Saving Democracy

Wednesday, June 15, 2022

5:00 PM 6:00 PM

Saving Democracy

with

Yascha Mounk

Moderated by Richard Wolffe

Wednesday, June 15th, 2022 5:00-6:00 pm ET

 In recent years the fragility of our democracy has been exposed. Founded to offer both freedom and rights, this form of governance is precious. But it’s permanence cannot be taken for granted.  

How do we preserve our democracy in the face of the many threats and challenges before us?   

Join us in a conversation with one of the world’s leading experts on the crisis of liberal democracy, Yascha Mounk. With his brilliant insights, many that run counter to conventional wisdom, Mounk offers an optimistic set of ideas and proposals for how our democracies can endure and thrive in spite of our differences. 

About the Speakers:

Yascha Mounk is one of the world’s leading experts on democracy and the rise of populism. His latest book is The Great Experiment: Why Diverse Democracies Fall Apart and How They Can Endure, on how democracies can succeed.  TCG hosted Mounk for his last book, The People vs Democracy: Why Our Freedom is In Danger and How to Save It, which was translated into ten languages and recognized as a “Best Book of 2018” by the Financial Times and other publications. He is an Associate Professor of the Practice of International Affairs at Johns Hopkins University, a Contributing Editor at The Atlantic, a Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, the founder of Persuasion, and the host of The Good Fight podcast.

Richard Wolffe is an award-winning journalist and political analyst for MSNBC television, appearing frequently on MSNBC’s Countdown with Keith Olbermann and Hardball with Chris Matthews. He covered the entire length of Barack Obama’s presidential campaign for Newsweek magazine. Before Newsweek, Wolffe was a senior journalist at the Financial Times, serving as its deputy bureau chief and US diplomatic correspondent. Wolffe is the author of the New York Times bestseller Renegade: The Making of a President and Revival: The Struggle for Survival Inside the Obama White House. He currently writes a twice-weekly column for the Guardian.

Watch Now:

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Defending Democracy: John Avlon, Philip Bobbitt, Ian Kahn, Garry Kasparov, and Bret Stephens

The Common Good was proud to present a very important discussion with Garry Kasparov, Russian dissident and world chess champion, Bret Stephens, New York Times columnist, John Avlon, author of Washington’s Farewell and CNN anchor, Philip Bobbitt, constitutional law expert at Columbia University, and Ian Khan, who plays George Washington on AMC’s Turn. In our nation and across the globe, democracy is at risk. Leaders from left to right are increasingly alarmed as the central values and norms of liberal democracy are undermined or under outright attack. The US struggles with poisonous division and institutional sclerosis, far right parties are gaining traction in Europe, and Vladimir Putin tightens his authoritarian grip on Russia while subverting democracy abroad. These extraordinary thinkers will explore how we can defend and reinvigorate the best of our democratic values and culture, as the risks to democracy intensify across our nation.

LISTEN:

watch:

John Avlon is an author, columnist and commentator. He is a senior political analyst and fill-in anchor at CNN, appearing on New Day every morning. From 2013 to 2018, he was the editor-in-chief and managing director of The Daily Beast.He is the author of the books Independent Nation, Wingnuts, and Washington’s Farewell as well as co-editor of the acclaimed Deadline Artists journalism anthologies. Avlon served as chief speechwriter to New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and won the National Society of Newspaper Columnists award for best online column in 2012.

Philip C. Bobbitt is the Herbert Wechsler Professor of Federal Jurisprudence and director for the Center for National Security at Columbia Law School. He is one of the nation’s leading constitutional theorists. Bobbitt’s interests include not only constitutional law but also international security and the history of strategy. He has served as law clerk to the Honorable Henry J. Friendly; associate counsel to the president; the counselor on international law at the State Department; legal counsel to the Senate Iran-Contra Committee; and senior director for Critical Infrastructure and senior director for strategic planning at the National Security Council.

Ian Kahn recently starred as General George Washington in AMC’s critically acclaimed series Turn: Washington’s Spies, which recently completed its fourth and final season. Prior to landing the roe of the nation’s first president, Kahn appeared in numerous high-profile television series, including Sex and the City, Suits, Law & Order, Castle, The Unusuals and Shameless. Kahn has been speaking about his experience playing General Washington and how there is a direct connection to today, and our current political challenges, in venues around the country.

Garry Kasparov, one of the world’s greatest chess champions in history, fled Russia in 2013 after Putin’s crackdown on Kasparov’s and others’ reform efforts. Garry Kasparov joined The Common Good to discuss Russia and the dangers Vladimir Putin and his regime pose to the world. Kasparov serves as chairman of the Human Rights Foundation, and has authored numerous works on the Putin regime and artificial intelligence.

Bret Stephens is an op-ed columnist and associate editor for the New York Times. He previously worked for the Wall Street Journal, where he served concurrently as foreign-affairs columnist, deputy editorial page editor and member of the editorial board. Prior to that he was editor-in-chief of the Jerusalem Post, a position he assumed in 2002 at the age of 28. Mr. Stephens has degrees from the University of Chicago and the London School of Economics, as well as three honorary doctorates.

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