Rep. Jamie Raskin on living through the unthinkable, twice

The Gray Area with Sean Illing

Vox Media Podcast Network

Society & Culture, News, Politics, News Commentary, Philosophy

4.6 • 10.8K Ratings

🗓️ 6 January 2022

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Vox's Dylan Matthews talks with Congressman Jamie Raskin about the tragic loss of his son Tommy, who was twenty-five years old when he died at the end of 2020. Rep. Raskin also speaks about the insurrection on January 6th, 2021, and his role as floor manager for Trump's second impeachment trial. They discuss the passions that Tommy cultivated and shared with the world, the experience of being in the Capitol as it was stormed by rioters, and the ongoing work of the House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack. Host: Dylan Matthews (@dylanmatt), Senior Correspondent, Vox Guest: Jamie Raskin (@RepRaskin), U.S. Representative (D-MD, 8th District); author References: Unthinkable: Trauma, Truth, and the Trials of American Democracy by Jamie Raskin (Harper; 2022) “Politics as a Vocation,” Max Weber (1919) Enjoyed this episode? Rate Vox Conversations ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ and leave a review on Apple Podcasts. Subscribe for free. Be the first to hear the next episode of Vox Conversations by subscribing in your favorite podcast app. Support Vox Conversations by making a financial contribution to Vox! bit.ly/givepodcasts This episode was made by: Producer: Erikk Geannikis Editor: Amy Drozdowska Engineer: Paul Robert Mounsey Deputy Editorial Director, Vox Talk: Amber Hall Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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1:00.5	When your ideals are under threat and when you're grieving the loss of a son, how do you hold
1:05.3	on to hope? I'm Dylan Matthews and I write for Vox about poverty, animal welfare and the
1:13.3	best ways to do full-anthropy. And today I'm your host for Vox Conversations.
1:27.4	Jamie Raskin is a Democratic Congressman from Maryland and on January 6, 2021, he was
1:32.8	enduring an immense personal tragedy. A New Year's Eve, his son Tommy had died by suicide
1:38.7	at age 25. Tommy was an acclaimed activist and poet devoted to progressive causes and,
1:45.5	like me, part of the effect of altruism movement, which tries to use rigorous evidence to find
1:50.2	the best ways to do good. Less than a week after Tommy's death,
1:55.2	Jamie Raskin had to go to the Capitol to count electoral votes and formally elect Joe Biden
1:59.9	President. He brought along his daughter Tabitha and his other daughter's husband Hank
2:05.0	to witness history being made. They wound up witnessing a darker kind of history being
	...

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