136. The Political Consultant Episode: Why Establishment Politics is Important

I'M THE VILLAIN

In this episode, we sit down with Hannah De Groot, one of Isabel's old friends from high school, to talk about how her experience in political organizing turned into a job in political consulting. We've been wanting to talk to someone on the "inside" of politics for a long time, because much of this podcast is spent decrying the futility of trying to engage with American politics, when in reality, when you talk to people who actually work in this space, it doesn't seem futile at all. It can definitely seem challenging, but when you are working with other people who are addressing the challenge and separating it into manageable parts, it can be much easier to stop the cycle of despair. But the social support of other organizers is also crucial because, as Hannah points out, MAGA Republicans are no longer an anomaly: they are running in almost every red state.

Hannah's political organizing experience is also unique because she has lupus, which usually hits women hardest in their early 20's, and saps a lot of your energy, which makes it hard to do a lot of the typical activities associated with political organizing such as knocking on doors. The pandemic actually provided an opportunity in that respect because during the pandemic a lot of organizers had to resort to calling and texting potential voters instead, which was more accessible to her.

Links:

The 2 organizations Hannah recommends at the end of this episode are

• People's Action (for progressive organizers who are interested in deep canvassing) https://peoplesaction.org/
• Vote Save America (a group working to mobilize voters around the midterms) https://votesaveamerica.com/

Music is The Beauty of Maths by Meydän.

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