Heritage Explains

New York Times journalist James Reston once quipped that "This is the devilish thing about foreign affairs: they are foreign and will not always conform to our whim." Never have those words been truer than now.The world is a very dangerous place at the moment. We are still engaged in Iran, with little sign of things improving. China looms large in Asia, though we have abruptly stopped engaging with regional ally South Korea on military drills. The Ukraine/Russia war continues to rage, all while America’s defensive capabilities are under increased scrutiny.It’s a lot to take in, but we think we have just the guy to break it down. Bob Peters is the Director for the Heritage Foundation’s Douglas and Sarah Allison Center for National Security. He’s here to walk us through the dire threats facing the nation from abroad.

Portland was once held up as a model of urban America: a walkable, vibrant city known for parks, restaurants, breweries, and a thriving downtown.Today, record office vacancies, rampant homelessness, drug use, and shuttered businesses have turned the City of Roses into a warning for other American cities.So what happened?On this episode of Heritage Explains, we’re joined by Heritage Senior Fellow Mike Gonzalez, author of Next Gen Marxism, to examine the ideological forces reshaping Portland and cities like it.We discuss how political activism can displace basic governance, why failing local leaders so often escape accountability, how modern Marxism differs from its predecessors, whether the Left is really moving away from “woke” politics, and why schools, museums, universities, and other civic institutions have become central battlegrounds in America’s political divide.Can cities like Portland pull themselves back from the brink, or is their decline a preview of what’s coming elsewhere?Follow Mike on X: https://x.com/GundisalvusGet the book here: https://www.amazon.com/NextGen-Marxism-What-How-Combat/dp/1641773537

The last Supreme Court term was a very busy and consequential one. With decisions from redistricting to birthright citizenship to boys in girls’ sports, many cases made headlines and there is a lot to talk about. That’s why we decided to bring you a very special bonus episode this week. Heritage Action’s Doug Blair sat down with Heritage legal fellows Cully Stimson and Zack Smith to break down the cases and highlight the big takeaways. --- Follow Cully Stimson on X: https://x.com/cullystimson?lang=en Follow Zack Smith on X: https://x.com/tzsmith --- Email us at [email protected]

When President Trump took office in January of 2025, he signed 26 executive orders on the first day. In that pile of executive orders was one entitled: Protecting the Meaning and Value of American American Citizenship. In it, the president directed that federal officials were not to issue documents recognizing United States citizenship to anyone who is born in the country to illegal immigrants or legal migrants here in a temporary capacity. This practice, known as birthright citizenship, has gathered a lot of attention over the last few years for the immigration chaos it has created. Last month, the Supreme Court, in Trump v. Barbara, decided that the executive order was unconstitutional. Now, conservatives are looking for ways to preserve American sovereignty. Here to discuss some ideas for how to make that happen is Roger Severino, Vice President of Economics and Public Policy, here at the Heritage Foundation. --- Roger Severino on X: https://x.com/RogerSeverino_--- Email us at [email protected]