))
When talking about our economy, nightly newscasts only seem to report on the stock market and the unemployment rate. But that doesn’t tell us much about how millions of Americans are getting by. From prison phone rates to the high cost of diapers, Congressman Keith Ellison looks at how the people outside of the billionaire and millionaire class (you know, most of us) engage the economy.
…
continue reading
Informal & informed conversations about politics, policy, economics, media, science and more. Sundays feature a panel of prominent members of the liberal blogosphere. Tuesdays, Jay Ackroyd talks public affairs, mostly with authors, mostly about progressive issues
…
continue reading
Matt Bruenig, founder of the People's Policy Project, joins We The Podcast to discuss wealth inequality and a potential solution: a social wealth fund. With similar concepts already implemented in Alaska and Norway, is a social wealth fund the answer to our inequality crisis?
…
continue reading
Social Security Works' Nancy Altman joins Rep. Keith Ellison remotely to discuss why Medicare for All is more efficient than the privatized health insurance status quo, and the idea's deep roots in America's own history.
…
continue reading
1
We The Podcast - Dream Act Now with Erika Andiola
18:47
18:47
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
18:47
We need a DREAM Act to protect 800,000 Dreamers whose lives were thrown into turmoil by Donald Trump. Dreamer activist Erika Andiola put her body on the line for this movement and joins us to discuss next steps.
…
continue reading
1
Taking on Amazon with Lina Khan and Stacy Mitchell
30:56
30:56
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
30:56
On this We The Podcast, we sit down with Lina Khan (Open Markets Institute) and Stacy Mitchell (Institute for Local Self-Reliance) on the monopolistic rise of the Amazon corporation and what it means for workers, small business and local power.
…
continue reading
This week, Keith revisits the topic of franchising, with former guest Megan Edwards, who joined with other franchisees to successfully sue Curves Gym for unfair treatment of franchisees.
…
continue reading
1
Racism and Economic Hardship with Keri Leigh Merritt
45:10
45:10
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
45:10
Keri Leigh Merritt is the author of Masterless Men: Poor Whites and Slavery in the Antebellum South. Keith and Keri Leigh Merritt discuss the link between economic hardship and the spread of racism throughout American history.
…
continue reading
1
Market Concentration with Barry Lynn from Open Markets Institute
41:02
41:02
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
41:02
Barry Lynn is the head of the Open Markets Institute, a think tank that examines the problem of corporate consolidation, market concentration, and monopoly power. These issues make it hard for workers to find jobs, take power away from working people, and make it hard for small businesses to break into the market. This week, Keith and Barry explore…
…
continue reading
On this special Labor Day episode of We The Podcast, Keith interviews Lee Saunders, President of AFSCME, about the history and future of labor rights in America.
…
continue reading
1
Framing the Message with Professor George Lakoff
44:11
44:11
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
44:11
George Lakoff is a professor of cognitive linguistics and philosophy at the University of California at Berkeley. Now, you might be asking yourself, “what does cognitive science, linguistic science, and phenomenology have to do with working families and the economy?” Well, as it turns out, quite a bit. Professor Lakoff studies the way that human be…
…
continue reading
The Republican Party talks about "voter fraud" all the time. President Trump even claims he lost the popular vote because more than 3 million people voted illegally. Sounds like a big deal. But how common is voter fraud? And what might Republicans be aiming for if not a genuine interest in "election integrity?" This week on We The Podcast I talk ab…
…
continue reading
For years, millions of Americans were frightened of two words: pre-existing conditions. Before the Affordable Care Act, private insurance could deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions. That's what Republicans want to return to. To learn more about about pre-existing conditions and what could happen if the Republican proposal becomes la…
…
continue reading
A few weeks ago, we learned that Amazon is buying Whole Foods for $13 billion. When big firms merge, it drives up market concentration. But how does that affect working people or local businesses? I talked with my friend Rep. Ro Khanna about market concentration and how it hurts working families. Music by: Podington Bear…
…
continue reading
Six bucks. That’s all someone working full-time at the federal minimum wage would have left over after paying the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the United States of America. It’s time to give America a raise. It’s time to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. And how about a union? This is the story of the Fight for $15 and a Union. …
…
continue reading
Women experience the economy different than men. They pay more for everything from clothes and hygiene products, to dry cleaning and vehicle repairs. This is called "the pink tax". Terry O'Neill is the President of the National Organization for Women, one of our oldest and best feminist organizations in this country. She stopped by my office to tal…
…
continue reading
1
The Transgender Community and The Economy
34:35
34:35
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
34:35
The transgender community is more visible than ever. But this increased visibility hasn’t improved the lives of all transgender people. Nationwide, violence against trans people – and trans women in particular – is at an all-time high. This sort of violence has far-reaching repercussions – high unemployment, difficulty accessing lifesaving healthca…
…
continue reading
Unions raise wages and worker protections for everybody – even if you’re not in a union! These jobs aren’t so simple either. It takes a lot of training to do what these men and women do every day. But as our education system becomes more and more out of reach, it’s getting harder and harder for men and women who want to work with their hands to get…
…
continue reading
There are millions of women around the country fighting for equal pay, for better working conditions, for an end to sexual harassment. But in an age of extreme right wing politics – the age of President Trump – what can we do to make our society better? I talked to some of the women who are leading that fight. Music by: Podington Bear and Keith Ell…
…
continue reading
Millions of Americans lack credit scores or have scores that are too low to gain access to affordable credit. The problem affects young people, African-Americans, Latinos and immigrants, many of whom can't establish a credit score without taking on debt. We can solve that problem by expanding what is on a person's credit report. Music by: Keith Ell…
…
continue reading
1
Best of We the Podcast (Special Election Day Episode)
45:47
45:47
Play later
Play later
Lists
Like
Liked
45:47
Two years ago, we started We the Podcast so we could tell stories about how people engage with the economy. Twenty-three episodes and 75,000 downloads later, we’ve covered everything from union organizing to payday loans to tax havens. With Election Day right around the corner, I decided to take a look back at past episodes and some of the issues t…
…
continue reading
Just last month, we found out that Wells Fargo Bank committed a years-long scam that stole from their customers, inflated their stock price, and lined the pockets of their top level executives. Then, those same executives pinned the whole thing on their low-level employees, thousands of whom were fired from their jobs. I sat down with Ruth Landaver…
…
continue reading
We spend a lot of time talking about how important unions are. On this episode, we’re going to see organized labor in action on the streets of my home city, Minneapolis. Right now, almost 5,000 Minnesotan nurses are on strike. I went down to the picket line, and talked with a few of the striking nurses. I wanted to hear, straight from them, why thi…
…
continue reading
How many of you work 40 hours a week? If you’re a salaried worker, guess what: your employer is pretty happy. After all, they’re getting free work. That’s right. Millions of salaried workers are essentially working for free once they pass 40 hours during their work week. That’s because over the past 35 years, we failed to update our overtime pay re…
…
continue reading
Let’s be honest, few people enjoy paying their taxes. But most of us understand that taxes serve a critical purpose—the public good. And since we all benefit from these things, you’d figure that we would all contribute. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. According to a recent report by Oxfam America, the top 50 American companies hold $1.4 trillio…
…
continue reading
What does "home" mean to you? For millions of people in America, a safe and stable home is something they dream about but is out of reach. There is a housing crisis in this country. To get a better understanding of this problem, I talked with Matthew Desmond, author of the book Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City. Music by: Keith Ellis…
…
continue reading
Every single American has felt the benefits of the New Deal – and for low-income folks, working families, and seniors, the New Deal has been the difference between security and poverty. A lot of the credit for the New Deal goes to President Franklin Roosevelt, and rightly so. But it’s a little-known fact that the New Deal wouldn't have been as effe…
…
continue reading
