Budget Deficits, Government Surveillance, and the American Work Ethic

On September 3, 2025, Kim Monson explores the intersection of economic policy, government overreach, and traditional American values with economist Phil Kerpen of American Commitment, citizen activist Mike Rawluk, and sixth-generation farmer Trent Loos.

AI Surveillance Tracks Citizens by Zip Code

Start listening at 16:24 – Hour 1

Mike Rawluk exposes how Jefferson County and Denver Mountain Parks are using Placer.ai cell phone tracking to justify closing Lookout Mountain Road to nighttime vehicular traffic. The surveillance system collects data on visitors including median household income, education level, ethnicity, and persons per household. Rawluk reveals that officials are using this data to discriminate against visitors from non-local zip codes, effectively barring 97.1% of potential users. The closure affects a National Scenic Byway and raises serious constitutional questions about restricting travel based on demographic profiling.

The implications extend beyond road closures. Rawluk draws connections to 15-minute city concepts and the Oxford, England model where residents faced fines for traveling beyond designated checkpoints. While acknowledging that economically designed walkable communities can work, he warns that top-down government restrictions on movement fundamentally violate freedom principles.

“So they’re kind of making the case here just by the data that the folks using the park make a little bit less. And not as many people have a bachelor’s degree. And all of a sudden we’re closing a road. And that’s just not freedom at all.”

Mike Rawluk, Citizen Activist

Economic Outlook and the Fight Against Federal Overreach

Start listening at 34:03 – Hour 1

Phil Kerpen, president of American Commitment, delivers a measured analysis of the current economic landscape. GDP growth reached 3.3% in the second quarter, and the risk of massive tax hikes has been lifted by recent legislation that made Trump-era tax cuts permanent. Energy policy has shifted to favor lower gasoline prices, which benefits households and reduces costs across manufacturing and transportation sectors.

Kerpen addresses tariffs as the primary economic negative, warning they could amount to a $4 trillion tax hike over a decade if maintained. He expresses cautious optimism that trade negotiations will resolve these tensions. On the Federal Reserve, Kerpen criticizes Chairman Jerome Powell’s political behavior, noting that rate cuts made sense last year but seem blocked this year despite unchanged economic conditions. He emphasizes that Fed rate cuts do not automatically lower long-term mortgage rates, pointing to last year when 10-year treasuries and 30-year mortgages actually rose after Fed cuts.

The conversation turns to the Trump administration’s aggressive regulatory rollback, particularly targeting EPA greenhouse gas regulations. Kerpen urges listeners to submit comments supporting the effort through AmericanCommitment.org, noting this could prevent trillions in destructive regulatory burden from future Democratic administrations.

“The much more important thing, if we want to get the 10-year treasury rate down and the 30-year mortgage down and give some relief to the sort of frozen housing market, is government spending. Congress has got to cut spending. We’ve got to see meaningful reforms so that the medium and long-term inflation expectations come down.”

Phil Kerpen, President of American Commitment

American Labor, Food Waste, and Innovation

Start listening at 72:30 – Hour 2

Trent Loos opens with reflections on a Labor Day photograph of pre-World War II coal miners descending into dangerous mines while their wives watched, uncertain if they would return. This image captures what Americans were once willing to endure to provide for their families. Loos connects this sacrifice to the pioneering spirit of families who loaded wagons in Pennsylvania in 1845 to face hostile territory and weather extremes in pursuit of better lives.

The conversation turns to Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle,” which Loos notes was written primarily to promote veganism rather than improve working conditions. He reveals that Sinclair himself was forced to resume eating animal protein within five years of publication after a doctor warned his health was failing. This historical context matters as modern food debates continue.

Loos addresses food waste, noting that 40% of produced food ends up in landfills with emissions seven times greater than all U.S. vehicles combined. Rather than government regulation, he advocates for innovation, citing Hank Combs, the sole pig farmer in Nevada, who collects Las Vegas casino food waste, cooks it properly, and transforms it into pork products. This entrepreneurial solution exemplifies American innovation over bureaucratic mandates.

“We cannot allow that to die on our watch. We each need to be a part of continuing innovation and finding a better way for the next generation to excel, not just be here.”

Trent Loos, Sixth-Generation Farmer and Rancher