Hosts
Lee Drutman
Lee Drutman is a senior fellow in the Political Reform program at New America. He is the author of Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop: The Case for Multiparty Democracy in America (Oxford University Press 2020), and The Business of America is Lobbying (Oxford University Press, 2015) and winner of the 2016 American Political Science Association's Robert A. Dahl Award, given for "scholarship of the highest quality on the subject of democracy.” He has a Ph.D. in political science from the University of California, Berkeley.
James Wallner
James Wallner is a senior fellow at the Foundation for American Innovation, where he writes about the theory and practice of democratic politics with an emphasis on Congress, political parties, and the federal policy process. He also teaches in the Department of Political Science at Clemson University. James is the author of three books: The Death of Deliberation: Gridlock and the Politics of Effort in the United States Senate (Lexington Books, 2020), On Parliamentary War: Partisan Conflict and Procedural Change in the United States Senate (University of Michigan Press, 2017), and The Death of Deliberation: Partisanship and Polarization in the United States Senate (Lexington Books, 2013). He has a Ph.D. in politics from the Catholic University of America.
Producers
Shannon Lynch
Shannon Lynch works in the production studio at New America as the Podcast Production Lead. Before joining New America, Shannon worked as a producer on various political news shows at SiriusXM. Her work has been featured by MSNBC, WAMU, The Washingtonian, and The Marshall Project. She holds a master's degree from American University in Audio Technology and a bachelor's degree in Government from Georgetown University.
Sarah Jacob
Sarah Jacob is a Program Associate for New America's Political Reform Program. Jacob's professional experience ranges from local civic engagement to emerging technology ethics. She has worked on local student lobbying efforts, as well as NSF projects concerning data privacy and online disinformation. Prior to joining New America, Jacob worked at NDI for their Democracy and Technology team. There, she co-authored a report on the quality of information online in Nigeria and worked on internet freedom issues and generative AI policy. Jacob holds a bachelor's degree in International Studies from the University of Washington.
Tryn Haney
Tryn Haney is a Program Associate at Foundation for American Innovation. Previously, she was a fellow with American Moment, and later worked on energy and administrative policy with the Vivek Ramaswamy campaign. Tryn holds a B.A. in Liberal Arts and Culture from New Saint Andrews College.