Heritage Explains

Heritage Podcast Network
Heritage Podcast Network
  • 4.7 (844)
  • Education
  • Updated Weekly

A podcast that explains major policy issues at a 101 level. Experts from America's leading public policy organization break down major news stories and policy debates raging in culture and Congress alike.

  1. 22h ago

    Did Communists Kill Portland, OR? | Mike Gonzales

    Portland was once held up as a model of urban America: a walkable, vibrant city known for parks, restaurants, breweries, and a thriving downtown. Today, record office vacancies, rampant homelessness, drug use, and shuttered businesses have turned the City of Roses into a warning for other American cities. So what happened? On this episode of Heritage Explains, we’re joined by Heritage Senior Fellow Mike Gonzalez, author of Next Gen Marxism, to examine the ideological forces reshaping Portland and cities like it. We discuss how political activism can displace basic governance, why failing local leaders so often escape accountability, how modern Marxism differs from its predecessors, whether the Left is really moving away from “woke” politics, and why schools, museums, universities, and other civic institutions have become central battlegrounds in America’s political divide. Can cities like Portland pull themselves back from the brink, or is their decline a preview of what’s coming elsewhere? Follow Mike on X: https://x.com/Gundisalvus Get the book here: https://www.amazon.com/NextGen-Marxism-What-How-Combat/dp/1641773537

  2. Aug 5

    Re-run | What is the Save America Act? | Chip Wyatt & Dan West

    This epsiode originally aired on February 11th, 2026. Enjoy! Washington is abuzz with talk of the SAVE America act, a piece of legislation that is designed to secure American elections and ensure that only American citizens have the right to vote. The proposed law is experiencing a groundswell of popular support, but also opposition. To understand what makes this law consequential, I sat down with Chip Wyatt and Dan West, both ofHeritage Action for America. --- Thoughts? Questions? Email us at: heritageexplains@heritage.org.  --- More from Heritage Action for America: https://heritageaction.com/ Chip Wyatt on X: https://x.com/ChipTWyatt Dan West on X: https://x.com/Dan_J_West

  3. Jul 30

    BONUS | The Supreme Court’s Biggest Hits | Cully Stimson & Zack Smith

    The last Supreme Court term was a very busy and consequential one. With decisions from redistricting to birthright citizenship to boys in girls’ sports, many cases made headlines and there is a lot to talk about.   That’s why we decided to bring you a very special bonus episode this week. Heritage Action’s Doug Blair sat down with Heritage legal fellows Cully Stimson and Zack Smith to break down the cases and highlight the big takeaways.    ---  Follow Cully Stimson on X: https://x.com/cullystimson?lang=en  Follow Zack Smith on X: https://x.com/tzsmith  ---  Email us at heritageexplains@heritage.org

  4. Jul 29

    What’s in the Biden Tapes? | Mike Howell

    For much of the 2024 presidential campaign, Biden supporters as well as legacy media insisted that the president was mentally sharp and fully competent to execute his duties. Most Americans doubted this, and this debate performance confirmed that they were right.  In the weeks that followed, Biden stepped down from the race, replaced by Vice Presidenet Kamala Harris. But the situation left Americans wondering, if President Biden wasn’t running the White House for much of his presidency, who was? And to whom were they accountable?  Fortunately, Mike Howell and his colleagues at the Oversight Project are asking these questions. And getting some answers. They were instrumental to the release of previously sealed materials referred to as the Biden Tapes. I sat down with Mike to understand what was in them and why it matters.  ---   Follow Mike on X: https://x.com/MHowellTweets?lang=en  Follow The Oversight Project on X: https://x.com/itsyourgov  ---  Email us at heritageexplains@heritage.org

  5. Jul 22

    Defending American Sovereignty After the Birthright Citizenship Case | Roger Severino

    When President Trump took office in January of 2025, he signed 26 executive orders on the first day. In that pile of executive orders was one entitled: Protecting the Meaning and Value of American American Citizenship.  In it, the president directed that federal officials were not to issue documents recognizing United States citizenship to anyone who is born in the country to illegal immigrants or legal migrants here in a temporary capacity. This practice, known as birthright citizenship, has gathered a lot of attention over the last few years for the immigration chaos it has created. Last month, the Supreme Court, in Trump v. Barbara, decided that the executive order was unconstitutional. Now, conservatives are looking for ways to preserve American sovereignty. Here to discuss some ideas for how to make that happen is Roger Severino, Vice President of Economics and Public Policy, here at the Heritage Foundation. --- Roger Severino on X: https://x.com/RogerSeverino_--- Email us at heritageexplains@heritage.org

  6. Jul 15

    Using Public Lands for Public Good | Dr. Dawn Buckingham

    Who ever heard of a state-based agency that is older than the state itself?  The Texas General Land Office was established in 1836 by the Congress of the Republic of Texas, the sovereign country that became the State of Texas ten years later, in 1846. When that transition happened, Texas retained control of all of its public lands.  That made the General Land Office’s role even more important, and it remains to this day as custodian of things like mineral rights, surveying and maps, disaster relief, immigration enforcement, and a whole host of other missions. Dr. Dawn Buckingham is the elected Commissioner of the Texas General Land Office, and has held that office since 2023. She joins Heritage Explains today to talk about her role and the uniquely American way her office is using public lands for public good.  --- The Texas General Land Office: https://www.glo.texas.gov/ Dr. Dawn Buckingham on X: https://x.com/DrBuckinghamTX?lang=en --- Email us at heritageexplains@heritage.org

  7. Jul 8

    Political Activism at the Smithsonian Institution | Mike Gonzalez

    Harriet Tubman’s Shawl and Hymnal. Abraham Lincoln’s Hat. Chuck Berry’s Red Cadillac.  These are just a few of the estimated 157 million items currently held by the Smithsonian Institutions. Spread across 21 museums, 21 libraries, 14 education and research centers, a zoo, and various other facilities, the Smithsonian was created by the federal government in 1846, and named after its founding donor british scientist James Smithson. In Smithson’s bequest, he willed the money “to the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian institution, an establishment for the increase & diffusion of Knowledge among men”.  Today, about two thirds of the  Smithsonian Institution’s $1.25 billion annual budget comes from taxpayers. And those taxpayers are asking some significant questions about the way that the Smithsonian is spending their money. A recent report from the Trump Administration highlights, in particular, abuses at the National Museum of American History, where American history seems to have taken a backseat to political activism. I sat down with Heritage Senior Fellow Mike Gonzalez to understand what’s going on. --- Next-Gen Marxism by Mike Gonzalez & Katie Gorka: https://www.amazon.com/NextGen-Marxism-What-How-Combat/dp/1641773537   White House Report: Saving America’s Story: https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Smithsonian-Report-Saving-Americas-Story.pdf Email us at heritageexplains@heritage.org

  8. Jul 1

    Will America Get Another 250? | Derrick Morgan

    America’s 250th anniversary of independence is being celebrated on the Fourth of July, this very week. And celebrations are taking place across the country. Tractor pulls. Concerts. Competitions. UFC Fights on the white house lawn.  But there’s another, slightly quieter, event happening in Philadelphia this year for America250: the burying of a time capsule.  America’s Time Capsule, as it’s called, has been sealed and will be buried in Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia on the Fourth of July. The hermetically sealed cylinder will be not be opened until July 4, 2276. It will contain memorabilia from the three branches of the federal government, partner organizations, and all fifty states. Amid the challenge coins, letters, pictures, and postcards, a few unique items stand out. A pocket constitution signed by 11 past and present Supreme Court Justices. An Olympic Gold Medal. A piece of fabric from the original 1903 Wright Flyer.  For me, there’s a kind of temporal vertigo I feel when thinking about these things lying in wait until 2276. It seems like an amazingly long time, and makes me grateful that our republic has existed for such a period already. Who knows what kind of world these items may enter 250 years from now. And it falls to us to do all we can to ensure that that future is a bright one.  That question is one I posed to Derrick Morgan, Executive Vice President here at the Heritage Foundation.  ---Follow our policy work: https://www.heritage.org --- Email us with thoughts, questions, or suggestions: HeritageExplains@heritage.org

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A podcast that explains major policy issues at a 101 level. Experts from America's leading public policy organization break down major news stories and policy debates raging in culture and Congress alike.

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