Why the Two Parties Operate Differently

Today I'm talking with Jo Freeman: a founding member of the women’s liberation movement in the 1960s, a civil rights campaigner, an attendee to every Democratic party convention since 1964, and a political scientist. She’s not the most typical Statecraft guest. But her work on how the two parties work - not just what they believe, but how they operate organizationally - is incredibly insightful. In this conversation, we dig into:

* Why do the two parties fight so differently?

* What makes someone powerful in each party?

* How did the women's movement transform the Democratic Party?

* What happened to convention caucuses? Did they stop mattering?

* What does it mean when a movement starts "trashing" its own leaders?

Reading list:

Who You Know Versus Who You Represent: Feminist Influence in the Democratic and Republican Parties

The Political Culture of the Democratic and Republican Parties

Why Republican Party Leaders Matter More Than Democratic Ones (by Tanner Greer)

Trashing: The Dark Side of Sisterhood

The Tyranny of Structurelessness