The Vital Center podcast

The Vital Center

Making sense of the post-Trump political landscape… Both the Republican and Democratic parties are struggling to defend the political center against illiberal extremes. America must put forward policies that can reverse our political and governmental dysfunction, advance the social welfare of all citizens, combat climate change, and confront the other forces that threaten our common interests. The podcast focuses on current politics seen in the context of our nation’s history and the personal biographies of the participants. It will highlight the policy initiatives of non-partisan think tanks and institutions, while drawing upon current academic scholarship and political literature from years past — including Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr.’s 1949 classic “The Vital Center.”

Making sense of the post-Trump political landscape… Both the Republican and Democratic parties are struggling to defend the political center against illiberal extremes. America must put forward policies that can reverse our political and governmental dysfunction, advance the social welfare of all citizens, combat climate change, and confront the other forces that threaten our common interests. The podcast focuses on current politics seen in the context of our nation’s history and the personal biographies of the participants. It will highlight the policy initiatives of non-partisan think tanks and institutions, while drawing upon current academic scholarship and political literature from years past — including Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr.’s 1949 classic “The Vital Center.”

 

#89

Germany and the dangers of America abandoning Europe, with Jan Techau

On February 27, 2022, three days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Olaf Scholz, who w... more

13 Nov 2025

1 HR 07 MINS

1:07:54

13 Nov 2025


#88

Reflections on DOGE and the abandonment of the West, with Michael Kimmage

For many decades, practitioners and scholars of foreign policy used to refer to “the West,... more

23 Oct 2025

1 HR 32 MINS

1:32:55

23 Oct 2025


#87

Going local to heal politics and institutions, with Steve Grove

This podcast was recorded in late August 2025. Much has occurred since then, both in Minne... more

01 Oct 2025

55 MINS

55:31

01 Oct 2025


#86

The Legend of Murray Kempton, with Andrew Holter

Murray Kempton (1917-97) was one of the greatest American journalists of the twentieth cen... more

10 Sep 2025

1 HR 17 MINS

1:17:20

10 Sep 2025


#85

The politics of abundance, with Misha Chellam

Misha Chellam, a leader in the Abundance movement and co-founder of the Abundance Network,... more

06 Aug 2025

1 HR 06 MINS

1:06:05

06 Aug 2025


#84

How William Buckley shaped the American right, with Sam Tanenhaus

Sam Tanenhaus, an esteemed journalist and biographer, joins The Vital Center to discuss hi... more

16 Jul 2025

2 HR 06 MINS

2:06:24

16 Jul 2025


#83

The libertarian prophet of the abundance movement, with Virginia Postrel

The intellectual-political discussion of the so-called abundance movement typically is des... more

01 Jul 2025

1 HR 05 MINS

1:05:29

01 Jul 2025


#82

Populism and working-class nostalgia for the 1950s, with Alan Ehrenhalt

Donald Trump’s most resonant political slogan has always been the one he borrowed from Ron... more

12 Jun 2025

53 MINS

53:32

12 Jun 2025


#81

Exploring the Secrets of Political Charisma, with Molly Worthen

We all have an opinion about charismatic leaders — but do we really know what “charisma” m... more

29 May 2025

1 HR 07 MINS

1:07:24

29 May 2025


#80

The old, weird history of libertarianism, with Matt Zwolinski

When U.S. President Donald Trump announced the imposition of his “Liberation Day” tariffs ... more

17 Apr 2025

1 HR 05 MINS

1:05:49

17 Apr 2025


#79

Understanding the diploma divide, with Matt Grossmann and Dave Hopkins

The most important U.S. political trend of the 21st century, according to most observers, ... more

03 Apr 2025

1 HR 08 MINS

1:08:17

03 Apr 2025


#78

Our contentious universities, with Neil L. Rudenstine

In the first few months of the second Trump administration, the White House in effect decl... more

20 Mar 2025

55 MINS

55:24

20 Mar 2025


#77

Reevaluating Christianity’s bargain with democracy, with Jonathan Rauch

Jonathan Rauch would seem to be an unlikely defender of American Christianity. The eminent... more

04 Mar 2025

1 HR 03 MINS

1:03:50

04 Mar 2025


#76

Why nothing works, with Marc Dunkelman

Why can’t America do big things anymore? Marc Dunkelman, a fellow at Brown University’s Wa... more

20 Feb 2025

58 MINS

58:08

20 Feb 2025


#75

Race, class, education, and the 2024 election, with Steve Bumbaugh

Many Democratic voters — and not a few pundits — have found the 2024 presidential election... more

18 Dec 2024

1 HR 04 MINS

1:04:45

18 Dec 2024


#74

Why Britain (and the US?) face a governance crisis, with Sam Freedman

The 2024 U.S. election was to a large extent driven by voter frustrations with what seems ... more

03 Dec 2024

55 MINS

55:51

03 Dec 2024


#73

Exploring Norman Holmes Pearson's legacy, with Greg Barnhisel

Norman Holmes Pearson, who in the middle years of the twentieth century was a professor of... more

17 Oct 2024

1 HR 09 MINS

1:09:58

17 Oct 2024


#72

Hollow political parties, with Sam Rosenfeld and Daniel Schlozman

America’s founders deeply mistrusted political parties. James Madison decried “the mischie... more

24 Sep 2024

1 HR 06 MINS

1:06:06

24 Sep 2024


#71

Why the center must hold, with Yair Zivan

Yair Zivan is a young British-Israeli who for the past decade has served as foreign policy... more

10 Sep 2024

1 HR 07 MINS

1:07:27

10 Sep 2024


#70

The online misinformation epidemic, with Renée DiResta

In late December 2014, several visitors to Disneyland fell ill with measles, a disease tha... more

31 Jul 2024

1 HR 06 MINS

1:06:00

31 Jul 2024


#69

The conservative vision of Edward C. Banfield, with Kevin Kosar

Edward C. Banfield (1916-99), the conservative political scientist who spent most of his c... more

17 Jul 2024

1 HR 09 MINS

1:09:49

17 Jul 2024


#68

The Latino century, with Mike Madrid

In the 1990s, Mike Madrid was a student at Georgetown University writing his senior thesis... more

18 Jun 2024

1 HR 07 MINS

1:07:45

18 Jun 2024


#67

America Last: Right-wing admiration for foreign autocracies, with Jacob Heilbrunn

When the Soviet Union came into being in 1917, some American left-wing intellectuals haile... more

05 Jun 2024

58 MINS

58:32

05 Jun 2024


#66

Slouching and the posture panic, with Beth Linker

Probably all of us have, at one time or another in our younger years, been told to stand u... more

21 May 2024

1 HR 05 MINS

1:05:10

21 May 2024


#65

The case for incremental change, with Greg Berman and Aubrey Fox

If you spend enough time in Washington D.C., you come to realize that activists of left an... more

11 Apr 2024

1 HR 04 MINS

1:04:35

11 Apr 2024


#64

Understanding inequality and rising mortality rates in America, with Angus Deaton

Sir Angus Deaton is a British-American economist, and one of the world’s most eminent in h... more

27 Mar 2024

1 HR 00 MINS

1:00:53

27 Mar 2024


#63

Conservative voices in 1960s campus activism, with Lauren Lassabe Shepherd

In the early 1960s, colleges and universities in the United States had been politically qu... more

11 Mar 2024

56 MINS

56:22

11 Mar 2024


#62

Illiberal vanguards in Russia and the U.S., with Alexandar Mihailovic

February 24 will mark the second anniversary of Russia’s brutal and unprovoked invasion of... more

13 Feb 2024

1 HR 09 MINS

1:09:23

13 Feb 2024


#61

Is America's past hurting us now? Deep dive with Fergus Bordewich

Many Americans would agree with Henry Ford’s famous statement that “History is bunk.” Do t... more

17 Jan 2024

1 HR 05 MINS

1:05:40

17 Jan 2024