Our House: The Capitol Project Podcast

Four people take us on their emotional journey through the landscape of government. How do you manage the personal toll that comes with trying to make change? Part 1 guests: Jamie McGeathy and Blanca Martinez  7:50: Introduction to Jamie McGeathy 8:10: What did you do to answer your own questions about state government? 11:45: What did you do with your frustration about lack of access to informati...

Four people take us on their emotional journey through the landscape of government. How do you manage the personal toll that comes with trying to make change?  Part 2 Guests: Michael Quadrozzi and Cheniqua Johnson  1:32: Introduction to Michael Quadrozzi  5:18: Recently, you've been more cynical. Can you describe how your feelings have shifted? 9:58: Introduction to Cheniqua Johnson  20:02: H...

We brought three people together to discuss the recent legislative wins around reforming the incarceration system, but the conversation becomes much deeper. These guests share insight on how to build a loving, stable, successful, sustainable community within the most difficult circumstances. Guests: Justin Terrell, Raymond Dehn and Brother Shane Price  0:00- Intros 13:39- Can you say a little bit...

The second act of the play you've heard in the podcast. Find out where the Capitol's newest employee ends up, as she navigates change, relationships, power, history, information and so much more at the Minnesota State Capitol.  

Listen to the first act of the play you've heard referenced so many times in the podcast:  While a chorus of activists, legislators, lobbyists, civil servants, and tour guides attempt to get their way, an idealistic new employee finds herself at the center of an unexpected controversy. Misunderstandings and mistaken identity lead to a crash course in the realities that both constrain and insp...

Follow the 40 year journey of one piece of legislation about adoption and how it finally got passed this year! Guests: Gregory Luce and Penelope Needham  0:00 Introductions 4:26 How did you think this process was going to work when you first started advocating at the Capitol? 9:00 How do you work to fight a dominant narrative that you want legislators to unlearn?  10:39 Who in this process had pow...

What does it feel like to be the pieces on the game board rather than the players? Two activists who advocate from outside the system remind us that its the community that matters. Guests: Monica Hurtado and Vina Kay  0:00 Introductions  3:08 How is the reality of working at the capitol different than what you were taught?7:16 Do you have a story that about a time decision makers didn’t have the f...

If you learn nothing else about Minnesota state government, learn this: Relationships, relationships, relationships! Guests: John Apitz and Henry Jimenez  0:00 Introductions 4:16 How did your relationship with the Capitol start?  7:50 Over the length of your work, how have you stayed engaged?  14:43 Throughout your career, how have you come to understand how important relationships are to the work...

Though not officially part of state government, the press play an essential role. The information they traffic in can make things happen. Guests: Briana Bierschbach and Lori Sturdevant  0:00 Introductions 2:30 How did you begin your careers at the capitol?  10:08 Why are reporters the “least cynical” people in the building?  11:32 How do you determine what is news and what isn’t? 16:04 Do you have...

Our guests shed light on the staff members that would rather, and sometimes need to be, invisible in order to get work done.  Guests: Jerry Krueger and Ned Rousmaniere 0:00 - Introductions 5:07 - How does your fundamental philosophy that the capitol is open and accessible bump up against some of the changed realities? 8:42 - Why might it be therapeutic for people at the capitol to share their stor...

In some ways the state capitol is like theater. In other ways, it really IS theater. Guests: Sam Fettig and Jim Schowalter  0:00- Introductions  5:25 Do you remember a moment when you were younger when something with your work went differently than you expected it to?  8:06 How are hierarchies important in the capitol?  15:10 When working in communications, are you really a spin doctor?  21:29 If...

Three former Capitol insiders detail what the public doesn’t normally see about how power really works, and doesn’t, at the Capitol. Guests: Stephanie Andrews, Andy Dawkins, and Kevin Lindsey 0:00 Introduction 5:38 What was your "welcome to the Capitol" moment? 9:38 What makes the Capitol a confusing place? 18:16 Do you feel as though the Capitol is accessible? 37:53 Do you think transpa...

Former Senate majority leader Roger Moe and current rep Athena Hollins compare their experiences at the Capitol. As the legislative body grows more diverse, the culture shifts; some things get more difficult and other things don’t change at all. 0:00 Introduction 5:05 The culture of the Capitol 15:41 As a leader, have you had to make space for disruption in order to get things done? 23:39 Where ha...

There is a complex push and pull between what the legislature has created agencies to do and what the public thinks they want and need from their government. Guests: Sia Her and Frank Kohlasch. 0:00 Introduction 4:13 Describe your job? 8:19 What should someone know before they show up to make change, so they don't turn around? 11:06 You guys take a lot of heat. Why does it work that way? 23:5...

Why do people get so upset about what art is displayed at the Capitol? Because how we see the past guides where we will go, and who is invited, into our collective future. Guests: Kate Beane and Paul Mandell  0:00 Introduction 7:46 Where did your journey with the Capitol begin? 11:32 Why do aesthetic choices at the Capitol matter? 17:07 Is the building still a monument to the Civil War? Should it...