Why Is Congress So Old? And How Can We Change This?

About this episode

The episode explores the age and demographics of Congress and discusses barriers to more representative leadership with political scientist Maya Kornberg.

The average age of a U.S. Representative is in the 50s. In the Senate, it's in the 60s. Many Congressional members are also white and wealthy. And this is not representative of the country as a whole. So, what's keeping Congress from being more reflective of nation's population, and therefore, actually getting things done? So. Many. Things.  Bob calls up political scientist Maya Kornberg, author of Stuck: How Money, Media, and Violence Prevent Change in Congress , to unpack why Congress feels frozen in place ... and how we can fix it.  From campaign money and social media to political violence and the rise of “performative politics,” Maya explains why younger leaders struggle to break through.    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

People in this episode

Host: Bob

Guest: Maya Kornberg

Topics covered

• Congress
• political representation
• age in politics
• campaign finance
• social media
• political violence
• performative politics

Keywords

• Congress
• age
• political representation
• Maya Kornberg
• campaign money
• social media
• political violence
• performative politics

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Congress

Books & works: Stuck: How Money, Media, and Violence Prevent Change in Congress

Places: United States

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