Defending Ideas

One of the biggest challenges facing the economy in recent years, at both the national and state levels, is persistent workforce shortages across different industries. With more jobs than qualified workers, leaders in states like Utah are confronting the gap between education and training institutions and the needs of employers. On this episode of Defending Ideas, Nic Dunn is joined by Jordan Hill and Amy Andre from Talent Ready Utah to explore how work-based learning, apprenticeships, and career-connected education are helping to bridge that gap.
 
What’s working in Utah? Why aren’t more companies using apprenticeships? And how can we build a system that values all postsecondary pathways — whether academic or technical? From reshaping public attitudes to advancing smart policy, this episode highlights a principled path forward that empowers students, strengthens opportunity, and fuels a thriving workforce.
 
Guests:

• Jordan Hill, Assistant Commissioner of Industry Workforce Initiatives, Talent Ready Utah
• Amy Andre, State Work-Based Learning Intermediary, Talent Ready Utah

Show notes:

• Talent Ready Utah — Utah System of Higher Education
• Work & Opportunity Initiative — Sutherland Institute

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

America is a compassionate country. But what if the way we’ve been “helping” those in poverty actually makes things worse?

On this episode, host Nic Dunn sits down with James Whitford, founder and executive director of True Charity and Watered Gardens Ministries, and author of “The Crisis of Dependency: How Our Efforts to Solve Poverty Are Trapping People in It, and What We Can Do to Foster Freedom Instead.”

They explore the unintended consequences of well-meaning welfare programs and handout-style charity, discussing how both public assistance and private aid can unintentionally foster dependency — and why restoring dignity, emphasizing work, and leaning on local solutions rooted in the principle of subsidiarity could offer a better path forward. With real-life stories, policy insights, and a vision to supercharge civil society, this conversation invites listeners to rethink poverty, charity, and the American dream.

Show notes:

• The Crisis of Dependency: How Our Efforts to Solve Poverty Are Trapping People in It, and What We Can Do to Foster Freedom Instead
• True Charity
• Watered Gardens Ministries
• Sutherland Institute Work & Opportunity Initiative

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

A couple of weeks have passed since the July 4th celebrations, and after the fireworks fade and the flags are stored away, does our feeling of patriotism linger? What does patriotism mean today?

In this special solo episode, host Nic Dunn reflects on the enduring responsibility of American citizens — not just to celebrate freedom, but to live it out. Drawing from the example of the Founders and generations of patriots who followed, this episode explores why true love of country means fidelity to principle, faith in our institutions, and the hard but hopeful work of persuasion. A timely call to elevate our civic engagement and embrace the full meaning of American independence in 2025 and beyond.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

College has long been seen as a gateway to opportunity and upward mobility. But today, fewer young men are pursuing higher education, accounting for just two out of every five degrees in the U.S. — a reversal of trends seen a generation ago.
 
On this episode, Host Nic Dunn is joined once again by Defending Ideas Feature Contributor and AEI Senior Fellow Beth Akers. Together, they explore this growing gender gap in higher education with Mike Kofoed, an economist and professor at the Haslam College of Business and the Boyd Center for Business & Economic Research at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Melinda Brock of the American Institute for Boys and Men.

They discuss why male enrollment and completion rates are declining, and whether college is still seen as a worthwhile path for young men, tying these trends to broader cultural questions: Are young men retreating from institutions of civil society altogether, like work, education, and community? And how should society respond? 

Show notes:

• Wanted: More young men enrolling in college
• New national survey data sheds light on the “silent, struggling subset” of American men
• Higher Education Male Achievement Collaborative

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Is our higher‑education system doing enough to meet the real needs of today’s job market? With a serious shortage of skilled workers across key industries, many are asking whether we’ve overinvested in traditional academia and underinvested in skill‑based training.

On this episode of Defending Ideas, Nic Dunn sits down with Illinois Policy Institute Head of Policy Josh Bandoch to discuss his new paper, Beyond Degrees: Empowering Illinoisans through career-first education. They explore the notion of adopting a career‑first mindset in education with apprenticeships playing a central role—rebalancing our system to lift more people into dignified, in‑demand professions.
 
Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Teachers are stretched thin, but artificial intelligence could help.

On this episode of Defending Ideas, host Nic Dunn talks with Caleb Hicks, CEO of SchoolAI, about how AI tools are enhancing personalized learning, supporting one-on-one instruction, and improving classroom outcomes.

Also joining is Sutherland Institute’s Christine Cooke Fairbanks, who explores how Utah and other states are approaching AI in schools, and how policymakers can balance innovation with accountability. 

• How AI supports teachers, not replaces them
• Real classroom examples of AI use
• State policy on AI in education

Show notes:

• Does AI belong in home schooling?
• How AI could prevent teacher burnout
• Utah’s path to leadership on Artificial Intelligence in education

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Should Medicaid include work requirements? Utah thinks so. On this episode, host Nic Dunn talks with Nate Checketts, deputy director of the Utah Department of Health & Human Services, about Utah’s push for a Medicaid work requirement. They discuss:

• Utah's federal waiver request
• Benefits cliffs and incentives
• How to build a pro-work safety net
• What reforms are needed in Washington, D.C.

Show notes:

• State of Utah Medicaid Work Requirement Waiver Request
• What Both Sides Are Missing About Medicaid Work Requirements
• Work & Opportunity Initiative

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.




Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

This week marks the 100th episode of Defending Ideas—and to celebrate, we’re joined by one of the nation’s leading conservative thinkers. Ramesh Ponnuru is editor of National Review, a columnist for The Washington Post, and a nonresident senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.
 
In this milestone conversation, Ramesh and host Nic Dunn explore the current state of the conservative movement, where it’s headed, and how to build a forward-looking, reform-minded vision grounded in constitutional principles and the promise of the American Dream.
 
If you’re ready to move beyond short-term political fights and focus on what conservatism should stand for, this episode is for you.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Imagine getting access to potentially life-saving medical care or screenings in the same place you buy shampoo. Thanks to artificial intelligence — coupled with advances in telehealth — this is already happening.

The impact of AI on healthcare certainly raises important questions, such as whether AI will ultimately replace your doctor or simply help them better do their jobs. To explore this, Nic Dunn sat down with Naomi Lopez, founder and principal of Nexus Policy Consulting and contributor to a range of state-based public policy institutions. They discuss the promises and potential concerns that may arise as the use of this technology becomes more widespread.
 
Show Notes:

• AI in Healthcare 2025: A Toolkit for State Lawmakers
• Lifesaving AI in Aisle 12?
• AI-Supported Mammogram Reading Detects 20% More Cancers
• Supporting Mothers, Strengthening Futures: Reforming Tennessee’s Policies for Families with Young Children

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

President Trump’s tariffs have reignited a national debate: Are they a path to restoring working-class prosperity, or a protectionist misstep that ultimately hurts American consumers?
 
Defenders of tariffs often argue that the measures will restore manufacturing jobs, which they claim have suffered and negatively impacted the economic prospects of male workers in particular. The more traditional economic view is that tariffs amount to a tax on American consumers, and that claims of broad benefits are dubious at best.
 
On this episode, host Nic Dunn is joined once again by AEI Senior Fellow and Defending Ideas Contributor Beth Akers. Beth and Nic talk with two expert guests — Mark DiPlacido of American Compass and Scott Winship of the American Enterprise Institute — to steelman the arguments on both sides.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.

Defending Ideas is a weekly podcast produced by Sutherland Institute. On this show, we are committed to renewing the principles of common sense conservatism, making you a better champion of sound ideas. Visit defendingideas.org.