Episodios

  • OMB: NOLA Metro Area No Longer "Major" / Medicare Advantage Saved / City Council Candidate Jon Johnson

    OMB: NOLA Metro Area No Longer "Major" / Medicare Advantage Saved / City Council Candidate Jon Johnson
    Jun 30 2025
    We kick off the show talking about the fact that New Orleans is no longer a major city - at least according to the federal government. We keep into that theme in our conversation with former New Orleans Councilman and state Senator Jon Johnson. He’s running for Council District E, and we ask the question as a convicted felon, can he win? Johnson believes he can.We then talk about the big beautiful Bill, which reached its first hurdle of passage on Saturday night. Originally, it looks like it would cut Medicare Advantage. Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy had proposed something along those lines, which would’ve affected half of all Medicare recipients. Darren Grubb joins us to let us know that those cuts did not make the final bill, and hopefully will not return and reconciliation. It is a triumph of grassroots lobbying.However, to our major topic of the day…New Orleans Metro ceases to be a major city, according to OMBBy Christopher TidmoreIt went unnoticed by most of the local media, but a federal agency has downgraded New Orleans from a major city to little more than a large town, and that has major implications for future government funding, business relocation, and economic development.Basically, the North Shore was robbed from the New Orleans Metro! During his tenure two decades ago, former St. Tammany Parish President Kevin Davis controversially changed the moniker in advertisements of his parish from “New Orleans’ North Shore” to “Louisiana’s North Shore”, trying to break the mental metro association of the Causeway connection. It took 20 years, but a federal agency says the numbers now argue for exactly that.Quite simply, the population of the New Orleans metropolitan area was reduced from 1,237,748 to 962,165 by the stoke of a pen, since less than a quarter of North Shore residents now commute to the South Shore for their jobs.For the last 70 years, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has maintained a set of consistent statistical definitions for metropolitan regions of the United States to enhance the value of data provided by federal statistical agencies. The current rules are published in the Federal Register and are used to consistently define metro areas across the country.Starting with data released for 2023, the metropolitan statistical area (MSA), anchored by New Orleans — officially, the New Orleans–Metairie MSA — no longer includes St. Tammany Parish. Following a 2020 update published by the federal government and implemented this year, the New Orleans–Metairie MSA now covers seven parishes: Plaquemines, St. Bernard, Orleans, Jefferson, St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, and St. James. Additionally, a new Slidell–Mandeville–Covington MSA has been created, which consists only of St. Tammany Parish.Why have these official definitions changed? As the New Orleans Data Center explained, “The short answer is that a smaller portion of workers who live in St. Tammany are commuting to work in Orleans, Jefferson, and other parishes on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain. This smaller portion no longer meets the criteria for St. Tammany to be included in Metro New Orleans. For a longer answer, keep reading below where we run down the details. As a result of the change, the new official population of Metro New Orleans is lower than you might recall. According to the Census Bureau, the population of Metro New Orleans was 962,165 in 2023. If St. Tammany were included, the population under the old 8-parish definition would be 1,237,748 in 2023. The massive discrepancy between these two numbers is overwhelmingly driven by the official removal of St. Tammany’s resident population from the total rather than by population loss in the individual metro parishes. The bottom line is that, going forward, the official estimate will reflect a 7-parish region of under 1 million, not an 8-parish region of over 1.2 million. Without St. Tammany, basic measures of Metro New Orleans’ demographic and economic makeup will also change.”The OMB had previously classified St. Tammany as an “outlying county” of the New Orleans–Metairie MSA. Its two urban areas around Mandeville–Covington and around Slidell now stand as geographically separate and distinct from the larger urban area on the south shore. Previously, more than 25 percent of St. Tammany residents who work commuted to the six “central counties” on the south shore, meeting the criteria to be part of the New Orleans–Metairie MSA.For the last major update in 2010, which used data collected from 2006-2010, 26.2 percent of St. Tammany’s workers were commuting to the south shore. In the new estimates used for OMB’s latest major update in 2020, which use data collected from 2016-2020, this portion had fallen to 22.5 percent. The 25 percent commuting threshold is no longer met. Further, St. Tammany’s two urban areas have sufficient population to define the parish as a “central county” in a new MSA, ...
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  • Departing MISO / MAGA vs. Trump on Iran

    Departing MISO / MAGA vs. Trump on Iran
    Jun 20 2025
    Hy and Christopher are joined for the second half of The Founders Show by Public Service Commissioner Eric Skrmetta, who has launched an inquiry into why the blackouts were ordered with just nine minutes notice by a little known federal regulatory group one month ago.MISO is more than a soup, but Skrmetta believes that Louisiana and her electric utilities would be better off working with other southeastern states for a new interstate compact on power distribution.By the end of the program, we also talk with Skrmetta, who is an expert on international relations, about Iran. It’s timely, because the first half of the program discusses not just the apocalyptic danger of the Supreme Leader and his Mullahs, but how some of Donald Trump’s closest allies believe that joining the Israeli bombing campaign is a tragic mistake.The president has given himself just under two weeks to decide whether America will join the war with its critical 30,000 pound bunker buster bombs necessary to destroy the underground atomic centrifuges. However, bombing Iran could endanger domestically the President’s pursuit of getting the US Senate to pass the “One Beautiful Bill”.Nevertheless, the political damage within the GOP at home might be necessary, as Hy notes quoting a senior source in Washington DC:The world watches with bated breath as Tel Aviv endures one of the most devastating strikes in its history. The recent Iranian missile assault has tragically targeted sacred spaces within the heart of the city: the Diamond Exchange District, Stock Exchange, and Soroka Medical Center. With reports of 147 injured and significant destruction, the impact of this violence is felt deeply across the nation.Furthermore, Israeli officials have confirmed the use of cluster-type munitions, raising alarm over the devastating consequences for civilian populations. In an unsettling development, authorities have enforced censorship, restricting foreign media from documenting the reality on the ground, while Iranian media mockingly disseminates footage intended to undermine Israel's narrative. The power dynamics in this conflict have escalated to unprecedented levels.🌡 An Escalation of TensionsThe Iranian Supreme Council has issued dire warnings regarding a "new strategy" in retaliation for any external intervention. The IRGC has demanded the immediate evacuation of the Dimona nuclear facility, signaling an urgent need for global attention. Reports indicate that key sites, including the Israeli Police Headquarters and intelligence facilities, have been targeted, while Iran has released a provocative 3D map of the Israeli C4I Command Center. Though the IDF has successfully intercepted cluster munitions, there are claims that the Iron Dome defense system is being overwhelmed by the intensity of these assaults.🌐 The Global Response is BuildingAmid these grave developments, the United States is weighing its options for a potential strike on Iran, with a final decision expected in the coming days. Former President Trump has denied any pre-approved attack plans, while the White House has committed to a resolution within the next two weeks. Simultaneously, direct talks between U.S. and Iranian officials are reportedly underway, with Russia and China condemning Israel's actions and cautioning the U.S. against further escalation.💣 Geopolitical Reactions & ThreatsThe conflict has unraveled far beyond the immediate region, with Iranian drones downing an Israeli Heron UAV and Kata'eb Hezbollah ominously warning that U.S. bases may become “duck hunting grounds.” Iran's threat to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz looms large, prompting NATO to shorten its upcoming summit to mitigate potential fallout.📉 Broader ImplicationsOn the home front, Iran has accused the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) of facilitating Israeli aggression. An extended internet blackout persists in Iran, marking one of the worst communication disruptions since the 2019 protests, while reports of connectivity recovery remain limited. The strike on Soroka Hospital has been falsely framed as a concealment of military assets by Iranian authorities.☢️ Strategic & Nuclear ConsiderationsRussian President Vladimir Putin’s assurance that Russian nuclear experts will remain in Iran underscores the strategic stakes at play. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s assertion that “we can destroy all of Iran’s nuclear facilities” echoes the severity of the situation. National unity is a powerful reaction to adversity, as an Iranian official states, “This war has united our people, not weakened them,” a poignant reminder of the indomitable spirit within.📣 Censorship and the Media LandscapeAs the conflict unfolds, Israel has imposed restrictions on foreign press coverage, claiming a need for security. Concurrently, Iranian authorities allege that Israel is using civilian areas as shields for its defense systems, intensifying the narrative battle that ...
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    54 m
  • The U.S. / Canada Relationship: Past, Present & Future

    The U.S. / Canada Relationship: Past, Present & Future
    Jun 17 2025
    The Founders Show comes to you live from the Thousand Islands on the Canadian-US border, from the deck of the famed Canadian Empress riverboat.

    We’ve been sailing down the St. Lawrence Seaway, and that triggered our kick off topic for this week’s show. The U.S. / Canadian relationship has been in the news quite a bit over the last year. North of the border, voters have resented the “51st state” comments, so much so that Canada re-elected a previously unpopular Liberal government that was willing to stand up to Donald Trump.

    However, despite being a different country, Canada is intrinsically linked with the United States – nowhere more so than the thousand islands win you could be 50 feet away by boat to cross the border. We explore the difficulties those people have putting up with a huge amount of bureaucratic red tape just to go back-and-forth, and the relationship between the United States and Canada. Why don’t we have free movement of population? Why isn’t our relationship even closer when we are truly cousins in close proximity?

    We then turn to the Louisiana legislature, and a Bill to allow Louisianians to sue doctors who send abortion pills across state lines. This puts Gov. Jeff Landry, if he signs, in direct conflict with President Donald Trump. Trump thinks 15 weeks are an acceptable margin or gray area to allow abortion to be legal. Hy and Christopher discuss where the gray area lies.
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    54 m
  • Famed Jazz & Folk Musician David Amram

    Famed Jazz & Folk Musician David Amram
    May 23 2025
    Hy and Christopher are joined by Curtis Robinson of the Hunter-Gatherers podcast to interview the legendary David Amram. At 94 years young, the famed jazz and folk musician has played with everyone from Dizzy Gillespie to Leonard Bernstein. He invented jazz poetry with Jack Kerouac in Greenwich Village. And Amram explains why New Orleans is the most American city.
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    54 m
  • Washington Insider Curtis Robinson Talks Budget, DC Politics

    Washington Insider Curtis Robinson Talks Budget, DC Politics
    May 19 2025
    Curtis Robinson joins Hy and Christopher to talk about the chances to pass the current budget in Congress and the state of politics in Washington DC. He also mentions a little bit about Hunter S Thompson and Gonzofest 11 while he is at it.Robinson is a veteran newspaper, editor, Washington-based columnist, and member of the National Press Club. He ranks as the consummate Washington insider, and based on what he has heard, he thinks Trump will succeed in passing the budget, and he explains the reasons why. We also find out about the real impact of DOGE, and how it could impact the space industry in Louisiana.Robinson and also cohosts Hunter Gatherers: The Podcast of Hunter S. Thompson stories and we speak about what the great journalist would’ve thought about the current political situation and how he would’ve agreed that Emoluments is not a face cream.Article I, Section 9, Clause 8 of the United States Constitution reads, “No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.” The “Emoluments Clause” likely includes luxury airplanes.We also chat about whether ending Michoud’s Artemis be justified by Elon Musk’s pursuit of Mars.Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry tweeted an impassioned letter to U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson to save Boeing‘s Artemis rocket program in the coming budget. The future lunar expedition launchers are assembled at New Orleans’ Michoud Space Center, and the rocket construction facility employs hundreds of high-paying, high-tech jobs in Louisiana.The Artemis Project was dealt a blow when its Starliner return vehicle malfunctioned in 2024. Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams were supposed to be in orbit for eight days but the American astronauts remained on the International Space station for nine months until one of Elon Musk’s Space X Dragon capsules returned them to Earth.The disaster led Musk to boast that his rockets were superior to the traditional NASA government contractor, yet Space X’s prototype Starship’s last two flights ended with explosions. That’s the vehicle he proposes to use to begin the process of taking Americans to Mars, instead of back to the Moon, Boeing’s priority.Congress and the NASA administrator nominee Jared Isaacman seem to agree, speeding up the timeline for astronauts to reach the red planet – potentially at the expense of New Orleans’ Michoud facility. Their sudden switch follows the release of the White House’s 2026 budget proposal, which would increase funding for Mars-related projects by $1 billion and pay for the launches. It also signals the Trump’s administration’s intentions to prioritize sending people to Mars.“We are evaluating every opportunity, including launch windows in 2026 and 2028, to test technologies that will land humans on Mars,” said NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens. The White House first hinted at the possibility last month in a press release after a meeting between Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and President Donald Trump. It indicated the U.S. and Italy would partner on a Mars mission as soon as next year.A Mars mission might be a boon for Musk’s SpaceX, a top contender to provide the rocket. While other companies have rockets that could reach Mars, only SpaceX has announced plans to land one on the planet in 2026.Moreover, Trump, in his inauguration speech, promised to land the first astronaut on the planet; Musk, standing behind him, gave a thumbs up. Isaacman also subsequently told Congress that he would “prioritize” such a mission in testimony ahead of his nomination hearing.Despite Musk pushing Trump to prioritize Mars over a moon landing, a Mars focus could lead to a clash with lawmakers, who have legally mandated that NASA pursue a long-term human presence on or near the moon. Congress may buck Trump and refuse to approve the funding in his budget request, especially if lawmakers worry the effort will delay lunar plans. That is the essence of what Landry has suggested to the Louisiana-born speaker in his defense of the Boeing project.Landry wrote to Johnson: “I am writing to express my strong support for NASA's Artemis program and to urge you to lead Congress in ensuring its continued funding and success. Initiated under President Donald Trump. The Artemis program rightly refocused NASA on returning American astronauts to the Moon and establishing permanent U.S. leadership in space. This mission is a critical steppingstone toward building the interplanetary infrastructure necessary to reach Mars and beyond…Artemis Il, with its core stages built right here in Louisiana at the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, is currently being stacked and prepared for launch in Florida. Meanwhile, Artemis Ill and additional Louisiana-built stages are...
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    54 m
  • Gonzofest at The Rink

    Gonzofest at The Rink
    May 14 2025
    May 15-18 will see Gonzofest 2025 at The Rink, 2727 Prytania. It's a celebration of the life and work of Hunter S. Thompson.

    Hy & Christopher are joined by two of the organizers, Curtis Robinson and Kent Fielding. Christopher and Curtis actually produce a podcast on Hunter S. Thompson - Hunter-Gatherers - which they exerpt on this week's radio show.

    Join us on Friday, Saturday and Sunday - Gonzofest is free! More information is available at gonzofest.net.
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    54 m
  • Louisiana Legislative Session Latest & French Quarter Trash Pickup Fight

    Louisiana Legislative Session Latest & French Quarter Trash Pickup Fight
    May 6 2025
    Hy and Christopher take on the legislative session, discussing Gov. Jeff Landry losing influence as the deficit picture changes and several pieces of legislation under consideration.

    We also spent some time looking at the trash situation in the French Quarter, and a proposed legislative solution. This is Christopher‘s editorial on the subject:

    Trash Bill: the first step at empowering neighborhoods

    It’s curious that Mayor LaToya Cantrell reacts with such opposition to French Quarter residents demanding to choose their own preferred trash contract. She predicated her entire pre-Councilmanic career upon the idea of empowering neighborhoods. She first proposed the taxing authority, ultimately passed by the legislature, that allowed neighborhoods to levy a mileage upon homeowners for anything from parks to community enrichments. As long as it passed by democratic vote, Cantrell once believed neighborhoods should be able to take their own destiny into their hands—except, apparently, trash collection.

    Louisiana legislators advanced a bill on Wednesday, April 30 which aims to wrest authority from the city's mayor by letting a state-created board in the French Quarter enter sanitation contracts. Sponsored by state Sen. Jimmy Harris, D-New Orleans, and drafted with support from New Orleans City Council members, Senate Bill 195 would allow the 13-member French Quarter Management District to secure "emergency contracts" for sanitation services (ostensibly when New Orleans' city government fails to provide those services in the neighborhood). The city would have to repay the board for the work. The bill moved unanimously from the Senate's Local and Municipal Affairs Committee that afternoon, advancing to the full Senate.

    The current controversy centers upon the Mayor’s determination that Henry Consulting will take over the garbage contract in the Vieux Carre’ on Aug. 1 over the highly popular IV Waste, the firm currently performing that work across the city's downtown. Critics, including Councilman At-Large JP Morrell cited to the legislative committee how Henry Consulting had been allowed by the Cantrell Administration to sidestep many provisions of the RFP process, including being granted a 50% reduction and the surety bond needed to win the contract.

    The basic truth, though, remains that French Quarter locals trust Sidney Torres’ IV Waste and its “DisneyWorld-level” street cleaners over Henry’s politically-connected firm. If this legislation is passed and signed into law, however, the change will do more than fix a bad contract. It will create the precedent that neighborhoods should be able to control the quality of life elements of their existence at the most local of levels.

    Too often, parish governments (and frequently state government) concentrate power far too much in too few hands too far away from the average citizen. Governance often works best when it stands closest to the people. Equally, many minority neighborhoods have suffered at the whims of politicians deciding their fate from afar, deaf to the individual concerns on the level of the streets.
    Every neighborhood should have a deciding say in their garbage contracts, as the collection of refuse and the cleaning of the streets often ranks first as the number one quality of life issue, after crime.

    In this case, it’s a Black mayor versus a non-minority neighborhood, but control at the household-level would benefit far more minority neighborhoods across Louisiana than the current practice of keeping everything decided by the typically old white male politicians of too many Parish governments.

    Overcoming the opposition of New Orleans’ first woman Black mayor in order to return power to a neighborhood over trash will eventually benefit African-Americans homeowners across Louisiana in the long-term (ironically enough) when the first step is taken to empower French Quarter residents. Other neighborhoods, including minority neighborhoods, will follow—in time.
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    54 m
  • Hospital Price Transparency, Port Battle, Orleans Parish Sheriff Millage Renewal

    Hospital Price Transparency, Port Battle, Orleans Parish Sheriff Millage Renewal
    Apr 25 2025
    Hy and Christopher kick off with an interview with hospital activist Beth Pence. She reveals that only six Louisiana hospitals have been transparent with their pricing and cost for procedures, despite the law passed by U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy which mandates hospitals must provide the pricing “openly and transparently”. We discuss how hard this byzantine economic burden places on so many families.We then move to talking about our main subject, PortNOLA - more on that story below.Our hosts also question the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s 2.46 Mills Renewal for 10 years, on the ballot May 3. The dysfunction in the Orleans Parish’s Sheriff’s Office has led to the construction of a jail complex, which the current Sheriff originally pledged not to use and has been— to put it politely— schizophrenic in the messaging of its eventual purpose. Staff attrition stand at record rates, morale is down, and recidivism is up.Sheriff Susan Hutson still has time to turn things around, and she still can make that on some of her progressive promises whilst balancing the law-and-order responsibilities of her office. Her election is not until this autumn, but she needs to take qualitative steps in order to be worthy of the tax dollars for which she asks the electorate. Moreover, Hy and Christopher have long opposed elections where only one measure is on the ballot. Sheriff Hutson did not create this system, but she could’ve chosen to put this tax on the autumn ballot—when she herself was up for reelection. Perhaps, that’s too much of a political ask, but if an elected official believes in the revenue measure, he, or she should put their own political feature on the line for it.Bayham Beats Goliath in Container Port BattleBy Christopher TidmoreOn Wednesday, April 23, State Rep. Michael Bayham (joined by the entire Council of Saint Bernard, the Parish President, DA, and Sheriff’s representatives) dealt the Port of New Orleans a sensation which the archons of the Dock Board rarely experience before a legislative committee—the taste of defeat.House Bill 616 would have granted the Port of New Orleans unilateral expropriation power to build a highway-level road from a new container-port which they proposed to build. It would have run across the parish. The bill would have empowered PortNOLA to seize private property without the approval of the parish government, levy tolls (as well as exempt their own trucks & vehicles from those tolls), and contract with a private company to own the road, allowing the private firm to administer the seized property.All of this to build a container-port which encounters majority opposition in St. Bernard Parish, to construct it on top of an historic African-American cemetery, and build in shadow of a Black community in Violet which likely would never be able to look upon the Mississippi River again.Moreover, this container-port stands years overdue with its original budgetary cost of $1.8 billion soaring. to $3.9 billion. Some even argue that taxpayers will likely be on the hook if it’s allowed to proceed— despite promises that private dollars will underwrite the container-port infrastructure. (Unlike in Plaquemines, PortNOLA representatives have demurred from explaining whom exactly will fund the full cost of the new container-port.)The victory of the St Bernard Parish citizens in the LA House Transportation Committee in deferring the legislation was immediately labeled ‘a blockade to economic progress’ in the Pelican State. PortNOLA officials have ignored, however, that the Plaquemines Port container terminal project (under construction directly across the river) achieves almost all of these economic goals, would be built on undeveloped land, enjoys wide public support, and would actually fund infrastructure bridges to connect lower Plaquemines to Jefferson by rail and road, improving evacuation routes, and underwriting the removal of a dangerous train right-of-way which bisects downtown Gretna next to a public park where children play. Jefferson and Plaquemines support their project as ardently at St. Bernard opposes PortNola’s “LIT” Project (as it is formally named).Despite friendly articles in the daily paper, the lobbyist for Plaquemines terminal facility noted that while the Plaquemines project would require major infrastructure investment, “The LIT project in St. Bernard would actually require more infrastructure investment. Plus, the Plaquemines infrastructure projects are absolutely needed, irrespective of the container terminal being built — in fact, they're 15 years overdue based on congestion and safety issues. In contrast, the LIT-related infrastructure would only be built because of the proposed terminal there.”He continues, “The LIT project would cost $1.8 billion. I know for a fact that its cost has now soared to $3.9 billion. This soaring cost would make it the most expensive U.S. container terminal ever built by far, all in ...
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