Two of America’s most perceptive observers of the political scene join us today for a look at the election that was and the mess that is. For more than two decades, Maureen Dowd has been skewering the political class as a New York Times op-ed columnist, and her keen observations, rapier wit, and penchant for psychologizing earned her a Pulitzer Prize. In The Year of Voting Dangerously, she chronicles what is undoubtedly the most bizarre presidential election and post-election period in history. Journalist and political correspondent Jared Yates Sexton’s coverage of Trump campaign rallies reveals something entirely new in modern American politics: raw, unfiltered, and aggressive rage. Sexton’s own background is not different from that of the average Trump supporter, and his book, The People Are Going to Rise Like the Waters Upon Your Shore, has been called a leftist counterweight to Hillbilly Elegy. Post-election, Sexton uncovered the anti-Semitic source of Donald Trump’s animated CNN tweet and received numerous death threats when the source was revealed. This unparallelled insider view of our rapidly disintegrating political culture and the dangers that could ensue will be moderated by Tom Ashbrook, host of WBUR’s On Point, which airs on more than 290 NPR stations. This session is generously sponsored by G. Barrie Landry.
