I hope you will enjoy watching this video conversation of Dr. Danielle Allen and Christopher Phillips, a Senior Education Fellow at the National Constitution Center. Their dialogue took place on June 27, 2014 at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. It is a rich exploration of the book, the issue of political equality in the Declaration of Independence, the current political dysfunction in the country and much more. A great prelude for our dialogue with Dr. Allen in just 8 days.
Here is one of my favorite quotes from Danielle Allen in this conversation:
“…you need political institutions that do empower everybody to contribute to the public conversation about how collectively we can build institutions that make sure we have our safety and happiness together.”
Midway through their conversation, there is an interesting exchange. In response to Christopher Phillips question about the woefully dysfunctional political system in the US today and whether we need a new kind of declaration, Dr. Allen talks about need for the American people to invest in fixing our process and re-engage in the political process. She goes on to talk about our primaries. Something Politics for the People members are very interested in! Here is what she had to say:
“…the folks who vote most in primaries are the people who are also the most polarized with regard to their political opinion. If we want to moderate our politics, if we want to restore the center, if we want to restore our capacity for compromise, what we really need to do is maximize turn out in primaries.”
I am looking forward to sharing with Dr. Allen the independent movement’s work to democratize our primaries and to break down the barriers erected by the two parties to the full participation by independent voters–now 42% of Americans– in those primaries.
