Can American democracy have nice things?
This week, we explore the question of whether requiring every American to vote would change our fractured political landscape and strengthen our sense of civic duty.
Democracy Works · Miles Rapoport, Chris Beem, Michael Berkman, E.J. Dionne, Jenna Spinelle
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Show Notes
In 100% Democracy: The Case for Universal Voting, E.J. Dionne and Miles Rapoport argue that all members of a democracy must participate in elections. Universal voting would be the surest way to protect against voter suppression and the active disenfranchisement of a large share of our citizens. And it would create a system true to the Declaration of Independence's aspirations by calling for a government based on the consent of all of the governed.
The system works in Australia, but can it work in the United States? Would it become just another tool in partisan warfare? Can American democracy even handle something like universal voting? We explore those questions this week.
Dionne is is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, a syndicated columnist for the Washington Post, university professor at Georgetown University, and visiting professor at Harvard University. He is the author of Code Red: How Progressives and Moderates Can Unite to Save Our Country.
Rapoport is the Senior Practice Fellow in American Democracy at the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation at the Harvard Kennedy School. He formerly served in the Connecticut state legislature and as secretary of the state. He also served as president of Demos and of Common Cause.
Additional Information
100% Democracy: The Case for Universal Voting
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E.J. Dionne on empathy and democracy - E.J.'s first appearance on the show in April 2019
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