Shows / Dad Saves America
Dad Saves America
Proud papa, filmmaker, entrepreneur, and arm-chair philosopher John Papola explores the biggest issues facing our country through the lens of fatherhood, releasing exclusive interviews and deep dives every week. We need to make sure the next generation of Americans is raised to thrive in a free society and be champions of civilization. Dad Saves America has hosted all sorts of experts in the studio, including Jonathan Haidt, Dr. Drew, Michael Shellenberger, Bret Weinstein, Vivek Ramaswamy, and…
Episodes
Dad Saves AmericaRyan Long on Why AI Isn’t Funny, the Manosphere Is Over, and Rap Is Dead
I sat down with comedian Ryan Long, who is featured in our new comedy pilot, “The Experts,” to talk about how media and culture are changing in 2026. Watch…
Dad Saves AmericaFrench Riots and Campus Degeneracy: Is the West Too Far Gone?
France is still on fire. A town hall nearly 200 years old has burned to the ground, and police are now drawing the line at the Louvre. Back home, the Cornell 7…
Dad Saves AmericaBryan Callen: "The Experts" Are Paid to Manufacture Truth
I sat down with comedian Bryan Callen, who directed and stars in our new comedy pilot, “The Experts,” to discuss why outrage pays better than nuance, how he…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Cornell 7 Scandal Exposed the Biggest Lie of Feminism
The Cornell 7 case has reignited the campus sexual assault panic of the mid-2010s. Jane Doe's own written statements described the events as consensual, but…
Dad Saves AmericaVictor Davis Hanson: The Left REALLY Hates the Middle Class
I sat down with Victor Davis Hanson, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and author of the “The Counterrevolution”. Victor is a Stanford PhD who still…
Dad Saves AmericaFrance’s "Mostly Peaceful Jihad” Threatens the Whole Christian West
For the past three weeks, riots have spread across France. The corporate press is calling them mostly peaceful protests over school funding. Meanwhile, student…
Dad Saves AmericaHow White Guilt Became the Most Powerful Weapon in Politics - Eli & Shelby Steele
I sat down with Shelby Steele, an author and senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, and his son Eli Steele, the filmmaker behind “What Killed Michael Brown?”…
Dad Saves AmericaTrump's Going All-In on AI. Will His Midterm Gamble Pay Off?
On Tuesday, the CEOs of Nvidia, Google, Meta, xAI, Anthropic, and more joined President Trump to discuss the development of AI, or, as the President has…
Dad Saves AmericaBad Therapy, Gender, and Lindsay Clancy Psychosis - Andrew Hartz, Ph.D.
I sat down with Andrew Hartz, a practicing clinical psychologist and the founder of the Open Therapy Institute. His organization is working to filter out the…
Dad Saves AmericaBig-Government Progressivism Is a Su*cide Pact
1619 Project creator Nikole Hannah-Jones sent her daughter to a dysfunctional public school as a political statement, and is now paying the price. For years…
Dad Saves AmericaBen Slivka Predicted the Internet Era. He Doesn't Buy the Hype About AI.
I sat down with Ben Slivka, an early Microsoft executive who led the team that built Internet Explorer, served 20 years on Northwestern University’s Board of…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Anthropic Whistleblower Is Not Who You Think He Is
AI researcher Jacob Coxon quit his job at Anthropic last week and became a whistleblower, warning that the race toward superintelligent AI is "gambling with…
Dad Saves AmericaCatholic Historian: Here’s Why We Know That the Bible Is True
I sat down with historian of early Christianity Matthew Larsen, Ph.D., fresh off his shoot in the Middle East tracing the life of Paul the Apostle, to dig into…
Dad Saves America25 Years After 9/11: How “Never Forget” Became “We Deserved It”
Zohran Mamdani just appointed Ramzi Kassem, a lawyer who once represented an Al Qaeda member, as New York City's chief legal counsel. This sparked outrage from…
Dad Saves AmericaI Interviewed the 9/11 Mastermind’s Family. Here’s What I Discovered. - Richard Miniter
I sat down with investigative journalist and author Richard Miniter to reflect on the 25th anniversary of the September 11th attacks. Richard has spent decades…
Dad Saves AmericaBond Market Breakdown: Are We Headed for Another Fall Financial Crisis?
The bond market wobbled this week, and Secretary Bessent is now buying back government debt just to keep long-term interest rates from climbing further. Bond…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Sexual Revolution “Liberated” Adults. But What About the Kids? - Katy Faust
I sat down with Katy Faust, founder of Them Before Us and author of “Raising Conservative Kids in a Woke City,” to talk about what adults are and aren’t…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Lindsay Clancy Trial Has Exposed a Moral Psychosis in America
The Lindsay Clancy trial has exploded into the latest social media gender war over postpartum mental health, the role of mothers in society, and the nature of…
Dad Saves AmericaHow Elite Consensus Botched COVID, Climate, and the Economy - Dr. Steven Koonin
I sat down with theoretical physicist Dr. Steven Koonin, author of “Unsettled” and former Under Secretary of Energy for Science under President Obama, to…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Jason Arday Scandal Is White Guilt on Steroids
Last week, Cambridge’s youngest ever black full professor was found dead, days after resigning under investigation for plagiarism and his fabricated life…
Dad Saves AmericaCan the West Survive Its Crisis of Faith? - Os Guinness
I sat down with Os Guinness, author of “Our Civilizational Moment,” to discuss how the West has become a “cut flower” civilization. Os argues that the slow…
Dad Saves AmericaAmerica Feels Like It’s Falling Apart. We Can Still Save It. - 500K Subscriber Special
Thank you to all 500K+ subscribers to Dad Saves America! This show began in response to the mental health crisis I saw emerging among my son’s peers. Then…
Dad Saves AmericaWe Stopped Disciplining Kids. Now They’re Destroying Civilization. - Katharine Birbalsingh
I sat down with Katharine Birbalsingh, headmistress of Michaela Community School and the UK’s most outspoken voice on education, to mark the launch of our new…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Democratic Socialists Have a Working Class Problem
Socialist Abdul El-Sayed just won Michigan's Democratic Senate primary, but the exit polls tell the real story. He dominated in college towns and lost badly in…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Manosphere Is Only a Half-Answer for Young Men - Nick Freitas
I sat down with Nick Freitas, veteran, fellow podcaster, and author of “The Manbook,” to talk about what it actually means to be a man in the aftermath of the…
Dad Saves America“I Plead the Fifth”: How Fauci’s Lies Destroyed the Expert Class
Rand Paul just released Dr. Anthony Fauci's personal diary, more than 1,100 pages stored on government servers, and then made him answer for it before the…
Dad Saves AmericaWhy Harvard Loses in the New College Rankings - Prof. Kevin Wallsten
I sat down with political scientist Kevin Wallsten to discuss his project building a new college ranking system from scratch. The standard metrics of…
Dad Saves AmericaNolan’s Odyssey: Woke Disaster or Western Classic?
Christopher Nolan's “The Odyssey” opened last weekend and sent Homer's 2,800-year-old poem back up the bestseller charts. It also became the most fought-over…
Dad Saves AmericaAmerica Cut Off Its Christian Roots. Now It’s in Crisis. - Eric Metaxas
I sat down with bestselling author Eric Metaxas to discuss the Christian roots of America and what happens to our freedom if we forget them. His new book…
Dad Saves AmericaEveryone Hates AI Data Centers. Here's Why They're (Mostly) Wrong.
New York just became the first state to halt new AI data center construction. Bernie Sanders and AOC want to take that policy national, and 63% of Americans…
Dad Saves AmericaMarx Died a Loser. Lenin Made Him a Legend. - Phil Magness
I sat down with economic historian Phil Magness to give Karl Marx the fairest hearing we could, and then find out how his ideas took over half the world and…
Dad Saves AmericaMamdani's Own Mom: "He Is Not an American AT ALL”
Last week, Zohran Mamdani “celebrated” this country’s 250th birthday by sitting behind George Washington’s desk and lecturing America about who we are. His own…
Dad Saves AmericaThe 1619 Project Wasn’t About Race. It Was an Attack on Capitalism. - Phil Magness
I sat down with Phil Magness, economic historian and author of “The 1619 Project Myth,” to discuss how the New York Times rewrote the founding narrative of the…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Real Reason Gen Z Doesn’t Care About 1776
Most Americans can quote a line or two of the Declaration of Independence, but almost no one has actually read the whole thing. Today I'm going line by line to…
Dad Saves America“It Began With a Gigantic Lie” - Harvard Western Civ Professor Resigns
I sat down with historian James Hankins, who recently resigned from Harvard after 40 years, to discuss why academia abandoned Western civilization, the…
Dad Saves AmericaOur Government Was Never Meant to Look Like This
The United States is a constitutional republic, not a democracy. Today I'm going back to the original text of the Constitution to uncover what it actually…
Dad Saves AmericaAmerican History Has Been Weaponized Against Us - Jack Henneman
I sat down with Jack Henneman, host of the “History of the Americans” podcast, to discuss the early history of the American colonies, the weaponization of…
Dad Saves AmericaThe UK Learned to Hate Itself. Is America on the Same Path?
The world comes to America for the World Cup and falls in love. Europeans are singing our songs, losing their minds at Buc-ee's, and telling us we don't know…
Dad Saves AmericaLeft VS Right Is Over. Federalism Is Our Way Out. - Tony Woodlief
I sat down with Tony Woodlief to discuss federalism, the collapse of left-right politics, and what it takes to raise kids through suffering. We get into: * Why…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Race Hustler Narrative Is on Life Support
Bari Weiss fires Scott Pelley from 60 Minutes and he compares it to losing a spouse. Karmelo Anthony's supporters call his conviction racist. Black YouTubers…
Dad Saves AmericaGeorge Soros, Birthright Citizenship, and the Lost Constitution - Randy Barnett
I sat down with Georgetown University constitutional law professor and originalist scholar Randy Barnett to discuss his books on his time as a Chicago…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Barbarians Are Inside the Gates… and We Invited Them
New York City elects a Muslim socialist immigrant as mayor. British police give preferential treatment to non-white criminals while arresting white victims as…
Dad Saves America“Falling Behind” Is Public School Propaganda - Graham Frey
I sat down with education innovator Graham Frey to discuss what school is actually for, how structure and choice should be balanced in a child’s life, and why…
Dad Saves America"We Are Summoning the Demon." Is Elon Right About AI?
Elon Musk called artificial intelligence the biggest existential threat in human history. That was 2014. Now it's 2026, the models are writing their own code…
Dad Saves AmericaHow Woke Feminism Created the Manosphere - Wilfred Reilly
I sat down with political scientist and co-founder of Unified Solutions America Wilfred Reilly to discuss the state of the woke left, the toxic feedback loop…
Dad Saves AmericaThey Lied to Your Kids for 15 Years. The UN Just Admitted It.
The UN's top climate body just quietly buried the doomsday scenario that drove the past 15 years of climate panic, and almost no one noticed. The IPCC has…
Dad Saves AmericaWhy Africa Stays Poor (It’s Not Colonialism) - Magatte Wade
I sat down with Senegalese immigrant and entrepreneur Magatte Wade to discuss why Africa remains the poorest continent and why the most popular explanations…
Dad Saves AmericaHow Nations Actually Get Rich (It’s Not Socialism)
President Trump was in China this week, negotiating with Xi Jinping over Iran, Taiwan, and trade deals. China’s economic miracle has transformed the country…
Dad Saves AmericaGad Saad: The Evolutionary Psychology Behind “Queers for Palestine”
I sat down with Gad Saad, author of “Suicidal Empathy,” to discuss the evolutionary psychology behind why the West is self-destructing in the name of…
Dad Saves AmericaThe Left Is Turning Our Greatest Cities Into Ruins
New York City is broke under Mayor Zohran Mamdani. His socialist buddy, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson, is turning off the crime detection system and letting…
Dad Saves AmericaMollie Hemingway: Justice Alito Is the Secret Hero of SCOTUS
I sat down with Mollie Hemingway, editor-in-chief of The Federalist, to discuss her new book “Alito” about the underappreciated Supreme Court justice’s fight…
Dad Saves AmericaThe SPLC’s Hate-Hoax Playbook Turns Normies Into Assassins
The White House Correspondents’ Dinner was cut short last Saturday by yet another assassination attempt against President Trump. A Caltech-educated game…
Dad Saves AmericaHow Gavin Newsom Ran California Into The Ground - Joel Kotkin
I sat down with Joel Kotkin to discuss how California’s utopian ideology and Gavin Newsom’s disastrous governance have the turned the state into a cautionary…
Dad Saves AmericaHasan Piker: “I’m Pro-Stealing From Big Corporations”
Communist Twitch streamer Hasan Piker stopped by the New York Times's "The Opinions" podcast to promote shoplifting, terrorism, and Chairman Mao. Joining him…
Dad Saves AmericaJohn Stossel: I Exposed Mainstream Media Fear-Mongering From the Inside
I sat down with libertarian reporter John Stossel to discuss his journey from pro-regulation consumer watchdog to small-government debunker of liberal economic…
Dad Saves AmericaFirst They Tax the Billionaires, Then the Millionaires, Then You.
Zohran Mamdani spent Tax Day celebrating New York City’s new tax on luxury second homes. It was sold as a fix for the city’s $5 billion budget deficit, but…
Dad Saves AmericaAmerica’s Oil Dominance Is China's Worst Nightmare - Trisha Curtis
I sat down with energy economist and CEO of PetroNerds Trisha Curtis to learn about the oil and natural gas industries, the global energy market, and how the…
Dad Saves AmericaCalifornia Sent Us To the Moon. Now It Can’t Even Build a Train.
California innovation sent us to the moon in 1969. Today it spends $126 billion on high-speed rail to nowhere and loses $180 billion in welfare fraud. While…
Dad Saves AmericaMatt Taibbi: Russiagate Was a Lie and the Media Knew It
I sat down with Matt Taibbi, the reporter who broke the Twitter Files, to trace how the American press went from honest journalism to deep state propaganda…
Dad Saves AmericaSwallow Your Pride. Live Not by Lies.
Marc Andreessen’s claim that “introspection is overrated” sparked a predictable media backlash, but the real debate isn’t about therapy culture or woke…