Can "The Utah Way" Fix a Broken America?

On this episode of "Deseret Voices," Utah Gov. Spencer Cox joins host McKay Coppins for a candid, wide-ranging conversation that touches on everything from national political polarization to the sudden intersection of rural Utah and artificial intelligence.

Despite writing a new book, leading to some speculation, Cox insists he isn't eyeing the White House — but he is looking to export Utah’s unique cultural framework to the rest of a fractured nation.

In this episode, Coppins and Cox discuss:

• The Danger of Contempt: Why Cox chose this specific word for his new book, “Off Ramp,” and why looking down on our political rivals is far more dangerous than simply disagreeing with them.

• The Future of the GOP: How the pendulum of political overreach keeps swinging and why the Republican party needs to pivot back toward commonsense middle America to achieve lasting success.

• The AI and Social Media Battle: Cox defends his dual approach of aggressively restricting social media algorithms to protect kids while simultaneously backing major AI infrastructure and data centers in Utah.

• The Gerrymandering Debate: A deep dive into Utah’s controversial redistricting process, the limits of gubernatorial power and whether the chess match of redrawing maps is actually what broke American democracy.

• The "Utah Way": What the rest of the United States can learn from Utah’s nation-leading statistics in volunteering, charitable giving and institutional social capital.

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Welcome to Deseret Voices, a weekly podcast from the Deseret News (https://deseret.com) that brings depth, nuance and respect to conversations about today’s complex topics and current events. Join our hosts, award-winning journalists McKay Coppins and Jane Clayson Johnson, every Thursday as they go beyond news headlines by talking with newsmakers and thought leaders to find common ground and uncover unique perspectives on today’s critical issues in politics, faith, sports, and more.