American Ground Radio

You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 12, 2026. 

We open with Elon Musk, the modern-day Daddy Warbucks, whose political giving has reached more than $276 million since July, according to Reuters. That makes him the largest known donor of the 2026 midterms, with $366 million across the full cycle. We break down where the money is going, including $158 million to the Senate Leadership Fund and a canvassing push aimed at Republican voters who are hard to get to the polls. We also revisit how Republican infighting handed Louisiana’s governor’s office to a Democrat, and why Democrats call it “buying an election” when Elon does it but “defending democracy” when George Soros does.

In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, Homeland Security officers raided Congresswoman Ilhan Omar’s office and D.C. home under a court-ordered warrant. New York has refused more than 16,000 ICE detainer requests tied to tens of thousands of criminal charges and convictions. An American was killed in a Houthi missile attack in Saudi Arabia that hit the civilian airport in Riyadh, and President Trump says retaliatory strikes are under consideration.

Next, we take on House Democrats’ push to rename Columbus Day as Indigenous Peoples Day. Why does honoring Native Americans have to come at the expense of Italian American heritage? Then we turn to the American Mamas, where Teri Netterville answers a listener question about Texas Senate candidate James Talarico. She covers his background, his theology, and clips of his own pastor and a fellow preacher suggesting his recent moderating is only a campaign strategy. The Mamas also ask whether voters are being told what they want to hear, and she recalls a similar experience with a former Shreveport mayor.

We also ask whether we’re letting the culture reshape our faith, after reading about Rob Sand’s home church in Des Moines, Iowa, and its drag performance events. In Digging Deep, we look at Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s announcement that the U.S. is sanctioning the International Criminal Court, the Department of Justice’s refusal of further ICC extradition requests, and why we say American sovereignty is not up for negotiation.

Then, is Disney World becoming the happiest place on earth only for those who can afford it? With peak-day park hopper tickets topping $300, we ask whether Disney owes the middle class anything. In our Bright Spot, a Reason article on a Congressional Budget Office report shows Americans are wealthier than they were decades ago. Lower-income households have seen their incomes rise sharply since 1979, and the average middle-class household has gone from about $84,700 in 1990 to more than $131,000 in 2023. So why doesn’t it feel that way? We go through bigger houses, more amenities, and the cars that now drive themselves. We close out by returning to New York’s refusal to honor ICE detainers and the categories of charges involved, including homicide, sexual offenses, assault, robbery, and kidnapping.

In our Moment of Whoa, 91-year-old Dale “Greybeard” Sanders finishes hiking the entire Appalachian Trail again, becoming the oldest person to do it for the second time. It gives “go take a hike” a whole new meaning.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 9, 2026. 

We open with a hard look at the unrest in France, where student protests over overcrowded classrooms and crumbling schools have turned into burning cars, injured police officers, and thousands of arrests. We ask what separates legitimate protest from a breakdown of law and order, and what the United States should take from it about immigration, assimilation, and national identity.

In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, we cover President Trump’s announcement of a deal with Russia to ship diesel to the U.S., and what it could mean for fuel prices and for critics on the left. We also cover the ICE shooting of a man in New York City who allegedly tried to ram officers with his car, and Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s failed push to have him released and ICE removed from the city. Third, Trump has named a new White House press secretary.

After the break, we bring you a first-world problem: a $5 million lawsuit over Reese’s Peanut Butter Pumpkins that don’t have a jack-o’-lantern face carved into them. Then it’s time for American Mamas, where Teri Netterville joins us to answer whether she’s proud to be white. We get into a viral video, the pressure young people feel, and where pride ends and shame begins.

On Columbus Day, we ask why celebrating a historical achievement has become something to apologize for, and whether we can honor what deserves honoring while learning from what went wrong. Then we dig deep into the Texas Senate race and the 13-day absence of Democratic candidate James Talarico, whom his campaign says had the flu. We look at why voters are skeptical, how politicians have handled health disclosures in the past, and what honesty from candidates should look like.

Next, we revisit Cassidy Hutchinson’s January 6th committee testimony about the presidential SUV, and what it means when sensational secondhand claims reach the public before they’ve been checked. Then it’s Fake News Friday, as we sort real news from fake news from really fake news, from hurricanes and daylight saving time to a human-versus-robot fight in California. We also look at what President Trump’s packed campaign schedule says about leaving it all on the field before the midterms. We close with a tribute to Mike Ditka, “Da Coach,” who passed away this week at 86.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 8, 2026. 

We open by taking on Congressman Ro Khanna, who says he isn’t fully confident Speaker Mike Johnson would seat a Democratic majority if the party wins the House this November. We challenge him to name a single time Johnson has lied, walk through the Arizona certification timeline behind Adelita Grijalva’s swearing-in, and explain why we think this is an invented constitutional crisis.

In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, the administration suspends H-1B and J-1 programs for some of the country’s biggest tech companies, with Vice President J.D. Vance singling out Microsoft. The USS Abraham Lincoln returns to San Diego after a 321-day deployment, and Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill announces the arrest of five St. Tammany Parish men in a Medicaid fraud case, two of whom are also accused of sending more than $100,000 to Hamas.

After the break, we look at Ohio Democrat Marcy Kaptur, who is now saying she opposes men in women’s sports even though she voted against a bill that would have banned it. Then it’s American Mamas, with Teri Netterville joining us to ask why powerful women in politics keep getting accused of creating toxic work environments. We talk Katie Porter, Mary Peltola, and what power does to people. We also get into how the left treats pro-life activists on campus.

It’s Fake News Friday, and we pick apart a Mother Jones headline claiming ICE kidnapped an 11-year-old boy. We lay out what actually happened, from the father’s detention to the child’s transfer to a protective agency. In Digging Deep, New York is fining Amish communities $2,000 a day per unvaccinated child after repealing the religious exemption. We look at their faith-based objections, the appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, and what the case means for everyone’s First Amendment rights. We also cover the San Jose pastor facing fines of up to $20,000 a day for feeding more than a thousand people a day for free.

In the Bright Spot, we celebrate celebrities who are choosing to stay out of politics, including Glen Powell, Dwayne Johnson, and Jennifer Lawrence, and talk about knowing your calling. We close with the Moment of Whoa: President Trump presents the National Medal of Science to Elon Musk, Jensen Huang, Sergey Brin, and Lisa Su, and we celebrate the ingenuity that built this country.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 7, 2026.

We open with Hollywood’s slide: President Trump’s proposed 100% tariff on foreign-made movies, and why it’s no longer a laughing matter. Movie production spending in the U.S. has dropped from 74% to 42% over 25 years, and TV from 94% to 64%. We look at the foreign incentives, California’s costs and union rules, and the surprising voice of Adam Schiff sounding the same alarm.

In our Top 3 Things You Need to Know, the FBI says it stopped a planned terror attack on the Mall of America. New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani used the third anniversary of October 7th to denounce Israel, and we have thoughts. President Trump also highlights a $3.7 billion Anduril nuclear submarine shipyard investment in Maryland, and Governor Wes Moore skips the event.

Then we turn to the midterms. New York Fed numbers show Americans feeling better about their jobs and incomes, and we debate whether that means a wave, a ripple, or just a hold for Republicans.

On American Mamas, Teri Netterville joins us to talk about Justin Verlander’s emotional final walk off the mound, hand in hand with his young daughter. She shares what it was like watching her own sons play their last college games.

For Digging Deep, we’re joined by Jay Paterno, author of the new novel Blitzed: The All-Out Pressure of College Football’s New Era. He explains the Protect College Sports Act, why NIL and the transfer portal have athletic department finances in crisis, and why students shouldn’t be footing the bill to pay football players. We also share Stephen’s trip to Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge.

Our Bright Spot is Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s speech in front of the Acropolis, a call to national pride, ambition, and putting your own people first. We pair it with a conversation about what it really means to be a melting pot, and a Minnesota sheriff’s call for a Somali crime task force.

We close with a plea for one day to remember the victims of October 7th. Then comes our Moment of Whoa: two adopted sisters, separated for years, discover each other on opposing high school softball teams in Montana.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 6, 2026. 

We open with a heavy question: do you agree with plea deals that take the death penalty off the table in exchange for a guaranteed life sentence? We walk through the case of 29-year-old Lauren Heike, killed on a Phoenix hiking trail in 2023. Her killer, Zion Teasley, has pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and will serve natural life in prison, a deal her family supports. We talk about what justice looks like when it can't bring her back, why nothing in his struggles excuses murder, and where we land on the death penalty as Christians.

Then it's the Top 3 Things You Need to Know. First, a U.S. Army officer is headed for a firing squad on the order of President Trump. Former Army Major Nidal Hasan was convicted of the 2009 Fort Hood attack, and it would be the military's first execution since 1961. Second, the President signed an executive order allowing the sale of red diesel to help truckers with soaring fuel costs. Third, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced a city-run program to pay for early childhood care for 10,000 kids, and we dig into the math behind it.

Next we remember Jim Bakker, who passed away at 86. We look at how he transformed Christian television, what happened when the preacher became a celebrity, and where ministry ends and brand begins.

In American Mamas, Teri Netterville joins us to ask whether the Cornell 7 case reminds you of the Duke lacrosse team. We compare the cases, the rush to judgment, and the role of ambitious prosecutors, and we get into what Letitia James's involvement could mean.

Then we have some fun with Los Angeles, where a transportation advocacy group has released a report called "Palm Trees Are a Scam." We debate shade, water use, fire hazards, and who gets to decide what's pretty on your own property.

In Digging Deep, we head to South America. Brazil's sitting president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, finished second to Senator Flavio Bolsonaro, and the two are headed to a runoff. That makes eight straight conservative wins across South and Central America since April 2025. We look at what's behind the wave, from the examples set by Argentina and El Salvador to the closing of USAID and the billions in democracy assistance spent abroad.

For our Bright Spot, a jury at the University of Maryland found that a falsely accused male student faced severe harassment and that the school was deliberately indifferent, the first time a jury has treated false sexual assault accusations as sex-based harassment under Title IX. He asked for just $1 in damages.

We also look at Paramount's completed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery and what it means for CNN, CBS, HBO, and even HGTV under one corporate roof.

We close with a Moment of Whoa from Buffalo. A valet at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, John Avery, lifted the spirits of cancer patients every day, and two of them returned the favor with a trip to a Buffalo Bills game and an autographed Josh Allen trophy.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 5, 2026.

We open with the voter ID fight, where polling shows around 80% of Americans, including big majorities of Republicans, Democrats, and independents, support photo ID and proof of citizenship to vote. We make the case that Democratic opposition isn't backed by any grassroots movement, and we point to Seattle, where you need an ID to be a poll observer but not to cast a ballot. Then it's the Top 3 things you need to know: three University of South Alabama students arrested by the FBI over social media posts allegedly plotting to kill President Trump, former Congressman David Rivera sentenced to 10 years for secretly lobbying for Venezuela's communist government, and a new round of DOJ arrests for illegal voting across several states.

We then turn to Congressman Brandon Gill's investigation into birth tourism and his warning that a Democratic House would drop it, and we ask whether candidates will answer the question plainly. On American Mamas, Teri Netterville joins us to talk about the FlyDubai flight and the passengers and crew who saved it, from the wounded pilot who opened the cockpit door to the dentist who pulled the plane out of a dive. We also dig into questions about how an attacker got a knife on board and what it means for aviation security.

Next, a surprising story out of Stanford, where 46 adults entered the Catholic Church this Easter, and what it says about young men returning to faith. For Digging Deep, we cover Monday's Supreme Court arguments in Boulder's climate lawsuit against oil companies, including the interstate commerce questions, Justice Alito's recusal, and what a 4-4 split could mean. We also react to Senator Tommy Tuberville's warning about furries in aviation. For our Bright Spot, Chick-fil-A's CEO says hospitality will stay human even as other chains put AI in the drive-thru. Then we weigh in on President Trump's anger over coverage of his Ohio rally and his call to arrest reporters. We close with a Moment of Whoa: FBI Director Kash Patel is engaged to country music artist Alexis Wilkins.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 2, 2026. 

We open with a story we think captures the American spirit: when storms grounded Marine One and Air Force One, President Trump got in the car and made the long drive from Denton, Texas, to Durant, Oklahoma, so a packed crowd wouldn't be left waiting in the rain. We talk about why that "get in the car, we're going" mentality matters, and about the difference between adapting to the world as it is and trying to control it.

In the Top 3 You Need to Know, first-time jobless claims fell to 197,000, the lowest level since 1969, and we ask why that isn't a bigger story. A Department of Energy employee from Washington state was arrested for allegedly trying to help the Houthis in Yemen improve their communications and build explosives. And the DOJ announced another round of arrests for illegal voting, including foreign nationals in Minnesota, bringing September's total to 50 nationwide.

After the break, we take on a heavier subject: a culture that seems to have lost the ability to process emotions, and the tragic stories that follow. We also share comedian Jimmy Carr's suggestion to say "I'm sad and worried" rather than defining yourself by a diagnosis.

Then it's American Mamas, where Teri Netterville joins us to weigh in on the Cornell 7 case and what the text messages and the public narrative say about it.

Next, the House has passed permanent daylight saving time, and President Trump wants the Senate to finish the job. Senator Tom Cotton is standing in the way over dark winter mornings. We debate the concerns, the health arguments for permanent standard time, and one far-fetched solution: a fifth time zone.

In Digging Deep, Gallup asked Americans which professions they consider the most and least courageous. We share the results, from first responders to politicians, and argue over where journalists, nurses, and business leaders belong.

We also discuss the Portland Trail Blazers firing their new 29-year-old play-by-play broadcaster over posts he wrote at age 15, and whether that's sound business or surrender to mob rule.

In Say What, we hear a politician with nothing to say, then Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed's answer on connecting with Black voters.

It's Fake News Friday, and we test our own instincts on real news, fake news, and really fake news. The headlines include the Fly Dubai hijacking, Iran urging American voters to vote Democrat, ID rules in Seattle, and a pet rescue's policy on adopting kittens.

We close with a Moment of Whoa: a Leawood, Kansas, police officer follows a loyal dog back to its home and finds the owner on the floor, unable to get up.

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 1, 2026. 

We open by asking whether the federal government should release the classified documents surrounding 9/11. Twenty-five years later, we say yes. We talk about protecting living intelligence sources and methods still used against terrorists, and about why the Saudi financing question and the FBI's findings still matter to the families. We also weigh whether releasing the records can calm the conspiracy theories.

In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, we cover the Texas Department of Public Safety stopping an alleged mass shooting plot at the state capitol in Austin, with a San Antonio-area man arrested by SWAT. We discuss Keith Sonderling's confirmation as Secretary of Labor after Lori Chavez-DeRemer's resignation. We also look at the Tennessee execution that failed to kill Krista Pike, which led Governor Bill Lee to halt all executions in the state.

After the break, we ask Senate Majority Leader John Thune why he sent the Senate home until after the midterms without passing the Save America Act. We also hit the blocked voter ID bill and the stalled spending bills. Then the American Mamas, Teri Netterville and Kimberly Burleson, join us to break down the Hyrox race in Beijing, where one contestant's very public digestive disaster has people talking about biohazards, lawsuits, and rule changes.

Next, we take on the price of gas. We ask why the same voices who spent years pushing away from fossil fuels are now angry that gas is expensive, and we look at what that means in oil-heavy Texas. In Digging Deep, we get into the Census Bureau's proposed rules for 2030: dropping race and ethnicity questions and excluding non-citizens from the count. We walk through how that could reshuffle House seats and Electoral College votes, why the 14th Amendment fight is headed to the Supreme Court, and why Democrats will fight it so hard.

We also look at Britain's prison overcrowding crisis, where thousands of inmates are being released after serving a third of their sentences, and why we say you can't be tough on crime without building enough jails. In the Bright Spot, we recognize President Trump for pressing Nigeria's government to stop a planned massacre of Christians in the Middle Belt, and we call out the media for barely covering it. We close with a Moment of Whoa: an Indianapolis mom who pulled a gun over a toy car in a children's resale shop. Then a feel-good finish, as Manville High School senior Mason Wisnowski, who has Down syndrome, takes a handoff and runs 30 yards into the end zone on senior night.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 30, 2026. 

We open with a warning for the midterms: when politicians tell you what they plan to do, believe them. We walk through the health care and policy wish list a House Democratic working group has sent to Hakeem Jeffries, including Medicare for All, the Women's Health Protection Act, vaccine coverage, immigration enforcement limits, and a promised 100-hour blitz once they take control. We also explain why we think none of it gets past a presidential veto.

In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, we cover a FlyDubai flight bound for Tel Aviv where a pilot stabbed a fellow pilot and sent the plane into a steep dive. Passengers and two off-duty pilots saved the day and landed the jet safely in Saudi Arabia. We also look at second-quarter GDP growth of 2.2%, which beat expectations thanks to data center construction and a two-year high in manufacturing jobs. And we note that the last U.S. troops have left Iraq, which we compare to the Afghanistan withdrawal.

Next, we dig into word that the California State University system may drop its English proficiency test for international students. Then we welcome back our American Mamas, Teri Netterville and Kimberly Burleson, to talk about the "I Once Was" signs memory care facilities are using on social media. The conversation turns to honoring the elderly, our own grandparents, and the dignity Nancy Reagan preserved for her husband.

In Digging Deep, we ask "Who is they?" and why the "what they don't want you to know" clickbait is a scam. Then we get into a University of Chicago study on how long it takes to permit and build housing from 2000 to 2025. We compare the slowest cities, like San Francisco, Miami, and New York, against the fastest, like Raleigh, Grand Rapids, and Reno. We also look at what that means for supply, costs, and the affordability crisis candidates are running on.

Then comes our Bright Spot: a federal judge has blocked the University of California's pronoun policies and its required transgender ideology quiz before class registration, in a win for the First Amendment and the right not to be compelled to speak. In our Moment of Whoa, Attorney General Todd Blanche explains why inaccurate reporting is a national security issue when our adversaries are reading it too. And we close with the story of 12-year-old Sloan from Phoenix, who started a diaper drive at age seven and just delivered 30,000 diapers to a local food bank.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 29, 2026. 

We open with the Supreme Court's ruling that lets the administration keep deporting illegal immigrants to third countries while the case works its way through the courts. We ask who holds the constitutional authority to decide whether a foreign national can stay in the United States, and we also dig into the inspector general's finding that roughly 40 percent of sampled Afghan asylum files had vetting and documentation errors under the Biden administration.

In our Top 3 You Need to Know, former special counsel Jack Smith testifies before a Senate committee, and Senator Chuck Grassley calls his operation a partisan weapon. An illegal immigrant from Venezuela who was shot by ICE agents in Austin is now charged with assaulting an officer. President Trump announces America.gov, a free chatbot that searches 29,000 government websites. Then we turn to Governor Gavin Newsom and the No Kings Act, and to why we think the law won't survive a federal supremacy challenge.

On American Mamas, Teri Netterville and Kimberly Burleson answer the question: how would you feel if your church publicized what you tithed each week? They talk about Matthew 6, the widow's penny, and why the heart of the giver matters more than the dollar amount.

In Digging Deep, we look at the CDC's latest high school survey. It shows a drop in LGBT identification among younger teens, along with improvements in reported sadness, poor mental health, and suicidal thoughts. We ask whether the two trends are connected and what might have changed. We also cover a Capitol Hill hearing on the government's COVID response, where attorney Ralph Lorigio testifies about his court fights to get ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine to hospitalized patients. We discuss why doctors and medical institutions followed CDC guidance.

For our Bright Spot, we start with Speaker Mike Johnson and Governor Jeff Landry pushing back on fears about data centers. They compare the water use to golf courses and argue that the United States can't afford to let China win the AI infrastructure race. Then we get to the Protect College Sport Act, which passed the Senate 77 to 22 with sponsors from both parties. It would limit transfers, set rules for conference changes, and stop coaches from leaving mid-season, and we debate whether it's a job for the federal government.

We close with a Moment of Whoa. Secretary of State Marco Rubio's plan would let first-time passport applicants do everything online by the end of 2027. 

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 28, 2026. 

We open by taking on a Kansas Senate candidate and former United Methodist pastor, Adam Hamilton, who preached a sermon calling for repentance over beef and cattle. We ask where that's found in Scripture, what happens when climate becomes the highest moral authority, and why the third-largest cattle state in America isn't likely to send him to Washington.

In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, we cover an alleged Iranian-backed terror plot to blow up a U.S. air base in England, and why the suspects are already out on bail. We also look at the announcement of the largest steel mill in American history, a $15 billion project in Iowa, and at the Department of Transportation rolling back Biden-era fuel economy standards, which the administration says will lower new car prices by an average of $1,300.

Next, we break down Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's plan to rein in private college costs by making public college tuition-free. We explain why "free" really means paid for by taxpayers, including those who never went to college, and how government involvement helped create runaway tuition in the first place.

On American Mamas, Teri Netterville and Kimberly Burleson join us to talk about the disturbing trend of "abortion announcements" that mimic pregnancy announcements, and what the language of "baby canceled" admits about the argument behind them.

Then we look at the "clock" Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has put on Iran, with roughly two weeks before its oil revenue runs dry and the week of October 12th flagged as the one to watch, all part of Operation Economic Outcast.

In Digging Deep, we test the logic of Steny Hoyer's op-ed urging Americans to vote Democrat. We check his claims on gas prices, housing costs, and inflation against the data, and we ask what the Democratic agenda actually is.

We also share a Substack piece by an author writing as Abstract Truth, a defense of men and masculinity that asks why so many women who value the good men in their lives stay quiet about it.

In our Bright Spot, we cover Pope Leo's message in France rejecting euthanasia and "false compassion," and the reminder that what is legal is not necessarily moral.

We close with a Moment of Whoa, marking the 245th anniversary of George Washington's arrival at Yorktown, and a look at what America can do when it believes in itself.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 25th, 2026. 

We open by asking whether Xi Jinping is as secure as he looks, after his visit with President Trump. We look at Peter Schweizer's warning about the expulsion of two senior Chinese military leaders, and at the Gorbachev-era Soviet Union, and we debate whether China could face a comparable transformation.

In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, the Senate rejects a war powers resolution on Iran by a 50 to 49 vote, with Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, and Thom Tillis crossing the aisle. James Copenhaver, wounded in the Butler assassination attempt on President Trump, has died, making him the second fatality from that day. New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill also calls on Lieutenant Governor Dale Caldwell to resign after an ethics investigation.

Then we head to Oviedo, Florida, where an 11-year-old riding an electric bike 300 feet from home to go fishing was fingerprinted, cited, and had his bike impounded. We ask whether anybody is using common sense. In American Mamas, Teri Netterville and Kimberly Burleson weigh in on what to do when you know someone is talking about you: confront them, or tell your side of the story. We share stories, advice from our mothers, and a favorite line from Stephen's pastor about defending yourself.

In Digging Deep, we take on the growing number of people justifying the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, including comedian Bill Burr's comments, and draw the line between criticizing a business and rationalizing violence. We also look at Washington, D.C.'s push for new taxes, including a pied-à-terre tax, and ask whether the city has a revenue problem or a spending problem. After that, we react to Congressman Mike Quigley's claim that America's only option in Iran is humiliating withdrawal.

It's Fake News Friday, and we play real news, fake news, or really fake news with headlines about ICE, the Babylon Bee, Canada, and even robot relations departments. In a Moment of Whoa, we reflect on New York's Medical Aid in Dying Act and the sanctity of life, then end on a lighter note with Dolly Parton Day celebrated across the country.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 24, 2026.

We open by tackling the socialism debate head-on, breaking it down with a fifth-grade-simple question about neighbors and fairness before diving into a new Gallup poll showing 43% of Americans now hold a positive view of socialism — the highest number recorded since 2010. We explore the contradiction of Americans loving free enterprise and small business while flirting with socialist ideas they don't fully understand, and we draw the line between legitimate public services like roads and schools versus actual government ownership of production.

From there we hit our Top 3 Things You Need to Know: a federal judge's temporary injunction forcing the White House to reinstate press credentials for CNN, MSNBC, and Politico.  Twenty people charged with illegal voting in Florida's 2024 election, including sixteen alleged illegal aliens.  And the messy vandalism scandal involving former Senator Kyrsten Sinema's ex-boyfriend and bodyguard.

We then discuss President Trump's high-profile hosting of China's Xi Jinping at the White House, weighing the optics of diplomacy against real disagreements over trade, Taiwan, and human rights, and comparing the tone of that visit to the infamous Zelensky Oval Office meeting.

Our American Mamas, Teri Netterville and Kimberly Burleson, join us to answer the question: what's a sign your church is thriving? They share how youth engagement — or the lack of it — can make or break a congregation, and why getting kids excited about church is the real key to growth.

We dig deep into the fascinating claims out of Turkey, where researchers investigating the Durupinar Formation on Mount Ararat say they've found signs of a man-made structure that could be Noah's Ark — though we remain skeptical of the "100% confirmed" headlines.

We also talk about the very different ways men and women read a story about Melania Trump's outfit at the Xi Jinping state visit, before landing on a Bright Spot: the Department of Justice reaching settlements with six major hospitals to end transgender procedures on minors. We close with the heartwarming story of 12-year-old Sadie Hudson, who repaired and donated 114 stuffed animals to the Red Cross for children who've lost everything in house fires.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 23, 2026.

We open with a troubling new survey from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, which asked nearly 70,000 undergraduates at 257 schools about silencing speakers. More than a third said violence to stop a campus speech is acceptable to some degree. We ask what happened to real debate, why so many parents are going into debt for this kind of education, and share our own experience of a Hofstra University panel that was called off over safety concerns.

In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, a federal judge lets President Trump's ban of CNN, MSNOW, and Politico from the White House briefing room stand while he weighs the case. The federal government also purges 760,000 fraudulent Obamacare enrollments, a move expected to save taxpayers $2.2 billion. And a Utah postal worker is indicted for allegedly dumping about 300 mail-in ballots in a church parking lot dumpster, which is one more reason we make the case for showing up in person on Election Day.

We then question a Texas Senate candidate's church after its pastor's Easter sermon claimed Jesus never rose from the dead. In American Mamas, Teri Netterville and Kimberly Burleson help us tackle why marriage rates are falling, from wedding-industry pressure to dating apps, politics, and fatherlessness. Next, we look at Christopher Rufo's reporting on the $11 billion California has spent on benefits for illegal immigrants.

In Digging Deep, we go to the text of the Second Amendment and a New Jersey lawsuit over the state's ban on carrying everyday objects like bats, knives, and batons for self-defense. In our Bright Spot, a Biden-appointed judge tosses Michigan's antitrust lawsuit against big oil. A Greenfield, Massachusetts lesbian bar takes heat over its mask rules, and in the Moment of Whoa, Rep. Pramila Jayapal claims women make better negotiators than men. We close with a 47-year-old pastor who walked onto a junior college football team and finally got in the game.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 22, 2026. 

We open with the ICE agent shooting in North Austin, Texas, where a man who was driving for DoorDash was shot after ICE says he tried to run over an agent with his car. We look at Texas Republican Congressman Brandon Gill's charge that Democrats reflexively side with illegal immigrants, and at Austin council member Mike Siegel calling the agent the "ICE shooter" who committed a "likely crime." We also talk about why serious investigations, including a role for the Texas Rangers, should follow any shooting by law enforcement, and why officers and the people they detain should both be held to the rule of law.

In the Top 3 You Need to Know, we cover President Trump's address to the United Nations General Assembly, including his warning to Iran over nuclear weapons. We also cover the new Greenland security deal with Denmark and Greenland, and the latest twist in Missouri's congressional map fight after the Eighth Circuit's ruling, which leaves it unclear which maps will be used in November.

Next, we react to Kamala Harris and Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed discussing maternal health care, and to Harris's use of the phrase "birthing people." We look at the CDC's maternal mortality numbers for Black women and ask whether voters care more about their bank accounts than about the language.

Then the American Mamas, Teri Netterville and Kimberly Burleson, join us to answer the question: did Sydney Sweeney break women? They weigh in on her new ad, the reaction to it, and whether the outrage is really about who is doing the posing.

After that, we take on profanity, drinking, and smoking in sports broadcasting. That includes Tom Brady's on-air slip during the Cowboys-Commanders game and Pat McAfee's antics, and we debate whether "authentic" has to mean "vulgar."

In Digging Deep, we go through a Liberal Currents poll on how Democrats say they'd feel about Trump being removed from office. The options ranged from impeachment and conviction to the 25th Amendment to a military coup, and some of the numbers are startling.

We also ask whether Tom Cruise wanting directors to read him the script is arrogance or smart leadership, and what the rest of us could learn from listening instead of reading.

Our Bright Spot is three-time Olympic gold medalist Nancy Hogshead and her petition asking the WNBA to make clear that "woman" means female for eligibility purposes. It has nearly 22,000 signatures and support from Charles Barkley and Martina Navratilova, and we read some of the comments from women athletes who signed.

We finish with Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce getting caught up in a $35 million Ponzi scheme, and a Moment of Whoa: a Joby Aviation Cessna Caravan flew across the country with no pilot aboard, about 3,200 miles.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 21, 2026. 

We open with the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, starting with the midterm outlook and a deep dive on dueling polls—Polymarket, The Economist, the New York Times/Siena survey, and a new Marquette Law School poll—all pointing different directions on control of the House and Senate. We debate whether apathy or overconfidence among Republican voters could tip the balance, and weigh the influence of figures like Tucker Carlson and Thomas Massie on the party's cohesion. From there we cover President Trump's announcement of a new "AI Force" and a forthcoming AI czar, his decision to bar Politico, CNN, and MSNBC from the White House press pool, and the Fifth Circuit's ruling striking down the federal ban on interstate handgun sales.

We then turn to the Secretary of the Air Force's stunning revelation that the U.S. Space Force already possesses an operational orbital weapons system, and what that could mean for satellite defense and missile tracking.

Next up is American Mamas, where Teri Netterville and Kimberly Burleson join us to discuss the fallout around the Lindsay Clancy juror who was doxxed after the trial, the racial undertones in the media coverage, and the broader conversation about jury tampering and accountability.

We dig deep into President Trump's remarks calling the Butler, Pennsylvania assassination attempt a "Democrat plot," parsing what he may have meant and where the Secret Service's conduct under the Biden administration fits in. We also break down the new U.S.-Greenland agreement, why it matters far more strategically than the Danish press is letting on, and what it means for Arctic defense and mineral access.

We touch on a First Amendment ruling against a University of California misgendering policy and what it means for free speech on campus, then land on our Bright Spot: Toys R Us announcing 120 new standalone retail stores nationwide this Christmas, and why getting kids into physical stores again matters. We close out with a look at a study on how Democratic versus Republican women view men, and a Moment of Whoa about an 84-year-old man returning a library book 130 years overdue.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. Stephen is taking some well-deserved time off, so Louis is flying solo today. This is the full show for September 14, 2026.

We open on the public charge fight, as New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle and other left-wing city governments sue the Trump administration over the rule reimposed in July that makes legal immigrants less likely to secure green cards if they've used welfare benefits like subsidized health care, food stamps or public housing. Mayors Zohran Mamdani and Brandon Johnson argue immigrant families shouldn't have to choose between feeding their kids and protecting their status, but we make the case that America is really having two different conversations at once: whether we should help people who are struggling, and whom we should admit as permanent residents. Those aren't the same question, and asking whether someone can support himself isn't xenophobia — it's the whole reason we have an immigration system in the first place.

Then it's the Top 3 things you need to know: oil back above $100 with Brent settling near $106 a barrel, the 10-year Treasury yield briefly touching 5% for the first time since 2023, the biggest names in AI development suddenly urging everyone to slow down while AI stocks slide, and ICE arrests hitting record levels even as deportations fail to keep pace.

From there we get into outgoing Houston Democrat Al Green, who lost his May runoff and is spending his final weeks in Congress forcing yet another dead-on-arrival impeachment resolution against President Trump over ICE and Customs and Border Protection. Even his own party is grumbling about the timing, with Axios reporting Democratic lawmakers privately calling it a distraction heading into the midterms. We argue impeachment is one of the gravest constitutional remedies Congress possesses, not a button you mash every time you lose a policy argument — and voters are far more focused on kitchen table issues like the car note, the house note and affording a first home.

We also respond to former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and her comments about black women feeling conditioned to handle everything themselves, which she traces to a post-traumatic slave mentality. Before we run that line straight back to slavery, we look at what happened in between: in 1960, nearly a century after emancipation, Census data showed two-thirds of black children living with both parents, and less than twenty years later fewer than half did. The Great Society programs of the 1960s did enormous damage to the black nuclear family, and that history belongs in the conversation.

Next, a story that's both sad and necessary — twenty rabbis from twelve states traveling to Los Angeles for a five-day intensive security course sponsored by Magen Am USA, with 37 applicants for only 20 spots. The training covers firearm safety, situational awareness, de-escalation and knowing when not to use force. The real question isn't why rabbis are learning about firearms. It's why we've reached a point in this country where they believe they have to.

Then we break down the extraordinary weekend argument over artificial intelligence in plain English. President Trump says America is winning the AI race, China desperately wants us to slow down, and the only guardrails AI needs is a strong and smart president. On the other side stand the people actually building the technology — Dario Amodei of Anthropic, Sam Altman of OpenAI and Elon Musk of xAI — warning that we must slow the pace of capability improvement so safety can catch up. We explain recursive self-improvement using a car that builds a better car, and why the real worry isn't a chatbot growing legs and chasing you around the kitchen but systems doing complicated work faster than humans can monitor them.

We also take on the NFL's 11% ratings decline for the 2026 Patriots-Seahawks opener, which drew 25 million viewers — still enormous, but the lowest kickoff audience since 2022. Was it woke fatigue, the move from Thursday to Wednesday, Nielsen's new measurement methodology, or simple overextension across Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Thanksgiving Eve, Netflix and Peacock? We side with Jon Gruden on the league's record nine international games across seven countries and four continents: if you want to grow the game, grow it here. Football belongs to Friday nights in small towns, marching bands, homecoming and fathers throwing the ball with their sons.

For our Moment of Whoa, we head to the homeless encampment under the FDR Drive near 23rd Street in Manhattan, where cleaning one block on Monday just moves the problem three blocks over by Thursday. It isn't compassionate to leave a human being sleeping beside piles of garbage.

And we close with Words of Wisdom about a restless, distracted boy whose teacher saw no point in continuing his education — so his mother taught him herself. He went on to fail thousands of times searching for a filament that would burn long enough to make electric light practical, seeing information where everyone else saw failure. His name was Thomas Alva Edison.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 11, 2026. 

We start the show sounding the alarm on new findings from Anthropic that a China-based actor used its Claude AI model to help draft an anti-torpedo system specification for a Chinese defense manufacturer supplying the PLA Navy, and we talk through how AI is now being used to scrape public photos and data into targeting intelligence against U.S. military personnel and installations.

We move into our Top 3: President Trump marking the 25th anniversary of 9/11 with a ceremony at the Pentagon, the deportation of an ISIS sympathizer who plotted an Election Day mass shooting at a Texas polling place, and a Maryland synagogue winning a court injunction against a county ban on firearms in houses of worship.

For American Mamas, we're joined by Teri Netterville to talk about how this year's 9/11 anniversary hit differently, and we revisit the story of Todd Beamer's final phone call aboard Flight 93. 

We Dig Deep into new numbers on Gen Z and abortion, along with research linking shared last names in marriage to lower divorce rates, and we explain why we believe President Trump's strikes on Iran couldn't wait any longer. 

Then it's Fake News Friday, where we separate real headlines from fake ones, including Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani laughing on camera during the reading of 9/11 victims' names. 

We close with words of wisdom on 9/11 from George Pataki, George Bush, Sandy Dahl, and Newt Gingrich.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776. 

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 10, 2026.

We dig into President Trump’s proposed $5,000 “Trump dividend” and the bigger economic and political questions surrounding it. If the proposal became reality, what would it mean for federal spending, tariffs, the national debt, and the role of government in the economy? We debate whether sending money directly to Americans is sound economic policy—or simply another form of government spending—and ask whether the proposal creates an unexpected political dilemma for Democrats.

In our Top 3 Things You Need to Know, we examine the latest legal twists surrounding Missouri’s congressional redistricting map, Democratic primary shakeups in Rhode Island, and new prison sentences in the Feeding Our Future welfare fraud case.

American Mamas Teri Netterville joins us as we look back one year after the assassination of Charlie Kirk and asks how his life should be remembered. We discuss his faith, his commitment to engaging people with whom he disagreed, and the three questions he reportedly kept at the center of his daily life: How can I help someone today? How can I add value to the world today? How can I honor God today?

Then, we welcome Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz. Dershowitz discusses his decision to leave the Democratic Party and become what he calls a “reluctant Republican,” as well as his new book, Why I Quit the Dems and So Should You. He explains how his political views have evolved, why he believes the Democratic Party has moved away from his views on issues including the economy and foreign policy, and why he still describes himself as a libertarian on many issues.

With the 25th anniversary of September 11 approaching, we also reflect on what Americans remember about that day—not only the attacks and the loss of nearly 3,000 lives, but the way ordinary Americans responded. We talk about the instinct to go home and be with family, the instinct to go to work and help, and the extraordinary sense of unity that emerged in the aftermath.

Our Bright Spot features Congressman Brandon Gill and his speech at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, followed by a discussion about remembering the work, sacrifice, ingenuity, and values that helped build the United States.

We close with a moving Moment of Whoa as 2,977 drones illuminate the New York City skyline in the shape of the World Trade Center towers—one for every person killed on September 11, 2001.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776.

You're listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for September 9, 2026. 

We open with the Trump administration's proposed rule to exclude illegal aliens from the census when apportioning congressional seats. We dig into the constitutional debate over the 14th Amendment's "whole number of persons" language, work through a household-voting analogy, and ask who should actually count when it comes to political representation.

In our Top 3 Things You Need to Know, we cover Iran firing on ships in the Strait of Hormuz and rising oil prices, the escalating trade war with Canada over alcohol, dairy, and auto tariffs, and the tangled fight over which congressional map Missouri will use this fall.

Our American Mamas, Teri Netterville and Kimberly Burleson, join us to answer a listener's question about letting kids climb trees, and we swap stories about the riskier playgrounds and looser parenting of our own childhoods.

We dig deep into why so few states mandate 9/11 education, walking through which states require it by law versus by curriculum standard, and why remembering "never forget" matters for a generation born after the attacks.

We also take on Texas Senate candidate James Talarico's walk-back of his past claims about gender and God, question Mitch McConnell's silence amid new scrutiny of his transparency, and find our bright spot in a New York Times story about AI displacing Kenyan essay-writers who'd been doing American college students' homework for pay.

We close with our Moment of Whoa on honesty and integrity, featuring quotes from A.R. Rahman, Warren Buffett, and Mother Teresa.

Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776.