Explain It to Me

Dylan Matthews and Jerusalem Demsas are joined by Vox’s Andrew Prokop (@awprokop) to talk about the midterm elections. More specifically, why the president’s party almost always loses seats in Congress. They discuss the theories of this phenomenon and what, if anything, can work on the margins. Plus, a white paper about Obamacare and the 2010 midterm elections. References: Why the president’s party almost always has a bad midterm The political science of door-knocking and TV ads White paper: “One Vote Out of Step? The Effects of Salient Roll Call Votes in the 2010 Election” Dylan’s old, wrong article arguing that congressional position-taking doesn’t matter much Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer Dara Lind, engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan Matthews talks with Victor Cha (@VictorDCha) about the international politics surrounding the 2022 Beijing Olympics. The US and several other countries are boycotting the games to protest China’s human rights record, which brings up the question: What does this boycott mean for US-China relations? References: Beyond the Final Score by Victor Cha Cha on the politicization of the 2022 Games Vox’s Jen Kirby on the Biden administration’s diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Olympics Vox’s Bryan Walsh on the failure of the Games to promote international peace Olympic sponsors are facing pressure over China’s human rights violations Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan Matthews, Dara Lind, and Jerusalem Demsas talk about affirmative action. They dig into the current Supreme Court case about Harvard’s admission rates and ask: How do we make sure our elite institutions adequately reflect the population? Plus, a white paper about the effects of education on mortality. References: Vox senior correspondent Ian Millhiser’s explainer about the SCOTUS cases Peter Arcidiacono, Josh Kinsler, and Tyler Ransom's empirical papers on Harvard admissions Jay Caspian Kang on the Harvard case Ending affirmative action in California pushed Black and Latinx students into worse schools and jobs Randall Kennedy’s case for affirmative action Sheryll Cashin’s case for “place-based affirmative action” An argument that class-based affirmative action produces more racial diversity than regular affirmative action Nicholas Lemann on affirmative action for the New Yorker How the Texas “10 percent” rule changed high school enrollment White paper: "The Effects of Education on Mortality: Evidence Using College Expansions" “A Generation of American Men Give Up on College: ‘I Just Feel Lost,’” the Wall Street Journal Opinion | “Affirmative Action Was Never a Perfect Solution,” the New York Times “Estimating Benefits from University-Level Diversity” Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Dara Lind (@dlind), Weeds cohost, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan Matthews talks with Mark Galeotti (@MarkGaleotti), director of Mayak Intelligence, about what’s going on in Ukraine. They discuss in depth the historical tensions between Russia and Ukraine, Russia’s NATO problem, and the calculations and motivations behind President Vladimir Putin’s moves. References: Today, Explained’s episode about Ukraine's pipeline problem Vox’s Jen Kirby wrote an explainer about Russia-Ukraine tensions Adam Tooze on Russia as a petro-state An excellent 2019 episode from NPR’s Throughline about the rise of Putin The Weaponisation of Everything: A Field Guide to the New Way of War, by Mark Galeotti Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan Matthews, Dara Lind, and Vox policy editor Libby Nelson discuss the findings of two recent studies on early childhood development. One study found that cash transfers increase brain activity in infants, while the other found a negative impact of universal pre-K on academic outcomes. So ... what’s actually going on here? Does one negate the other? The Weeds team talks it out. Plus, a white paper on the effects of parenthood on voter turnout. References: Dylan’s story on the cash-transfer study and his piece on the universal pre-K findings The impact of a poverty reduction intervention on infant brain activity. PNAS The New York Times’s Jason DeParle’s take on the cash-transfer study Scott Alexander summarizes the skeptical takes on the cash transfer study Noah Smith’s review of the research on pre-K, and Kelsey Piper’s Effects of a Statewide Pre-Kindergarten Program on Children’s Achievement and Behavior Through Sixth Grade White Paper: Parents, Infants and Voter Turnout: Evidence from the United States Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Dara Lind (@dlind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Libby Nelson (@libbyanelson), policy editor, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dara Lind talks with professor Gabriel Winant of the University of Chicago about the new Bureau of Labor Statistics report that showed a topline decline in union membership despite increasing labor-oriented momentum. And later, journalist Rachel Cohen (@rmc031) joins to talk about the importance of teachers’ unions in the labor movement and in Democratic politics. References: The Next Shift: The Fall of Industry and the Rise of Health Care in Rust Belt America, Gabriel Winant Rachel Cohen’s recent article about school closures and Democrats The recent Bureau of Labor Statistics report on union membership numbers Hosts: Dara Lind (@dlind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan Matthews and Jerusalem Demsas talk with Emily Rong Zhang, a PhD candidate in political science at Stanford and a former Skadden Fellow at the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project, about the recent attempts in Congress to pass voting rights legislation. And, a white paper about voter ID laws, written by Emily herself! References: Recapping Congress’s failed voting rights push Why some Dem strategists were skeptical of the effort The case for fixing the Electoral Count Act What happens after the voting rights fights White Paper: “What the Debate over Voter ID Laws' Effects Teaches about Asking the Right Questions” Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jerusalem Demsas and Dylan Matthews talk with Joey Politano (@JosephPolitano), economics blogger and self-described "mid-tier take-haver," to go over one big question on people’s minds right now: are corporations profiting off of inflation? References: Joey’s blog post about rising corporate prices and inflation Sen. Elizabeth Warren on rising corporate profit margins Paul Krugman’s newsletter from this week Binyamin Appelbaum on the meatpacking industry The White House’s statement on meat companies taking advantage of market power The letter from President Joe Biden to FTC chair Lina Khan “Could strategic price controls help fight inflation?” in the Guardian Rethinking Inflation Policy: A toolkit for economic recovery by JW Mason and Lauren Melodia Hosts: Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Weeds co-hosts Jerusalem Demsas and Dara Lind talk with Robinson Meyer (@yayitsrob), staff writer at the Atlantic, about the climate provisions in President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better bill. They discuss specific climate-focused policy proposals and the political stalemate Congress is in, thanks to the filibuster in the Senate. Plus, a white paper about building codes and wildfires in California. References: Robinson Meyer on the climate gamble going on in Congress Weeds alum Matt Yglesias on the Build Back Better Bill Vox’s Rebecca Leber on why Joe Manchin may have doomed climate policy A 2016 piece from Vox’s Dylan Matthews about money in politics “Progressive leader calls on Biden to unilaterally act on agenda,” The Hill “Manchin's $1.8 trillion spending offer appears no longer to be on the table,” The Washington Post “Noisy and Unsafe: Stop Fetishizing Old Homes,” The Atlantic Hosts: Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Dara Lind (@dlind) immigration reporter and Weeds host, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan talks to John M. Barry, distinguished scholar at Tulane University and author of The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History, about the Spanish flu of 1918-1919, its parallels to Covid-19, and what that pandemic’s end tells us about how this one might end. References: The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan, Jerusalem, and special guest Bryan Walsh discuss the slowing population growth in America, and what a smaller-than-expected America could mean. They also talk about which immigration and child care policies could speed up population growth. Finally, they discuss a paper on why Europe is so much more equal than America. References: The Great Population Slowdown How immigration could reverse population decline The rise of childlessness The climate case that it’s okay to have kids The link between fertility and income The complex relationship between housing prices and fertility Changes in abortion access in a post-Roe America Romania’s abortion ban and its effect on fertility Recent research on global fertility patterns and cohabitation What is the relationship between gender equality and fertility rates? The Conservative Fertility Advantage White paper: “Why Is Europe More Equal than the United States?” A critique of the paper’s approach to health care Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Bryan Walsh (@bryanrwalsh), editor for Future Perfect, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How does someone get radicalized? What do political scientists see as the building blocks of political violence? Is there anything we can do to stop radicalization? One year after the insurrection on January 6, 2021, Vox policy reporter Jerusalem Demsas talks with Peter Neumann, a professor of security studies at King’s College in London, to answer these questions. References: Vox’s Zack Beauchamp on where the crisis in American democracy might be headed Peter Neumann’s paper: The trouble with radicalization A Q&A with a French philosopher about the fear of replacement within white nationalism Colin Clarke writes for Politico on what happened after January 6 Northwestern University research about the perceived threat of a racial demographic shift in the US Hosts: Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan and Dara are joined by Vox’s Libby Nelson to talk about the policy merits and political implications of plans to cancel some or all student loans. They also discuss whether President Joe Biden has the power to cancel student debt unilaterally. And, Vox’s Jerusalem Demsas joins Dylan and Dara for a white paper about prisoners of war and genetics. References: Brookings Institution’s Andre Perry on why student loan forgiveness isn't regressive How canceling student debt helps beneficiaries get out of other debt The racial justice case for student loan cancellation Luke Herrine arguing that the Department of Education can erase debt unilaterally Is there a secret memo saying Biden can erase the debt? David Leonhardt’s case against debt cancellation White Paper of the Week: “Health Shocks of the Father and Longevity of the Children's Children” Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Dara Lind (@dlind), immigration reporter Libby Nelson (@libbyanelson) policy editor, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Vox senior reporter Rebecca Leber (@rbleber) joins The Weeds to explain the problem of migration caused by climate change, such as that due to wildfires, rising seas, and crop failures. She explains how a warming planet is forcing people to move both in the US and internationally, and how policymakers are and aren’t adapting. Vox reporters Dylan Matthews and Jerusalem Demsas continue the conversation with ProPublica’s Dara Lind, discussing a new white paper arguing that social mobility in America rose in the 20th century. References: ProPublica’s feature on climate migration in Central America How climate change is driving up flood insurance premiums in Canarsie, Brooklyn NPR’s investigation into the federal government selling flood-prone houses to low-income families California is encouraging rebuilding in fire-prone regions The case for “managed retreat” from coastal areas A New York Times feature on how climate migration will reshape America The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck Why Greg Clark is pessimistic that social mobility even exists White Paper of the Week: Intergenerational Mobility in American History: Accounting for Race and Measurement Error, Zachary Ward Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Dara Lind (@DLind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the final episode of our series, America’s Public Health Experiment, Dylan, Dara, and Jerusalem discuss how the CDC and the FDA failed the American public in the early months of the pandemic. Plus, a white paper about excess deaths in the first year of Covid-19. References: How the experts botched masking advice Zeynep Tufekci on the case for masks (in March 2020) Inside the Fall of the CDC Can the CDC be fixed? How the CDC failed to detect Covid early Scott Gottlieb on CDC versus FDA turf wars The Government Asked Us Not To Release Records From The CDC’s First Failed COVID Test. Here They Are. Zeynep Tufekci in the Atlantic: ​​The CDC Is Still Repeating Its Mistakes Dylan Scott on FDA approval of controversial Alzheimer's drug White paper: Excess Deaths in the United States During the First Year of COVID-19 What happened to drug deaths in 2020 Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Dara Lind (@dlind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the penultimate episode of our series America’s Public Health Experiment, Vox policy reporter Jerusalem Demsas talks to Arnab Datta, senior counsel at Employ America, about automatic stabilizers: what they are and how they could help during a crisis that affects the economy, such as a global pandemic. References: Vox's Emily Stewart on Democrats abandoning automatic stabilizers Recession Ready: Fiscal Policies to Stabilize the American Economy Structuring Federal Aid To States As An Automatic (And Autonomous) Stabilizer A Historic Decrease in Poverty GOP Governors Reject Extra Federal Unemployment Payments Host: Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan and Jerusalem are joined by Vox Policy Editor Libby Nelson to talk about the current state of Covid-19 and schools. They discuss vaccine mandates, rapid testing – or a lack thereof – and teacher burnout. Plus, a white paper about college majors and GPA requirements. References: Why schools weren’t “back to normal” this year The pandemic caused huge levels of learning loss, especially in districts with less in-person schooling, and especially in poor countries Can pandemics affect educational attainment? Evidence from the polio epidemic of 1916 Some schools are going remote on Fridays to address “burnout” Schools cre closing classrooms on Fridays. Parents are furious. Do school closures and school reopenings affect community transmission of COVID-19? A systematic review of observational studies Quarantines are driving down attendance The “test to stay” alternative to quarantines How school districts have used their Covid relief funds White Paper: “College Major Restrictions and Social Stratification” Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Libby Nelson (@libbyanelson), policy editor, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the second episode of our series, America’s Public Health Experiment, Weeds co-host Dara Lind looks at two government agencies that went from quietly to loudly broken during the Covid-19 pandemic. Dara is joined by the Washington Post’s Jacob Bogage (@jacobbogage) and Jeremy McKinney (@McKJeremy) from the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Host: Dara Lind (@dlind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dara and Dylan talk to Jerusalem about her new article defending rent control laws. The three discuss the policy impacts of rent limits and the politics driving their adoption in large American cities. Finally, they discuss a new paper on declining fertility in 18th-century France. References: Jerusalem’s case for rent control A poll of leading economists, who almost all oppose rent control Economist Rebecca Diamond on the effects of rent control Manhattan Institute fellow Michael Hendrix’s case against rent control Time for revisionism on rent control? The Invention of Brownstone Brooklyn by Suleiman Osman Review of the literature by the Urban Institute White paper: “The Cultural Origins of the Demographic Transition in France” by Guillaume Blanc Blanc’s Twitter summary of his paper The demographic transition for beginners Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Dara Lind (@dlind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

German talks with Dr. Neeraj Sood, director of the Covid Initiative at the University of Southern California’s Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics, about the US’s many failures on Covid-19 testing. They dive into the country’s original mistakes, then go into how lack of testing continues to plague America’s pandemic response. They conclude with what this means not just for the current pandemic but for future public health crises, too. Host: German Lopez (@germanrlopez), senior correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

German, Jerusalem, and Dylan talk about an idea that has come to dominate national discussions of policing: defunding the police. They walk through the pros and cons of the idea as a policy proposal, then discuss how it’s affecting the politics of criminal justice. Finally, they discuss new research on discrimination against Black and Latinx renters. References: German’s article on police research German’s article on guns and policing Austin’s defunding journey Study finding more police mean fewer homicides Study finding London police closures led to more violent crime Expert survey finding most say more police funding would mean public safety improvements 2020's protests led to state policing reforms, but not defunding Pew on public opinion toward defunding the police Rogé Karma interviews Patrick Sharkey on The Ezra Klein Show White paper: “Racial Discrimination and Housing Outcomes in the United States Rental Market” Jerusalem's article on discrimination against housing voucher recipients Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox German Lopez (@germanrlopez), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan, Jerusalem, and Dara talk about the specific kind of inflation that’s roiling American politics: the heightened price of gas. They discuss how and why gas prices have shot up in recent months, and what it means for Joe Biden’s popularity and presidency. Plus, a white paper about the most important labor market of all: the global market for soccer (excuse me, football) players. References: Biden’s strongly worded letter on gas prices Biden is tapping the strategic petroleum reserve Reuters on why gas prices are high Why OPEC isn’t lowering gas prices Eric Levitz on what Biden should do to combat inflation The correlation between Biden’s popularity and gas prices Lasting Impacts of a Gas Price Shock during Teenage Driving Years Voters who drive a lot are likelier to vote based on gas prices Presidential approval is historically strongly affected by gas and food prices (and not due to media coverage) The collapse of New England’s Transportation and Climate Initiative White paper: “Does Employing Skilled Immigrants Enhance Competitive Performance? Evidence from European Football Clubs” Mo Salah reduced prejudice Newcastle Football Club controversy Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Dara Lind (@dlind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan talks to Chye-Ching Huang, the executive director of the Tax Law Center at NYU Law, about the many, many, many tax provisions in Democrats’ Build Back Better package. First they dive into the new tax benefits in the bill, from the expanded child tax credit to the $7,500 credit for electric cars. Then they talk about how the bill raises money through taxes, especially through higher taxes on high-income people and corporations. Then they talk about the future of taxes, like what will happen when most of the Trump tax cuts expire at the end of 2025. References: A breakdown of the components of the House Build Back Better bill Whose taxes Build Back Better would raise and cut Huang’s testimony to Congress on Build Back Better UChicago and Columbia researchers on the Child Tax Credit and employment The health care tax credit provisions of Build Back Better, explained The clean energy tax credits would help cut emissions by 40-50 percent The bill’s minimum corporate tax plan and millionaire surtax, explained How rebuilding the IRS would boost tax compliance Host: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Now that nearly 60 percent of the US population is fully vaccinated, Dylan, German, and Jerusalem discuss potential exit strategies for policies such as mask mandates and mandatory quarantines. They also talk about what an “endemic” Covid might be like in the US and which aspects of pandemic life might stick around. Finally, they discuss how better access to mental health care could affect crime. References: Mandate the vaccines, not masks The case for ending school mask mandates at the end of the year The case for keeping mask mandates Emily Oster on kids and masks The Black Death and its Consequences for the Jewish Community in Tàrrega Against “deep cleaning” surfaces for COVID Vaccines are coming along for children under 5 Do booster shots make vaccinating the world harder? White paper of the week: Better access to outpatient psychiatric care reduces crime Cognitive-behavioral therapy reduced crime in Liberia Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox German Lopez (@germanrlopez), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Vox policy reporter Jerusalem Demsas talks with the Atlantic’s Derek Thompson (@DKThomp) about how the future of remote work could reshape America’s cities, upend US labor markets, and cause fundamental shifts in where people live. Derek and Jerusalem discuss how it would take only a small percentage of remote workers to impact the urban geography of the US — with complicated implications for electoral politics and the climate. References: Jerusalem's Q&A with housing economist Enrico Moretti on the future of remote work: Remote work is overrated. America’s supercities are coming back. Superstar Cities Are in Trouble [The Atlantic] How America Lost Its Mojo [The Atlantic] The Coronavirus is Creating a Huge, Successful Experiment in Working From Home [The Atlantic] Where Americans Are Moving [Bloomberg] Could a Heartland visa help struggling regions? [Economic Innovation Group] Host: Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan, Jerusalem, and Dara discuss congressional Democrats’ efforts to uncap the state and local tax (SALT) deduction, and how the party found itself proposing a massive tax cut for high-income households. They also dive into the deduction’s stated purpose (encouraging states to spend on social programs) and talk about other programs that could encourage states to invest in health and education. Finally, they examine a white paper showing that domestic violence crimes didn’t increase during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. References: The state and local tax deduction, explained [Vox] SALT cap repeal would overwhelmingly benefit high income households [Tax Policy Center] Reconciliation may deliver a tax cut to the rich [Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget] 5-Year SALT cap repeal would be costliest part of Build Back Better [Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget] Senators Menendez and Sanders show the way forward on the SALT cap [Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy] Easy on the SALT: A qualified defense of the deduction for state and local taxes [Daniel J. Hemel, University of Chicago Law School] Congress can help state and local governments prepare for a rainy day without repealing the SALT cap [Tax Policy Center] What you don’t know about fiscal federalism can hurt you [Milken Institute Review] Progressive politics from the ground up [CommonWealth Magazine] California is making liberals squirm [The New York Times] Effects of COVID-19 shutdowns on domestic violence in US cities [Amalia R. Miller, Carmit Segal, and Melissa K. Spencer, National Bureau of Economic Research] One explanation for conflicting reports on domestic violence during the pandemic [Aaron Chalfin, Twitter] Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Dara Lind (@dlind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Vox senior correspondent Ian Millhiser talks to law professor Nicholas Bagley about the pandemic — and how the courts are undermining the government's ability to respond to emergencies. They discuss the constitutionality of vaccine mandates, religious exemptions to public health laws, and court decisions undermining the power of public health agencies. References: Delegation at the Founding (Columbia Law Review) The Supreme Court’s coming war with Joe Biden, explained Religious conservatives have won a revolutionary victory in the Supreme Court A New Supreme Court case could gut the government’s power to fight climate change Hosts: Ian Millhiser (@imillhiser) Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan, German, and Dara talk about Facebook and the controversy surrounding it in recent weeks. They cover just how much — and how little — we know about Facebook’s impact on the world and talk about whether there are good policy solutions to Facebook’s problems. For the white paper of the week, they break down a study on free school lunch programs. References: The Wall Street Journal’s reporting on how Facebook’s efforts to improve the platform backfired The Washington Post’s reporting on how Facebook prioritized “angry” over “like” The Washington Post’s reporting on Facebook picking engagement over fighting misinformation Section 230 basics, explained Vox’s Recode Daily podcast What happened when experimenters paid people to deactivate Facebook before the 2018 midterms Max Fisher and Amanda Taub on Facebook-inspired anti-Muslim violence in Sri Lanka Facebook did enable the Arab Spring Farhad Manjoo on how bad regulations could make Facebook worse A child psychologist on what we don’t know about Instagram’s effect on teen girls Kevin Drum’s counter-takes on Facebook NBER study on school lunch programs reducing grocery costs Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox German Lopez (@germanrlopez), senior correspondent, Vox Dara Lind (@dlind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial advisor Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

America’s housing market is failing to meet the needs of most Americans. Rents have skyrocketed, homeownership is slipping out of grasp for young and other first-time homebuyers, and policymakers have struggled to meet the moment. But we’re not alone. The UK is also facing a dire housing shortage, one that is leading to skyrocketing rents and home prices. Usually, the solution to this problem is pushing higher levels of government to step in where local government has failed, but today’s guest, John Myers, the co-founder of London YIMBY, thinks his country should go in the opposite direction: more local. References: More Housing? YIMBY, Please (Bloomberg) Strong Suburbs: Enabling streets to control their own development (Policy Exchange) Seoul searching – does the Korean capital have the solution to the housing crisis? (CapX) How Houston Achieved Lot Size Reform (Planetizen) California is ending a rule that helped cause its housing crisis (Vox) Hosts: Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan, German, and Jerusalem get together to discuss one of the world’s least likely but most interesting utopian ideas: open borders. They discuss the moral and economic logic for making it easy to move to and work in different countries, and the political constraints that make such an idea anathema in most rich countries. Also, they discuss a new paper about how housing regulation is making it hard for Americans to move to where they’d get the best jobs. References: Bryan Caplan’s case for open borders, on Vox and in comic book form Matt Yglesias’s case for more immigration Michael Clemens’s economic case for broader migration A review of the evidence on voter backlash to immigration Angela Nagle’s leftist case against open borders Arlie Hochschild’s Strangers in Their Own Land Jerusalem on the intersection of refugee policy and housing policy ”Angela Merkel Was Right” by NYT's Michelle Goldberg “Does Immigration Produce a Public Backlash or Public Acceptance? Time-Series, Cross-Sectional Evidence from Thirty European Democracies” White Paper: “Location, Location, Location” by David Card, Jesse Rothstein, and Moises Yi Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox German Lopez (@germanrlopez), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial advisor Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Vox senior correspondent Ian Millhiser talks with law professor Joseph Blocher and historian Carol Anderson about the Second Amendment, the triumph of the NRA's vision for that amendment, and an upcoming Supreme Court case that endangers more than a century of American gun control laws. References: The Positive Second Amendment Rights, Regulation, and the Future of Heller, Joseph Blocher The Second: Race and Guns in a Fatally Unequal America, Carol Anderson Hosts: Ian Millhiser (@imillhiser), senior correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial advisor Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan, German, and Dara talk about the whopping 5.4 percent inflation rate the Consumer Price Index estimated last week, what it means, and if inflation is going to get worse. They dig into a paper out of the Federal Reserve arguing that we're thinking about inflation all wrong. And they close out with a fascinating new study on what the Great Migration meant for African Americans who moved northward. References: Ben Casselman explains where prices are rising Why looking at “trimmed” inflation measures can be useful Neil Irwin from the New York Times on “shadow inflation” Back when Dylan was less worried about inflation JW Mason explains why “America’s inflation debate is fundamentally confused” Jeremy Rudd, "Why Do We Think That Inflation Expectations Matter for Inflation? (And Should We?)" Ricardo Reis’s critique of the Rudd paper; Joe Gagnon’s critique of the Rudd paper Rudd and Blinder on the oil explanation for the inflation in the 1970s This week’s white paper: Ellora Derenoncourt, "Can you move to opportunity? Evidence from the Great Migration" Leah Boustan's book on the economic effects of the Great Migration on migrants and those left behind Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox German Lopez (@germanrlopez), senior correspondent, Vox Dara Lind (@dlind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Joe Biden has proposed a landmark $400 billion expansion of funding for home and community-based services (HCBS), the part of Medicaid that funds support services for older adults and people with disabilities living at home rather than in institutions. But with Congress fighting over which of Biden's priorities to cut to appease moderate Democrats, that proposal could be in peril. Mia Ives-Rublee is a longtime disability rights activist who helped organize the Women's March in 2017 and now serves as director of the Disability Justice Initiative at the Center for American Progress. She spoke with Vox's Dylan Matthews about how HCBS works now, and how Democrats' plans for additional funding would change it. References: Biden’s home-based care plan, explained Polling suggests funding for home care is quite popular "How Could $400 Billion New Federal Dollars Change Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services?" The House Energy and Commerce Committee proposal on HCBS Better Care Better Jobs Act state-by-state fact sheet The Urban Institute's report on strengthening long-term care services Investing in Home Care and Early Childhood Educators Has Outsize Impacts on Employment Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weedsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Vox senior reporter Rebecca Leber (@rebleber) joins The Weeds to explain the problem of migration caused by climate change, such as that due to wildfires, rising seas, and crop failures. She explains how a warming planet is forcing people to move both in the US and internationally, and how policymakers are and aren’t adapting. Vox reporters Dylan Matthews and Jerusalem Demsas continue the conversation with ProPublica’s Dara Lind, discussing a new white paper arguing that social mobility in America rose in the 20th century. References: ProPublica’s feature on climate migration in Central America How climate change is driving up flood insurance premiums in Canarsie, Brooklyn NPR’s investigation into the federal government selling flood-prone houses to low-income families California is encouraging rebuilding in fire-prone regions The case for “managed retreat” from coastal areas A New York Times feature on how climate migration will reshape America The Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck Why Greg Clark is pessimistic that social mobility even exists White Paper of the Week: Intergenerational Mobility in American History: Accounting for Race and Measurement Error, Zachary Ward Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Dara Lind (@DLind), immigration reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Vox Supreme Court correspondent Ian Millhiser talks with NYU professor Melissa Murray (@ProfMMurray) about the future of reproductive freedom. The Supreme Court started its new term this week, and with six conservative judges on the bench, Republicans are likely to win a generational victory overruling Roe v. Wade. Resources: Texas’s radical anti-abortion law explained The staggering implications of the Supreme Court’s Texas anti-abortion ruling “Race-ing Roe: Reproductive Justice, Racial Justice, and the Battle for Roe v. Wade Hosts: Ian Millhiser (@imillhiser), Senior Correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, Producer & Engineer Libby Nelson, Editorial Advisor Amber Hall, Deputy Editorial Director of Talk Podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan, German, and Jerusalem talk about vaccine mandates. They discuss the evidence supporting vaccine requirements, the United States’ history with inoculation campaigns, and the patchwork nature of America’s many public health measures. Plus, a white paper about elite universities. References: This is a good summary of the evidence supporting vaccine mandates Here is the Homevoter Hypothesis Dylan mentioned The NIMBY lawsuit against UC Berkeley and the NIMBY war against Georgetown’s expansion German mentioned two vaccination studies: this one and this one This week’s white paper about elite universities Leopold Aschenbrenner on the case for smaller universities Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox German Lopez (@germanrlopez), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@jerusalemdemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer & engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan and Jerusalem are joined by Kathryn Paige Harden, professor of clinical psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, to discuss her new book The Genetic Lottery: Why DNA Matters for Social Equality. They talk about what geneticists have learned about the impact of genes on income and education inequality, the social implications of this research and its potential misuse, and why genetics should leave us humbled by the huge effect of luck in our lives. Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@JerusalemDemsas), policy reporter, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Libby Nelson, editorial adviser Amber Hall, deputy editorial director, talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan, German, and Dara discuss the debt ceiling: the current crisis, what the debt ceiling even is, and how the debt ceiling has become a politically polarized issue. They also talk about why the debt ceiling is bad for democracy. Plus, a white paper about Canadian bread cartels. Resources: The Bipartisan Policy Center’s estimate of when we’ll hit the debt ceiling Congressional Research Service’s history of the debt ceiling Janet Yellen on the costs of breaching the debt ceiling Neil Buchanan and Michael Dorf on why breaching the debt ceiling is the “least illegal” option The trillion dollar coin (and the Obama rejection of it) explained Steven Schwarcz on using special investment tools to evade the debt ceiling Matt Yglesias on the “Honduras scenario” for American democracy failing "Hub and Spoke Cartels: Theory and Evidence from the Grocery Industry" by Robert Clark, Ignatius Horstmann, Jean-François Houde Netflix documentary on the Canadian maple syrup cartel Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), Senior Correspondent, Vox German Lopez (@germanrlopez), Senior Correspondent, Vox Dara Lind (@DLind), Immigration Reporter, ProPublica Credits: Sofi LaLonde, Producer & Engineer Libby Nelson, Editor Amber Hall, Deputy Editorial Director of Talk Podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan, German, and Jerusalem sit down to answer listener questions. In our first AMA episode of the post-Matt-Yglesias Weeds era, the trio discusses constitutional amendments, climate change, how we could fix global poverty, influential books, and more. Resources: Reasons and Persons by Derek Parfit Gang of Five: Leaders at the Center of the Conservative Ascendancy by Nina J. Easton The Collaborator: The Trial and Execution of Robert Brasillach by Alice Kaplan Night by Elie Wiesel The Cult of Pharmacology: How America Became the World’s Most Troubled Drug Culture by Richard DeGrandpre Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides Cochrane The Journalist’s Resource, the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy Jim Tankersley, the New York Times (@jimtankersley) Victoria Guida, Politico (@vtg2) Eric Levitz, New York magazine (@ericlevitz) Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox Jerusalem Demsas (@JerusalemDemsas), policy reporter, Vox German Lopez (@germanrlopez), senior correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer Amber Hall, deputy editorial director, talk podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dylan, German, and Jerusalem discuss means testing and work requirements after Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) suggested their inclusion in one of Biden's legacy priorities: the expanded child tax credit. Right now Democrats in Congress are trying to hammer out a 10-year, $3.5 trillion budget that includes an extension of the federal child tax credit; expanding Medicare to include dental, vision, and hearing aids; additional resources for home care workers; a slew of climate change measures; and much more. Resources: “The Time Tax” by Annie Lowrey (The Atlantic; July 27, 2021) “We’re Still Here” by Jennifer Silva “‘Neoliberalism has really ruptured’: Adam Tooze on the legacy of 2020” by Zack Beauchamp (Vox.com; September 9, 2021) “Are we automating racism?” by Joss Fong (Vox.com; March 31, 2021) “AIs Islamophobia problem” by Sigal Samuel (Vox.com; September 18, 2021) White Paper: “New Evidence on Redlining by Federal Housing Programs in the 1930s” by Price V. Fishback, Jonathan Rose, Kenneth A. Snowden, and Thomas Storrs Hosts: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), Senior Correspondent Jerusalem Demsas (@JerusalemDemsas), Policy Reporter, Vox German Lopez (@germanrlopez), Senior Correspondent, Vox Credits: Sofi LaLonde, Producer & Engineer Amber Hall, Deputy Editorial Director of Talk Podcasts Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For Matt’s last episode of The Weeds, Ezra Klein and Sarah Kliff return for a look at why health care and drug costs in the US keep rising, how subsidizing industries leads to higher consumer costs, and what both political parties can do about it. It gets real nerdy just as fast as the last time these three co-hosted. We also learn about the first print piece Matt ever published, and he shares some feelings about pseudo-Cyrillic. Resources: “How the US made affordable homes illegal” by Jerusalem Demsas (Vox Media; Aug 17, 2021) “Building housing — lots of it — will lay the foundation for a new future” by Matt Yglesias (Vox Media; Sep 23, 2020) “The true story of America’s sky-high prescription drug prices” by Sarah Kliff (Vox Media; May 10, 2018) "The real reason American health care is so expensive" by Liz Scheltens, Mallory Brangan, and Ezra Klein (Vox Media; Dec 1, 2017) White Paper: “Cost Disease Socialism: How Subsidizing Costs While Restricting Supply Drives America’s Fiscal Imbalance” by Steven Teles, Samuel Hammond, Daniel Takash (Niskanen Center; Sep 9, 2021) Guest: Ezra Klein (@ezraklein), Columnist, The New York Times Sarah Kliff (@sarahkliff), Investigative Reporter, The New York Times Host: Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com Credits: Ness Smith-Savedoff, Producer & Engineer Erikk Geannikis, Producer, Talk Podcasts Sofi LaLonde, Producer, The Weeds Efim Shapiro, Engineer As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter. The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production. Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts About Vox Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Follow Us: Vox.com Facebook group: The Weeds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt, Dara, Jerusalem, and German use Matt’s last Tuesday episode to discuss life expectancy in the US. They explore paternalistic policy decisions, the misnomer of “deaths of despair,” and the longevity of The Weeds. US life expectancy is compared to that of European and Asian nations, and the US numbers are disaggregated and examined up close. Resources: “Why Americans Die So Much” by Derek Thompson (The Atlantic; Sep 12, 2021) “Inequality in Mortality between Black and White Americans by Age, Place, and Cause, and in Comparison to Europe, 1990-2018” by Hannes Schwandt et al. (NBER; Sep 2021) “The Great Divide: Education, Despair and Death” by Anne Case and Angus Deaton (NBER; Sep 2021) The Insider by Michael Mann (Touchstone Pictures; 1999) “Immigration and improvements in American life expectancy” by Arun S. Hendi and Jessica Y. Ho (Science Direct; Sep 2021) Hosts: Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com Dara Lind (@DLind), Immigration Reporter, ProPublica Jerusalem Demsas (@JerusalemDemsas), Policy Reporter, Vox German Lopez (@germanrlopez), Senior Correspondent, Vox Credits: Ness Smith-Savedoff, Producer & Engineer Erikk Geannikis, Producer, Talk Podcasts Sofi LaLonde, Producer As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter. The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production. Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts About Vox Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Follow Us: Vox.com Facebook group: The Weeds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

​​Matt is joined by Mike Konczal, Director of Macroeconomic Analysis and Progressive Thought at the Roosevelt Institute and author of Freedom From the Market. They explore Jerome Powell’s tenure as Fed Chair, the relationship between interest rates and unemployment numbers, and ways to use monetary policy to create an equitable society. Resources: “Fed Up” by Matthew Yglesias (Democracy Journal; Spring 2011) “Disparities in Wealth by Race and Ethnicity in the 2019 Survey of Consumer Finances” by Neil Bhutta et al. (The Federal Reserve; Sep 28, 2020 Guest: Mike Konczal (@rortybomb), Director, Roosevelt Institute Macroeconomic Analysis and Progressive Thought, Author, Freedom From the Market Host: Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com Credits: Ness Smith-Savedoff, Producer & Engineer Erikk Geannikis, Producer, Talk Podcasts As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter. The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production. Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts About Vox Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Follow Us: Vox.com Facebook group: The Weeds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Vox's Dylan Matthews joins Matt and Jerusalem to talk about whether the Federal Reserve can use monetary policy to fight climate change and how the ideal Fed Chair may not exist. Plus, a new study about the effectiveness of masking against Covid-19 reignites the debate on public health messaging around the pandemic. Also, Matt wants experts to stay in their lanes. Resources: “Will Biden Make a Historic Mistake at the Fed?” by J. Bradford Delong (Project Syndicate; Sep 1, 2021) “Strengthening the Financial System to Meet the Challenge of Climate Change” by Lael Brainard (Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; Dec 18, 2020) “The Planet Depends on the Next Federal Reserve Chair” by David Dayen (The American Prospect; Aug 27, 2021) “The Planet Needs Jerome Powell” by Robinson Meyer (The Atlantic; Sep 1, 2021) “On Maximizing Employment, a Case for Caution” by Raphael Bostic (Policy Hub: Macroblog; Oct 26, 2018) White paper: “The Impact of Community Masking on COVID-19: A Cluster-Randomized Trial in Bangladesh” by Mushfiq Mobarak et al. (Innovations for Poverty Action; Sep 1, 2021) Hosts: Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com Jerusalem Demsas (@JerusalemDemsas), Policy Reporter, Vox Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), Senior Correspondent Credits: Ness Smith-Savedoff, Producer & Engineer Erikk Geannikis, Producer, Talk Podcasts As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter. The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production. Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts About Vox Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Follow Us: Vox.com Facebook group: The Weeds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

​​Matt is joined by David Shor, Head of Data Science at OpenLabs R&D, to discuss the causes and implications of polling errors in recent election cycles. By looking at different response rates and the implicit bias in some polls David explains why some policies are less popular than they seem. Their conversation also tackles what can be done by politicians to achieve broader appeal. Resources: “What Do Partisan Donors Want?” by David Broockman and Neil Malhotra (Public Opinion Quarterly; 2020) “Balancing, Generic Polls and Midterm Congressional Elections” by Joseph Bafumi, Robert S. Erikson, and Christopher Wlezien (Dartmouth Scholarship; 2010) Guest: David Shor (@davidshor), Head of Data Science, OpenLabs R&D Host: Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com Credits: Ness Smith-Savedoff, Producer & Engineer Erikk Geannikis, Producer, Talk Podcasts As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter. The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production. Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts About Vox Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Follow Us: Vox.com Facebook group: The Weeds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt, Dara, and German use this week’s episode to explore the infrastructure bill before Congress. They focus on broadband access for rural and urban America and explore the purpose of the money being set aside for Amtrak. Parallels between the two emerge both in the need for connecting Americans and in the pitfalls facing this country if we fail to make progress. This week’s white paper is a study of a methodology for predicting recessions based on individuals' expectations of their own employment status and perception of the economy rather than a scientific dissection of impersonal macro data sets. Resources: “What’s in the new infrastructure bill — and why it’s a big deal” by German Lopez (Vox; Aug 10, 2021) White Paper: “The Economics of Walking About and Predicting Unemployment” by David G. Blanchflower & Alex Bryson (NBER; August 2021) Hosts: Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com Dara Lind (@DLind), Immigration Reporter, ProPublica German Lopez (@germanrlopez), Senior Correspondent, Vox Credits: Ness Smith-Savedoff, Producer & Engineer Erikk Geannikis, Producer, Talk Podcasts As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter. The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production. Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts About Vox Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Follow Us: Vox.com Facebook group: The Weeds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt is joined by Vox’s Nicole Narea for a discussion on the complex situation facing Afghan refugees following the United States withdrawal. Nicole explains the variety of avenues through which Afghans can attempt to reach the US and why many of them are not viable at this moment. Nicole and Matt also compare the US evacuation from Kabul with the evacuations from Iraq and Vietnam. Resources: “Biden had a chance to save US allies in Afghanistan. He wasted it.” by Nicole Narea (Vox; Aug 17, 2021) Google Map of Macedonia, Iraq, and Afghanistan U.S. Refugee Admissions Program U.S. Department of Health & Human Services - Office Of Refugee Resettlement UNHCR - USA Guest: Nicole Narea (@nicolenarea), Immigration Reporter, Vox Host: Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com Credits: Ness Smith-Savedoff, Producer & Engineer Erikk Geannikis, Producer, Talk Podcasts As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter. The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production. Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts About Vox Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Follow Us: Vox.com Facebook group: The Weeds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt and Dara are joined by Vox's German Lopez to talk about the Biden administration’s plan to authorize third doses of the vaccine for Americans beginning in September. They discuss the scientific, political, and moral reasons behind the decision. They also look at the international implications of sharing vaccines and the difficulties of ramping up production in the vaccine supply chain ecosystem. This week’s white paper is a study of how slave-owning southern families retained their wealth and influence after the Civil War. The conversation illuminates the importance of social ties to political continuity and explores a similar study of Chinese generational wealth spanning the Maoist revolution. Resources: "U.S. officials’ decision on Covid-19 booster shots baffles — and upsets — some scientists" by Helen Branswell (Stat News; Aug. 18, 2021) "Myths of Vaccine Manufacturing" by Derek Lowe (Science Translational Medicine; Feb 2, 2021) "The U.S. Is Getting a Crash Course in Scientific Uncertainty" by Apoorva Mandavilli (New York Times; Aug 22, 2021) “Following full FDA approval Pfizer-BioNTech must share Covid-19 vaccine technology to boost global supply” by Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF; Aug 23, 2021) White Paper: “The Intergenerational Effects of a Large Wealth Shock: White Southerners after the Civil War” by Philipp Ager, Leah Boustan, Katherine Eriksson (American Economic Review; Forthcoming) The Son Also Rises: Surnames and the History of Social Mobility by Gregory Clark (Princeton University Press; Feb 23, 2014) Hosts: Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com Dara Lind (@DLind), Immigration Reporter, ProPublica German Lopez (@germanrlopez), Senior Correspondent, Vox Credits: Ness Smith-Savedoff, Producer & Engineer Erikk Geannikis, Producer, Talk Podcasts As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter. The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production. Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts About Vox Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Follow Us: Vox.com Facebook group: The Weeds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt is joined by The Atlantic’s Elizabeth Bruenig. They discuss J.D. Vance’s attacks on the parental status of liberal politicians and dissect what is actually happening with left-wing birth rates. They explore the policy decisions that would actually affect natality and the vibes that right-wing media focus on instead. Listen for true facts about Batman’s role as a father, Matt’s take on children’s TV, and why we should all watch Daniel Tiger. Resources: "Invasion of the Baby-Haters" by Elizabeth Bruenig (The Atlantic; Aug 11, 2021) "I Became a Mother at 25, and I’m Not Sorry I Didn’t Wait" by Elizabeth Bruenig (The New York Times; May 7, 2021) One Billion Americans: The Case for Thinking Bigger by Matthew Yglesias (Penguin Random House; Sep 15, 2020) Guest: Elizabeth Bruenig (@ebruenig), staff writer, The Atlantic Host: Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com Credits: Ness Smith-Savedoff, Producer & Engineer Erikk Geannikis, Producer, Talk Podcasts As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter. The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production. Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts About Vox Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Follow Us: Vox.com Facebook group: The Weeds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Matt is joined by Vox's Libby Nelson and Jerusalem Demsas for a conversation about the rising cost of master’s programs, their usefulness in today’s economy, and their role as federally subsidized job training. Matt, Libby, and Jerusalem reflect on their varied educational paths and discuss the effectiveness of student loan forgiveness for higher ed. This week’s white paper illuminates the downstream consequences of raising pollution standards for battery recycling in the United States. Resources: “‘Financially Hobbled for Life’: The Elite Master’s Degrees That Don’t Pay Off” by Melissa Korn and Andrea Fuller (The Wall Street Journal; July 8, 2021) The Masters Trap, Part Two, Part Three by Anne Helen Peterson (Culture Studies; July 2021) “Graduate programs have become a cash cow for struggling colleges. What does that mean for students?” by Jon Marcus (PBS Newshour; September 18, 2017) “Master’s degree programs surge at nation’s colleges and universities” by Nick Anderson (The Washington Post; May 25, 2013) White Paper: “North-South Displacement Effects of Environmental Regulation: The Case of Battery Recycling” (NBER; August 2021) Hosts: Matt Yglesias (@mattyglesias), Slowboring.com Libby Nelson (@libbyanelson), Deputy Policy Editor Jerusalem Demsas (@JerusalemDemsas), Policy Reporter, Vox Credits: Ness Smith-Savedoff, Producer & Engineer Erikk Geannikis, Producer, Talk Podcasts As the Biden administration gears up, we'll help you understand this unprecedented burst of policymaking. Sign up for The Weeds newsletter each Friday: vox.com/weeds-newsletter. The Weeds is a Vox Media Podcast Network production. Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a contribution to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts About Vox Vox is a news network that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Follow Us: Vox.com Facebook group: The Weeds Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices