Hold These Truths with Dan Crenshaw cover image

Hold These Truths with Dan Crenshaw

Latest episodes

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Jul 13, 2023 • 1h 1min

Can We Stop the AI Apocalypse? | Eliezer Yudkowsky

Artificial Intelligence (AI) researcher Eliezer Yudkowsky makes the case for why we should view AI as an existential threat to humanity. Rep. Crenshaw gets into the basics of AI and how the new AI program, GPT-4, is a revolutionary leap forward in the tech. Eliezer hypothesizes the most likely scenarios if AI becomes self-aware and unconstrained – from rogue programs that blackmail targets to self-replicating nano robots. They discuss building global coalitions to rein in AI development and how China views AI. And they explore first steps Congress could take to limit AI’s capabilities for harm while still enabling its promising advances in research and development. Eliezer Yudkowsky is a co-founder and research fellow at the Machine Intelligence Research Institute, a private research nonprofit based in Berkeley, California. Follow him on Twitter @ESYudkowsky
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Jul 8, 2023 • 1h 5min

The Political Battles Inside Texas | Dr. Tom Oliverson

Dr. Tom Oliverson serves as a State Representative in the Texas Legislature. He joined Rep. Crenshaw to cover some of the major political battles happening in the latest legislative session. They talk about why the legislature banned transgender therapies for minors, the debate between the State House and Senate over property tax reform, the latest on efforts to pass school choice, and the pros and cons of term limits. The conversation ends with a critique of a cottage political industry in Texas, and across the country, which is monetizing conservative outrage without doing anything to actually win elections. Dr. Tom Oliverson is an anesthesiologist and State Representative for Texas’ 130th State House District. He is the Chairman of the Insurance Committee in the Texas House of Representatives. Follow him on Twitter @TomOliverson
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Jul 1, 2023 • 1h 9min

The Politics of Climate Science | Roger Pielke, Jr.

Climate scientist Roger Pielke, Jr joined Rep. Crenshaw to talk about the intersection of climate science and politics. Roger describes what good science looks like and the challenge that climate scientists face with the unbiased reporting of facts. They examine the good and bad projections in the latest IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) report and how confident we can feel about carbon emissions impact on sea levels, global temperatures, and extreme weather events. And they discuss how all this data should be interpreted by politicians to craft the energy policies which affect every aspect of our lives. Roger Pielke, Jr is a professor of Environmental Studies at UC-Boulder and Senior Fellow at the Breakthrough Institute. He was previously a scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research. His substack is The Honest Broker. Follow him on Twitter @RogerPielkeJr.
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Jun 24, 2023 • 59min

How to Talk to Radical Environmentalists 101 | Mark Mills

Manhattan Institute senior fellow Mark Mills is a physicist and venture capitalist in the field of emerging energy technologies. Mark joined Rep. Crenshaw to discuss the physics-driven trade-offs of transitioning to wind, solar, and electric vehicles. How many miles do you need to drive an EV just to break even on the carbon emissions it took to make one battery? How did China in one month wipe out 15 years of Germany’s carbon savings? Why do electricity rates continue to rise with the transition to “cheaper” green energy? We answer all these questions and much more as we look at how renewables rank against oil, gas, and nuclear in terms of costs, emissions, land-use impact, and net societal benefits.  Mark P. Mills is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a faculty fellow at Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science. He is the host of The Last Optimist podcast and the author of “The Cloud Revolution: How the Convergence of New Technologies Will Unleash the Next Economic Boom and a Roaring 2020s.” Follow him on Twitter @MarkPMills
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Jun 22, 2023 • 34min

Art of the (Debt Ceiling) Deal | Rep. Garret Graves

Rep. Garret Graves was one of Speaker McCarthy’s lead negotiators on the debt ceiling deal with the White House. He joined Rep. Crenshaw to describe what really happened in negotiations behind closed doors, the strategies they used to maximize their leverage against Biden, and how they dealt with the blowback after false rumors about the deal started circulating among their Republican colleagues.  Congressman Garret Graves represents the 6th District of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter at @RepGarretGraves.
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Jun 13, 2023 • 1h 1min

The Forensics Revolution That’s Cracking Unsolvable Cold Cases | David Mittelman

David Mittelman is the founder and CEO of Othram, Inc – a private DNA laboratory that invented a revolutionary new method to recover and analyze forensic evidence from decades-old unsolved murder cases. David joined Rep. Crenshaw to explain how his laboratory is solving cases which were impossible to crack using conventional forensic analysis. We learn all about the science behind DNA forensics, how law enforcement utilizes it today, and how Othram’s new technology is pushing the limits of what was once thought possible. Learn more about the cold cases Othram has solved here: https://othram.com/recent_casework.html
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Jun 10, 2023 • 1h 28min

What’s Wrong with American Healthcare, and How to Fix It | Dr. Marty Makary

Dr. Marty Makary joined Rep. Crenshaw to explain how American healthcare pricing works, why the costs are skyrocketing, and what we need to do to fix it. Dr. Makary demystifies the convoluted system of middlemen, kickbacks, and hidden costs which have created so much confusion in the insurance marketplace. Rep. Crenshaw and Dr. Makary also discuss how conservatives could better articulate their vision for a more perfect system. The conversation ends with a look at lessons learned from COVID data and what it tells us about masking, lockdowns, and the vaccine.  Dr. Marty Makary is a professor at the John Hopkins School of Medicine and the New York Times bestselling author of “The Price We Pay: What Broke American Health Care--and How to Fix It.” Follow him on Twitter at @MartyMakary.
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Jun 8, 2023 • 8min

Fantasy Versus Reality: the Truth About the Debt Ceiling Debate

On May 31st, Congressman Crenshaw voted to pass the Fiscal Responsibility Act, voting with more than 2/3 of the Republican conference to avoid a catastrophic debt limit default. Below is a statement from the Congressman on why he voted yes: "We vote based on realistic choices, not what we wish were true. Of course, I wish that Ronald Reagan was resurrected, and we had 60 votes in the Senate. Then we could enact massive reforms that truly put our spending on a reasonable path. But this isn’t the reality we have now. The reality we have is a slim House majority while radical Democrats have the Senate and White House. Our leverage is limited.  But even with that limited leverage, we forced Biden to give up on every single demand he had. He first wanted a clean debt ceiling increase without reforms. We said no. He then wanted tax increases. We said no. He wanted cuts to our military. We said no. In the final bill, Biden got nothing, and we got about half of what we wanted. Of course we wanted more, but again, our leverage was limited. Here are other facts to consider. Whether you like it or not, there has to be a debt ceiling increase. The economic consequences are catastrophic if you let the government default on its debt. Your 401k would crash as markets crash, the cost of borrowing would increase and make our debt worse, and recession would be imminent. Only third-world countries have allowed this to happen. Some might say, “well if we cut spending, we wouldn’t have to increase the debt!” But this isn’t really true, not unless you’re fine with abolishing our Social Security and Medicare programs for our seniors, which account for nearly TWO-THIRDS of all spending. Yes, you read that right. Nearly TWO THIRDS. That means during these negotiations we are only arguing over 11% of all spending. Why? Because no one wants to touch Social Security, Medicare, Veterans benefits, or the military. That leaves all the other government agencies and programs which only account for 11% of spending. So, even if you abolished the entire federal government apart from the military, you WOULD STILL HAVE TO INCREASE THE DEBT LIMIT! So, given that there is no choice but to increase the debt ceiling, and given we only have control of the House, where does that leave us? With what options? The options are clear. They are (1) a Biden-preferred clean debt ceiling increase with no reforms, (2) a default and say goodbye to your 401k, or (3) a debt ceiling increase with all the reforms we got. Anyone claiming there is another option is being EXTREMELY dishonest with you. So what reforms did we get? About $1.5 TRILLION dollar decrease in spending over 10 years. Not bad. Environmental permitting reform which is HUGE for our energy sector. This means Biden can’t wait 10 years to allow a permit for a new highway lane or gas pipeline. We finally forced the reforms we’ve been trying to do for YEARS. Billions of dollars in investment and jobs for Texas will be unleashed because of this. We also got some additional work requirements on Food Stamp programs and required some spending limitations (called “pay as you go” requirements) on any administrative action taken by the Biden Administration. We also cut all funding for new IRS agents this year. There’s more, but those are the basics. The complaints from other Republicans aren’t about what’s in the bill, they’re about what’s not in the bill. But this is faulty logic. I can ALWAYS vote against something because it doesn’t have something I want. And it’s true, I can come up with a MILLION things this bill doesn’t have. No, it doesn’t fix our border, nor does it cure cancer, nor does it give me a new eye. But these are ridiculous excuses not to vote for a bill. Some Republicans will nitpick each of those wins and say they’re not enough. Well, I agree! They’re not enough! But that’s not that question. The QUESTION is (1) was this the best we could get? And (2) is it better than the alternatives, which is a clean debt ceiling increase or a default? The answers to both questions are very clearly YES. Many Members of Congress are afraid to take tough votes even when they know it’s the right thing to do. I’m not. Never have been. I could EASILY have taken the easy way out and voted “no,” and kept my voters in the dark about the truth. No one would write to me to complain about a “no” vote. But I won’t do that. I can’t help but tell you the truth. And the truth is that this bill was the best case scenario given the political reality we live in. There is no evidence from anyone that we could have negotiated a better outcome. None. Therefore, I had to vote yes."
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Jun 1, 2023 • 48min

How Bad Policies Created the Worst Drug Crisis in American History | John Walters

Former drug czar and president of Hudson Institute John Walters joined Rep. Crenshaw to give a comprehensive overview of the origins of the fentanyl epidemic. Walters explains how the Obama Administration’s policies made America’s drug crisis exponentially worse and he debunks pervasive myths among leftists and libertarians about President Bush’s “War on Drugs.” Rep. Crenshaw and Walters dive into the root causes of the fentanyl crisis and what policies we can implement to stop this deadly epidemic. John Walters was director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) and a cabinet member during the Bush administration. As the nation’s “drug czar,” Mr. Walters guided all aspects of federal drug policy and programs—supporting efforts that drove down teen drug use 25 percent, increased substance abuse treatment and screening in the healthcare system, and dramatically dropped the availability of cocaine and methamphetamine in the US. He is now the president and CEO of Hudson Institute and director of Hudson’s Center for Substance Abuse Research Policy. Follow him on Twitter at @@john_walters_
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May 23, 2023 • 51min

How to Prevent the Next World War | Rebeccah Heinrichs

National security expert Rebeccah Heinrichs joins Rep. Crenshaw to discuss strategic nuclear deterrence in the 21st century, the New Cold War against China and Russia, idealism vs realism in foreign affairs, and why America must re-establish itself as the global military and economic superpower if it hopes to survive. Rebeccah Heinrichs is a senior fellow at Hudson Institute and the director of its Keystone Defense Initiative. She specializes in US national defense policy with a focus on strategic deterrence. Ms. Heinrichs currently serves as a commissioner on the bipartisan Strategic Posture Commission, which was created in the Fiscal Year 2022 National Defense Authorization Act. She also serves on the US Strategic Command Advisory Group and the National Independent Panel on Military Service and Readiness. Follow her on Twitter at @RLHeinrichs.

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