The Chuck ToddCast Interview Only w/ Mike Pesca - The Structural Reforms American Democracy Desperately Needs
Both Parties Have Become Reactionary
- Both parties operate as reactionary forces defining themselves by opposition rather than positive agenda.
- Mike Pesca ties this to historical cycles between Jackson and Lincoln where parties papered over divisions until a new party emerged.
Partisan Primaries Drive Polarization
- Partisan primaries with low turnout are the biggest driver of polarization because nominees cater to the base.
- Mike Pesca argues higher primary participation via easier voting would change incentives and produce more moderate candidates.
Use Secure App Voting To Boost Primaries
- Do expand secure app-based voting to raise primary turnout and dilute extreme primary electorates.
- Pesca highlights Bradley Tusk's app voting experiments (Alaska, West Virginia) as models to increase participation from ~11% to ~50%.
Mike Pesca — the veteran journalist, podcaster, and host of The Gist — joins the Chuck Toddcast for a wide-ranging conversation that covers everything from the structural reforms American democracy desperately needs to why the NBA regular season is unwatchable. They dig into the emergence of the "never Trump media" ecosystem and argue that both parties have become fundamentally reactionary, with internal debates in each reduced to full resistance versus compromise. They make the case that partisan primaries are the single biggest driver of hyperpartisanship, that competitive districts would produce more reasonable candidates and debate which reforms could actually break the cycle. They note that if California's jungle primary produces a Republican governor, Democrats will reform the system within a year, and that with so many big-name Democrats in the crowded field, at least one major candidate needs to drop out before they cannibalize each other.
The conversation shifts to what Democrats should do if they control Congress. Pesca argues that Democrats can't brand themselves as the alternative to the "do nothing GOP" and then do nothing themselves — a child tax credit expansion is something Democrats and JD Vance could theoretically agree on, and being seen as on the side of the consumer is both good policy and great politics. They zero in on surveillance pricing as the issue ripe for bipartisan action: airlines using your personal data to gouge you is gross and bills are already moving in state legislatures to ban digital price tags, though Chuck notes there are legitimate upsides to dynamic pricing based on supply and demand that shouldn't be thrown out with the bathwater. They discuss how consumer advocacy once gave news media enormous credibility and trust, how the public feels big tech has too much control over everything, and how creating a caucus of independents in the Senate could serve as a powerful fulcrum — since independent candidates shouldn't have to choose between Trump and Schumer to be effective. The episode closes with a surprisingly passionate sports segment where they agree that March Madness exposes how unwatchable the NBA regular season has become, that tanking and load management are destroying competitive integrity, and that urgency — the thing college basketball's single-elimination format delivers in abundance — is what creates truly great sports.
Timeline:
00:00 Mike Pesca joins the Chuck ToddCast
02:00 The emergence of the never Trump media
03:00 Both parties have become reactionary
04:15 Prior to the civil war, leaders just papered over the divides
05:15 Debate in both parties is full resistance vs. compromise
06:30 Virginia would go 8-3 Democrat without partisan redistricting
07:30 Competitive districts will create more reasonable candidates
09:45 Partisan primaries are the biggest driver of our hyperpartisanship
10:30 Mobile voting would be a game changer for voter participation
11:30 All-party primaries are a better alternative
13:15 Is there a viable path for independent candidates to win?
14:00 Dem brand is so toxic in Nebraska, only an independent can be viable
14:45 Ranked choice voting is further down the list of good reforms
15:30 Ranked choice makes explaining results difficult on election night
16:30 Louisiana had the best version of the jungle primary
17:30 Louisiana changed their system just to beat Bill Cassidy
18:45 If jungle primary in CA produces a Republican, reforms come in a year
19:45 One of the Democratic CA governor candidates has to go
21:00 Surprising how many big name candidates passed on CA gov race
22:00 Kash Patel might hand Eric Swalwell the nomination by leaking file
22:45 Gavin Newsom doesn’t have an heir apparent
24:00 With control of congress, should Dems try to pass legislation with Trump?
25:00 Child tax credit is something Dems & JD Vance could agree on
26:15 Democrats can’t be an alternative to “do nothing GOP”, then do nothing
27:30 Dems will do investigations, but not much else will get done
28:15 Trump officials won’t answer subpoenas, business leaders will have to
29:00 With power in congress, Democrats will likely target big tech
31:00 Surveillance pricing needs to be regulated
33:00 Bills in many legislatures to ban digital price tags in stores
33:45 There are upsides to dynamic pricing, it’s not all bad
34:45 Airlines using your data against you to gouge you is gross
35:30 Floating price based on supply vs. demand is fine
37:00 Being seen as being on the side of the consumer is good politics
38:00 Consumer advocacy gave news media credibility and trust
39:30 The public feels like big tech has too much control of everything
41:00 Creating a caucus of independents could be a fulcrum in the senate
42:15 Independents shouldn’t have to choose between Trump & Schumer
44:15 We are in desperate need of reform, and the constitution is difficult to amend
46:00 March Madness reminds you that the NBA regular season sucks
47:15 NBA players don’t try hard in the regular season & tanking is terrible
49:30 Long playoff series in the NBA are great
51:00 A shorter 1st round 5 game series injects some randomness into the playoffs
53:15 DC could be a great NBA market, but the Wizards are awful
55:00 NBA draft lottery needs some modification to address tanking
55:30 “Load management” also needs to be addressed
58:30 Urgency is what creates great competitive sports
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Timeline:
(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements)
00:00 Mike Pesca joins the Chuck ToddCast
02:00 The emergence of the never Trump media
03:00 Both parties have become reactionary
04:15 Prior to the civil war, leaders just papered over the divides
05:15 Debate in both parties is full resistance vs. compromise
06:30 Virginia would go 8-3 Democrat without partisan redistricting
07:30 Competitive districts will create more reasonable candidates
09:45 Partisan primaries are the biggest driver of our hyperpartisanship
10:30 Mobile voting would be a game changer for voter participation
11:30 All-party primaries are a better alternative
13:15 Is there a viable path for independent candidates to win?
14:00 Dem brand is so toxic in Nebraska, only an independent can be viable
14:45 Ranked choice voting is further down the list of good reforms
15:30 Ranked choice makes explaining results difficult on election night
16:30 Louisiana had the best version of the jungle primary
17:30 Louisiana changed their system just to beat Bill Cassidy
18:45 If jungle primary in CA produces a Republican, reforms come in a year
19:45 One of the Democratic CA governor candidates has to go
21:00 Surprising how many big name candidates passed on CA gov race
22:00 Kash Patel might hand Eric Swalwell the nomination by leaking file
22:45 Gavin Newsom doesn’t have an heir apparent
24:00 With control of congress, should Dems try to pass legislation with Trump?
25:00 Child tax credit is something Dems & JD Vance could agree on
26:15 Democrats can’t be an alternative to “do nothing GOP”, then do nothing
27:30 Dems will do investigations, but not much else will get done
28:15 Trump officials won’t answer subpoenas, business leaders will have to
29:00 With power in congress, Democrats will likely target big tech
31:00 Surveillance pricing needs to be regulated
33:00 Bills in many legislatures to ban digital price tags in stores
33:45 There are upsides to dynamic pricing, it’s not all bad
34:45 Airlines using your data against you to gouge you is gross
35:30 Floating price based on supply vs. demand is fine
37:00 Being seen as being on the side of the consumer is good politics
38:00 Consumer advocacy gave news media credibility and trust
39:30 The public feels like big tech has too much control of everything
41:00 Creating a caucus of independents could be a fulcrum in the senate
42:15 Independents shouldn’t have to choose between Trump & Schumer
44:15 We are in desperate need of reform, and the constitution is difficult to amend
46:00 March Madness reminds you that the NBA regular season sucks
47:15 NBA players don’t try hard in the regular season & tanking is terrible
49:30 Long playoff series in the NBA are great
51:00 A shorter 1st round 5 game series injects some randomness into the playoffs
53:15 DC could be a great NBA market, but the Wizards are awful
55:00 NBA draft lottery needs some modification to address tanking
55:30 “Load management” also needs to be addressed
58:30 Urgency is what creates great competitive sports
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