“There are all kinds of ways in which we, as a community, enable the American story,” says Deval Patrick, implying that our success stories overemphasize the individual.  

Patrick’s own American story is a remarkable one, starting in a tough South Chicago neighborhood, journeying to a planet called boarding school, then onto Harvard and a distinguished legal career, before two terms as Governor. 

He recounts how then Senator Barack Obama was initially quizzical, though supportive, of his long-shot run for office. He also underscores the unusual nature of politics in the Bay State, where there are more unenrolled or independent voters than both parties combined, and a Democratic legislature that may prefer GOP Governors to enhance their own power. “These are human dynamics,” says Patrick, “not so much partisan dynamics.”

But politics in Massachusetts is changing as throughout the nation. Listen in for a clear-eyed, richly-informed discussion with Deval Patrick, 2020 White House aspirant now teaching at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.

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Original music by Ryan Adair Rooney.

SHOW NOTES

Our Guest

Deval Patrick: Former two-term Governor of Massachusetts, 2020 Presidential candidate, and Professor of the Practice of Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School. Follow him on Twitter @DevalPatrick.

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