In Defense of Our Political Party System (Sort Of)

P.S. You’re Interesting

A government shutdown doesn’t inspire confidence. Politicians, their parties, and the leaders of those parties all get a hefty amount of blame from the American people. But you know that Winston Churchill quote about democracy being the best system except for all the others? It turns out there’s some truth to that. With today’s guest, we ask where all this gridlock comes from, what we can really do about it, and whether politics really deserves all the blame it gets.

In this episode, Thad Kousser reveals some surprising facts about the political game and some useful tips for the American electorate to play it well.

Prof. Kousser is the Chair of the Department of Political Science at the University of California, San Diego. He is the co-editor of the journal Legislative Studies Quarterly. He is the author of many articles and multiple books, including the most recent edition of The Logic of American Politics.

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