The Political Orphanage

By: World's Smartest Podcast Network
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  • Summary

  • Politics minus bile plus jokes. Comedian and avowed independent Andrew Heaton interviews authors and thought leaders about policy and big thinky stuff.
    2020 Andrew Heaton
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Political Science Politics & Government
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Episodes
  • Jonathan Rauch: Christianity Dropped the Ball on Democracy

    Jonathan Rauch: Christianity Dropped the Ball on Democracy
    Feb 19 2025

    Jonathan Rauch asserts that as the American Church has become increasingly concerned with the culture war and politics, it has become secularized and unappealing to its members, who are abandoning it. The result is a country increasingly spiritually adrift, churches distracted from their core missions, and a nation turning to politics as a substitute.

    He is the author of Cross Purposes: Christianity’s Broken Promise with Democracy
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    1 hr and 8 mins
  • Sex by the Numbers

    Sex by the Numbers
    Feb 12 2025

    Who’s having sex, and how much of it are they having? Who’s getting married and who’s getting divorced? Does money, somehow, possibly, effect any of this?

    Cathy Reisenwitz of “Sex & The State” joins to discuss.
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    1 hr and 16 mins
  • TRADE WAR! (Probably)

    TRADE WAR! (Probably)
    Feb 6 2025

    Trump erected, then delayed, tariffs on Canada and Mexico, but has levied tariffs on China–which is apt to escalate things shortly. What happens in a trade war and why are they bad? And what is happening now, specifically, in whatever’s going on with Canada? Heaton breaks down the macroeconomics, and James Thatcher explains the unfolding situation.

    Discord: www.mightyheaton.com/discord
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    55 mins

What listeners say about The Political Orphanage

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Profile Image for Arielle

Unbiased and entertaining

If you enjoy thinking about political issues but hate the red team/blue team squabbling, this is the place for you. Andrew Heaton creates a place for everyone who’s more interested in solutions than scoring ideological points for a chosen dogma. And he’ll probably make you laugh along the way.

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absolutely brilliant

All thanks to Andrew Heaton's podcast I discovered snuffys, and my dining experiences have never been the same.

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intelligent, intellectually curious

Heaton presents complex answers to difficult policy problems. Recommended for wonks who enjoy humorous, thorough exploration modern policy.

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One of the good ones

Every once in a while Mr. Heaton releases a deep dive episode like this. They are always worth your time; so much so that I often listen to them again after a month or two. The effort put in gathering information, facts and ideas shows as it does on the magnificent humor. He also manages to present multiple viewpoints and theories with a remarkably even hand.

Highly recommend.

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brilliant

serious topic mingled with a touch of humor . enjoyed the content very much!

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Intelligent; Funny; Informative; Not Evil

Heaton is hilarious and manages to tackle political topics in a way that is entertaining while still being informative. Even if you are lucky enough to feel represented by the Democrats or the Republicans, I highly recommend this program.

While he lets his policies and viewpoints known, they are rational and frequently questioned as any rational person should treat their views. Plus I don't think "free trade is good", "listen to others", and "maybe a 2 party system isn't all that great" is that controversial.

He manages to get guests from different backgrounds to speak and uses that as a chance to open the listeners eyes to diverse views rather than throw his own down our throats. For instance, during the 2024 election, he managed to get the libertarian candidate CHASE OLIVER and freaking CORNEL WEST to come on and discuss their candidacies. He also had guests representing the other parties come in and speak their peace about why you should vote for their candidates in a rational way without trying to attack them.

If I had a magic lamp, I 100% would elect Andrew Heaton to be the Vice President.

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