HeyJaredThe Politics Lab
Politics isn’t always black and white. Dr. Bill Muck and Dr. Phil Barker, professors of political science and longtime friends, talk through the week’s news and discuss how political science might help make sense of things.
- Indexed episodes, last 90 days
- 4
- Latest publication
- Sep 17, 2026
- Audience
- Checking…
- Earliest in this view
- Jul 14, 2026
Latest episodes
AI and the End of the American Era? (opens the original)
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This week, Bill and Phil explore the growing debate over the dangers of AI and whether regulation is the answer. Then, they ask an even bigger question: Is the American era coming to an end? From the war in Iran to a global economy increasingly looking beyond the United States, are we witnessing a fundamental shift away from America?
Back in the Lab and Nothing Is Normal (opens the original)
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This week, Bill and Phil reflect on the 25th anniversary of the September 11th attacks and consider how that day changed American politics and the world. Then, after more than a month away from the lab, they take stock of an American political landscape that somehow seems even stranger than when they left it—asking whether we have become so accustomed to the abnormal that we no longer recognize just how extraordinary it has become. And finally, they turn to the truly important questions of our t
The Iran Quagmire (opens the original)
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This week, Bill and Phil unpack the latest developments in the war with Iran, ask whether the world is witnessing the slow collapse of international justice, and explore why admitting you’re wrong has become one of the hardest things to do in modern politics.
The Leaders We Choose (opens the original)
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This week, Bill and Phil break down the drama in the U.S. Senate—from Graham Platner and Lindsey Graham to Mitch McConnell—examine the collapse of the ceasefire in Iran, and meet Binface, the man taking on Nigel Farage.
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