About the Show
Two decades of experience. Four presidents. One deeply broken system.
Immigration has become one of the top concerns of Americans across the political spectrum. Yet the U.S. immigration system is so complex, contradictory, and confounding that it’s incredibly difficult to interpret the news. The Melting Pod offers something new: hosts and guests who not only understand the intricacies of our immigration system, but who have labored to improve it through senior roles inside the U.S. government and across civil society.
Claire Trickler-McNulty
Claire has worked for more than 20 years on civil rights, immigration enforcement and detention. She has held senior roles at ICE and at a leading nonprofit defending kids against ICE. She currently has a fellowship through Hyphen, and is working on ideas for what ICE could look like in the future. Her career has spanned the full arc of immigration enforcement policy, giving her a rare perspective that bridges government and advocacy.
Amanda Baran
Amanda has been working on immigration for over 25 years both inside and outside government. From non-profit attorney to directing policy within U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, an agency with 20,000 employees, her career has spanned the breadth of immigration law and policy, while her heart has remained rooted in humanitarian issues.
Doug Rand
Doug focuses on the mechanics of the legal immigration system — employment-based visas, green cards, and U.S. citizenship. He started this work as a science fellow in the Obama White House, then as a startup founder, and most recently as a senior advisor at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).