Heartland Daily Podcast

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by all-time surf god Shaun Tomson to discuss his new book with Noah benShea, “The Surfer and the Sage: A Guide to Survive and Ride Life's Waves.” They chat about purpose, loss, hope, faith, the importance of doing nothing, what lessons surfing has to give about living a fulfilling life, and the power of “I Will.” Tim also tries to not geek out and ask too many surf fanboy questions about Pipeline. Get the book here:  https://www.familius.com/book/the-surfer-and-the-sage/

The FDA recently gave emergency use authorization (EUA) to the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine. Unlike the vaccines Americans received as a result of Operation Warp Speed, Novavax is not an mRNA vaccine. It was bypassed for EUA early in the pandemic because of a decision to put all resources into mRNA vaccines as it was thought this provided the best approach to get a vaccine out quickly. Our guest today, Raymond March, a research fellow for the Independent Institute and assistant professor of agribusiness and applied economics at North Dakota State University, says this was a costly mistake. In an op-ed, March explains why it took so long for the U.S. to get access to the Novavax vaccine. March discusses Novavax’s different technology, the history of protein-based vaccines, and the dangers in using a one-size-fits-all approach when dealing with a public health threat.    Novavax Authorization: https://ir.novavax.com/2022-10-19-U-S-FDA-Grants-Emergency-Use-Authorization-for-Novavax-COVID-19-Vaccine,-Adjuvanted-as-a-Booster-for-Adults Op-ed: https://blog.independent.org/2022/08/12/take-so-long-novavax-vaccine/

The Heartland Institute's Donald Kendal, Jim Lakely, and Justin Haskins present episode 371 of the In The Tank Podcast. The ITT crew discusses Tuesday's election results - the good, the bad, and the ugly. What takeaways do we have from the results, what happened to the "red wave," and what does this it mean for policy in the United States moving forward? Also, will these results dissuade Donald Trump from running again in 2024?    MIDTERM ELECTION RESULTS NYT – 2022 Midterm Results https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/09/briefing/midterm-election-results-2022.html The Federalist - To Win Polarized Elections, Republicans Need More Than Weak Opponents — They Need Strong Leaders https://thefederalist.com/2022/11/09/to-win-polarized-elections-republicans-need-more-than-weak-opponents-they-need-strong-leaders/   TRUMP vs DESANTIS MSN – Donald Trump is the biggest lower of 2022 midterms https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/donald-trump-is-the-biggest-loser-of-2022-midterms/ar-AA13UjH1 Axios – Tracking Trump’s endorsement in key midterm races https://www.axios.com/2022/11/09/trump-endorsement-gop-midterm-elections Politico - Trump: 'Very big announcement' coming Nov. 15 https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/07/trump-very-big-announcement-00065587   WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? Mediate – WATCH: Psaki Says Biden Admin ‘Gleeful and Giddy’ Over Midterms In Late-Night Update From Inside White House https://www.mediaite.com/news/watch-psaki-says-biden-admin-gleeful-and-giddy-over-midterms-in-late-night-update-from-inside-white-house/ The Hill - Biden blowback shows coal still has sway in US politics https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/3723927-biden-blowback-shows-coal-still-has-sway-in-us-politics/ [Please subscribe to the Heartland Daily Podcast for free on iTunes at this link.]

The Heartland Institute's Donald Kendal, Jim Lakely, Chris Talgo, and Cameron Sholty present episode 370 of the In The Tank Podcast. With the 2022 mid term elections only days away, the ITT crew discusses the odds of a coming "red wave" and what that might mean for the country. Also, it appears as though the left is waking up to the threat of big tech censorship. An article from The Intercept is making its rounds highlighting the collusion between the Biden Administration and social media companies Twitter and Facebook.   OPENING CHIT CHAT – 2022 ELECTIONS 538 – It’s a Dead Heat for the Senate https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/2022-election-forecast/senate/ 538 - The Case For A Republican Sweep On Election Night https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-case-for-a-republican-sweep-on-election-night/   PRIMARY TOPIC – Left Finally Sees Big Tech as Big Brother Daily Wire - Biden White House Admits Using Big Tech to Silence Americans https://www.dailysignal.com/2021/07/21/biden-white-house-admits-using-big-tech-to-silence-americans/ The Intercept - Leaked Documents Outline DHS’s Plans to Police Disinformation https://theintercept.com/2022/10/31/social-media-disinformation-dhs/ The Atlantic – Let’s Declare a Pandemic Amnesty https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/10/covid-response-forgiveness/671879/ Politico - White House deletes tweet after Twitter adds 'context' note https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/02/white-house-twitter-context-note-00064647 [Please subscribe to the Heartland Daily Podcast for free on iTunes at this link.]

There's been a sharp uptick in protests in the name of a climate change induced catastrophe across the globe. Fridays for Future, the group inspired by Greta Thunberg, recently held protests in 450 locations. Stories are flooding the news of protestors gluing themselves to private property and then expecting the businesses to cooperate with their demands. Why the sharp uptick in protests? Are these grassroots protests or is this a political scheme? Andy Singer, Anthony Watts, Linnea Lueken, and JunkScience.com's Steve Milloy discuss the global situation on today's episode of Environment & Climate News.

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Jonathan W. White, professor of American Studies at Christopher Newport University, to discuss his new book, To Address You as My Friend: African Americans' Letters to Abraham Lincoln. They chat about the personal connection many blacks felt to Abraham Lincoln and how that gave them confidence to write to the president and to seek redress of their grievances. They also talk about how the act of writing to Lincoln for blacks was, in a small way, an act of civic participation and allowed them to claim the rights of American citizenship in a wide range of circumstances. Get the book here: https://uncpress.org/book/9781469665078/to-address-you-as-my-friend/

Poverty is no longer a requirement to qualify for long-term care under Medicaid. An entire industry has cropped up over the years instructing families on how to maximize Medicaid’s loose financial guidelines.  While families save a bundle of money by having the government now pay for this care, the system has had a negative impact on the long-term care market. Reimbursement rates under Medicaid do not cover the actual cost of care which impacts quality and supply.  Families no longer save for long term care knowing that Medicaid can come to the rescue.  Stephen Moses, president of the Center for Long-Term Care Reform, has studied long-term care for decades. He joins the show to discuss the first segment of his new report with the Paragon Institute, ”Long Term Care: The Problem.” Read the report: https://paragoninstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/202208_Moses_LongTermCareTheProblem_FINAL_2.pdf Seventy percent of people who reach age 65 today will require a severe need for long-term care. Long-term care provides medical and social services for those who are unable to care for themselves. 48 percent will receive paid care.  The need spikes after age 85. In ten years, the baby boomers will reach that threshold, causing demand for long-term care to soar.  Due to the loose financial guidelines, even well-off families can qualify for Medicaid coverage. This market manipulation crowds out private long-term care services. Our guest, Stephen Moses is about to release part two of a report which covers the solutions to this Medicaid problem.  His hope is that a new Congress will be open to better alternatives that improve care at more affordable prices. In the interview, Moses discusses: 1.  How easy is it to get Medicaid to pay for long-term care? 2. How has this compromised the quality of long-term care over the decades? 3. Who will need long term care? Can any of us live independently until we die? 4. Baby boomers…most are now 65…what kind of pressure will that put on long-term care and Medicaid in 10, 20, and 30 years from now? 5. What about counting on family members to care for you? How about covering your care with your own wealth and investments?

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Mark A. Noll, Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Notre Dame, to discuss his new book, America's Book: The Rise and Decline of a Bible Civilization, 1794-1911. They chat about how the Bible decisively shaped American national history even as that history influenced the use of Scripture, and how a strongly Protestant Bible civilization was fractured by debates over slavery, contested by growing numbers of non-Protestants, and torn apart by the Civil War. They also talk about how the more religiously plural period from Reconstruction to the early 20th Century saw Scripture become a much more fragmented, though still significant, force in American culture. Get the book here:  https://global.oup.com/academic/product/americas-book-9780197623466?q=america%27s%20book&lang=en&cc=us Show Notes: Wall Street Journal: D.G. Hart – “‘America’s Book’ Review: The Word Out of Season” https://www.wsj.com/articles/americas-book-review-the-word-out-of-season-11651009649

The Heartland Institute's Donald Kendal, Jim Lakely, and Chris Talgo present episode 369 of the In The Tank Podcast. The COVID pandemic is over, if you ask president Joe Biden. Now, we need to sift through the rubble to see just how much damage was caused by the government lockdowns. The latest National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores, otherwise known as the Nation’s Report Card, came out showing major drops across the board. Also, there have been a few more stories that have come out recently showing just how terrible the government’s response to COVID-19 was.   OPENING CHIT CHAT Independent - Hillary Clinton warns ‘right-wing extremists’ planning to ‘literally steal’ 2024 presidential election https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/hillary-clinton-2024-election-republicans-b2210291.html Politico - Hillary Clinton warns of Trump trying to ‘sneak or steal his way’ to a second term https://www.politico.com/news/2020/08/19/hillary-clinton-dnc-speech-398893   PRIMARY TOPIC – COVID-19 TRUTHERS HAD IT RIGHT Heritage Foundation – New NAEP Test Scores Are a Disaster. Blame Teachers Unions https://www.heritage.org/education/commentary/new-naep-test-scores-are-disaster-blame-teachers-unions WSJ - The School Lockdown Catastrophe https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-school-lockdown-catastrophe-naep-test-results-national-assessment-of-educational-progress-11666643369? NPR - Student math scores are down from pre-COVID levels, the National Report Card finds https://www.npr.org/2022/10/24/1130629135/naep-test-covid Full Fact - Claims that Pfizer vaccine wasn’t tested on preventing transmission need context https://fullfact.org/health/coronavirus-vaccine-pfizer-transmission-test/ NYP - Judge orders Fauci, Psaki deposed in social media censorship lawsuit https://nypost.com/2022/10/24/fauci-psaki-can-be-deposed-in-censorship-lawsuit/ Reason - Adding the COVID-19 Vaccine to the Childhood Immunization Schedule Is a Mistake https://reason.com/2022/10/24/covid-19-vaccination-schedule-immunization-childhood-mistake/ [Please subscribe to the Heartland Daily Podcast for free on iTunes at this link.]

Heartland’s Tim Benson is joined by Brian P. Levack, John E. Green Regents Professor Emeritus in History at the University of Texas at Austin, to discuss his new book, Distrust of Institutions in Early Modern Britain and America. They chat about how distrust in institutions was an important theme of public discourse in Britain and colonial America during the early modern period, why trust in these institutions is more tenuous and difficult to restore once it has been betrayed than trust in one's family, friends, and neighbors, and how this distrust shaped the political, legal, economic, and religious of Britain and its American colonies. Get the book here:  https://global.oup.com/academic/product/distrust-of-institutions-in-early-modern-britain-and-america-9780192847409?q=distrust%20in%20institutions&lang=en&cc=us

President Biden told 60 Minutes in October that COVID-19 was essentially over. If that's true, why is he still lobbying Congress for billions of dollars in more COVID-19 relief? Biden also extended the emergency declaration another 90 days, further going against his stated position. Dr. Chad Savage, founder, Your Choice Direct Care, thinks the spending is not only unhealthy for the American economy, but “unnecessary, harmful, and blind to Americans’ real needs and problems. Savage says there is plenty of COVID-19 relief money unspent, just sitting on the sidelines. As a physician, Savage worries how more government spending will drive inflation further, increasing costs for working families. COVID is now becoming an excuse for Congress to continue its spending binge. Savage wrote about COVID-19 relief spending in an op-ed in Real Clear Health this summer.  He also discussed the emergency declaration extension, now scheduled to end in December. Savage covers opportunity costs involved when funds are directed to COVID-19 versus where our health care priorities should be. Real Clear Health Op-Ed: https://www.realclearhealth.com/articles/2022/07/06/dont_buy_into_the_covid_relief_spending_spree_111363.html

Environmental alarmists are trotting out the tired trope that growing human populations threaten the end of the world. In this case, they’re not claiming overpopulation threatens humanity due to using up finite resources, but rather because human greenhouse gas emissions are causing catastrophic climate change. Today’s guests, Pierre Desrochers and Joanna Szurmak, are authors of the book “Population Bombed!: Exploding the Link Between Overpopulation and Climate Change.” The authors explain why population growth is not causing dangerous climate change nor is it bad outright. In reality, an increasing population with longer average lifespans only improves humanities rate of discovering new resources to use and technologies to improve lives. Plus, environmental stewardship will improve as a result.

The Heartland Institute's Donald Kendal, Justin Haskins, and Chris Talgo present episode 368 of the In The Tank Podcast. It appears as the though the consensus is in - we are heading for a recession. However, according to President Biden, we are only likely to get a "slight recession." The ITT crew talks about the potential severity of the coming recession. Also, the most recent census over counted in a bunch of blue states, potentially skewing the political landscape in favor of the Democrats.   PRIMARY TOPIC - WARNING RECESSION INCOMING Bloomberg - Forecast for US Recession Within Year Hits 100% in Blow to Biden https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-10-17/forecast-for-us-recession-within-year-hits-100-in-blow-to-biden?sref=h5EZFUoq Axios - Markets and economists are increasingly certain of recession https://www.axios.com/2022/10/19/us-recession-risk-markets-economy Forbes - Jeff Bezos Says It’s Time To “Batten Down The Hatches” In Latest Recession Warning https://www.forbes.com/sites/qai/2022/10/19/jeff-bezos-says-its-time-to-batten-down-the-hatches-in-latest-recession-warning/?sh=1183d18c1d48 CNN - Biden acknowledges a ‘slight recession’ is possible, even if he doesn’t think it’ll happen https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/11/politics/recession-joe-biden-cnntv/index.html The Epoch Times - America Can ‘100 Percent’ Avoid Recession If Biden Makes One Key Policy Shift: Billionaire John Catsimatidis https://www.theepochtimes.com/america-can-100-percent-avoid-recession-if-biden-makes-one-key-policy-shift-billionaire-john-catsimatidis_4773448.html    SECONDARY TOPIC - CENSUS OVER COUNTS BLUE STATES   Daily Signal - Census Bureau Admits Overcounting 7 Blue States, Just 1 Red State https://www.dailysignal.com/2022/08/18/census-errors-will-distort-elections-funding-for-next-decade/ The Hill - Census blunder may tip 2024 to Democrats https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/3504546-census-blunder-may-tip-2024-to-democrats/

Late this summer, CVS fired a nurse practitioner for refusing to prescribe ‘Plan B’ ‘Morning After’ pills at the “Minute Clinic” where she had worked for 2 ½ years. CVS had been aware of Paige Casey’s religious objections to prescribing the abortifacients, exempted her from doing so, and even gave her favorable job reviews. In August, CVS changed its mind and told Casey she would no longer be given an exemption. Casey is suing CVS and is being represented by the Alliance Defending Freedom. Increasingly, health care professionals are being reprimanded, attacked and even fired for refusing to perform procedures that violate their religious convictions. It is not clear why CVS changed its position this summer regarding Casey. Interestingly, the MinuteClinic where Casey worked is located in Virginia where there are conscience protections in the law. CVS has stated it did not believe the “Morning After” bills are abortifacients but contraception. Kevin Theriot, an attorney with the Alliance Defending Freedom, discusses the facts of the case, the arguments, how the Dobbs decision comes into play, how there will likely be more cases similar to this, and the possibility that the issue could end up in the U.S. Supreme Court. Alliance Defending Freedom: https://adflegal.org/paige-casey

POLITICO just released their inaugural Green 28 list. This list is constructed to rank the 28 individuals with the most influence on the European Union's sustainability, environmental, mobility, climate and energy policies. Vladimir Putin was awarded the top spot on the list. Russia holds a stronghold on energy exports within Europe. Without looking at why this is the case, POLITICO gleefully agues that Russia's invasion of Ukraine will force a green revolution.