Jan 17
A. Mechele Dickerson, "The Middle-Class New Deal: Restoring Upward Mobility and the American Dream" (U California Press, 2026)
An expansive policy blueprint for meaningfully expanding the middle class for the first time in a century The US middle class was a product of state and federal policies enacted in the wake of the Great Depression. But since the 1980s, lawmakers have undermined what they once bui ... Show More
55m 54s
Nov 2024
Anne M. Whitesell, "Living Off the Government?: Race, Gender, and the Politics of Welfare" (NYU Press, 2024)
Who deserves public assistance from the government? This age-old question has been revived by policymakers, pundits, and activists following the massive economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Anne Whitesell takes up this timely debate, showing us how our welfare system, in its ... Show More
30m 34s
Nov 2024
Anne M. Whitesell, "Living Off the Government?: Race, Gender, and the Politics of Welfare" (NYU Press, 2024)
Who deserves public assistance from the government? This age-old question has been revived by policymakers, pundits, and activists following the massive economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Anne Whitesell takes up this timely debate, showing us how our welfare system, in its ... Show More
30m 34s
Jan 2025
Devin Fergus, “Land of the Fee: Hidden Costs and the Decline of the American Middle Class” (Oxford UP, 2018)
Politicians, economists, and the media have put forth no shortage of explanations for the mounting problem of wealth inequality – a loss of working class jobs, a rise in finance-driven speculative capitalism, and a surge of tax policy decisions that benefit the ultra-rich, among ... Show More
43m 5s
Apr 2025
The problem with running the government like a business
<p></p><br/><p>The idea that the government should be run more like a business isn’t new. But with two businessmen, Donald Trump and Elon Musk, now taking a proverbial chainsaw to the federal bureaucracy all in the name “efficiency,” this theory is being put to the test. While it ... Show More
35m 33s
Nov 6
Why Economists Should Care About Inequality, with Branko Milanovic
<p>Recently, Bethany and Luigi joined economist and wealth inequality expert Branko Milanovic in front of a live audience at the Aspen Ideas Festival to explore how capitalism, democracy, and income inequality interact. Together, the three discussed the pervasiveness of income in ... Show More
46m 41s
Oct 2024
How Lobbying Led to Crony Capitalism, with Brody Mullins
<p>As the United States elections draw near, everyone is wondering who will take control of Washington next. In this week’s Capitalisn’t episode, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Brody Mullins reveals how the real winner will be neither Democrats nor Republicans. Rather, it will b ... Show More
43m 7s
Aug 2025
Hasan Piker x Tom Bilyeu: Why Gen Z Is Turning to Socialism - The Battle Over Banking, Inflation & the American Dream PT 2
In Part 2 of our electrifying conversation with Hasan Piker, Tom and Hasan move from the theoretical to the practical—zeroing in on public policy, the mechanics of innovation, and the often-contentious debate over what works, what doesn’t, and why. As they continue their deep div ... Show More
1h 1m
Feb 2025
VULTURE CAPITALISM UNVEILED: Grace Blakeley on the Oligarchs' Grip on Our Economy
In this episode, Max and Nafkote interview Grace Blakeley, an economist and author, about the rise of oligarchy and the relationship between billionaires, corporations, and the state.Grace discusses the close relationship between the American political establishment and the billi ... Show More
24m 5s
Feb 2025
The Trump-Musk Doctrine: F-ck Around and Find Out
For the past month, chaos and confusion have gripped Washington and the federal government. Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, have served as an iron fist of the Trump administration—ransacking government agencies, lighting fires in various department ... Show More
1h 1m
Poverty is big business in America. The federal government spends about $900 billion a year on programs that directly or disproportionately impact poor Americans, including antipoverty programs such as the earned income tax credit, Medicaid, and affordable housing vouchers and subsidies. States and local governments spend tens of billions more.
Ironically, ... Show More
