Excellent question by @theIanMcNeny:
@JenBriney Great things you're doing with @CongressDish! Lots of info I had no idea about! What 5 eps would be "must listens" for newbies?
— Ian McNeny (@theIanMcNeny) February 4, 2015
Thank you for asking!
Here's five episodes I highly recommend and why:
CD083: The Story of the 113th Congress
This episode is a summary of everything that happened during the 113th Congress (the 114th Congress began in January 2015). During the 113th Congress, Congressional Dish focused on the House of Representatives, which was controlled by the Republican Party at the time. Now, the Republican Party controls the entire Congress for the 114th Congress. This episode will give you an idea of how they will govern for the next two years.
CD052: The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)
This is one piece of legislation that did not die with the 113th Congress. The Trans-Pacific Partnership is huge new package of international laws that is being created right now with eleven other countries. It’s the one thing that President Obama and the Republicans who now control all of Congress agree on. You should know about this.
CD003: The Free Market vs. US
"Free Market" is a term used often in Congress. It refers to two things: Economic theories that have been tested in countries around the world during the last 60 years and it's a label that is often applied to economic laws that don't follow those theories but rig the laws to benefit multi-national corporations. This episode, one of the first Congressional Dish episodes, explores the results of how the economic theories and label "free market" have been used around the world.
CD041: Why Attack Syria?
In 2013, the President of the United States went on television and announced to the world that he planned to bomb Syria. A year and half later, the United States is bombing Syria regularly. In this episode, we fact check a list posted on Twitter by a Syrian after the President's announcement which contained twelve things the Syrian wanted us to know about her country. There were some true things on her list that we all should know.
CD067: What Do We Want in Ukraine?
In early 2014, our government began giving Ukraine billions of our tax money in the forms of cash, military equipment, and military "trainers". This continues in the 114th Congress. This episode provides some information about how and why we got involved in Ukraine. This is a likely real time example adding to the pattern you'll learn about in CD003.
Thank you for listening to Congressional Dish! Please let us know what you think.
