Facing the Future

By The Concord CoalitionBusiness Education Government Non-Profit

Facing the Future episodes

February 18 Social Security Solvency Will Require Hard Choices
This week on Facing the Future Wendell Primus, Visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution and a former Senior Policy Advisor to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, described his plan to keep the Social Security trust fund from becoming insolvent as soon as 2032. Some political pain will be required.
45 min
February 10 The Public Can Handle the Truth
This week on Facing the Future, former Comptroller General of the United States and CEO of the Government Accountability Office (GAO) David Walker discussed his efforts to sound the alarm on the dangers of rising debt and unsustainable government commitments.
45 min
February 03 Congress Must Defuse the Debt Bomb
This week on Facing the Future, Romina Boccia, director of budget and entitlement policy at the Cato Institute, explained the economic dangers of ignoring the nation's spiraling debt and suggested some Social Security and Medicare reforms that would help.
45 min
January 27 The Economy, Tariffs and Greenland
This week on Facing the Future, former Ambassador to Denmark Richard Swett discusses a way forward on U.S. interests in Greenland and Alex Durante, senior economist at the Tax Foundation, evaluates the impact of President Trump's tariff agenda.
45 min
January 21 Is Defense Spending Going Up?
This week on Facing the Future we examined developments on the national security front with Michael O’Hanlon, senior fellow and director of research in Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution and author of a timely new book called “To Dare Mighty Things: U.S. Defense Strategy Since the Revolution”
45 min
January 13 Don't Mess With The Fed's Independence
This week on Facing the Future, former Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) discussed the growing U.S. debt burden, the case for a fiscal commission, and why it's bad policy to attack the Fed's independence.
45 min
January 07 The Urgency of Social Security Reform
This week on Facing the Future, we discussed Social Security reform with Jason Fichtner, executive director of the LIMRA Retirement Income Institute and former chief economist at the Social Security Administration. With the program's main trust fund projected to be depleted by 2032, prompt action must be taken to avoid sudden benefit cuts.
45 min
December 24, 2025 Another Year Older and Deeper in Debt
This week on Facing the Future, Concord Coalition executive director Carolyn Bourdeaux and other top members of Concord's staff look back on key fiscal developments of 2025 and the deepening debt challenges of 2026. Join us for Facing the Future's holiday 'Friends and Family' episode.
45 min
December 16, 2025 Controlling Medicare Costs
This week on Facing the Future we’ll look at Medicare, one of the biggest drivers of America’s long-term fiscal outlook. Amy Bassano, a former deputy director of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) and now Managing Director of Medicare services at Health Management Associates, discusses cost trends and reform options.
45 min
December 10, 2025 New Leaders are Needed to Solve Old Problems
This week on Facing the Future, Leon Panetta, one of Washington's most experienced budget experts and a top national security official, gives us his view on what it will take to restore fiscal discipline and why achieving that goal is crucial.
45 min