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Hunkering Down With Peter Schorsch episodes
- Chris Heath
Peter Schorsch hunkers down with Chris Heath, an investigative and political reporter for WFTV in Orlando, as well as the host of the “Battleground Florida” podcast.
Heath weighs in on what it’s like being in a nearly abandoned tourist town with all major parks including Disney closed, as well as several resorts. Heath offers his take on what goes into making closure determination including crunching numbers to see whether the business would lose more money by staying open than it would by closing entirely.Heath describes Orlando as “creepy” as roads empty amid coronavirus shutdowns.Peter also talks podcasts with a fellow podcaster as Heath describes why the unique storytelling ability appeals to him.And listen for Heath’s analysis of when Floridians might see things start to go back to normal. Hint: it’s not good news.And while you’re listening, see if you can name that Anchorman reference.Special Guest: Christopher Heath.
22 min - Jared Ross
Peter Schorsch hunkers down with Jared Ross, president of the League of Southeastern Credit Unions, which serves 342 credit unions and its more than 10 million members in Florida, Georgia and Alabama.
Ross talks banking in the age of corona and has one major plea: Do not take all of your money out of the bank. Banks and credit unions, he reminds, are federally insured and the safest place for your money in a time of crisis.Ross also weighs in on how the industry is weathering the pandemic. As an organization that covers the Southeast United States, the industry is used to managing crises during hurricanes, but the widespread threat of COVID-19 created a whole new challenge.Share some personal moments with Ross as he talks about his family’s altered spring break plans and shares tips on ways to connect with kids stuck at home through the crisis.Special Guest: Jared Ross.
20 min - Karen Moore
Want to know how to manage the coronavirus crisis? Who better to offer tips than Karen Moore, whose firm, Moore Communications Group, specializes in crisis communications?
Moore is the CEO and founder of the nationwide firm, which also manages companies in the health care and pharmaceutical industries as well as legislative patient advocacy.While other businesses are struggling, Moore talks in this episode about how her phones are ringing off the hook as businesses look for help not only managing the crisis but coming out on the other side thriving.Her advice to business includes establishing a continuity plan to come out of the crisis intact and ready to grow.In a twist, Peter Schorsch opens about the challenges of managing a virtual newsroom during a crisis that demands near 24/7 coverage. Moore responds with advice anyone could use — emphasize mental health.Special Guest: Karen Moore.
20 min - Joe Gruters
Peter Scorsch hunkers down with Sen. Joe Gruters to talk coronavirus taxes, social distancing, the 2020 election cycle and Kenny Rogers.
Gruters shares an optimistic view of Florida’s response to the spreading virus so far, noting the state’s resiliency and the Governor’s “soothing” messaging. He also revels in the ability for people shifting away from partisanship in favor of coming together for the common good.Gruters makes some salient, yet controversial remarks on a potential, and possibly inevitable, stay at home order in which he points out such an order might not be realistic. Gruters himself has his children in a summer camp-like program as he and his wife continue to work.And in a shock for anyone who knows him, Gruters shares his social distancing reading material: how to shift to a plant-based diet. Gruters chuckles as he explains, even his wife said there’s no way that’s for him.21 min - Ryan Duffy
Peter Schorschhunkers down with Ryan Duffy, director of corporate communications for U.S. Sugar about the importance of his industry during the coronavirus pandemic and the challenges facing families as social distancing efforts ramp up.
As the rest of the world shuts down to a certain degree, farmers are still hard at work ensuring Americans still have access to food. U.S. Sugar doesn’t just deal with with sugar, they also represent agriculture products like corn and citrus and the farmers bringing those products to the table aren’t taking a break.Duffy explains how everyone, including his family, is stocking up on supplies, including making sure they have enough food to get them through a potential extended stay in their homes.Listen as the two joke about the sudden surge in popularity of Contagion and the misogynistic undertones in the movie.Duffy takes an optimistic approach on the nationwide reaction to the virus from his personal perspective as he hears from friends and neighbors are taking social distancing recommendations serious and understand the concept of “flattening the curve.”And as with all episodes, Peter asks for suggestions on how to cut through the solitude of staying home. From Duffy: Grab a tent a camp out.Special Guest: Ryan Duffy.
29 min - John Lux
Peter Schorsch hunkers down with John Lux, executive director of Film Florida, the state’s non-profit group representing the film and television industry.
Lux tackles the tough times facing members in the industry, including independent contractors left without work as the state’s economy grinds to a halt under the weight of social distancing.Lux, an authority on the subject, also talks apocalyptic movie trends and offers his recommendations for must-see series to pass the time.Also listen as Peter gets interrupted by his daughter in a very real moment with which parents everywhere can currently relate.Peter also offers a shout out to delivery drivers keeping our homes stocked even as we’re homebound; Lux explains why social distancers should give his organization’s podcast a try.Special Guest: John Lux.
14 min - Anthony Pedicini
Peter Schorsch hunkers down with his good friend Anthony Pedicini, a political strategist and Ella’s godfather, who is preparing for the coronavirus pandemic in style — plenty of good cigars, pastina and rum to last a while.
“If the Governor decides to put us in a statewide lockdown, I think I’d survive,” he says.Pedicini talks about how his brother was exposed to COVID-19 at work but didn’t tell him for 7 days. Now he’s in self-isolation for another 5 days. “This is not a fun thing, and I think people aren’t taking it seriously until it hits them in the head.”Peter and Pedicini discuss how Florida — like Italy — is broken up into individual “city-states” with each responding to coronavirus in their own way. As for Florida’s political class, a reminder: It doesn’t matter whether it is worse than the flu — it’s doesn’t get those lives that have been lost.Pedicini says he realized the seriousness of the situation when he started seeing politicians (a group with which he is very familiar) start having worried looks on their faces: “You can just see something has changed.”Coronavirus is something in magnitude that no one alive has ever seen, Pedicini says, whether it’s in the economic situation or in a possible meltdown of health care. He also talks about releasing low-level criminals from the jails to alleviate overpopulation, because if coronavirus hits the prison system it would be “devastating.And as a political strategist, Pedicini says everything they were ramped up to do in 2020 is now put on hold — fundraising, campaign, grassroots and so on.“If you’re not an elected official, you should be not be talking to the public about things,” he says, using as an example Rep. Jackie Toledo of Tampa calling out the Seminole Tribe for keeping the Hard Rock open. She couldn’t do that as a candidate, but as an elected official.Special Guest: Anthony Pedicini .
23 min - Rick Wilson
Peter Schorsch hunkers down with Rick Wilson to talk about his career, life as a bestselling New York Times author, being at one time a “five-horse family,” and, of course, Donald Trump. Wilson warns not to underestimate Trump, even during this current coronavirus pandemic, saying that he has “wily crafty kind of rats jumping off the sinking ship behavior.”
As for his own personal hunkering down: “I’ve got a chest freezer full of delicious meats. I got well-stocked in every regard (including ammo), so I feel like I’m prepared for the corona apocalypse.”Wilson — an "OG Never-Trump Guy" — also talks about the folly of getting into a culture war with Trump because it doesn’t help people in this country right now. He also points out the lack of leadership in the White House, which prevented America from doing the things that could have had some control over the pandemic, such as isolation and social distancing.Keeping your eye in the big picture is one thing, but Wilson also recommends staying informed about what’s happening in your state and your community.“That’s really what’s important right now, because — let’s be honest — there’s a degree to which we are on our own.”Wilson is watching how his hometown of Tallahassee, as well as Tampa and Orlando, responds to the coronavirus pandemic. It’s mostly because the next few days could mean the difference between it being “very, very bad” or something that’s just “terrifyingly horrible.”Special Guest: Rick Wilson .
17 min - Jimmy Patronis
In one of the most important episodes of the podcast, Peter Schorsch hunkers down with Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis about the financial implications of coronavirus on the state’s economy.
Patronis dives into the potential financial crisis as businesses across the state shut down or reduce operations amid social distancing advice and shares his thoughts on weathering the storm and managing the state’s recovery.The pair also address the issues of guns during a global pandemic.Patronis explains his office’s role in managing the financial implications of a massive coronavirus response and talks up the importance of allowing employees to work from home where possible, a measure his office has implemented.Special Session? Listen and find out.Special Guest: Jimmy Patronis.
23 min - Josh Cooper
Peter Schorsch hunkers down with Tallahassee-based political consultant Josh Cooper, who is also a renowned pitmaster, chef and culinary competitor.
They discuss some of the people hardest hit by coronavirus mitigation efforts — hospitality workers — and the myriad ways you can help them survive this crisis — from to-go ordering to generous tipping. Cooper talks about the incredible challenge coronavirus poses to businesses and the commendable ways business owners are adapting under these trying times.Cooper shares the moment the pandemic got real for him, nearly a month ago when he first understood the scale of the megacities in China that were completed shut down to travel and normal day-to-day life. Peter discusses the vast differences between Chinese culture and American culture.Cooper explains his challenge to Hunkering Down listeners. He believes everyone has enough food currently in their refrigerator or pantry to last them several weeks. He's challenging listeners to cut back on waste and trips to the already overwhelmed grocery stores by taking a picture of what's in your fridge and pantry and tweeting it at Florida Politics (@Fla_Pol) with the hashtag, #NextLevelChef. Listeners can also email pictures to [email protected]. Cooper promises to send back 5-6 ideas on what you can make with the items that are already in your fridge.Special Guest: Josh Cooper.
19 min
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It's Hunkering Down with Peter Schorsch.