The Politics of Permanent Outrage
Lauren Hall looks at the roots of political tribalism, why voters feel trapped between false choices, and how radical moderation offers a way out of constant polarization.
This week, guest host Eric Boehm is joined by Lauren Hall, a political science professor at the Rochester Institute of Technology and the author of The Radical Moderate's Guide to Life, a Substack newsletter that encourages readers to reject binary thinking and keep politics from consuming every part of their lives.
Hall's work focuses on the roots of tribalism and political polarization, examining where they come from, why they are so powerful, and how they distort both public debate and personal relationships. She has grown increasingly concerned about the populist impulses shaping American politics on both the right and the left, and about how political elites frame elections as a choice between the lesser of two evils.
In the interview, Boehm and Hall discuss what it means to be a "radical moderate," why she believes that outlook offers a way out of America's broken political compass, and the diverse intellectual influences that have shaped her political philosophy. They also talk about what Hall did not anticipate in the second Donald Trump White House, and how moderates can navigate a political culture that rewards outrage, loyalty tests, and constant engagement.
The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie goes deep with the artists, entrepreneurs, and scholars who are making the world a more libertarian—or at least a more interesting—place by championing "free minds and free markets."
0:00—Introduction
1:17—What is radical moderation?
6:24—Third parties in America
9:19—Polarization and elitism
15:13—Evolutionary biology and tribalism
27:24—Hall's path to political science
35:06—Culture of Rochester, New York
41:39—Expectations for the second Trump administration
47:19—Radical moderate advice for Democrats
51:03—Lessons from Edmund Burke
- Producer: Paul Alexander
- Audio Mixer: Ian Keyser
