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How Democrats Can Win in Rural America

Nancy is joined by guest host Betsy Morgan on this episode featuring superstar activist Jess Piper speaking about how Democrats can win with rural voters. Jess has become a prominent voice for rural Democrats and in her work at Blue Missouri, she and her colleagues are working to run a Democrat in every race in the state. Jess, Betsy and Nancy talk about the desperate state of affairs in rural Missouri where infrastructure has been gutted by the Republican state supermajority; what Democrats get wrong when it comes to rural voters; and how a relatively small increase in Democratic turnout…
Nancy
April 16, 2025
Podcast

Galvanize Action

This episode features Jackie Payne of Galvanize Action, an organization that focuses on moderate women living in rural, small town and suburban areas. These women want progress on key issues but aren’t reliably playing a role to get us there. Galvanize Action helps them connect with their values in a way that impacts their civic behavior. Nancy and Jackie talk about the neuroscience and behavioral psychology underlying the work at Galvanize Action; the nuanced concerns of this group of women that constitute the largest voting bloc in the country; and the challenges posed by misinformation and disinformation. To learn more…
Nancy
April 2, 2025
Podcast

Sister District

This episode features a conversation with Sarah Curmi, Executive Director of Sister District. Founded in the aftermath of the 2016 election, Sister District is a women-led grassroots political group that is dedicated to building lasting Democratic power in state legislatures. The group is powered by volunteers in blue districts that pair or “sister” up with key swing districts where their efforts can really move the needle. Unlike some other groups that have petered out over the years, the folks at Sister District have taken their mandate and run with it, expanding their operations to much more than just elections. Sarah…
Nancy
March 19, 2025
UncategorizedPodcast

Protect Democracy

This episode features a conversation with Amanda Carpenter of Protect Democracy, a cross-ideological nonprofit devoted to stopping authoritarianism. Nancy first featured Protect Democracy on this podcast four years ago, shortly after the January 6th insurrection. Given the rollercoaster that we have been on since then, and the new and dangerous threats that we face as a country, this seemed like a good time to check back in. Amanda and Nancy discuss the challenges of imposing political consequences without political power, and how the pro-democracy coalition must channel the energy and anger of the current moment into meaningful pressure from the…
Nancy
March 5, 2025
Podcast

Field Team 6

Is registering Democrats the key to saving the world? That’s the premise behind Field Team 6, and its founder Jason Berlin is Nancy’s guest on this episode. Jason and Nancy first spoke five years ago when Field Team 6 was registering voters in parking lots. Now the group has grown into a grassroots powerhouse that is reaching millions of unregistered voters online and in person and getting out the vote in swing states and districts around the country. Jason and I talk about the massive volunteer army that powers his organization, with teams of experts in their fields; and the…
Nancy
February 19, 2025
Podcast

Choice Tracker

This episode features a conversation with Dana Castner, founder of Choice Tracker, a new and important tool in the fight for reproductive freedom. When the Supreme Court ruled in June 2022 that abortion laws must be decided by the states, that put a lot of power in the hands of our state legislators, many of whom we had never heard of, let alone knew their stances on abortion. That’s what Dana discovered and led her to start the all-volunteer group Choice Tracker just two weeks after the Dobbs decision. Nancy and Dana discuss the value in providing voters all the…
Nancy
February 5, 2025
Podcast

Chop Wood Carry Water

This episode features a conversation with activist Jess Craven of Chop Wood Carry Water.  With close to half a million followers on TikTok and 53,000 subscribers to her Substack, Jess is a fierce and passionate warrior for democracy. Jess shares with Nancy her view of what it means to be an activist at this time full of so many unknowns, how to find hope through action, some of her favorite organizations right now, and so much more. Tune in for a dose of sanity and humanity, and you will leave both calmed and energized for whatever it is that lies…
Nancy
January 22, 2025
Podcast

Season 5: How Not to be an Ostrich

I get it. If you’re reading this, then maybe like me, you spent weeks and months working your tail off – knocking, dialing, writing, donating – for an election outcome that decidedly did not happen. There was a deep sense of deja vu on this past election night, hearkening back to its counterpart in 2016. On both nights, many of us believed that our country would finally send a smart, strong and compassionate woman to the White House. And on both nights, we stared with shock and despair as the New York Times election needle continued to tilt in the…
Nancy
January 15, 2025
Podcast

A Red State Democrat’s View

This episode features a conversation with Grace Cowan of Frogmore Stew, a podcast focused on South Carolina politics. Nancy and Grace thought it would be interesting, on the cusp of this momentous election, to see how life looks like on the other side of our red state and blue state fences. They talk about how when it comes down to everyday issues there really is a lot more blurring of the partisan lines than the media and national party propaganda would have us believe. They also discuss how certain issues like climate change can transcend party, and that, in the…
Nancy
October 30, 2024
Podcast

What if Trump Wins? Wargaming Trump 2.0

What if Trump wins? On this episode, Nancy has a conversation with Mark Bergman about something none of us want to think about: what would happen to the rule of law and American democracy in a second Trump term. Last spring, Mark was an observer at a series of large scale simulated exercises (aka war games) stress testing democracy under an authoritarian ruler. Hosted by the Brennan Center, a nonpartisan think tank at NYU Law School, the exercises were conducted as part of the Democracy Futures Project. Nancy and Mark discuss the outcome of the games, our lack of preparedness…
Nancy
October 23, 2024