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We “rethink the week” with Stephen Pimpare, professor of public policy at UNH Manchester and Fellow at the Carsey Institute of Public Policy; and Ron Abramson, NH immigration lawyer. We address the current debate about whether the Democrats in Congress should begin impeachment proceedings against the president or should focus instead on their own vision and policies for the future. We conclude that, at the very least, the country deserves a full investigation and an in-depth public discussion about Russia’s efforts to undermine the 2016 election and our democratic processes; about Pres. Trump’s actions during the campagin and as president, including his actions, his campaign’s actions, and their hiding from and misrepresenting to the American people about the true facts relating to any and all anti-democracy practices.
We also discussed the failure — on the part of most politicians and much of the public — to understand the *urgency* of climate change and other crises (including the threats to our democratic processes, as above, and the ways in which our immigration policies undermine our national image as a compassionate country). Only if we acknowledge the need for *urgent* action will it matter what specific policies our leaders propose in order to address such crises and to help our country live up to its full potential as a democratic republic.
We examine the reason why, among all the Democratic candidates for president, the media and the public seem to be more focused on the *male* candidates, while the women candidates seem to get short shrift — even though several of them have put forward numerous very detailed and thoughtful policies on a broad spectrum of key issues.
Finally, we look briefly into the history of free-market capitalism and how it has evolved in the U.S. This subject seems especially relevant as we head toward the 2020 election where it is likely that Pres. Trump’s reelection campaign will focus on his assertion that all Democratic proposals that involve any government action are “socialist.” To Trump, this means that government regulations and programs to help vulnerable Americans are anti-American. Much of the population, however, places a high value on such limitations on corporate power and such safety nets, even though the public would probably not say that they were “socialists.”
