Plain Civics

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they dig into the three branches of government and why the Framers established three branches. About half of Americans can name the three branches, but if you ask them to name the main duties of each branch of what is meant by separation of powers and checks and balances, they can’t explain these. So listen to this episode to gain a better understanding of these basics of our government.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss civics education, or lack thereof, as well as voting percentages, detecting misinformation, improving civil discourse, and what happens to our nation if we fail to fix these things. Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the steps citizens need to take to vote in the upcoming primary and general elections this year. They look at why exercising your right to vote is so important, when primary elections are held in each state, deadlines to register to vote, requirements for voting (Indiana specific, but info is given to find your own state’s requirements), how to cast your vote, voter ID, the SAVE Act being debated by Congress right now, and researching the candidates and issues before voting.Several significant state voting links have been added to the Plain Civics Facebook page to help you find your state’s requirements.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they continue with the fourth of Ben Franklin’s civic virtues and then  continue the discussion of 20 signs of tyranny, using Professor Timothy Snyder’s 2017 book, On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons From the Twentieth Century, as a guide. This episode covers lessons eight through twenty. These lessons from Professor Snyder’s book are even more relevant today than they were in 2017, when it was first published. We must work to prevent our democratic republic from becoming completely authoritarian. Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they continue with the third of Ben Franklin’s civic virtues and then move into a discussion of liberal democracy v. authoritarianism. They will explain the difference between the two and prompt listeners to be on the lookout for signs of each. Once the differences of these two forms of government are laid out, they move into a discussion of 20 signs of tyranny, using Professor Timothy Snyder’s 2017 book, On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons From the Twentieth Century, as a guide. Lessons one through seven are covered in this episode and the remainder of the lessons in the next episode.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they track the beginnings, development, an evolution of political parties in U.S. history. It hasn’t always been the Democratic and Republican Parties. Political parties in the U.S. actually started back in the 1790’s with the Federalist Party and the Democratic-Republican Party and have changed numerous times since then. In fact, today’s Democratic and Republican Parties are not the same as they were in the beginning.  In this episode we also introduce two new short segments into our podcast, Ben Franklin’s Virtues and Don’t Know Much About History.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they introduce a new opening feature called “Ben Franklin’s Virtues,” where they cover the 13 civic virtues that one of our famous Founders thought to be most important.  One virtue will open each of the next 13 episodes.Following this, and in light of recent events, the hosts review some important ideas and actions that We the People need to remain mindful of in order to sustain our almost 250 year-old democratic republic, as its maintenance requires constant effort on the part of the citizens. In this episode we review the concepts of what is meant by being a democratic republic, as well as due process and habeas corpus, immigrant rights, First Amendment rights, political polarization and civil discourse, active citizenship, and civic education. This review is meant to stimulate continued maintenance of our republic by We the People.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they tackle 5 more common misconceptions about our government. These misconceptions include the impeachment process, whether the U.S. is a democracy, use of the Bible for swearing in officials, straight ticket voting, and removal of the President using the 25th Amendment. So join the hosts as they attempt to educate you about these misconceptions.Support the show

Send us a messageIn this second special holiday episode of Plain Civics, join host Bobbi Fisher as she tells the story of an ambitious battle plan devised by General George Washington to take place on Christmas night 1776. Up to this point in the Revolutionary War the Americans had achieved little success on the battlefield and troop morale was extremely low. Gen. Washington hoped that a surprise attack at Trenton, NJ, on unsuspecting Hessian soldiers might give the American soldiers the boost in morale that they needed to continue fighting for the cause. Listen and learn about Washington’s bold plan and how it turned out.Joe Ulery has this episode off and both of us will return on January 15 with the first episode of Season 2 of Plain Civics…another “Say What” episode where we clear up five more misconceptions about our government.Support the show

Send us a messageThe holiday season slows the country down — but civics doesn’t stop.In this special episode of Plain Civics, Joe Ulery looks at how holidays fit into American civic life. From early debates over Christmas in colonial America to Congress making it a federal holiday, from George Washington’s Christmas-night gamble to how government continues operating during the holidays today.This episode focuses on history, constitutional context, and civic reality — not politics of the moment. It’s a calm, fact-based look at how shared traditions, public service, and democratic institutions intersect during the holiday season.Bobbi Fisher has the day off. She’ll return next episode.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the “freedom of religion” portion of the First Amendment. The First Amendment actually provides us with 5 freedoms, including freedom of religion, which includes the Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause; and freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition which we covered in episodes 21 and 22. There is a reason the Framers included all of these in the very first amendment, so listen in and find out why these freedoms are so important to us as Americans.Support the show

Send us a messageWe will return in Episode 24 with the freedom of religion part of the First Amendment. In this episode, join the hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss times in our almost 250-year history when the situation in the U.S. looked as bleak, or even bleaker, than they do today, but Americans were able to fight and claw in their quest for equal rights and a more perfect union to survive and advance our nation. Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the “freedom of expression” portion of the First Amendment. The First Amendment actually provides us with 5 freedoms, including freedom of religion, which we will examine in an upcoming episode, and freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition. We covered speech in the last episode and, in this one, we will examine press, assembly, and petition. There is a reason the Framers included all of these in the very first amendment, so listen in and find out why these freedoms are so important to us as Americans.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the “freedom of expression” portion of the First Amendment. The First Amendment actually provides us with 5 freedoms, including freedom of religion, which we will examine in episode 24, and freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition. There is a reason the Framers included all of these in the very first amendment, so listen in and find out why these freedoms are so important to us as Americans.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they unwrap how polarization and civil discourse are related, tell about how we, as a nation, have been here before, and how we overcame those difficult episodes of civil discourse. What is different this time around and how we can still overcome the tough period of polarization and uncivil discourse.Support the show

Send us a messageJoins hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss political polarization in America.  They unwrap what is meant by polarization, possible reasons for it, why it seems worse right now, and what we can do to lessen it and why we need to.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they take a deep dive into gerrymandering. They explain what it is, how it and the name came about, and how it it relates to the census and state redistributing after each census.Support the show

Send us a messageListen as hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery discuss what your duties and responsibilities are as citizens of the United States. Duties such as following laws and serving on a jury are required, and responsibilities such as voting and staying informed about the issues are expected. But there are more than these. So, listen and learn why civic engagement, civic education, and fulfilling our duties and responsibilities as citizens are so important. We also have added a new segment at the end, starting with this episode.Support the show

Send us a messageIn this special episode we are going to explore some common misconceptions about various topics related to civics.We tried to think of things we have heard people say that made us stop and think, “What?” Maybe the “what” meant, “That person doesn’t know what they are talking about,” or maybe it meant, ”Wow, I didn’t know that and I would almost bet other people don’t either.” So, lets take a look at freedom of speech, executive orders, immigrant rights, the Pledge of Allegiance, and whether the U.S. is a Christian nation.Support the show

Send us a messageSlavery definitely had an influence on the writing and wording of the U.S. Constitution and the history of our republic, not just in its earliest days but we can still see some of its lingering effects in our nation today…almost 250 years later. This episode discusses the truths about slavery in America and gives a first-hand look at what enslaved Africans endured in the so-called Middle Passage and beyond. We also look at the three clauses of the original Constitution that were influenced by slavery and why that is.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they delve into why and how the Bill of Rights was added to the original Constitution within just a couple years of its ratification. Included is what each amendment actually states, an explanation of the three categories of rights, and what is meant by positive and negative rights.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts, Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they tackle the reason we use the Electoral College to elect the President, and explain how the process works. There is also a discussion of why people don’t vote and how to encourage them to.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they delve into the ratification process of the new Constitution, the purpose and meaning of the general welfare clause and habeas corpus, and dissect the Preamble of the Constitution because it’s not just a bunch of words.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss ratification of the new Constitution, Federalists and Anti-Federalists and their arguments for and against ratification, and what is the “necessary and proper clause?”Support the show

Send us a messageJoin the hosts, Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they put the wraps on the Constitutional Convention in September 1787. Find out what the final debates and discussions were about and why a few delegates refused to sign it. Also, don’t miss the Fast Five and Pop Quiz.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin the hosts, Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher, as they wrap up the making of our Constitution. Learn about the ins and outs of important debates and how they were resolved and incorporated into the new Constitution. As always, enjoy the Fast Five and Pop Quiz, as well.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they continue to explore why the Framers decided to ditch the Articles of Confederation and create our current U.S. Constitution.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin the hosts of Plain Civics, Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher, as they look at what the Continental Congress did right before issuing the Declaration of Independence and what our nation’s first constitution was like and what led to its revision.Support the show

Send us a messageIn this episode of Plain Civics, hosts Bobbi Fisher + Joe Ulery discuss how to sort out news and information in 2025. They look at journalistic ethics and how to try to figure out which news sources are accurate and reliable. Methods and websites are discussed to help sort through the mounds of information thrown at us in the 24/7 news cycle and where to fact-check it.Support the show

Send us a messageIn this episode of Plain Civics, hosts Bobbi Fisher + Joe Ulery discuss the purpose of one of our nation’s founding documents, the Declaration of Independence, and try to clear up the confusion that often surrounds this important document.Support the show

Send us a messageIn this episode of Plain Civics, hosts Bobbi Fisher + Joe Ulery discuss the five main forms of government and why the Framers chose to create a democratic republic. The five main forms of government are briefly explained with examples given. There is also a brief explanation of how economic terms sometimes are confused with forms of government. And, of course, our Pop Quiz question and the answer to the last one!Support the show

Send us a messageIn this episode of Plain Civics, hosts Bobbi Fisher + Joe Ulery discuss what the U.S. being a democratic republic really means, and it has nothing to do with political parties.Support the show

Send us a messageIn this episode of Plain Civics, hosts Bobbi Fisher + Joe Ulery discuss the origins of civic education in the U.S. and its role in shaping informed citizens. This episode explores the early 1800s push for universal schooling, Horace Mann's vision, and the lasting impact on democracy. Learn how civics once formed the foundation of education...and why it still matters today.Support the show

Send us a messageIn this debut episode of Plain Civics, hosts Bobbi Fisher + Joe Ulery dive into the importance of civic knowledge. Learn how understanding government strengthens our democracy and empowers citizens of all ages to actively participate and make a difference.Support the show

Send us a messageThis is where our journey begins. Welcome to Plain Civics. Meet hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery. Bobbi and Joe describe their mission and begin to unravel the knotted ball of civics, thread-by-thread - so, you will know how the government works to make the government work for you. Buckle up and join us for our journey!Support the show