Checks and Balance: Quality control

A celebrity doctor who recently lived out of state.  An ex-football player beset by controversy.  When Mitch McConnell said that “candidate quality”  might handicap Republicans’ chances of taking the Senate, it’s likely he was referring to Mehmet Oz and Herschel Walker.  Democrats have some flawed candidates too, but the Republican bad batch is getting more attention. Why is that?   Georgia journalist Stephen Fowler explains how voters in the state are reacting to the accusations against Walker.  We rank some of the all-time worst Senate candidates. And we revisit the Pennsylvania Senate race, where both candidates have some pretty striking weaknesses.  John Prideaux hosts with Idrees Kahloon and Jon Fasman.Join the Checks and Balance team for a live Q&A discussion about the upcoming midterm elections. We will explore the most heated races and what their outcome means for America. That's all in a one-off live webinar for subscribers at 9pm UK time, 4pm on America's East Coast, on Thursday October 27th. You can sign up now at economist.com/checkswebinar You can now find every episode of Checks and Balance in one place and sign up to our weekly newsletter. For full access to print, digital and audio editions, as well as exclusive live events, subscribe to The Economist at economist.com/uspod. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Om Podcasten

Checks and Balance unlocks American politics by taking a big theme each week and digging into the data, the ideas, and the history shaping the country.Join John Prideaux, Charlotte Howard, Idrees Kahloon and Jon Fasman as they talk to politicians, pollsters, academics and people across the country about the great experiment of American democracy. Published every Friday.If you’re already a subscriber to The Economist, you’ll have full access to all our shows as part of your subscription.For more information about Economist Podcasts+, including how to get access, please visit our FAQs page here https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.