Newt’s guest is decorated Iraq War Veteran, Rob Smith. Unabashedly pro-American, he loves the United States while acknowledging that it has been at many times deeply imperfect. In his new book, Always a Soldier he relates why he’s a black, gay, Republican in 2020 and why America is worth fighting for.

 Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

Newt’s guest is decorated Iraq War Veteran, Rob Smith. Unabashedly pro-American, he loves the United States while acknowledging that it has been at many times deeply imperfect. In his new book, Always a Soldier he relates why he’s a black, gay, Republican in 2020 and why America is worth fighting for. Learn more about your ad-choices at <a href="https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com">https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com</a>

Join Newt Gingrich, former U.S. Speaker of the House and Ph.D. historian, for the most diverse, informative, and entertaining podcast available. Every episode is an education.

Join Newt Gingrich, former U.S. Speaker of the House and Ph.D. historian, for the most diverse, informative, and entertaining podcast available. Every episode is an education.

Newt's World

Episode 97: A Soldier First, A Patriot Always – Rob Smith

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/adeee82b-3687-4e1d-8c00-ae280017ccc1/transcript

Newt talks with Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (NY-21st), Chairwoman of the House Republican Leadership, about her new book, “Poisoned Ivies: The Inside Account of the Academic and Moral Rot at America’s Elite Universities.” They discuss how America’s elite universities, once proud symbols of academic excellence, have become centers of far-left indoctrination and division. Stefanik traces her own political and professional trajectory, from volunteering for the New York Republican State Committee at age 14 and ultimately running as a 28-year-old underdog who has become a long-serving New York Republican in Congress. Drawing on her experience as a Harvard alumna, Stefanik argues that many elite universities have shifted from liberal leaning but pluralistic to ideologically lopsided, with a dramatic imbalance between Democratic and Republican faculty and a growing culture of political indoctrination over academic rigor. Stefanik’s participation in the hearing with university presidents was a historic turning point in the national debate over higher education. She concludes by expressing her hope, both as a policymaker and as a parent, that this earthquake in public awareness will help restore American universities to global excellence.

Newt talks with Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (NY-21st), Chairwoman of the House Republican Leadership, about her new book, &ldquo;Poisoned Ivies: The Inside Account of the Academic and Moral Rot at America&rsquo;s Elite Universities.&rdquo; They discuss how America&rsquo;s elite universities, once proud symbols of academic excellence, have become centers of far-left indoctrination and division. Stefanik traces her own political and professional trajectory, from volunteering for the New York Republican State Committee at age 14 and ultimately running as a 28-year-old underdog who has become a long-serving New York Republican in Congress. Drawing on her experience as a Harvard alumna, Stefanik argues that many elite universities have shifted from liberal leaning but pluralistic to ideologically lopsided, with a dramatic imbalance between Democratic and Republican faculty and a growing culture of political indoctrination over academic rigor. Stefanik&rsquo;s participation in the hearing with university presidents was a historic turning point in the national debate over higher education. She concludes by expressing her hope, both as a policymaker and as a parent, that this earthquake in public awareness will help restore American universities to global excellence.

Episode 972: Congresswoman Elise Stefanik on “Poisoned Ivies”

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/e0e95f80-59f8-431c-a9ce-b4380033fc2f/transcript

Newt talks with Brian Blase, President of the Paragon Health Institute, about their new report, “The Hospital Cost Crisis: How Government Policies Drive Consolidation, Undermine Competition, and Fuel Soaring Prices.” Hospital prices have increased three times faster than inflation and more than twice as fast as worker wages since 2000, making rising hospital prices a major threat to middle-class families. Their discussion highlights that hospital care now totals about $1.6 trillion annually, roughly one-third of national health expenditures, and that large hospital systems deploy substantial lobbying resources, including over $115 million in federal lobbying in 2025 alone, to preserve favorable policies and block reforms. Blase explains how cost-based reimbursement in Medicare historically encouraged hospitals to increase costs, fueling administrative bloat and higher spending, a dynamic that still persists when higher hospital costs trigger higher government payments. He argues that Medicare’s centrally set prices and cost-based methodologies distort the entire healthcare market. Policies that pay more for the same service in a hospital than in a physician’s office further drive consolidation and higher prices. As potential solutions, their conversation emphasizes price transparency.

Newt talks with Brian Blase, President of the Paragon Health Institute, about their new report, &ldquo;The Hospital Cost Crisis: How Government Policies Drive Consolidation, Undermine Competition, and Fuel Soaring Prices.&rdquo; Hospital prices have increased three times faster than inflation and more than twice as fast as worker wages since 2000, making rising hospital prices a major threat to middle-class families. Their discussion highlights that hospital care now totals about $1.6 trillion annually, roughly one-third of national health expenditures, and that large hospital systems deploy substantial lobbying resources, including over $115 million in federal lobbying in 2025 alone, to preserve favorable policies and block reforms. Blase explains how cost-based reimbursement in Medicare historically encouraged hospitals to increase costs, fueling administrative bloat and higher spending, a dynamic that still persists when higher hospital costs trigger higher government payments. He argues that Medicare&rsquo;s centrally set prices and cost-based methodologies distort the entire healthcare market. Policies that pay more for the same service in a hospital than in a physician&rsquo;s office further drive consolidation and higher prices. As potential solutions, their conversation emphasizes price transparency.

Episode 971: The Hospital Cost Crisis

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/099cdfe9-6d7a-40be-aab7-b43601670d8c/transcript

Newt talks with New York Times bestselling author and Pulitzer Prize Finalist, Dr. Arthur Herman, about his new book, “Founders Fire: From 1776 to the Age of Trump,” and the enduring founder mindset in American history, business, and culture. Herman defines a new generation of founders as Americans who embody a core national trait: the belief that individuals can build new enterprises, institutions, and futures through risk-taking, creativity, and self-reliance. He traces this founder spirit through business titans such as John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford, Steve Jobs, and Elon Musk, arguing that their innovations transformed society and exemplify American exceptionalism in entrepreneurship and innovation. They discuss President Lincoln’s deep engagement with technology and commerce, his advocacy for railroads, his work as a railroad lawyer, his unique status as the only U.S. president with a patent, and his vision for a transcontinental railroad, as evidence of a founder’s technological and economic mindset. Herman identifies the core traits of founders and encourages listeners to see the fire of genius within themselves and to consider whether they might be founders shaping the nation’s next chapter as it marks its 250th anniversary.

Newt talks with New York Times bestselling author and Pulitzer Prize Finalist, Dr. Arthur Herman, about his new book, &ldquo;Founders Fire: From 1776 to the Age of Trump,&rdquo; and the enduring founder mindset in American history, business, and culture. Herman defines a new generation of founders as Americans who embody a core national trait: the belief that individuals can build new enterprises, institutions, and futures through risk-taking, creativity, and self-reliance. He traces this founder spirit through business titans such as John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford, Steve Jobs, and Elon Musk, arguing that their innovations transformed society and exemplify American exceptionalism in entrepreneurship and innovation. They discuss President Lincoln&rsquo;s deep engagement with technology and commerce, his advocacy for railroads, his work as a railroad lawyer, his unique status as the only U.S. president with a patent, and his vision for a transcontinental railroad, as evidence of a founder&rsquo;s technological and economic mindset. Herman identifies the core traits of founders and encourages listeners to see the fire of genius within themselves and to consider whether they might be founders shaping the nation&rsquo;s next chapter as it marks its 250th anniversary.

Episode 970: Founder’s Fire From 1776 to the Age of Trump

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/269cbe0b-cc5a-4b5a-81b5-b43501312815/transcript

Episode 97: A Soldier First, A Patriot Always – Rob Smith

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