVkYnVybmVyLmNvbS9URURUYWxrc19hdWRpbw&episode=ZW4uYXVkaW8udGFsay50ZWQuY29tOjQ4NTQ1&hl=en&ep=6&at=1568658932671
Twitter: @NickHanauer
Does the market really pay you what you’re worth? (with Marshall Steinbaum and Saru Jayaraman)
The theory of marginal product of labor says that every worker is paid exactly what they’re worth—the value that their labor generates. Employers cite marginal productivity to legitimize paying the lowest wages possible, but it’s just another trickle-down scam. Economist Marshall Steinbaum and food labor expert Saru Jayaraman join us this week to expose the lie of marginal productivity and show how it’s been used to exploit workers for centuries.
Marshall Steinbaum is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Utah and a Senior Fellow of Higher Education Finance at the Jain Family Institute. He studies market power in labor markets and its policy implications. He was previously a Senior Economist and Fellow at the Roosevelt Institute, and a Research Economist at the Center for Equitable Growth.
Twitter: @Econ_Marshall
Saru Jayaraman is the Co-Founder and President of the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United (ROC United) and Director of the Food Labor Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley. Saru authored ‘Behind the Kitchen Door’, a national bestseller, and her most recent book is ‘Forked: A New Standard for American Dining.’
Twitter: @SaruJayaraman
Further reading
No, Productivity Does Not Explain Income: https://evonomics.com/no-productivity-does-not-explain-income/
ROC United Diners’ Guide App: https://rocunited.org/diners-guide/
Saru Jayaraman: How Restaurant Workers Are Inheriting a Legacy of Slavery in the U.S.: https://bioneers.org/saru-jayaraman-restaurant-workers-inheriting-legacy-slavery-u-s-ztvz1712/
Evidence and Analysis of Monopsony Power, Including But Not Limited To, In Labor Markets: https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/public_comments/2018/08/ftc-2018-0054-d-0006-151013.pdf
Antitrust and Labor Market Power: https://econfip.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Antitrust-and-Labor-Market-Power.pdf
Why Are Economists Giving Piketty the Cold Shoulder?
http://bostonreview.net/class-inequality/marshall-steinbaum-why-are-economists-giving-piketty-cold-shoulder
BONUS: Voicemails with Nick and Goldy
It’s that time again—Nick and Goldy are answering your messages. This week, Dale from Washington D.C. wonders if rent control is a symptom of low wages or a safeguard from hardship, and Warren calls in all the way from Toronto to ask how capitalism can measure growth in a way that won’t destroy the planet. Fun! Enjoy.
Twitter: @NickHanauer, @GoldyHA
How to spot a bogus minimum wage study (with Ben Zipperer)
Not all minimum-wage studies are equal. Some of the most headline-grabbing negative reports on the effects of the minimum wage were commissioned and promoted by right-wing organizations looking to legitimize trickle-down policies that hurt workers. How can you spot studies that aren’t worth their salt? Economist Ben Zipperer joins Nick and Jasmin to reveal some of the tricks that economists pull, and to help us understand how some studies can conclude that raising wages will kill jobs—even though, as we know, the opposite is true.
Ben Zipperer is an economist at the Economic Policy Institute. His areas of expertise include the minimum wage, inequality, and low-wage labor markets. He has published research in the Industrial and Labor Relations Review and has been quoted in outlets such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, Bloomberg, and the BBC.
Twitter: @benzipperer, @EconomicPolicy
Further reading:
Gradually raising the minimum wage to $15 would be good for workers, good for businesses, and good for the economy: https://www.epi.org/publication/minimum-wage-testimony-feb-2019/
Six reasons not to put too much weight on the new study of Seattle’s minimum wage: https://www.epi.org/blog/six-reasons-not-to-put-too-much-weight-on-the-new-study-of-seattles-minimum-wage/
Studies mentioned in the episode:
New EPI study: The Effect of Minimum Wages on Low-Wage Jobs: Evidence from the United States Using a Bunching Estimator: https://www.nber.org/papers/w25434
Card and Krueger: Minimum Wages and Employment: A Case Study of the Fast-Food Industry in New Jersey and Pennsylvania: http://davidcard.berkeley.edu/papers/njmin-aer.pdf
University of Washington study - Minimum Wage Increases, Wages, and Low-Wage Employment: Evidence from Seattle: https://www.nber.org/papers/w23532
Does the future of work include a Federal Jobs Guarantee? (with Pavlina Tcherneva and Representative Ro Khanna)
Under a Federal Jobs Guarantee, rather than distributing unemployment checks, the government would give a living-wage job to everyone that needs one. It’s a concept that’s been gaining popularity recently, and it’s often pitted against universal basic income. For the second episode in this two-part series exploring both ideas, expert Pavlina Tcherneva and Representative Ro Khanna join Nick and Paul to make the case for a Job Guarantee.
Pavlina Tcherneva is an Associate Professor of Economics at Bard College and a Research Scholar at the Levy Economics Institute. Her research on the job guarantee has informed the proposals of several members of congress, and she has collaborated with governments around the world on designing and evaluating employment programs.
Twitter: @ptcherneva
Ro Khanna is the U.S. Representative from California’s 17th congressional district. He sits on the House Budget, Armed Services, and Oversight and Reform committees and is first vice chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. He also serves as an Assistant Whip for the Democratic Caucus. In 2018, he introduced legislation to ensure that every jobless worker in the country is given the opportunity to earn a living.
Twitter: @RoKhanna
Further reading:
Ro Khanna Has an Ambitious Plan to Put the Unemployed to Work. Just Don’t Call It a Job Guarantee. https://slate.com/business/2018/07/ro-khanna-has-an-ambitious-plan-to-help-the-unemployed-just-dont-call-it-a-job-guarantee.html
Trump’s bait and switch: job creation in the midst of welfare state sabotage: http://www.paecon.net/PAEReview/issue78/Tcherneva78.pdf
4 big questions about job guarantees: https://www.vox.com/2018/4/27/17281676/job-guarantee-design-bad-jobs-labor-market-federal-reserve
The Federal Job Guarantee - A Policy to Achieve Permanent Full Employment: https://www.cbpp.org/research/full-employment/the-federal-job-guarantee-a-policy-to-achieve-permanent-full-employment
Unemployment: The Silent Epidemic: http://www.levyinstitute.org/pubs/wp_895.pdf
The Job Guarantee: Design, Jobs, and Implementation: http://www.levyinstitute.org/pubs/wp_902.pdf
Paul’s Book Review: Listen, Liberal
We love books here at Civic Ventures, and writer, book reviewer, and former bookseller Paul Constant is the first person on the team that we go to for recommendations. Today, we’re excited to share his thoughts about ‘Listen, Liberal’ by Thomas Frank in his first book review for the podcast! According to Paul, ‘Listen, Liberal’ just might have the power to make Democrats relevant again. So cozy up, press play, and let Paul tell you about a book. Pair with a cup of tea.
Listen, Liberal: http://listenliberal.com/
Twitter: @paulconstant
Paul’s website, The Seattle Review of Books: https://seattlereviewofbooks.com/
A skeptic's guide to Universal Basic Income (with Scott Santens and Sukhi Samra)
You can’t throw a rock without hitting a wandering conversation about Universal Basic Income these days—but in our office, we’re still skeptical. For the first in a two-episode series exploring guaranteed income and its sister idea, guaranteed jobs, UBI expert Scott Santens and Sukhi Samra, the executive director of a real-life UBI experiment in California, join Nick and Paul to make the case for a universal basic income.
Scott Santens is a prominent UBI advocate with a crowdfunded income via Patreon. As a writer and blogger, his pieces advocating for basic income have appeared in The Huffington Post, The Boston Globe, TechCrunch, Vox, the World Economic Forum, and Politico. He is on the board of directors of the U.S. Basic Income Guarantee Network, a founding member of the Economic Security Project, an advisor to the Universal Income Project, a founding committee member of Basic Income Action, and founder of the BIG Patreon Creator Pledge.
Twitter: @scottsantens
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/scottsantens
Sukhi Samra is the Executive Director of the Stockton Empowerment Demonstration (SEED), a pilot program to test a universal basic income in Stockton, CA. SEED is the country’s first-ever city-led Guaranteed Income Initiative.
Twitter: @stocktondemo
Further reading:
Our Vision for SEED: A Discussion Paper: https://www.stocktondemonstration.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/SEED-Discussion-Paper.pdf
What would a universal basic income mean for America? Stockton thinks it has the answer: https://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-pol-ca-basic-income-stockton-reparations-20190415-story.html
The Progressive Case for Replacing the Welfare State with Basic Income: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-progressive-case-for_b_12236546
Shared security, shared growth: a social contract for the 21st century (with Senator Mark Warner and Abby Solomon)
There are nearly 60 million gig economy workers in the U.S. workforce, yet benefits like health care, retirement, and paid leave are still tied to traditional salaried jobs. It is essential that we adopt new policies guaranteeing all workers the basic level of economic security necessary to sustain and grow the American middle class—and with it, the economy as a whole. This week, Senator Mark Warner and SEIU 775 Benefits Group Executive Director Abby Solomon imagine what a shared security system designed to fit modern flexible employment realities might look like.
Senator Mark Warner is the senior U.S. Senator from Virginia. He serves on the Senate Finance, Banking, Budget, and Rules Committees as well as the Select Committee on Intelligence, where he is the Vice Chairman. From 2002 to 2006, he served as Governor of Virginia. Senator Warner spent 20 years as a successful technology and business leader in Virginia before entering public office.
Twitter: @MarkWarner
Abby Solomon is the Executive Director of SEIU 775 Benefits Group, overseeing trusts for training, health, and retirement benefits for Washington state’s Home Care Aide workforce. The Benefits Group provides portable benefits to 50,000 home care workers. Previously, Abby was the Director of Home Care Campaigns at SEIU, where she led national advocacy campaigns representing 1.9 million workers and 100+ occupational fields throughout the United States and Canada.
Twitter: @SEIU775BG
Further reading:
Shared Security, Shared Growth: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/37/shared-security-shared-growth/
Portable Benefits for an Insecure Workforce: https://prospect.org/article/portable-benefits-insecure-workforce
Building a portable benefits system for today’s world: http://seiu775.org/building-a-portable-benefits-system-for-todays-world/
Educationism (with Diane Ravitch)
Like many rich Americans, Nick used to think that focusing their philanthropic efforts in the country’s education system could heal many of our biggest problems. But in The Atlantic last month, he admitted he was wrong—better schools won’t fix America unless we fix inequality first. He’s joined this week by Diane Ravitch, a giant in the education policy world who also changed her mind about what works and what doesn’t. Can these two converts from the theory of educationism find a new way to expand educational opportunity in America while also combating runaway income inequality?
Diane Ravitch is a Research Professor of Education at New York University and a historian of education. She is the Founder and President of the Network for Public Education. From 1991 to 1993, she was Assistant Secretary of Education under President George H.W. Bush, where she led the federal effort to promote the creation of voluntary state and national academic standards. In her book ‘The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice Are Undermining Education’, Ravitch examines her career in education reform and repudiates positions that she once staunchly advocated.
Twitter: @DianeRavitch
Further reading:
Better Schools Won’t Fix America: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/07/education-isnt-enough/590611/
The robots are coming… what now? (with Heidi Shierholz and Daron Acemoglu)
With every technological advancement since the dawn of time, conventional wisdom has warned that technology and automation kills jobs. But robots aren’t the root cause of our problems. Although technology has always changed the nature of work, this week's guests Heidi Shierholz and Daron Acemoglu argue that there is no evidence that it has led or will lead to overall increased joblessness, unemployment, or wage stagnation.
Heidi Shierholz is a Senior Economist and the Director of Policy at the Economic Policy Institute. She was a Chief Economist at the U.S. Department of Labor under President Obama from 2014 to 2017. Her research and insights on labor and employment policy, the effects of automation on the labor market, wage stagnation, inequality, and many other topics routinely shape policy proposals and inform economic news coverage.
Twitter: @hshierholz
Daron Acemoglu is a Professor of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is the co-author of the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling book ‘Why Nations Fail’, with James A. Robinson. In 2005, he received the John Bates Clark Medal, awarded to economists under forty judged to have made the most significant contribution to economic thought and knowledge.
Twitter: @DrDaronAcemoglu
Further reading:
The zombie robot argument lurches on (EPI): https://www.epi.org/publication/the-zombie-robot-argument-lurches-on-there-is-no-evidence-that-automation-leads-to-joblessness-or-inequality/
How robots became a scapegoat for the destruction of the working class (The Week): https://theweek.com/articles/837759/how-robots-became-scapegoat-destruction-working-class
Automation, Job Loss, and the Welfare State (Council on Foreign Relations): https://www.cfr.org/event/automation-job-loss-and-welfare-state
Robots, or automation, are not the problem (EPI): https://www.epi.org/publication/robots-or-automation-are-not-the-problem-too-little-worker-power-is/
Robots kill jobs. But they create jobs, too. (Brookings): https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2019/03/18/robots-kill-jobs-but-they-create-jobs-too/
Where Do Good Jobs Come From? (Project Syndicate): https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/automation-vs-job-creation-by-daron-acemoglu-2019-04?barrier=accesspaylog
The Revolution Need Not Be Automated (Project Syndicate): https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/ai-automation-labor-productivity-by-daron-acemoglu-and-pascual-restrepo-2019-03?barrier=accesspaylog
BONUS: What to listen for in the second round of presidential debates
The second round of presidential debates are quickly approaching. The debates move fast, and we know there’s a lot to sift through—so allow us to make it easier on you! In this pre-debates briefing, Nick and Zach lay out exactly what kind of economics talk you should be listening for ahead of next Tuesday and Wednesday’s festivities.
Further reading: https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/06/26/democratic-debate-economy-middle-class-analysis-growth-227217
Health Care Part 2: One nation, with liberty and health care for all (with Sanders for President Campaign Co-Chair Nina Turner)
Medicare for All is the most ambitious health care proposal on the table right now, and the Bernie Sanders campaign is ground zero for making it a reality. In the second episode of a two-part series on health care, former Ohio State Senator and Sanders’ campaign co-chair Nina Turner explains why widely available and affordable high-quality health care would be revolutionary for the United States.
Nina Turner was an Ohio State Senator from 2008 until 2014. In 2017, Turner became president of Our Revolution, a progressive political action organization spun out of Senator Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign, and she is currently the national co-chair of Sanders’ 2020 campaign. Her podcast, We The People with Nina Turner, is available everywhere podcasts are posted.
Twitter: @ninaturner
Instagram: @ninaturnerohio
Further reading:
https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/25/health/what-does-medicare-for-all-mean/index.html
https://www.vogue.com/article/sen-nina-turner-universal-programs-opinion
BONUS: Don't Pass Go—without learning more about monopolies (with Barry Lynn)
We’re revisiting a timeless topic: monopolies! Expert Barry Lynn shares his thoughts on market concentration, the dangers of industrial monopolies like Boeing, and what ‘reigning in’ companies like Google, Facebook, and Amazon actually means.
Barry Lynn is the Executive Director of the Open Markets Institute. Previously, he spent 15 years at the New America Foundation researching and writing about monopoly power. He is the author of ‘Cornered: The New Monopoly Capitalism and the Economics of Destruction’ and ‘End of the Line: The Rise and Coming Fall of the Global Corporation’.
Twitter: @openmarkets
Further reading:
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/02/antimonopoly-big-business/514358/
https://openmarketsinstitute.org/op-eds-and-articles/why-competition-matters/
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jul/26/google-and-facebook-are-strangling-the-free-press-to-death-democracy-is-the-loser
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/nov/02/facebook-google-monopoly-companies
Health Care Part 1: Everyone does it better than us (with T. R. Reid)
When it comes to health care, every country in the world is running their own version of the same experiment—and the results vary widely in terms of cost and patient outcomes. In the first episode of a two-part exploration of health care, author T. R. Reid takes Nick and Stephanie on a tour of medical systems around the world.
T. R. Reid is the author of the bestselling books ‘The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Health Care’ and ‘A Fine Mess—A Global Quest for a Fairer, Simpler, and More Efficient Tax Code’. He has become one of the nation’s best-known reporters through his books and articles, his documentary films, his reporting for the Washington Post, and his frequent commentary on NPR’s Morning Edition.
Twitter: @therealtrreid
Further reading:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6402544-the-healing-of-america
The decline of worker power (with David Rolf and Larry Mishel)
Not so long ago, economic growth was shared widely among Americans thanks to a suite of policies that boosted the bargaining power of workers. In recent years, employer power has increased while worker powers have been significantly eroded—and as a result, income inequality has grown at record rates. Experts David Rolf and Larry Mishel explain how this collapse of worker power came to be, and offer solutions that will tilt the scales of power back in the right direction.
David Rolf is a labor leader, organizer, writer, and speaker working to build the next American labor movement. He is the founder and President Emeritus of SEIU 775 and a former Vice President of SEIU International. He led campaigns that helped organize hundreds of thousands of minimum-wage home care workers, and helped lead the nation’s first two successful campaigns for $15 minimum wages in SeaTac and Seattle.
Twitter: @DavidMRolf
Larry Mishel is a distinguished fellow at the Economic Policy Institute after serving as president from 2002-2017, where he has helped build it into the nation’s premier research organization focused on U.S. living standards and labor markets. Mishel has co-authored all 12 editions of ‘The State of Working America’, and has written extensively on wage and job quality trends in the United States.
Twitter: @LarryMishel
Further reading: https://tcf.org/content/report/roadmap-rebuilding-worker-power/?session=1
https://psmag.com/economics/what-caused-the-decline-of-unions-in-america
Our full conversation with Governor Jay Inslee
In March of this year, Washington state Governor Jay Inslee announced he is running for president on a platform of combating climate change. He has already succeeded in centering the political conversation around this central crisis of our time. We spoke with the governor for our April episode about the economics of climate change; here is our full unedited conversation.
Jay Inslee first got into public service to fight for a new public high school in his community. He then went on to serve in the state legislature and in 1992 was elected to represent the 4th Congressional District in rural Eastern Washington. He later moved back to the Seattle area and was elected to Congress in 1998 where he served until 2012. In 2012 he was elected Washington's 23rd governor and is currently serving in his second term.
Twitter: @JayInslee
Links:
https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/2019/5/4/18527458/climate-change-jay-inslee-for-president-2020
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/01/us/politics/jay-inslee-on-the-issues.html
A roadmap to utopia (with Rutger Bregman)
Rutger Bregman, who The Guardian has called “the Dutch wunderkind of new ideas”, joins us this week to daydream a better future. Bregman won international fame by taking on everyone from Tucker Carlson to the wealthy elites at Davos on the topic of income inequality, and here he lays out a positive economic vision using the pillars of his book ‘Utopia for Realists’: a universal basic income, open borders, and a 15-hour workweek.
Rutger Bregman is a Dutch historian and author. He has published four books on history, philosophy, and economics. His book ‘History of Progress’ was awarded the Belgian Liberales prize for best nonfiction book of 2013, and the Dutch edition of ‘Utopia for Realists’ became a national bestseller and sparked a basic income movement that made international headlines. The book has been translated into 31 languages. Bregman has twice been nominated for the prestigious European Press Prize for his journalism work at The Correspondent.
Twitter: @rcbregman
Further reading:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/apr/18/solution-everything-working-less-work-pressure
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/feb/26/rutger-bregman-utopia-for-realists-interview-universal-basic-income
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/02/20/dutch-professor-exposes-tucker-carlsons-fraud/?utm_term=.a252dc0fa581
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/feb/01/rutger-bregman-world-economic-forum-davos-speech-tax-billionaires-capitalism
https://twitter.com/nowthisnews/status/1090045108064579584
Picking up where Darwin left off (LIVE with David Sloan Wilson)
Classical economics argues that the economy is an equilibrium system—that for every winner there must be a loser. In this episode, author and professor David Sloan Wilson joins Nick live on stage at Town Hall Seattle to argue that economies are actually evolutionary systems—and once we shed the winner-take-all philosophy that has dominated Econ 101 classes for a century, we can change economic policy for the better.
David Sloan Wilson is an American evolutionary biologist, a Distinguished Professor of Biological Sciences and Anthropology at Binghamton University, and co-founder of the Evolution Institute. In addition to his latest book ‘This View of Life: Completing the Darwinian Revolution’, he has also written ‘Darwin’s Cathedral: Evolution, Religion, and the Nature of Society’, and ‘Evolution for Everyone: How Darwin’s Theory Can Change the Way We Think About Our Lives’.
Twitter: @David_S_Wilson
Further reading: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/246844/this-view-of-life-by-david-sloan-wilson/9781101870204/
http://evonomics.com/the-new-invisible-hand-david-sloan-wilson/
http://evonomics.com/complexity-economics-shows-us-that-laissez-faire-fail-nickhanauer/
Update: Whatever happened to overtime? (with Sharon Block and Chris Lu)
This episode was first released in March, but so much has happened since then in the world of overtime that we thought we’d repost this episode with a new intro. Since this originally aired, Washington state has proposed a new overtime threshold that would expand overtime pay to 250,000+ workers. Since overtime laws haven’t been updated since 1976, this is a big deal! So brush up on your OT knowledge with this episode, featuring Sharon Block and Chris Lu.
Sharon Block is the Executive Director of the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School. For twenty years, she held key labor policy positions across the legislative and executive branches of the federal government, including head of the policy office at the Department of Labor.
Twitter: @sharblock
Chris Lu was the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Labor in the Obama Administration from 2014 to 2017. He also served as Assistant to the President and White House Cabinet Secretary under Obama from 2009 to 2013. He is a Practitioner Senior Fellow at the UVA Miller Center.
Twitter: @ChrisLu44
Further reading:
https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2019/06/05/40402423/hundreds-of-thousands-of-workers-will-be-newly-eligible-for-overtime-in-washington-state
https://www.businessinsider.com/overtime-pay-is-a-fundamental-right-nick-hanauer-2019-6?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=topbar&utm_term=desktop&referrer=twitter
https://crooked.com/articles/beat-trump-overtime-pay/
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/11/overtime-pay-obama-congress-112954
BONUS: Strategies for building a robust and equitable recovery from the next recession (with Connie Razza)
Zach speaks with Connie Razza, the author of ‘Break glass in case of emergency’, a strategy memo recently published by the Economic Policy Institute for winning a robust and just recovery from the next recession. Connie explains what policy proposals and political infrastructure will successfully orient our recovery from the next recession toward economic outcomes that reduce, rather than boost, wealth inequality around racial and gender lines.
Connie M. Razza is the Chief of Campaigns and Policy at the Center for Popular Democracy, where she oversees CPD’s broad-ranging campaigns for economic justice and a robust, inclusive democracy, as well as the organization’s research efforts. Connie was previously Vice President of Policy and Research at Demos, and she has worked for economic and racial justice for nearly a quarter century as a union activist, organizer, researcher, policy analyst, and strategist.
Twitter: @ConnieRazza
https://www.epi.org/publication/break-glass-in-case-of-emergency-strategy-memo-for-winning-a-robust-and-just-recovery-from-the-next-recession/
Ask Nick Anything - Part 2 (with Trae Crowder)
We couldn’t contain our favorite listener voicemails in one Ask Nick Anything episode, so we made two! Why does the middle class pay an income tax? Are unions cool? Nick and Trae answer eight more questions in this follow-up to last week’s must-listen episode.
Trae Crowder is a comedian and co-author of ‘The Liberal Redneck Manifesto: Draggin’ Dixie Outta the Dark’. Trae has earned national attention for his “Liberal Redneck” series of viral videos. He has been performing his particular brand of Southern-friend intellectual comedy in the Southeast for the past six years, and is now on the WellRED Comedy Tour with fellow comedians and writing partners Drew Morgan and Corey Ryan Forrester.
Twitter: @traecrowder
Instagram: @officialtraecrowder
BONUS: Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal - Unedited Conversation
Nick spoke with Congressmember Pramila Jayapal in December 2018 about the fight for a $15 minimum wage, what Representative Jayapal has changed his mind on, and how Democrats can tell better stories. Here’s their full conversation in Congresswoman Jayapal’s offices in Washington D.C. An edited version of this conversation appeared in the episode, "Should Democrats appeal to the center by moving hard left?", linked below.
http://www.pitchforkeconomics.com/episode/should-democrats-appeal-to-the-center-by-moving-hard-left-with-congresswoman-pramila-jayapal/
Ask Nick Anything - Part 1 (with Trae Crowder)
You’ve been flooding Nick’s voicemail for months, and the time is finally here! Comedian Trae Crowder joins Nick to answer your questions in this freewheeling Ask Me Anything session. What does John Hickenlooper think about Nick’s net worth? How can we help people see that a $15 minimum wage is good for everyone? We answer these questions and more!
Trae Crowder is a comedian and co-author of ‘The Liberal Redneck Manifesto: Draggin’ Dixie Outta the Dark’. Trae has earned national attention for his “Liberal Redneck” series of viral videos. He has been performing his particular brand of Southern-friend intellectual comedy in the Southeast for the past six years, and is now on the WellRED Comedy Tour with fellow comedians and writing partners Drew Morgan and Corey Ryan Forrester.
Twitter: @traecrowder
Instagram: @officialtraecrowder
BONUS: Why do we fight fires like it’s still 1969? (with Washington State Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz)
Washington state lost 440,000 acres in almost two thousand wildfires last year﹣a record high. Once the most beautiful month in Washington’s year, August is now marred by hazy, smoky skies that drive everyone indoors while our small and underfunded team of wildland firefighters work around the clock to save lives, property, and public lands. It’s not just a Washington problem, either: wildfires are burning more acreage than ever before across the country. Luckily, this is a problem we can actually do something about! In this bonus episode, Washington State Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz sits down with Nick to explain the ins and outs of forest health, fighting for funding to give wildfire fighters the resources they need, and her fleet of Vietnam-era helicopters.
Washington State Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz protects and manages nearly six million acres of public lands in Washington. She is leading the push to make Washington’s lands more resilient in the face of climate change, and as the leader of the state’s largest wildfire fighting force, she has pushed for new strategies, innovations, and resources to protect communities. Commissioner Franz’s 20-year Forest Health Strategic Plan will make more than one million acres of forest healthier and more resistant to wildfires.
Twitter: @Hilary_FranzCPL
HuffPost: Controlled Burns Lower Wildfire Risks. These Western States Struggle To Set More Of Them. http://bit.ly/huffpowildfire
Crosscut: A bold plan to curb wildfires, create jobs and build affordable housing http://bit.ly/CrosscutDNRplan
Can rural America be saved?
It’s not just economic inequality, the gap between rich and poor people, that’s growing wider in America. Spatial inequality, the gap between rich and poor places, is growing too. The most obvious example of spatial inequality is the decline of rural areas and the rise of cities. Can rural America be saved? And is urban America obligated to do the saving? Journalist Eduardo Porter and author Sarah Smarsh weigh in.
Eduardo Porter is an economics reporter for the business section of The New York Times, where he was the Economic Scene columnist from 2012 to 2018. He is the author of ‘The Price of Everything’ and is working on an upcoming book called ‘American Poison’.
Twitter: @portereduardo
Sarah Smarsh is the author of ‘Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth’, which became an instant New York Times bestseller and was a finalist for the 2018 National Book Award. She has covered socioeconomic class, politics, and public policy for The Guardian, The New York Times, and many other publications.
Twitter: @Sarah_Smarsh
The Hard Truths of Trying to ‘Save’ the Rural Economy: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/12/14/opinion/rural-america-trump-decline.html
Country pride: What I learned growing up in rural America: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/sep/06/country-pride-kansas-rural-america-sarah-smarsh
America’s Worsening Geographic Inequality: https://www.citylab.com/equity/2018/10/americas-worsening-geographic-inequality/573061/
The Contribution of National Income Inequality to Regional Economic Divergence: https://academic.oup.com/sf/advance-article-abstract/doi/10.1093/sf/soz013/5418441
The Economic Innovation Group’s 2018 Distressed Communities Index: https://eig.org/dci
Homo economicus must die (with Samuel Bowles)
Homo economicus is the figurative human being used in economic modeling. But the term defines human nature as perfectly rational, perfectly logical, and always self-interested. Does that sound like any real humans you know? Nope, we didn’t think so either. So we invited Professor Samuel Bowles to join Nick and Goldy in throwing a funeral for homo economicus, and all the flawed economic thinking that he’s inspired over the years.
Samuel Bowles is a Research Professor at the Santa Fe Institute where he heads the Behavioral Sciences Program. His work on cultural evolution have challenged the conventional economic assumption that people are motivated entirely by self-interest. His most recent books are ‘The Moral Economy: Why good laws are no substitute for good citizens’ and ‘A Cooperative Species: Human reciprocity and its revolution’.
‘Spock goes shopping’ was based on a thought experiment in Eric Beinhocker’s book ‘The Origin of Wealth’: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781422121030
https://democracyjournal.org/arguments/homo-economicus-must-die/
https://www.core-econ.org/
https://yalebooksblog.co.uk/2016/10/11/the-moral-economy-homo-economicus-becomes-human/
BONUS: Tax the Rich! (with Tax March Executive Director Maura Quint)
Our friends at the Tax March, a national progressive tax awareness coalition, just launched a new campaign called “Tax the Rich” which urges every Democrat in Congress and every presidential candidate to support taxing the country’s wealthiest people. Zach talked to the Executive Director of Tax March, Maura Quint, about the launch of the campaign, Tax March’s plan for the 2020 election, and why higher taxes on corporations and the wealthy is both good policy and good politics. Plus, Annie explains marginal tax rates and capital gains.
Maura Quint is the Executive Director of Tax March.
Twitter: @behindyourback
https://taxmarch.org/
https://www.vox.com/2019/3/19/18240377/estate-tax-wealth-tax-70-percent-warren-sanders-aoc
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/1/7/18171975/tax-bracket-marginal-cartoon-ocasio-cortez-70-percent
What are the economics of climate change? (with Governor Jay Inslee and Fadhel Kaboub)
All the economic and social policy that we discuss on this podcast won’t matter if we don’t address climate change. Governor Jay Inslee and Professor Fadhel Kaboub join Nick and Goldy to explain that if we don’t get climate right… well, the pitchforks are coming.
Jay Inslee is the Governor of Washington state. In March of this year, he announced he is running for president on a platform of combating climate change.
Twitter: @JayInslee
Fadhel Kaboub is President of the Global Institute for Sustainable Prosperity, and Associate Professor of economics at Denison University. His research focuses on the political economy of the Middle East, and the fiscal and monetary policy dimensions of job creation programs.
Twitter: @FadhelKaboub
What is Modern Monetary Theory? (with Stephanie Kelton)
Is government debt real? Is anything real? Professor Stephanie Kelton gives Nick and Goldy a master class on the hottest idea in economics right now: Modern Monetary Theory.
Stephanie Kelton is a professor of public policy and economics at Stony Brook University and a senior economic adviser to Bernie Sanders’s 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns. She was the chief economist on the U.S. Senate Budget Committee in 2015 and in 2016, POLITICO named her one of the 50 people most influencing the public debate in America. Her forthcoming book, ‘The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of a New Economy’ will be published by Public Affairs in 2020.
Twitter: @StephanieKelton
Further reading:
https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/2019/4/16/18251646/modern-monetary-theory-new-moment-explained
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/05/opinion/deficit-tax-cuts-trump.html
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/01/bernie-sanders-economic-advisor-stephanie-kelton-on-mmt-and-2020-race.html
https://www.thenation.com/article/the-rock-star-appeal-of-modern-monetary-theory/
Should Democrats appeal to the center by moving hard left? (with Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal)
For too long, pundits and politicians have talked about the political center as a perfect balance between conservatives and liberals. But this quest for some sort of mythical middle ground between left and right has only succeeded in elevating the interests of the top one percent over everyone else. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal joins Nick to propose a new way of thinking about centrism: a framework of wildly popular policies that directly and significantly improve the lives of the vast majority of Americans who have been left out of economic growth.
Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal is the U.S. Representative from Washington’s 7th congressional district, which includes most of Seattle. She is the co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Congress.
Twitter: @PramilaJayapal
Further reading:
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/08/14/democrats-must-reclaim-the-center-by-moving-hard-left-219354
https://cpc-grijalva.house.gov/
BONUS: Senator Cory Booker - Unedited Conversation
We spoke to Senator Cory Booker about stock buybacks and his Workers Dividend Act in February. We hope you enjoy the full, unedited conversation!
Cory Booker is the U.S. Senator from New Jersey and a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate.
Twitter: @CoryBooker
Why does the U.S. hate families? (with Anne-Marie Slaughter and Katie Hamm)
For all our talk about family values, the U.S. is actually the worst place to raise a family in the developed world. Anne-Marie Slaughter and Katie Hamm join Nick and Jessyn to explain how our family policies got stuck in the last century, and what we should do about it.
Anne-Marie Slaughter is the President and CEO of New America, a think and action tank dedicated to renewing America in the Digital Age. She is also a professor of politics and international affairs at Princeton University, and from 2009-2011 she served as director of Policy Planning for the U.S. Department of State—the first woman to hold that position.
Twitter: @SlaughterAM
Katie Hamm is the Vice President for Early Childhood Policy at the Center for American Progress, where she leads CAP’s work on policies impacting young children from birth to five.
Twitter: @DCHammslice
Kristine Reeves is a member of the Washington House of Representatives representing the 30th legislative district. She is also the Director of Economic Development for the Military and Defense sector for the state of Washington.
Twitter: @KMReevesWA
Further reading:
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/07/why-women-still-cant-have-it-all/309020/
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/early-childhood/reports/2017/09/07/438428/blueprint-child-care-reform/
https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/early-childhood/news/2017/10/31/441825/the-cost-of-inaction-on-universal-preschool/
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/24/upshot/americans-love-families-american-policies-dont.html?rref=collection%2Fbyline%2Fclaire-cain-miller
Is economics moral? (with Heather McGhee)
We’ve established that trickle-down economics and neoliberalism are failed philosophies. But we haven’t yet explored whether economics should be moral - should it reflect our behaviors and preferences, or is it a science that lives separately from our societal norms and values? Heather McGhee joins Nick and Paul to argue that an inclusive economy is not only possible, but imperative to growth.
Heather McGhee was the President of Demos from 2014-2018, where she is now a Distinguished Senior Fellow. She’s finishing a major book about the personal, economic, and societal costs of racism to everyone in America—including white people. A recognized thought leader on the national stage, Heather serves as a contributor to NBC News and frequently appears on shows such as Meet the Press. Her opinions, writing, and research have appeared in numerous outlets, including The New York Times, The Nation, and The Hill.
Twitter: @hmcghee
Further reading: https://www.demos.org/issue/economy-opportunity
https://www.ineteconomics.org/perspectives/blog/the-moral-burden-on-economists
BONUS: Why the Green New Deal is good economics
You’ve definitely heard of the Green New Deal by now, right? Zach and Annie talk it up in this bonus episode and explain why the economic bill of rights component is so important.
What's preventing pay equity? (with Julie Nelson and Claire Cain Miller)
In 2009, President Obama signed the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into law, thereby ensuring that women across the United States were finally paid the same as men. Just kidding! Women still only make 80% of what their male counterparts do. What is this bullshit? Why hasn’t pay equity been achieved yet? Economist Julie Nelson and journalist Claire Cain Miller join Nick and Steph to explain why this problem is so damn persistent, and to offer solutions for how we can fully include women in the economy.
Julie Nelson is a professor of economics and department chair at the University of Massachusetts Boston, most known for her application of feminist theory to economics. She is the author of ‘Economics for Humans’ and ‘Feminism, Objectivity, and Economics’.
Twitter: @julie_nelson
Claire Cain Miller is a correspondent for The New York Times, where she writes about gender, families, and the future of work for The Upshot, a Times site for analysis of policy and economics. She was part of a team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2018 for public service for reporting on workplace sexual harassment issues.
Twitter: @clairecm
Further reading
http://evonomics.com/yes-economics-problem-women/
http://evonomics.com/pretending-hard-science-ethics-free-julie-nelson/
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/13/upshot/the-gender-pay-gap-is-largely-because-of-motherhood.html
https://hbr.org/2018/01/when-more-women-join-the-workforce-wages-rise-including-for-men
BONUS: Alan Krueger - Unedited Conversation
We at Pitchfork Economics were saddened to learn of the passing of the brilliant economist Alan Krueger last weekend. We were fortunate to speak with him last year - here’s the full conversation.
Why is getting out of poverty so hard? (with Felicia Wong)
Here are two phrases that should be oxymorons, but aren’t: ‘working poor’ and ‘poverty-level jobs.’ Writer and anti-poverty advocate Hanna Brooks Olsen joins Nick and Goldy to explore how the intense burdens of poverty make it nearly impossible to even think about climbing the economic ladder.
Felicia Wong is the President and CEO of the Roosevelt Institute, a think tank that seeks to re-imagine the social and economic policies of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt for the 21st century.
Twitter: @FeliciaWongRI @rooseveltinst
Hanna Brooks Olsen is a writer and policy consultant. Her work has appeared in The Atlantic, the Nation, Salon, the New York Daily News, the Huffington Post, and Democracy.
Twitter: @mshannabrooks
Further reading:
https://medium.com/@mshannabrooks/but-seriously-lets-talk-about-millennial-poverty-526066ad9adb
https://aspe.hhs.gov/system/files/pdf/154286/50YearTrends.pdf
Whatever happened to overtime? (with Sharon Block and Chris Lu)
The overtime threshold used to be the minimum wage for the middle class—but where did it go? Labor experts Sharon Block and Chris Lu join Nick and Jasmin to explain why the overtime threshold, which used to cover 65 percent of workers, today covers only 7 percent. That’s craziness! And surprise, surprise—employers love to claim that forcing you to work for free is in your own best interest. But are they telling the truth?
Sharon Block is the Executive Director of the Labor and Worklife Program at Harvard Law School. For twenty years, she held key labor policy positions across the legislative and executive branches of the federal government, including head of the policy office at the Department of Labor.
Twitter: @sharblock
Chris Lu was the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Labor in the Obama Administration from 2014 to 2017. He also served as Assistant to the President and White House Cabinet Secretary under Obama from 2009 to 2013. He is a Practitioner Senior Fellow at the UVA Miller Center.
Twitter: @ChrisLu44
Further reading:
https://crooked.com/articles/beat-trump-overtime-pay/
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/11/overtime-pay-obama-congress-112954
BONUS: Econ terms and definitions explained by Nick and Goldy
Ever been in the middle of a Pitchfork Economics pod ep and thought, “WTF are they talking about?” If so, this might help - we define some complex terms that get thrown around a lot (neoclassical, neoliberal, heterodoxy, monopoly, monopsony, and stock buybacks) because we want this to be a fun and informative pod, not, like, a painful and confusing pod.
Twitter: @NickHanauer @GoldyHA
What can a board game teach us about capitalism? (with Jared Bernstein and Jonathan Tepper)
Monopoly and its equally evil twin monopsony are destroying competition, depressing wages, and slowing economic growth. Is market concentration an inevitable outcome of capitalism, or is there a smarter solution?
Jared Bernstein: Senior Fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, former Chief Economist and Economic Adviser to VP Biden and Executive Director of the White House Task Force on the Middle Class, and author of ‘The Reconnection Agenda: Reuniting Growth and Prosperity’.
Twitter: @econjared
Jonathan Tepper: Founder of Variant Perception, a macroeconomic research group that caters to asset managers. Author of ‘The Myth of Capitalism: Monopolies and the Death of Competition’, ‘Endgame: The End of the Debt Supercycle’, and ‘Code Red’, a book on unconventional monetary policy.
Twitter: @jtepper2
Further reading: https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/51/progressive-labor-standards/
Senator Cory Booker explains: what the hell is a stock buyback?
Senator Cory Booker explains the problem with stock buybacks, walks us through his Workers Dividend Act, and offers Goldy some much-needed counseling.
Cory Booker is the U.S. Senator from New Jersey and a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate.
Twitter: @CoryBooker
Further reading: https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/3/6/17083398/booker-buyback-populist
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/02/kill-stock-buyback-to-save-the-american-economy/385259/
What is the purpose of a corporation? (with William Lazonick and Lenore Palladino)
Nick, Goldy, and their guests William Lazonick and Lenore Palladino explain why "shareholder value maximization" is the world's dumbest idea.
William Lazonick: Professor of economics at University of Massachusetts Lowell, visiting Professor at University of Ljubljana, professeur associé at Institut Mines-Télécom in Paris, and professorial research associate, SOAS, University of London. His book ‘Sustainable Prosperity in the New Economy? Business Organization and High-Tech Employment in the United States’ won the 2010 Schumpeter Prize, and he has written extensively on corporate profits.
Twitter: @Lazonick
Lenore Palladino: Senior Economist and Policy Counsel at the Roosevelt Institute, where she brings expertise to Roosevelt’s work on inequality and finance. Her research and writing focuses on financial reform, financial taxation, labor rights, and financial crises. Her publications have appeared in The Nation, The New Republic, State Tax Notes, and other venues.
Twitter: @lenorepalladino
Further reading:
https://www.brookings.edu/research/stock-buybacks-from-retain-and-reinvest-to-downsize-and-distribute/
https://hbr.org/2014/09/profits-without-prosperity/
http://rooseveltinstitute.org/ending-shareholder-primacy-corporate-governance/
http://rooseveltinstitute.org/rewriting-rules-take-aim-stock-buybacks-and-force-companies-invest-their-workers-stop-walmart-act/
http://rooseveltinstitute.org/what-wells-fargos-40-6-billion-stock-buybacks-could-have-meant-its-employees-and-customers/
http://rooseveltinstitute.org/towards-accountable-capitalism/
BONUS: Yuval Harari - Unedited Conversation
When we talked with historian Yuval Harari, the best-selling author of Sapiens, Homo Deus, and 21 Lessons for the 21st Century, the conversation was so wide-ranging and so smart that we just couldn't bear to leave any of it behind on the cutting room floor. So here's the full, unedited interview on a range of topics including why our society has fallen so hard for the myth of trickle-down economics.
Do higher wages kill jobs? (with Mayor Eric Garcetti and Alan Krueger)
Trickle-downers always argue that raising the minimum wage inevitably kills jobs. But the empirical evidence from Seattle, Los Angeles, and elsewhere prove otherwise. Experts, including Mayor Garcetti of LA, discuss how our economic understanding has changed, and why changing the public perception around the minimum wage has been so difficult.
Eric Garcetti: Mayor of Los Angeles since 2013. Former member of the LA City Council, serving as council president from 2006 to 2012.
Twitter: @ericgarcetti
Alan Krueger: Bendheim Professor of Economics and Public Affairs at Princeton. Former Chairman of President Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers and a member of the Cabinet from 2011 to 2013. Co-author of ‘Myth of Measurement: The New Economics of the Minimum Wage’ and ‘Inequality in America: What Role for Human Capital Policies?’.
Twitter: @Alan_Krueger
Richard Kirsch: Director of Our Story at the Hub for American Narratives. Led development of Progressive Economic Narrative Project and has done extensive training with organizational leaders and elected officials on delivering powerful narratives.
Twitter: @_RichardKirsch
Further reading: Raising the Minimum Wage Is Good for Everyone
Seattle’s $15 Minimum Wage Experiment Is a Success
Do regulations kill growth? (with Robert Reich)
Deregulation for the powerful is a central tenet of the trickle-down myth, embraced by Democrats and Republican alike. Government regulations, we’re told, are costly and inefficient intrusions that slow grow and kill jobs. But Robert Reich explains that when thoughtfully applied, regulations are absolutely essential to growing a safe, secure, and broadly prosperous economy.
Robert Reich: Chancellor’s Professor of Public Policy at UC Berkeley and Senior Fellow at the Blum Center for Developing Economies. Served as Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration. Author of fifteen books, including ‘The Common Good’. Co-creator of the documentaries ‘Inequality for All’ and ‘Saving Capitalism’.
Twitter: @RBReich
Facebook: Robert Reich
Further reading: Robert B. Reich: How Trump's war on regulation is trickle-down economics
BONUS: Why Howard Schultz would make a terrible president
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz says he’s seriously considering running for President. Nick Hanauer, who knows Schultz, says that businesspeople often make terrible politicians.
Do tax cuts for rich people create growth? (with Bruce Bartlett)
Since forever, Republicans have insisted that cutting taxes on wealthy corporations and individuals would grow the economy, create jobs, and lift wages. But it never does. As an early architect of what became “Reaganomics,” Bruce Bartlett was there at the birth of this GOP tax myth. He joins the podcast to help set the record straight.
Bruce Bartlett: American historian who helped draft the Kemp-Roth tax bill that formed the basis of President Reagan’s 1981 tax cuts. Served as domestic policy adviser for Reagan, in the Treasury for George H.W. Bush, and in senior roles for other American politicians. Former Executive Director of the Joint Economic Committee of Congress.
Twitter: @BruceBartlett
Further reading:
Want to Expand the Economy? Tax the Rich! https://prospect.org/article/want-expand-economy-tax-rich
I helped create the GOP tax myth. Trump is wrong: Tax cuts don’t equal growth. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/posteverything/wp/2017/09/28/i-helped-create-the-gop-tax-myth-trump-is-wrong-tax-cuts-dont-equal-growth/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.4344a80a6efc
Is the American Dream a lie? (with Christian Cooper and Khiara Bridges)
Is the American Dream dead? Is economic mobility a myth? The foundational promise of America is that anyone, if they work hard and play by the rules, can enjoy a secure, middle-class life. Christian Cooper and Khiara Bridges join us to discuss the prevailing narrative that we each control our own economic destiny.
Christian Cooper: Derivatives trader and author. Frequent commentator in the Wall Street Journal, Reuters, Financial Times, and Bloomberg News. Director of Banking for a New Beginning, a public/private partnership between The Aspen Institute and the US Department of State. Member of the roundtables at the Washington-based think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies.
Twitter: @christiancooper
Khiara Bridges: Associate Dean for Equity, Justice, and Engagement at the Boston University School of Law, specializing in the intersectionality of race, reproductive justice, and law. Professor of Law and Professor of Anthropology at Boston University. Author of The Poverty of Privacy Rights and Reproducing Race: An Ethnography of Pregnancy as a Site of Racialization.
Further reading:
Why Poverty Is Like a Disease: http://nautil.us/issue/47/consciousness/why-poverty-is-like-a-disease
Excavating Race-Based Disadvantage Among Class-Privileged People of Color: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3143892
Income Mobility Charts: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/03/27/upshot/make-your-own-mobility-animation.html
Divided We Fall: https://newrepublic.com/article/141644/divided-fall-trump-symptom-constitutional-crisis-inequality
Raj Chetty in 14 charts: Big findings on opportunity and mobility we should all know: https://www.brookings.edu/blog/social-mobility-memos/2018/01/11/raj-chetty-in-14-charts-big-findings-on-opportunity-and-mobility-we-should-know/
BONUS: Marching orders for new legislators
As newly elected Democrats across the country enter their respective capitol buildings for the first time, Civic Ventures president Zach Silk and former Washington State legislator (and Civic Ventures senior VP) Jessyn Farrell offer advice for what they should prioritize – and it starts with economic policies that help the broad majority.
Further reading: https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2018/08/14/democrats-must-reclaim-the-center-by-moving-hard-left-219354
Where does economic growth really come from? (with W. Brian Arthur and Cesar Hidalgo)
Is economic growth all about money, trade, and GDP, or are healthy economies built on a different foundation? In this episode, economist W. Brian Arthur and MIT physicist Cesar Hidalgo explain why human knowledge, knowhow, and innovation are the best measures of rising prosperity and future economic growth.
Guest Bios
W. Brian Arthur: Economist credited with developing the modern approach to increasing returns, and one of the pioneers of the science of complexity. Author of three books including The Nature of Technology: What it Is and How it Evolves. External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute.
Cesar Hidalgo: Physicist, writer, and entrepreneur. Associate Professor at MIT, and Director of the Collective Learning group at the MIT Media Lab. Co-founder of Datawheel, a company that specializes in digital transformation solutions for governments and large companies. Author of Why Information Grows and co-author of The Atlas of Economic Complexity.
Twitter: @cesifoti
Further reading:
Complexity Economics: a different framework for economic thought: https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=http%3A%2F%2Ftuvalu.santafe.edu%2F~wbarthur%2FPapers%2FComp.Econ.SFI.pdf
Economic Complexity: From useless to keystone: https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchidalgo.com%2Fs%2Fnphys4337.pdf
Complexity Economics Shows Us Why Laissez-Faire Economics Always Fails: http://evonomics.com/complexity-economics-shows-us-that-laissez-faire-fail-nickhanauer/
How should we measure the economy? (with Diane Coyle)
Pop quiz: What does “GDP” stand for? And now, quickly: what the hell does “gross domestic product” even mean? It turns out, the way we measure the economy changes the way we manage the economy, so if we want to broadly improve the lives of all Americans we need to measure the things that really matter.
Diane Coyle: Bennett Professor of Public Policy at the University of Cambridge. Former advisor to the UK treasury. Author of numerous books, most recently GDP: A Brief But Affectionate History, The Economics of Enough, and The Soulful Science. Founder of the consultancy Enlightenment Economics, specializing in the economics of new technologies.
Twitter: @DianeCoyle1859
Further reading:
(2) https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/31/capitalism-redefined/
Whatever happened to the middle class? (with Heather Boushey and Matthew Stewart)
The American middle class is shrinking and, contrary to popular belief, globalization and automation are not to blame. Far from inevitable, skyrocketing inequality is a choice. In this episode, we look at the policy choices that have relentlessly undermined the middle class, and why we desperately need to choose a better future.
Heather Boushey: Executive director and chief economist at the Washington Center for Equitable Growth. Author of Finding Time: The Economics of Work-Life Conflict.
Twitter: @HBoushey
Matthew Stewart: Philosopher, D.Phil from Oxford University. Author of Nature’s God and The Management Myth. Contributor to The Atlantic.
Website: https://mwstewart.com/
Further reading:
(1) http://evonomics.com/new-social-security-system-sharing-economy-hanauer/
(2) https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/11/overtime-pay-obama-congress-112954
BONUS: Where's your $4,000 raise?
Civic Ventures president Zach Silk joins us for a quick explainer on how Republicans sold their trickle-down tax cuts as a great deal for the middle class—and how angry suburban voters punished them for their lies.
Further reading:
https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/10/11/republican-tax-cut-for-rich-economy-215696
What is the trick in trickle down? (with Yuval Harari and Molly Crockett)
What is the “trick” in “trickle down” economics? It’s how wealthy elites and their neoliberal lackeys convince you that what’s good for them (tax cuts, deregulation, etc.) is good for you… and that policies like the minimum wage, overtime, and paid sick leave will ruin the economy. Economics is a story we tell ourselves to help explain who gets what, and why. In this episode we explore how to tell a better story.
Yuval Harari: Author of international bestsellers: Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow, and 21 Lessons for the 21st Century. Professor in the Department of History at Hebrew University of Jerusalem. PhD from the University of Oxford.
Twitter: @harari_yuval
Facebook: @Prof.Yuval.Noah.Harari
Instagram: @yuval_noah_harari
Molly Crockett: Director of the Crockett Lab, Assistant Professor of Psychology at Yale University, and Distinguished Research Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Neuroethics. PhD in Experimental Psychology from the University of Cambridge.
Twitter: @mollycrockett
Further reading:
(1) https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/41/a-threat-not-a-theory/
Is Econ 101 a lie? (with Eric Beinhocker and James Kwak)
What is “Econ 101,” and why do economists always get things wrong? In this episode we dismantle orthodox economics, exploring where it comes from, why it's wrong, and how “It’s Econ 101!” became a cynical rallying cry in defense of the status quo. Guests Eric Beinhocker (The Origin of Wealth) and James Kwak (Economism) explain that, far from a science, Econ 101 is really just a story we tell ourselves to justify who gets what and why. And it’s time to tell a different story.
Eric Beinhocker: Professor of Public Policy at the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford. Executive Director of the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School. Author of The Origin of Wealth.
Twitter: @ericbeinhocker
James Kwak: Professor of Law at the Connecticut School of Law. Co-founder of the economics blog “The Baseline Scenario”, a commentary on developments in the global economy, law, and public policy. Author of Economism: Bad Economics and the Rise of Inequality. Columnist for The Atlantic.
Twitter: @jamesykwak
Further reading: https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/01/economism-and-the-minimum-wage/513155/
Why do we call it pitchfork economics? (with Ganesh Sitaraman and Walter Scheidel)
In 2014, venture capitalist Nick Hanauer warned his fellow plutocrats that our growing crisis of economic inequality would lead to an uprising or a dictatorship. Two years later, angry voters elected Donald Trump. In this inaugural episode of Pitchfork Economics, we explore why the pitchforks are coming, who they’re coming for, and how the stories we tell about the economy can change the economy itself.
ShownotesThe Pitchforks Are Coming… For Us Plutocrats: https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/06/the-pitchforks-are-coming-for-us-plutocrats-108014
Twitter: @nickhanauer
Facebook: @CivicSkunkWorks @NickHanauer
Medium: https://civicskunk.works/
Ganesh Sitaraman: Professor of Law at Vanderbilt Law School and Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress. Co-founder and Director of Policy for the Great Democracy Initiative. Policy Director to Elizabeth Warren, 2011-2013. Author of The Crisis of the Middle Class Constitution: Law in the Age of Small Wars, named one of the New York Times’ 100 notable books of 2017.
Twitter: @ganeshsitaraman
Walter Scheidel: Historian at Stanford. The most frequently cited active-duty Roman historian adjusted for age in the Western Hemisphere, Scheidel is the author or (co-)editor of 20 books, including The Great Leveler: Violence and the History of Inequality.
Twitter: @walterscheidel
Pitchfork Economics Teaser
We are living through a paradigm shift from trickle-down neoliberalism to middle-out economics — a new understanding of who gets what and why. Join zillionaire class-traitor Nick Hanauer and some of the world’s leading economic and political thinkers as they explore the latest thinking on how the economy actually works.
Podcasten Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer är skapad av Civic Ventures. Podcastens innehåll och bilderna på den här sidan hämtas med hjälp av det offentliga podcastflödet (RSS).
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