We kick off the show talking about the fact that New Orleans is no longer a major city - at least according to the federal government. We keep into that theme in our conversation with former New Orleans Councilman and state Senator Jon Johnson. He’s running for Council District E, and we ask the question as a convicted felon, can he win? Johnson believes he can.
We then talk about the big beautiful Bill, which reached its first hurdle of passage on Saturday night. Originally, it looks like it would cut Medicare Advantage. Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy had proposed something along those lines, which would’ve affected half of all Medicare recipients. Darren Grubb joins us to let us know that those cuts did not make the final bill, and hopefully will not return and reconciliation. It is a triumph of grassroots lobbying.
However, to our major topic of the day…
New Orleans Metro ceases to be a major city, according to OMB
By Christopher Tidmore
It went unnoticed by most of the local media, but a federal agency has downgraded New Orleans from a major city to little more than a large town, and that has major implications for future government funding, business relocation, and economic development.
Basically, the North Shore was robbed from the New Orleans Metro! During his tenure two decades ago, former St. Tammany Parish President Kevin Davis controversially changed the moniker in advertisements of his parish from “New Orleans’ North Shore” to “Louisiana’s North Shore”, trying to break the mental metro association of the Causeway connection. It took 20 years, but a federal agency says the numbers now argue for exactly that.
Quite simply, the population of the New Orleans metropolitan area was reduced from 1,237,748 to 962,165 by the stoke of a pen, since less than a quarter of North Shore residents now commute to the South Shore for their jobs.
For the last 70 years, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has maintained a set of consistent statistical definitions for metropolitan regions of the United States to enhance the value of data provided by federal statistical agencies. The current rules are published in the Federal Register and are used to consistently define metro areas across the country.
Starting with data released for 2023, the metropolitan statistical area (MSA), anchored by New Orleans — officially, the New Orleans–Metairie MSA — no longer includes St. Tammany Parish. Following a 2020 update published by the federal government and implemented this year, the New Orleans–Metairie MSA now covers seven parishes: Plaquemines, St. Bernard, Orleans, Jefferson, St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, and St. James. Additionally, a new Slidell–Mandeville–Covington MSA has been created, which consists only of St. Tammany Parish.
Why have these official definitions changed? As the New Orleans Data Center explained, “The short answer is that a smaller portion of workers who live in St. Tammany are commuting to work in Orleans, Jefferson, and other parishes on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain. This smaller portion no longer meets the criteria for St. Tammany to be included in Metro New Orleans. For a longer answer, keep reading below where we run down the details. As a result of the change, the new official population of Metro New Orleans is lower than you might recall. According to the Census Bureau, the population of Metro New Orleans was 962,165 in 2023. If St. Tammany were included, the population under the old 8-parish definition would be 1,237,748 in 2023. The massive discrepancy between these two numbers is overwhelmingly driven by the official removal of St. Tammany’s resident population from the total rather than by population loss in the individual metro parishes. The bottom line is that, going forward, the official estimate will reflect a 7-parish region of under 1 million, not an 8-parish region o
We then talk about the big beautiful Bill, which reached its first hurdle of passage on Saturday night. Originally, it looks like it would cut Medicare Advantage. Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy had proposed something along those lines, which would’ve affected half of all Medicare recipients. Darren Grubb joins us to let us know that those cuts did not make the final bill, and hopefully will not return and reconciliation. It is a triumph of grassroots lobbying.
However, to our major topic of the day…
New Orleans Metro ceases to be a major city, according to OMB
By Christopher Tidmore
It went unnoticed by most of the local media, but a federal agency has downgraded New Orleans from a major city to little more than a large town, and that has major implications for future government funding, business relocation, and economic development.
Basically, the North Shore was robbed from the New Orleans Metro! During his tenure two decades ago, former St. Tammany Parish President Kevin Davis controversially changed the moniker in advertisements of his parish from “New Orleans’ North Shore” to “Louisiana’s North Shore”, trying to break the mental metro association of the Causeway connection. It took 20 years, but a federal agency says the numbers now argue for exactly that.
Quite simply, the population of the New Orleans metropolitan area was reduced from 1,237,748 to 962,165 by the stoke of a pen, since less than a quarter of North Shore residents now commute to the South Shore for their jobs.
For the last 70 years, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has maintained a set of consistent statistical definitions for metropolitan regions of the United States to enhance the value of data provided by federal statistical agencies. The current rules are published in the Federal Register and are used to consistently define metro areas across the country.
Starting with data released for 2023, the metropolitan statistical area (MSA), anchored by New Orleans — officially, the New Orleans–Metairie MSA — no longer includes St. Tammany Parish. Following a 2020 update published by the federal government and implemented this year, the New Orleans–Metairie MSA now covers seven parishes: Plaquemines, St. Bernard, Orleans, Jefferson, St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, and St. James. Additionally, a new Slidell–Mandeville–Covington MSA has been created, which consists only of St. Tammany Parish.
Why have these official definitions changed? As the New Orleans Data Center explained, “The short answer is that a smaller portion of workers who live in St. Tammany are commuting to work in Orleans, Jefferson, and other parishes on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain. This smaller portion no longer meets the criteria for St. Tammany to be included in Metro New Orleans. For a longer answer, keep reading below where we run down the details. As a result of the change, the new official population of Metro New Orleans is lower than you might recall. According to the Census Bureau, the population of Metro New Orleans was 962,165 in 2023. If St. Tammany were included, the population under the old 8-parish definition would be 1,237,748 in 2023. The massive discrepancy between these two numbers is overwhelmingly driven by the official removal of St. Tammany’s resident population from the total rather than by population loss in the individual metro parishes. The bottom line is that, going forward, the official estimate will reflect a 7-parish region of under 1 million, not an 8-parish region o
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Bide holes, the politicians, the press, the digitators and magicians.
Who's to see the money then you don't.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
There's nothing to.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Fill the holes while there are feeling their pieh kits
tied holes, the politicians bouncing down the road every bisition.
With no more corruption and dysfunction, it's gone to take
divine intervention and God.
Speaker 3 (00:39):
Bless all out there. You are now listening to the
founders show the voice of the Founding Fathers. You're Founding
Fathers coming to you deep within the bowels of those
mystic and cryptic alligator swamps of the BAGHASI that old
Crescent City, New Orleans, Louisiana, and high up on top
of that old Liberty Cypress tree way out on the
(00:59):
Eagles brand. This is none other then You've s been
gary by by all the republic Chaplain Hi McHenry with
Christopher Tidmore.
Speaker 4 (01:07):
You're roving reporter and resident radical moderate, and we've got
a great show.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
For you today.
Speaker 4 (01:12):
Christopher Tidmore, you're roving reporter, resident radical moderate and associate
editor of the Louisiana Weekly newspaper at Louisiana Weekly dot net.
And ladies and gentlemen, we've got a great show for
you today. High is actually at a Bible conference. He'll
be joining us for the closing of the show today
on Today's program where with somewhat extended patriotic moment, but
(01:33):
I wanted to We've got a very good show. We've
got a candidate for Council District E in New Orleans
and he's a very familiar name. His name is Senator
John Johnson. And if those who haven't heard it, he
was a senator. He resigned and he went to federal
prison and he's now running. Does somebody who went to
prison have the right to run for office? They got
(01:56):
the legal right. What we're gonna talk about that. We
also talking about Medicare advantage, which one of the arguments
of the One Beautiful Bill is that it's going to
cut Medicaid, but there are some arguing that there it's
actually going to cut Medicare, which is something a lot
of our audience depends upon, particularly Medicare advantage. And this
is an interesting thing in an area where the right
(02:16):
budget hawks are agreeing with left wing opponents of Medicare
advantage against a lot of people in the center who
like the private program that operates within medicare. But before
we get into any of that, I wanted to talk
about something that the local press has completely ignored, and frankly,
ladies and gentlemen, they shouldn't have. It's a major story,
and to us in New Orleans, it's probably more important
(02:40):
than the Zohan getting the Democratic nomination in New York
as a Democratic Socialist and what's going to happen there.
The fact that New Orleans are the greater New Orleans Area.
The MSA is actually a lot smaller than it was
a few months ago. And I don't mean that we
actually lost people. We have a lot people consistently since
(03:01):
Hurricane Katrina of it. No, I mean that the north
Shore was written off with a pen. So if you
live in Sint Tammany Parish and the surrounding parishes, but
particularly Sat Tammany, you're probably in many cases referring to
yourselves as you know, I commute I live in on
the North Shore of New Orleans. Well, not according to
the federal government anymore. What do I mean by that?
(03:22):
Well may it went unnoticed, but a federal agency has
downgraded New Orleans from a major city to little more
than a large town. And that has major implications for
our government funding, business relocation, and economic development. Basically, let's
put it down. Of course, the north Shore was robbed
(03:43):
from the New Orleans metro by the stroke of a pen.
It kept reminding me of something that former Sint Tammany
Parish President Kevin Davis, if you remember, he controversial changed
the moniker and the advertisements for the north Shore from
New Orleans' north Shore to Louisiana's north Shore than the
years in and around Katrina. He was trying to break
the mental association of the causeway. Well, it took twenty years,
(04:07):
but he actually seems to have achieved his goal, or
at least that's what the federal government says. Quite simply,
the population of the New Orleans metropolitan area was reduced
from one million, two hundred and thirty seven thousand, seven
hundred and forty eight people to nine hundred and sixty
two thousand, one hundred and sixty five basically a loss
of over two and a half two hundred and fifty
(04:28):
thousand people by the stroke of a pen. It all
happened because now as of this year, less than a
quarter of north Shore residents now commute to the South
Shore for work. You're probably like, well, what does that
have to do with anything? Maybe not a lot to us,
but it means a lot to the federal government and
(04:48):
to the funding we would get, but also to investments,
to big corporate relocations, to everything, because it reduces the
New Orleans metro from a top fifty city to barely
in the top one hundred. So this is how it works.
For the last seventy years, the Office of Management and
Budget the OMB has maintained a set of consistent statistical
definitions for metropolitan reasons regions of the United States to
(05:11):
enhance the value of data provided by federalististical agencies. That's
a lot of gobbagoog for they basically kept in the
federal register what were big cities? Well, starting for the
data released for twenty twenty three, the metropolitan Statistical Area
or the MSA anchored by New Orleans. It's officially called
the New Orleans dash METAIE. MSA no longer include Saint
(05:33):
Tamney Parish. Following a twenty twenty update published by the
federal government and implemented this year, the New Orleans metay
MSA now covers seven parishes, Plaquaman, Saint Bernard, Orleans, Jefferson,
Saint Charles, Saint John the Baptist, and Saint James. Additionally,
there's now a new slide l Mandeville Covington MSA that's
been created that consists only of Saint Tammney Parish. So
(05:55):
why have the official definitions changed? While we talked to
the New Orleans Data Center and they've basically telling us
the short answer is that a small portion of workers
who live in Saint Tammany Parish are commuting to work
in Orleans, Jefferson and other parishes on the South Shore.
But this small this portion has the small group of
commuters has decreased and it no longer meets the threshold
(06:15):
to be for Saint Tammity to be colluded in the
metro New Orleans area. So put it another way, there
used to be about twenty six percent of the people
of Saint Tamney that would commute to New Orleans. Now
there's twenty two point one. But because it went below
it was twenty six point two, and now it's twenty
two point five because it went below twenty five percent.
(06:39):
Because Saint Tammany's two urban areas have sufficient population to
define the parish as a central county. A new metropolitan
area has been created between Slidelle, Mandeville and Covington. Now,
part of this has to do with Saint Tammny's success.
If you live in the north Shore, the population has increased.
There are two hundred and thirty two jobs for every
one residents. That was in nineteen ninety. Today there are
(07:03):
three hundred and forty six jobs for every one thousand residents.
The job ratio in Saint Tammany still remains lower than Jefferson,
New Orleans, as well as the other parishes. But the
contrast is the jobs to population ratio in Orleans and
Jefferson is lower than it was in the two thousands.
What does all that mean. It's a fancy way of saying, folks,
(07:23):
that the companies have relocated to the north Shore, so
a lot of people just go locally to their jobs
on the north Shore. We've talked about different companies that relocated,
Gray Insurance and others that started off on the South
Shore now on the north Shore and what it has
meant because it is just simply hard to go from
the north Shore to the South Shore if you don't
have a very good car to go a twenty four
mile causeway every day or the twin span or whatever.
(07:46):
Is that people aren't commuting like they once were, and
so it's no longer an outlying county. Now, why should
we care about this, Well, it actually is because this
is one of the major factors that conventions, professional sports teams,
Fortune five hundred company locations, television advertising, major games, major
(08:10):
concerts look at as to where they decide to go.
And if you're not a top fifty market we were
basically number fifty when all of this happened, you're not
considered something worthy of their time or economic investment. We
had chances over the last few decades to deal with
this problem. If you noticed, and if you remember, there
(08:32):
was a maglev train proposal that was at the really
late late nineteen nineties that would have connected downtown New
Orleans with slide Down on the Gulf Coast. There was
a fast ferry project that was discussed for years that
would have connected Mandeville to essentially something close to downtown
New Orleans with buses. There were various ways that you
would be able to get from the North Shore without
(08:53):
having to take a car, and that was one of
the people things people most wanted to do. They a
lot of people found work on the North Shore because
they just didn't want to make the drive, and they
moved to the north Shore because, frankly, the schools were better,
the quality of life is better, actually has higher property
taxes they do in the South Shore, but the cost
of housing was a lot lower, and so all in all,
it was a very good experience and it still is.
(09:17):
But because we don't make it easy to transit between
the parishes. Heck, it's hard to take a bus from
Jefferson to Orleans, much less to Saint Tammany, we are
now paying the price and it will affect every one
of our pocketbooks every time we look for investment in
New Orleans. Well, that's a good question to ask our
next guest in the course of our interview. Joining us
(09:37):
here in the Founder's Show on WR and O and
WSLA is a former New Orleans councilman and Louisiana State
Senator John Johnson and Senator my question, you're a candidate
for the council district eposition. For those that don't know,
this is New Orleans East and the ninth Ward, along
with several other areas. It's a position of which you're
imminently familiar from past usage. But you're running in a
(10:01):
way it kind of turned it. You're not only as
a former councilman. I mean, obviously Cynthia Wynn is running
for the seat that's been vacated by Oliver Thomas, who's
currently running from AYR. But a lot of people were
surprised that you decided to run because of the events
that happened in twenty twelve, and one of the things
you have said is you wanted a forum to explain
exactly what happened, and that was one of the reasons
(10:22):
you were running. So the floor is yours. The simple question,
can someone who went to federal prison get elected to
the city council again? And what were the circumstances that
happened from your perspective in that particular period of time.
Speaker 5 (10:41):
First of all, I think the answer to that question
is obvious. Oliver Thomas is the current colesonman in the
district that I am running for. So the answer to
a question, it's an obvious yes, and run in because
(11:02):
I think what happened to me, unfortunately doesn't really define me.
It's one of the parts of my life that I'm
certainly not proud of, but it certainly is not the
only thing that defines.
Speaker 2 (11:21):
Who John Johnson is.
Speaker 5 (11:23):
What happened was that you had a an overzealous US attorney,
an assistant US attorney who has since been spongerstanding disbarred,
also licensed to practice law, who were having problems, who
having major problems in that office, who were about to
be replaced, and I think they solve this as an
(11:45):
opportunity to try to enhance themselves to retain their offices. Specifically,
what happened was that there was a contract that was
led by FEMA back in two thousand and six, and
of course they came at.
Speaker 2 (12:03):
Me like six years later for a.
Speaker 5 (12:11):
Contract to cut a building in the ninth Ward with
a nonprofit corporation that required a reimbursement in order for
that required a payment and for the work to be
done in order for the nonprofit to receive the reimbursement.
(12:33):
I put up the money to get the work done.
It was my money that I put up, and was
every bit of around thirteen thousand dollars that they came
at me for. And when the money came back, when
the contract was paid by the state and the state
(12:54):
came in and looked at.
Speaker 2 (12:55):
The work and approved all of the work.
Speaker 5 (12:57):
And approved the reimbursement, said that everything had been done
in a manner in which it was supposed to have
been done, and they paid the reimbursement and I got
my money back that I had put out in order
to get the work done on the contract. But I
(13:18):
paid someone, I paid a third party instead of paying myself,
and the government came in and said it was a
technical violation of the law, that I should have paid
myself and paid the third party from my account instead
of paying the third party from the nonprofit organization's account.
(13:44):
That is what happened. My wife had just passed. I
lost my wife to breast cancer. I had a six
year old daughter, and I was simply trying to get
the matter resolved expert uditiously as possible. They committed and
promised me that it would either be a fine or
(14:08):
or probation, and they ended up the judge ended up
giving me a little over five months.
Speaker 4 (14:18):
Let's let's let let's talk about that for a second.
John Johnson, former councilman, Louis n State Senator, you you
had a young daughter, you were a widower and you this,
this violate the way that the checks went. It was
a thirty The question was thirteen thousand dollars. They leveled
a seventy nine thousand dollars. Fine at you, but you
(14:38):
go into court and you're in front of judge, Judge
Lance Afric, and the judge does not basically follow the
deal that you made with federal prosecutors.
Speaker 2 (14:52):
Is that that's right, that's an accurate of right. Yeah.
Speaker 5 (14:55):
Yes, it's a very conservative Republican judge who this decided
to do things differently. I don't know exactly what impact
the US Attorney's Office might have had on it. It's
one thing that I think the current president has made
perfectly clear that the Justice Department has some issues in
(15:19):
the way they administer justice. We know that when African
Americans are involved in the justice system, you don't always
get a fair shake, and I think that this was
one of the examples of where an African American leader
in the community was involved and I did not get
(15:40):
a fair shake. It had absolutely, positively, unequivocally nothing to
do with me as a public official or as an
elected official. My integrity and my reputation has never been
questioned as an election.
Speaker 4 (15:57):
It surprised a lot of people at the time, John Johnson,
because you one of the people that was pretty well
reputed never to even take a legal fee out of
not to take a consulting fee or any of the
other ways that are so called legal ways of being
on the payroll, much less the egal illegal ones. So
a lot of people were shocked at the time about
what happened.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
Yes, well, and of course so was I. So was I.
I just lost my wife to breast cancer. I was.
Speaker 5 (16:24):
I was really probably not thinking as I would normally
be thinking. I was primarily interested in making sure that
my daughter was fine, that my daughter was okay. It
was not about me. It was about my daughter, and
and I was. I was shocked when it happened, and
(16:45):
I was upset about it. I'm still upset about it.
And I'm running not only to explain that that I'm
running because I think that New Orleans East and the
law and I thought I need good, strong, competent experience leadership.
I think economic development is crucial in that community. All
(17:07):
of my training is in economics and finance. I've run
major businesses, owned Burger King, Papa John's Basket, Robbins, franchises.
I know how to operate a business, and I think
if there's any one thing that is needed in the district.
Speaker 2 (17:26):
Now is someone who has some.
Speaker 5 (17:29):
Experience in business development and economic development. And that's that's
another reason why I've decided to run.
Speaker 4 (17:37):
Well, let me ask you a couple of questions about
your platform for your campaign for the council district deposition.
It is an open seat, but of course you're running
against the incumbent who was there before, Oliver Thomas Cynthia Winn,
and you are in a competitive race for the seat.
We might have other candidates by the time qualifying is over.
Maybe not, but it is. It is interesting New Orleans East,
(18:00):
the New Orleanity's Ninth War, particularly New Orleans East. This
was the suburban dream of New Orleans, that you could
actually have a suburban experience in the city of New Orleans.
And what intrigues me recently was the story we started
off with on this program that I don't know if
you saw this. I know you pay attention to a
lot of federal regulatory things because that's some of what
you've done with getting money for the state. But the
(18:22):
Office of Management and Budget decided that the north Shore
is no longer part of New Orleans. They actually wrote
two hundred and fifty thousand people from our metro, which
means that we have gone, for the sake of federal
appropriations or for business investment fortune five hundred companies sporting
events from a metro area of one point twenty five
million people to one of nine hundred and twenty six thousands.
(18:44):
That's Jefferson Orleans, Saint Charles, Saint Tamet, but everything but
Saint Tammany. And the reason away said that because I
always said there was a the easiest two places to
connect economically was eastern Saint Tammney the slide L metro
area are in New Orleans East because frankly, from there
all the way to shelbych it's the it's the closest connection.
(19:07):
Lake Pond trains the closest way for those two communities.
It's sometimes even easier to economically connect Saint Tammany to
how should I put this to to to New Orleans
East and sometimes it is in the city itself. And
I was curious what your thoughts are and the fact
that not only the north Shore is no longer considered
(19:27):
statistical purposes part of our city. But the lost opportunities
to try to connect New Orleans East to the growing
economies on the North Shore.
Speaker 5 (19:36):
Well, I am not surprised if anything at all that
happens in Washington d C nowadays, it's I am not surprised.
So look, I think the city of New Orleans has
got the finn for itself. I don't think we're going
to be able to depend upon Washington d C. I
(20:00):
think we're going to be dependent a lot less on
Baton Rouge also, and we're just going to have to
do whatever it takes in order to make sure that
the City of New Orleans survives and thrives and is
headed in the right direction. I just think it's going
(20:22):
to take good, strong leadership at every level in the
Marais Race and each of these council districts, because for
all intents and purposes within in files elves right now,
not surprised.
Speaker 4 (20:36):
Let's talk about some concrete ways. I mean New Orleans East.
If any place has been it was always it had
problems before Hurricane Katrina. But if any place is not
really recovered from Hurricane Katrina in the metropolitan area, it's
New Orleans East. Before the storm, there was a mall,
a major movie theater, there was six Flags. There was
(20:57):
I mean, I can keep going down the list of
things New Orleans East had that after the storm, and
now twenty years after the storm, it no longer has
the redevelopment of Six Flags, and what's going on there
is taken forever. We're not really sure what's going to happen.
All of the different elements, neighborhoods haven't, country club and
the golf course has never really came back in a way.
What can we what can we do concretely to try
(21:20):
to improve the situation and not just you know, yeah.
Speaker 2 (21:24):
Well, and of course you mean it's over.
Speaker 5 (21:26):
Well again, Look what you're saying is just absolutely true
and it's very very obvious. I think what you need
is someone with a vision. I think you have got
to develop a good, strong, comprehensive plan and a vision
(21:47):
to implement that plan and find the people, find a
person who has the ability and who has the experience
and who has the know how in order to point
it in the light of direction. I do think that
you have a situation where we we have had some
(22:12):
slow downs because we just we need we need leadership
we need leadership, We need experience leadership, Well do you
do you?
Speaker 4 (22:22):
Let me Let me ask the question this way, And
I agree with that we need leadership. But is there
a business that we are an area of economic development
we should be focusing on to bring to New Orleans East,
Because I mean, the latest news, for example, is with
Boeing winding down their space capabilities, we might lose me
shoe as and that's what two three thousand high paying
(22:43):
jobs I mean. And that's a that's in the East.
So where should we be putting our eggs what basket
should we be saying, Hey, we need people to come in,
because frankly, it's what we're doing right now is not working.
Speaker 2 (22:55):
Well.
Speaker 5 (22:56):
I think, and look, this is not limited to Orlensease,
but I do think that one of the areas that
we that we really need to spend more time and
energy and effort in development is retail. We sales tax.
(23:18):
Sales tax is very important in the city's economy. Uh
So much of our money in the area of sales
tax goes to Saint Donard Parish, Saint Tammandy Parish, Jefferson Parish,
and and it and it hurts Orleans parish, it hurts
(23:38):
the city uh in New Orleans eas quite frankly, you
only have one major retail outlet, which is Walmart. I
just think that the plaza site, where you've got multiple
acres of bacon Land, is a prime site for redevelopment
that that we need to zero in in order to
(24:00):
bring some retail development there. And I think if you
start off by bringing in some basic retail development, show
developers that there are opportunities to make things happen and
to create jobs in that particular sector of the economy,
(24:23):
I think that can jump start other kinds of developments
that would ultimately come to the area. I think the
old jazz Land six Flags site is an area of opportunity,
and I think that whole industrial cardinal, the Amanasta Cardinal,
(24:45):
it's an opportunity for redevelopment. Also, one of the first
things that we've got to do is go in and
clean the place up. We have old, dilapidated, abandoned signs
along the interstate that have been there since Katrina. It's
you that is one of the cardinals that I think
(25:07):
really and truly have great opportunity. But we've got to
go in and clean it up. I think the sheep
masure Cardinal is another area that has UH.
Speaker 4 (25:18):
And you're raising an interesting issue because it really does
seem like code enforcement in many parts of the city
has just stopped in the last four years. I mean,
I can't put it a few errors, but I mean
not only vacant housing, but just the most basic public elements. Frankly,
nothing's happening at city Hall. And I don't know if
(25:39):
that's a councilan, it's fault that tends to be more
mare an executive branch, but not a lot is happening.
Speaker 5 (25:45):
Well, yes, I agree, and that's that's a that's a
major part of the problem, and I think people are
very very frustrated about that. I'm frustrated about it, and
that has to change and it will change.
Speaker 2 (26:01):
UH. And you're right.
Speaker 5 (26:03):
The the the lack of action is so very obvious.
There's an old, abandoned, UH dilapidated office building that was
the Energy building that's right in front of the Liberty
Bank building right there on the interstate that that you
can see, the old AT and T building is invested
(26:25):
with graffiti and you know, we've got to go in
and clean it up and and do some very very
serious work in cleaning up the area, and I think
that will also serve as as an incentive to have
people come in and and do invest in of capital
(26:49):
in the area.
Speaker 4 (26:50):
John Johnson, we're running alone times. I want to give
you I want to go a little bigger in the scope.
Obviously you're running to be the district councilman for District E,
but you're you are a former state center and state
representative as well as counselman. What is the city as
a whole need to do to send the message that
it's open for business and it's open for people. Because
the fact of the matter is, you know, after surging
(27:14):
in the years after Katrina, Orleans Parish is losing population.
It's not alone everywhere, but Saint Tammany has lost aggregate
population and for people moving out of town, young people
leaving town in the last fifteen years. What can we
do what from a macroeconomic standpoint regionally that you as
(27:36):
a councilman could help midwife. What can we do to
resverse that trend?
Speaker 2 (27:41):
Well?
Speaker 5 (27:43):
As you know, I'm on a city planning commission and
we're looking at it number of areas that the city
really needs to see roll in in order to make
it easier and simpler for businesses to get permits and
kate in the city, and to make zonning changes. Whenever
(28:05):
we have a company that might be interested in coming
into New Orleans, we we've got to We've got to
simplify the process and make it easier for companies to
be able to come in.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
That's number one.
Speaker 5 (28:20):
Number two, we have got to make economic development a
priority in this city.
Speaker 2 (28:29):
Look, we've got to. We've got to eat.
Speaker 5 (28:33):
Sleep, and drink economic development and just promote the city
as a as a as a location and as a
hub that is open for business and work with those
businesses that have an interest in coming into the city.
(28:54):
I think I think the City Council really needs to
zero in on economic development, talk more about economic development
than some of the other things that we talk about.
Speaker 4 (29:07):
I think, well, and I will I will say the
next mayor will play a rote role in this. One
of the things that I've been finding from from your
time on the council since you've left, since Mitch Landry's
been an off it was an office too. We had
we had a pretty good one stop shop for in
Orleans Parish for permitting and sometimes it was as big
a permitting as you know, trying to put a new
(29:30):
restaurant in, but sometimes it was as small. I'm a
licensed tour guide and I teach the tour guide class,
and it used to be, you know, it wasn't a
big deal. You would go up there to renew your license.
You showed up, you showed your license, you paid a fee,
filled out a form, went across the street, took your
federal background check. Everything was done in an hour. Now
it takes six weeks and you have to write off
(29:51):
and get notarized documents. And I actually asked somebody at
the Ground Transportation Bureau about this process and they said, well,
we changed it during the PANDMIC and we never changed
it back, and we just prefer because we don't want
to really deal with the public directly. And I'm like, wait,
what did you just hear what you sold me?
Speaker 2 (30:09):
It's like, yeah, yeah, that's crazy. That's crazy.
Speaker 5 (30:13):
And that is what the City Council needs to be
zeroing in on and dealing with on a daily basis,
making sure that we make economic development the number one
priority for the City of New Orleans, cleaning it up,
(30:33):
addressing the problem of crime, put more community resource officers
in these communities to address the issues and the problems
that the residents are happened in the neighborhoods, and simplify
the process for businesses that want to come into the
City of New Orleans to encourage them and that cops
(30:56):
and do business in the city.
Speaker 4 (30:57):
John Johnson, candidate for Council District EI SE return into
the New Orleans City Council. If somebody wants to find
out more about your campaign, how would they do it?
Speaker 5 (31:06):
You can simply go online, oh John Johnson dot com
and that's the simplest way to do it, or just
call me by number five O four two four five
fifteen forty two. Those are the two simplest ways to
do it.
Speaker 4 (31:26):
John Johnson, thank you so much for joining us the
Founder Show. We hope you'll come back before and after
the election. We wish the best of luck.
Speaker 2 (31:33):
Absolutely, Thank you very much.
Speaker 4 (31:34):
Books We'll be back to talk about efforts to cut
your Medicare advantage right after these important messages. Stay tuned
more of The Founder Show right for this. Only two
weeks left to be able to get your full subscriptions
to the twenty five twenty sixth season of the New
Orleans Opera. Go to New Orleans Opera dot org to
get the full season subscription available right now. From Handle's
(31:56):
Messiah to Terrence Blanchard, Fire, Shut Up in Your Bones,
two Rosencavalier, and Dialogues of the Caramelites, all available at
New Orleans Opera dot o.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
RG folks at Chaplin, Ha Mickenry and I want to
tell you about our ministry, LAMB Ministries. We are a
happening ministry working with interes city kids or urban poor.
We have had remarkable results over the past thirty years.
We need all the help we can get, so you
can contact me Chaplin, Hai McHenry at Eric code five
zero four seven two three nine three six nine. I
would love to meet you, or just go to our
(32:26):
website lambnola dot com. We need all the help we
can get. We need prayer warriors, finance support and volunteers.
Thank you so very very much.
Speaker 4 (32:35):
Remember, folks, your summer flower specials are available at Villariesfloorist
at one eight hundred vi l ERII or Villariesflowers dot
com on the web. Fantastic summer specials and summer baskets
all available at your fingertips, give them a call one
eight hundred VI I L L E R E or
Villariesflowers dot com and tell them you heard it here
on the Founder's Show. And welcome back to The Founder
(32:59):
Show with Hi McHenry and Christopher Tidmore. Of course, we
come to you every Sunday from Wrno. Ninety nine to
five FM from eight to nine am, every Monday, Wednesday
and Friday on WSLA ninety three point nine FM fifteen
sixty am on your dials from eight to nine am
twenty four to seven three sixty five in the iHeartMedia
app from Ralph Steak Radio in the West, and of
course always at the Founder's Show, two S's dot Com,
(33:23):
the foundershow dot com highs out of town at a
Bible conference. But right now I'm joined by one of
the experts on Medicare advantage. A lot of people in
our audience, Darren Grubb, are on not just Medicare, but
Medicare advantage. A good more than forty fifty percent of
the program is now using the private program. And it
(33:44):
seems like, you know, we've been hearing in the Big
Beautiful Bill negotiations in the Senate that they were going
after Medicaid, but Medicare was protected. However, the devil is
in the details. Is Medicare advantage under the threat of
the Acts?
Speaker 6 (33:59):
Chris, great to be with you today. I'm really really
glad to have the time to talk about this with
you and your listeners. Yes, you know, I will tell
you this. We are encouraged that members of the House
and Senate did not include language at the end of
the day that would cut funding for Medicare Advantage. During
the big beautiful bill reconciliation process. I will say several
Senate members, including Senator Cassidy, did flow the idea of
(34:23):
perhaps adding provisions in their version on the Senate side
that would undermine critical elements of Medicare Advantage and essentially
cut funding. But I'll tell you this, over the last
few weeks, seniors really made their voices heard. You know,
we represent Medicare Advantage Majority, an organization dedicated to protecting
and strengthening the Medicare Advantage program, and we've got a
nationwide network of advocates, beneficiaries, caregivers, providers, community leaders, and
(34:49):
our grassroots army really mobilized, really mobilized to help ensure
that any talk of cuts to Medicare advantage did not
help happen during the reconciliation.
Speaker 4 (34:59):
Because there say, I will say that there is a
strange sort of right left alliance when it comes to
cutting Medicare advantage. The rights looking for cuts the left.
If you had to target one thing that Bernie Zanders
and some of the progresses don't like, it's private operation
within Medicare. And so sometimes you guys are hit by
(35:20):
both sides when it comes to protecting Medicare advantage.
Speaker 7 (35:24):
I would say the reverse is true as well.
Speaker 6 (35:26):
There are centers on both sides of the aisle who
were posed to adding provisions like the one proposed by
by Senator Cassidy, provisions you know, to the bill that
would use seniors healthcare as a pay for you know,
that's bad policy and bad politics. We totally understand and
appreciate the desire in many ways the need to cut
betteral spending. We believe it should not be done on
(35:46):
the backs of seniors, you know, particularly those who are
who are you know, sixty five or older, have worked
their entire lives, paid into a program and expect the
healthcare services so that they can age securely, safely and
independently with financial peace of life.
Speaker 4 (36:03):
So a lot of people don't know, you know, who
aren't at sixty five, don't exactly know what Medicare advantage is.
And I know it uses private health HMOs and PPOs
within the system and you pay a little extra on
it for another degree of care. It's become an incredibly
popular part of Medicare. What is the actual percentage at
(36:23):
this point, more than.
Speaker 6 (36:25):
Half of all else beneficiaries, over thirty four million seniors
and people with disabilities use Medicare advantage That include sixty
nine percent of Latino seniors, sixty five percent of blacks
in Louisiana alone, Chris, there are nearly five hundred and
forty thousand seniors in the Medicare Advantage program. That's fifty
seven percent of your Medicare eligible population.
Speaker 7 (36:45):
And I will tell you this.
Speaker 6 (36:46):
You know, the appeal of Medicare advantage, as you pointed out,
is that it delivers comprehensive, high quality, affordable care that
goes beyond traditional fee for service Medicare. So Medicare Advantage
offers benefits like dental coverage, vision coverage, hearing in home
care service is not available in many traditional Medicare plans,
and unlike traditional Medicare, Medicare Advantage provides prescription drug coverage
(37:08):
and a cap on out of hockey costs, which gives
seniors that financial peace of mind, especially during high inflationary
times like we're still in right now.
Speaker 4 (37:16):
Well, what I've always liked that is it's kind of
a very good blending of the private sector and public funding. So,
you know, the interesting part is Poles have said that
people's satisfaction with Medicare Advantage are incredibly high rates, you know,
sixty seventy percent. However, I want to look at the
future if I can and drag you into a fight
(37:38):
that you know, you probably don't want to have yet,
but it's coming up. We heard that Social Security is
going broke in twenty thirty three. Well, Medicare has going
broke before then, and there have been a lot of
ideas floated to keep it alive. That's obviously a congressional
funding thing, but one of the ideas has been to
drastically raise Medicare Advantage fees. And I'm curious what your
(38:00):
organization is saying on that. Basically, as a way to
save Medicare, fund it through Medicare advantage.
Speaker 7 (38:09):
I will tell you this you.
Speaker 6 (38:10):
We recently put out a poll recently put out a
survey of the cooled seniors nationwide. We found an overwhelming
majority of seniors really value their Medicare advantage plans. They
opposed any effort that would cut funding for Medicare advantage
a couple of numbers. Eighty two percent believe that cuts
the Medicare advantage would have a negative impact on their
financial well being. Percent across parties one Congress post funding
(38:33):
for Medicare advantage, eighty three percent believed that the additional
benefits that I mentioned earlier provided by Medicare advantage plans
are important on it not only to them, but to
their family members as well. And that last point really
resonates with a lot of people like me and perhaps
you belong to what we call the Sandwich generation. So
my wife and I have two young children at home
to take care, but we also have aging parents and
(38:55):
aging family members who need more care than they did
even a.
Speaker 7 (38:57):
Few years ago.
Speaker 6 (38:59):
We're becoming more responsible for helping them too, is caregivers.
And so you know, the peace of mind that we
get knowing that Medicare advantage provides that comprehensive, high quality
care significant And you mentioned that seniors are very very
happy with their Medicare advantage plans. You know, they enrollment
numbers year over year really really strong. We've seem really
strong choice. And seniors have the choice every year to
(39:21):
choose the plan that's best for them, Medicare advantage or
traditional fee for service Medicare, whatever it meets their needs
the best, and.
Speaker 7 (39:28):
We support that choice. But what I can tell you is.
Speaker 6 (39:31):
That we are here to ensure that Congress understands how
important it is for seniors and their caregivers and their
families to stand up and protect Medicare advantage.
Speaker 4 (39:41):
So after the initial things led by many, including Louise
Anzeng Center Cassidy to potentially cut funding your services. Right now,
currently in the big Beautiful Bill, neither the House or
Senate version has cuts to Medicare advantage.
Speaker 7 (39:58):
Correct Correct are always going to stay. We're again, we're
encouraged by that.
Speaker 6 (40:02):
We think seniors made their voices heard loud and clear.
Another another data point from our recent survey, sixty nine
percent of seniors are less likely likely to vote for
a member of Congress who supports cuts and Here's why.
If fundingness cut, seniors are going to pay higher premiums,
They're going to have higher deductibles, they're going to have
higher out of pocket costs upwards of twenty five hundred
dollars per year, and they're going to have less access
(40:24):
to the doctors and services.
Speaker 7 (40:25):
That they need.
Speaker 6 (40:26):
And again, at the time of high inflation, Medicare advantages,
you know, unique offering, the cap on out of pocket
costs are are really important, especially for seniors on fixtam comes.
Speaker 7 (40:37):
And so we believe that the seniors message to Congress
is pretty clear.
Speaker 4 (40:40):
Darren grev If somebody wants to find out more about
not only your organization but the advocacy in defense of
Medicare advantage, where would they go?
Speaker 6 (40:48):
You bet I'd invite your listeners to go to our
website www. Dot Medicare Advantage majority dot org to learn
more about our organization, to sign a letter to earn
your members of Congress to protect and strength of Medicare advantage.
Speaker 4 (41:01):
Medicair Advantage majority dot org. Darren Greb, thank you so
much for joining us here in the Founder Show.
Speaker 7 (41:07):
Chris, thank you for having me on Keepers Posted.
Speaker 4 (41:15):
It may be hot outside, but why don't you go
inside to the Garden District Bookshop in the historic Rink
shopping center and enjoy the dog days of summer. Activities
are happening every evening at their bar Epilogue, have a
cocktail and engage in one of the evening activities to
make the summer go by. On Tuesday night, it's Crafty
Night with college bookmarks being made by the Pearl. It's
(41:37):
a punch drunk parlor game on Wednesdays, Martini Thursdays, and
live music on Fridays, all at the Garden District Bookshop
and Saturday Night Bubbles Fight. And of course on Sundays,
if you're listening to this, it is the official Cornhole
Tournament starting at three pm at the Garden District Bookshop.
It is something you don't want to miss. If you're
(41:57):
listening to this on wr this Sunday afternoon, come after
lunch and have a cocktail and play corn hall. All
of this at twenty seven to twenty seven Pretena at
the Garden District Bookshop, over seventy spots of off street
parking for your convenience. Garden District Bookshop online at the
Gardendistrict Bookshop dot.
Speaker 8 (42:14):
Com rescue, recovery, re engagement. These are not just words.
These are the action steps we at the New Orleans
Mission take to make a positive impact on the homeless
problem facing the greater New Orleans area. Did you know
in twenty twenty, homelessness in our community increased by over
(42:36):
forty percent. We are committed to meet this need through
the work being.
Speaker 7 (42:41):
Done at the New Orleans Mission.
Speaker 8 (42:44):
We begin the rescue process by going out into the
community every day to bring food, pray, and share the
love of Jesus with the hopeless and hurting in our community.
Through the process of recovery, these individuals have the opportunity
need to take time out, assess their life and begin
to make new decisions to live out their God given purpose.
(43:08):
After the healing process has begun and lives are back
on track, we walk each individual as they re engage
back into the community to be healthy, thriving, and living
a life of purpose. No one is meant to live
under a bridge. No one should endure abuse, no one
should be stuck in addiction. The New Orleans Mission is
(43:30):
a stepping stone out of that life of destruction and
into a life of hope and purpose.
Speaker 2 (43:37):
Partner with us.
Speaker 8 (43:38):
Today go to www dot New Orleans Mission dot org,
or make a difference by texting to seven seven nine
four eight.
Speaker 4 (43:50):
Remember, folks, only a couple of weeks remain to get
your season tickets for the New Orleans Opera's twenty five
twenty six season. Go for more information at New Orleans
Opera dot org. New Orleans Opera dot org. Fantastic season,
including dialogues of the Carmelites to Rosencavalier Carlile Food's Pilgrimage,
Terrence Blanchard's fire Shut Up in My Bones, and of
course handles Messiah at Christmas. For information, check out New
(44:13):
Orleans Opera dot org.
Speaker 1 (44:22):
Battleship.
Speaker 3 (44:25):
Well, folks are back, and you are listening to the
Founders show the voice of the Founding Fellows, and this
is none other then you spend Gary Bubba all the
republic chaplain, High McHenry, and it's not time for us
to go into our chaplain by patriotic moment. We just
take a brief moment to remind you of the biblical
foundations of our country, our Judeo Christian jurisprudence, and today
we're going to talk about none other then the Star
(44:47):
Spangled banner. Yes, the stars bango banner our national anthem.
You know the guy who wrote that was Francis scott Key.
He was watching the Battle of Fort McHenry. Didn't have
a chance of winning the battle and the but the
flag stood it never, it didn't fall, and it gave
Francis scott Key hope and he was inspired and he
wrote this poet which became a song. He was a
(45:10):
very successful attorney who spent much of his career fighting slavery.
He was a big abolitionist and he was on a
British boat waiting for a prisoner exchange when he witnessed
this and inspired him to r at the national anthem.
You know it goes Think of the words in the
National Anthem. It says, may the Heaven rescued land, praise
the power that means God that has made and preserved
(45:32):
us a nation. Then conquer we must when our cause.
Speaker 2 (45:36):
It is just.
Speaker 3 (45:38):
And this is our motto in God is our Trust.
That was a star spangle banner, the star spangled banner
in Triumph Show Wave over the Land of the Free
and the home of the brave folks. What a powerful message,
What a powerful message of the need for God in
our government. It was so important that they took that
phrase and God is our trust, and they made it
(45:59):
the motto. Abraham Lincoln's last act was to sign a
Congressional Act for requiring in God we Trust to be
put on our money Truman. President Truman went on to
say that when the use was established, the motto was
in God we Trust. That is still our motto, he said,
and we still place our firm trust in God. JFK. Kennedy,
(46:23):
our great president who was murdered assassinated. John Kennedy in
nineteen sixty one said the guiding principle of the nation
has been in Isna and shall ever be in God
We Trust. Reagan stated in nineteen eighty one, our nation's
motto reflect a basic recognition that there is a divine
authority in the universe to which this nation owes homage. Folks,
(46:45):
I think they wanted God in government. There were many
other presidents that said similar things about the national anthem,
the star spangle banner. Well, folks, where are you on this?
Do you have a star spangled banner in your heart?
Talking about the bright and morning star. That's the Lord
Jesus Christ. That's one of his names in the scripture.
(47:08):
Do you have your trust in God? All your trust?
Because to get to heaven you got to have all
your trust. As we now go into our chopping by
by a gospel moment where I'm just like a brief
moment to show you how you can know that you
know that, you know you do have that bright and
morning star in your heart like the star spangled banner.
You are putting all your trust in God. And it
(47:29):
goes like this, to get Jesus, you have to put
all your trust and only Him and only trust faith
alone in Christ alone. That's what is required to get
into heaven. What that means that you have to repent.
And Jesus kept saying repent and believe. That word repent
is another form or another way of saying believe. He
was saying believe when he said repent and believe you
(47:50):
can't save yourself. Believe your hopess helps without God. Believe
you're destined to an eternal hell, burning hell because you're
just not good enough. That's what he meant when he
said that repent. That's what repentance means. It means change
your mind in the Greek, change your mind about what
what I just told you. Folks. Now, after you've done that,
you're now free and ready to put faith alone in
(48:13):
Christ alone. You're free to know the one who brings liberty.
Where the spirit of Christ, as the scripture says, there
is liberty. You want that liberty in your life and
your heart. You want it for all eternity. You'll get
it if you put faith alone in Christ alone. If
you really will believe that Jesus died for all of
your sins on the cross, all of them, from the
(48:33):
day you're born of the day you die, you tie
us to great sins. All went on Jesus and his
blood washed them all away. The scripture says that. And
then when he finished that taking care of your sin problem,
your first love problem, he took care of your second
love problem, which is death. When he rose from the dead,
he beat death. He did that for you to win
for you his free gift of resurrection every lasting life.
(48:54):
It's all free, folks. That's what the word grace means.
Scripture says, we've been saved by grace. That means a
free gift, grace God Isma. It means free gift. We've
been saved by a free gift. We've been saved by
grace through faith. That's how you take it. Only with
the faith of a little child, that's how you take it.
Like Elon Mussel, little boy ex is showting right now.
(49:16):
If those stories are true, those are amazing faith of
a little child. You just got to believe it's really
true for you. You can't believe it's true for somebody else.
I mean, it is true for somebody else, but that
won't get you in. Each entrance into Heaven is on
an individual basis. Your parents can't get you in, your
best friend can't get you in. You preacher can't get you.
And Jesus that's how you get in. So you put
(49:37):
faith alone. In Christ alone, you believe that He really
did die far your sins, was buried, and rose from
the dead to win for you his precious free gift
of resurrection, ever lasting life. And the split second you
come to believe that you were born again, that means
you're dead and dine spirit has just become fully alive.
You are guaranteed heaven. When you die, you will go
to Heaven. WHOA isn't that exciting? How great of salvation
(50:01):
we have? The scripture says, how so they escape if
they neglect so great a salvation. We've got the greatest salvation. Folks.
Believe it right now. Believe it's true for you. Don't
wait till it's too late. Like the old country preacher saying,
like the Word of God says, today now is the
day of salvation. Folks, you mean I get tomorrow? Do
it right now? Well, folks, it is not time for
us to go into our chaplain by by testimony time.
(50:23):
We just take a brief moment to remind you of
a wonderful story about someone in the past or even
someone living now that has a great story about their
relationship with God. It's a very powerful you know, the
script says by the blood of the Lamb, that means
the Gospel, and the word of the testimony, that means
your life story, the word of their testimony, they defeated
the devil. So we're going to have a little testimony
(50:45):
time to show how how the devil can be defeated.
Dearly beloved, I want to tell you this wonderful story
about a man named John Stewart. He was a free
black and born in Patan County, Virginia, and seventeen eighty six,
he decided, after he had developed a trade dying cloth
(51:06):
with blue, that he would go to Tennessee to join
his family. And on the way he had saved a
lot of money, made a lot of money, all he
was robbed. So by the time he got to Tennessee
he was so ashamed of himself and so disgraced he
wanted to die, and he gave up, and he thought
the only way he could find peace was to was
in the bottle. He became a terrible drunk, I mean
(51:28):
a horrible drunk, and lived a terrible life for the
next few years, wandering up into Ohio as just a hope,
was drunk. And while he was there, God got a
hold of him and he found he was born again.
He became a very dedicated Christian. He was totally delivered
from his alcoholism. He had a glorious experience at a
(51:52):
Methodist camp meeting they used to have those back in
the their days, where they'd preach how far in Brimstone,
and people got saved, people were born again, came to
Christ and anyway, he decided he would become a missionary
to the Native Americans. His first convert was a Wyandot
Huron chief name between the logs. He continued to work
(52:15):
with that village, in that tribe until he converted the
entire tribe to Christ. They had all become Christians. He
would have camp meeting, someone would get excited, someone would
get angry, someone would be running around acting crazy, but
eventually they all came to Christ. One of the reports
was that the Great Spirit came from the chief was
that the Great Spirit came upon us, that all cried aloud,
(52:38):
crying out to Jesus and beginning to sing and pray. Anyway,
he had a wonderful life for the rest of his life,
establishing quite a mission work. He finally passed away in
eighteen twenty three, with much written about him and set
about him for the enormous exact ample and testimony that
(53:01):
he was to the people of his day. Folks, we
can all have a testimony like that. No matter what
our problems are, God's bigger than our problems. As you
could see he was with this great African American preacher. Well,
it is time for us to close now with am
on Saint Martin singing a Creole goodbye, and God bless
all of.
Speaker 9 (53:21):
The call you creel goodbye. They think we just wasted
the time. All three sibyl.
Speaker 8 (53:39):
Me.
Speaker 9 (53:42):
There is time for a creo goodbye
Bide holes, the politicians, the press, the digitators and magicians.
Who's to see the money then you don't.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
There's nothing to.
Speaker 1 (00:19):
Fill the holes while there are feeling their pieh kits
tied holes, the politicians bouncing down the road every bisition.
With no more corruption and dysfunction, it's gone to take
divine intervention and God.
Speaker 3 (00:39):
Bless all out there. You are now listening to the
founders show the voice of the Founding Fathers. You're Founding
Fathers coming to you deep within the bowels of those
mystic and cryptic alligator swamps of the BAGHASI that old
Crescent City, New Orleans, Louisiana, and high up on top
of that old Liberty Cypress tree way out on the
(00:59):
Eagles brand. This is none other then You've s been
gary by by all the republic Chaplain Hi McHenry with
Christopher Tidmore.
Speaker 4 (01:07):
You're roving reporter and resident radical moderate, and we've got
a great show.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
For you today.
Speaker 4 (01:12):
Christopher Tidmore, you're roving reporter, resident radical moderate and associate
editor of the Louisiana Weekly newspaper at Louisiana Weekly dot net.
And ladies and gentlemen, we've got a great show for
you today. High is actually at a Bible conference. He'll
be joining us for the closing of the show today
on Today's program where with somewhat extended patriotic moment, but
(01:33):
I wanted to We've got a very good show. We've
got a candidate for Council District E in New Orleans
and he's a very familiar name. His name is Senator
John Johnson. And if those who haven't heard it, he
was a senator. He resigned and he went to federal
prison and he's now running. Does somebody who went to
prison have the right to run for office? They got
(01:56):
the legal right. What we're gonna talk about that. We
also talking about Medicare advantage, which one of the arguments
of the One Beautiful Bill is that it's going to
cut Medicaid, but there are some arguing that there it's
actually going to cut Medicare, which is something a lot
of our audience depends upon, particularly Medicare advantage. And this
is an interesting thing in an area where the right
(02:16):
budget hawks are agreeing with left wing opponents of Medicare
advantage against a lot of people in the center who
like the private program that operates within medicare. But before
we get into any of that, I wanted to talk
about something that the local press has completely ignored, and frankly,
ladies and gentlemen, they shouldn't have. It's a major story,
and to us in New Orleans, it's probably more important
(02:40):
than the Zohan getting the Democratic nomination in New York
as a Democratic Socialist and what's going to happen there.
The fact that New Orleans are the greater New Orleans Area.
The MSA is actually a lot smaller than it was
a few months ago. And I don't mean that we
actually lost people. We have a lot people consistently since
(03:01):
Hurricane Katrina of it. No, I mean that the north
Shore was written off with a pen. So if you
live in Sint Tammany Parish and the surrounding parishes, but
particularly Sat Tammany, you're probably in many cases referring to
yourselves as you know, I commute I live in on
the North Shore of New Orleans. Well, not according to
the federal government anymore. What do I mean by that?
(03:22):
Well may it went unnoticed, but a federal agency has
downgraded New Orleans from a major city to little more
than a large town. And that has major implications for
our government funding, business relocation, and economic development. Basically, let's
put it down. Of course, the north Shore was robbed
(03:43):
from the New Orleans metro by the stroke of a pen.
It kept reminding me of something that former Sint Tammany
Parish President Kevin Davis, if you remember, he controversial changed
the moniker and the advertisements for the north Shore from
New Orleans' north Shore to Louisiana's north Shore than the
years in and around Katrina. He was trying to break
the mental association of the causeway. Well, it took twenty years,
(04:07):
but he actually seems to have achieved his goal, or
at least that's what the federal government says. Quite simply,
the population of the New Orleans metropolitan area was reduced
from one million, two hundred and thirty seven thousand, seven
hundred and forty eight people to nine hundred and sixty
two thousand, one hundred and sixty five basically a loss
of over two and a half two hundred and fifty
(04:28):
thousand people by the stroke of a pen. It all
happened because now as of this year, less than a
quarter of north Shore residents now commute to the South
Shore for work. You're probably like, well, what does that
have to do with anything? Maybe not a lot to us,
but it means a lot to the federal government and
(04:48):
to the funding we would get, but also to investments,
to big corporate relocations, to everything, because it reduces the
New Orleans metro from a top fifty city to barely
in the top one hundred. So this is how it works.
For the last seventy years, the Office of Management and
Budget the OMB has maintained a set of consistent statistical
definitions for metropolitan reasons regions of the United States to
(05:11):
enhance the value of data provided by federalististical agencies. That's
a lot of gobbagoog for they basically kept in the
federal register what were big cities? Well, starting for the
data released for twenty twenty three, the metropolitan Statistical Area
or the MSA anchored by New Orleans. It's officially called
the New Orleans dash METAIE. MSA no longer include Saint
(05:33):
Tamney Parish. Following a twenty twenty update published by the
federal government and implemented this year, the New Orleans metay
MSA now covers seven parishes, Plaquaman, Saint Bernard, Orleans, Jefferson,
Saint Charles, Saint John the Baptist, and Saint James. Additionally,
there's now a new slide l Mandeville Covington MSA that's
been created that consists only of Saint Tammney Parish. So
(05:55):
why have the official definitions changed? While we talked to
the New Orleans Data Center and they've basically telling us
the short answer is that a small portion of workers
who live in Saint Tammany Parish are commuting to work
in Orleans, Jefferson and other parishes on the South Shore.
But this small this portion has the small group of
commuters has decreased and it no longer meets the threshold
(06:15):
to be for Saint Tammity to be colluded in the
metro New Orleans area. So put it another way, there
used to be about twenty six percent of the people
of Saint Tamney that would commute to New Orleans. Now
there's twenty two point one. But because it went below
it was twenty six point two, and now it's twenty
two point five because it went below twenty five percent.
(06:39):
Because Saint Tammany's two urban areas have sufficient population to
define the parish as a central county. A new metropolitan
area has been created between Slidelle, Mandeville and Covington. Now,
part of this has to do with Saint Tammny's success.
If you live in the north Shore, the population has increased.
There are two hundred and thirty two jobs for every
one residents. That was in nineteen ninety. Today there are
(07:03):
three hundred and forty six jobs for every one thousand residents.
The job ratio in Saint Tammany still remains lower than Jefferson,
New Orleans, as well as the other parishes. But the
contrast is the jobs to population ratio in Orleans and
Jefferson is lower than it was in the two thousands.
What does all that mean. It's a fancy way of saying, folks,
(07:23):
that the companies have relocated to the north Shore, so
a lot of people just go locally to their jobs
on the north Shore. We've talked about different companies that relocated,
Gray Insurance and others that started off on the South
Shore now on the north Shore and what it has
meant because it is just simply hard to go from
the north Shore to the South Shore if you don't
have a very good car to go a twenty four
mile causeway every day or the twin span or whatever.
(07:46):
Is that people aren't commuting like they once were, and
so it's no longer an outlying county. Now, why should
we care about this, Well, it actually is because this
is one of the major factors that conventions, professional sports teams,
Fortune five hundred company locations, television advertising, major games, major
(08:10):
concerts look at as to where they decide to go.
And if you're not a top fifty market we were
basically number fifty when all of this happened, you're not
considered something worthy of their time or economic investment. We
had chances over the last few decades to deal with
this problem. If you noticed, and if you remember, there
(08:32):
was a maglev train proposal that was at the really
late late nineteen nineties that would have connected downtown New
Orleans with slide Down on the Gulf Coast. There was
a fast ferry project that was discussed for years that
would have connected Mandeville to essentially something close to downtown
New Orleans with buses. There were various ways that you
would be able to get from the North Shore without
(08:53):
having to take a car, and that was one of
the people things people most wanted to do. They a
lot of people found work on the North Shore because
they just didn't want to make the drive, and they
moved to the north Shore because, frankly, the schools were better,
the quality of life is better, actually has higher property
taxes they do in the South Shore, but the cost
of housing was a lot lower, and so all in all,
it was a very good experience and it still is.
(09:17):
But because we don't make it easy to transit between
the parishes. Heck, it's hard to take a bus from
Jefferson to Orleans, much less to Saint Tammany, we are
now paying the price and it will affect every one
of our pocketbooks every time we look for investment in
New Orleans. Well, that's a good question to ask our
next guest in the course of our interview. Joining us
(09:37):
here in the Founder's Show on WR and O and
WSLA is a former New Orleans councilman and Louisiana State
Senator John Johnson and Senator my question, you're a candidate
for the council district eposition. For those that don't know,
this is New Orleans East and the ninth Ward, along
with several other areas. It's a position of which you're
imminently familiar from past usage. But you're running in a
(10:01):
way it kind of turned it. You're not only as
a former councilman. I mean, obviously Cynthia Wynn is running
for the seat that's been vacated by Oliver Thomas, who's
currently running from AYR. But a lot of people were
surprised that you decided to run because of the events
that happened in twenty twelve, and one of the things
you have said is you wanted a forum to explain
exactly what happened, and that was one of the reasons
(10:22):
you were running. So the floor is yours. The simple question,
can someone who went to federal prison get elected to
the city council again? And what were the circumstances that
happened from your perspective in that particular period of time.
Speaker 5 (10:41):
First of all, I think the answer to that question
is obvious. Oliver Thomas is the current colesonman in the
district that I am running for. So the answer to
a question, it's an obvious yes, and run in because
(11:02):
I think what happened to me, unfortunately doesn't really define me.
It's one of the parts of my life that I'm
certainly not proud of, but it certainly is not the
only thing that defines.
Speaker 2 (11:21):
Who John Johnson is.
Speaker 5 (11:23):
What happened was that you had a an overzealous US attorney,
an assistant US attorney who has since been spongerstanding disbarred,
also licensed to practice law, who were having problems, who
having major problems in that office, who were about to
be replaced, and I think they solve this as an
(11:45):
opportunity to try to enhance themselves to retain their offices. Specifically,
what happened was that there was a contract that was
led by FEMA back in two thousand and six, and
of course they came at.
Speaker 2 (12:03):
Me like six years later for a.
Speaker 5 (12:11):
Contract to cut a building in the ninth Ward with
a nonprofit corporation that required a reimbursement in order for
that required a payment and for the work to be
done in order for the nonprofit to receive the reimbursement.
(12:33):
I put up the money to get the work done.
It was my money that I put up, and was
every bit of around thirteen thousand dollars that they came
at me for. And when the money came back, when
the contract was paid by the state and the state
(12:54):
came in and looked at.
Speaker 2 (12:55):
The work and approved all of the work.
Speaker 5 (12:57):
And approved the reimbursement, said that everything had been done
in a manner in which it was supposed to have
been done, and they paid the reimbursement and I got
my money back that I had put out in order
to get the work done on the contract. But I
(13:18):
paid someone, I paid a third party instead of paying myself,
and the government came in and said it was a
technical violation of the law, that I should have paid
myself and paid the third party from my account instead
of paying the third party from the nonprofit organization's account.
(13:44):
That is what happened. My wife had just passed. I
lost my wife to breast cancer. I had a six
year old daughter, and I was simply trying to get
the matter resolved expert uditiously as possible. They committed and
promised me that it would either be a fine or
(14:08):
or probation, and they ended up the judge ended up
giving me a little over five months.
Speaker 4 (14:18):
Let's let's let let's talk about that for a second.
John Johnson, former councilman, Louis n State Senator, you you
had a young daughter, you were a widower and you this,
this violate the way that the checks went. It was
a thirty The question was thirteen thousand dollars. They leveled
a seventy nine thousand dollars. Fine at you, but you
(14:38):
go into court and you're in front of judge, Judge
Lance Afric, and the judge does not basically follow the
deal that you made with federal prosecutors.
Speaker 2 (14:52):
Is that that's right, that's an accurate of right. Yeah.
Speaker 5 (14:55):
Yes, it's a very conservative Republican judge who this decided
to do things differently. I don't know exactly what impact
the US Attorney's Office might have had on it. It's
one thing that I think the current president has made
perfectly clear that the Justice Department has some issues in
(15:19):
the way they administer justice. We know that when African
Americans are involved in the justice system, you don't always
get a fair shake, and I think that this was
one of the examples of where an African American leader
in the community was involved and I did not get
(15:40):
a fair shake. It had absolutely, positively, unequivocally nothing to
do with me as a public official or as an
elected official. My integrity and my reputation has never been
questioned as an election.
Speaker 4 (15:57):
It surprised a lot of people at the time, John Johnson,
because you one of the people that was pretty well
reputed never to even take a legal fee out of
not to take a consulting fee or any of the
other ways that are so called legal ways of being
on the payroll, much less the egal illegal ones. So
a lot of people were shocked at the time about
what happened.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
Yes, well, and of course so was I. So was I.
I just lost my wife to breast cancer. I was.
Speaker 5 (16:24):
I was really probably not thinking as I would normally
be thinking. I was primarily interested in making sure that
my daughter was fine, that my daughter was okay. It
was not about me. It was about my daughter, and
and I was. I was shocked when it happened, and
(16:45):
I was upset about it. I'm still upset about it.
And I'm running not only to explain that that I'm
running because I think that New Orleans East and the
law and I thought I need good, strong, competent experience leadership.
I think economic development is crucial in that community. All
(17:07):
of my training is in economics and finance. I've run
major businesses, owned Burger King, Papa John's Basket, Robbins, franchises.
I know how to operate a business, and I think
if there's any one thing that is needed in the district.
Speaker 2 (17:26):
Now is someone who has some.
Speaker 5 (17:29):
Experience in business development and economic development. And that's that's
another reason why I've decided to run.
Speaker 4 (17:37):
Well, let me ask you a couple of questions about
your platform for your campaign for the council district deposition.
It is an open seat, but of course you're running
against the incumbent who was there before, Oliver Thomas Cynthia Winn,
and you are in a competitive race for the seat.
We might have other candidates by the time qualifying is over.
Maybe not, but it is. It is interesting New Orleans East,
(18:00):
the New Orleanity's Ninth War, particularly New Orleans East. This
was the suburban dream of New Orleans, that you could
actually have a suburban experience in the city of New Orleans.
And what intrigues me recently was the story we started
off with on this program that I don't know if
you saw this. I know you pay attention to a
lot of federal regulatory things because that's some of what
you've done with getting money for the state. But the
(18:22):
Office of Management and Budget decided that the north Shore
is no longer part of New Orleans. They actually wrote
two hundred and fifty thousand people from our metro, which
means that we have gone, for the sake of federal
appropriations or for business investment fortune five hundred companies sporting
events from a metro area of one point twenty five
million people to one of nine hundred and twenty six thousands.
(18:44):
That's Jefferson Orleans, Saint Charles, Saint Tamet, but everything but
Saint Tammany. And the reason away said that because I
always said there was a the easiest two places to
connect economically was eastern Saint Tammney the slide L metro
area are in New Orleans East because frankly, from there
all the way to shelbych it's the it's the closest connection.
(19:07):
Lake Pond trains the closest way for those two communities.
It's sometimes even easier to economically connect Saint Tammany to
how should I put this to to to New Orleans
East and sometimes it is in the city itself. And
I was curious what your thoughts are and the fact
that not only the north Shore is no longer considered
(19:27):
statistical purposes part of our city. But the lost opportunities
to try to connect New Orleans East to the growing
economies on the North Shore.
Speaker 5 (19:36):
Well, I am not surprised if anything at all that
happens in Washington d C nowadays, it's I am not surprised.
So look, I think the city of New Orleans has
got the finn for itself. I don't think we're going
to be able to depend upon Washington d C. I
(20:00):
think we're going to be dependent a lot less on
Baton Rouge also, and we're just going to have to
do whatever it takes in order to make sure that
the City of New Orleans survives and thrives and is
headed in the right direction. I just think it's going
(20:22):
to take good, strong leadership at every level in the
Marais Race and each of these council districts, because for
all intents and purposes within in files elves right now,
not surprised.
Speaker 4 (20:36):
Let's talk about some concrete ways. I mean New Orleans East.
If any place has been it was always it had
problems before Hurricane Katrina. But if any place is not
really recovered from Hurricane Katrina in the metropolitan area, it's
New Orleans East. Before the storm, there was a mall,
a major movie theater, there was six Flags. There was
(20:57):
I mean, I can keep going down the list of
things New Orleans East had that after the storm, and
now twenty years after the storm, it no longer has
the redevelopment of Six Flags, and what's going on there
is taken forever. We're not really sure what's going to happen.
All of the different elements, neighborhoods haven't, country club and
the golf course has never really came back in a way.
What can we what can we do concretely to try
(21:20):
to improve the situation and not just you know, yeah.
Speaker 2 (21:24):
Well, and of course you mean it's over.
Speaker 5 (21:26):
Well again, Look what you're saying is just absolutely true
and it's very very obvious. I think what you need
is someone with a vision. I think you have got
to develop a good, strong, comprehensive plan and a vision
(21:47):
to implement that plan and find the people, find a
person who has the ability and who has the experience
and who has the know how in order to point
it in the light of direction. I do think that
you have a situation where we we have had some
(22:12):
slow downs because we just we need we need leadership
we need leadership, We need experience leadership, Well do you
do you?
Speaker 4 (22:22):
Let me Let me ask the question this way, And
I agree with that we need leadership. But is there
a business that we are an area of economic development
we should be focusing on to bring to New Orleans East,
Because I mean, the latest news, for example, is with
Boeing winding down their space capabilities, we might lose me
shoe as and that's what two three thousand high paying
(22:43):
jobs I mean. And that's a that's in the East.
So where should we be putting our eggs what basket
should we be saying, Hey, we need people to come in,
because frankly, it's what we're doing right now is not working.
Speaker 2 (22:55):
Well.
Speaker 5 (22:56):
I think, and look, this is not limited to Orlensease,
but I do think that one of the areas that
we that we really need to spend more time and
energy and effort in development is retail. We sales tax.
(23:18):
Sales tax is very important in the city's economy. Uh
So much of our money in the area of sales
tax goes to Saint Donard Parish, Saint Tammandy Parish, Jefferson Parish,
and and it and it hurts Orleans parish, it hurts
(23:38):
the city uh in New Orleans eas quite frankly, you
only have one major retail outlet, which is Walmart. I
just think that the plaza site, where you've got multiple
acres of bacon Land, is a prime site for redevelopment
that that we need to zero in in order to
(24:00):
bring some retail development there. And I think if you
start off by bringing in some basic retail development, show
developers that there are opportunities to make things happen and
to create jobs in that particular sector of the economy,
(24:23):
I think that can jump start other kinds of developments
that would ultimately come to the area. I think the
old jazz Land six Flags site is an area of opportunity,
and I think that whole industrial cardinal, the Amanasta Cardinal,
(24:45):
it's an opportunity for redevelopment. Also, one of the first
things that we've got to do is go in and
clean the place up. We have old, dilapidated, abandoned signs
along the interstate that have been there since Katrina. It's
you that is one of the cardinals that I think
(25:07):
really and truly have great opportunity. But we've got to
go in and clean it up. I think the sheep
masure Cardinal is another area that has UH.
Speaker 4 (25:18):
And you're raising an interesting issue because it really does
seem like code enforcement in many parts of the city
has just stopped in the last four years. I mean,
I can't put it a few errors, but I mean
not only vacant housing, but just the most basic public elements. Frankly,
nothing's happening at city Hall. And I don't know if
(25:39):
that's a councilan, it's fault that tends to be more
mare an executive branch, but not a lot is happening.
Speaker 5 (25:45):
Well, yes, I agree, and that's that's a that's a
major part of the problem, and I think people are
very very frustrated about that. I'm frustrated about it, and
that has to change and it will change.
Speaker 2 (26:01):
UH. And you're right.
Speaker 5 (26:03):
The the the lack of action is so very obvious.
There's an old, abandoned, UH dilapidated office building that was
the Energy building that's right in front of the Liberty
Bank building right there on the interstate that that you
can see, the old AT and T building is invested
(26:25):
with graffiti and you know, we've got to go in
and clean it up and and do some very very
serious work in cleaning up the area, and I think
that will also serve as as an incentive to have
people come in and and do invest in of capital
(26:49):
in the area.
Speaker 4 (26:50):
John Johnson, we're running alone times. I want to give
you I want to go a little bigger in the scope.
Obviously you're running to be the district councilman for District E,
but you're you are a former state center and state
representative as well as counselman. What is the city as
a whole need to do to send the message that
it's open for business and it's open for people. Because
the fact of the matter is, you know, after surging
(27:14):
in the years after Katrina, Orleans Parish is losing population.
It's not alone everywhere, but Saint Tammany has lost aggregate
population and for people moving out of town, young people
leaving town in the last fifteen years. What can we
do what from a macroeconomic standpoint regionally that you as
(27:36):
a councilman could help midwife. What can we do to
resverse that trend?
Speaker 2 (27:41):
Well?
Speaker 5 (27:43):
As you know, I'm on a city planning commission and
we're looking at it number of areas that the city
really needs to see roll in in order to make
it easier and simpler for businesses to get permits and
kate in the city, and to make zonning changes. Whenever
(28:05):
we have a company that might be interested in coming
into New Orleans, we we've got to We've got to
simplify the process and make it easier for companies to
be able to come in.
Speaker 2 (28:19):
That's number one.
Speaker 5 (28:20):
Number two, we have got to make economic development a
priority in this city.
Speaker 2 (28:29):
Look, we've got to. We've got to eat.
Speaker 5 (28:33):
Sleep, and drink economic development and just promote the city
as a as a as a location and as a
hub that is open for business and work with those
businesses that have an interest in coming into the city.
(28:54):
I think I think the City Council really needs to
zero in on economic development, talk more about economic development
than some of the other things that we talk about.
Speaker 4 (29:07):
I think, well, and I will I will say the
next mayor will play a rote role in this. One
of the things that I've been finding from from your
time on the council since you've left, since Mitch Landry's
been an off it was an office too. We had
we had a pretty good one stop shop for in
Orleans Parish for permitting and sometimes it was as big
a permitting as you know, trying to put a new
(29:30):
restaurant in, but sometimes it was as small. I'm a
licensed tour guide and I teach the tour guide class,
and it used to be, you know, it wasn't a
big deal. You would go up there to renew your license.
You showed up, you showed your license, you paid a fee,
filled out a form, went across the street, took your
federal background check. Everything was done in an hour. Now
it takes six weeks and you have to write off
(29:51):
and get notarized documents. And I actually asked somebody at
the Ground Transportation Bureau about this process and they said, well,
we changed it during the PANDMIC and we never changed
it back, and we just prefer because we don't want
to really deal with the public directly. And I'm like, wait,
what did you just hear what you sold me?
Speaker 2 (30:09):
It's like, yeah, yeah, that's crazy. That's crazy.
Speaker 5 (30:13):
And that is what the City Council needs to be
zeroing in on and dealing with on a daily basis,
making sure that we make economic development the number one
priority for the City of New Orleans, cleaning it up,
(30:33):
addressing the problem of crime, put more community resource officers
in these communities to address the issues and the problems
that the residents are happened in the neighborhoods, and simplify
the process for businesses that want to come into the
City of New Orleans to encourage them and that cops
(30:56):
and do business in the city.
Speaker 4 (30:57):
John Johnson, candidate for Council District EI SE return into
the New Orleans City Council. If somebody wants to find
out more about your campaign, how would they do it?
Speaker 5 (31:06):
You can simply go online, oh John Johnson dot com
and that's the simplest way to do it, or just
call me by number five O four two four five
fifteen forty two. Those are the two simplest ways to
do it.
Speaker 4 (31:26):
John Johnson, thank you so much for joining us the
Founder Show. We hope you'll come back before and after
the election. We wish the best of luck.
Speaker 2 (31:33):
Absolutely, Thank you very much.
Speaker 4 (31:34):
Books We'll be back to talk about efforts to cut
your Medicare advantage right after these important messages. Stay tuned
more of The Founder Show right for this. Only two
weeks left to be able to get your full subscriptions
to the twenty five twenty sixth season of the New
Orleans Opera. Go to New Orleans Opera dot org to
get the full season subscription available right now. From Handle's
(31:56):
Messiah to Terrence Blanchard, Fire, Shut Up in Your Bones,
two Rosencavalier, and Dialogues of the Caramelites, all available at
New Orleans Opera dot o.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
RG folks at Chaplin, Ha Mickenry and I want to
tell you about our ministry, LAMB Ministries. We are a
happening ministry working with interes city kids or urban poor.
We have had remarkable results over the past thirty years.
We need all the help we can get, so you
can contact me Chaplin, Hai McHenry at Eric code five
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would love to meet you, or just go to our
(32:26):
website lambnola dot com. We need all the help we
can get. We need prayer warriors, finance support and volunteers.
Thank you so very very much.
Speaker 4 (32:35):
Remember, folks, your summer flower specials are available at Villariesfloorist
at one eight hundred vi l ERII or Villariesflowers dot
com on the web. Fantastic summer specials and summer baskets
all available at your fingertips, give them a call one
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Villariesflowers dot com and tell them you heard it here
on the Founder's Show. And welcome back to The Founder
(32:59):
Show with Hi McHenry and Christopher Tidmore. Of course, we
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twenty four to seven three sixty five in the iHeartMedia
app from Ralph Steak Radio in the West, and of
course always at the Founder's Show, two S's dot Com,
(33:23):
the foundershow dot com highs out of town at a
Bible conference. But right now I'm joined by one of
the experts on Medicare advantage. A lot of people in
our audience, Darren Grubb, are on not just Medicare, but
Medicare advantage. A good more than forty fifty percent of
the program is now using the private program. And it
(33:44):
seems like, you know, we've been hearing in the Big
Beautiful Bill negotiations in the Senate that they were going
after Medicaid, but Medicare was protected. However, the devil is
in the details. Is Medicare advantage under the threat of
the Acts?
Speaker 6 (33:59):
Chris, great to be with you today. I'm really really
glad to have the time to talk about this with
you and your listeners. Yes, you know, I will tell
you this. We are encouraged that members of the House
and Senate did not include language at the end of
the day that would cut funding for Medicare Advantage. During
the big beautiful bill reconciliation process. I will say several
Senate members, including Senator Cassidy, did flow the idea of
(34:23):
perhaps adding provisions in their version on the Senate side
that would undermine critical elements of Medicare Advantage and essentially
cut funding. But I'll tell you this, over the last
few weeks, seniors really made their voices heard. You know,
we represent Medicare Advantage Majority, an organization dedicated to protecting
and strengthening the Medicare Advantage program, and we've got a
nationwide network of advocates, beneficiaries, caregivers, providers, community leaders, and
(34:49):
our grassroots army really mobilized, really mobilized to help ensure
that any talk of cuts to Medicare advantage did not
help happen during the reconciliation.
Speaker 4 (34:59):
Because there say, I will say that there is a
strange sort of right left alliance when it comes to
cutting Medicare advantage. The rights looking for cuts the left.
If you had to target one thing that Bernie Zanders
and some of the progresses don't like, it's private operation
within Medicare. And so sometimes you guys are hit by
(35:20):
both sides when it comes to protecting Medicare advantage.
Speaker 7 (35:24):
I would say the reverse is true as well.
Speaker 6 (35:26):
There are centers on both sides of the aisle who
were posed to adding provisions like the one proposed by
by Senator Cassidy, provisions you know, to the bill that
would use seniors healthcare as a pay for you know,
that's bad policy and bad politics. We totally understand and
appreciate the desire in many ways the need to cut
betteral spending. We believe it should not be done on
(35:46):
the backs of seniors, you know, particularly those who are
who are you know, sixty five or older, have worked
their entire lives, paid into a program and expect the
healthcare services so that they can age securely, safely and
independently with financial peace of life.
Speaker 4 (36:03):
So a lot of people don't know, you know, who
aren't at sixty five, don't exactly know what Medicare advantage is.
And I know it uses private health HMOs and PPOs
within the system and you pay a little extra on
it for another degree of care. It's become an incredibly
popular part of Medicare. What is the actual percentage at
(36:23):
this point, more than.
Speaker 6 (36:25):
Half of all else beneficiaries, over thirty four million seniors
and people with disabilities use Medicare advantage That include sixty
nine percent of Latino seniors, sixty five percent of blacks
in Louisiana alone, Chris, there are nearly five hundred and
forty thousand seniors in the Medicare Advantage program. That's fifty
seven percent of your Medicare eligible population.
Speaker 7 (36:45):
And I will tell you this.
Speaker 6 (36:46):
You know, the appeal of Medicare advantage, as you pointed out,
is that it delivers comprehensive, high quality, affordable care that
goes beyond traditional fee for service Medicare. So Medicare Advantage
offers benefits like dental coverage, vision coverage, hearing in home
care service is not available in many traditional Medicare plans,
and unlike traditional Medicare, Medicare Advantage provides prescription drug coverage
(37:08):
and a cap on out of hockey costs, which gives
seniors that financial peace of mind, especially during high inflationary
times like we're still in right now.
Speaker 4 (37:16):
Well, what I've always liked that is it's kind of
a very good blending of the private sector and public funding. So,
you know, the interesting part is Poles have said that
people's satisfaction with Medicare Advantage are incredibly high rates, you know,
sixty seventy percent. However, I want to look at the
future if I can and drag you into a fight
(37:38):
that you know, you probably don't want to have yet,
but it's coming up. We heard that Social Security is
going broke in twenty thirty three. Well, Medicare has going
broke before then, and there have been a lot of
ideas floated to keep it alive. That's obviously a congressional
funding thing, but one of the ideas has been to
drastically raise Medicare Advantage fees. And I'm curious what your
(38:00):
organization is saying on that. Basically, as a way to
save Medicare, fund it through Medicare advantage.
Speaker 7 (38:09):
I will tell you this you.
Speaker 6 (38:10):
We recently put out a poll recently put out a
survey of the cooled seniors nationwide. We found an overwhelming
majority of seniors really value their Medicare advantage plans. They
opposed any effort that would cut funding for Medicare advantage
a couple of numbers. Eighty two percent believe that cuts
the Medicare advantage would have a negative impact on their
financial well being. Percent across parties one Congress post funding
(38:33):
for Medicare advantage, eighty three percent believed that the additional
benefits that I mentioned earlier provided by Medicare advantage plans
are important on it not only to them, but to
their family members as well. And that last point really
resonates with a lot of people like me and perhaps
you belong to what we call the Sandwich generation. So
my wife and I have two young children at home
to take care, but we also have aging parents and
(38:55):
aging family members who need more care than they did
even a.
Speaker 7 (38:57):
Few years ago.
Speaker 6 (38:59):
We're becoming more responsible for helping them too, is caregivers.
And so you know, the peace of mind that we
get knowing that Medicare advantage provides that comprehensive, high quality
care significant And you mentioned that seniors are very very
happy with their Medicare advantage plans. You know, they enrollment
numbers year over year really really strong. We've seem really
strong choice. And seniors have the choice every year to
(39:21):
choose the plan that's best for them, Medicare advantage or
traditional fee for service Medicare, whatever it meets their needs
the best, and.
Speaker 7 (39:28):
We support that choice. But what I can tell you is.
Speaker 6 (39:31):
That we are here to ensure that Congress understands how
important it is for seniors and their caregivers and their
families to stand up and protect Medicare advantage.
Speaker 4 (39:41):
So after the initial things led by many, including Louise
Anzeng Center Cassidy to potentially cut funding your services. Right now,
currently in the big Beautiful Bill, neither the House or
Senate version has cuts to Medicare advantage.
Speaker 7 (39:58):
Correct Correct are always going to stay. We're again, we're
encouraged by that.
Speaker 6 (40:02):
We think seniors made their voices heard loud and clear.
Another another data point from our recent survey, sixty nine
percent of seniors are less likely likely to vote for
a member of Congress who supports cuts and Here's why.
If fundingness cut, seniors are going to pay higher premiums,
They're going to have higher deductibles, they're going to have
higher out of pocket costs upwards of twenty five hundred
dollars per year, and they're going to have less access
(40:24):
to the doctors and services.
Speaker 7 (40:25):
That they need.
Speaker 6 (40:26):
And again, at the time of high inflation, Medicare advantages,
you know, unique offering, the cap on out of pocket
costs are are really important, especially for seniors on fixtam comes.
Speaker 7 (40:37):
And so we believe that the seniors message to Congress
is pretty clear.
Speaker 4 (40:40):
Darren grev If somebody wants to find out more about
not only your organization but the advocacy in defense of
Medicare advantage, where would they go?
Speaker 6 (40:48):
You bet I'd invite your listeners to go to our
website www. Dot Medicare Advantage majority dot org to learn
more about our organization, to sign a letter to earn
your members of Congress to protect and strength of Medicare advantage.
Speaker 4 (41:01):
Medicair Advantage majority dot org. Darren Greb, thank you so
much for joining us here in the Founder Show.
Speaker 7 (41:07):
Chris, thank you for having me on Keepers Posted.
Speaker 4 (41:15):
It may be hot outside, but why don't you go
inside to the Garden District Bookshop in the historic Rink
shopping center and enjoy the dog days of summer. Activities
are happening every evening at their bar Epilogue, have a
cocktail and engage in one of the evening activities to
make the summer go by. On Tuesday night, it's Crafty
Night with college bookmarks being made by the Pearl. It's
(41:37):
a punch drunk parlor game on Wednesdays, Martini Thursdays, and
live music on Fridays, all at the Garden District Bookshop
and Saturday Night Bubbles Fight. And of course on Sundays,
if you're listening to this, it is the official Cornhole
Tournament starting at three pm at the Garden District Bookshop.
It is something you don't want to miss. If you're
(41:57):
listening to this on wr this Sunday afternoon, come after
lunch and have a cocktail and play corn hall. All
of this at twenty seven to twenty seven Pretena at
the Garden District Bookshop, over seventy spots of off street
parking for your convenience. Garden District Bookshop online at the
Gardendistrict Bookshop dot.
Speaker 8 (42:14):
Com rescue, recovery, re engagement. These are not just words.
These are the action steps we at the New Orleans
Mission take to make a positive impact on the homeless
problem facing the greater New Orleans area. Did you know
in twenty twenty, homelessness in our community increased by over
(42:36):
forty percent. We are committed to meet this need through
the work being.
Speaker 7 (42:41):
Done at the New Orleans Mission.
Speaker 8 (42:44):
We begin the rescue process by going out into the
community every day to bring food, pray, and share the
love of Jesus with the hopeless and hurting in our community.
Through the process of recovery, these individuals have the opportunity
need to take time out, assess their life and begin
to make new decisions to live out their God given purpose.
(43:08):
After the healing process has begun and lives are back
on track, we walk each individual as they re engage
back into the community to be healthy, thriving, and living
a life of purpose. No one is meant to live
under a bridge. No one should endure abuse, no one
should be stuck in addiction. The New Orleans Mission is
(43:30):
a stepping stone out of that life of destruction and
into a life of hope and purpose.
Speaker 2 (43:37):
Partner with us.
Speaker 8 (43:38):
Today go to www dot New Orleans Mission dot org,
or make a difference by texting to seven seven nine
four eight.
Speaker 4 (43:50):
Remember, folks, only a couple of weeks remain to get
your season tickets for the New Orleans Opera's twenty five
twenty six season. Go for more information at New Orleans
Opera dot org. New Orleans Opera dot org. Fantastic season,
including dialogues of the Carmelites to Rosencavalier Carlile Food's Pilgrimage,
Terrence Blanchard's fire Shut Up in My Bones, and of
course handles Messiah at Christmas. For information, check out New
(44:13):
Orleans Opera dot org.
Speaker 1 (44:22):
Battleship.
Speaker 3 (44:25):
Well, folks are back, and you are listening to the
Founders show the voice of the Founding Fellows, and this
is none other then you spend Gary Bubba all the
republic chaplain, High McHenry, and it's not time for us
to go into our chaplain by patriotic moment. We just
take a brief moment to remind you of the biblical
foundations of our country, our Judeo Christian jurisprudence, and today
we're going to talk about none other then the Star
(44:47):
Spangled banner. Yes, the stars bango banner our national anthem.
You know the guy who wrote that was Francis scott Key.
He was watching the Battle of Fort McHenry. Didn't have
a chance of winning the battle and the but the
flag stood it never, it didn't fall, and it gave
Francis scott Key hope and he was inspired and he
wrote this poet which became a song. He was a
(45:10):
very successful attorney who spent much of his career fighting slavery.
He was a big abolitionist and he was on a
British boat waiting for a prisoner exchange when he witnessed
this and inspired him to r at the national anthem.
You know it goes Think of the words in the
National Anthem. It says, may the Heaven rescued land, praise
the power that means God that has made and preserved
(45:32):
us a nation. Then conquer we must when our cause.
Speaker 2 (45:36):
It is just.
Speaker 3 (45:38):
And this is our motto in God is our Trust.
That was a star spangle banner, the star spangled banner
in Triumph Show Wave over the Land of the Free
and the home of the brave folks. What a powerful message,
What a powerful message of the need for God in
our government. It was so important that they took that
phrase and God is our trust, and they made it
(45:59):
the motto. Abraham Lincoln's last act was to sign a
Congressional Act for requiring in God we Trust to be
put on our money Truman. President Truman went on to
say that when the use was established, the motto was
in God we Trust. That is still our motto, he said,
and we still place our firm trust in God. JFK. Kennedy,
(46:23):
our great president who was murdered assassinated. John Kennedy in
nineteen sixty one said the guiding principle of the nation
has been in Isna and shall ever be in God
We Trust. Reagan stated in nineteen eighty one, our nation's
motto reflect a basic recognition that there is a divine
authority in the universe to which this nation owes homage. Folks,
(46:45):
I think they wanted God in government. There were many
other presidents that said similar things about the national anthem,
the star spangle banner. Well, folks, where are you on this?
Do you have a star spangled banner in your heart?
Talking about the bright and morning star. That's the Lord
Jesus Christ. That's one of his names in the scripture.
(47:08):
Do you have your trust in God? All your trust?
Because to get to heaven you got to have all
your trust. As we now go into our chopping by
by a gospel moment where I'm just like a brief
moment to show you how you can know that you
know that, you know you do have that bright and
morning star in your heart like the star spangled banner.
You are putting all your trust in God. And it
(47:29):
goes like this, to get Jesus, you have to put
all your trust and only Him and only trust faith
alone in Christ alone. That's what is required to get
into heaven. What that means that you have to repent.
And Jesus kept saying repent and believe. That word repent
is another form or another way of saying believe. He
was saying believe when he said repent and believe you
(47:50):
can't save yourself. Believe your hopess helps without God. Believe
you're destined to an eternal hell, burning hell because you're
just not good enough. That's what he meant when he
said that repent. That's what repentance means. It means change
your mind in the Greek, change your mind about what
what I just told you. Folks. Now, after you've done that,
you're now free and ready to put faith alone in
(48:13):
Christ alone. You're free to know the one who brings liberty.
Where the spirit of Christ, as the scripture says, there
is liberty. You want that liberty in your life and
your heart. You want it for all eternity. You'll get
it if you put faith alone in Christ alone. If
you really will believe that Jesus died for all of
your sins on the cross, all of them, from the
(48:33):
day you're born of the day you die, you tie
us to great sins. All went on Jesus and his
blood washed them all away. The scripture says that. And
then when he finished that taking care of your sin problem,
your first love problem, he took care of your second
love problem, which is death. When he rose from the dead,
he beat death. He did that for you to win
for you his free gift of resurrection every lasting life.
(48:54):
It's all free, folks. That's what the word grace means.
Scripture says, we've been saved by grace. That means a
free gift, grace God Isma. It means free gift. We've
been saved by a free gift. We've been saved by
grace through faith. That's how you take it. Only with
the faith of a little child, that's how you take it.
Like Elon Mussel, little boy ex is showting right now.
(49:16):
If those stories are true, those are amazing faith of
a little child. You just got to believe it's really
true for you. You can't believe it's true for somebody else.
I mean, it is true for somebody else, but that
won't get you in. Each entrance into Heaven is on
an individual basis. Your parents can't get you in, your
best friend can't get you in. You preacher can't get you.
And Jesus that's how you get in. So you put
(49:37):
faith alone. In Christ alone, you believe that He really
did die far your sins, was buried, and rose from
the dead to win for you his precious free gift
of resurrection, ever lasting life. And the split second you
come to believe that you were born again, that means
you're dead and dine spirit has just become fully alive.
You are guaranteed heaven. When you die, you will go
to Heaven. WHOA isn't that exciting? How great of salvation
(50:01):
we have? The scripture says, how so they escape if
they neglect so great a salvation. We've got the greatest salvation. Folks.
Believe it right now. Believe it's true for you. Don't
wait till it's too late. Like the old country preacher saying,
like the Word of God says, today now is the
day of salvation. Folks, you mean I get tomorrow? Do
it right now? Well, folks, it is not time for
us to go into our chaplain by by testimony time.
(50:23):
We just take a brief moment to remind you of
a wonderful story about someone in the past or even
someone living now that has a great story about their
relationship with God. It's a very powerful you know, the
script says by the blood of the Lamb, that means
the Gospel, and the word of the testimony, that means
your life story, the word of their testimony, they defeated
the devil. So we're going to have a little testimony
(50:45):
time to show how how the devil can be defeated.
Dearly beloved, I want to tell you this wonderful story
about a man named John Stewart. He was a free
black and born in Patan County, Virginia, and seventeen eighty six,
he decided, after he had developed a trade dying cloth
(51:06):
with blue, that he would go to Tennessee to join
his family. And on the way he had saved a
lot of money, made a lot of money, all he
was robbed. So by the time he got to Tennessee
he was so ashamed of himself and so disgraced he
wanted to die, and he gave up, and he thought
the only way he could find peace was to was
in the bottle. He became a terrible drunk, I mean
(51:28):
a horrible drunk, and lived a terrible life for the
next few years, wandering up into Ohio as just a hope,
was drunk. And while he was there, God got a
hold of him and he found he was born again.
He became a very dedicated Christian. He was totally delivered
from his alcoholism. He had a glorious experience at a
(51:52):
Methodist camp meeting they used to have those back in
the their days, where they'd preach how far in Brimstone,
and people got saved, people were born again, came to
Christ and anyway, he decided he would become a missionary
to the Native Americans. His first convert was a Wyandot
Huron chief name between the logs. He continued to work
(52:15):
with that village, in that tribe until he converted the
entire tribe to Christ. They had all become Christians. He
would have camp meeting, someone would get excited, someone would
get angry, someone would be running around acting crazy, but
eventually they all came to Christ. One of the reports
was that the Great Spirit came from the chief was
that the Great Spirit came upon us, that all cried aloud,
(52:38):
crying out to Jesus and beginning to sing and pray. Anyway,
he had a wonderful life for the rest of his life,
establishing quite a mission work. He finally passed away in
eighteen twenty three, with much written about him and set
about him for the enormous exact ample and testimony that
(53:01):
he was to the people of his day. Folks, we
can all have a testimony like that. No matter what
our problems are, God's bigger than our problems. As you
could see he was with this great African American preacher. Well,
it is time for us to close now with am
on Saint Martin singing a Creole goodbye, and God bless
all of.
Speaker 9 (53:21):
The call you creel goodbye. They think we just wasted
the time. All three sibyl.
Speaker 8 (53:39):
Me.
Speaker 9 (53:42):
There is time for a creo goodbye
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