Underscored Podcast

The first presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden has been had. Or was it? You could be forgiven for not counting the 90 minute shouting fest and deluge of name calling, a debate. Moderator Chris Wallace had no control over the process and a certain President of the United State had an outsized role in that. Young Voices' panel reacts to the debate.  Follow on Twitter: Amy Lutz Sam Benson Hugo Dante 

We finally know more about Trump's taxes, and he didn't pay much. The NYT got their hands on Trump's tax returns and point to his 2016 federal income tax bill of only $750. Travis Nix joined Stephen Kent on Underscored to react to the news and explain how someone like Trump might end up in this situation on his taxes. 

"The 2020 Republican National Convention lasted four days and featured over 70 speakers. The wide range of topics addressed included immigration, education, health, housing and policing. And yet, no speech proposed a single policy designed to combat climate change, arguably the single most politically and electorally significant issue of our time," wrote Jason Reed in the Deseret News. He argues that the Republican Party, long mired in denialism on climate, is giving away a generation of voters who care about this issue above most other things.  Stephen Kent and Jason discuss this and more on Underscored.  Jason Reed is digital director at the British Conservation Alliance and a Young Voices contributor. He writes for the Times of London, the Independent, the Telegraph and several others. Follow him on Twitter: @JasonReed624.

It's not an easy choice. Go back to college under the shadow of COVID-19 & often higher cost of attendance....or forego the semester to pursue other things? Justin Corbin is a junior college, but is not going back to school this fall. He outlined his thinking and larger issue in an op-ed for the Deseret News, and joined Underscored to speak about it. 

A police shooting in Kenosha, Wisconsin reignited rioting across the country. Jacob Blake was shot seven times in the back by a police officer, and now a 17-year old has been arrested for shooting and killing a handful of people on the streets on Kenosha during the chaos. Shaun Cammack and Aaron Andrews of Young Voices join Underscored to discuss and break down how polarized media/activist narratives are shaping the way people understand the story. 

Hugo Dante joins Underscored to lay out how China's encroachment into the previously autonomous Hong Kong will take a sledgehammer to financial investments in the region.    Stephen Kent and Aaron Andrews review the great USPS Freakout of August 2020. 

This week on Underscored:  Young Voices' Editors, Aaron Andrews and Emma Ayers join the show to talk about the 2020 race and Kamala Harris' ascendance to the VP (or VEEP) spot. Then we're joined by contributor Brian Bensimon to hear about his latest piece in the OC Register "There’s nothing new about federal meddling in protest movements" who breaks down the FBI's long history of overstepping civil liberties for political ends. 

The coronavirus has led inevitably to more time spent at home, a huge increase in home cooking and by extension, grocery store shopping. Grocery stores have been making a killing. Back in March the industry was up 90% from 2019 and that trend has continued throughout the summer. But there’s a problem. Supply isn’t keeping up with demand. Prices are surging. Particularly in the meat industry. The WaPO reported today that red meat is up 20% in price, and it’s only looking like it’ll continue to rise as we head into the fall. What can be done about it? Price controls? Increasing the minimum wage? What about breaking up the meat company monopoly? That’s the subject of a new piece at FreeThePeople.org by Tamineh Dehbozorgi of Young Voices. Tamineh wrote about the PRIME Act, a new bill put forward by Rep. Thomas Massie. She joined Underscored to break it all down. 

Christos Makridis is a Assist. Professor at Arizona State Univeristy, a Young Voices contributor and writer recently in Forbes, on how the COVID-19 pandemic experiences has varied depending on where you live. He joined Underscored to explain and break down polling from Gallup on perceptions about the virus. 

A bipartisan commission, convened by the Academy of Arts & Sciences that recommends 31 steps to strengthen America's institutions and civic culture to help a nation in crisis emerge with a more resilient democracy. Our republic feels very unstable. So Young Voices' gathered some of its best contributors to discuss the report. Nate Hochman (YV, The Dispatch) Alexandra Hudson (Novak Fellow, YV) and Alex Muresianu (Young Voices). 

Libertarians are a fractious bunch, like any ideological movement there are various camps and tensions between the big ideas and practical politics. In this moment of loud calls for policing reforms, it is worth noting that the libertarian movement has long been on the correct side of the issue. The coalitional problems arise when the far-left get involved and when riots, random violence or looting occur. Some libertarians harbor deep conservative sensibilities when it comes to law enforcement, the military and civility. Caleb Franz of Young Voices and The MilLiberty Initiative spends a lot of time thinking about this, so he was a perfect guest to join Underscored and break it all down. 

In the wake of Minneapolis PD murdering on of their own citizens, George Floyd, the world is aflame in calls for police accountability. Calls for reform range from the minor to the radical. Young Voices' Molly Davis and Christian Watson join Underscored to talk through the issue of policing accountability and where reforms can make the most immediate impact.  Follow Christian Watson on Twitter @OfficialCWATSON and check out his podcast: PENSIVE POLITICS And find Molly Davis on Twitter @_molly_davis_

Young Voices' contributors Michael Rieger and Nate Hochman discuss the merits of televising Supreme Court proceedings. Rieger argued on GlennBeck.com in an op-ed that it was past time for the American people to be able to see what happens in the highest court in the land. Seeing how decisions are made would help maintain the legitimacy of the court during a time of crisis for trust in government. Hochman argues the opposite, the CSPAN approach to government transparency had degraded the process and outcomes of Congress and should not be replicated.    Read Rieger's op-ed here: https://www.glennbeck.com/young-voices/time-for-the-supreme-court-to-be-televised and Follow our guests on Twitter: @EagerRieger and @NJHochman 

James Czerniawski (Libertas Institute) and Jennifer Huddleston (American Action Forum) join Underscored to assess the state of American's access to quick and stable Internet during the Coronavirus lockdown. Internet usage is way up and across the board, speeds online have slowed....but our guests look at how the American response has differed from that of the European Union, and why the latter's strategy has fallen short. 

Why are Federal agencies rushing to remove regulatory barriers in multiple sectors of the economy during the Coronavirus scare? It could be because what advocates of lighter regulation have always argued is true...that red tape slows down business, healthcare and is often more about protecting established industry than it is public safety.  Shoshana Weissmann of R Street joins Underscored along with Alex Muresianu of Young Voices to break it all down. 

There has been a lot of reason for the past decade to count middle America out of the economic and technological future of the country. But a new study from Heartland Forward tells a different story, showing that the "Heartland" is doing better at attracting and retaining members of the Millennial cohort in recent years. Ross DeVol, president and CEO of Heartland Forward, joins Underscored to discuss why that is.  We're also joined by Jacob Bruggeman of Young Voices for a preliminary discussion on this. He’s a policy writer with a focus on the heartland of America whose work can be found in the Des Moines Register, Cincinnati Enquirer, Columbus Dispatch and more. Read the new report here: http://heartlandforward.org/millennals-find-new-hope-in-the-heartland

Covid-19 is rapidly becoming a historical event that will define the new decade, or at the least, Donald Trump's presidency. Among the many areas of total disruption to American life is the education and healthcare systems.  Here to break down why the Federal response to Covid-19 has stymied the success of states and the private sector in getting people tested for the virus is a healthcare policy writer, Brenee Goforth of Young Voices. We're also joined by Fiona Harrigan to get insight into how online learning could become the new normal as public schools and universities have to rapidly evolve to continue serving students. 

This week on Underscored, immigration policy in America is leaving a lot of money on the table and key sectors such as technology & STEM, understaffed. Talent from abroad is crucial to making American an engine for innovation. Sam Peak and Chris Harelson join the show to discuss the subject, which they both wrote about for the OC Register and Deseret News.     

No one would blame you for throwing your TV out a window at the sight of a Bernie Sanders VS Donald Trump presidential debate. It's just about as far as the two-party system can go ideologically. Here to discuss the state of the duopoly and the prospects for serious competition from third parties is Matt Welch, Editor at Large of Reason Magazine and Young Voices contributor Conner Drigotas. They both think and write about third parties a great deal and had a lot to say about this democratic crisis of sorts we are heading into in 2020.  Follow Conner Drigotas on Twitter @cddrigotas and Matt Welch at @MattWelch

Natalie Dowzicky (Libertarianism.org) and Nate Hochman (Young Voices) join Stephen Kent on Underscored to review the latest Democratic Debate in Las Vegas ahead of the Nevada Caucuses. The race has gotten highly bitter along with going farther to the left, Natalie and Nate break down what matters as we get closer to Super Tuesday.     

This week I am joined by Logan Albright, author of "Our Servants, Our Masters" for a discussion about public service. Albright argues that we place too much valor in roles where power is being exerted over others in the name of service. We have a healthy debate and get into his thesis. Then Fiona Harrigan gets us up to speed on the happenings with Iran. Her new article "The US is not committed to de-escalation with Iran" is out now in The Detroit News. 

Jerrod Laber and Zachary Yost join Underscored to review the contents of the Washington Post report on Afghanistan, and the US government's effort to cover-up the failure of the 18-year war.  --- ---- -- --- --  Many American’s concerns about the country’s long-standing war on terror were well-founded. In the “Afghanistan Papers,” a 2,000-page collection of numerous interviews with high-level U.S. defense officials by the Washington Post, a disturbing PR effort was uncovered to spin the Afghan war effort into the best light possible, even though leaders at the time knew it was not a winning situation. This, of course, resurrects the age-old question: how can Americans trust their government when things like this occur, and have occurred before? Two generations before me a similar lesson was supposedly learned by the American public about open-ended war, mission creep, government lies and cover-up. Yet, here we are again. 

We are all canceled! That is the takeaway from this weeks episode of Underscored. Former President Obama dipped his foot into the culture war to critique cancel culture, now the left is deriding him with 'OK Boomer'. Dave Chapelle continues his weird ascendancy into the conservative bubble as an anti-PC comic and the FDA is moving against vaping. Brian Ericson and Shaun Cammack of Young Voices join the podcast to get into it.  Follow Brian @BrianScott67 And Shaun at @ShaunJCammack  

We need to have a talk, about national conservatism and libertarianism. Populist politics and skepticism on the merits of unencumbered free-market thought has become a flashpoint in a tepid alliance between conservatives and libertarians against the political left. In the age of Trump, the alliance is broken. To talk over this and the road forward, Ross Marchand, Daniel Di Martino ad Alex Muresianu join the podcast. 

Welcome back to Underscored! Political writers Shaun Cammack and Haley Smith join the podcast to review the weeks news: Climate strikes, Greta Thunberg at the UN, impeachment begins and Andrew Yang's steady rise.  Read Shaun's piece on Andrew Yang in Spiked: ----------------------->>>>>> Well Said, Andrew Yang Follow Shaun @ShaunJCammack and @Haley_Victory on Twitter plus @stephen_kent89 and @yvadv

This week on Underscored, Stephen Kent gets into the weeds of Section 230 with Rob Winterton, amidst growing calls for amendments to the old communications law. Rob sheds some light on the threats to home-sharing services like Airbnb from hotel industry lobbyists if Section 230 undergoes changes.  Then, Abigail Narbe drops by to talk about her recent piece in FEE. It lays out the cost of regulations on the economy and innovation. Stephen wants flying cars and underground high-speed rail from Elon Musk, so why is it impossible? Narbe explains. 

This week the Trump administration moved to make minor changes to the legal process of citizenship for children of service members who are born abroad. The response was fast and furious. Then 24 hours later, cooler heads prevailed. Natalie Dowzicky of Young Voices and Libertarianism.org joins to talk about the details here + news that Trump will keep troops in Afghanistan.    Follow Natalie @Nat_Dowzicky & Stephen @Stephen_Kent89  

Today on Underscored, Stephen Kent interviews Abdulsamod Balogun of Young Voices' Agora Fellowship. He wrote in Business Insider (Sub-Saharan Africa edition) on the struggle to save Nigeria's troubled democracy.  Abdulsamod Balogun is an African Liberty Writing Fellow, National Coordinator at Student for Liberty Gambia, and Communications Officer at Social Good Lagos. He is excited about discussions in leadership and economic freedom.    

Next up in the podcasts taped at FreedomFest 2019 in Las Vegas, Dave Sussman joins Underscored. Dave is the host of Whiskey Politics, a contributor to Ricochet.com and a host with America's Voice News. Stephen Kent and Dave met one morning to talk about Dave's path to new media and how he thinks young people can get ahead in this space. Follow Dave on Twitter @DavidSussman  Ricochet Podcasts @Ricochet 

Social media companies are fighting on all front now with Democrats and Republicans united in the quest to curb their growth and influence. The GOP mostly sees a freedom of speech problem, the Democrats see a privacy and monopoly issue. Then there's the #FightFor15, which has gone totally mainstream in Democratic politics. Would a federal raise be good for all Americans?  John Kristof and Rob Winterton of Young Voices joined the podcast to weigh in. Follow them on Twitter @RobPWJ and @JMKristof  

This week Underscored is in Las Vegas for FREEDOMFEST 2019! Matt Kibbe (Free The People, TheBlaze) joins the podcast to discuss his trajectory towards new media, podcasting, the cable news business and also why he is so fond of cats.    Follow Matt Kibbe on Twitter @MKibbe and check out his show Kibbe on Liberty on TheBlaze and Facebook.   

We're back!! Hope you had a great holiday, we sure did. Today we're talking about Justin Amash and his departure from the GOP. Was it political grandstanding, strategy or pure principles? Jordan Lancaster and Alex Muresianu dig into this with Stephen Kent.  Also, Nolan Gray rejoins Underscored to talk about STRANGER THINGS season 3 and what it shows us about the rise and fall of the shopping mall. This is a segment you don't want to miss.    Follow them all on Twitter: Nolan Gray @mnolangray Jordan Lancaster @Jordylancaster Alex Muresianu @AHardToSpell Stephen Kent @Stephen_Kent89  

Welcome to Underscored, a podcast by Young Voices! This week, Stephen Kent hosts Jordan Lancaster and Matt Liles to discuss the Democratic Debates, proposals by Elizabeth Warren to cancel all student loan debt, and San Francisco banning vape products.  This is Underscored! Follow guests….. Matt Liles @Matt_Liles Jordan Lancaster @JordyLancaster Stephen Kent @Stephen_Kent89 and Young Voices @YVADV

Healthcare in America is a mess. This is understood on the political left, right, and center. To get a better understanding of why our system leaves both proponents of universal healthcare and free marketeers disenchanted, I spoke with healthcare policy writer Elise Amez-Droz of Young Voices. This interview is part of the new Underscored Video Series on YouTube! Find that here   Follow Elise on Twitter @EliseAmezDroz Stephen Kent @Stephen_Kent89 Young Voices @yvadv

Mueller exploded the news cycle this week when he announced a press conference, then used it to announce his official exit from the DOJ and this entire saga. What did we learn? Guests Christian Watson and Kristiana Bolzman of Young Voices joined the show for a great discussion on the "conclusion" to the Mueller saga + what does it mean to be "presidential" and is Pete Buttigieg too PC?  This is Underscored! Follow guests Christian Watson @OfficialCWatson Kristiana Bolzman @KristianaBolzmn Stephen Kent @Stephen_Kent89 and Young Voices @YVADV

Hello & welcome to a new and re-mixed Underscored Podcast from Young Voices. In this week's new show format, guests Alex Muresianu and Natalie Dowzicky join for a panel-style discussion of the week's top headlines. Impeachment! Trade with China! Georgia's abortion law and Hollywood's fist shaking at the state! High drama indeed.    Follow guests Natalie Dowzicky @Nat_Dowzicky Alex Muresianu @AHardToSpell Stephen Kent @Stephen_Kent89 and Young Voices @YVADV   Underscored is a product of Young Voices. Find out more about our work at www.young-voices.com and see how you can get involved and even join us as a contributor. 

Cable news town halls have become the norm since the tail end of the 2016 election. Led primarily by CNN and then mastered by Fox News, this format for hearing from politicians has become popular. Kristiana Bolzman thinks this is largely a good thing.  She joins the podcast today to talk about the trend towards townhalls, longer form discussion and why this might help to engage younger voters in politics. 

Matthew Larosiere is a contributor to Young Voices & nominee for the 2019 Young Voices Award! He joins the podcast to discuss his work with Young Voices, an epic publication about 3D printed guns in Playboy and more on the 2nd Amendment.    Follow Matt on Twitter @MattLaAtLaw 

Molly Davis is one of three nominees for the 2019 Young Voices Award! She wrote an exceptional piece for publication in WIRED about how Utah is leading the way on digital privacy rules that protect the civil liberties of Utahn's. She joins the podcast to discuss her roots in criminal justice policy going back to her days volunteering for YAL on campus, to doing policy at the Libertas Institute.  FOLLOW Molly on Twitter @_Molly_Davis_

The Electoral College has long been a popular scapegoat in American politics for whichever party is out of the White House. Since the election of Donald Trump without the popular vote, calls for its dissolution have been renewed by 2020 Democratic candidates.  David Doerr wrote in the Washington Examiner that they are right to want it gone. Jacob Rich of Young Voices and the Reason Foundation disagrees. So we had them on the podcast to hash it out.   Tell us what YOU think by Tweeting us at @yvadv David Doerr @DavidDoerr 1 Jacob Rich @JacobJamesRich Stephen Kent @Stephen_Kent89

Sneer all you want at the ideas of Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, but unless we engage her ideas....she will win. Look no further than Jeremy Corbyn in the UK as an example of how this happens. Tom Westgarth of Young Voices joins the podcast all the way from Spain to discuss this tricky balance when confronting avowed democratic socialists.  Follow Tom on Twitter @Tom_Westgarth15 and Young Voices @Yvadv

What sort of power should the government have in ending the life of its people? For a long time, the consensus has been in favor of allowing the death penalty across 50 states. Recently, Republican state legislatures across the country are moving against capital punishment, but why? Patrick Hauf joins the podcast to discuss his latest writing over at GlennBeck.com.  Follow Patrick Hauf on Twitter @PatrickHauf Follow Young Voices on Twitter @YVADV

Reparations has long been suggested as a form of repayment to African Americans for the crime of slavery. Many suggest we have not reconciled with it in full, as a country. 2020 Democrats are talking about it now more than ever, why is that?  Jerrod Laber & Christian Watson joined the podcast to discuss the merits, pitfalls and politics of reparations.    Follow Jerrod @JerrodALaber and Christian @OfficialCWatson

Are we headed toward a post-truth era in politics where any lie or slander can be backed up by falsified video evidence? Maybe. Ryan Khurana and Linsday Marchello of Young Voices join the podcast to discuss 'deep fake' technology and the threats it could pose to civil society. Is this technology inherently dangerous or are our institutions such as the news media just not ready to do the hard work of gatekeeping?  Follow Ryan Khurana on Twitter @RyanKhurana and Lindsay Marchello @LynnMarch007

Matthew Larosiere joins Underscored today to weigh in on political forgiveness. What is it? How should forgiveness work in politics? This past week VA Governor Ralph Northam (D) endured a nasty scandal involving the wearing of blackface in his 20's. Democrats have united around calling for him to resign.    Larosiere wrote It’s Time to Rediscover Political Forgiveness and is concerned about the politics of personal destruction we live under today. He offers his views on Northam and some political scandals of the last year.    Follow Matt on Twitter @MattLaAtLaw  

Does a city on a hill need walls? Michael Shindler thinks it might. The issue of sovereignty, borders and the role of the nation-state is a fault line in libertarian circles today. As the world becomes smaller through globalization and international forms of governance, border politics captures the angst of the times and a young nation like the U.S.   Follow Michael Shindler on Twitter @MichaelShindler Read his latest in The American Conservative

Live at LibertyCon 2019, Democratic candidate for president in 2020 Andrew Yang joins Underscored. Stephen Kent and Ryan Khurana of Young Voices ask some key questions about his platform supporting a Universal Basic Income for all American's over 18. $1000 a month direct to your bank account? It's hard to hate such an idea. Yang rebuffs the idea that this is 21st-century socialism, reflects on the coming crisis of unemployment by automation and much more.    Follow Andrew Yang on Twitter at @AndrewYangVFA  Ryan Khurana @RyanKhurana and Stephen Kent @Stephen_Kent89

Welcome back to Underscored and a whole new year! Hey 2019. Today on the show Daniel DiMartino of Young Voices joins from Spain to discuss his latest in RealClearPolicy about infrastructure and America's roads. Who will fund them if the federal government coffers keep running on empty and gas taxes fail to fix that? Daniel says the states need to take back the reins on infrastructure spending.    Follow Daniel on Twitter at @danieldimartino and Young Voices at @Yvadv

This week on Underscored we follow up an episode on criminal justice reform with the exciting passage of the First Step Act by the US Senate. Ashley Keimach and Christian Barnard join the show to discuss the bill and criminal justice more broadly.  Plus, Barnard reviews a study on millennials and school choice that he wrote about in The Federalist. Then we all discuss the 9 to 5 workday and reports that it is in decline as work habits and preferences shift generationally.   Follow our guests: https://twitter.com/KeimachAshley https://twitter.com/CBarnard33  

Why is 2018 a punchline but 2017 is not? Matt Larosiere and Kayla Stetzel of Young Voices join the podcast to discuss some absurd stories from 2018. We touch on Tesla, Elon Musk, A Florida Man, Trump, Kevin Hart and much more.  Larosiere stays on for an extra segment to get into gun policy and the Trump administrations move to ban bump stocks. 

Could automated vehicles reduce or eliminate police harassment on American roads? Julian Adorney wrote in FEE that we undercount how driverless cars could help in bolstering civil liberties when it comes to policing. We also discuss his love of technology, Black Friday sales and why Wikipedia is the pinnacle of human achievement.