A Reagan Forum Podcast

Mike Pompeo

In this week's Reagan Forum podcast, we go back almost one month to February 8, 2023, for our in-person event with the 70th Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, for his new book Never Give an Inch: Fighting for the America I Love. In today's program, he sat down in conversation with John Heubusch, Executive Director of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute.

James Patterson and Matt Eversmann

In this week’s Reagan Forum podcast we go back two weeks to February 7, 2023 for our virtual event with New York Times bestselling author James Patterson and United States Army First Sergeant, Retired, Matt Eversmann for their new book, Walk the Blue Line: No Right No Left – just cops telling their true stories to James Patterson. James Patterson is one of the world’s bestselling authors, as well as one it’s most trusted storytellers. His writing career is characterized by a single mission – to prove that there is no such thing as a person who doesn’t like to read, only people who haven’t found the right book. He’s donated over three million books to school children and to the military, as well as endowed over 5,000 college scholarships for teachers. His co-author for Walk the Blue Line is Matt Eversmann, an Army Sergeant whose inspiring story of survival during a 1993 hostile conflict in Mogadishu became immortalized forever in the epic film, Black Hawk Down.

President Reagan’s Birthday

February 6, 2022 marked the 112th anniversary of the birth of Ronald Wilson Reagan.  He used to love to joke that each birthday was the anniversary of his 39th birthday, so 2023 would have marked the 73rd anniversary of his 39th birthday! Since President Reagan’s passing on June 5, 2004, the Reagan Foundation has worked with United States Marine Corps Camp Pendleton to hold a birthday celebration on February 6th of each year to honor the life and legacy of our nation’s 40th president. Each year the program includes live musical entertainment from the 1st Marine Division Band, an honor guard, a rifle guard, and the official laying of the White House Presidential Wreath on President Reagan’s gravesite. Keynote speakers in prior years have included Ed Meese, Elizabeth Dole, James Baker, and Sam Donaldson. In this week’s A Reagan Forum podcast, we listen in to the ceremony held on February 6, 2023 with keynote speaker Dr. Henry Kissinger.

Trey Gowdy

In this week’s Reagan Forum podcast, we go back just one week to January 31, 2023 for our in-person event with former Congressman and New York Times bestselling author Trey Gowdy for his new book, Start, Stay, or Leave: The Art of Decision Making. The book is filled with surprising insights and questions, such as how to craft your unique vision of success, assess the price worth paying to achieve your goals, balance logic, emotion, and fear when facing a new challenge, chart the course of your life with the end goal in mind, and more. He discussed these topics and more during his conversation with John Heubusch, Executive Director of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute.

William Inboden

In this week’s Reagan Forum podcast we go back two weeks to January 18, 2023 for our in-person event with William Inboden for his new book, The Peacemaker: Ronald Reagan, the Cold War and the World on the Brink, an account of how Ronald Reagan and his national security team confronted the Soviets, reduced the nuclear threat, won the Cold War, and supported the spread of freedom around the world.

Peace Through Strength Award Ceremony

Every year, the Reagan National Defense Forum seeks to honor individuals who have spent their careers cultivating American strength at home to ensure peace abroad. This year, the Ronald Reagan Foundation and Institute presented the 2022 Peace Through Strength Awards to former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper and former Deputy Secretary of Defense John Hamre. Mark Esper and John Hamre are emblematic of that kind of patriotic service and selfless dedication to their country. Their speeches both reflect on President Reagan’s legacy of “peace through strength” and what it means for today’s world.

Projecting Strength

In this week’s Reagan Forum Podcast we continue our month long look back to our 2022 Reagan National Defense Forum. Fox News Channel’s Bill Hemmer facilitated the Reagan National Defense Forum’s closing plenary session featuring a conversation with former Secretaries of Defense Leon Panetta and Mark Esper and former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe. The discussion focused on how the United States should address the many threats to our national security. From the vantage point of having served in the highest positions of the U.S. government, panelists emphasized the importance of a “peace through strength” approach to American global leadership from the Indo-Pacific to the Middle East to Europe.

Ukraine’s Fight for Freedom

With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine marking the first major conflict in Europe since World War II, the United States can no longer be assured of a peaceful continent across the Atlantic. During the 2022 Reagan National Defense Forum’s 4th panel of the day, a panel moderated by FOX News Channel’s Jennifer Griffin and comprised of Senator Joni Ernst, Raytheon Technologies CEO Greg Hayes, Chief of Space Operations General Chance Saltzman, and Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth looked at how an engaged United States and a reinvigorated NATO represent the best path for peace and stability in Europe.

Avril Haines

In last month’s December 15th podcast, we shared our 2022 Reagan National Defense Forum’s Keynote Address. In January’s podcasts we will share four additional panels with you. As previously shared, the Reagan National Defense Forum has quickly become one of our nation’s premier gatherings for defense and national security experts. The Defense Forum brings together leaders from across the political spectrum and key stakeholders in the defense community, including Members of Congress, current and former Administrations officials, senior military leadership, industry executives, technology innovators, and thought leaders. Their mission is to review and assess policies that strengthen America’s national defense in the context of the global threat environment. In this year’s fireside chat, United States Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines joined Andrea Mitchell of NBC News for a moderated discussion about the pressing security issues facing the United States. Director Haines provided her unique perspective on a multitude of national security matters, including Russia’s war in Ukraine, the protests in Iran and China, and North Korean nuclear tests. She highlighted the role the intelligence community plays in keeping America safe.

Christmas

As we sit between Christmas and New Year’s, we take time to reflect on the year past and the year ahead. From all of us at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute, we wish you and your family the happiest and healthiest of holiday seasons. In this week’s A Reagan Forum Podcast, we’re going to go listen to some of our “Best Of Ronald Reagan” podcasts to help keep you in the holiday spirit. We’re going to start with the best of his remarks around holidays.