Host Randy Miller discusses topics of interest to veterans and interviews guests on a wide variety of topics.
We welcome longtime recording artist Rick Springfield to the show to discuss his life, career, and ongoing North America tour. Nate and Rick talk about Rick’s upbringing as the son of an Australian Army officer and his half-year tour supporting allied troops in Vietnam at the age of 17!
Nate Herron welcomes Kelti Knight, Chief Correspondent for the E! Network, to talk about her new show on CBS and Paramount+ “Superfan.” Nate and Kelti talk about the show, a handful of the superstar performers who met some superfan contestants, and what people can look for in the season finale. Check out “Superfan” with Kelti and Nate Burleson on CBS and Paramount+.
“Unalone and Unafraid” is the title of a new report released by the Center for Defense Concepts and Technology regarding the use of AI on the modern battlefield. Bryan Clark, the head of the Center supported by the Hudson Institute, joins the show to share details from this report, how people are both overreacting and maybe not being concerned enough about some of the facts surrounding artificial intelligence and its application on the battlefield.
We welcome National Veterans Memorial Marketing and Communications Director Tammy Brown to National Defense. Tammy is here to share a great new contest from the National Veterans Memorial and Museum in Columbus, Ohio. They are giving away The wedding of their dreams! The Albert M. Cavelli Foundation has put forth this unique opportunity that offers the winning couple, connected to military service, an excellent package including some of the most breathtaking venues in the country. Tammy gives Randy the details on how folks can enter, and we can’t wait to see who wins. Deadline for submission is September 15th!
CEO of the Home Builders Institute, Ed Brady, joins us to talk about his organization and its unique partnership with the Home Depot Foundation. Both groups have partnered to create the Joint Trades Training Program. This program helps put military personnel into great careers once their Armed Forces commitments are complete. Randy and Ed discuss the needs for jobs and housing across the country and how the Home Builders Institute and the Home Depot Foundation are also working to solve those issues.
CBS Investigative Reporter Omar Villafranca joins the show to talk with Randy about the ongoing reporting surrounding a veteran treatment court in Texas. Randy and Omar talk about the staggering number of veterans in jail following their time in the service and what CBS uncovered when digging deeper into the underlying cultural and structural conditions that have caused this to become such an issue.
We welcome the President and CEO of Charles M Shulz Creative Associates, Craig Shulz, to the program to discuss the creator of Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the gang. Charles served in the military in World War II, and Randy and Craig talk about how Charles’ military service influenced his comic strip and the new continuing series on the Apple TV+ “Marcy.”
We welcome the Executive Producer from our producer Nate’s favorite summer show of 2023: Amazon’s “Jury Duty.” This documentary-style production of a fake civil trial in California where all participants, jury, judge, defendant, and witnesses were all actors except one jury member. We highly recommend this streaming series if you’re looking for a hilarious and touching series on Amazon FreeVee.
We welcome Chris Parsons, a marriage coach who has released his new book, “The Happy, Healthy Marriage Reset,” to help folks struggling to keep the love flowing in their marriage. Randy and Chris talk about the nature of active-duty military marriages during deployments and how the COVID-19 pandemic played a role in both strengthening or destroying some relationships.
The National Defense welcomes back one of our longest-running VSO partners, Team Rubicon, and their President and CEO, Art delaCruz, to discuss the recent wildfires in Hawaii and how, while the recovery efforts for victims of the fires are still underway, the gray shirts of Team Rubicon already have boots on the ground in the islands to help survivors recover. Team Rubicon has helped to give veterans a continued mission during their non-active duty years, and Randy and Art talk about the unique challenges that this disaster has presented.
