Podcasting
September 10, 2025
Listen to my latest podcast with the New Books Network
Most Americans support progressive taxation in principle, and want the rich to pay more. But the specific tax policies that most favor are more regressive than progressive. What is behind such a disconnect? In Taxation and Resentment: Race, Party, and Class in American Tax Attitudes (Princeton UP, 2025), Andrea Louise Campbell examines public opinion on taxation, exploring why what Americans favor in principle differs from what they accept in practice.
Campbell shows that since the federal income tax began a century ago, the rich have fought for lower taxes through reduced rates and a complicated system of tax breaks. The resulting complexity leaves the public confused about who benefits from the convoluted tax code, and leads to tax preferences that are driven by factors other than principles or interests.
Previous episodes
The Political Development of American Debt Relief
Interview with Thurston & Zackin (25 Jun 2024)
Listen here
When Bad Things Happen to Privileged People
An interview with author Dara Z. Strolovitch (October 31, 2023)
Listen here
Why Bad Policies Spread (And Good Ones Don't)
An interview with author Craig Volden (February 21, 2022)
Listen here
The Judicial Tug of War
An interview with authors Maya Sen and Adam Bonica (November 17, 2021)
Listen here
The Limits of Party
An interview with authors Frances E. Lee and James M. Curry (October 6, 2021)
Listen here
Secular Surge
An interview with authors David E. Campbell and Geoffrey C. Layman (August 18, 2021)
Listen here