September 7, 2020
Episode76

Jesse Wegman and the Case for Abolishing the Electoral College

In 40% of presidential elections this century, the electoral college selected a candidate who lost the popular vote. This institution results in mostly white, rural voters having votes which count much, much more than voters of color in more populous locations. We’ve asked Jesse Wegman on this episode to discuss the electoral college and efforts to mitigate it. Jesse is a New York Times Editorial Board member and the author of Let the People Pick the President: The Case for Abolishing the Electoral College.

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Sources for audio clips

Intro
Al Gore Loses to Bush - Electoral College Vote (Election 2000) - CSPAN https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhlFdukacGE
A Divided Nation: As Trump Wins Electoral College, Clinton Wins Popular Vote - Democracy Now! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYmWPSYnrHk
Andrew Yang on the Electoral College vs National Popular Vote https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyhqI516vhk
Elizabeth Warren: Get rid of the Electoral College - CNN https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2019/03/19/elizabeth-warren-get-rid-of-electoral-college-town-hall-sot-vpx.cnn
Clinton: It's time to abolish the Electoral College - CNN https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpDU77lmIAE
Trump calls electoral college 'genius' after calling it a 'disaster' in 2012 - 60 Minutes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sK-sdVDdUOc
Clinton trolls Trump over 2016 popular vote - CNN https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mOIMtEf7_Q
Racist origin of electoral college
Pro-Slavery Origins of the Electoral College - Outdated Democracy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUSa4J5r3eU
EC Distances Candidates From Non-battleground state voters
Elizabeth Warren: Get rid of the Electoral College - CNN https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2019/03/19/elizabeth-warren-get-rid-of-electoral-college-town-hall-sot-vpx.cnn
Fighting EC Battleground States
Isn’t the Electoral College set up to protect smaller states? - Equal Citizens https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WINSJk1QrU8
Trump Attacks on New York Times
President Trump Attacks NY Times Op-Ed At Rally - CBS Los Angeles https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a12dWxXaMcg
national popular vote interstate compact
360° Perspective: National Popular Vote Update - KOAA 5 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_8OBxAb0bU
Faithless Electors Ruling
Political expert weighs in on 'faithless electors' ruling - WFMZ TV https://www.wfmz.com/news/politics/political-expert-weighs-in-on-faithless-electors-ruling/article_55e6a9de-c64c-11ea-aa4c-4b43474a5c22.html
Racial Effects of 2016 Election
Van Jones on a Trump win: This was a white lash - CNN https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MA9aSvHzEIU
Electoral College History
Ask History: Ask History: Electoral College | History https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYzxQhopCCE&t=66s
Outro
Making Sense of the Electoral College: The Daily Show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTO_x8IixXk

Show Credits

Host: Alyssa Milano
Executive Producer: Alyssa Milano
Associate Producer: Ben Jackson
Editing and Sound Production: Natasha Jacobs
Music by: Josh Cooke & Eleisha Eagle