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Transcript

Can American politics be unbroken?

Educator and author Sharon McMahon goes live with Substack cofounder Hamish McKenzie

I went live this afternoon with

(that’s right: live video is here) to ask her a few questions about the upcoming US election. If you missed it, you can watch the video above. 

Sharon is an educator and author who specializes in U.S. politics and government, writes

on Substack, hosts the Here’s Where it Gets Interesting podcast, and has a new book, The Small and the Mighty, coming out next week.

Across her work, Sharon strives to be a voice of reason amidst the chaos. She’s less interested in telling you what to think than in providing context and history to help you reach your own conclusions. During our conversation, she helped a New Zealander (me) wrap his head around America’s weird political system. 

Things get a bit spicy. Topics we cover include:

  • The ways Kamala Harris is more similar to historical conservatives, and Donald Trump to progressives, than either party would like to admit

  • Why picking who to vote for is a lot like shopping for a car

  • The swinging pendulum of decency in political discourse

  • Are we in an age of political party realignments?

  • Why you shouldn’t watch the news (and should read Substack instead)

This conversation was a great way to usher in live video for bestsellers across the platform: Nearly 5,000 people tuned in to the broadcast, sharing questions and comments while we spoke. But if you missed it, don’t worry—there are plenty of livestreams still to come. 

Here’s an at-a-glance schedule of what’s happening in the next few days. And make sure to download the app to join in. 

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