Welcome to Spectator Out Loud, the podcast where every week we pick a few of our writers in the magazine to read their pieces out to you.

This week will be joined by Kate Andrews, our economics correspondent, who writes about why she's voting for Joe Biden despite being a lifelong Republican.

Then we'll be joined by Matthew Paris, who gives the recommendation to go to Sweden while you still can.

And at the very end, Rory Sutherland wonders whether or not he's cracked COVID testing.

First up, Kate Andrews.

For as long as I was old enough to think about politics, I've been a Republican. When my dad told me,

age six, that Bill Clinton had beaten Bob Dole, I'm told I cried. I don't remember this, but I do

have vivid memories of running around St. Andrews in my first year at university in a handmade

McCain-Palin T-shirt with no-bama sketched in

sharpie on the back. I graduated into an internship on Mitt Romney's campaign, and when I moved to

London, I became a spokesman for Republicans overseas. Never in my wildest dreams would I have

imagined the first time I voted Democrat would be to put Barack Obama's vice president in the Oval Office.

Yet, I'm voting for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

I know their economic policies will make America poorer, especially as the economy tries to recover from COVID-19.

The tax rises and the huge increase in spending, the kind that Senator Biden used to be wary of.

And this is now the moderate wing of the party. Biden's VP pick is even further to the left.

Harris's approach to governing would be even more top-down and interventionist.

Her politics and mine, I'm a liberal in the British sense of the word, are about as far apart as one can

get. But what about the alternative? What about Donald Trump? The nastiness, unkindness, the racism

and misogyny, the way he always punches down rather than up. It's the antithesis not just of my

politics, but of the America that I love.

His supporters claim his remarks are taken out of context by his opponents in the media,

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