Today’s podcast guest is Michael Bedenbaugh, a political analyst and author. In this episode, we discuss the current Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions in Minneapolis, Minnesota, including the deaths of two civilians, the Trump administration’s strategy in conducting these operations and the general atmosphere that has been created since Trump’s return to power, and how the United States as a whole can put a stop to these actions and the general pervasive divide in the country.
Listen now; link in bio.
Full bio
American author and political thinker Mike Bedenbaugh is a respected voice in constitutional principles and American governance, historic preservation, and community development. Born with a reverence for history, he served as the former president and executive director of Preservation South Carolina, where he led numerous initiatives that demonstrated the economic and cultural value of historic preservation.
Mike’s diverse background includes five years of service in the U.S. Navy aboard the USS South Carolina, studies in international studies and history at the University of South Carolina and Columbia University, and leadership roles in both nonprofit and for-profit sectors. He has also served on his hometown’s city council while his efforts in community revitalization and historic preservation earned him the Order of the Palmetto, South Carolina’s highest civilian honor. As a member of Preservation Action in Washington, D.C., he continues to advocate for policies that strengthen local communities and honor America’s heritage.
Driven by a mission to revitalize America’s founding ideals, Mike hosts the podcast Reviving Our Republic with Mike Bedenbaugh, where he explores the intersection of history, politics, and community development. His unique approach combines grassroots activism with a deep understanding of constitutional intent, offering fresh insights into modern political challenges within the United States.
Today’s podcast guest is Tsvi Bisk, an independent futurist, social researcher, and strategy planning consultant. In this episode, we discuss Israeli reactions toward October 7 and the subsequent war in Gaza, how geopolitics in relation to Israel has changed since that day, and whether or not there is still a prospect of peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
Listen now; link in bio.
Full bio
Tsvi Bisk is an independent futurist, social researcher, and strategy planning consultant. He is the director of the Center for Strategic Futuristic Thinking and the founder and director of the Strategic Educational Planning Institute. For more than 20 years, he was a senior associate of the Beit Berl Institute (the research and education arm of the Israel Labor Movement). Bisk is the author of five books, and has published more than one hundred essays and articles in English and Hebrew in a variety of publications. His latest book is titled Cosmodeism: A Worldview for the Space-Age: How an Evolutionary Cosmos is Creating God.
Special announcement: New episodes of my podcast "On the Issues" will be streaming live, over Zoom!
The next episode is this upcoming Tuesday, January 27, with guest Michael Bedenbaugh. Mike is a political analyst and author, whose latest book, Reviving Our Republic: 95 Theses for the Future of America, argues the need for political renewal in the United States and presents recommendations for such reforms in a historical context. Mike’s diverse background includes five years of service in the US Navy, as well as previously serving as president and executive director of Preservation South Carolina, working to protect and preserve the state’s historic places.
Listeners can attend the live podcast recording on Zoom; registration link in bio.
Archived episodes will be released the following day, on Wednesdays at noon. Subscribe on your favorite podcast app to be sure to always get the latest episodes.
I stopped counting how many ethical red lines Trump has crossed since he reassumed office last January. For him, the presidency is the means by which he can enrich himself and wield power with impunity. Tragically, he cares less about the horrific long- and short-term implications of his misdeeds both domestically and internationally.
#Trump #UnitedStates
I want to send a thank you for those who tuned in live for my first lecture in my new series, "Let's Call It As It Is: Live with Alon Ben-Meir." For those who were unable to join live, the full lecture recording, with Questions and Answers, is available now.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2y8EL_lgv8
This week’s lecture focused on how successive US administrations have failed to advance an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement based on a two-state solution, which the US has championed for decades. Sadly, the Israel-Hamas war that has devastated Gaza could have ended much sooner. Biden and Trump could have spared much of the horrific death and destruction in Gaza had they not been unduly influenced by Israel and its surrogates' political support in the US.
The next lecture will be next Thursday, February 5, at 11:30am. Following the lecture, which will last approximately 25 minutes, there will be a question-and-answer session where attendees can ask questions about the topic of the lecture or any other related question of interest. Those unable to attend the livestream can submit questions in advance to info@alonben-meir.com; the full lecture and Q&A will be available on YouTube afterward.
Click here to register for the lecture: us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_2xUAYkqASdefeoArUODvrw
1 CommentComment on Facebook
You must be like one of those Islamic assholes who worked with Hitler.
Trump’s proposed “Board of Peace” built around heads of state, including Russia, is structurally ill-suited to end the Israel–Hamas war and to govern postwar Gaza in any sustainable way
1 CommentComment on Facebook
Russiaphobia. What has kept Europe stagnant.
If Trump attacks Iran because of its crackdown on peaceful demonstrators, or whether he is using Iran’s horrific assault as an excuse to attack it, such an attack, should it occur, will be horrifically misguided. There should be no doubt in anyone’s mind that Iran will retaliate and target American military installations in the region, as well as Israel, if not another Gulf state, which could potentially engulf the Middle East in a war that must be avoided. Instead, the Trump administration should establish contacts with the Iranian military as well as the Revolutionary Guards and persuade them that they should depose the government, restore order, give the Iranian youth the prospect of a better future, and avoid a devastating war that they cannot win. A regime change in Iran must come from within. Otherwise, any foreign interference aimed at bringing about regime change will have disastrous regional consequences.
#IranRevolution2026 #Trump
1 CommentComment on Facebook
The Middle East will have peace Iran is the last one to fall and it’s coming
There is no other way to describe Don Lemon's arrest other than an outrageously gross violation of the First Amendment. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned Lemon's arrest. "The arrest of journalist Don Lemon in connection with his reporting on a protest in Minnesota should alarm all Americans," stated Katherine Jacobsen, who works on the organization. Instead of seeking accountability in the killings of two American citizens in Minneapolis, Trump is devoting money and manpower to incarcerating journalists, no less, further escalating the tension and growing concerns shared by most Americans. CNN said in a post on X that Lemon’s arrest “raises profoundly concerning questions about press freedom and the First Amendment.” The arrests also follow the apprehension of three others— Nekima Levy Armstrong, Chauntyll Louisa Allen, and William Kelly, accused of the same charges. Another extraordinarily dangerous red line the Trump administration has crossed, and it must not stand.
#DonLemon #Minnesota #Trump
1728 CommentsComment on Facebook
He wasn't there to get the scoop; he was there to be the scoop
The Onion, right?
You guys realize he’s a reporter right? He was reporting on it first hand just like many other reporters do.
Adding the s to journalist means this article has more drama in it than a Hallmark movie
U.S. federal law (18 U.S.C. § 248) 1994, This Act prohibits the use or threat of force and physical obstruction that injures, intimidates, or interferes with a person seeking to obtain or provide reproductive health services or to exercise the First Amendment right of religious freedom at a place of religious worship.
He was chanting along with the protestors?
He was part of the protest. He was not an observer.
It looked more like he was part of the protest. At least from his own videos.
What sinks Mr. Lemon's defense was he was an active participant in the protest. Had he stood back and observed as a journalist he would have been fine. But he got into a verbal altercation with one of the parishioners.
Calling Lemon a journalist is a real stretch.
I agree. When he entered the church during service with rioters was a clear violation of the first amendment.
No one is above the law.
He's no Cronkite or Donaldson
He crossed the line between unbiased observer and an active participant.
He made himself part of that protest.
My ancestors coming from Sweden had difficulty pronouncing some words in English. They would pronounce Don Lemon's profession as a "urinalist." 😆 🤣 😆 🤣 😆 🤣 😆
My estimation of Mr. Lemon is rising rapidly!
Sarcasm! This is Sarcasm right? Genius!
There are several ways to describe it. Take you blinders off and put down the koolaid
Lemon & journalism shouldn't even be mentioned in the same sentence :-(
So if im a journalist, and i record myself in the car with bank robbers knowing what we are on the way to go do and I go up in the bank with them and record people on the floor and i get arrested i can say i got arrested for doing journalist work? 🤔
A real journalist would have known he was breaking the law
He wasn’t reporting on a protest… He was participating in a protest
You had me at "journalist". Haha.
How about describe it as a felony then?
