It’s Hump Day! Sam and Emma speak with Jennifer Berkshire, freelance journalist and co-host of the Have You Heard podcast, to discuss her recent book The Education Wars: A Citizen’s Guide And Defense Manual, co-authored with Jack Schneider.  First, Sam and Emma run through updates on the dissent to Netanyahu’s congressional address, the Harris campaign, the GOP’s bigotry problem, climate change, Joe Biden, union dissent to US support for Israel, Elon Musk’s supposed multi-hundred dollar pledge to Trump, Bob Menendez, major FTC action, and the Chevron Doctrine, before examining the subtle and stark differences between Biden’s and Harris’ policy toward Gaza and Israel. Jennifer Berkshire then joins, diving right into the major gap in the Democratic Party’s education policy over the last few years, with no major legislative or agenda items to speak of, while the GOP maintains its steady fight against teachers, people of color, and queer people under the guise of “parents’ rights.” Stepping back, Berkshire walks Sam and Emma through the last few decades of US public education policy, with Obama picking up on Bush’s “No Child Left Behind” disaster to start the 21st Century, and expanding on the neoliberal education model that emphasized testing outcomes and teacher reports, tackling how this era of bipartisan consensus was defined by a focus on the institution’s “return on investment” rather than its role in building citizens and community. Expanding on this, Berkshire explores how the GOP’s shift under Trump saw a disintegration of this consensus, with the Right pushing instead to redefine public education as something that did not require public schooling, working to fully dismantle the physical institutions but using the funds to pick up the tab on private education. After unpacking the philosophy behind this GOP shift, and the complete dearth of a response from the Democratic Party, Jennifer, Sam, and Emma tackle the particular failure of voucher programs and charter schooling, and wrap up the interview by exploring the incredible organizing going on to save public schooling, why pro-public schools is a winning electoral stance, and what to look for from Kamala Harris’ candidacy.

And in the Fun Half: Sam and Emma watch Rep. Ramirez denounce Netanyahu’s impending congressional address, Palestinian journalist Rula Jebreal’s notes for Kamala Harris’ campaign, and Physician Mark Perlmutter’s harrowing reflections on his time caring for civilians in Gaza. A Squared expands the conversation on Harris’ campaign, Dave Rubin, Brett Weinstein, and Tim Pool compete for dumbest commentary on Biden’s dropout, and the GOP begins to regret Trump’s pick of JD Vance for Vice President. The MR Team reflects on the deep divide in reactions to Netanyahu’s congressional address, plus, your calls and IMs!

Check out Jennifer’s book here: https://www.educationwarsbook.com/

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