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We “rethink the week” with Russ Muirhead, Chair of the Government Department at Dartmouth; Dean Spiliotes, Professor and Civic Scholar at Southern NH University; and Glenn Smith, political consultant in Texas who managed Ann Richards’s (successful) 1990 campaign for governor.
We assess the NH Democratic Party’s Convention last Saturday, where 20 presidential candidates spoke about their visions, plans and policies. Cory Booker gave the most electrifying speech of the day, leading us to wonder why his charisma and inspiration is not translating into voters lifting his standing in the polls.
Elizabeth Warren delivered her usual engaging/personal/humorous/and policy-laden discussion of her detailed plans on issue after issue. Intelligently yet accessibly, she let voters know exactly how she intends to improve ordinary people’s lives in various bread-and-butter ways.
Even before she began speaking, Warren was greeted with an overwhelming (3-minute-long) standing ovation, which seemed less like one state’s showcase of its 19 candidates — 6 months before a primary election — and instead resembled the demonstration for a party’s chosen nominee at its National Convention shortly before the general election.
We also discussed the revelations that MIT had been courting Jeffrey Epstein, before his death, and had raised millions of dollars toward its research operations. We worry about the potential influence that corporate donations might have upon a university’s choices for research projects and its conclusions re same. See the NY Times lead editorial today cautioning colleges and universities on this problem.
We talked about the changing demographics in various states, and noted how that’s affecting not just the elections but also Republican candidates’ decisions to decline to seek reelection.
Finally, we grieve for the residents of the Bahamas, and remind our audience that climate change is only going to get worse unless we take urgent and effective action. Just imagine how lucky we are that Hurricane Dorian didn’t hit Miami, Houston or New Orleans! Are we any better prepared for a category 5 storm than the Bahamas was?
