logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2022
42m 11s

Checks and Balance: Quality control

The Economist
About this episode

A celebrity doctor who recently lived out of state.  An ex-football player beset by controversy.  When Mitch McConnell said that “candidate quality”  might handicap Republicans’ chances of taking the Senate, it’s likely he was referring to Mehmet Oz and Herschel Walker.  Democrats have some flawed candidates too, but the Republican bad batch is getting more attention. Why is that?   


Georgia journalist Stephen Fowler explains how voters in the state are reacting to the accusations against Walker.  We rank some of the all-time worst Senate candidates. And we revisit the Pennsylvania Senate race, where both candidates have some pretty striking weaknesses.  


John Prideaux hosts with Idrees Kahloon and Jon Fasman.


Join the Checks and Balance team for a live Q&A discussion about the upcoming midterm elections. We will explore the most heated races and what their outcome means for America. That's all in a one-off live webinar for subscribers at 9pm UK time, 4pm on America's East Coast, on Thursday October 27th. You can sign up now at economist.com/checkswebinar 


You can now find every episode of Checks and Balance in one place and sign up to our weekly newsletter. For full access to print, digital and audio editions, as well as exclusive live events, subscribe to The Economist at economist.com/uspod.



Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Aug 2023
Checks and Balance: Trump carded
Donald Trump has been charged with the most serious political crime it is possible to commit in a democracy. A special counsel alleges that he plotted to overturn the 2020 election results, knowing that his claims of fraud were false. What do the latest charges mean for Donald Tr ... Show More
44m 51s
Jul 2023
Checks and Balance: The heat is on
It’s hot. Over the past month millions of Americans have been sweltering in fierce temperatures. Around a third of the population lives in places where the government has recently issued warnings about extreme heat. How can American cities prepare for an even hotter future? The E ... Show More
45m 15s
Jul 2023
Checks and Balance: Trump! Here we go again
Donald Trump’s first term in office was characterised by chaos. MAGA Republicans are already working to ensure the sequel, should there be one, is a more orderly affair. How exactly would a second Trump term be different from the first? The Heritage Foundation’s Paul Dans gives u ... Show More
46m 26s
Recommended Episodes
Oct 2022
Checks and Balance: Quality control
A celebrity doctor who recently lived out of state.  An ex-football player beset by controversy.  When Mitch McConnell said that “candidate quality”  might handicap Republicans’ chances of taking the Senate, it’s likely he was referring to Mehmet Oz and Herschel Walker.  Democrat ... Show More
42m 11s
Nov 2022
Checks and Balance: Red faces
Republicans should have done better. With high inflation and an unpopular president, the stage was set for them to easily take back both chambers of Congress. Instead they look on track to barely capture the House, and the Senate is most likely to stay blue. It was a bad result f ... Show More
45 m
Nov 2022
Checks and Balance: End of midterm
The big guns are out.  Donald Trump has three rallies planned before election day.  Barack Obama has popped up in several battleground states. The former presidents will, separately, converge on Pennsylvania at the weekend, where Obama will be joined by a lesser-spotted figure on ... Show More
43m 2s
Aug 2022
Checks and Balance: Pennsylvania mania
The second part of our occasional series on the race for Pennsylvania’s open Senate seat. For now the campaign is largely happening online, with Democrat John Fetterman staying off the trail due to a health scare, and Republican Dr Oz failing to take advantage of the open lane. B ... Show More
46m 49s
Jun 2023
Checks and Balance: Starting places
Chris Christie and Mike Pence have become the latest to enter the Republican primary.  Despite his legal woes Donald Trump commands a huge lead in the early polling and the man thought most likely to challenge him, Ron DeSantis, has been stumbling. Can anyone beat Trump to the no ... Show More
43m 58s
Mar 2023
Checks and Balance: Park the bench
There’s been no official announcement, but the mood music suggests Joe Biden will seek a second term. If he does run in 2024, and if he wins, he would be 86 by the time he leaves office. Part of Biden’s appeal in 2020 was his electability, but that seems less assured now. Are Dem ... Show More
41m 47s
Apr 2022
Checks and Balance: Welcome to Pennsylvania
The race for Pennsylvania’s open Senate seat is wild, and between now and the midterm elections we’ll be regularly checking in. The first major milestone, the primaries, is a few weeks away. What can the Pennsylvania Senate race tell us about the future direction of American poli ... Show More
43m 26s
Jan 2024
Checks and Balance: Biden or bust
Joe Biden’s chances against Donald Trump in November do not look good. He is unpopular and his age puts many Americans off. How did it come to this? And what can the Democrats do about it? John Prideaux hosts with Charlotte Howard and Idrees Kahloon. They’re joined by Congressman ... Show More
47m 15s
Nov 2023
Checks and Balance: Year all about it
If the election were held tomorrow, Donald Trump would probably be the favourite to win.  How should we be thinking about the race with a year to go? And how can the world outside of America prepare itself for the possibility of a second Trump term? John Prideaux hosts with Charl ... Show More
50m 27s
Nov 2021
A Rough Election Night for the Democrats
On a major night of elections across the United States on Tuesday, the Republican Glenn Youngkin claimed an unexpected victory over his Democratic opponent, Terry McAuliffe, to win the governor’s race in Virginia.As the night went on, it became clear that the contest in Virginia ... Show More
26m 30s