Podcasts about white house communications

Peace and Joy: Special Patreon Release with Kay Wyma   “So, as God's own chosen people, who are holy [set apart, sanctified for His purpose] and well-beloved [by God Himself], put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience [which has the power to endure whatever injustice or unpleasantness comes, with good temper];” ‭‭Colossians‬ ‭3:12‬ ‭AMP‬‬   *Transcription Below*   Questions We Discuss: Will you elaborate on this concept of a Soul30? What were your favorite stories from this adventure? How has this peace project changed the way you will live life from this point forward?   Kay Wyma is a mom, blogger, podcaster, and author of four books in which she has tackled, with candor and humor, some of the troubling societal issues that impact us all. Kay's writings have led her to appearances on TODAY, CNN, Hallmark's Home & Family, and more. Before staying at home with her kids, she held positions at the White House and Bank of America. She lives in Dallas, Texas, with her husband and five kids. Connect with Kay at kaywyma.com or on Instagram @kaywyma.   At The Savvy Sauce, we will only recommend resources we believe in! We also want you to be aware: We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.   The Peace Project   Thank You to Our Sponsors: Chick-fil-A East Peoria and The Savvy Sauce Charities (and donate online here)   Connect with The Savvy Sauce on Facebook or Instagram or Our Website   Gospel Scripture: (all NIV) Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”   Romans 3:24 “and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”   Romans 3:25 (a) “God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.”   Hebrews 9:22 (b) “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”   Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”   Romans 5:11 “Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”   John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”   Romans 10:9 “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”   Luke 15:10 says “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”   Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”   Ephesians 1:13–14 “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession- to the praise of his glory.”   Ephesians 1:15–23 “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.”   Ephesians 2:8–10 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God‘s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.“   Ephesians 2:13 “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.“   Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”   *Transcription*   Music: (0:00 – 0:09)   Laura Dugger: (0:09 - 2:47) Welcome to The Savvy Sauce, where we have practical chats for intentional living. I'm your host, Laura Dugger, and I'm so glad you're here.   I want to say a huge thank you to today's sponsors for this episode, Chick-fil-A East Peoria, and Savvy Sauce Charities.   If this is your first time here, welcome! You may be wondering what it means to have a special Patreon release, so here's the scoop. Patreon was a platform we used to generate financial support for The Savvy Sauce, and we expressed our thanks to those paying patrons by giving them a bonus episode every month.   But in 2024, we transitioned away from Patreon when we became a non-profit called the Savvy Sauce Charities. The podcast is part of this non-profit, which exists to resource loved ones to inspire growth and intimacy with God and others. So, people used to pay to support us through Patreon, but now they can just donate directly to our non-profit.   We spend thousands of dollars each year to record and produce these episodes, and we do pray that they're beneficial and that God sees fit to use them to be transformational in your life. If that is the case, if you have ever benefited from an episode of The Savvy Sauce, would you consider showing your gratitude through your financial generosity? Any amount is greatly appreciated.   In fact, if every listener gave only $1 per month, it would completely offset our costs. We have all the details on our website, thesavvysauce.com, but feel free to also reach out to our team anytime if you want to partner together. Our email address is info@thesavvysauce.com.   And now I'm pleased to share this episode with you that used to only be available to paying patrons. Kay Wyma is my returning guest today. She is vibrant, and her curiosity sometimes leads to experiments in her life. Her most recent experiment turned into a book, and now she's going to let us in on three areas of focus that added peace and joy to her life. This process is based on Scripture and validated in science. Here's our chat.   Welcome back to The Savvy Sauce, Kay.   Kay Wyma: (2:48 - 2:52) Thank you so much for having me. You're really sweet to put up with me again.   Laura Dugger: (2:53 - 3:07) Well, it was a delight last time, and I'm excited for today as well. And I'm so fascinated by your history of different careers and roles you've had. So, will you tell us a little bit more about all that you've experienced professionally?   Kay Wyma: (3:08 - 5:44) Oh my gosh, it's so funny, Laura, because people will read the bio as they could for any of us that are in our mid-50s, and I'm sitting there going, I'm exhausted listening to that. But the deal is that they didn't happen all at the same time, but I just had a really great opportunity to do some interesting stuff. And one of them, especially in my 20s, I got to work in the George Herbert Walker Bush, so 41 White House, and I was a lead advance for the vice president.   And so, I pretty much got to travel all over the country and a lot of very interesting places in the world during that period. And it was a blast. I got to set up the trips as they would go traveling to these places with the Secret Service and White House Communications. And it just was an amazing way, an opportunity to get to see the world. And then I went on to graduate school and got an MBA and ended up somehow in an international investment banking role, which is laughable because I cannot even help my children with fifth grade math. So, I don't know who that person was that did that.   But I used to be able to do things that way. I can't anymore. And then I had kids, which was such a blessing. I'd met my husband at graduate school when we got married after I'd finished my stint in the White House and had kids right off the bat. And during that time, I really did try to piggyback. That was back in the day when women were allowed to job share, and I just couldn't do it. The more kids that came, the harder it was. And so I stayed at home with my kids, started a couple of businesses here and there, and then found myself in the world of writing. And I didn't plan on it. I kind of say I was an accidental writer, but I don't think anything is really an accident. It's not something that I was educated to do. However, I loved it.   And I look back now and look at the great education that I had gotten and honestly how much I loved writing even as a child. I just didn't know that was something that you could do because back in that day there were, and I'm not that old, but there really were careers that were careers that you sort of went to that made sense from a sensible banking father. It's like, here are your choices for a degree plan. And so, I love how just even gravitating towards what you're gifting a purpose is, which we talked about before, it's just those things are in you, and it's fun to see how they will come out and how fun that it can even come out in a way where it's your vocation. And so here I sit as a writer, crazy.   Laura Dugger: (5:44 - 6:00) Which is so great to hear the journey because you would think the math and the different skills required for international banking and then to become a successful author, that's so interesting. And this is so random and I could be wrong. Were your parents ever on Focus on the Family?   Kay Wyma: (6:01 - 6:54) Well, they could have been. I have the greatest parents. I really do. They're so kind and they're just really terrific people. And so, they became friends, like they're friends with Dr. Dobson. And so, I don't know if they were. That's another really gift they gave us. You just do it in front of you and you don't really make a big deal about anything. And I love that. Everybody puts their pants on the same way, which is one thing I loved even about working at the White House because some of the stuff can look so glamorous and go. But the truth is, we're all just people. And the Lord has put in certain people's paths, things to do that could look really amazing and spectacular. But the amazing and spectacular is around you every single day, even if it might not have something. And for my kids would be like that have a million followers or that has gone viral. But they are there. I'm very blessed, Laura, with very nice parents.   Laura Dugger: (6:55 - 7:03) Well, you've mentioned before that you battled an eating disorder growing up. Do you feel comfortable sharing a little bit more about that journey?   Kay Wyma: (7:04 - 8:39) Absolutely. So, I definitely battled that. And again, I have a wonderful family that I grew up in, a home that I grew up in. But I also grew up in an environment where performance was a big deal, which it is today, too. So many kids are struggling with that. Oh, my gosh, so terribly. And whatever you're struggling with, because it could be for me, it was performance. And the way that I learned, the way that I coped with it was through eating and not eating. And a lot of just getting rid of the food that I had eaten.   And there just came a day when I was in college that thankfully the Lord, the Lord just showed me one night that this is not a good thing. So, I actually left that semester of college to get help. And it changed my life. I was telling one of the girls yesterday, my girls, how grateful I am for that because I had never really understood or even contemplated the concept of grace. I just didn't know that was something I'd heard it, but I didn't know what it was. And I didn't know a whole lot about my worth having been declared by God and my identity having been determined by him. And I will say at 55, I know a lot more about it than I did even then at 19 or 20, but it was going through that journey, asking for help, stopping what was hurting me and reaching for truth that put me on a road to actually learn a lot of just what it means when he says it is for freedom that I have set you free.   Laura Dugger: (8:40 - 9:00) And the reason that I bring up the eating disorder is from a previous podcast. I can't remember which one, but elsewhere I'd heard you say that you stay away from the whole 30 diet, but you were intrigued one day to instead try a soul 30. So, will you share that story with us too?   Kay Wyma: (9:01 - 14:47) I will. And I do, I have to tell you, I, since, since I was 20, I've steered clear of scales and I really do steer clear of diets for me because they don't do good things in my head. And so, one thing that I learned through all of that was that you, you can't change an environment. Often you can't change the environment that you're in, but you can change the way you operate within the environment. Biggest lesson that I learned through all of that, like, please hear that. It was so life altering as I stood going, I can't change this environment, but I can change how I interact with it.   Okay. And so, the whole 30, I do find intriguing, you know, because people, if you're going to do something physically, like to make your diet better, a lot of people do that. And so, for 30 days, they, they exit a ton out of their diet. I don't know everything about it because I am a big chicken. And I think they, if, if I was going to do it, the thing that would be the killer for me is not being able to have cream in your coffee. You know, it's like, that's a deal breaker for me right there.   But the soul 30 it all started one morning. Again, I think I told you on the last one that like, even the experiment with the putting the stuff, like helping the kids with independence started with my rotten attitude. Well, this started with the rotten attitude too. And we aren't always doing experiments in our house, but I just had this bad attitude one morning as I'd come home from carpool. I had women coming over to my house. I leave a Bible study that meets on Tuesdays. And I was just going to the refrigerator to get milk out to be able to serve coffee. And there were two jugs of milk in our fridge. I pull the first one out and it's empty. And I'm like, what? And the second one, I pull it out. It's empty too. Like maybe a drop in it. And quite frankly, I could have put it back going, well, there's a drop of milk in it, but I don't know why people do that. Like in our house, it could be the same with a cereal box. Like you pull the box out, there's nothing in it. And I'm like, just throw it away. Like, please.   And so I was frustrated. I get out into my car to go to the grocery store. And as I drive back out into the street, this big black pickup truck, literally like road routes its way into my face. And I was sort of like, really? And, and I didn't have a choice, but to back down because he was not going to let me go. And so as I started to back up, I looked up and I got to see this beautiful sun like peeking through this cloudy sky. And, and it was so beautiful. I was like, what am I doing? Like why am I in a crabby mood or frustrated by this? I'm in an air-conditioned car on my way to a grocery store where there are refrigerated items and there are people, somebody actually might say hello. Okay. Cause I go in there all the time and I was sort of like; everything is not bad.   And I started to breathe. And I didn't realize in that moment that I was, I was being thankful. Like I just, it just happened. And, and in that I really was breathing. And I like felt better inside of me. I back up and let the guy go legitimately, which again, I did not realize it in the moment, but it was an act of kindness. And I felt even better. And when he drove by, I looked in his window and I was sitting there going, I have, it was a human being first of all. And I recognize that. And just for a moment, I was like, I have no idea what's going on in his day. He could be raced into the hospital. He could be late for work. He could just, you know, be a jerky person and, and life as long as a jerky person. And, and I just was, I wasn't over spiritualizing or anything, but I prayed for him. I was like, please let whatever's going on in his day be okay. Because if he's that intense, something is not great.   And I drove to the grocery store, and I physically felt so good. It was like, like I had been given a joke Cola or something like I, Or some vitamin that was just a blast of energy. And it lasted. By the time ladies got over, I was like, you're gonna believe what happened this morning. It was so weird. And I told them about it the next week they came back and one of the ladies said, can you tell me again? What that story? And I was like, what story? And the lady next to her goes, Oh, I've been doing it. And I was like, doing what? And she goes, your thing. I was like, what is my thing? And she said, Oh, the thankfulness, kindness, and compassion. And as we talked about it again, I was sitting there going, is that something because it had deeply impacted this person that was trying it even for a week.   And I really sat there going, okay, we would do a whole 30 for a physical diet. Something in these practices is impacting the soul. And I was like, what if we tried a soul 30 and for 30 days, proactively practiced thankfulness, kindness, and mercy, because that's what compassion is a part of mercy. What would happen? And so it was sort of like, let's do it. And these very sweet friends were willing to try as were my kids. And so instead of like pulling something away, which is what a fast is that goes with a whole 30, we sort of switched it to this unbelievable soul feast that came with doing these things. It was unbelievable. The joy that came into everyone's life when they started doing this stuff. I mean, it was amazing. And so as I tracked it, I really did track it because I like to know why it was sort of like, why is this happening? What's going on? What is in these things that actually can impact your life at such a deep, deep level to where joy is invited in and peace.   Laura Dugger: (14:49 - 15:00) And so, like you said, you focus on thankfulness, kindness, and mercy in this most recent book, The Peace Project, but will you define and give examples of each of those?   Kay Wyma: (15:01 - 19:08) Yes. And I think that is such a great way to start because it's like, okay, what, what is it even on the soul 30? I was like, here's what you do. Okay. Here is what thankfulness says, because I went to look like, if I'm going to ask, please do these things, here's what they are. So, thankfulness is calling out things for which to be grateful. And for our family, for my kids, I was like, please let it not be the same thing every day. Although now a year and a half out, what difference does it make? It could be the same thing every day. But for them, I was like, don't let it be the same thing. And it can be more than one thing, because the thing with thankfulness, when you start it, it's like, it may take a little effort to go, what do I have to be thankful for? Especially in a situation that's unsettling, which is kind of like when that car drove up on me, that was an unsettling moment.   I was being forced down. And there's so much going on in that conversation that isn't spoken, which I think is important to call out in these things. So even as he's barreling up on me, it makes me feel unseen. It makes me feel like there's no, even though it's not spoken, that action brings with it. What thankfulness does is it instantly, it's like a wake up, like it's a focus shift. And so, and it tends to be looking up in some way, and it gets your eyes off of whatever the situation is. And it allows for truth to come in, which is where thankfulness goes, especially in the unsettling. Cause you can say, as I didn't mean to, but I did even in that moment, I am in an air-conditioned car. It is Texas in the summer, for goodness sake, that is a gift. And it's worth calling out. And there's always something for which to be grateful. So that's what thankfulness is.   Kindness is seeing and loving others. And let me tell you something, loving yourself too, because I've learned through this. We are harder on ourselves than we are on anybody else. So seeing and loving others and yourself in deed or action, this component is so significant because you're taking it. Thankfulness is in your thoughts. So you're walking through in your thoughts and you're doing these things. And kindness is where you're going that extra step. And you're actually putting action on it so that even in your mind, because I learned a lot about neural pathways and how our minds can be transformed by this, which is sort of where we started. If your physical health can be impacted by a diet, can my thought health be impacted by doing things that are good for it? And so kindness takes it from the thought to the action. And so even in that, you know, letting that car go, that is so small. And so kindness doesn't have to be moving a mountain. It can be tiny little things.   I've watched my neighbor one morning picking up newspapers and putting them on everybody's porch. And no one was seeing her do that. I accidentally did. And she even told me that day, you know, it's the small things because it is because when that person opens the door, the neighbor opens their door, they know that someone thought of them that day. Like it gives them, whether it's spoken or not, they get a sense of worth by going, I must matter. Somebody cared enough to put my newspaper on my front porch. Tiny, tiny things, as well as big things can be an act of kindness.   And then mercy, that's the showstopper. And it is a challenge and it is beautiful. And the definition of mercy is compassion or forgiveness shown towards someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm. And again, including ourselves. And so as I started to peel back the layers on mercy, there's more and there's more and there's more. And another one of my favorite definitions of it was from a Jesuit priest whose name is James Keenan. And he called mercy the willingness to enter into someone else's chaos, which I actually found to be the most powerful because willingness plays a central role in this whole process because it actually is centered on our significance having been settled by the Lord.   Laura Dugger: (19:09 - 19:17) What surprising discoveries did you make as you deliberately practiced each of these attitudes? And like you said, you partnered them with action steps.   Kay Wyma: (19:18 - 21:54) Yeah, so I think for everybody, we just did a book club just finished last week, even here. And one of the gals said that she has been struggling terribly with anxiety and worry that stemmed a lot. They moved to Florida before the pandemic. And so, she was living in a new place, basically holed up in her house for a year and a half. And those things of worry and anxiety and fear had crept in and had become, you know, on repeat in her mind. And so just because she had signed up for the book club, came with a friend and she didn't really buy any of it because it doesn't matter whether you buy it or not because these things are not for me. Like that's the number one thing. They aren't mine. These really are woven within the greatest commandment. You know, love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind is thankfulness. Your eyes are not on yourself. And love others as you love yourself. And he's not talking about a narcissistic love. He's like genuine caring for others and yourself. There's so much power in that, which includes kindness and mercy.   And so, she simply started doing the thankfulness. She was like, I don't know what the others are, but I know I can track being thankful. I can find a way to be thankful. And she came back after the first week and couldn't believe what it had done to her. Just in practicing thankfulness, which we know through science that there are benefits that occur in your brain just by doing that simple act. And it's clearly proven. You can just Google even the amount of thankfulness journals because it's so good for us. And if you write it down and look at it and see, you're using all these senses. And when you add the kindness and the mercy to it, it's so deeply impactful.   And so, I think the thing that probably surprised me the most is how consistent the piece is and how your neural pathways actually can change. You can actually have your superhighway and your thought process, because we have those ruts in our brain that are highly traveled paths that our thoughts go to. And they tend actually to be along the lines of anxiety or fear or worry, because that's been a part of your life since you were a little kid. And to be able to somehow transition those highest traveled pathways to something that involves kindness and mercy and thankfulness is so significant because your instant reaction is going to a place of peace instead of a place of anxiety. It's like where science meets scripture.   Laura Dugger: (21:54 - 27:25) It's so beautiful. And now a brief message from our sponsor.   Did you know you can go to college tuition-free just by being a team member at Chick-fil-A East Peoria? Yes, you heard that right. Free college education. All Chick-fil-A East Peoria team members in good standing are immediately eligible for a free college education through Point University. Point University is a fully accredited private Christian college located in West Point, Georgia. This online self-paced program includes 13 associates degrees, 17 bachelor's degrees, and two master's programs, including an MBA. 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Additionally, with our new website, we now have a donate  button. There are processing fees that we cover for these donations, but we wanted to offer listeners a seamless way to share their finances with us when we share our content with them. So just visit thesavvysauce.com and find the donate page under the tab support. Another way to find it is simply type in donate to the search bar on our website and just click the first picture shown.   We are all about sharing around here, sharing resources, sharing joy, and sharing the good news about Jesus Christ. We ask that you also will share by sharing financially, sharing The Savvy Sauce podcast episodes, and sharing a five-star rating and review. You can also share any of our social media posts on Instagram or Facebook. We are grateful for all of it, and we just love partnering together with you. Now, back to the show.   You've already shared one piece of scripture that was impactful. Were there any other passages that especially seemed to come to life during this project?   Kay Wyma: (27:26 - 29:11) Oh, yes, and they continue to, Laura, as is always the case with scripture. You know, it really is like, wow. But I love the take your thoughts captive and make them obedient to me, which can sound like it's something that I do, you know, that I'm going to have to make my thoughts obedient to him, but it's really the Lord's power that does that. And it's like these things, you know, I think we talked before about, he isn't doing something to us by saying do these things, it's for us. And it's because when you do these things, naturally it is going to set you free. And so, I love that.   I love in Isaiah where it says, “He will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast in him.” And so when you feel that unsettledness, in that unsettledness, we can go to the places of worry or fear or anxiety, but what if in the unsettledness you can go to the one who says, I see you, who says you are known, who says you are a masterpiece, who says you belong because I chose you, who says, “I see you, you are mine.” And then go to those beautiful verses, even in Isaiah where he says, “you'll go through the water and they will not rise up over you and you will go through the fire, yet you will not be burned.” That's the truth because the one who says it is the one who protects us through all those things. And in the willingness aspect of this, it goes to this place where you're trusting what you can't see. And that is the one who has said these things over us to the point where I'm acting on it in places that can feel very scary. And leaning into his safety actually proves his safety over and over and over and over. And I think that's why the piece comes in.   Laura Dugger: (29:12 - 29:17) Kay, you're such a great storyteller. So, do you have any favorite stories from this adventure?   Kay Wyma: (29:18 - 33:55) There's a couple. So, it's like these practices rehumanize what so much around us has been dehumanizing because people aren't objects. People really matter. We like to compartmentalize everybody based on so many things, our race, our religion, the color of our hair, our vocation. I mean, you name it. And so, it kind of dehumanizes in that. And now we have this cancel culture, which is so weird. Like you could cancel a human being. And so, the rehumanizing comes in all of these practices. And it's so powerful.   So, we were even on our way to the grocery store. There was a person that needed to get over a couple of lanes. And so, I'm with one of my daughters and I was like, let's let that person over. And so, as we did, she crossed over in front of us and made it all the way over three more lanes to go right. I mean, she really was in the wrong place. And my daughter looks at me and said, I'm so glad we did that. And I was like, why? And she said, because if someone had done that for me, it would have made me feel like I was seen and that I had worth. And so, I've never, like that sticks in my head constantly. To be seen and to have worth is what we all need. And the tiniest little things can do that for us.   And so at that grocery store where we were going, a lady honked at me in the parking lot. Like I was walking and she just like blared on her horn, scared the living daylights out of me. And I was like, oh my gosh. But again, in that moment, I was like, wait a second. I can either have that, I'm either gonna fire up and be mad or I'm gonna be like, oh, I really am not seen. Either way, I'm going in a bad path or I can choose willingly to go, no. She's probably stressed out because she's not used to driving or maybe I scared her. She didn't see me. I don't know. And just reacts that way. And so, in that moment, I'm like letting it go, seeing her as a human being going in the grocery store.   And so, I go in, do my shopping. It's super packed in there. I go to the deli line, get my number, stand and wait and stand and wait. And as I'm waiting, who shows up next to me but the lady that honked at me, which if I hadn't let it go in the parking lot, I would have been like, oh, there's that lady in my head. But I wasn't. I was like, oh my gosh, there she is. And the guy calls my number and I feel her next to me and hear her sigh like, oh my gosh. And I look at her and she had forgotten to get her number. And the line was so long. And I was sitting there going, you know what? I've got margin in my day. And I took my number and handed it to her so happily. And she did what we all do. She refused it because kindness is risky. You may be rejected, okay? But again, if you're going into it willingly in the willingness that's based on your settled significance, that kind of rejection doesn't hurt because you're not rejected by the one who has called you by name. Not to over-spiritualize it.   But in that moment, I'm like, okay, no worries. But the deli guy is watching the whole thing. And so, I go to hand him the number and he looks at me and he serves her. And it was, I just can't even tell you how beautiful it was because she accepted it from him. I left because I was like, I don't want her feeling weird. I'm out of here and came back later. And it was so tiny and so beautiful. And it was like the greatest things of humanity were right there at the deli line in the grocery store. And I could tell you others, like even at the checkout, not on this occasion, but another one. Like what the checkers did to give grace to a woman who was so mean to them. And for them, like these two people to look at each other and go, man, she must be having a hard day and err on that. I mean, people are amazing. And it's like, dare we walk alongside each other? Dare we reach for the good? Dare we like just sink into the beauty of all that comes with things like your significance being eternally determined so that we can actually live in the freedom that surrounds you. All these opportunities that are around you every single day to be able to see the people and to treat the people next to you like human beings. It's really freeing and it's so beautiful. And it's a path paved with shalom peace. And it's amazing.   Laura Dugger: (33:56 - 34:22) Okay, that story is so touching. And I think it's because it's so apparent that that was the Holy Spirit and Jesus in you being Jesus to someone else. Because in scripture, we do see that it's God's kindness that leads us to repentance. And I just wonder what the other side of the story is. Your act of willing obedience and kindness. I wonder how that impacted her in a positive way.   Kay Wyma: (34:23 - 35:31) I don't know, but Laura, the coolest part is that I don't need to know. Like this is, again, through these things, that whole part exits. Like it doesn't matter at all. It's like that so much of the unseen is none of, I'll sit there and go, I can't believe he gave me something in that. Because the thing about any of these, when you give them out, it doesn't work like the world's economy where giving is actually a depletion. In God's economy, when you give, you're actually being filled. And so, it's like with a full tank, you walk away going, why did you allow me to be a part of that? Like, why would you have let me do that? Because I can't believe what you gave me through all of that. It's so amazing. Gosh, it just increases your capacity to trust exponentially. And so you have these little things like thankfulness that primes the pump. It's like, well, I'm going to get it going. And then the kindness. And then to be able to go to these places of mercy that involve very, very deep concepts like compassion, like forgiveness, like grace, like letting go of bitterness. These are aspects of God. They are not from us. It's like an invitation to experience God.   Laura Dugger: (35:31 - 35:38) What are some other ways that this peace project has changed the way that you live your life from this point forward?   Kay Wyma: (35:39 - 37:30) You know, almost with a spirit of expectancy and wonder and being able to see so many things that you haven't seen before. It's like it goes from black and white to technicolor. When I was in college, I actually had the opportunity to travel into West Berlin. This was a long time ago before the wall came down because there was the wall between East Berlin and West Berlin. But in order to get to West Berlin, you had to travel through East Germany. And it was so strange because literally on the train and everyone says this that did that back in those days, it was like you would go from colors to black and white. Like it was gray. They're literally the landscaped was gray. And then you would go from that gray into West Berlin that was like all colors and crazy and vibrant.   And that's what I feel like this does. It takes the gray and it makes it, the colors just come out spectacularly. And I think it is because you're choosing to not just believe, but you're acting on the belief which changes something which because you can't do that on your own strength. And so you're getting to experience this very mysterious aspect of God where he says, come to me, I will give you peace. I will give you joy. And I'm going to add that during this period, we probably lived through some of the hardest stuff that we have ever lived through in our life, just with very old past hurt that came and revisited in an extreme way. And it's amazing to me how full our days were on some of the hardest days we've ever experienced simply because these practices allowed us to look beyond and to live in peace and joy that paved even the hardest path.   Laura Dugger: (37:31 - 37:52) Well, I think that points to our good God, even in his timing that he invited you into this and you were willing to step in. And like you've said, it wasn't just something he did to you, but he offered this for you. And even through a hard time, that was such a gift.   Kay Wyma: (37:53 - 39:32) Yeah, which I could never have known that we would even be living that hard time when we started doing this. And it was definitely something that was given to us because I wasn't looking for it. Again, like I said, I had a rotten attitude when all this started and yet he met me there. Somebody said to me, how brilliant that you did this. Like, you know, you did thankfulness, then kindness, then mercy. And I was like, I did not do this. Like, I didn't make this up. This is what literally happened that morning. And for whatever reason, our curiosity was piqued and it was piqued enough to go, hey, you want to try? And what would happen?   And this, the book is the story of us trying and it really is a 30-day experiment where I go through the 30 days of like us doing it as a group and even include the group with these alongside call outs to where even the ladies that were doing it with us. And it was ladies just because it's a ladies Bible study. It doesn't mean that it's a woman thing or a guy, you know, not a guy thing. The consistency of, I can't believe how this has set me free. I didn't know I was entering into these places like this. I can't believe how healthy my mind is. You know, and again, people, if you have any issues with depression or that are deep that you need to get help, get help, please. You know, there is help out there. There are people that are gifted to be able to walk alongside us through very, very challenging situations which we were getting help along the way too. These practices will invite peace into your day on any day. I mean, just try it. Of course, I would love for people to get the book, but more than anything, just try it. I mean, these things are for you as much as they are for me.   Laura Dugger: (39:33 - 39:39) And if someone is willing to give it a try, what suggestions do you have for them?   Kay Wyma: (39:39 - 41:53) Yeah, it's so funny because I think when we hear like, oh, I have to do something for 30 days. I don't know about you, but I'm like, I can't add one more thing to my plate. And then I'm like 30 days. So, the first thing is just do it. Like just try it. And this is not something that you are going to have to give up anything or that it's going to be some burden or that you're gonna be trudging through just a hard journey. It will instantly be a gift to you. That's it. I still struggle with my rotten attitude going, no, it's really stubbornness that I'll go, oh, I'm not doing it. And then I'll think, what is wrong with you? You really know how great this is.   When the Lord was asked, what would you say is the greatest commandment? He instantly said, love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind and love others as yourself for these sum up all the law and the prophets. That's a pretty big deal. And so why? Because it's so good for you because it gets our eyes off ourselves because it puts into action our effort to believe that what he says is true. The belief, I love you. I see you. I know you. You're safe. I'm provided for you. It's so powerful. I know that to be true.   One of the gals that was in our book club has an eight-year-old daughter that hilariously picked this book up because her mother was reading it. And she called it Kay's Peace Project. She does not know me. She was going into a soccer camp, you know, and it's hot. A little girl that's her friend was being mean to her every day. And so by the last day she was getting out of the car. And that week, you know, she didn't want to get out because she didn't want to deal with this friend of hers that was being mean to her. As she was getting out on Friday, she turned to her mom as she got out of the car and she said, you know, I picked up Kay's Peace Project last night. She had landed on a day about mercy. And she said, I read about mysterious mercy. And she said, it made me realize that something may be going on in her friend's life that she doesn't know. And so, she said, I've decided that that's probably why she's being mean to me. And so, I really want to be nice to her today because I don't know what it is that's going on in her life. Eight years old.   Laura Dugger: (41:54 - 42:07) Wow. And that is so powerful. How it has the power to work in all of us. And so, if somebody wants to grab their own copy of The Peace Project or if they want to find you online, Kay, where would you direct them?   Kay Wyma: (42:08 - 42:49) Well, to KayWyma.com or I do love Instagram, but I'm just telling you, it's set your expectations low, people. Because it is, anything I've got is for whoever would like to participate in it or alongside because I do love living life together. And I would love for anybody to join along in that on those platforms or even through the books. And it's just such a privilege. And I just can't thank you enough for having me on and for your listeners even giving me a few moments to even hear whatever is the Lord has put on my heart today. And please share what's on your hearts with the people that are next to you, too. It's worth it.   Laura Dugger: (42:50 - 43:04) Well, it's been a joy to host you. And you probably remember from last time, we are called The Savvy Sauce because savvy is synonymous with practical knowledge. And so, as my final question for you today, Kay, what is your savvy sauce?   Kay Wyma: (43:05 - 43:57) Okay. So, for this project is settled significance. And it is the idea to live in your settled significance. You don't have to get significance from anything around you even though the world would tell you that we need to like in whatever capacity is is like ask the question, where am I thinking I have to do this in order to be okay? Because that's this if then equation of the world. If you do this, then blah, blah, blah, blah. Settled significant operates off God's economy that says, because then, because I have declared you righteous, you are seen, you are known, you are whole, you are loved, you are enough, you belong. And to be able to live in those things, we fight for that right now. We really do. And we try to call out those things that are telling us otherwise.   Laura Dugger: (43:58 - 44:15) Well, Kay, thank you for fighting the good fight of faith and for sharing these practical ways to live out these biblical themes that really have eternal value of thankfulness and kindness and mercy. It has been a joy to host you as my guest.   Kay Wyma: (44:15 - 44:23) Oh, my gosh. You're so nice to host me. Thank you so much. And thank you for what you do. You're a huge encouragement to people every day. So, thank you.   Laura Dugger: (44:23 - 47:39) Thanks, Kay. One more thing before you go, have you heard the term gospel before? It simply means good news. And I want to share the best news with you, but it starts with the bad news.   Every single one of us were born sinners, but Christ desires to rescue us from our sin, which is something we cannot do for ourselves. This means there's absolutely no chance we can make it to heaven on our own. So, for you and for me, it means we deserve death, and we can never pay back the sacrifice we owe to be saved.   We need a savior, but God loved us so much. He made a way for his only son to willingly die in our place as the perfect substitute. This gives us hope of life forever in right relationship with him.   That is good news. Jesus lived the perfect life. We could never live and died in our place for our sin.   This was God's plan to make a way to reconcile with us so that God can look at us and see Jesus. We can be covered and justified through the work Jesus finished. If we choose to receive what he has done for us, Romans 10:9 says, “that if you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”   So, you pray with me now. Heavenly father, thank you for sending Jesus to take our place. I pray someone today right now is touched and chooses to turn their life over to you.   Will you clearly guide them and help them take their next step in faith to declare you as Lord of their life? We trust you to work and change lives now for eternity. In Jesus name we pray.   Amen. If you prayed that prayer, you are declaring him for me. So, me for him, you get the opportunity to live your life for him.   And at this podcast, we're called The Savvy Sauce for a reason. We want to give you practical tools to implement the knowledge you have learned. So, you're ready to get started.   First, tell someone, say it out loud, get a Bible. The first day I made this decision, my parents took me to Barnes and Noble and let me choose my own Bible. I selected the Quest NIV Bible and I love it.   You can start by reading the book of John. Also get connected locally, which just means tell someone who's a part of a church in your community that you made a decision to follow Christ. I'm assuming they will be thrilled to talk with you about further steps such as going to church and getting connected to other believers to encourage you.   We want to celebrate with you too. So, feel free to leave a comment for us here. If you did make a decision to follow Christ, we also have show notes included where you can read scripture that describes this process.   And finally, be encouraged. Luke 15:10 says, “in the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” The heavens are praising with you for your decision today.   And if you've already received this good news, I pray you have someone to share it with. You are loved and I look forward to meeting you here next time.

Hannah Herzog is a 2020 Show Production Graduate who has mixed major world wide events such as the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials. Currently working as the audio department lead for American Audio Visual Inc., she has been handling audio for high profile figures such as Hillary Clinton, Ron DeSantis, and most recently Vice President JD Vance alongside White House Communications. In addition, she has mixed important Board of Directors meetings for large companies like Space Florida, and Scouting America.  In a male-dominated industry, she's built a reputation in corporate audio for precision, professionalism, and the kind of behind-the-scenes excellence that makes her one of live sound's true inspirations.   Hosted by: Katie Maifeld and Brianna Cofield Executive Producers: Karrie Keyes, Beckie Campbell, and Susan Kost Edited by: Divya Singh Music by: Jess Fenton (https://www.jessfenton.com/) Admin by: Kanika Khanna The SoundGirls Podcast is presented by soundgirls.org 

What does leadership look like at the highest levels of service?  SUMMARY In this episode of Long Blue Leadership, Col. (Ret.) Michael Black '85 discusses his journey from cadet to commanding the White House Communications Agency. He reflects on what it means to be a calm, steady presence in high-pressure environments — and how small daily practices can shape a lifetime of leadership. The full episode is now available.   SHARE THIS PODCAST FACEBOOK  |  LINKEDIN   MICHAEL'S LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAYS Develop a personal leadership philosophy that guides your actions (like Michael's 5F's: Family, Fitness, Flying, Fairness, and Fun). Always be aware that people are watching you and learning from your example, even when you don't realize it. Nurture relationships continuously - they are critical for long-term success and mentorship. Practice empathy and compassion, especially during difficult moments like delivering challenging news Maintain a holistic approach to fitness - physical, mental, and spiritual well-being are interconnected. Take pride in leaving organizations better than you found them and focus on developing future leaders. Be fair and be perceived as fair - understanding different perspectives is crucial to effective leadership. Incorporate fun and balance into your professional life to maintain team morale and personal resilience. Stay connected to your roots and be willing to mentor the next generation, sharing your experiences and lessons learned. Continuously practice self-reflection and ensure you're living up to your core values and leadership principles.   CHAPTERS Chapter 1 - 0:00:00 - 0:08:55: Family and Military Roots   Michael Black shares his background as a military brat and the educational legacy of his family. Chapter 2 - 0:08:55 - 0:12:10: Delivering a Difficult Notification A profound leadership moment where Black sensitively delivers news of a combat-related death to a staff sergeant's family. Chapter 3 - 0:12:10 - 0:18:40: The 5F Leadership Philosophy Introduction Col. Black explains the origin and core components of his leadership framework: Family, Fitness, Flying, Fairness, and Fun. Chapter 4 - 0:18:40 - 0:25:59: Detailed Exploration of 5F Philosophy   In-depth breakdown of each leadership principle, including personal anecdotes and practical applications. Chapter 5 - 0:25:59 - 0:32:21: Family Legacy and Academy Experience   Discussion of his son's Air Force Academy journey and the importance of nurturing relationships across generations. Chapter 6 - 0:32:21 - 0:38:36: Mentorship and Relationship Building Michael shares his approach to mentoring cadets and the significance of maintaining long-term professional connections. Chapter 7 - 0:38:36 - 0:40:13: Leadership in Civilian and Nonprofit Sectors Reflection on applying military leadership principles in private and nonprofit environments. Chapter 8 - 0:40:13 - 0:41:28: Personal Reflection and Leadership Advice  Final thoughts on leadership, self-improvement, and the importance of continuous personal development.   ABOUT COL. BLACK BIO Michael “Mike” B. Black, vice president for Defense, joined the nonprofit Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association International in July 2022. He is a senior cyber/information technology leader with more than four decades of experience in cyber operations, communications, project/program management, leadership disciplines and organizational development. As AFCEA's vice president for Defense, Col. Black builds strong professional relationships with government, industry and academia partners to position AFCEA International as a leader in the cyber, defense, security, intelligence and related information technology disciplines. Col. Black leads defense operations in support of planning and executing global, large-scale, technically focused, trade shows/conferences supporting Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Space Operations, Cyber and Homeland Security.  Col. Black is focused on providing opportunities for engagement between and among government, industry and academia. Prior to joining AFCEA International, Col. Black served as chief operating officer at Concise Network Solutions for four years, directly supporting the CEO in developing, executing and managing CNS's master business plan. Prior to joining CNS, he served as the COO and chief corporate development officer at JMA Solutions for two and a half years, working in concert with senior executives to lead operations and the planning and execution of strategies. Prior to joining JMA Solutions, he served as the COO at Premier Management Corporation for four years, where he was responsible for day-to-day operations, all business units and the company's profit and loss. Prior to joining the private sector, Col. Black spent 26 years in the U.S. Air Force holding various communications and leadership positions at many levels. He culminated his distinguished military career as a colonel, commander, White House Communications Agency, leading a 1,200-person team of selectively manned military, then-Department of Defense civilian and contract personnel to provide “no fail” telecommunications services for the president, vice president, named successors, first lady, senior White House staff, National Security staff, U.S. Secret Service and the White House Military Office. Col. Black holds a Bachelor of Science in basic science from the U.S. Air Force Academy, where he was a Distinguished Military Graduate. He holds a Master of Science in national resource strategy, with an information operations concentration, from the National Defense University, Industrial College of the Armed Forces; a Master's Degree in military arts and science from the Army Command & General Staff College; and a Master of Arts Degree in management from Webster University. He is a published author, including writing several leadership articles for The New Face of Leadership Magazine as well the thesis Coalition Command, Control, Communication, and Intelligence Systems Interoperability: A Necessity or Wishful Thinking? BIO EXCERPTED FROM AFCEA.ORG   CONNECT WITH MICHAEL IG: @chequethemike FB: @michael black LinkedIn: Michael Black   CONNECT WITH THE LONG BLUE LEADERSHIP PODCAST NETWORK TEAM Send your feedback or nominate a guest: socialmedia@usafa.org Ted Robertson | Producer:  Ted.Robertson@USAFA.org    Ryan Hall | Director:  Ryan.Hall@USAFA.org  Bryan Grossman | Copy Editor:  Bryan.Grossman@USAFA.org Wyatt Hornsby | Executive Producer:  Wyatt.Hornsby@USAFA.org      ALL PAST LBL EPISODES  |  ALL LBLPN PRODUCTIONS AVAILABLE ON ALL MAJOR PODCAST PLATFORMS   TRANSCRIPT SPEAKERS Guest, Col. (Ret.) Michael Black '85 | Host, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Naviere Walkewicz '99   Naviere Walkewicz Welcome to Long Blue Leadership, where transformative journeys of Air Force Academy graduates come to life. There are moments in a leader's life that leave a permanent mark. For my guest today, Col. (Ret.) Michael Black, USAFA Class of '85, one such moment came when he was actually sent to deliver news of a combat-related death. It was the first time he'd ever been tasked with that duty, and knew he only had one chance to get it right. As he sat with the widow, Michael found the strength to guide the family through their grief. That part of Michael's story speaks to the depth of his empathy and the calm steadiness that defines him as a leader. We'll explore much more of Michael's journey, from leading the White House Communications team to mentoring cadets at the Academy to daily practices that ground him and the framework that guides him today, what he calls the five Fs of leadership: family, fitness, flying, fairness and fun a guide not only for his life, but for the leaders he inspires. Michael, welcome to Long Blue Leadership. Michael Black Naviere, thank you for having me, and thank you for that very kind introduction. I'm so happy to be here, and I'm just thankful for what you guys do, the AOG and putting this together and telling stories. I think this is amazing. So thank you for the opportunity. Naviere Walkewicz Well, we're grateful you're here. You got your silver on. You got your ‘85 Best Alive, you know, I mean, I'm just blown away here. The class crest… Michael Black Yeah, got it all, you know, the crest and the two squadrons that I was in. I'm just excited, back here for our 40th reunion. Yeah. So that's amazing. So fellowship and fun with your classmates, and just seeing the mountains, you know. Getting off the plane and looking west and seeing the mountains and seeing God's creation is just amazing. And then, of course, the Academy in the background, you know, pretty excited. Naviere Walkewicz Wonderful, wonderful. Well, we're going to jump right in. And actually, the topic is a bit sensitive, but I think it's really important, because we know that when we all raise our right hand, some are prepared and they give all. But not everyone has to actually give the news to the family when their loved one is lost, so maybe you can share what that was like. Michael Black Thank you for allowing me to talk about that. You hit the nail on the head when you said you only have one chance to get it right when you're talking to the family. And so I had a young staff sergeant that was deployed down range at the Horn of Africa, and he happened to be a radio operator in a helicopter supporting the Marines. And there was a mid-air collision that happened while he was deployed, and he was one of the people that perished. So the first notification that I had to make was duty status: whereabouts unknown — to say that to the family. And of course, you can think about the range of emotions that are associated with that. They don't know. We don't know.   Naviere Walkewicz There's still hope. There's not hope.   Michael Black So that was the first day. So going over there with my first sergeant, a medical team, chaplain, you know, that kind of thing, to support us and the family.   Naviere Walkewicz And what rank were you at that time?   Michael Black So I was a lieutenant colonel. So I was a squadron commander of the 1st Comm Squadron at Langley Air Force Base. And I like to say, you don't get to practice that. You have one time to get it right. At least back then, there was not a lot of training to do that. It doesn't happen that often, and so having to make that notification was a tough thing. It was one of the hardest things, if not the hardest thing, I had to do in the service. Two young boys. He had two sons, and at the time, his spouse was military as well, so I go over there to do that the first day. You can imagine, you know, knocking on the door, right, and I'm in uniform, and just the emotions that they can be going through. So we're sitting on the couch in their house, two young boys. I believe their ages were 3 and 5 at the time, they were very young. And I explained to Michelle what we knew. And again, it's scripted. I can't say more or less than that, because 1) don't know, right? And 2), you just don't want to speculate on anything. And then we're waiting to find out his status. So then I have to go back the next day to make that notification, and you're representing the chief of staff of the United States Air Force, and that's kind of something that's scripted for you. “I'm here on the behalf of the Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, and I regret to inform you of the untimely death of your spouse.” The part that was even more heartening for me was after I told her, and with the boys sitting, I believe, on either side of me, she said, “And now Col. Black is going to tell you what happened to your dad.” That was a tough thing to do. And I would say it was the hardest thing that I had to do in the Air Force, in my career, and reflect on “you have one chance to get that right.” I believe we got it right, me and my team, but that was tough. Naviere Walkewicz Wow. Have you kept in touch with the family? Michael Black Yes, I keep in touch with Michelle, just from — just a personal because I'm very personal, outgoing, as you know. And so I've kept in touch with Michelle and the boys. But we're forever bonded by that, and I think that's important to stay in touch. And that's kind of one of my things I think we'll get into a little bit later in the conversation, but that's what I do. Naviere Walkewicz Well, it touches, certainly into, I think, that the family aspect of the five Fs, and because it seems like you even take in them as your family. And I'm curious about your family, because when you're going through that, I mean, you have at least a son — you have son, right?   Michael Black Yes, and two daughters.   Naviere Walkewicz Two daughters. So were you thinking about — did you put on your dad hat in that moment?   Michael Black I certainly did put on my dad hat and, and I think that helped in things. And I think all of the training that I got along the way about dealing with tough situations, and being a leader, it helped. But I took it upon myself after that to talk to other commanders. And in fact, my wing commander at the time, Burt Field, Gen. field was a '79 grad, and we talked, and that also brought him and I closer, because he also asked me to brief the other squadron commanders on that process and how I handled that. And I know when — to this day, Gen. Field and I are still very connected, and he's pretty engaged right now with the Air Force Association's birthday and all that. But a great mentor of mine who also helped in dealing with that. But he was extremely supportive and, and I think that had a factor in just how he evaluated me, right, how I handled that situation?   Naviere Walkewicz Well, it sounds like you certainly picked up some of those traits of taking care of your people recognizing empathy within processes and sharing it. I'm curious, were you always like this, or did you see some of this emulated from your family? Michael Black No, it's a great question. I am a military brat. My dad was in the Army. My dad went to Tuskegee — it was called Tuskegee Institute at that time. My mom went to Alabama A&M, so two schools in Alabama. They're from a very small towns in Alabama. My dad's from Beatrice, Alabama — which is less than 200 people today — and my mom is from Vredenburgh, Alabama. It's about 15 miles away, and it's even smaller than Beatrice. But they went to the same elementary school and high school, so high school sweethearts, and then they went off to college. And then dad got a direct commission in the Army, the Signal Corps. Well, he started out Medical Service Corps, but getting back to your question, so yes, family with that, and even take a step further back to my grandparents, on both sides of the family, but particularly with my paternal grandparents, they went out and visited the Tuskegee Institute at that time, and they saw the statue of Lifting the Veil of Ignorance there, and they decided at that point that they wanted their kids to go to that school. And so there's seven kids within my dad's family, and six of them went to Tuskegee. Naviere Walkewicz   Wow. So I want to fast forward a little bit, and you can certainly share whether it was during the Academy or after graduation, but you have kind of had this great foundation from your family. Let's talk a little bit about the Academy or after-Academy experience, where you had seen additional time where you had grown as a leader. Was there a particular experience that can come to mind, where another shaping of this leadership journey that you've been on? Michael Black Yeah, I think there's multiple throughout my career. I mean, I went to the Army Command and General Staff College for my intermediate professional military education. And there's a story there too. My dad was in the Army, and so I wanted to experience some of the things that my dad did, even though I was Air Force. And so one of my mentors, now-retired Lt. Gen. Harry Raduege, was instrumental in me getting selected for Army Command and General Staff College. And so I went there, and I think that was a big portion of my shaping, although had mentors and folks and coaches in my life leading up to that were, you know, helped shape me, but going to that school… And what I noticed when I got there that the Army was very serious about leadership and leadership philosophy, so much so that we took a class on that where we had to develop a leadership philosophy. And so in taking that class, before the Christmas break, I found out that I was going to be a squadron commander. So I was a major, and I was going to be a squadron commander. And so in that leadership course, I said, “Well, I'm going to go be a squadron commander. I'm going to the fifth combat con group in Georgia. Let me make this philosophy that I'm doing in class be my philosophy, so that when I get there…” And that was really the first time that I thought very serious about, “OK, what is my leadership philosophy?” And I had been a flight commander before, and had people under my tutelage, if you will. But being a squadron commander, you know, being on G series orders. And you know, we know how the military takes the importance of being a commander. And so having that so I did decide to develop my philosophy during that time. And you mentioned the five Fs earlier. And so that was — that became the opportunity to develop that. So family, that's what it was. That's when I developed that — in that course. So family, fitness, flying, fairness and fun — the five Fs. I worked on that when I got there. And so then when I got to take command, I had prepared all of that stuff in this academic environment, and I used it to a T and I briefed the squadron after I took command. I think this is my command philosophy, the five Fs. I subsequently had the opportunity to command two more times after that, another squadron, and then at the White House Communications Agency, which is now wing command equivalent. So had the opportunity to tweak and refine, but the foundation was still the five Fs. And so in doing that, and I can go into a little detail. So you know, family is your immediate family, your your blood family, and that that kind of thing. But family also encompasses your unit, your extended family, you know, and part of that. And so I always tell people you know, your family, you don't want to be the only one at your retirement ceremony because you neglected your family. And I've done many retirement ceremonies. In fact, I've done 25-plus since I retired. Well, that shows you really made no so family is, is important, take care of your family. And I, you know, one of the things I said about that to the folks was if you in your unit, if folks are getting assigned unit, permanent changes, station, PCS to your unit, and they haven't found the place to live in the due time and whatever the house hunting days are, I always gave my folks the option of give them some more time to find a place. They may be looking for schools, I mean looking for a place that just fits the environment that they need. And let's give them that time now, because they're not going to be effective in the organization if they're worried about where they have to live, where their kids are going to go to school and that kind of thing. So take care of all of that, and then get them to work, and they'll be that much more effective because they won't have to worry about where they're living, where the kids are going to school. So take care of your family fitness. You understand physical fitness and what you do and all of that, and I admire all of your accomplishments in that. And so physical fitness in the military kind of goes without saying. You have to maintain certain standards and do that, and do a PT and take a test and that kind of thing. But fitness is more than just physical fitness. It's spiritual and mental fitness. Now I would never be one to tell somebody this is how you need to nurture your spiritual and mental fitness. I think that's personal. But if your spiritual mental fitness is not being nourished, you're not going to be doing yourself any good, your team any good. And honestly, you would be able to tell if an individual is struggling with their spiritual or mental fitness, particularly as a leader and just kind of looking and observing characteristics and the behavior of folks. So I basically told my team, I want you to do whatever it takes to nurture your spiritual and mental fitness, whatever you need to do — if it's meditating, if it's praying, if it's walking, whatever is personal to you, but make sure that it's nurtured. But I also told my folks that if you think my spiritual fitness and mental fitness is out of balance, I want you to tell me, because I might have blinders on. I could be focused on things, just like they could be focused on things, and I would tell them. And I think folks really appreciated the candor and the openness of the leader, the commander, you know, saying that, yes, I want you to tell me if you think my spiritual mental fitness is, you know, is out of balance.   Naviere Walkewicz Did you ever have anyone tell you that?   Michael Black I did. I had strong relationships with my first sergeant, or my command sergeant major, the senior enlisted adviser. So we were, you know, we're hand-in-hand and all the places I was at. And so, yes, I've had them. I've had my wife tell me that. So I think that's important. I just — like I said, you can easily have blinders on and maybe just not see that or have blind spots. And speaking of that, I've written a leadership article on blind spots. I've kind of studied that and understand that. Flying — at the time the primary mission of the Air Force was flying. And so I'd always say, “What is your role in supporting the primary mission, or what is our role in supporting the primary mission of the Air Force?” So make sure you understand that. As a communicator, how do you contribute to the primary mission, or as a logistician, or as information management? But understand what your role is in the primary mission of the Air Force. Fairness, as a leader — it is so important for the leader to be fair, right? It can affect good order and discipline if you're not fair, but equally important is to be perceived as being fair. So I could think I'm being fair, I could think that I'm being fair, but if the perception of the unit, the team, is that I'm not being fair, that's just as detrimental to the mission as actually not being fair. And so I think perceptions are important, and you need to understand that. You need to be aware of the perceptions; you need to be ready to receive the information and the feedback from your team on that. And so I stress the importance of also the perception people have different management. I could be looking at something over there, and I say, “OK, yeah, sky is blue over there,” but somebody's looking at it from a different you know, they may see a touch of some clouds in there, and so they see some light in there, and from their vantage point. And it's just like that in life: Respect everybody's vantage point in things. And so that was the fairness aspect. Then finally, fun. I'm a person that likes to have fun.   Naviere Walkewicz You are?!   Michael Black Yes, I am. I'm a person that loves to have fun. And so for me, I grew up playing sports. And so I played sports throughout my Air Force career. So that was kind of one of the things I did for fun, intramurals.   Naviere Walkewicz What was your favorite sport?   Michael Black My favorite sport was baseball growing up. I mean, I dreamed about trying to play in the Major Leagues and that kind of stuff. And I played on a lot of baseball teams growing up, and then when I got into the service, played softball, and I played competitive softball. Back in the day, they have base softball teams, and so you would, you know, try out for the team, and I would try out, and I played on base team at probably at least four or five bases that I was at. So I was, these are my own words: I was good. So I played and was very competitive in intramurals. That's another way to bring your team together — camaraderie. They see the boss out there playing. And I always would tell folks that on the squadron team: They're not playing me because I'm the commander. They're playing me because I'm good. I can contribute to the wins in a game. But so it's very competitive. I wasn't a win at all costs, but it wasn't fun to lose. So being competitive and fun. So that's one of the things I did for fun. I also follow professional sports. San Antonio Spurs is my basketball team; Washington Commanders, my football team. So I would go to those events, those games, those contests and stuff like that. Music, concerts, still do that kind of stuff with my kids and my family incorporate fun into — so it's not all work and no play. I think you do yourself justice by, winding down relaxing a little bit and having fun and that kind of thing. And so I encourage my team to do that. Wasn't gonna tell people what they needed to do for fun. I think that's personal, but having fun is important and it helps strike that balance. So that's really the five Fs. And I carried that, as I said, every time I command, every time I've, you know, unit that I've been associated with, particularly after the 2000 graduation from Army Command and Staff College. And I still carry that five Fs today And incidentally, I think the if you bump into somebody who was in one of my units, they're going to remember the five Fs, or some portion of it. In fact, I have a couple mentees that commanded after me, and they adopted the five Fs as their command philosophy. And that's kind of something that's very satisfying as a leader to have somebody adopt your leadership style. They think that it was good for them while they were in the unit. And it's very flattering to see that afterwards. I mean, so much so that I've had people that were in my unit, and then they got assigned to one of my mentee's unit, and they would call me up and they'd say, “Hey, Col. Black, you know, Col. Packler says his command philosophy is the five Fs.” Yeah, I said Marc was in my unit at Langley, and he probably felt that. But that's, that's a true story. Naviere Walkewicz That's a legacy, right there; that's wonderful. Well, speaking of legacy, you have a son that's also a graduate. So talk about that. I mean, you were expected to go to college. It wasn't an if, it was where? How about your children? Was that kind of the expectation? Michael Black So my wife is a college graduate. She's a nurse as well. And so we preached education throughout. And just as an aside, shout out to my wife, who just completed her Ph.D.   Naviere Walkewicz Wow, congratulations!   Michael Black Yes. Wilda Black, last week, in doing that. And so between my family, my immediate family — so my wife, and my two daughters and my son, there are 15 degrees between us.   Naviere Walkewicz And you?   Michael Black And me. So five us, there are 15 degrees. My wife has two master's, a bachelor's and now a Ph.D. My oldest daughter has a bachelor's and two master's. My son has a bachelor's and a master's. My younger daughter has a bachelor's and a master's, and I have a bachelor's and three master's degrees. So I think that adds up to 15.   Naviere Walkewicz I lost count. Social sciences major here.   Michael Black So yes, education. And so my son — he really liked quality things, likes quality things growing up. And so he was looking at schools and researching and looking at the Ivy League, some of the Ivy League schools, and some other schools that, you know, had strong reputations. I purposely did not push the Air Force Academy to him because I didn't want him to go for the wrong reasons. I didn't want him to go because I went there and that kind of thing. But late in the game, you know, in his summer, going into his senior year of high school, he came to me and said, “Hey…” and I'm paraphrasing a little bit, “Dad, you know, your alma mater is pretty good, you know, pretty, you know, pretty has a strong reputation.” And I said, “Yeah, you know, you know, strong academic curriculum and everything else there.” So that summer he said, “Well, I'm thinking I might want to go there.” And I'm thinking to myself, “That's a little bit late in the game, like the summer going into senior year.”   Naviere Walkewicz Did you recruit your mom again?   Michael Black Mom got involved. And then I think you know Carolyn Benyshek. So Carolyn was the director of admissions. I reached out to her and just said, “Hey, I got my son that's interested.” They were actually coming to Baltimore, I believe, for a…   Naviere Walkewicz The Falcon Experience. Right.   Michael Black And so we went to see her, and I'll just kind of say the rest is history. Through her help and guidance, through my son's qualifications — he was able to get in. He went to the Prep School, which is great, and I just want to give a shout out to the Prep School for that. I did not attend the Prep School, but I saw the value of my son going to the Prep School and then coming to the Academy. So I just to this day, thankful for our Prep School and how they prepare folks.   Naviere Walkewicz We feel similarly about that.   Michael Black So, yeah. So he went. And so, of course, a proud dad, right? Your son following in your footsteps, and that kind of thing. So Clinton, Clinton Black is in the Space Force now, and he's assigned to Vandenberg. But my son, he was a soccer player growing up, played a lot of competitive soccer, came here and decided that he wanted to do Wings of Blue, and so he was on Wings of Blue parachute team. And the neat thing about that is that the jump wings that my son wears are the jump wings that my dad earned at Airborne School in 1964, '65 — sometime in the early ‘60s. And so my dad was still living at the time and so he was able to come out here and pin the wings on Clinton. So it skipped a generation because I didn't jump or anything. But my son jumped, and he has mid-500 number of jumps that he's had. And so my dad was able to see him jump, and that was even though Airborne is a teeny bit different than free fall, but still, you know, parachuting, and all of that. So getting to see Clinton excel and do that and see him jump into the stadium, and that kind of thing. He jumped with some of the former Navy SEALs in the X Games, you know, in the mountains. So that was just a proud parent moment. Naviere Walkewicz Wow. That is very exciting. And so, through all of these experiences that you had, I keep wanting to go back to the five Fs .yYu had mentioned earlier that you did some refinement to it. So where you are now, how are you using them? How have they been refined? I mean, flying. What is that? Michael Black So, I asked people to take a little bit of a leap in that, understand where it came from, in my 5s but that aspect refers to the mission, right? And so the Air Force mission has evolved to include space and that kind of thing. But even on the private side, the civilian side, I still use the five F's. And so the flying aspect just refers to the mission, or whatever the mission of your organization is. And so there was some refinement as we brought in space into our mission, but it really reflected on the mission. And so I had different AFSCs that worked for me in in the different units that I was at, and also different services. And so understanding the service aspect of things also was something that I had to take into consideration as far as keeping and refining that, at the White House Communications Agency, about 1,200 military — more Army than Air Force, more Air Force than Navy, more Navy than Marine Corps, and more Marine Corps than Coast Guard. And so being an Air Force commander of a joint unit that had more Army folks in it, you have to understand that lingo, and be able to speak cool and that kind of thing. Dad loved that. And so going to the Army Command General Staff College, and, getting some of that philosophy and understanding that. And then I went to what's now called the Eisenhower School, now ICAF, the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, which is another joint school. And so being around that helped me in those aspects. But really applying that throughout and after I retired, I did 10 years in the private sector with a couple of different small businesses that were government contracted focused, providing professional services, but still, as the chief operating officer of each one of those, it's a pretty high leadership position within the company and so I talked about the five Fs in some terms that my team could understand that, and so still apply that. And then now, with three years working for the nonprofit, the AFCEA organization, where we bring government, industry and academia together to do IT, cyber kind of things, machine learning, artificial intelligence — I still have that philosophy to buy that and what I do, I think it's something that's applicable across the board, not just military. At least I've made it applicable. Naviere Walkewicz I was just gonna ask that, because talk about the private sector and — some of our listeners, they take off the uniform, but they still have that foundation of the military, but they're working with people who maybe don't have that foundation of the military. So how did you translate that in a way that they could feel that same foundation, even though they hadn't gone through a military family or through the Air Force Academy? Michael Black Yeah, no, that's a great question, Naviere. And I think, as a leader, you have to be aware of that. You have to be aware of your team and their background and their experiences. You also you have to speak their lingo, right? I mean, I can't talk just Air Force or military lingo. We talk a lot in acronyms. Naviere Walkewicz Like AFCEA. And I'm sure many know it but would you mind spelling it out? Michael Black Armed Forces Communications Electronics Association. And even though we have that we are more than the armed forces now, so we really are known by just AFCEA, even though that's what that acronym stands for. So I mean, I work with Homeland Security, VA and that kind of thing. But to your point, getting folks to understand where I'm coming from, and I need to understand where they're coming from, you have to take the time, put in the work to do that, so that you can communicate with your folks, and so that they understand where you're coming from, and also, so that they feel valued, right? That you understand where they're coming from. And I think all of that is important. And I tried to make sure that I did that, and I had coaches, mentors and sponsors along the way. So I learned when some of my mentors transition from the military time, and so when they went to go work in the private sector, I still lean on them. “OK, how did you make this transition? And what is it about? And what are the similarities and what are the differences? What do I need to consider in doing that?” And I'm thankful, and that goes back to one key point that I want to make about relationships and nurturing that relationship. I mentioned Gen. Field, worked for him in the early 2000s. But here we are, 2025, and he's in my contacts, he will take my call, he will respond to a text, and vice versa. You know, building that relationship. And so he's with a nonprofit now, and so I still stay in touch with him. The director of the White House Military Office was a Navy admiral that I worked for when I was at the White House. He is now the president and CEO of the United States Naval Institute — Adm. Spicer. You know, 20-something, 15 years ago, worked for him and now we're working together on a big conference. But those relationships are important in nurturing those relationships. And I learned about nurturing from my family. You know, my grandparents, who did that. My grandfather was a farmer. He had to nurture his crops for them to produce. So the same thing, analogy applies in relationships; you have to nurture that relationship. And you know, it circled all the way back to, you know, our 40-year reunion now, and my classmates that are here and nurturing those relationships with those classmates over the years is important to me. I'm the connector within my class, or the nucleus. I mean, those are two nicknames that my classmates have given me: the Col. Connector and Nucleus, and I embrace those. Naviere Walkewicz Yes, that's wonderful. I know that you also mentor cadets. And I think my question for you, from the aspect of some of our listeners, is, did you seek out the cadets? Did they seek you out? How does that mentorship relationship start? Because you talked about how, like, for example, Gen. Field, you had that relationship years ago. That's kind of carried through. But how do you know when that mentorship is beginning? Michael Black I think both of those aspects, as you mentioned. Do they seek that? There are cadets that seek that based upon just what they've experienced and what they've learned. And then some of the cadets know people that I know, and so they've been referred to me, and all that. Some were — like their parents, I worked with their parents. I mean, particularly in the Class of 2023 there are three young ladies that I mentored in the Class of 2023 one whose father worked with me on the White House Communications Agency, one whose mother babysat my kids OK. And then one who's ROTC instructor in junior in high school was my first sergeant. So in those three instances, I was connected to those folks through relationship with either their parents or somebody that worked for me and that that kind of thing. And that was a neat thing to, you know, to be here. I did the march back with those young ladies, and then I connected those three young ladies who did not know each other at the march back, when we got back on the Terrazzo, I found all three of them and explained my relationship with each of them. And they were able to be connected throughout and two of them I actually commissioned, So that was really, really nice. And so, you know, seeking mentorship is, well, mentorship has just been important to me. I benefited from mentorship, and I want to return that favor. I am the chairman of the Air Force Cadet Officer Mentor Association, AFCOMA, whose foundation is mentorship, fellowship and scholarship, and so I'm passionate about mentorship and doing that. I've seen the benefits of it. People did it for me, and I think you can shorten the learning curve. I think you can just help folks along the way. So I'm very passionate about that. Naviere Walkewicz Well, this has been amazing. I think there's two questions I have left for you. The first one being — and I think we've learned a lot about this along the way — but if you were to summarize, what is something you are doing every day to be better as a leader? Michael Black I think every day I take a deep look inside myself, and am I living and breathing my core values? And what am I doing to help the next generation? You know, trying to put that on my schedule, on my radar, that's important to me. And whether I'm at work with AFCEA, whether I'm out here at my 40th reunion, whether I'm on vacation, I always take the time to mentor folks and pass on that. I think that's something that's passionate for me. You mentioned, when we talked about the retirement ceremonies. I mean, I've done 20-plus since I retired. In fact, I have one in November, but it will be my 27th retirement ceremony since I retired. And those things are important to me. And so I reflect, I try to keep my fitness — my physical, spiritual and mental fitness, in balance every day so that I can be effective and operate at a peak performance at the drop of the hat. You know, being ready. And so that's important to me. So there's some self-analysis, and I do live and breathe the five F's. I think that's important. And I think I've proven to myself that that is something that is relatable, not only to my time in the military, but my time in the private sector, and now my time in a nonprofit. And I just continue to do that so self-reflection and really practicing particularly the fitness aspect of the five Fs. Naviere Walkewicz Wow, that's outstanding. And then you probably share this with your mentees. But what is something that you would help our aspiring leaders — those who are already in leadership roles in any facet of it — but what is something that they can do today so that they will be more effective as a leader? Michael Black So I think being aware that people are watching you and your actions. Even when you think that somebody is not watching, they are watching. And so they are trying to learn what to do next, and to be aware of that. And so I think, again, that goes with what you asked me first: What do I do every day. But also being aware of that, so that you can be that example to folks. And then take the time, have some pride in leaving the organization better than it was when you got there. I mean, it's a cliche, but I think I take a lot of pride in that. And then, when the team does good, everybody does good, so you shouldn't necessarily be out there for any kind of glory. That's going to come. But do it for the right reasons. And provide… give the people the tools, the resources and the environment to be successful. And in… I just take satisfaction when I see one of my mentees get squadron command, go do something like the current commander of the White House Communications Agency, Col. Kevin Childs. He was a captain and a major in the organization when I was there. Nothing makes me happier than to see my mentees excel. And then, in this particular instance, he's holding a job that I had, and we still talk. I mean, he had me come out there to speak to the unit about a month ago. And those things give me a lot of pride and satisfaction and confirmation that I am doing the right thing. And so I'm excited about that. Naviere Walkewicz Well, I can say, from the time that I met you a few years ago, you are living what your five Fs. I see it every time you help champion others. Every time I'm around you I'm  energized. So this has been a true joy. Has there been anything that I haven't asked you that you would like to share with our listeners? Michael Black Well, I do want to say personally, thank you to you for all that you do and what the association is doing here. This Long Blue conversation, Long Blue Line — I think this is important to share. There's a Class of 1970 that's in the hotel with us, and I don't know, really, any of those folks, but when I see them walking around with their red hat on — that was their color — and I think about, “OK, 15 years before me.” And so I'm 62. These guys are, if I did the public math, right, 77, 78, maybe even older, depending upon what they did, and still out there doing things, and some of them here with their spouses and that kind of thing. I was just talking to one of the classmates this morning, I said, “You know, I wonder if we're going to be like this when our 55th reunion is,” and they were walking around, and most were in good health and able to do things. So that gives a lot of pride. But, what you're doing, what the rest of the folks here are doing, I think this is amazing. I love the new building, the studio that we're in. This is my first time in the new building, so I'm thankful for this opportunity, and just excited about what you guys do. Naviere Walkewicz Well, thank you so much for that. It's been an absolute pleasure having you on Long Blue Leadership. Michael Black Well, I appreciate it. It's been an honor, and I'm glad you guys timed this for my '85 Best Alive reunion and in the new studio. Naviere Walkewicz Yes, wonderful. Well, as we bring today's conversation to a close, Michael left a reminder for us that stands to me. As a leader, you're always on, you're always being watched. You know your steady presence and deep empathy were forged in life's hardest moments, from guiding a young family through unimaginable loss to breaking the barriers at the highest levels of service to mentoring cadets who will carry forward the legacy of leadership. And then there's that framework he lived by, the five Fs of leadership. It is practical as it is powerful, family, fitness, flying mission, fairness and fun, each one a reminder that leadership is about balance grounding and the courage to keep perspective no matter the challenge. His story reminds us that true leaders create more leaders, and when we anchor ourselves in purpose, faith and these five Fs, we leave behind a legacy that lasts. Thank you for listening to Long Blue Leadership. I'm Lt. Col. (Ret.) Naviere Walkewicz. Until next time. KEYWORDS Michael Black, Air Force leadership, 5F leadership philosophy, military mentorship, leadership development, combat communication, White House Communications, Space Force, veteran leadership, empathetic leadership, military career progression, leadership principles, professional growth, organizational effectiveness, cadet mentoring, military communication strategy, leadership resilience, Air Force Academy graduate, leadership philosophy, team building, professional relationships.       The Long Blue Line Podcast Network is presented by the U.S. Air Force Academy Association & Foundation    

Wednesday's second hour.

Thursday, June 27th, 2024Today, as I predicted, still no decisions on immunity or Fischer as we head into this morning's Supreme Court decisions; the Supreme Court sided with the Biden Administration in a social media dispute with conservative states; they also overturned an ex-mayor's bribery charge, and they accidentally leaked a possible ruling in the Idaho emergency abortion case; five people have been charged in the $120,000 bribe to a juror; Arizona authorities are investigating theft of a device that allows access to vote tabulators; plus Allison delivers your Good News.Lisa GravesGRAVE INJUSTICE The right-wing takeover of America's highest court (Podcast| Courier)Grave Injustice Podcast On YouTube.comLisa Graves on TwitterTickets and LIVE show dates https://allisongill.comSubscribe for free to MuellerSheWrote on Substackhttps://muellershewrote.substack.com Supreme Court Poised to Allow Emergency Abortions in Idaho (Bloomberg)The Supreme Court rules for Biden administration in a social media dispute with conservative states (AP News)Supreme Court overturns ex-mayor's bribery conviction, narrowing the scope of public corruption law (AP News)Arizona authorities are investigating theft of device that allows access to vote tabulators (AP News)Feds charge 5, including man acquitted at trial, with conspiring to bribe Minnesota juror with $120K (AP News) Subscribe to Lawyers, Guns, And MoneyAd-free premium feed: https://lawyersgunsandmoney.supercast.comSubscribe for free everywhere else:https://lawyersgunsandmoney.simplecast.com/episodes/1-miami-1985Check out other MSW Media podcastshttps://mswmedia.com/shows/Follow AG and Dana on Social MediaDr. Allison Gill Follow Mueller, She Wrote on Posthttps://post.news/@/MuellerSheWrote?utm_source=TwitterAG&utm_medium=creator_organic&utm_campaign=muellershewrote&utm_content=FollowMehttps://muellershewrote.substack.comhttps://twitter.com/MuellerSheWrotehttps://www.threads.net/@muellershewrotehttps://www.tiktok.com/@muellershewrotehttps://instagram.com/muellershewroteDana Goldberghttps://twitter.com/DGComedyhttps://www.instagram.com/dgcomedyhttps://www.facebook.com/dgcomedyhttps://danagoldberg.comHave some good news; a confession; or a correction to share?Good News & Confessions - The Daily Beanshttps://www.dailybeanspod.com/confessional/From The Good Newshttps://www.websterchurch.orgStudent Loan Forgiveness (studentaid.gov)https://jmintz.substack.comhttps://www.instagram.com/joseph_mintPATRONS SPONSORING PATRONS (dailybeanspod.com)Custard Line Creative Design, LLCCustardLine.com Live Show Ticket Links:https://allisongill.com (for all tickets and show dates)Wednesday July 10th – Portland OR – Polaris Hall(with Dana!)Thursday July 11th – Seattle WA – The Triple Door(with Dana!)Thursday July 25th Milwaukee, WI https://tinyurl.com/Beans-MKESunday July 28th Nashville, TN - with Phil Williams https://tinyurl.com/Beans-TennWednesday July 31st St. Louis, MO https://tinyurl.com/Beans-STLFriday August 16th Washington, DC - with Andy McCabe, Pete Strzok, Glenn Kirschner https://tinyurl.com/Beans-in-DCSaturday August 24 San Francisco, CA https://tinyurl.com/Beans-SF Listener Survey:http://survey.podtrac.com/start-survey.aspx?pubid=BffJOlI7qQcF&ver=shortFollow the Podcast on Apple:The Daily Beans on Apple PodcastsWant to support the show and get it ad-free and early?Supercasthttps://dailybeans.supercast.com/OrPatreon https://patreon.com/thedailybeansOr subscribe on Apple Podcasts with our affiliate linkThe Daily Beans on Apple Podcasts

President Joe Biden's administration has taken numerous steps to fight monopoly power in the interest of the people, but at almost every turn, the White House Communications team refuses to comment on these positions and accomplishments, making it look like Biden is doing nothing for we, the people. The distinguished progressive Senator Russ Feingold lost re-election in 2010 with a similar "run away from your progressive bona fides" strategy - it might cost Biden similarly. Next, leave it to the ABC Network of Australia, but they've broken down the exact carbon footprint differences between EVs and Internal Combustion Engine cars from manufacturing and materials, fuel/energy sourcing and use through their lifetime and finally into disposal - you'll be surprised at exactly how the two compare. All this and more on TMI for Friday, May 31, 2024 - listen in for YOUR Cure for the Common Media!

Former White House press secretary and host of “Inside with Jen Psaki” Jen Psaki and Alyssa Farah Griffin sit down with executive producer Brian Teta to discuss their favorite – and most challenging moments – working in White House communications during the Obama, Biden and Trump administrations, how the job has changed with the rise of social media, and managing motherhood in the public eye. Catch "Inside with Jen Psaki" Sundays at 12PM ET on Peacock.  Have a question or want advice from Brian or a co-host? Call or text us at (347) 391-5022 and or leave us a message here: https://woobox.com/ytnyjj. Messages may be used on a future podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chapman University Professor Lori Cox Han discussed how television and the internet impacted White House communications strategies. Chapman University is located in Orange, California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Consider the Constitution, we're considering freedom of the press and the role of news media in our democracy.  The Hon. Adam Belmar served as Deputy Assistant to the President of the United States and Deputy Director of White House Communications for Production. He also held the role of Senior Producer at ABC News, running the Washington DC bureau of ABC's "Good Morning America" and the Sunday morning public affairs show "This Week With George Stephanopoulos." 

Steve Stratton spent 20 years in the U.S. Army in a career that was anything but typical. Starting at the White House Communications Agency supporting the needs of Presidents Ford and Carter, Vice Presidents Rockefeller and Mondale and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. His work took him around the world introducing him to new cultures, […]

Our guest today is Adam Belmar, founder of Advocacy Content Kitchen, a media production studio catering to organizations with important stories to tell. Adam has a background in journalism – he was a Senior Producer on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos. He went on to serve President George W Bush as Deputy Director of the Office of White House Communications. After the White House, Adam has been working with a lengthy roster of corporations, non profits, and trade associations advising them on their content and communications strategies. He's also the producer of the Business of Politics Show.In our conversation we dig into how podcasts are becoming an important medium for the public affairs industry, how to get into podcasting, and what makes a podcast effective.

In the first episode of Crypto with Coop! Cooper talks to Anthony Scaramucci, the founder of Skybridge Capital, former White House Communications director, and the host of Mooch FM. They discuss Algorand, Bitcoin, the current Bear market, potential for a Grayscale Spot ETF, USDC ASA, FTX and MUCH MORE!    Wanna tip Coop? ALGO/goBTC/most ASAs: RJ5DG3YBUZ4TDZ346RNIB4WQHWU2OZBGJSP4MPO5PWO6AWCI7S6RKAHFXM Bitcoin: bc1q5grvp5hl52dk0r2wyz883vy6c0tqkj9uxmfxch   WATCH THE RECOOP ON YOUTUBE: https://youtube.com/c/TheReCoop   Follow Cooper on Twitter @Coop_Daniels   CRYPTO WITH COOP IS SPONSORED BY HEADLINE CRYPTO

Sabrina Singh '05 is Deputy Press Secretary to Vice President Kamala Harris. In this episode, Sabrina speaks about the heightened stakes of White House communications, the delicate balance between policy precision and personal authenticity in political speech, and how the Harris and Biden press teams collaborate as a unified administration. Sabrina also describes both her past—growing up in Los Angeles and attending Harvard-Westlake and USC—as well as her future, as she prepares for a new role at the Pentagon as Director of Integrated Campaigns for the Department of Defense. Lastly, while the conversation avoids discussing the policies of the Biden-Harris administration, Sabrina speaks about how meaningful it is, particularly as an Indian American woman, for her to work for the first woman and first Indian American to serve as Vice President. As Sabrina notes, Kamala Harris “looks like me.” Sabrina references Jane Dabel and Bob Pavitch of Harvard-Westlake, Douglas Becker and Todd Boyd of USC, Jesse Ferguson and Jennifer Krider of the DCCC, and United States Senator Cory Booker as profound influences on her life and career.

On this episode, our co-hosts are joined by Bo Brabo. Among other topics, Bo talks about his experience working for Presidents Obama and Bush, his experience serving in the military, and his time at the University of Michigan.

This week in the studio. A man who has worked in the White House Communications Agency, the Secret Service, been a contractor with the Department of Defense, and earned his Green Beret in 1986 giving him a total of over 49 years of service to this country. Now an author who signed a 3 book deal with Force Poseidon publishing, he's looking to retire in 2022 to focus on his writing and visiting his bucket list destinations and restaurants.

Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Joe Mathieu delivers insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. Guests: Annmarie Hordern, Bloomberg Washington Correspondent, Adam Belmar, former Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of White House Communications, Norm Roule, former Senior CIA official and non-resident Fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School, Rodger Baker, Stratfor VP of Strategic Analysis at RANE, Kevin Walling, Democratic strategist at HG Creative Media and Bill McGinley, Principal at The Vogel Group. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Joe Mathieu delivers insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. Guests: Annmarie Hordern, Bloomberg Washington Correspondent, Adam Belmar, former Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of White House Communications, Norm Roule, former Senior CIA official and non-resident Fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School, Rodger Baker, Stratfor VP of Strategic Analysis at RANE, Kevin Walling, Democratic strategist at HG Creative Media and Bill McGinley, Principal at The Vogel Group. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Joe Mathieu delivers insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. Guests: Virginia Congressman Don Beyer, Adam Belmar, former Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of White House Communications, and Bloomberg Government reporters Jack Fitzpatrick and Emily Wilkins. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Bloomberg Washington Correspondent Joe Mathieu delivers insight and analysis on the latest headlines from the White House and Capitol Hill, including conversations with influential lawmakers and key figures in politics and policy. Guests: Virginia Congressman Don Beyer, Adam Belmar, former Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of White House Communications, and Bloomberg Government reporters Jack Fitzpatrick and Emily Wilkins. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Former Colorado State Senator Ted Harvey from www.stopjoe.com joins the show to discuss the Resident Biden Regime. Also, white house press reporter Dr Anthony Harper from InterMountain Christian News joins us to discuss an unusual partnership  with a liberal reporter against the White House Communications team.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/thebuffshow) --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/the-buff-show/support

The King of Talk Radio, Rush Limbaugh loses his battle with lung cancer at the age of 70... And the media haters come out in force, attacking his legacy and calling him some very ugly names. Banned from Twitter, we'll talk with the founder and editor of the Gateway Pundit about what happened to his account, and we'll show you some rarely seen video of the squad that you will find most interesting. Disney fires Mandalorian actress Gina Carano. Is there a new Hollywood Blacklist? Actor, director, and author Kevin Sorbo, recently removed from Facebook, will weigh in. And why wasn't White House Communications assistant TJ Ducklo immediately fired after he threatened a female reporter from Politico, allowed instead to resign? Steve Malzberg will take a look.

NEW: Dana Loesch's Absurd Truth. Dana’s daily dose of the weird, unusual and the hilarious. Fifteen minutes of absurd fun 5 days a week!A White House Communications employee gets a weak punishment after threatening a female employee, while Disney continues to bend the knee.

NEW: Dana Loesch's Absurd Truth. Dana's daily dose of the weird, unusual and the hilarious. Fifteen minutes of absurd fun 5 days a week!A White House Communications employee gets a weak punishment after threatening a female employee, while Disney continues to bend the knee.

Anthony Scaramucci is the founder of SkyBridge Capital, a global investment firm based in New York City which also hosts the SALT Conference, one of the largest investment conferences in the world. In 2017, Anthony was appointed White House Communications Director by Donald Trump, a role that lasted only 11 days before he was fired. Since leaving the White House and the world of politics, Anthony has returned to SkyBridge and recently launched a $310M fund to invest in Bitcoin.During our conversation, we talked about everything from Anthony’s early days, his career on Wall Street and how he started SkyBridge, the story of how he became White House Communications Director and the crazy 11 days that ensued, why he’s so bullish on Bitcoin, and much more.SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER & STAY UPDATED > http://bit.ly/tfh-newsletterFOLLOW TFH ON INSTAGRAM > http://www.instagram.com/thefounderhourFOLLOW TFH ON TWITTER > http://www.twitter.com/thefounderhourINTERESTED IN BECOMING A SPONSOR? EMAIL US > partnerships@thefounderhour.com

President-elect Joe Biden has selected a racially diverse, all-female communications team to speak for his administration when he takes office in January. It’s the first time the top officials charged with speaking for the administration will be female. That’s in keeping with Biden’s pledge to have the most diverse administration in history.

President-elect Joe Biden has selected a racially diverse, all-female communications team to speak for his administration when he takes office in January. It’s the first time the top officials charged with speaking for the administration will be female. That’s in keeping with Biden’s pledge to have the most diverse administration in history.

On this episode Pat Hardy talks numbers coming out of Black Friday/Cyber Monday, the historic new White House Communications team, the annual Spotify 'Wrapped' Campaign, and finally the Drake x Nike Collab NOCTA. In addition a surprise "Bonus Rant" from Pat Hardy And of course the "THIS IS AMERICA MOMENT OF THE WEEK" 12 plays dress up

This episode covers the all-female white house communications team that the Biden-Harris team announced over the weekend. This is the first all-women communications team and a very diverse one. Kate Bedingfield - White House Communications Director Pili Tobar - Deputy White House Communications Director Jen Psaki - White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre - Principal Deputy Press Secretary Ashley Etienne - Communications Director for the Vice President Symone Sanders - Senior Advisor and Chief Spokesperson for the Vice President Elizabeth E. Alexander - Communications Director for the First Lady Some references for the information shared today can be seen below: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/01/us/politics/biden-white-house-communications-team.html https://www.cnn.com/2020/11/29/politics/biden-white-house-female-communications-team/index.html https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/biden-harris-announce-all-female-communications-team-n1249293 https://buildbackbetter.gov/nominees-and-appointees/white-house-senior-staff/ --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/shesparkstech/message

Former Trump spokesman Anthony Scaramucci discusses his journey from Trump confidant to outspoken critic. “The Mooch” reflects honestly about his relationship with Donald Trump, recounting his brief stint as White House Communications director, and offering a first hand assessment of the president's personality and character. Anthony Scaramucci is the Founder and Managing Partner of SkyBridge Capital. He was the communications director for Donald Trump's White House in 2017, being famously removed from that position after only 11 days. Scaramucci also created the widely-attended SALT alternative investment conference and was co-host of Wall Street Week on Fox Business. He is the author of Trump: The Blue-Collar President.

We debate Walmart's recent settlement of a class-action lawsuit claiming the company had discriminatory hiring practices because of a physical test used to screen candidates. Ewan looks at the thorny issues of candidate screening, what Walmart did wrong, and what other companies should be careful of during the hiring process. US President Donald Trump's health is making headlines around the world, but communications from the White House have left a lot of questions unanswered. Cam dives into the chronology of events and looks at the performance of doctor Sean Conley, the president's physician, during media briefings. Plus: the history of militias in the US and the widening education gap as a result of COVID-19. Don't miss any future episodes and get updates about the podcast by https://prlawpodcast.club (signing up) to the PR & Law Podcast newsletter. We promise: no spam. Ever. If you enjoy the show, please tell a friend or family member. It's the best way to get the word out and we are very grateful! We also frequently post updates to the stories we discuss on social media. You can find us on https://linkedin.com/in/prlawpodcast (LinkedIn), https://twitter.com/prlawpodcast (Twitter), https://instagram.com/prlawpodcast (Instagram), and https://facebook.com/prlawpodcast (Facebook). You can also subscribe to our channels on https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrKssq1REhnQb3lHhCXL7GQ (YouTube) and https://soundcloud.com/user-697756979 (Soundcloud). If you have a question we would be happy to answer it on the show! Just post it to social media with the hashtag #PRLawPod. Links and Show Notes https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/legal-and-compliance/employment-law/pages/walmart-settles-female-applicant-hiring-bias-complaint.aspx (Walmart settles female applicants' hiring-bias complaint for $20 million) - Society for Human Resource Management https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/2020/10/02/president-trump-has-covid-19-timeline-of-events/3592164001/ (President Trump has COVID-19: A timeline of his travels leading up to a positive coronavirus test) - USA Today https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/oct/04/sean-conley-donald-trump-doctor-coronavirus (Sean Conley: Who is the Trump doctor whose updates are raising questions) - The Guardian Check This Out https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/10/05/the-students-left-behind-by-remote-learning?reload (The students left behind by remote learning) - New Yorker https://www.netflix.com/title/80244996 (Street Food Asia) - Netflix https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/a-dark-dangerous-debate/id1081584611?i=1000493114418 (Ezra Klein Show: A dark, dangerous debate) - Apple Podcasts https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/episodes/on-the-media-armed-and-dangerous (Armed and Dangerous) - WNYC Studios Hosts Ewan Christie is an employment lawyer and partner at https://duntrune.law/ (Duntrune LLP) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Cam MacMurchy is a corporate communications executive with a multinational technology company listed in Hong Kong and curator of the http://signupfor.digitalbits.today/ (Digital Bits PR) and Communications newsletter. He also contributes to Apple news website https://9to5mac.com/ (9to5Mac) and shares his thoughts on PR, media, travel, and technology on his https://cammacmurchy.com/ (website). Support this podcast

We're halfway through the 2020 Democratic/Republican conventions, and this week on Cross Currents we're joined by two experts to help us unpack-- Frank Fahrenkopf, chairman of the Republican National Committee from 1983 to 1989 and current Chairman of the Commission on Presidential Debates; and Loretta Ucelli, Director of White House Communications during the Presidency of Bill Clinton from 1999 to 2001.Then, Bruce Mehlman joins the conversation to talk about the future of policy-- and how it may be coming faster than we think. You'll also hear a segment from West Virginia Public Broadcasting's #InsideAppalachia on finding some extra cash right in your own yard. Download and subscribe to the show today-- and follow us @nprcrosscurrents on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!

With White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham stepping down, what does the White House communications plan look like now? Educating and enlightening a nation requires consistent communication, without communication people will not change. We must continue talking to create a positive change in our society.  Boyd Matheson,Opinion Editor at Deseret News, takes you inside the latest political news and current events, providing higher ground for today's discussions. Listen weekdays 11 am to noon at 1160 AM and 102.7 FM, online at KSLNewsradio.com, or on the app.

Jessica Ditto, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of White House Communications. '   Preview the President's CPAC remarks and discuss the President's accomplishments including his trip to India, the blue collar boom, USMCA.

Today’s show features: Mike Pompeo, U.S. Secretary of State, on China’s espionage and infiltration inside the U.S. Scott Rasmussen, public opinion pollster and editor-in-chief of Ballotpedia, on the results from the New Hampshire primary. Jessica Ditto, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of White House Communications, on the one-year anniversary of the Trump administration’s Women’s Global Development and Prosperity (W-GDP) Initiative. Rev. Dr. Robert Grant, Senior Pastor of The Father’s Way Church, on Democrats in the Virginia House of Delegates inviting him to open the session with prayer and then gaveling him down for praying biblically. David Closson, FRC’s Director of Christian Ethics and Biblical Worldview, to discuss how Christians should pray about political issues. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/loving-liberty/support

Today’s show features: Jody Hice, U.S. Representative for the 10th District of Georgia, on reports that Democrats are jumping off the impeachment bandwagon. Jessica Ditto, Deputy Assistant to the President and the Deputy Director of White House Communications, to discuss today’s White House Child Care and Paid Leave Summit. Jim Banks, U.S. Representative for the 3rd District of Indiana, on a Congressional letter asking Attorney General Barr to prosecute obscene pornography under existing law. Travis Weber, FRC's Vice President for Policy and Government Affairs, to give a Biblical perspective on the destructive power of pornography. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/loving-liberty/support

Today’s show features: Gordon Chang, foreign affairs reporter with a special focus on China, on the revelation that China attempted to get the World Bank to fund surveillance of Uyghurs. Jessica Ditto, Deputy Assistant to the President and the Deputy Director of White House Communications, to give a preview of the White House’s child care summit. Tyler O’Neil, Senior Editor of PJ Media, to discuss the latest instance of the mainstream media burying the truth about the anti-Christian Southern Poverty Law Center. Jonathan Saenz, President of Texas Values, on the disturbing news that a drag queen with a criminal record was allowed to stay all day at a school. Travis Weber, FRC’s Vice President for Policy and Government Affairs and Director of the Center for Religious Liberty, on today's developments on Capitol Hill. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/loving-liberty/support

The deregulation of Alberta's electricity system is now 19-years old, and in the last five years three successive Alberta governments have passed on an opportunity to mitigate the shortcomings of an Alberta “energy only market.” This has resulted in Albertans paying more for their energy utilities. Climate change and the climate change debate have significantly impacted retail utility costs in Alberta. The speaker will examine these impacts from a regulatory perspective, and how contemporaneous political influences have caused utility rates to rise for the average ratepayer. He will explain the pricing mechanism employed by the regulator and the industry that set Alberta's utility rates. The speaker will also detail the deficiencies plaguing the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC), and the National Energy Board (NEB). He will finish his talk with recommendations that the public can employ to improve our regulatory processes. Speaker: Joe Anglin Joe served four years with the United States Marines. He also worked as a police officer in New Hampshire before becoming a lineman for the power company in Vermont, and a fibre-optic transmission engineer for the Bell system. He served as the Bell system's White House Communications liaison for George Bush Sr's administration in Kennebunk Port, Maine. Joe immigrated to Vancouver, Canada to become the President and CEO of the investment firm ASIG Inc (ASIG), trading currencies and energy derivatives. He also served with the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary for seven years as a unit leader for the Canadian Coast Guard's fast-response Search & Rescue operations on the Pacific Coast and led the Canadian SAR (Search & Rescue) team to victory in the 2000 World Marine Search & Rescue competitions. In Alberta, Joe organized and led a rural citizen's group called the Lavesta Area Group against a proposed AltaLink 500 KV transmission line. For his work, he was named by the Edmonton Journal as one of the top ten people in the province who made a difference, and was named by Alberta Views as one of Alberta's 50 most influential people. Joe has served on Rimbey's Town Counsel and was elected MLA for Rimbey, Rocky Mountain House, Sundre. He served three years as the Chairman for the Rimoka Senior's Housing Authority. In addition to Joe's engineering background, he has a BSc in Business Management, MSc in Adult Education, and Juris Doctorate in Law. Moderator: Larry Elford Date: Thursday, October 3, 2019 Time: Doors open 11:30 am, Presentation 12 noon, buffet lunch 12:30 pm, Q&A 1 – 1:30 pm Location: Royal Canadian Legion (north door) 324 Mayor Magrath Dr. S. Lethbridge Cost:$14 buffet lunch with dessert/coffee/tea/juice or $2 coffee/tea/juice. RSVP not required

The deregulation of Alberta's electricity system is now 19-years old, and in the last five years three successive Alberta governments have passed on an opportunity to mitigate the shortcomings of an Alberta “energy only market.” This has resulted in Albertans paying more for their energy utilities. Climate change and the climate change debate have significantly impacted retail utility costs in Alberta. The speaker will examine these impacts from a regulatory perspective, and how contemporaneous political influences have caused utility rates to rise for the average ratepayer. He will explain the pricing mechanism employed by the regulator and the industry that set Alberta's utility rates. The speaker will also detail the deficiencies plaguing the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC), and the National Energy Board (NEB). He will finish his talk with recommendations that the public can employ to improve our regulatory processes. Speaker: Joe Anglin Joe served four years with the United States Marines. He also worked as a police officer in New Hampshire before becoming a lineman for the power company in Vermont, and a fibre-optic transmission engineer for the Bell system. He served as the Bell system's White House Communications liaison for George Bush Sr's administration in Kennebunk Port, Maine. Joe immigrated to Vancouver, Canada to become the President and CEO of the investment firm ASIG Inc (ASIG), trading currencies and energy derivatives. He also served with the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary for seven years as a unit leader for the Canadian Coast Guard's fast-response Search & Rescue operations on the Pacific Coast and led the Canadian SAR (Search & Rescue) team to victory in the 2000 World Marine Search & Rescue competitions. In Alberta, Joe organized and led a rural citizen's group called the Lavesta Area Group against a proposed AltaLink 500 KV transmission line. For his work, he was named by the Edmonton Journal as one of the top ten people in the province who made a difference, and was named by Alberta Views as one of Alberta's 50 most influential people. Joe has served on Rimbey's Town Counsel and was elected MLA for Rimbey, Rocky Mountain House, Sundre. He served three years as the Chairman for the Rimoka Senior's Housing Authority. In addition to Joe's engineering background, he has a BSc in Business Management, MSc in Adult Education, and Juris Doctorate in Law. Moderator: Larry Elford Date: Thursday, October 3, 2019 Time: Doors open 11:30 am, Presentation 12 noon, buffet lunch 12:30 pm, Q&A 1 – 1:30 pm Location: Royal Canadian Legion (north door) 324 Mayor Magrath Dr. S. Lethbridge Cost:$14 buffet lunch with dessert/coffee/tea/juice or $2 coffee/tea/juice. RSVP not required

The deregulation of Alberta's electricity system is now 19-years old, and in the last five years three successive Alberta governments have passed on an opportunity to mitigate the shortcomings of an Alberta “energy only market.” This has resulted in Albertans paying more for their energy utilities. Climate change and the climate change debate have significantly impacted retail utility costs in Alberta. The speaker will examine these impacts from a regulatory perspective, and how contemporaneous political influences have caused utility rates to rise for the average ratepayer. He will explain the pricing mechanism employed by the regulator and the industry that set Alberta's utility rates. The speaker will also detail the deficiencies plaguing the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC), and the National Energy Board (NEB). He will finish his talk with recommendations that the public can employ to improve our regulatory processes. Speaker: Joe Anglin Joe served four years with the United States Marines. He also worked as a police officer in New Hampshire before becoming a lineman for the power company in Vermont, and a fibre-optic transmission engineer for the Bell system. He served as the Bell system's White House Communications liaison for George Bush Sr's administration in Kennebunk Port, Maine. Joe immigrated to Vancouver, Canada to become the President and CEO of the investment firm ASIG Inc (ASIG), trading currencies and energy derivatives. He also served with the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary for seven years as a unit leader for the Canadian Coast Guard's fast-response Search & Rescue operations on the Pacific Coast and led the Canadian SAR (Search & Rescue) team to victory in the 2000 World Marine Search & Rescue competitions. In Alberta, Joe organized and led a rural citizen's group called the Lavesta Area Group against a proposed AltaLink 500 KV transmission line. For his work, he was named by the Edmonton Journal as one of the top ten people in the province who made a difference, and was named by Alberta Views as one of Alberta's 50 most influential people. Joe has served on Rimbey's Town Counsel and was elected MLA for Rimbey, Rocky Mountain House, Sundre. He served three years as the Chairman for the Rimoka Senior's Housing Authority. In addition to Joe's engineering background, he has a BSc in Business Management, MSc in Adult Education, and Juris Doctorate in Law. Moderator: Larry Elford Date: Thursday, October 3, 2019 Time: Doors open 11:30 am, Presentation 12 noon, buffet lunch 12:30 pm, Q&A 1 – 1:30 pm Location: Royal Canadian Legion (north door) 324 Mayor Magrath Dr. S. Lethbridge Cost:$14 buffet lunch with dessert/coffee/tea/juice or $2 coffee/tea/juice. RSVP not required

The deregulation of Alberta's electricity system is now 19-years old, and in the last five years three successive Alberta governments have passed on an opportunity to mitigate the shortcomings of an Alberta “energy only market.” This has resulted in Albertans paying more for their energy utilities. Climate change and the climate change debate have significantly impacted retail utility costs in Alberta. The speaker will examine these impacts from a regulatory perspective, and how contemporaneous political influences have caused utility rates to rise for the average ratepayer. He will explain the pricing mechanism employed by the regulator and the industry that set Alberta's utility rates. The speaker will also detail the deficiencies plaguing the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER), the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC), and the National Energy Board (NEB). He will finish his talk with recommendations that the public can employ to improve our regulatory processes. Speaker: Joe Anglin Joe served four years with the United States Marines. He also worked as a police officer in New Hampshire before becoming a lineman for the power company in Vermont, and a fibre-optic transmission engineer for the Bell system. He served as the Bell system's White House Communications liaison for George Bush Sr's administration in Kennebunk Port, Maine. Joe immigrated to Vancouver, Canada to become the President and CEO of the investment firm ASIG Inc (ASIG), trading currencies and energy derivatives. He also served with the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary for seven years as a unit leader for the Canadian Coast Guard's fast-response Search & Rescue operations on the Pacific Coast and led the Canadian SAR (Search & Rescue) team to victory in the 2000 World Marine Search & Rescue competitions. In Alberta, Joe organized and led a rural citizen's group called the Lavesta Area Group against a proposed AltaLink 500 KV transmission line. For his work, he was named by the Edmonton Journal as one of the top ten people in the province who made a difference, and was named by Alberta Views as one of Alberta's 50 most influential people. Joe has served on Rimbey's Town Counsel and was elected MLA for Rimbey, Rocky Mountain House, Sundre. He served three years as the Chairman for the Rimoka Senior's Housing Authority. In addition to Joe's engineering background, he has a BSc in Business Management, MSc in Adult Education, and Juris Doctorate in Law. Moderator: Larry Elford Date: Thursday, October 3, 2019 Time: Doors open 11:30 am, Presentation 12 noon, buffet lunch 12:30 pm, Q&A 1 – 1:30 pm Location: Royal Canadian Legion (north door) 324 Mayor Magrath Dr. S. Lethbridge Cost:$14 buffet lunch with dessert/coffee/tea/juice or $2 coffee/tea/juice. RSVP not required

The host of Dancing With The Stars criticizes the casting of Sean Spicer on the show. Brian Stelter says the White House Communications are state-sponsored lies. The Young Turks called the terrorist who shot at Dan Crenshaw, a “brave soldier”. A reporter tried to show how easy it was to buy a gun at Walmart, and failed. San Francisco rebrands the phrase “convicted felon”. The rage mob comes for Taylor Swift's dad.

The host of Dancing With The Stars criticizes the casting of Sean Spicer on the show. Brian Stelter says the White House Communications are state-sponsored lies. The Young Turks called the terrorist who shot at Dan Crenshaw, a “brave soldier”. A reporter tried to show how easy it was to buy a gun at Walmart, and failed. San Francisco rebrands the phrase “convicted felon”. The rage mob comes for Taylor Swift’s dad.

Craig is joined by regular Friday guests Nancy Derringer and Allan Lengel from Deadline Detroit to talk about the big stories of the week.  Topics include Justin Amash feuding with the Trump administration, Sarah Sanders stepping down from the White House Communications team, the President's chaotic week, charges being dropped (for now) in Flint, and a lot more.  

Introduction: Anthony Scaramucci is a Tufts undergraduate, Harvard Law School graduate, and playing off of the title of a great song by Drake, a man with middle class-blue collar roots from Long Island who most definitely “started from the bottom” and is now very here. Prior to making his 950,400 seconds as Director of White House Communications during the summer of 2017 among the most 11 memorable and talked about days in West Wing history, Anthony was making a difference on Wall Street, in the early days with Goldman Sachs, and thereafter with Oscar Capital Management, Neuberger & Berman, Lehman Brothers and his very successful hedge fund of hedge funds, SkyBridge Capital. Anthony has long been on the cutting edge of thought provoking conversation, creations and ideas long before his recent multi-media appearances and headline grabbing quotes created impactful mental images for many. By way of example, SkyBridge Capital’s SALT conference in Las Vegas and Asia, with its star-studded panel of decision makers, industry experts, finance professionals and members of the alternative investment community, has been described as being committed to facilitating balanced discussions and debates on macro-economic trends, geo-political events and alternative investment opportunities within the context of a dynamic global economy. Anthony is a family man, who enjoys spending time at home and riding around his stomping grounds, Port Washington, New York. Episode Notes: At 4:13, Anthony Scaramucci discusses the message of his first book, doing the right thing and the importance of having the highest level of integrity. At 6:56, Anthony talks about why it’s crucial to know your craft. He is not the most organized guy or manager, but excels at team building and setting up a system for a team to flourish. He also delegates a ton of responsibility and autonomy to the individuals he works with. “People work with me. No one has ever worked for me” (at 7:34). At 8:19, Anthony takes us back to when he was 11 years old in 1975 and his paper route for Newsday that over he grew over time to be the largest paper route in the area. At 10:15, Anthony addresses his “oh my moments” and gives us his life message at 54 years old after being fired twice in his lifetime. At 12:39, he enlightens us about his introduction to literature professor at Tufts University, Sol Gittleman. At 14:17, Anthony discusses the importance of charity work, helping family and Jackie Robinson. At 15:34, he notes, “What are you going to do with the money? You going to have the hearse be carried by the brinks truck?” At 16:15, he speaks highly of Nana’s influence on his work ethic and Red Holzman’s team first mantra. At 18:42, Anthony reflects on his 950,400 seconds in The White House and being declared the hatchet man. He thought he would last longer than a carton of milk in the refrigerator. At 26:19, he shares a story about working at Ghost Motorcycles for his Uncle Sal, and the time in 1981 when Uncle Sal sent him to Harlem at 17 years old with “Chico the Doberman” to deliver a bike to a potential customer. At 33:33, Anthony informs us of the life and business lessons learned in his 1998 travels to Asia and meeting Li Ka-shing, Hong Kong’s richest man - always leave money on the table for your partners and the importance of a karma bank. At 38:01, he notes why you have to adapt or die and building a circle of competence, staying in your lane and putting your ego aside (at 41:06). At 42:16, Anthony describes “front stabbing” vs. “back stabbing” and “putting your name on it.” At 44:37, he explains The Windex Disorder and the power of networking. At 45:35, Anthony discusses why everyone should have an annual ambition checkup. At 47:41, he advises college students and job seekers to not make the mistake he made, and instead to “not pick the cool job.” At 52:35, Anthony’s shares “The 12th day” - a chapter in his new book releasing in October of 2018. This recounts the day after he was fired from The White House - how he dusted himself off and how he handled it. At 53:53, he talks about his Mets fandom and Tug McGraw’s 1973 tagline, “Ya Gotta Believe.” At 57:36, Anthony notes that he is unbothered by others perception of him and individuals in the political arena and the media not taking him at face value. At 1:00:18, he concludes with a story of when he was an 18-year-old President of Port Washington High School in 1981, and attended a meet and greet for President Ronald Reagan at The Plaza Hotel.

In episode 183, Jack and Miles are joined by TomeFoolery podcast host Cody Melcher to discuss the heatwave around the world, the trade wars about to start with China, if the Democrats are leaning too far left, how the White House Communications director was the former number two at Fox News, the new Roe vs. Wade: The Movie being kickstarted, how young people aren't having babies cause they're too expensive, and more!  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://news.iheart.com/podcast-advertisers

President Trump stands by Rob Porter, saying others must remember the disgraced aide says he is innocent of domestic violence claims. And Hope Hicks, the White House Communications Director who has been dating Porter, is now in the President's crosshairs over her efforts to contain the fallout. Join Kirsten Powers and the panel.

This week on Middle Theory, John McCain, "The Maverick," makes a 'historic' tie-breaking vote that stops the GOP effort to repeal and replace Obamacare. As we look at the news this week, controversy surrounds the recent attempt to leave the country by Imran Awan, who formerly worked for Debbie Wasserman Schultz and the DNC. Awan was subsequently arrested by the FBI, in a strange development that few in the mainstream media have chosen to cover (perhaps due to the fact that he was a former consultant to CNN). Also, the newly-appointed White House Communications director, Anthony Scaramucci, made headlines recently for a vulgar rant that he went on after a reporter Tweeted a "leak" about a private dinner at the White House. Scaramucci subsequently appeared on CNN and explained what he actually meant, as his war against White House leaks continues. Then, we look at the recent vote on repealing Obamacare, the tie-breaker for which was supplied by Arizona Senator John McCain, who returned (with a standing ovation on the Senate Floor) from a recent surgery, casting a vote in defiance of the Trump administration, and in keeping with his reputation as a Maverick. Many are already predicting that this flamboyant Senate appearance will be among the Senator's most memorable. Special thanks to those who donated this week, whose contributions help support the audio production, research, artwork, and other effort that goes into each episode of the podcast: GRIMSTEAK VIC THE MINISTER OF MAPLE SYRUP Mark Hankins II If you like Middle Theory and want to help support the show, you can donate to the program here: We are now also offering SUBSCRIPTION accounts for those who would like to make recurring monthly payments to Middle Theory. If you would prefer to SUBSCRIBE to the program, click here to visit our DONATES page, and scroll down below the primary DONATE button.  JOIN US: REACH OUT TO MIDDLE THEORY To send us feedback, you can email us here. Also, follow Middle Theory on Twitter too... this is highly recommended, and may even be vital for some of you. Finally, as mentioned earlier, some may be further compelled to donate to the program, which helps keep ads for survival gear, water filters, male enhancement supplements, and do-it-yourself earthworm farming kits off the program.  You can also sign up for our newsletter, and get daily news from Middle Theory sent right to your inbox: Finally, here are links to stories discussed on this week's program: State Department orders family members of U.S. Embassy employees to leave Venezuela Russia seizes US property and expels diplomats following US sanctions Fishermen in Philippines dumping bodies of drug war victims (Audio) The President may be able to be indicted, but not by Mueller World Socialist Website being censored by Google? Laura Ingraham interviews Ret. Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer about Imran Awan on Tucker Carlson   Unhinged Mooch Blasts ‘Paranoiac' Priebus And Bannon For Trying To Suck ‘Own Cock'  Scaramucci calls in to CNN, explains his “rant”  Flashback: Obama butts heads with Scaramucci  John McCain's “Maverick Moment” according to CNN

Kevin & Bonnie discuss family health scares, awkward interviews at Club Safeco, Trump's tweets about face lifts, the pathetic White House Communications team, funny SD party stories, & the Salamanderous Scoundrel of the week.

White House Communications Operation: George Edwards, Texas A&M (May 6, 2008) Series: "White House Communications Operations" [Public Affairs] [Show ID: 20310]

White House Communications Operation: George Edwards, Texas A&M (May 6, 2008) Series: "White House Communications Operations" [Public Affairs] [Show ID: 20310]