Ready Set Gov Better Government Association

Recorded live at BGA's 95th Anniversary Luncheon on October 16th, Andy Shaw's interview with Judy Woodruff and Al Hunt. Judy is the Anchor & Managing Editor of PBS News Hour and her husband Al Hunt is an opinion columnist at Bloomberg. In front of an audience of more than 700 BGA supporters, Andy, Judy and Al discussed trust and truth in news, the upcoming midterm elections, and the rise of female journalists.

Ex Chicago Police commander Jon Burge died on September 19th, 2019. We interview the reporter closest to the case, John Conroy, about how the Chicago PD's history of violence echoes to today and the trial of Jason Van Dyke.

Imagine paying your taxes with the click of a button, never having to wait in line at the DMV, and voting from the comfort of your own home. That's how Estonians do it. On this episode of Ready Set Gov, we talk to Anna Piperal, Managing Editor of e-Estonia, on all things digital government in Estonia.

On this episode of Ready Set Gov, we interview John Opdycke President of a New York nonprofit, Open Primaries. Illinois currently does not have open primaries, which rubs some voters the wrong way. John walks us through how Open Primaries can help voters elect officials that better reflect their views, rather than their party affiliations.

You've heard Illinois is in the midst of a public pension crisis, but do you know how we got here? Special guest Laurence Msall, president of the Civic Federation, a nonpartisan government finance think tank, walks us through the history of the problem and what our government can do to dig Illinois out of its pension hole.

On this episode of Ready Set Gov, we sit down with Geoff Nagle, President and CEO of the Erikson Institute, to talk about the critical importance of early childhood education, especially in the lives of kids who experience trauma and violence in their communities.