THIS EPISODE WAS RECORDED PRIOR TO THE ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT IN BUTLER< PA. Ken and Betsey reconvene for a post-debate debrief. Just before highly anticipated Presidential debate between the 45th and 46th Presidents, Ken and Betsey gave their predictions. They agreed that the “State of the Union Joe” would show up, energetic, focused and ready to take on his vulnerable opponent. Even Trump world expected it - as evidenced by the former President’s fiendish and unfounded suggestion that the President would be fresh off a cocaine hit. As the world now knows, the President’s demeanor would be on the opposite end of the energy scale. President Biden called it “a bad night.” And it was. Since the debate, the nation has been focussed on calls for him to gracefully drop out of the race. All the while, Donald Trump’s “firehose of lies” has been tragically overlooked - but not here. Ken reviews his most egregious “whoppers” as Betsey reacts. Ken and Betsey unpack Project 2025 - and their thoughts about where we go from here. Betsey names two worthwhile causes worth our support.

Betsey’s Recommends for Support: Wisconsin Dems (Wisconsin Democratic Party) | Ben Wickler

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Ken shares some brief thoughts about the shocking events at a Butler, Pennsylvania political rally.

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When Ken first knew Rick Axtell, he was a high school student. Ken, a seminarian in his early 20s, was his Youth Pastor at a church in the northern suburbs of Chicago. Rick was a leader in the youth group. When Rick moved to Mississippi and Ken graduated, they bid farewell - turns out, for fifty years. Just in the past few months, they have become re-acquainted, chatting on video calls with two other members of the long-ago youth group. Rick has had an extraordinary career as a college professor and chaplain, serving on the same Kentucky campus (the highly regarded Centre College) for three decades. Ken and Rick share their journey and their profound awakenings. Rick shares his experience in war-torn Bangladesh and how it set the course of his life. His coursework, his travels (with students), and his engagement with homelessness, poverty, and hunger have enormously impacted his life and career. His commitment to addressing the needs of the marginalized and the neglected, including LGBTQ+, has earned him the respect and admiration of his students, fellow faculty, and colleagues. On retirement, the college established an Endowment in Rick’s name. It reflects his passion and his remarkable contribution to the college community - advancing “religion, peace, and social justice.”

SHOW NOTES (learn more about Dr. Axtell)

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