Explain It to Me

Latest Episodes:

Immigration, democracy, and the rise of the Western far right May 24, 2022

Show notes

This special episode of The Weeds was taped live at TruCon 2022! Join Dara Lind, Zack Beauchamp, and Jen Kirby for a live panel discussion about the state of global democracy. They discuss the complicated relationship among migration, the threat of the populist far right, and what this means for global democracy.

References:

Zack’s latest piece on “replacement theory”

He also wrote about Democrats and immigration policies in 2019

And more from Zack about Hungary, Tucker Carlson, and the election in the Philippines

Jen wrote about the French presidential runoff elections in April

She also recommends this piece about far-right politics in Germany

The first installment of the multi-part series from NYT about Tucker Carlson and Fox News

White paper: Waking Up the Golden Dawn: Does Exposure to the Refugee Crisis Increase Support for Extreme-Right Parties?

White paper: Refugee Migration and Electoral Outcomes

Hosts:

Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox

Dara Lind (@dlind), Weeds co-host, Vox

Jen Kirby (@j_kirby1), foreign and national security reporter, Vox

Credits:

Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer

Libby Nelson, editorial adviser

Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The scourge of the “time tax” May 17, 2022

Show notes

Dylan Matthews and Dara Lind are joined by Annie Lowrey (@annielowrey), a staff writer at the Atlantic, to talk about why it’s so hard for people to get government benefits. Frequently called the “time tax,” the administrative burden of applying for and distributing government benefits leads to thousands of people not getting the aid they qualify for.

References:

Annie Lowrey on Code America’s efforts to fight the Time Tax

Pamela Herd and Don Moynihan's book on administrative burden

Why Is It So Hard to Make a Website for the Government? from the New York Times

White paper — Program Recertification Costs: Evidence from SNAP

A sudden change to SSI eligibility had huge, lasting negative consequences

Hosts:

Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox

Dara Lind (@dlind), Weeds co-host, Vox

Credits:

Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer

Libby Nelson, editorial adviser

Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ukraine and the global food supply crisis May 10, 2022

Show notes

Dylan Matthews and Dara Lind talk with Washington Post economic columnist Heather Long (@byHeatherLong) about the global food supply crisis spinning out of the war in Ukraine. The crisis is so bad that the United Nations said it could be the worst shortage since World War II. What, if anything, can be done? Dylan, Dara, and Heather discuss how we got here and the costs of potential solutions.

References:

The war in Ukraine is triggering a global food crisis. Here’s how the U.S. can help.

A global famine looms. The U.S. could prevent it.

How war in Ukraine is making people hungry in the Middle East

Russian Blockade Prompts Ukraine to Find New Ways to Shift Vital Wheat Exports

Hosts:

Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox

Dara Lind (@dlind), Weeds co-host, Vox

Credits:

Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer

Libby Nelson, editorial adviser

Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What the Alito leak means for Roe — and everything else May 05, 2022

Show notes

Dara Lind sits down with Vox Supreme Court correspondent Ian Millhiser (@imillhiser) for a deep dive into the leaked draft opinion on abortion written by Justice Samuel Alito. They discuss the text of the opinion itself; why Alito was chosen to write it; and what could happen in the days, weeks, and months following a ruling overturning Roe v. Wade.

References:

The Roe opinion and the case against the Supreme Court

Ian’s explainer on the draft memo

What happens next if the Supreme Court strikes down Roe

Ian’s interview with Professor Melissa Murray

Professor Melissa Murray NYT op ed from December: What would a post-Roe America look like?

Hosts:

Dara Lind (@dlind), Weeds co-host, Vox

Credits:

Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer

Libby Nelson, editorial adviser

Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Most Dangerous Branch: Roe v. Wade May 03, 2022

Show notes

This episode originally published in October 2021 as the first installment of our “Most Dangerous Branch”miniseries about the Supreme Court. Vox senior correspondent Ian Millhiser (@imillhiser) talks with NYU professor Melissa Murray about the future of Roe v. Wade, specifically discussing some of the legal theories used to chip away at the law.

References:

What we know and don't know on the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade draft opinion

Supreme Court has voted to overturn abortion rights, draft opinion shows

Credits:

Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer

Libby Nelson, editorial adviser

Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why do we go to war? Apr 26, 2022

Show notes

Dylan Matthews interviews economist Chris Blattman (@cblatts) about his new book Why We Fight, which examines the root causes of war and what can be done to stop it. In a wide-ranging discussion that touches on conflict all over the world, Dylan and Chris discuss the role of the state, commonalities among historical conflicts, and the game theory of war.

References:

Chris Blattman’s book, Why We Fight

Chris’s research work

Research on how drug gangs govern in Colombia

How therapy can reduce conflict

Using summer vacations to study peace deal mediators

The influence of royal mounties in the 19th century may make Canadian hockey less violent now

Blattman on Ukraine before the war

Civil war predictions in the US

Hosts:

Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox

Credits:

Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer

Libby Nelson, editorial adviser

Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Weeds Time Machine: The Clean Air Act Apr 19, 2022

Show notes

Buckle up! The Weeds Time Machine is back. Today, Dylan Matthews, Dara Lind, and special guest Maureen Cropper, economist and professor at the University of Maryland, travel back in time to the 1970s to discuss one of the most important pieces of environmental legislation of the 20th century: the Clean Air Act.

References:

White paper: Looking Back at 50 Years of the Clean Air Act

Hosts:

Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox

Dara Lind (@dlind), Weeds co-host, Vox

Credits:

Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer

Libby Nelson, editorial adviser

Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tax time at the culture wars Apr 12, 2022

Show notes

Dylan Matthews and Dara Lind are joined by Washington Post reporter Toluse Olorunnipa (@ToluseO) to talk more taxes for our hot! tax! policy! episodes this month. Today’s topic: Sen. Rick Scott’s 11-point plan to rescue America. Dylan, Dara, and Tolu get into the specifics of Scott’s policy proposal and speculate if the culture wars have seeped into tax policy. Plus, a white paper about unemployment benefits and opioid overdose mortality rates.

References:

Preorder His Name Is George Floyd by Toluse Olorunnipa and Robert Samuels

The Tax Policy Center’s analysis of the Rick Scott plan

How many people don’t pay income tax?

The original 47% remarks

The folk Republican morality behind the plan

White paper: “Unemployment Insurance and Opioid Overdose Mortality in the United States”

Medicaid expansion reduced opioid deaths too

The relationship between the economy and the opioid epidemic

Hosts:

Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox

Dara Lind (@dlind), Weeds co-host, Vox

Credits:

Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer

Libby Nelson, editorial adviser

Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Taxes! Let’s get right Intuit. Apr 05, 2022

Show notes

Weeds co-hosts Dylan Matthews and Dara Lind are joined by Vox policy editor Libby Nelson (@libbyanelson) to talk about some hot! tax! policy! But mostly, why it’s so annoying to file our taxes every year. The three discuss why the tax code is so complicated to begin with; compare our filing system to other countries; and daydream about what could be done to fix the system. Plus, a white paper about, you guessed it: taxes.

References:

How to get free tax prep, or volunteer to provide tax prep to others

TR Reid’s A Fine Mess

Justin Trudeau’s return-free tax promise

Dylan explaining near-term options to reform tax filing

“What is return-free filing, and how would it work?”

The benefits of return-free filing

Option one: the pre-filled return

Option two: pay-as-you-earn

ProPublica on Intuit/H&R Block lobbying that’s kept taxes complicated

White paper: “Inertia and Overwithholding: Explaining the Prevalence of Income Tax Refunds” by Damon Jones

Does the EITC promote work?

Hosts:

Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), senior correspondent, Vox

Dara Lind (@dlind), Weeds co-host, Vox

Credits:

Sofi LaLonde, producer and engineer

Libby Nelson, editorial adviser

Amber Hall, deputy editorial director of talk podcasts

Want to support The Weeds? Please consider making a donation to Vox: bit.ly/givepodcasts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Great Expiration Mar 29, 2022

Show notes

Dylan Matthews and Dara Lind are joined by Washington Post columnist Christine Emba (@ChristineEmba) to discuss the end of Covid-era welfare programs. We just hit two years of the pandemic, and some of those social safety programs, most notably the child tax credit, have expired. These policies dramatically improved the lives of millions of Americans; did we waste an opportunity to make these policies permanent? And later, a conversation about the politics of sex and consent as discussed in Christine’s new book, Rethinking Sex.

References:

Christine’s book, Rethinking Sex

A guide to all the Covid-era social safety net expansions

Li Zhou on the child tax credit’s expiration

3.4 million more children were in poverty in February than December

Up to 16 million Americans could lose Medicaid after the public health emergency lifts

The effect of bonus unemployment insurance expiring last year

Sam Adler-Bell’s profile of David Leonhardt

Ed Yong on reopening and the lack of a safety net

The enormous learning loss caused by the pandemic

White Paper: “Consent, Legitimation, and Dysphoria” by Robin West

BDSM-interested parents have lost child custody just for their kink