Joan Esposito is joined by Richard North Patterson, best-selling author, attorney and political commentator. His new book, "Tripwires: 15 Twenty-First-Century Events That Undermined American Democracy—and How to Reclaim," was released Tuesday.

Democratic Decline
- Patterson identified the Supreme Court's Bush v. Gore decision, the Iraq War, Republican tax cuts, the appointment of John Roberts as chief justice of the Supreme Court, the Citizens United decision, and the 2008 financial crisis as interconnected developments that eroded trust, increased inequality, and strengthened concentrated wealth and political power.
- He criticized Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's decision to not retire during the Obama presidency, saying: "On her deathbed, she expresses the wish that Trump would wait for a new president. Well, that was never going to happen. He appointed Amy Coney Barrett, the exact philosophical opposite of Ginsburg, and now we have a supermajority on the Supreme Court. And regrettably, for all the admirable work she did, that is Ginsburg's legacy."
- Patterson argued that the Republican Party's base became increasingly authoritarian and that economic insecurity and racial anxiety helped drive this shift.

Reform Priorities
- Patterson called for a fairer economy through stronger unions, higher taxes on top earners and corporations, reduced capital-gains exemptions, expanded child tax credits, broader health care access, and a higher minimum wage.
- He emphasized economic fairness as a prerequisite for restoring faith in democracy.

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

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