

The Political Orphanage
Andrew Heaton
Politics minus bile plus jokes. Comedian and avowed independent Andrew Heaton interviews authors and thought leaders about policy and big thinky stuff.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Apr 23, 2019 • 1h 2min
Ep 107 | Conservatives on Climate Change | Guest: Stu Burguiere
Stu Burguiere joins Heaton to weigh in on climate change as a conservative — how alarmed we should be and what good and bad policies look like.

Apr 22, 2019 • 54min
Ep 106 | Capitalist Solutions to Global Warming | Guest: Jerry Taylor
Jerry Taylor, formerly of the Cato Institute and now president of the Niskanen Center, joins Heaton to talk about what pro-market solutions to global warming look like. Plus, Heaton spices up the Mueller report, and a new whisky-based sponsor.

Apr 19, 2019 • 40min
Ep 105 | Why Robots Will Never Replace Comedians — Friday Release Valve | Guest: Andrea Jones-Rooy
Back by popular acclaim, Andrea Jones-Rooy joins Heaton to sift through the week’s better headlines, from Pennsylvania’s new state amphibian, to dog catchers in tanks, to the Japanese version of “Breaking Bad.” Plus, why comedians don’t need to worry about getting replaced by robots anytime soon.

Apr 18, 2019 • 52min
Ep 104 | This Historian Can Predict Your Politics by Your Age | Guest: Neil Howe
Neil Howe is the historian and demographer who coined the term "millennial." He also developed the Strauss-Howe generational theory — the idea that America has four types of generations which go through cycles of history together. He joins Heaton to explain a different way to look at history and to pinpoint where we are in it.

Apr 17, 2019 • 50min
Ep 103 | How to Liposuction Bile out of Politics | Guest: Arthur Brooks
Hate is big business right now. So is fear. Arthur Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute, joins Heaton to talk about his book Love Your Enemies: How Decent People Can Save America from the Culture of Contempt. As well as his new film, “The Pursuit,” about the power of markets to solve poverty.

Apr 16, 2019 • 48min
Ep 102 | Bernie Sanders Visits Rupert Murdoch’s Death Star | Guest: Brian Brushwood
Bernie Sanders just held a town hall with Fox News...and came out on top. Brian Brushwood joins Heaton to slap socialism around, but also point out the surprising policies where Sanders and Trump converge.

Apr 15, 2019 • 34min
Ep 101 | Can Space Force Stop Somali Rocket Pirates? | Guest: Anthony Colangelo
Is a U.S. Space Force an inevitable step to protecting satellites and commercial space activities, or just an expensive exercise in shuffling Pentagon bureaucracies? Military and aerospace expert Anthony Colangelo joins Heaton to sort things out.

Apr 12, 2019 • 42min
Ep 100 | Playboy Bunny Lawn Ornaments—Friday Release Valve | Guest: Jaron Myers
Comedian Jaron Myers joins Heaton to probe the more obscure headlines of the week, from an incredibly polite Canadian car theft mystery, to robot burglars, to the world’s most ominous potatoes.

Apr 11, 2019 • 55min
Ep 99 | A British Slum Doctor Tackles Poverty | Guest: Theodore Dalrymple
Poverty and low standards of living are often thought to be the outcome of those at the financial and social top standing on the backs of everyone else. But what are some other possibilities? Theodore Dalrymple, author of "Life at the Bottom: The Worldview that Makes the Underclass," comes on the program to talk to Andrew about the influence of a generational welfare state and its impoverishment of stable, family-based values.

Apr 10, 2019 • 44min
Ep 98 | I Want to Build a Moon Base | Guest: Robert Zubrin
We’ve been to the moon a couple of times to collect rocks and go golfing, but what benefits would we get from building a permanent colony? Robert Zubrin is the author of “The Case for Space,” founder of the Mars Society, and president of Pioneer Astronautics. He joins Heaton to talk about how to build a moon base and how to get the private sector to do it cheap.