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Justin Kempf


Is it possible for a democracy to govern undemocratically? Can the people elect an undemocratic leader? Is it possible for democracy to bring about authoritarianism? And if so, what does this say about democracy? ​​My name is Justin Kempf. Every week I talk to the brightest minds on subjects like international relations, political theory, and history to explore democracy from every conceivable angle. Topics like civil resistance, authoritarian successor parties, and the autocratic middle class challenge our ideas about democracy. Join me as we unravel new topics every week.


Democracy Paradox

Episode 1: The inaugural episode explores Hannah Arendt's book The Origins of Totalitarianism. This is the only monologue in the series. Every other episode features a guest interview. It focuses on the distinction between the law and the state. Arendt loosely defines totalitarianism as the presence of the state in absence of law. 

Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/
 
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Monologue on Hannah Arendt's The Origins of Totalitarianism

Marlene Mauk is the author of Citizen Support for Democratic and Autocratic Regimes. Support for autocratic regimes is a neglected topic up until the last few years. We discuss why citizens support autocracies, democracies and what this means for advocates of democracy. 

We have an interesting discussion about the potential for democracy in Africa. Mauk finds Sub-Saharan Africa has significant support for democracy and enormous potential for further democratization and consolidation. 

We discuss some of the giants of political theory including Lipset, Dahl and Lijphart. Mauk has a firm background on traditional political science theory so it's a great discussion.

This is my first interview. My microphone must have been turned off because the audio was picked up through the webcam. But the conversation is strong. Hopefully listeners look past some of the minor technical problems as I begin to launch this podcast!

Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/
 
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Marlene Mauk on Citizen Support for Democracies... and Autocracies

Luis Cabrera is the author of The Humble Cosmopolitan: Rights, Diversity, and Trans-state Democracy. He is Associate Professor in the Griffith Asia Institute and the School of Government and International Relations at Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia. His research focuses on global citizenship, human rights, and justice. The interview explores the political thought of Ambedkar, Dalit rights in India, and the implications of global citizenship. Luis Cabrera gives his thoughts on the need for international and regional institutions designed to protect the rights of minorities, but also elaborates on some important interrelated concepts like humility-arrogance and rights-duties. 

This is the third episode of the Democracy Paradox Podcast. Expect a new episode every week. I continue to publish a new book review every Saturday at www.democracyparadox.com. This week's review was on the classic work of political philosophy, Hegemony and Socialist Strategy by Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe. 

Please subscribe to learn more from scholars as they elaborate on ideas about rights, institutions, and democracy. Future episodes will feature Alexander Cooley and Daniel Nexon, Takis Pappas, William Smith, and Joshua Dyck. 

Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/
 
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Luis Cabrera on International Human Rights

Alexander Cooley and Daniel Nexon are the authors of Exit from Hegemony: The Unraveling of the American Global Order. We had a 90 minute conversation on some important topics for the study of international relations. The first part discusses some key concepts in their book like "hegemony" and the "liberal world order." Dan and Alex both give a great overview that is ideal for beginners but also informative for those who have a strong background in the topic. 

The rest of the podcast explores a number of topics. We discuss Russia and China, kleptocracy, Viktor Orbán and, of course, Donald Trump. This podcast is ideal not just for those immersed in conversations about foreign affairs, but also undergraduate students or those with a genuine interest in foreign policy. The discussion brings together current events with broader concepts of theory in a lively conversation.

Take the time to visit my blog at www.democracyparadox.com. I have written over 60 reviews of classics and recent works of political science with an emphasis on democracy. This week I reviewed The Orbán Regime: Plebiscitary Leader Democracy in the Making by András Körösényi, Gábor Illés, and Attila Gyulai. Please visit the website and read my book reviews. And don't forget to subscribe to keep up with future episodes. 

Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/
 
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Alexander Cooley and Daniel Nexon on the End of American Hegemony

Takis Pappas is the author of Populism and Liberal Democracy: A Comparative and Theoretical Analysis. We have an hour long conversation about populism, liberalism and democracy. The interview lays out some of these key concepts but also includes some discussion of specific examples including Orban, Trump and Greece. We talk quite a bit about the concept of charismatic leadership. Takis gives a broad overview of populism that is ideal for undergraduates, but also interesting for those with a strong background in the study of populism. 

Take the time to visit my blog at www.democracyparadox.com. I have written 70 reviews of both classic and contemporary works of political science with an emphasis on democracy. This week I reviewed Karl Marx's second volume Capital. Please visit the website and read my book reviews. And don't forget to subscribe to keep up with future episodes.

Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/
 
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Takis Pappas on Populism and Liberal Democracy

This episode features William S. Smith, author of Democracy and Imperialism: Irving Babbitt and Warlike Democracies. Irving Babbitt is an underappreciated political theorist. He wrote the classic Democracy and Leadership in 1924 before the Behavioralist Revolution of the 1950s so his work is often overlooked by contemporary political scientists. Babbitt has an enormous influence on conservative political theory and philosophy. His ideas about democracy, leadership and imperialism are as relevant for discussion today than ever before. His focus on character and virtue in political leaders has never been more salient than it has been during the global pandemic. 

The podcast discusses many important theorists of political thought and philosophy including Rousseau, Huntington and Hobbes. We discuss how some of Babbitt's thought applies to current and historical events. We discuss the Iraq War, Ukraine and touch on Trump's own style of leadership. 

Take the time to visit my blog at www.democracyparadox.com. I have written 70 reviews of both classic and contemporary works of political science with an emphasis on democracy. This week I reviewed Campaigns and Voters in Developing Democracies: Argentina in Comparative Perspective. Please visit the website and read my book reviews. And don't forget to subscribe to keep up with future episodes.

Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/
 
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William S. Smith on Irving Babbitt

The seventh episode of the Democracy Paradox focuses on the secondary effects of direct democracy with Joshua (Josh) J. Dyck and Edward (Ted) L. Lascher, Jr. Their recent book Initiatives without Engagement: A Realistic Appraisal of Direct Democracy’s Secondary Effects. Typically, initiative referendums are discussed as a philosophical component of direct democracy. Josh and Ted focus on empirical data to show how initiatives have secondary effects with negative consequences. It is a distinct look at a topic many of us (falsely) believe we fully comprehend. 

The podcast examines the three key findings of their research in the book, but extends to many larger big picture topics. We discuss Brexit, Switzerland (including their failure to extend the franchise to women until 1971), and I even find a way sneak Robert Dahl into the conversation. Our conversation engages with core issues of politics including democracy, institutions, and even the rights of minorities. 

Take the time to visit my blog at www.democracyparadox.com. I have written 70 reviews of both classic and contemporary works of political science with an emphasis on democracy. This week I reviewed Antonio Gramsci's Selections from Political Writings 1921-1926. Please visit the website and read my book reviews. And don't forget to subscribe to keep up with future episodes.

Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/
 
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Joshua J. Dyck and Edward L. Lascher, Jr. on Initiative Referendums

The eighth episode of the Democracy Paradox features Israeli scholar Yael Tamir as we discuss her recent book Why Nationalism. Yael Tamir offers a refreshing look at nationalism as she looks to reclaim the concept from conservatives. We delve into some of the important concepts of her book but also apply these ideas to current events including the pandemic, Catalan separatism, and the Black Lives Matter movement. 

Tamir studied under the intellectual giant Isaiah Berlin at Oxford. She explains how Berlin became her mentor because nobody else was interested in her dissertation on nationalism!!! We discuss some of Berlin's ideas and his influence on her ideas near the end of the podcast. 

Thanks to Apes of the State for permission to use their tracks "The Internet Song" and "Plate Glass Apology. You can find their music on Spotify or their Bandcamp. Thanks to James Schneider and Princeton University Press for helping me connect with Yael Tamir. They also provided me a review copy of her book. 

Take the time to visit my blog at www.democracyparadox.com. I have written 70 reviews of both classic and contemporary works of political science with an emphasis on democracy. This week I reviewed Isaiah Berlin's Against the Current. It is a great companion to Tamir's work Why Nationalism. Please visit the website and read my book reviews. And don't forget to subscribe to keep up with future episodes.

Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/
 
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Yael Tamir on Nationalism

The ninth episode revisits the initiative referendum except it introduces an important twist. John Gastil and Katherine Knobloch are the authors of Hope for Democracy: How Citizens Can Bring Reason Back into Politics. They consider how the idea of deliberative democracy was able to influence initiative referendums through a new institution called the Citizens' Initiative Review (CIR). This was a reform brought to life in Oregon a few years ago. 

John and Katie help us understand this specific reform but also discuss the broader idea of deliberative democracy. It is easy to get lost in the details of any specific reform initiative for democracy. But this discussion brings to life how ordinary people have been able to bring ideas to life and make a small difference in how democracy is shaped. 

This is a good sequel for the episode with Joshua Dyck and Edward Lascher. They were pessimistic about initiative referendums. This episode offers a path to soften some of those concerns. But as we discuss near the end, the idea of deliberative democracy has been introduced into many avenues of government, education, and even private enterprise. 

John Gastil (PhD, University of Wisconsin-Madison) is a professor in the Department of Communication Arts and Sciences and Political Science at the Pennsylvania State University, where he is a senior scholar at the McCourtney Institute for Democracy. Gastil’s research focuses on the theory and practice of deliberative democracy, especially how small groups of people make decisions on public issues. The National Science Foundation has supported his research on the Oregon Citizens’ Initiative Review, the Australian Citizens’ Parliament, jury deliberation, and cultural cognition. His other recent books include Legislature by Lot and his debut novel, Gray Matters. He was born in San Diego, California, where his father ran for US Congress in 1976 and his mother followed suit in 1992-94. Raised as a Quaker, it’s fitting that he now lives in State College, Pennsylvania.

Katherine R. Knobloch is an assistant professor and the associate director of the Center for Public Deliberation (CPD) in the Department of Communication Studies at Colorado State University. At the CPD Knobloch trains undergraduates in civic engagement and facilitation and works with community partners to design and implement public forums. She studies the development, evaluation, and impact of deliberative public processes, with a focus on how the emergence of deliberative institutions alters communities and individuals. Her research has appeared in numerous academic publications, including Politics, American Politics Research, and the Journal of Applied Communication Research. She received her doctoral degree from the University of Washington and her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Louisiana State University. She was born and raised in the bayou region of Southern Louisiana and developed her interest in political structures while watching her father and grandfather navigate small-town electoral politics. She currently lives in Fort Collins, Colorado with her husband and two young children.

Thanks to Apes of the State for permission to use their tracks "The Internet Song" and "Plate Glass Apology. You can find their music on Spotify or their Bandcamp. Thanks to 

Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/
 
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John Gastil and Katherine Knobloch on Citizen Initiative Review

Many scholars use the interwar period as a cautionary tale of democratic breakdown and collapse, but it was also a period of remarkable democratic stability in an age of crisis. Agnes Cornell and Svend-Eric Skaaning join your host, Justin Kempf, to discuss the first era of widespread democratization, the interwar period. The conversation focuses on their research and discusses some specific examples from this period including Denmark, Uruguay, and Czechoslovakia. 

Political science typically aims to make sense of recent world events. But there are many scholars who approach historical events from a perspective of comparative politics. The book Democratic Stability in an Age of Crisis: Reassessing the Interwar Period is a work of comparative politics, but it will capture the imagination of historians and political scientists alike because the lessons from this period help make sense of events in our own time. 

Agnes Cornell is Associate Professor of Political Science, University of Gothenburg. Svend-Eric Skaaning is Professor of Political Science, Aarhus University. Along with Jørgen Møller they are the authors of Democratic Stability in an Age of Crisis: Reassessing the Interwar Period from Oxford University Press. 

Thanks to Apes of the State for permission to use their tracks "The Internet Song" and "Plate Glass Apology. You can find their music on Spotify or their Bandcamp. Thanks to Oxford University Press who has made many volumes available to me during the pandemic.

Take the time to visit my blog at www.democracyparadox.com. I have written 70 reviews of both classic and contemporary works of political science with an emphasis on democracy. This week I reviewed Carl Schmitt's The Crisis of Parliamentary Democracy. It is a great companion to understand the political thought during the interwar period. Please visit the website and read my book reviews. And don't forget to subscribe to keep up with future episodes.

Learn more about the Kellogg Institute for International Studies at https://kellogg.nd.edu/
 
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Agnes Cornell and Svend-Erik Skaaning on the Interwar Period

I think that if you got rid of the Electoral College, in the short run, there would be losers. But it hasn't always been the same group and it hasn't always been the same party.

Alexander Keyssar

Made in partnership with the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation

Make a one-time Donation to Democracy Paradox.

Proudly sponsored by the Kellogg Institute for International Studies. Learn more at https://kellogg.nd.edu

Proudly sponsored by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Learn more at https://carnegieendowment.org

A full transcript is available at www.democracyparadox.com.

Alexander Keyssar is the Matthew W. Stirling Jr. Professor of History and Social Policy at Harvard University and the author of the book Why Do We Still Have the Electoral College?

Key Highlights

 • Introduction - 0:20
 • Origin of the Electoral College - 3:05
 • Proportional or District Electoral Votes - 17:37
 • Race and Civil Rights - 27:02
 • Why No Reform - 41:44

Key Links

Why Do We Still Have the Electoral College? by Alexander Keyssar

Watch Electoral College Symposium: What’s to be Done?

Follow Alexander Keyssar on X @AlexKeyssar

Democracy Paradox Podcast

Heather Cox Richardson on History, Conservatism, and the Awakening of American Democracy

Daniel Ziblatt on American Democracy, the Republican Party, and the Tyranny of the Minority

More Episodes from the Podcast

More Information

Apes of the State created all Music

Email the show at jkempf@democracyparadox.com

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100 Books on Democracy

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Alexander Keyssar on Why We Still Have the Electoral College

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