Richard Parker || God, Money, and the Making of America
Talkin‘ Politics & Religion Without Killin‘ Each OtherShow Notes
Richard Parker has spent his life reading America through two lenses most people keep apart: economics and religion. The throughline is that faith, money, and power did not grow up in separate rooms. They grew up together.
An Oxford-trained economist who has taught at Harvard's Kennedy School since 1993, Parker co-founded Mother Jones, helped build Greenpeace USA, and helped Norman Lear start People for the American Way. This conversation runs from an abolitionist ancestor who helped fund John Brown's raid, through the Reformation's long shadow over capitalism and the corporation, to a president reaching into the economy in ways the country has not seen since it had kings.
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Key Takeaways
The abolitionist in the family tree. Richard's ancestor, the Rev. Theodore Parker, was one of the Secret Six who bankrolled John Brown's raid. He also coined lines later borrowed by Lincoln ("of the people, by the people, for the people") and Martin Luther King ("the arc of the moral universe bends toward justice").
Not since kings. When a president takes government equity stakes in companies like Nvidia, Parker argues, he folds the state into his own person and pushes presidential power into the economy in a way America has not seen since it had monarchs.
Only about six presidents. Borrowing from political scientist Stephen Skowronek, Parker says just a handful of presidents ever reset the country's governing terms. He does not think Trump is one of them.
The same fights in new costumes. Most of our arguments recur generation after generation. Parker's aim is not to win them but to help people see the landscape they are arguing from, which is how a divided country starts talking instead of accusing.
About Our Guest
Richard Parker is an economist, author, and Senior Fellow and Lecturer at Harvard's Kennedy School, where he has taught since 1993. He co-founded Mother Jones, helped build Greenpeace USA, helped Norman Lear launch People for the American Way, and has advised figures including Senator Edward Kennedy. He serves on the boards of The Nation and the Journal of Post Keynesian Economics.
Links and Resources
Richard Parker and Diane Winston (USC) at Faith Angle West in Park City, Utah (video): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFNCAbZIKjo&t=139s
Faith Angle Forum, which helps journalists cover religion in public life: https://faithangle.org/
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