On November 3, 2025, guest host Brad Beck fills in for Kim Monson to explore pressing issues of international accountability, local governance, and the preservation of American cultural heritage with Centennial City Council candidate Patty McKernan, writer and commentator Dr. Brian Joondeph, and David Horowitz Freedom Center president Michael Finch.
Patty McKernan, candidate for Centennial City Council District 3, warns about third-party interests attempting to interfere with citizen choice through single-hauler trash contracts and other regulatory schemes. McKernan describes her 15-mile-wide district stretching from Colorado Boulevard to Smoky Hill and Liverpool, explaining how Centennial residents want to maintain their city’s character without excessive government intervention.
McKernan addresses constituent concerns about affordability, traffic safety, and the proper allocation of city resources. She raises questions about developers seeking municipal bond allotments from neighboring cities and the push to convert mid-century commercial buildings into 15-minute city developments. Her campaign focuses on critical thinking about proposals and preserving the distinctive neighborhoods, trails, and parks that define Centennial.
“I realized that we have some third-party, I’ll just call them grifters, and they’re going in town to town trying to interfere with our choice and control as citizens and start regulating the trash services. And that’s not the proper role of government.”
Patty McKernan, Centennial City Council Candidate
Dr. Brian Joondeph, writer for Rasmussen Reports and American Thinker, argues that the United Nations has strayed far from its founding mission of creating peace and helping nations prosper. Instead of addressing genocides in Rwanda, Darfur, Congo, and the ongoing slaughter of Christians in Nigeria, the UN focuses disproportionate attention on condemning Israel while operating as a corrupt bureaucracy funded largely by American taxpayers.
Joondeph points out that the United States contributes 22 percent of the UN’s regular budget and more than 26 percent of peacekeeping costs, yet receives little accountability for these expenditures. He suggests that financial leverage represents the most effective reform tool, comparing the situation to NATO where Trump’s pressure forced member nations to increase their contributions. The discussion extends to President Trump’s willingness to raise these issues publicly and apply economic pressure to address Christian persecution abroad.
“Instead, they’re fomenting conflict, and they’ve become very political.”
Dr. Brian Joondeph, Writer
Joondeph also addresses the double standards surrounding political violence, noting the stark contrast between bipartisan condemnation of violence against certain legislators and the refusal of many Democrats to condemn violence against conservatives. He describes how some members of Congress and teachers have celebrated or mocked the death of Charlie Kirk, calling such behavior abhorrent regardless of political disagreements.
The conversation touches on echo chambers and the unwillingness of many on the left to engage with opposing viewpoints, contrasting this with conservatives like Kirk and J.D. Vance who actively seek debate and dialogue. Joondeph emphasizes the importance of not accepting false premises and consistently pushing back against misleading characterizations.
“So they’re only outraged if the situation is favorable to them.”
Dr. Brian Joondeph, Writer
Michael Finch, president of the David Horowitz Freedom Center and author of A Time to Stand: A Dire Hour to Defend American Beauty, makes a passionate case for celebrating American cultural heritage through poetry, art, architecture, and literature. Finch explains how his writing naturally becomes poetic when describing America’s landscape, history, and aspirational culture.
Finch laments that schools no longer teach about landscape painters like Albert Bierstadt and Thomas Cole, writers like Willa Cather, or the classical architecture that Thomas Jefferson envisioned for federal buildings. He connects this cultural amnesia to the left’s long march through institutions, noting how they seek to denigrate American history as a prerequisite for their utopian project. The discussion includes reflections on David Horowitz’s mentorship and his understanding of how the left operates, having spent half his life as a Marxist revolutionary before his transformation.
“America, the culture and the landscape, the history, the art, all of it is so incredibly beautiful. We have such a dynamic and aspirational culture that I think the poet that kind of sits back in me really comes out.”
Michael Finch, President, David Horowitz Freedom Center
Finch shares his reflections on war poetry, particularly from World War I, which he considers the most destructive conflict in modern history for its impact on Western civilization and Christendom. He highlights poets like Ivor Gurney who found beauty in memories of the English landscape even amid the horrors of trench warfare. Both Brad Beck and Finch share personal connections to the war through grandfathers who served but never spoke of their experiences.
The conversation emphasizes America’s unique capacity to overcome trials and emerge stronger, from the Civil War to contemporary challenges. Finch expresses optimism about the American people’s fundamental love for their country and history, despite the efforts of radical elements to denigrate that heritage. He encourages parents to teach their children about figures like George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Daniel Boone, and Davy Crockett to preserve the stories that bind the nation together.
“And this is the greatest experiment in human history.”
Michael Finch, President, David Horowitz Freedom Center
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