"The House hasn't reorganized committee jurisdictions since the early 70s—before the internet existed." — Maya Kornberg

America is stuck stuck stuck stuck. Almost exactly a year ago, I interviewed the Atlantic's Yoni Applebaum about Stuck, his influential critique of the housing crisis. Now we have another Stuck—this one by Maya Kornberg, a senior fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice. Only her subtitle is about Congress, not housing: How Money, Media, and Violence Prevent Change in Congress.

This is, Kornberg argues, one of the toughest times in modern American history to sit in Congress. Members are forced to spend most of their time making fundraising calls. They face record-high threats against themselves and their families. And the media incentivizes spectacle over policymaking—what she describes as "Kings and Prophets"—where members have the power of the megaphone but not the power to drive legislation.
One fact captures Congressional stuckness: The House hasn't reorganized its committee jurisdictions since the early 1970s—before the internet existed. Half the Senate, then, questioned Mark Zuckerberg because no single committee is responsible for tech. Not even mad libertarians like Elon Musk could make that one up.

Kornberg recently ran for New York City Council in Park Slope and, as a friend of Israel, discovered firsthand how media latches onto the most salacious angle. That said, she's not giving up on Congress. Kornberg is hopeful that a fresh wave of reformers, like the Watergate babies of '74 or the class of 2018, can unstick it. But she is, nonetheless, clear-eyed about what we're facing: a four-alarm fire for our democracy.

Five Takeaways
• This Is the Hardest Moment in Modern History to Be in Congress: Members face astronomical campaign costs, record-high threats, and a leadership-driven system that has stripped them of real power.
• Money, Media, and Violence Keep Congress Stuck: Members spend every mealtime fundraising. They pay "dues" to get on committees. Media incentivizes spectacle. Threats rise year after year.
• Congress Hasn't Reorganized Since Before the Internet: The House hasn't reorganized committees since the early 70s. When everyone's responsible for tech, no one is.
• More Chairmen Named Mike Than Women Leaders: The pay-to-play system disadvantages women, communities of color, working-class Americans, and young Americans.
• Waves of Reformers Can Unstick Congress: The Watergate babies, the class of '94, the class of 2018—frustrated reformers have reshaped Congress before. The midterms could bring another wave.
About the Guest

Maya Kornberg is a senior fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice, holds a PhD from Oxford, and recently ran for New York City Council in Brooklyn's Park Slope.

References
Stuck by Maya Kornberg: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1324076453
Brennan Center for Justice: https://www.brennancenter.org/
About Keen On America
Nobody asks more awkward questions than the Anglo-American writer and filmmaker Andrew Keen. In Keen On America, Andrew brings his pointed Transatlantic wit to making sense of the United States.
Website: https://keenon.tv/ Substack: https://keenon.substack.com/ YouTube: https://youtube.com/@KeenOnShow

Chapters:
00:00:00 Introduction: America is stuck
00:02:04 Why everyone woke up to this problem at once
00:03:49 Why study Congress? Is it boring?
00:06:33 Money, media, and violence
00:07:11 Congressional chameleons: Waxman, Underwood, Andy Kim
00:10:24 Is this bipartisan?
00:12:37 The crummiest job in Washington
00:15:53 Money: 'I spend every mealtime making fundraising calls'
00:17:29 Should Congress get a pay raise?
00:19:53 Media and the Gaza third rail
00:23:14 Kings and Prophets: Spectacle over policy
00:25:32 Can Congress stand up to Trump?
00:27:43 Congress is woefully unprepared to regulate tech
00:31:54 Gerontocracy: More Mikes than women
00:37:34 Can citizen assemblies save us?
00:43:08 What to hope for from the midterms