Toggle Menu

The Kamala Surprise, Plus the Crisis of the Constitution

On this episode of Start Making Sense, Harold Meyerson on the campaign and Erwin Chemerinsky on the case for a new Constitution.

Jon Wiener

August 28, 2024

Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at a campaign rally at United Auto Workers Local 900 on August 8, 2024, in Wayne, Michigan. (Photo by Andrew Harnik / Getty Images)

The Nation Podcasts

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.

The Kamala Surprise, plus the Crisis of the Constitution | Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

We’ve had a series of surprises in the last several weeks, but none have been more surprising than Kamala emerging as a great candidate. Harold Meyerson explains: it’s not so much that she has changed, it’s that the Democratic Party has changed.

Also: Democracy in America is being undermined by the Electoral College, the Senate filibuster, the gerrymandering of the House, and the corruption of the Supreme Court. It’s time to write, and ratify, a new constitution: that’s what Erwin Chemerinsky says. His new book is “No Democracy Lasts Forever: How the Constitution Threatens the United States.”

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We’ve had a series of surprises in the last several weeks, but none have been more surprising than Kamala Harris’s emerging as a great candidate. Harold Meyerson joins us on the podcast to explain that it’s not so much that Harris has changed but that the Democratic Party has.

Also on this episode of Start Making Sense: Democracy in America is undermined by the Electoral College, the Senate filibuster, the gerrymandering of the House, and the corruption of the Supreme Court. It’s time to write, and ratify, a new Constitution—that’s what Erwin Chemerinsky says. His new book is No Democracy Lasts Forever: How the Constitution Threatens the United States.

The Nation Podcasts

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.

Trump’s Attacks on Voting, and on Iran / Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

After Senate Democrats block the SAVE act, Trump is likely to declare a national security emergency – claiming China could interfere in the midterms – as a basis for restricting voting. David Cole comments; he’s former legal director of the ACLU.

Also: Congress must challenge Trump’s war on Iran and assert its constitutional duty to take up War Powers resolutions and assert its primacy over matters of war and peace. John Nichols explains.  

Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Subscribe to The Nation to Support all of our podcasts

Jon WienerTwitterJon Wiener is a contributing editor of The Nation and co-author (with Mike Davis) of Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties.


Latest from the nation