Breaking Boundaries with Brad Polumbo

A new TV series, American Crime Story: Impeachment, has brought President Bill Clinton’s infamous affair with then-intern Monica Lewinsky back into the limelight. Washington Examiner commentary writer Tiana Lowe joins the show to reflect on how Lewinsky was savagely mistreated at the time & how poorly many defenses of Clinton have aged. Plus, she breaks down the #MeToo movement’s reckoning with Bill Clinton’s legacy and how many feminists now preaching “believe all women” gave the former Democratic president “one free grope.”

Reason Magazine reporter Robby Soave exposes the insane, unscientific, and dystopian “safety” measures Ivy League campuses are imposing on their student body in the name of the pandemic. We break down the extreme restrictions put in place at Brown, Harvard, Stanford, Columbia and more. Do these “safety” measures have any basis in reality? And what are the potential social and health consequences of forcing healthy young people to live under dystopian pandemic regimes?

Economist and Bellarmine University Associate Professor Abigail joins the podcast to reflect on the 20-year anniversary of 9/11 and reflect on the many failures of the so-called “War on Terror.” We break down everything from the real statistical threat Americans face from terrorism to why privacy matters and how the ongoing pandemic power grabs parallel the post-9/11 government response.

00:42 What is the ‘War on Terror’? (Explained)

02:01 How Big Government Expanded Surveillance Powers After 9/11

04:15 Has the US Exaggerated the Threat of Terrorism?

08:40 Hasn’t the War on Terror Prevented ‘Another 9/11’?

12:30 Why Not ‘Better Safe Than Sorry’?

15:30 Can More ‘Security’ Actually Make Us LESS Safe?

18:31 Why Should You Care About Privacy If You Don’t Have Anything to Hide?

22:18 How the War on Terror Makes EVERY American a Suspect

25:06 How the War on Terror Fuels Far-Right Extremism

28:38 Is the War on Terror Powergrab Repeating Itself Amid the Pandemic?

33:12 Abby’s Controversial Food Opinion

Trans activist and pornstar Buck Angel explains his “controversial” opinions that made him persona non grata with the woke Left and its online mobs.

What does it mean to be transexual? When did it become ‘transphobic’ to acknowledge biological sex? How did the LGBTQ community become so intolerant and fragile? What should we make of the complicated issues of transgender children and transgender inclusion in sports? And what about “detransitioners?”

Buck and I discuss all this & much more.

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“You don’t need to wait on the ballot box to revolutionize your life… to get healthier, wealthier, create the kind of life that you want.” — Kamau Olatunji

My Foundation for Economic Education colleague Kamau Olatunji joins the show to explain the “Revolution of One” project and message. Waiting on politicians and the government to solve your problems is a recipe for unhappiness, Kamau explains. He outlines how to take charge of your life and make change by focusing on yourself as an individual. Kamau and I contrast this message to the narratives of oppression, systemic racism, and hopelessness offered by those pushing Big Government and collectivism.

Spike Cohen, the 2020 Libertarian Party vice presidential nominee, joins the show to reflect on November’s election. We walk through his personal story of how we went from businessman to politician. Then, was the campaign a success or a failure? What could Spike and Jo Jorgensen have done to reach more voters?

Plus, we discuss the future of the Libertarian Party, the libertarian faction of the GOP, Spike’s weird favorite fish, and more.

Iranian American woman, journalist, and Young Voices PR associate Tahmineh Dehbozorgi joins the show to tell us what it was like to grow up under a tyrannical theocratic regime in Iran. How did reading Harry Potter get her in trouble as a child? What was life like for young women in such a sexist society?

Plus, we talk about her decision to come to the US and what it’s taught her about the importance of the liberty that so many Americans increasingly take for granted. We also dip into everything from social justice warriors to Middle East foreign policy to her food take on pork.

Author Stephen Kent joins the show to break down the big-picture themes we can take away from Star Wars. As he explains in the upcoming book HOW THE FORCE CAN FIX THE WORLD, the Star Wars saga's "politics" aren't a partisan weapon but are really more about hope, choice, humility, empathy, redemption, balance, and fear. 

You don't want to miss this stellar conversation or Stephen's book—buy it below. But, fair warning, Stephen's food take at the end of the episode is pretty disgusting.

Editor-in-chief of The Dispatch and host of the Remnant Podcast Jonah Goldberg joins the show to break down the massive ProPublica expose supposedly revealing an American epidemic of billionaires evading taxes. He explains why basically nothing they “expose” is actually particularly newsworthy or surprising, and how it’s all part of the progressive push for a so-called “wealth tax.” We break down the practical and theoretical flaws with taxing wealth and the ideological roots of this soak-the-rich class envy.

Plus, we wade into how the increasing GOP embrace of nationalist-populist economics weakens our defense from progressive socialism and why Jonah co-founded The Dispatch to offer something new in right-of-center media.

Harassment, death threats, national outcry, and financial fallout. Christian baker Jack Phillips faced all this and more after he refused to bake & design a customized wedding cake celebrating a gay wedding—an unexpected battle that ultimately took him all the way to the Supreme Court. He joins the show to discuss his new book, The Cost of My Faith, and his legal journey.

Is Jack really the anti-gay bigot the media made him out to be? Why not just bake the cake? Just how vitriolic and nasty was the targeted backlash Jack and his family faced? And how do we balance freedom of religion and speech with respect for LGBT Americans?

We discuss all this and more.

Full-time trucker and part-time libertarian YouTuber Reed Coverdale joins the show to explain how from licensing to regulations to unions, the government screws over the working class. Plus, we discuss alternative pathways to skilled trades over college degrees and why he finds the way progressive politicians talk about blue-collar workers frustrating and tone-deaf.

My Foundation for Economic Education colleague Hannah Cox joins the show to explain how corrupt unions rig the system in favor of their members at the public's expense—and what we can do about it. We break down the sordid history of unions in America, the particularly acute problem posed by public-sector unions like police unions and teachers' unions, and what the Biden administration's pro-union policies could mean for our economy.

Plus, Hannah offers up a Southern food take, and I admit to a weird habit I have with peanuts.

Journalist and author Kenny Xu joins the show to discuss his forthcoming book, AN INCONVENIENT MINORITY: The Ivy League Discrimination Cases and the Attack on Asian-
American Excellence. We discuss the consequences the Left's diversity ideology has had for Asian Americans, woke discrimination under the guise of Affirmative Action, and an upcoming court case that could change it all.

Conservative columnist, media strategist, and Lithuanian-American Gabriella Hoffman joins the show to tell the story of her family's escape from the Soviet Union and Communist tyranny.

What was it like for her parents in Soviet-era Lithuania? How has modern-day Lithuania responded to its dark authoritarian past? And what made America such an appealing place for her family to flee to? Are those elements of American life under attack?

We discuss all this, plus the modern conservative movement's anti-immigrant faction and Gabriella's hot food take.

Competitive Enterprise Institute President Kent Lassman explains how the COVID pandemic cast light on "never needed" laws in education, dining, healthcare & more—and how we make the temporary freedoms gained via "emergency waivers" permanent. Plus, Kent explains how we ended up with such an overregulated and restricted society in the first place and he weighs in on tea vs. iced coffee debate.

"The fact is that voters got us into this mess. Maybe the answer isn’t more voters," National Review writer Kevin Williamson argues on today's podcast in light of the ongoing controversies regarding voting rules in Georgia. He joins the show to make the argument that having more voters and increasing access to voting isn't necessarily a good thing.

Is democracy a good in and of itself? Doesn't limiting voting have a dark history? What's the relationship between voting and good policy? Does safeguarding liberty sometimes require constraining democracy?

Plus, we discuss the viral backlash Kevin's argument on voting has received and his thoughts on the state of the conservative movement and right-wing media.

Former Member of Parliament and newly-arrived Mississipi Public Policy Center CEO Douglas Carswell joins the show to discuss how woke radicalism and COVID authoritarianism are wreaking havoc in the UK—and explain why these problems haven't been nearly as bad in the US. We talk Brexit, the Constitution, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, right-wing populism, and more. We round the show out with a surprising American food Douglas learned to love when he first came to the US.

Journalist Jack Hunter, who co-authored the book "The Tea Party Goes to Washington" with Senator Rand Paul, joins the show to discuss how a libertarian message can appeal to an increasing populist and anti-elitist electorate in 2022, 2024, and beyond. From Bernie Sanders to Donald Trump, voters are increasingly drawn to politicians promising to fight for the little guy against the elite. But the solutions to this sentiment don't have to be big government socialism or right-wing nationalism.

What exactly is populism? Can it coexist with libertarianism? How can we better frame free-market economics as a common man's cause? What parts of the GOP's Trump legacy can we build on and praise? How can the GOP embrace libertarian-leaning positions on key issues to expand its appeal to minority voters? What might a libertarian-populist GOP's future look like in 2022 midterms and the 2024 presidential campaign?

We discuss all this, Jack's food take, & more.

FEE Senior Education Fellow, author, and mom Kerry McDonald joins the show to break down the explosion in permanent homeschooling amid pandemic life and how it plays into a broader homeschooling revolution.

How has the last year exposed the failures of traditional government schools? What are 'pandemic pods' and new forms of alternative education looking like? Can anyone homeschool, or is it only an option for wealthy elites? We discuss all this, break down common myths about homeschooling and counterarguments against it, and recap Kerry's personal high-profile debates with opponents who want to ban homeschooling.

Pacific Legal Foundation constitutional attorney Elizabeth Slattery joins the show to discuss the one genius element of our Constitution that preserves freedom and keeps tyranny at bay. We break down the separation of powers, the dangers of administration creep, the regulatory "deep state," and Congress's dereliction of its constitutional duties.

How do these broad concepts after real people in real life? And how will these issues be at play in upcoming Supreme Court cases?

We discuss all this & more.

Reason senior editor Robby Soave joins the show to break down the "cancel culture" phenomenon. Having been on the outrage culture beat for years now—and authored a whole book about its origins on campus—Robby explains what cancel culture, properly understood, really is—and what it isn't. We discuss this definition, high profile examples, whether Republicans are hypocrites, cancelling the cancelers, and more.

National Review senior writer and author David Harsanyi joins the show to discuss the heart-breaking mass shooting in Boulder, Colorado, where a deranged gunman killed 10 at a grocery store using an AR-15-style rifle.

Does this vindicate Democratic calls for gun control? Would "universal background checks" or a ban on "assault weapons" have made a difference? What do people misunderstand about gun violence and the Second Amendment in America?

We break this all down and more.

Pacific Research Institute fellow Sally Pipes joins the show to discuss Biden's sweeping healthcare agenda.

What exactly is a 'public option'? What are the downfalls of pushing more people onto government healthcare? Will Biden's plan inevitably result in socialism? Why would "Medicare-for-All" lead to disaster?

Young Voices contributor and Reason Foundation policy analyst Jen Sidorova joins the show to explain how the government's "eviction moratorium," a ban on evictions meant to help renters struggling amid the COVID recession, is destroying the rental market and screwing over landlords like her.

What happens when people don't have to pay rent? Are landlords really all rich people? What will happen when the music stops and the moratorium ends?

We discuss all this and more.

Manhattan Institute economist Brian Riedl joins the show to explain how blowout COVID spending has sent our already-bleak debt trajectory spiraling into potential crisis. He breaks down why yes, deficits actually do matter for economic prospects—and explains why young people should care about the debt crisis in the same way they care about climate change.

Senator Mike Braun delves into some of the pitfalls in the Biden Administration's American Rescue Plan, exposes the Democrats' dangerous one-size-fits-all approach to the federal minimum wage, the future of conservative economics, and more.

Journalist Isaac Saul joins the show to discuss how he reflects on his teenage indiscretions and use of slurs like "faggot" and the N-word in light of today's cancel culture. We tackle the need for grace, growth, and nuance in our culture of outrage and Twitter mobs but also how we balance this with the real need to address racism and bias. Plus, we break down his new project Tangle News that seeks to transcend hyperpartisan inflammatory journalism, and tackle the problems facing the media industry more broadly.

Congressman Peter Meijer joins the show to talk us through his personal journey to politics as a war vet, humanitarian aid worker, and businessman. He explains how it shapes his next-generation Republican worldview. We break down Meijer's realist approach to foreign policy, the generational divide in Congress, how the Right should approach climate/environmental issues, his support for free-market economics, and more.

Trans conservative YouTuber and political commentator Blaire White joins the show (for the second time!) to discuss the many problems with the "Equality Act" that Democrats in Congress just passed in the name of LGBT rights.

We break down how the Equality Act would endanger freedom of religion and free speech, as well as what it would mean for sex-segregated sports. Is it really bigoted to oppose this legislation? And is the GOP-sponsored "Fairness for All" Act a better alternative that conservatives should support? Where and why do some Republicans go astray on LGBT rights issues?

We discuss all this and more.

Blaire rounds out the episode with perhaps the MOST HORRENDOUS food take to feature on the show to date.

New Libertarian Party Chair Joe Bishop-Henchman joins the show to discuss his vision for the future of the party, what it stands for, how it can actually win, and the contrast between Libertarians and libertarian Republicans. We also break down the party's (disappointing?) showing in November, the late presidential campaign of Jo Jorgensen, former Congressman Justin Amash's role in the party's future, and more.

The war on the gig economy started in California, where regulations put Uber drivers, translators, freelancers and more out of work. Independent Women's Forum Senior Policy Analyst Patrice Onwuka joins the show to explain how this big government scheme backfired—and why it could go national soon under President Biden and pro-union Democrats in Congress.

We discuss how anti-gig-economy legislation hurts women and mothers hardest, and Patrice shares the tragic stories of the people she's worked with who have been hurted by the California law: from a translator to a rape victim to a Santa Claus actor.

Movie producer and Hollywood veteran Dallas Sonnier joins the show to discuss his new film, Run Hide Fight. The thriller offers a controversial depiction of a young woman who survives a school shooting, with a nonpartisan but pro-gun and pro-personal responsibility message.

We discuss why the movie and why his film was panned by critics yet raved about by audiences. Then, Dallas explains how typical liberal Hollywood wouldn't touch it and how he ended up working with conservative media mogul Ben Shapiro and the Daily Wire to release it. Plus, we discuss his experiences as a rare conservative in Hollywood, and why conservatives need to get involved in culture to ensure the long-term viability of right-of-center politics.