USA
Government
![The First AI Elections](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/99577b3a-ea63-463d-ab41-661af8afde41/aielections.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=674%2C0%2C3624%2C3621&w=290)
Two billion people worldwide are set to vote in elections this year, amid global conflict, societal mistrust, broken information ecosystems — and the truth-destroying disruption of generative AI. Governments and tech companies can anticipate the chaos, but how can they mitigate AI’s effects?
![Battleground General](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/395954e1-0092-4304-b695-badb9c331dcd/53821397594_5e3b97ccf5_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=775%2C0%2C3101%2C3101&w=290)
Governor Gretchen Whitmer has a reputation for getting things done, even as she leads a purple state that’s a battleground for many of our nation’s most hotly contested issues. Katie Couric talks with the Michigan governor about life, leadership and the lessons she has learned along the way. Governor Whitmer's new book, True Gretch, will be available for sale following th...
![Talking a Blue Streak: Have Democrats Forgotten How to Communicate?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/35a97e5c-c78a-4663-b761-7c59981d4f9e/53819824492_1fac872498_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=0%2C0%2C5504%2C5504&w=290)
Polls show that many voters feel the Democratic Party is disconnected from the concerns of ordinary voters. Is it in danger of becoming the party of college-educated elites?
![Generosity: Revitalizing Democracy Together](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/00af454b-3f7b-4021-b1b4-eca1342379bc/53816511741_3decd3b834_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=1878%2C0%2C3168%2C3169&w=290)
The engaged citizen is democracy’s greatest asset, but many Americans are disillusioned and disengaged, and feel a loss of agency. In this focus group conversation, next-generation volunteers, givers, leaders — and audience members — share what motivates and what gets in the way.
![Is America Due for a Third Founding?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/6874200e-8497-4909-820e-1560b4d07526/53813331777_b9beb549db_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=1608%2C11%2C4630%2C4629&w=290)
We the people were not truly “We the People” until the Reconstruction amendments altered our Constitution in a post-Civil War "second founding". As we confront another democratic crisis, what new understandings could ensure our democratic renewal?
![CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure Talks about Costs, Coverage, Access and Innovation](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/4e94aede-649f-4d83-bd42-c006070650d4/53808779490_80be4a8e4b_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=1934%2C0%2C3035%2C3034&w=290)
The 3M’s—Medicare, Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the Affordable Care Act Marketplaces—cover more than 160 million people across the country, nearly one in two Americans. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) negotiates drug prices in line with Congressional mandates, issues Medicaid eligibility guidelines, provides guardrails for...
![Straight Talk with CDC Director Mandy Cohen](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/87cd8c5e-9c63-4c84-a71d-de37e905eb06/53807676408_16ab4dcaf4_o1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=252%2C0%2C3101%2C3101&w=290)
The science-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the linchpin of the nation’s public health system. With its state-of-the art laboratories, world-class data analytics, and diverse workforce, the agency monitors emerging infectious diseases, ensures emergency preparedness, galvanizes community-focused responses to vaccines, environmental threats, workpl...
![What the Health: Election 2024 (live podcast recording)](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/56c6f4af-4eac-4eca-baa7-0bc971fb7c8f/53805577321_4b63018d06_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=642%2C274%2C2618%2C2618&w=290)
In a live podcast recording, health policy journalists talk about hot-button health issues and what they mean for the upcoming election. From the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid expansion, and prescription drug prices to reproductive rights, gender-affirming care, and veterans’ health, some issues are particularly resonant in local elections, others could have implications f...
![The Elephant in the Room: How the GOP Is Plotting Its Future](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/66269b02-1c78-43e4-a48e-9d6b2f616f5a/53013509413_19c38c64dc_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=949%2C0%2C3652%2C3652&w=290)
How do we describe the Republican Party today, and what are the dynamics that will shape its future?
![Israel and Palestine: One State or Two?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/78f16c98-8f9f-49eb-829f-49d54f3fb239/53013905571_4364f58c05_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=843%2C0%2C3984%2C3984&w=290)
With the dream of the Oslo Accords long in the rear-view mirror and no prospect of an agreement between Israelis and Palestinians ahead, is it time to give up on the two-state solution?
![Picking a President: How to Make the Most Consequential Decision in the World](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/f008dbec-fce5-4763-a3c7-62f5a7bb073f/53010662486_a4a925c3cc_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=799%2C0%2C3716%2C3716&w=290)
From Washington to Biden, presidents have changed America — and the world — for both better and worse. If the American presidency is the ultimate test of leadership, what does it take to succeed as president, and how can we pick better ones?
![Does America Need a New Party?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/61b561cf-b4f4-4f89-b4e0-ad6d199b5b27/53012032415_ffae56d7ed_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=696%2C0%2C2994%2C2994&w=290)
Some research suggests that 60 percent of American voters want a new political party. With extremists on either side of the aisle hobbling the government’s ability toward the kind of forward change that most citizens might agree on, is it time to consider a third path forward?
![Governing A.I.: How Do We Get This Right?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/67a1645a-84c7-4173-a12d-716879d35b8f/53013050024_6fe6c37fce_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=1000%2C0%2C4000%2C4000&w=290)
The generative artificial intelligence genie is out of the bottle. When we look back 30 years from now, what will we be able to point to that we got right?
![Is Our Political System an Ill Fit for the Times?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/3c1e52f4-033d-4ca4-a58a-1d39f10de49b/53012202863_13f5792695_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=1376%2C0%2C5504%2C5504&w=290)
The designers of our democratic republic created a political system and institutions intended to avoid concentrated power, mob rule, and to defuse factions. Is the America we live in today so different from theirs that only fundamental reform can fix what ails us?
![Where the Water Goes: The Next 100 Years of the Colorado River](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/f3a552c6-36a8-44a4-a495-3988a6636f69/53011689592_29c72b0b2f_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=964%2C0%2C3702%2C3702&w=290)
The Colorado River Compact is 100 years old, and its guidelines for water use across the American West are about to expire. Facing drought, increased population, and disagreements on how to share the water, what policies and technologies could get a new agreement across the finish line? John Entsminger, Nevada’s lead negotiator for the Compact; Bidtah Becker, attorney with...
![The Dilemmas of Hostage Diplomacy](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/aeffe362-12cf-489e-8e95-b6fd9e7b0cde/53008893562_75b393a9ae_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=1376%2C0%2C5504%2C5504&w=290)
Hostage-taking presents nations with a conundrum: How can governments bring their citizens home while also preventing further captures? The United States’s top hostage negotiator, a leading scholar, and a former hostage discuss navigating the difficult waters of hostage diplomacy.
![Can We ‘Cure’ Nutrition Inequality?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/5e297639-4b62-4a4a-add7-b3c9634513cf/230628_nutrition_inequality_026.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=666%2C0%2C2667%2C2667&w=290)
Despite high demand for nutritious foods, many Americans experience gaps, challenges, and barriers when it comes to access and agency over their nutrition. How can the public and private sector work together to unlock and advance a more inclusive state of nutrition for all? Presented by Danone
![Hard-Hat Environmentalism: Can We Build in America Again?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/15574cbb-d00a-46c8-ba56-28577a1ba2e1/53009614714_26a24e608a_o1.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=0%2C0%2C5504%2C5504&w=290)
With the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the Biden-Harris administration has committed a record amount of federal funds to encourage the advancement of clean energy, but myriad regulatory, political, and practical challenges remain to meet our climate goals. White House clean energy advisor John Podesta shares how the administration is implementing the IRA and work...
![Ron Klain: The Aspen Exit Interview](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/793aa51b-36e6-4824-bc65-53dd78b9272b/53003410994_a3ba7a26bd_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=1000%2C0%2C4000%2C4000&w=290)
According to media reports, when Ron Klain left his job as White House chief of staff in February, his most prized possession from his tenure at President Biden’s side was a rock. Journalist Frank Foer asks him about that rock and lessons learned in the West Wing.
![Free Speech in the Age of Social Media](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/8a992058-6f19-42d1-92b1-c2167a52b2a3/53007069854_e2071aa681_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=290&q=80&rect=656%2C0%2C2624%2C2624&w=290)
If the First Amendment’s protections against government intrusion are a core tenet of American democracy, what happens when the chief regulators of speech are private technology companies? What is protected, who gets to decide, and what are the implications for our democracy?