America Explained
News & Politics Podcasts
America Explained is a podcast about American politics, foreign policy & culture for an international audience. Every fortnight it brings you the voices and perspectives shaping America - and its impact on the world - today. Hosted by historian and columnist Andy Gawthorpe, each fortnightly episode features analysis and interviews which help you understand a key issue in a way the regular news cycle never will. If something really big happens in-between, we’ll drop a bonus episode to keep you up to date.
Location:
Netherlands
Genres:
News & Politics Podcasts
Description:
America Explained is a podcast about American politics, foreign policy & culture for an international audience. Every fortnight it brings you the voices and perspectives shaping America - and its impact on the world - today. Hosted by historian and columnist Andy Gawthorpe, each fortnightly episode features analysis and interviews which help you understand a key issue in a way the regular news cycle never will. If something really big happens in-between, we’ll drop a bonus episode to keep you up to date.
Twitter:
@andygawt
Language:
English
Contact:
0658767433
Website:
https://america-explained.com/
Episodes
From the archive: Iran, the U.S., and the bomb
5/1/2024
*** Check out the America Explained Substack newsletter for a few written posts a month on the big issues in U.S. politics and foreign policy and no extra spam: https://amerex.substack.com/ ***
In this episode I spoke to Gregory Brew, deputy editor of the Texas National Security Review and a historian of U.S.-Iranian relations, about U.S. relations with Iran. We talked about the deeper history of the relationship, what drove policy during the Trump administration, and the role that oil plays in the broader U.S. stance in the Middle East.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:35:55
The Supreme Court is more complicated than you think
4/16/2024
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Andy and Catherine go over some lesser-known and surprising recent Supreme Court decisions covering democracy, animal rights, and Native affairs.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Co-host - Catherine Wood
Duration:00:31:02
Why America really fears China
4/2/2024
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Nowadays we're used to the idea that antagonism exists between the West and China, but we don't often pause to consider that this antagonism long predates China's rising economic and military power. Our guest today, Professor Jeffrey Crean from Tyler Junior College in Texas, is someone who has considered this - and he's written a great book, The Fear of Chinese Power, which examines over 150 years of Western fears of China.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Co-host - Martijn van Ette
Duration:00:46:01
Why is American politics so depressing?
3/19/2024
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In this special 100th episode of America Explained, Andy zooms out to look at what happened in the four years since the podcast launched to bring us back to this moment - one in which Donald Trump could once again become president of the United States.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:21:43
Will Ukraine gets its military aid?
3/5/2024
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In this episode, Andy is joined by Martijn to talk about the hold-up in getting aid for Ukraine through the House of Representatives. How is it that Speaker Mike Johnson can single-handedly hold up this aid? And will Ukraine eventually get it?
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Co-host - Martijn van Ette
Duration:00:21:07
How should Europe prepare for Trump 2.0?
2/21/2024
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In this special episode, Andy is interviewed by Phil Dobbie and Roger Herring of The Why Curve podcast about how Europe should prepare for a second Trump presidency. We talked about trade, alliances and democracy, as well as how Trump's re-election might lead to an undignified scramble to get on his good side.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:46:41
Republican border sabotage - and worse
2/7/2024
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The border is the big news in America right now. The Biden administration has embraced a hard-right approach to border security - but Republicans in Congress won't pass it because they want the president to look bad. Meanwhile, Texas Governor Greg Abbott is taking the law into his own hands - using arguments that date back to the civil war.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:24:53
Trump's weaknesses are becoming apparent
1/24/2024
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Donald Trump has won early primary contests in Iowa and New Hampshire. But the results have highlighted some warning signs for his campaign. Plus, Ron DeSantis is gone. Why was anyone enthusiastic about him in the first place? Andy discusses.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:24:19
From the archive: What did the Founders really think?
1/10/2024
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Since our last episode it was the Fourth of July, the holiday that many politicians and commentators like to mark by talking nonsense about the Founding Fathers. In this episode Andy explores all of the ways in which popular debate often gets the Founders wrong, and explains how the founding generation was riven by all kinds of disagreements and doubts about the America they were creating.
Check out America: A History, a new podcast from the University of East Anglia.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:21:23
Merry Christmas from America Explained!
12/27/2023
Merry Christmas!
Duration:00:01:38
Biden and Israel fall out
12/13/2023
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In the early days of the conflict in Gaza, the Biden administration called its approach to Israel "hugging them close". But now more and more disagreements are emerging between between the two countries, and hugs don't seem to be working anymore. What does this mean for the rest of the conflict and the broader future of the Israeli-Palestinian struggle?
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:30:19
When Israel wasn't a U.S. ally
11/29/2023
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Nowadays we're used to the idea that America will stick by Israel almost no matter what. But American policymakers didn't always view Israel as an ally or a strategic asset for the United States. On the anniversary of the partition of Palestine by the United Nations - an event which set the stage for the modern Middle East - Andy discusses America's attitude towards the creation of the state of Israel in the 1940s.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:21:35
Will Biden win in 2024?
11/15/2023
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It's roughly one year until the 2024 presidential election. There have been a host of conflicting signals about what the outcome might be recently - from some terrible polls for Biden to some good state and local election results for Democrats. Andy unpacks what it all means and what the big challenges are for Biden.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:24:19
From the archive: No, don't invade Mexico
11/1/2023
*** Check out the America Explained newsletter for regular posts on the big issues in U.S. politics and foreign policy and no extra spam: https://amerex.substack.com/ ***
The latest idea floating around in Republican Party circles is that America should invade Mexico to combat drug cartels. Andy explains why they're saying this and how the history of America's previous interventions in Mexico shows that it's a really bad idea.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:29:02
Could the U.S. go to war in the Middle East?
10/18/2023
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Hamas and Israel are headed for war, and the entire region might get sucked in - along with the United States. In this episode Andy explores how the U.S. is responding to the conflict and how it is affecting American politics and culture
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:22:12
What comes after Kevin McCarthy?
10/4/2023
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Speaker of the House of Representatives Kevin McCarthy just became the first speaker in American history to be voted out of his office. Far from a hapless victim, McCarthy played a key role in radicalizing his own party and making it impossible for anyone to impose order on it. That means his successors are likely to have just as hard a time as he did, as Andy discusses in this episode.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:20:52
From the archive: The anti-LGBT panic
9/20/2023
*** Check out the America Explained Substack newsletter for a few written posts a month on the big issues in U.S. politics and foreign policy and no extra spam: https://amerex.substack.com/ ***
Andy and Catherine explore the roots of today's anti-LGBT panic in the postwar 'Lavendar scare', talk about why conservatives today have chosen to demonize gay and trans people, and look at some of the concrete policies being implemented in Florida, Texas and elsewhere.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Co-host - Catherine Wood
Duration:00:40:21
Lewis and Clark and the conquest of the frontier
9/6/2023
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This month is the anniversary of when Lewis and Clark returned from their famous expedition across the North American continent. In popular culture the story is often portrayed as one of brave adventurers overcoming great odds. But what was actually the purpose of their mission? In this episode Andy talks about how Lewis and Clark's expedition is better understood as a reconnaissance mission before a war than a trek of peaceful discovery.
Email show suggestions.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:18:31
The Trump indictment show
8/22/2023
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Trump has been indicted again! Andy talks about why the Georgia indictment is so much more dangerous for Trump than the others, and in the second half of the episode analyzes the current state of the GOP primary.
Follow Andy on Twitter for more.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:28:16
How strong is the case against Trump?
8/8/2023
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Donald Trump faces his third serious criminal indictment this year. Andy breaks down Special Counsel Jack Smith's legal strategy and the problems it might face.
Follow Andy on Twitter for more.
Credits
Host - Andy Gawthorpe
Duration:00:31:10