I recently moved downtown in Indianapolis and frequently walk by the home of Benjamin Harrison, who was the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. I became curious about the man and his time in office and looked into him, and he cared deeply about civics and what makes a community work well. Charlie Hyde is the President & CEO of the Benjamin Harrison Presidential Site, and he joins me to discuss his legacy as President, how he was shaped by his service in the Civil War, and what the staff at BHPS is doing to pass on his values in the next generation through the Future Presidents of America program. Learn more at https://bhpsite.org. *I incorrectly say 22nd President in the intro.

For the second year in a row, the life expectancy of Americans dropped sharply. While COVID played the larger role, Fentanyl contributed as well. Last year was a record year for overdose deaths with an estimated 107,622, CDC says, an increase of 15% from the previous year, and 70% of fatalities were from the synthetic opioid. Especially hard hit were communities of color. According to statnews.com, "Black Americans lost 0.7 years between 2020 to 2021, and American Indian and Native Americans saw the largest loss of life expectancy of all — 1.9 years less than 2020’s life expectancy, and 6.6 years less than 2019’s."

Open enrollment season is upon us, and many people think they're stuck with expensive, crappy health insurance, and that just isn't the case. Matt Allen of Iconic Insurance joins me to discuss the good and bad of "Obamacare," or the Affordable Care Act, changes to the health insurance tax credit system in the inflation act, and inflation's impact on small business owners.

Last Columbus Day, I decided to learn more about the history of the man and the day celebrating him. Since then, I've visited historical sites in Santa Domingo in the Dominican Republic and San Juan in Puerto Rico. I read books and watched documentaries to gain a better perspective of who Columbus was. In this episode, I share what I've learned, beginning with the history of the day, who wants to change it (or not) and why, and then share a basic history of Columbus and his voyages.

Over the last few months, my wife and I have experienced five miscarriages. We decided to be open about it because we need the support of friends and family, and we felt being open about it would contribute to the end of the stigma around losing a child. My guest Emma Ping of Selah’s Grace Ministries, started a nonprofit to do that same thing.

You've likely seen the iconic logo of the Boys and Girls Clubs in your local area. Maggie Lewis, CEO of Boys and Girls Clubs of Indianapolis, joins me to share how they transform kids' lives through after-school programs.

Here's the game plan: We will continue to put interviews in the Chris Spangle Show feed, but we are also bringing back the panel/research shows IN PERSON here. It's more fun than doing a show on Zoom allows. We will keep giving you short shows on the basics of current events AND classic WAL filled with friends sitting around the living room talking in-depth about politics with plenty of irreverence. We recorded this as we were building out the new Dolittle studios... Well, Kristi Avery and Sara Morrell were doing the work while Chris, Harry, Brian Nichols, and Jeremiah Morrell were podcasting.

Yoezer Cassell is a junior at Covenant Christian High School. He won an internship with the Bank of America Student Leaders program, where he works at the Christamore House in Haughville, serving the economically disadvantaged. He shares what his service has taught him and how it prepares him to make a change not only in his local community but abroad. We are joined by Andy Crask, Bank of America Indianapolis market president, and Bailee Holt, a case manager at Christamore House Family & Community Center.

A person's private affairs, movements, thoughts, words, and choices are their own, and the state has no right to interfere in them. This is a foundational principle of libertarianism, and it is constantly under attack from governments and big businesses in a digital world. Leslie Corbly and I discuss the many complicated issues around privacy in 2022.

It's my birthday, and I felt like doing a podcast about why the death of Queen Elizabeth II makes us sad, a few lessons we can learn from her, the history of Vaudeville, carneys, and Elvis, as well as a fight with a cricket.

Donna Oklak of the Meridian Foundation is passionate about innovation in the nonprofit space. She has created the Arago Honors Nonprofit Innovation Awards to grant of $10,000 to a nonprofit that breaks the molds of traditional systems. To show how that works, she and I speak to Kristi Mitchell of the Launch HOPE Foundation. Working with interns from Butler University that attend their business school, they form mentorships and give aid to young entrepreneurs from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The voices are Jeremiah Morrell, Zach Burcham, Chris Spangle, and Brian Nichols. We get a network update, a surprise visit by Aaron Ewert, and the Spangle Aldi anger is directly challenged by a buffet of groceries. Brian emceed a political rally, and a former Vice Presidential candidate found Spangle in a park. This is old school, wandering classic WAL network.

Why was it a big deal when Nancy Pelosi went to Taiwan? Daniel Chang joins me to share why China and America are both competing for a tiny island off mainland China.

Brad Polumbo of Based Politics joins me to discuss the details of Joe Biden's debt cancelation. Brad counters some of the commonly held beliefs about this proposal and shares it if has a shot of passing the courts.

Like every other industry, the pandemic has dramatically impacted education. This is leading more parents to choose private education options instead of public schools. Cooper Conway is a National Voices Fellow at 50CAN and a Contributor at Young Voices, and joins me to discuss the current conversations in the educational reform movement.

The Biden Administration has recently invoked the Defense Production Act for a climate emergency. What does this mean? Jakob Puckett, an energy analyst and a Young Voices Contributor, joins me to explain this move and share some free-market ideas for combating climate change.

Have you heard of the American Innovation and Choice Online Act? I hadn't until I saw David B. McGarry's article in National Review. While intended to curb the power of big tech, the outcomes will be a privacy nightmare for consumers.

Most people don't consider Martin Van Buren a great President (he wasn't), but he still impacts our life daily. How? Gary Frankel joins me to discuss how the founder of the Democratic Party created modern politics.

News broke last night that the FBI raided Mar-A-Lago, the residence of the former President of the United States. This is without precedent. So what happened? He pissed off the librarians. Rhinehold and I explain the Presidential Records Act, why he was raided, and what happens next for Donald Trump.

Ben Sledge served his country with distinction in both Afghanistan and Iraq. He joins me to reflect on his service in those wars and the moral injuries they caused, and the long struggle to overcome them upon his return home. He is the author of a new book titled "Where Cowards Go To Die."

In 2020, Americans felt isolated, disconnected, and trapped in their houses. In some ways, this can mirror families' experiences with a child with a life-threatening illness. A Kid Again opens a bright spot in the month through fun and free adventures for their participants. Katie Pappas, the Executive Director of a Kid Again Indiana, and Caroline Jolie, the President of A Kid Again’s Indiana University club, join me to discuss the importance of building community through fun.

Jeff Maurer is running for Secretary of State in Indiana. He joins me to discuss how states can better protect their elections while restoring confidence in the electorate that their vote is accurately counted.

The natural condition of human nature is that something must change, and lately, everyone has turned to politics to force societal changes. And yet, who believes that if their side won, they'd see a radical transformation? So what do we do when political and financial changes leave us unfulfilled and frustrated? Chris Spangle dives into his Serving Your Circle concept and talks about the courage to connect with others around you to make a real impact.

Becky Moore was watching an episode of Oprah years ago and learned about Camp to Belong, an organization that gives foster care siblings a week together at camp. As a former foster kid herself, she decided to start her own chapter. She talks about life within foster care, what this week of camp means to the kids that attend, and how we can help their efforts.

Rob Quartel joins me again to continue our Swamp Explained series! We cover a lot since we haven't spoken in a while including the assassination of Japan's Abe, Abortion, the Gun Lobby, the Supreme Court leak, Biden's job performance, will it be Trump or Desantis in 2024, and the resignation of Boris Johnson.