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Podcast: President Trump, Ukraine, & the future of Conservatism

Podcast: President Trump, Ukraine, & the future of Conservatism
President Trump, Ukraine, & the Future of Conservatism: Reds Discuss | Steve S., Marc Ang, & Paul N.

In this Braver Angels video, four conservatives with different views of President Trump debate how conservatives should think about the former president, his legacy, his current behavior (including on January 6), and his possible run in 2024. The conversation expands into the future of conservatism, Ukraine, and what it means to be a Red in the 21st century, highlighting both the alignments and the divergences in contemporary Red thought.

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Senators’ credibility will be judged alongside Trump’s Cabinet picks

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Donald Trump's pick to be secretary of health and human services, visited the Capitol on Dec. 19.

Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Senators’ credibility will be judged alongside Trump’s Cabinet picks

There are roughly 1,200 positions in the federal government that require Senate confirmation, including the senior officials who make up the president’s Cabinet. The first Cabinet official was confirmed in 1789 when the Senate unanimously approved President George Washington’s nomination of Alexander Hamilton to be treasury secretary.

The confirmation or denial process is a matter of 100 senators making judgement calls to determine whether a nominee is professionally qualified, exhibits leadership skills, is ethically fit, is morally just, doesn’t carry “baggage” and has the temperament for the job.

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Donald Trump and Joe Biden in the Oval Office
President-elect Donald Trump and President Joe Biden meet in the Oval Office on Nov. 13.
Jabin Botsford /The Washington Post via Getty Images

Why distrust in powerful politicians is part of a functioning democracy

Surveys suggest that in many western democracies, political trust is at rock bottom. Scandals, corruption, faltering economies, conspiracy theories and swirling disinformation are all playing their part. But is it really such a bad thing for people living in a democracy to distrust their government?

In this episode of The Conversation Weekly, we talk to political scientist Grant Duncan about why he  thinks a certain level of distrust and skepticism of powerful politicians is actually healthy for democracy. And about how populists, like Donald Trump, manage to use people’s distrust in political elites to their advantage.

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Fulcrum Democracy Forum logo

Meet the change leaders

As the year ends, we’d like to share with you more than 40 interviews The Fulcrum produced in conjunction with CityBiz for the “Fulcrum Democracy Forum – Meet the Change Leaders” series.

The Fulcrum and CityBiz, a publisher of news and information about business, power, money, politics and people in 21 major U.S. markets, produced these insightful interviews with an array of talented democracy change leaders. The videos were shared nationally with thousands of CityBiz subscribers and across its social media channels. The podcasts have also been published in The Fulcrum and distributed through the Coffee Party/Citizen Connect social media platform with 970,000 followers.

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Woman standing next to a motorcycle
Issue One

Meet the Faces of Democracy: Kim Wyman

More than 10,000 officials across the country run U.S. elections. This interview is part of a series highlighting the election heroes who are the faces of democracy.

Kim Wyman, a registered Republican, began her career in elections in Thurston County, Washington, more than 30 years ago as the election director. She went on to serve as the county’s auditor, as chief local election officials in most parts of Washington are known. Subsequently, she served as Washington’s secretary of state from 2013 to 2021. When she was elected, she was just the second woman to serve in that position in Washington.

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