Episodi

  • New Orleans Proposes 75% Sanitation Cuts, Louisiana Early Voting Begins, Shreveport Mayor Race Finances Revealed

    New Orleans Proposes 75% Sanitation Cuts, Louisiana Early Voting Begins, Shreveport Mayor Race Finances Revealed
    Oct 20 2026
    You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 19, 2026.

    We open the show with a message for New Orleans: get it together. Mayor Helena Moreno’s proposed budget would eliminate 75% of the sanitation department’s positions. We ask how making a top tourist destination dirtier and less safe helps a city out of a financial crisis. We also talk about why one-time money doesn’t solve recurring problems, and about sticking to the things only a city can do.

    In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, St. Bernard Parish Sheriff James Pohlman announces his retirement after 43 years with the department. An arrest warrant is issued for the owner of a Shreveport apartment complex whose water was cut off over more than $145,000 in unpaid bills, though extradition from New York is uncertain. And early voting begins across Louisiana, running through October 27 ahead of Election Day on November 3.

    Next, we turn to the candidate forums we’ve been watching in Shreveport, New Orleans, and Lafayette. We explain why loving your community isn’t a governing strategy, and we make the case for big-picture candidates who also know the budget.

    In Digging Deep, we go through the Shreveport mayor’s race campaign finance reports. We compare Mayor Tom Arsenault’s cash on hand with the totals raised by John Paul Young, Stormy Gage Watts, and Tammy Phelps. We also explain why most of Young’s headline total is his own money, and why dollars raised don’t equal votes.

    After that, we get to a rare moment of accountability. Duke cornerback Kamari Robinson publicly apologizes after swatting away a team trainer’s hand during a game, and we think it’s one of the better apologies we’ve heard.

    In Say What, we play a clip of Sen. Elissa Slotkin explaining the deterrence message she wants to send to people considering work in the Trump administration. We react to it, along with Sen. Raphael Warnock’s comments on Meet the Press about the president and the people who enabled him, and we discuss what a Democratic return to power could mean.

    Then we cover Elon Musk’s reported plan to give American children a share of SpaceX stock, alongside the Dell family’s Trump account pledge. We talk about what it means for kids to own a piece of the American economy. We close with a game on September state unemployment rates, where the states with the highest unemployment skew blue and the states with the lowest skew red, and we ask what that means for the affordability argument heading into the midterms.

    Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776.
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    42 min
  • Why Are Ballot Measures Written to Confuse You?

    Why Are Ballot Measures Written to Confuse You?
    Oct 19 2026
    You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 16, 2026.

    We start with election season and the local races many of you have on your ballots, from mayor to sheriff to city council. We talk about the difference between candidates who bring the data and candidates who lean on emotion, and why a claim like “it’s not happening in my neighborhood” can spread faster than the facts. Using the Shreveport mayor’s race as an example, we look at Mayor Tom Arsenault’s block-by-block cleanup program. We also ask what it means for a campaign to leave the public better informed than before it began.

    In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, a judge dismisses State Representative Steven Jackson’s conviction for impersonating a police officer, and we weigh what that means given his plea and his comments afterward. New Orleans is considering closing another elementary school, and we talk about declining enrollment and why consolidation is sometimes necessary. Another Shreveport apartment complex has its water shut off over a $145,000 unpaid bill, and we talk about the tenants caught in the middle.

    Next, we take on the 10 constitutional amendments on the Louisiana ballot and ask why they’re written at a postgraduate reading level. We discuss why a confused mind always says no, and we point you to the Public Affairs Research Council’s guide at parlouisiana.org, which gives both sides of every amendment.

    For Digging Deep, we break down the Shreveport mayoral forums hosted by KTBS and KSLA. We look at how incumbent Arsenault, Tammy Phelps, Stormy Gage Watts, and John Paul Young stacked up, what The Hayride’s coverage had to say, and where the race stands on fundraising and the polls.

    Then we turn to the Oregon father who ran toward gunfire at his children’s school and stopped a shooter. We talk about the good guy with a gun, how rare these incidents really are, and what the legitimate debate over gun policy should be. In Say What, Vice President J.D. Vance launches his anti-fraud pledge, and we go through all six points to see whether we’d sign it.

    We also look at Elon Musk’s flying, barrel-rolling Tesla Roadster demo in Texas. Then we play a game with SoFi’s per-capita fraud rankings and see which states come out on top and which come out cleanest, including how Louisiana did. We finish with Washington State’s new $126 permit just to shop for a firearm, and we ask when exercising a constitutional right started requiring proof you can afford it.

    Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776.
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    42 min
  • Daycare Costs Are Keeping Louisiana Moms Out of Work

    Daycare Costs Are Keeping Louisiana Moms Out of Work
    Oct 16 2026
    You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 15, 2026.

    We start with a question about the Louisiana economy: if we want more people working and fewer families depending on government assistance, who’s going to watch the kids? We look at the cost of child care, which can run about $12,000 a year for one child. We also look at a Louisiana Policy Institute for Children estimate that expanding early childhood education could bring 30,000 parents back into the workforce. We debate whether the answer is government subsidies, stronger two-parent families, or a family member who can stay home, and why it matters for Louisiana’s future.

    Then it’s our Top 3 Things You Need to Know. First, Governor Jeff Landry says the state will fund infrastructure work for the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board, after the city pulled its $110 million bond request amid a fight involving Attorney General Liz Murrill and potential investigations of city leaders. Second, Louisiana is headed for an estimated $565 million budget surplus, with part of it required to go to retirement debt and the rainy day fund. Third, white powder packages were sent to the Secretary of State’s offices in Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Ohio, all Republican-led states, just weeks before the election.

    Next, we applaud Saints owner Gayle Benson for publicly calling the team’s 1-4 start unacceptable, and we talk about Steve Jobs’s “fearless feedback” and why you can’t fix a problem you won’t acknowledge. We also go to the phones with political strategist and columnist Jensen Young, who tells us about his Midterm Prayer Guide, a daily prayer calendar through November for GOP candidates, congressional delegations, and even rice farmers on opening day of the Crowley rice festival. It’s available at The Hayride and Citizens for a New Louisiana.

    After the break, with the October 15 extension deadline behind us, we talk about taxes: why they’re so frustrating, why incentives matter, and whether lower rates grow the economy and federal revenue. Then it’s Say What, where Kamala Harris tells Keke Palmer’s podcast she wants to expand the Supreme Court and change the Electoral College. We take that apart, along with her interest in adding D.C. and Puerto Rico as states.

    We also look at the 600 soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division heading to Central America to train with partner nations against the cartels, and what makes these groups a national security threat rather than just a criminal one. We run down The Center Square’s early 2028 polls for both parties, with J.D. Vance and Kamala Harris out front. We close with a bright spot: Oscar winner Hilary Swank is expecting again at 52, a reminder that sometimes the greatest accomplishment is sitting at the breakfast table.

    Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776.
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    42 min
  • Louisiana Amendment 4 Explained: Governor Term Limits on the November 3rd Ballot

    Louisiana Amendment 4 Explained: Governor Term Limits on the November 3rd Ballot
    Oct 15 2026
    You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for Octobe 14, 2026.

    We start with Louisiana’s Amendment 4 on the November 3rd ballot, which would permanently bar a governor from returning to office after serving eight years. We explain how the current law lets a governor sit out one term and run again, look at Louisiana’s history of returning governors from Earl Long to Edwin Edwards, and weigh the conservative case for limiting power against the freedom of voters to choose their leaders.

    In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, St. George announces plans for its own charter school by 2028 after voters statewide denied the city its own school district. Thrive Academy in Baton Rouge suspends the rest of its football season after a post-game brawl. And two more corrections officers are arrested in Evangeline Parish for allegedly bringing drugs into jail, part of a growing list across the state. A listener texts the AGR text line with a question about whether term limits should apply across all elected offices, and we talk through it.

    In Digging Deep, we look at rapper Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson and his plans for Shreveport, from G-Unit Studios to a downtown entertainment district, and his recent comments that he’s in no hurry to invest further. We look at what he did and didn’t say, what KTBS reported, and the benchmarks he agreed to with the state, and we ask how much a city should give and what a developer owes in return.

    Speaker Mike Johnson says not to believe the polls, and CNN’s Harry Enten reports a 38-point drop in the Democratic margin among New York’s Jewish voters since 2022. We then turn to the New York attorney general race, where Letitia James faced Republican Saritha Kometreddi in a debate that drew a lot of attention and some strong reviews. We play the exchange about the facts and the law, hear Kometreddi’s opening statement, and discuss what the race says about politics and prosecution.

    Customs and Border Protection officers stop nearly $700,000 in illegal narcotics in two smuggling attempts at the same port of entry, and we discuss border security and the drop in opioid deaths. We play a game ranking the states by self-reported mental health problems, from Oregon at the top of the list to New Jersey at the bottom, and see what surprises us. Finally, we ask whether another Meet the Fockers movie can survive the politics of its stars.

    Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776.
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    42 min
  • New Orleans Residents Say Things Are Getting Better: Here’s What Changed

    New Orleans Residents Say Things Are Getting Better: Here’s What Changed
    Oct 15 2026
    You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 13, 2026.

    With Election Day on November 3rd and the voter registration deadline here, we start by working out the election calendar. Then we walk through Louisiana’s Amendment 3, which would deny post-conviction bail to people convicted of aggravated sex offenses against children. We explain how bail eligibility works today, discuss a 2017 Baton Rouge case where a man convicted of raping an eight-year-old girl was released to care for his sick mother, and make the case that the justice system should weigh victims’ safety as seriously as defendants’ rights.

    In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, a mysterious white powder is mailed to the Louisiana Secretary of State’s office, prompting an evacuation and an FBI response. Lafayette shuts down two local motels it calls hotbeds of crime. And Natchitoches earns the state’s first Class 1 fire protection rating, which could mean lower insurance costs for residents.

    From there we celebrate Louisiana’s musical legacy, from Louis Armstrong and Fats Domino to Jerry Lee Lewis and the Louisiana Hayride, and Billboard’s 2026 list of the top music business schools, which includes Loyola University New Orleans and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. In Digging Deep, we look at the 40th annual New Orleans quality of life survey, where crime is no longer residents’ top concern for the first time since 1986, and we talk about what’s driving the shift and what still needs fixing, from streets to infrastructure.

    Next we return to Congresswoman Ilhan Omar. We discuss reports that the Justice Department is examining her finances under a federal warrant, the questions around her $30 million net worth disclosure and her birth date, and what administration officials have said about pursuing the matter. We also take a listen to Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed on Meet the Press, where he denied family ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. We compare his answer with his sister’s old social media posts about their family’s history, and we’re careful to note that being Muslim is not the same as belonging to the Brotherhood.

    Shane Gillis’s Saturday Night Live monologue about gym clothes sparks a debate about modesty, attention, and the messages our appearance sends. We close with the White House’s new press secretary, Katie Zachariah, and the rough reviews of her first briefing, including the Caroline Leavitt comparisons, and ask how fair it is to judge a first day on the job.

    Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776.
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    42 min
  • Firing Squad, Live Stream, Martyr? The Nidal Hasan Execution Debate

    Firing Squad, Live Stream, Martyr? The Nidal Hasan Execution Debate
    Oct 13 2026
    You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 12, 2026.

    We start with a rough weekend for Louisiana sports. LSU dropped another SEC game, the Saints lost, and we ask whether a $91 million coaching contract should come with championship results. Then we get to some good news. Louisiana has been ranked ninth in the nation for doing business in Area Development’s 2026 rankings, based on a survey of 50 site selection consultants. We go through the rest of the list, including Georgia, Texas, and Tennessee at the top, and the categories where Louisiana shines, like number two for energy costs, number four for grid capacity, and number four for workforce training. We also ask what it all means for keeping Louisiana’s young people at home.

    In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, the police chief and assistant chief at Grambling University have resigned, and the university says the move is unrelated to the recent arrest of the student body president. A New Roads city councilman is suing the city over access to its credit card records, in a town where two of the last four mayors went to prison for misusing public funds. And the online voter registration deadline is just around the corner, with early voting starting October 20th.

    Next, we dig into the debate over the planned execution of Nidal Hasan, set by firing squad for December 3rd. Some Catholic bishops are objecting, Speaker Mike Johnson has raised national security concerns about a live stream, and we weigh in on whether the decision should rest with the victims’ families. In Digging Deep, we ask whether Louisiana should scrap its film industry tax credit. Economic impact has fallen from about $1 billion a year to $185 million, and overseas competition may matter more than other states do.

    We also take a sobering look at the killing of a Philadelphia police officer and the troubling allegations about why he was targeted. Then in Say What, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent sends a scorching letter to Senator Elizabeth Warren, complete with a handwritten Indigenous Peoples Day note at the end. We come back around to the federal investigation of Congresswoman Ilhan Omar and what denaturalization could mean. Then we lighten things up with the National Retail Federation’s list of the ten most popular Halloween costumes for dogs. We close with the ugly scene after the Georgia-Alabama game, when bottles and trash rained down from the stands, and ask when fan spirit turns into assault.

    Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776.
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    42 min
  • Caddo DA Race Money Gap, Southern University Finalists, and Shreveport Amnesty Day

    Caddo DA Race Money Gap, Southern University Finalists, and Shreveport Amnesty Day
    Oct 13 2026
    You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 9, 2026.

    It’s Friday, Louisiana, and we start with Speaker Mike Johnson’s comment that he’d happily come home to Shreveport and start a lawn business if God leads him there. We brainstorm business names (Gavel and Gravel is our favorite), then get serious about what it means to be faithful while God reveals His plan, and why Johnson’s identity is in serving God, not in holding the Speaker’s gavel.

    In the Top 3 Things You Need to Know, we cover the death of a man in ICE custody in Monroe and the call from Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen for an independent investigation. We also look at the three out-of-state finalists for the presidency of Southern University. And we tell you about Shreveport’s Amnesty Day at city court on Saturday, October 10th, which lets people with outstanding warrants or delinquent fines get back on track without extra fees.

    In Digging Deep, we look at the Caddo Parish District Attorney race, where challenger Alan Seabaugh holds a big cash advantage over incumbent James Stewart. We ask whether he’ll actually spend that money on this race. Then we turn to Canada, where Prime Minister Mark Carney’s political fight with the United States coincides with 110,000 jobs lost in two months.

    In Say What, Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed refuses to say whether Israel or Iran is the bigger threat to the United States, so we walk through the history that makes the answer clear. We also hear Hillary Clinton’s criticism of the execution of Nidal Hasan, and we remember the Benghazi attack. Then we play a game on Columbus Day, guessing which states have swapped it for Indigenous Peoples Day, and some of the answers surprised us, including Louisiana.

    We close with a tribute to Mike Ditka, “Da Coach” of the 1985 Chicago Bears, who passed away at 86, and why we think he was authentically American.

    Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776.
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    42 min
  • $1.3 Billion for Fiber When Starlink Is Already There?

    $1.3 Billion for Fiber When Starlink Is Already There?
    Oct 9 2026
    You’re listening to American Ground Radio with Louis R. Avallone and Stephen Parr. This is the full show for October 8, 2026.

    We start by asking what government should and shouldn’t build, then dig into Governor Jeff Landry’s broadband expansion in East Baton Rouge Parish. Louisiana is the first state to get its BEAD plan approved, and we debate whether $1.3 billion in federal money for fiber makes sense when Starlink is already available and the state has its own Starlink agreement.

    In the Top 3, a Louisiana terror fraud network is dismantled, with five St. Tammany Parish men arrested by Attorney General Liz Murrill in a Medicaid fraud case, two of whom are accused of sending more than $100,000 to Hamas. Entergy Louisiana’s CEO tells regulators that Meta’s Richland Parish data center will need 4,500 megawatts, and we ask what protections ratepayers have. The Attorney General also finds that the Kenner City Council violated the state’s Open Meetings Act.

    After the break, we remind everyone that Louisiana is more than data centers and rockets. We talk about agriculture, from the sugar cane harvest to the 11 mills in the state, and we urge everyone to drive carefully around harvest equipment after a fatal crash in St. Martinville. In Digging Deep, we look at how the University of Louisiana at Lafayette is preparing for SpaceX’s Starbase with new aerospace programs, and why that move is smart for students and the state.

    We then turn to the scheduled December 3 firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan, which Secretary of War Pete Hegseth says will be streamed to the public. We disagree about whether capital punishment deters terrorists. On a lighter note, Dodgers shortstop Miguel Rojas tells us what it meant to pass the U.S. citizenship test, and we talk about what makes America the land of opportunity. We also discuss New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s October 7 dinner at a restaurant with “from the river to the sea” on its menu, play a round of World Series trivia with the Yankees and Cardinals, and enjoy the irony of Obama Presidential Center employees chanting “yes, we can” to form a union.

    Listen now wherever you get your podcasts, visit AmericanGroundRadio.com, and join the conversation at 866-AGR-1776.
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    42 min