Plain Civics

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Back to the Basics - What is Federalism? Part 1 May 07, 2026

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they define federalism and discuss how it came about in the United States Constitution. The idea of a confederation and examples of confederations show how individual groups or states found the need to mutually agree on protection and other needs. This idea leads the Framers to create a government that divides power between the national (federal) government and the states. This was an experiment that has endured for almost 237 years.

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Back To the Basics - Separation of Powers and Checks and Balances Apr 23, 2026

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they dig into the three branches of government and why the Framers established three branches. About half of Americans can name the three branches, but if you ask them to name the main duties of each branch of what is meant by separation of powers and checks and balances, they can’t explain these. So listen to this episode to gain a better understanding of these basics of our government.

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Lots of Issues, But There Is Hope…Let’s Get Busy! Apr 09, 2026

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss civics education, or lack thereof, as well as voting percentages, detecting misinformation, improving civil discourse, and what happens to our nation if we fail to fix these things.

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Let’s Get Ready To Vote! Mar 26, 2026

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the steps citizens need to take to vote in the upcoming primary and general elections this year. They look at why exercising your right to vote is so important, when primary elections are held in each state, deadlines to register to vote, requirements for voting (Indiana specific, but info is given to find your own state’s requirements), how to cast your vote, voter ID, the SAVE Act being debated by Congress right now, and researching the candidates and issues before voting.

Several significant state voting links have been added to the Plain Civics Facebook page to help you find your state’s requirements.

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The Biggest Challenge to Democratic Institutions - On Tyranny, Part 2 Mar 12, 2026

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they continue with the fourth of Ben Franklin’s civic virtues and then continue the discussion of 20 signs of tyranny, using Professor Timothy Snyder’s 2017 book, On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons From the Twentieth Century, as a guide. This episode covers lessons eight through twenty. These lessons from Professor Snyder’s book are even more relevant today than they were in 2017, when it was first published. We must work to prevent our democratic republic from becoming completely authoritarian.

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The Biggest Challenge to Democratic Institutions - On Tyranny, Part 1 Feb 25, 2026

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they continue with the third of Ben Franklin’s civic virtues and then move into a discussion of liberal democracy v. authoritarianism. They will explain the difference between the two and prompt listeners to be on the lookout for signs of each. Once the differences of these two forms of government are laid out, they move into a discussion of 20 signs of tyranny, using Professor Timothy Snyder’s 2017 book, On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons From the Twentieth Century, as a guide. Lessons one through seven are covered in this episode and the remainder of the lessons in the next episode.

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The Evolution of Political Parties in the U.S. Feb 12, 2026

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Join hosts Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they track the beginnings, development, an evolution of political parties in U.S. history. It hasn’t always been the Democratic and Republican Parties. Political parties in the U.S. actually started back in the 1790’s with the Federalist Party and the Democratic-Republican Party and have changed numerous times since then. In fact, today’s Democratic and Republican Parties are not the same as they were in the beginning. In this episode we also introduce two new short segments into our podcast, Ben Franklin’s Virtues and Don’t Know Much About History.

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Let’s Review Some Important Concepts Jan 29, 2026

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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they introduce a new opening feature called “Ben Franklin’s Virtues,” where they cover the 13 civic virtues that one of our famous Founders thought to be most important. One virtue will open each of the next 13 episodes.

Following this, and in light of recent events, the hosts review some important ideas and actions that We the People need to remain mindful of in order to sustain our almost 250 year-old democratic republic, as its maintenance requires constant effort on the part of the citizens. In this episode we review the concepts of what is meant by being a democratic republic, as well as due process and habeas corpus, immigrant rights, First Amendment rights, political polarization and civil discourse, active citizenship, and civic education. This review is meant to stimulate continued maintenance of our republic by We the People.

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Say What??? Part 2 Jan 15, 2026

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Join hosts Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they tackle 5 more common misconceptions about our government. These misconceptions include the impeachment process, whether the U.S. is a democracy, use of the Bible for swearing in officials, straight ticket voting, and removal of the President using the 25th Amendment. So join the hosts as they attempt to educate you about these misconceptions.

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Christmas in the Continental Army in 1776 Jan 01, 2026

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In this second special holiday episode of Plain Civics, join host Bobbi Fisher as she tells the story of an ambitious battle plan devised by General George Washington to take place on Christmas night 1776. Up to this point in the Revolutionary War the Americans had achieved little success on the battlefield and troop morale was extremely low. Gen. Washington hoped that a surprise attack at Trenton, NJ, on unsuspecting Hessian soldiers might give the American soldiers the boost in morale that they needed to continue fighting for the cause. Listen and learn about Washington’s bold plan and how it turned out.

Joe Ulery has this episode off and both of us will return on January 15 with the first episode of Season 2 of Plain Civics…another “Say What” episode where we clear up five more misconceptions about our government.

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