Sarah and Matt talk about America’s rapidly falling birthrate, and a study on the long-term benefit of the 1980s Medicaid expansion. References and further reading: National Center for Health Statistics report on declining birth rates Vox's Julia Belluz's piece on the low birthrate trend NPR piece on the CDC report on declining fertility rates in the U.S. Sarah's piece on why teen births are declining Lyman Stone paper Sarah mentioned arguing that government interventions don't boost fertility N...
May 22, 2018•52 min•Ep 204•Transcript available on Metacast Senior politics reporter Jane Coaston joins Dara and Matt to debate the “identity politics” backlash and the prospects for pluralism. References and further reading: Bari Weiss' piece on the 'intellectual dark web' Conor Friedersdorf's piece on how the left fuels the right's bigotry Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 18, 2018•1 hr 2 min•Ep 203•Transcript available on Metacast Sarah, Dara and Matt discuss the the exorbitant cost of prescription drugs and a white paper that looks at the correlation between counties that vote Republican and the number of low and high-skilled immigrants living in those communities. References and further reading: Dylan Scott's piece on the price of prescription drugs mentioned by Sarah The white paper on 'The Political Impact of Immigration: Evidence from the United States' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adcho...
May 15, 2018•1 hr 1 min•Ep 202•Transcript available on Metacast Vox.com senior political reporter Andrew Prokop joins Dara and Matt to explain the strange tale of Donald Trump’s lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, who now seems to be in serious legal hot water. References and further reading: Andrew's piece on the corporations that hired Michael Cohen Andrew's piece on the Cohen's ties to Russia Andrew's Stormy Daniels explainer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 11, 2018•1 hr 20 min•Ep 201•Transcript available on Metacast Sarah, Dara, and Matt analyze Trump’s drastic rollback of Temporary Protected Status for immigrants from Honduras, El Salvador, and Haiti and discuss new research on the never-ending “economic anxiety” debate. References and further reading: Dara's TPS explainer White paper on attitudes toward social change Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 08, 2018•58 min•Ep 200•Transcript available on Metacast Vox's science reporter Brian Resnick joins Dara and Sarah to talk about psychiatry's Goldwater Rule, which has never met a test like Donald Trump. References and further reading: Brian's piece on why Trump's fitness for office is not a medical question Brian's explainer on the Goldwater Rule Sharon Begley's article Trump's mental health mentioned by Sarah Sarah's piece on fax machines Dara's piece on why the palace intrigue stuff matters to Trump Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastch...
May 04, 2018•51 min•Ep 199•Transcript available on Metacast Vox's Dylan Matthews joins Sarah and Matt to break down the jobs guarantee debate and discuss research on a promising school desegregation initiative undermined by racist police practices. References and further reading Dylan's jobs guarantee explainer (with links to Stephanie Kelton's writing) Dylan's explainer of Sen. Cory Booker's jobs guarantee proposal (with links to Darrick Hamilton and Sandy Darity's writing) Bryce Covert's piece on the case for a jobs guarantee Gallup poll on workers get...
May 01, 2018•54 min•Ep 198•Transcript available on Metacast Congressional reporter Ella Nilsen makes her Weeds debut joining Sarah and Matt to break down the botched nomination at the Veterans’ Administration, they also address the questions around the troubled agency’s future. References and further reading: Sarah's piece on the Ronny Jackson scandal Ella's piece on the controversy surrounding Jackson's nomination CNN piece on Ronny Jackson's alleged 'grab-and-go' clinic NY Times piece on the concierge emergency room Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...
Apr 27, 2018•52 min•Ep 197•Transcript available on Metacast Sarah, Dara and Matt discuss a Republican farm bill that would impose work requirements on SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) beneficiaries. Then they turn to a white paper on OxyContin and the heroin epidemic. References and further reading: Good Politico article summarizing the farm bill Marion Nestle's piece on the farm bill White paper on OxyContin's impact on the heroin epidemic German Lopez's piece on the OxyContin white paper Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastch...
Apr 24, 2018•59 min•Ep 196•Transcript available on Metacast Zack Beauchamp joins Dara and Matt to explain the ever-expanding 2001 Authorization for the Use of Military Force and Trump's even more expansive legal rationale for bombing Syria. References and further reading: Vox's history of the AUMF A primer on the legal dispute in Doe v. Mattis Chesney primer on the Corker-Kaine Draft AUMF Who is Italian philosopher Giorgio Agamben? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apr 20, 2018•55 min•Ep 195•Transcript available on Metacast Matt, Sarah and Dara work backward from James Comey through FBI history and discover an 18th-century demon hidden in the Constitution. No, really. References and further reading: Dara's piece on the tension between the rule of law and political leadership Recent PBS poll on how Americans view the FBI Max Weber, explained White paper on gender integration in the Norwegian military Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apr 17, 2018•1 hr 4 min•Ep 194•Transcript available on Metacast Dylan Scott joins Sarah and Matt to talk about Paul Ryan's retirement, his legacy, and the Weedsiest health reform of all. References: Sarah's all-payer rate setting explainer Dylan's piece on Paul Ryan's legacy Melanie Mason's piece on California's healthcare bill RTI evaluation of all-payer rate setting Health Affairs evaluation on changes in hospital use in Maryland Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apr 13, 2018•54 min•Ep 193•Transcript available on Metacast Sirens galore, as the team races through Environmental Protection Agency administrator Scott Pruitt's many, many scandals and a white paper about unnecessary ambulance use. References: Trump's defense of Scott Pruitt A good explainer on the Pruitt scandal How EPA deregulations impact toxic air pollution Michael Grunwald's piece on Pruitt's rollback of Obama era environmental regulations Elaina Plott's pieces on Scott Pruitt and more Working paper on ambulance usage in New York Learn more about y...
Apr 10, 2018•54 min•Ep 192•Transcript available on Metacast Dylan Matthews joins Sarah and Matt to break down the history of Sinclair Broadcast Group, its politics, and the regulatory favors that fueled its growth. References: Dylan's piece on the Sinclair media takeover Timothy Burke's Sinclair anchor mashup Alving Chang's piece on Sinclair media, see if your local news station is owned by Sinclair Martin and McCrain's paper on local news and national politics Good Mother Jones piece on Sinclair's local news takeover Learn more about your ad choices. Vi...
Apr 06, 2018•49 min•Ep 191•Transcript available on Metacast Sarah, Dara, and Matt talk about the citizenship question, funding, and the potential consequences of a botched enumeration. Plus a weedsy dive into potential redistricting mischief, and research on Jose Canseco's malign influence on Major League Baseball. References: Dara's piece on the 2020 census Carlos Waters' video on the 2020 census The baseball white paper Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Apr 03, 2018•54 min•Ep 190•Transcript available on Metacast The Weeds/Worldly crossover event continues: Jennifer Williams tries to persuade Dara and Matt they're wrong about an Islamophobic shift in Trump's new cabinet, and the old-fashioned democracy-promoting hawkery of George W. Bush. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 30, 2018•1 hr 2 min•Ep 189•Transcript available on Metacast Matt, Sarah and Ezra on a new, blockbuster study on racial mobility — and whether Mark Zuckerberg should shut down Facebook. References: Race and Economic Opportunity in the United States Dylan Matthews' piece Income Mobility Charts for Girls, Asian-Americans and Other Groups. Or, Make Your Own Extensive Data Shows Punishing Reach of Racism for Black Boys Matt's case against Facebook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 27, 2018•1 hr 7 min•Ep 188•Transcript available on Metacast Andrew Prokop, senior politics reporter for Vox.com, joins Dara and Matt to break down the scandal that’s rocking the worlds of technology and politics. References: The Jane Mayer piece on the Mercers Dara mentioned A study on Big Five personality attributes and voting behavior SCIENCE! on the Cambridge Analytica model A big five personality test you can do at home Andrew's Cambridge Analytica explainer Matt's good Facebook take Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoice...
Mar 23, 2018•1 hr 1 min•Ep 187•Transcript available on Metacast An economics working paper finds that access to Naloxone, a drug to reverse opioid overdoses, may increase opioid abuse. Sarah and Ezra explain the paper that started a social media firestorm — and what it means for combating the opioid epidemic. References: Doleac and Mukherjee working paper A good summary of the debate from The Atlantic Health Affairs blog post Working paper from Daniel Rees People are dying because we misunderstand how those with addiction think A lifesaving drug for overdose...
Mar 20, 2018•46 min•Ep 186•Transcript available on Metacast Dara and Matt break down the history of Immigration & Customs Enforcement: how it got this way, and why some on the left want it to go away. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 16, 2018•1 hr 5 min•Ep 185•Transcript available on Metacast Vox senior politics reporter Jane Coaston joins Ezra and Matt to talk about Trump turmoil, political correctness and the latest research on the state of the parties. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 13, 2018•1 hr 8 min•Ep 184•Transcript available on Metacast Vox Politics & Policy reporter Alexia Fernandez-Campbell joins Dara and Matt to talk about the West Virginia teachers strike. References: Alexia’s article on teachers Vox's Alvin Chang just published this amazing tool to see how teachers are paid in your state An explainer on the Supreme Court’s Janus case How public-sector unions are preparing for a post-Janus future The original “If You’re Gonna Play in Texas” Photographer evidence that he’s been called “Beto” since he was a toddler A good pri...
Mar 09, 2018•55 min•Ep 183•Transcript available on Metacast Sarah, Ezra, and Matt talk about a bipartisan bank deregulation bill, Medicaid work requirements, and constitutional hardball. References: Mark Tushner’s original constitutional hardball article Ron Chernow’s biography of Ulysses Grant Why there are two Dakotas Dylan Scott’s “Trump’s Hidden War on Medicaid” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 06, 2018•1 hr 7 min•Ep 182•Transcript available on Metacast Vox senior politics reporter Jane Coaston joins Dara and Matt to talk about a week of extremely erratic policymaking from an increasingly chaotic Trump White House. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Mar 02, 2018•52 min•Ep 181•Transcript available on Metacast Dylan Scott joins Sarah and Matt to talk about a new universal health care plan — plus some exciting administrative data from the good-old USA! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Feb 27, 2018•52 min•Ep 180•Transcript available on Metacast There are also some good ideas discussed. All of them are about guns. German Lopez joins Dara and Matt to talk about gun control in the wake of the Parkland shooting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Feb 23, 2018•55 min•Ep 179•Transcript available on Metacast Sarah, Ezra, and Matt talk about what’s really wrong with American infrastructure, the massacre in Parkland, FL, and new research on legislators’ irrational decision-making. Whitepaper! Bias in Perceptions of Public Opinion Among American Political Elites by David E. Broockman, Christopher Skovron Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Feb 20, 2018•1 hr 3 min•Ep 178•Transcript available on Metacast Matt, Dara, and Andrew Prokop talk about the Senate's failed immigration push, and they parse through the many-layered Rob Porter scandal. DACA/Immigration ReferencesThe 8 Republican senators who voted for the bipartisan compromiseMoran, Thune, and Portman’s new DACA proposal statementTara Golshan’s piece about Grassley’s Secure and Succeed Act Rob Porter ReferencesThe ever-shifting White House story on Rob PorterThe Rob Porter scandal, explainedJane Coaston’s piece: The White House had to prote...
Feb 16, 2018•1 hr 8 min•Ep 177•Transcript available on Metacast Matt, Ezra, Sarah, and Dylan Matthews try to explain Trump’s budget and Disability Insurance. For today's white paper: Move over Swedish administrative data, it’s Denmark’s turn. Trump’s budget references:Dylan's explainer on Trump's proposed budgetAirports Council International report on the ownership of European airportsCongressional Research Service report on airport privatizationMatt’s explainer on Trump’s infrastructure planDisability Insurance references:Dylan's defense of SSDITerrance McC...
Feb 13, 2018•1 hr 9 min•Ep 176•Transcript available on Metacast Matt, Dara, and Tara Golshan, all weary from lack of sleep, try to make sense of the few hours on Thursday night/Friday morning when the government was shut down. Referenced Works Republicans laughing in Tara's face about addressing immigration: Immigration anxiety got Trump elected. Congress isn’t touching it. Further Reading House Democrats’ confusing, high-risk DACA government shutdown gamble, explained Congress just funded CHIP for a full decade Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcas...
Feb 09, 2018•55 min•Ep 175•Transcript available on Metacast 
