The Political Orphanage

What are the insecurities of the Working Class, and what policies hurt or exploit them? Batya Ungar-Sargon is an editor at Newsweek and the author of Second Class: How the Elites Betrayed America's Working Men and Women. BOOK AT: www.mightyheaton.com/featured Batya’s handle: @bungarsargon Heaton & Batya on Heaton’s TV show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBh3sLlgRx4 Batya on The Political Orphanage: “Woke Hysteria is Actually Class Warfare” https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/woke-hysteria-is-actually-class-warfare/id1439837349?i=1000557442141

Daniel J. Fox, Ph.D., is a licensed psychologist in Texas, international speaker, and multiple-award winning author. He has been specializing in the treatment and assessment of individuals with personality disorders for over 20 years in the state and federal prison system, universities, and in private practice.

Dr. Rainer Zitelmann is the author of "How Nations Escape Poverty: Vietnam, Poland, and the Origins of Prosperity." He joins to discuss the efficacy of international development aid, and what we can learn from the economic growth of Asia vs. that of Africa. Book at: www.mightyheaton.com/featured Dr. Zitelmann on Nazi Economics: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-nazis-thought-about-economics/id1439837349?i=1000577197764 Dr. Zitelmann on his book “In Defense of Capitalism” https://politicalorphanage.libsyn.com/capitalism-remains-undefeated Film: “Poland: From Socialism to Prosperity” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBIhsZ9GNHc&t=118s

Jeffrey Rosen is a legal scholar and the President of the National Constitution Center. He’s the author “the Pursuit of Happiness: How Classical Writers on Virtue Inspired the Lives of the Founders and Defined America.” Book at www.mightyheaton.com/featured

Protests over Israel and Hamas have become so heated at Columbia that it’s canceled in-person classes the rest of the semester. Anti-Israel protests are becoming not just a flashpoint in America’s culture war, but within Blue Team itself. What’s happening? The World’s Smartest Podcast Network assembles to discuss: Andrew Heaton, Dr. Andrea Jones-Rooy, and Michael Ira Kaplan. We’re Not Wrong Live Show: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/were-not-wrong-live-in-washington-dc-tickets-882962824577?aff=erelexpmlt

James Judkins started out as a circus worker, eating swords and fire, then working up to ringleader and manager. As a talent scout operating in other countries, he became professionally involved in sorting visas foreign countries, then eventually transitioned to a full-time visa agency. He joins the show to discuss 1) what it’s like working at the circus, and 2) how temp visas work for seasonal workers, and how they could work better.

There’s a pervasive idea that in the 1950s America had single-earner families who could more easily afford housing, car payments, groceries and college, so maybe we should go back to the political economy of that era? In this special, we visit Fiftiesland and see how it stacks up to modern America. Support the show! Patreon.com/andrewheaton Venmo: @andrew-heaton-1

Tom Merritt of Daily Tech News joins to discuss the underlying technology of AI and Large Language Models, and what people get wrong about both. Pre-order Tom’s book at: www.tomsnewbook.com SUPPORT THE SHOW! www.patreon.com/andrewheaton Heaton and Nick sketch comedy: mightyheaton.com/vagabonding Bonus Episode: How to Use AI for Work https://www.patreon.com/posts/bonus-how-to-use-98003840?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link Bonus: A.I. Wrote and Recorded An En Entire Episode https://www.patreon.com/posts/bonus-i-wrote-77020469?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link

Jennifer Doleac is Executive Vice President of Criminal Justice at Arnold Ventures, a major funder of criminal justice research and reform in the United States. She joins to discuss trends in crime, causes and deterents of crime, and cheap or easy ways we can make the country safer. Support the show! www.patreon.com/andrewheaton.

Adam Andrzejewski is CEO and Founder of Open The Books, an organization which files thousands of FOIA requests each year to document and expose government budgets and employee salaries, to identity waste and fraud. Website: https://www.openthebooks.com/

Jonathan Rauch of the Brookings Institution joins to discuss the most openly totalitarian period of American history: the Lavender Scare. And to point out that there are still people alive who suffered through it, and what restitutions can be made. Article at The Atlantic: “The U.S. Should Apologize to Gay People.” https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/01/lavender-scare-gay-people-public-service-erasure/677236/

Donald Trump is being prosecuted under RICO law in Georgia, wherein District Attorney Fanni Willis has charged him and parts of his campaigns as criminal conspirators in a criminal enterprise. What is RICO law, and does Trump qualify for prosecution under it? Attorney Paul Townsend rejoins to discuss.

In this travel episode our intrepid hosts journeys to McAllen, TX on the US-border to see the river, the wall, and to interview employers who hire immigrants as well as US Border agents. Guests: Former Border Patrol chief Clem Clemson, and Lee Wicker, Deputy Director for the North Carolina Growers Association. Support the Show! www.patreon.com/andrewheaton Relevant Links: Bryan Caplan on Open Borders https://politicalorphanage.libsyn.com/bryan-caplan Anna Gorisch: Sucks to Legally Immigrate https://politicalorphanage.libsyn.com/if-i-want-to-naturalize-my-foreign-bastard-foreign

Xi Xinping, the leader of China, has dramatically consolidated power and extended his reign indefinitely. What does he think and what does he want? Steve Tsang is the Director of the SOAS China Institute at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. He is the author of “The Political Thought of Xi Xinping,” and joins to discuss.

Rudyard William Lynch is the host of WhatifAlHist, a popular history channel on YouTube. He joins to discuss how the origins and circumstances of America’s regions permanently imprinted on its cultures and political outlooks. Colin Woodard's Map: https://www.businessinsider.com/the-11-nations-of-the-united-states-2015-7 Rudyard's Map: https://preview.redd.it/cultural-map-of-america-done-by-whatifalthist-on-youtube-v0-7clddg9nunpa1.jpg?auto=webp&s=663b38b9434bdf7791fac983f0d5e5beb643b779 Relevant Book: American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America, by Colin Woodard

Alain Bertaud is a feted urbanist, who before becoming a professor at NYU, worked in city planning in communist China, as well as on projects in Algeria, Cuba, and his native France. He joins to discuss what work and results look like in top-down command economies. Alan Bertaud from City Week: https://www.patreon.com/posts/sim-city-was-79663680?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link

Is AI biased towards a particular viewpoint, and if so, how does it affect national sentiment and elections? Maxim Lott has built an AI tracking website that charts the political orientation of Large Language Models, and watches their development in real time. He joins to discuss. Maxim’s Website: trackingai.org Maxim’s Substack: https://maximumtruth.substack.com/ Political Compass Quiz: https://www.politicalcompass.org/test

I flew to New Hampshire to check out the primaries, and to visit this historically independent-minded state to see how independents think. In this episode we see a Nikki Haley concert, and get invited to a Libertarian Clubhouse. TPO: Don't Screw This Up, New Hampshire (Feb, 2020) https://five.libsyn.com/show/episodes/view/13086767

Donald Trump has been removed from the ballot in Colorado and in Maine, on the grounds that he is an insurrectionist ineligible to hold office under the U.S. Constitution. The Supreme Court will hear an appeal from the Trump campaign in the following weeks. Anna Gorisch comes to discuss the specifics and impacts of this case, and what will be of issue to the highest court in the land.

Live from Des Moines, Iowa, Heaton transforms into a 'thinky travelogue' guide, unraveling the mysteries of state-by-state primaries, and the often confusing blend of direct democracy and representative democracy that characterizes American politics. This episode isn't just about the mechanics of the caucus; it's an exploration of the philosophical underpinnings of the American political system, drawing parallels between ancient Greece and Rome, and our modern-day practices. TPO: Glen Weyl on How Weighted Voting Could Actually Work https://politicalorphanage.libsyn.com/glen-weyl