Ezra Klein, journalist, political analyst, and podcaster, sits with Erik Torenberg to go deeper into the intellectual movement of supply-side progressivism and what Silicon Valley misses about politics. This conversation was recorded in early February 2023, but is even more relevant today.
Check out the other podcasts we run: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCY0OE_54Viqx_qtXuh-85VA and our AI podcast https://www.youtube.com/@CognitiveRevolutionPodcast
TIMESTAMPS:
(0:00) Preview of Ezra discussing Elon Musk
(2:16) Unpacking supply side liberalism and the abundance agenda
(7:55) Contrasting Ezra’s Buildism with Marc Andreessen and Tyler Cowen
(12:30) Why we can't build
(17:20) Sponsors: Secureframe | Mercury | MarketerHire
(19:40) Unions
(22:23) Ezra on what Silicon Valley misunderstands about politics
(25:25) Abundance agenda is bipartisan, but will polarize
(28:19) Ezra on immigration and free trade
(32:45) Reinterpreting Ezra’s book Why We’re Polarized in 2023
(36:00) Institutional distrust
(40:50) Davos elite v. Tech Elite v. Crypto Elite
(49:12) What makes Elon right wing?
(54:00) Chris Caldwell’s theory of polarization
(55:55) Has the left gone too far left?
(1:02:40) What the president can actually do
(1:04:40) The deep state
(1:09:27) Where he differs from Patrick Collison
(1:13:10) Equality of opportunity vs a sufficient floor
(1:14:50) Why inequality matters
(1:17:08) Billionaires buying media platforms
(1:20:05) Elon and the era of the trickster god
(1:24:00) Ezra’s book recommendation
SOCIAL LINKS:
Erik’s Twitter: @eriktorenberg
Ezra’s Twitter: @ezraklein
Podcast Twitter: @Upstream__Pod
Erik’s Substack: eriktorenberg.substack.com
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