Jake Grumbach's book "Laboratories against Democracy: How National Parties Transformed State Politics" is out now from Princeton University Press. We were lucky enough to receive and advance copy and are rebroadcasting our conversation with him from earlier this year.
As many liberals were saying "thank God for federalism" in the Trump era, Grumbach saw some different — and disturbing — patterns emerging. He argues that as Congress has become more gridlocked, national partisan and activist groups have shifted their sights to the state level, nationalizing state politics in the process and transforming state governments into the engines of American policymaking in areas from health care to climate change. He also traces how national groups are using state governmental authority to suppress the vote, gerrymander districts, and erode the very foundations of democracy itself.
Grumbach is an assistant professor of political science at the University of Washington.
Laboratories Against Democracy: How National Parties Transformed State Politics
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Jenna Spinelle is a writer and podcaster who tells stories that inspire hope and change in trying times. She hosts the podcasts Democracy Works When the People Decide, both productions of the McCourtney Institute for Democracy at Penn State. She is currently writing a book about the democracy reform movement and how more people can get involved in the work to strengthen American democracy. Spinelle teaches courses on news writing, podcasting, and content creators at Penn State’s Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications. Her writing has appeared in outlets including Time magazine, Inside Higher Ed and Current, a trade publication covering public media.
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