America at 250: Due Diligence cover art

America at 250: Due Diligence

America at 250: Due Diligence

By: Steve Herman & Bill Bernardoni
Listen for free

The United States turns 250 this year. America at 250: Due Diligence has a simple premise: the anniversary means nothing without a clear-eyed accounting of where the country actually stands. Hosted by nationally syndicated radio host Bill Bernardoni and former Voice of America White House Bureau ChiefSteve Herman, each episode of Due Diligence examines one of the foundational questions that has defined — and divided — American democracy from the beginning: What does government owe its citizens? How has the promise of the Constitution been kept, broken, or rewritten over 250 years? And where does the country stand today? The program brings together leading historians, former lawmakers, policy experts, and advocates who have lived these debates from the inside — in Congress, in city halls, in courtrooms and in communities. The format is rigorous and fair: each episode presents multiple perspectives, from the historical record through to the sharpest contemporary arguments on all sides. America at 250: Due Diligence is a program for listeners who want more than hot takes and name calling — who want to understand how the country arrived at this moment, what the founding generation actually intended and what serious people across the political spectrum believe the next 250 years should look like.2026 Political Science Politics & Government World
Episodes
  • Kicking the Can Down the Road: What Does Government Owe Its People?

    Kicking the Can Down the Road: What Does Government Owe Its People?
    Jun 6 2026
    As America approaches its 250th anniversary, America at 250: Due Diligence takes on one of the country's biggest and most enduring questions: What does the government owe the people it serves? Not as a theory. Not as a campaign slogan. But in real life — in retirement checks, health care, food assistance, taxes, debt, and the promises made to working Americans. This episode traces the American social safety net from the Founding era through the New Deal, the Great Society, the Reagan Revolution, and today's debate over Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, SNAP, federal spending, and the national debt. It begins with Franklin Roosevelt's defense of "social insurance" during the Great Depression, revisits early opposition to Social Security, and then brings the debate into the present through three very different voices: a historian, a former congressman, and a libertarian fiscal-policy scholar. Together, they wrestle with a question that has shaped America for nearly a century: Is the safety net a promise America must keep, a system America can no longer afford, or something that needs to be rebuilt before it breaks? Hosts Steve Herman Steve Herman is a veteran journalist and former White House Bureau Chief for Voice of America. He brings decades of reporting experience to America at 250: Due Diligence, helping guide the series through the historical, political, and institutional questions that have shaped the United States. Website: Steve Herman X: @newsguyUSA Bill Bernardoni Bill Bernardoni is the founder of Bernardoni Media & Marketing and co-host of America at 250: Due Diligence. His work focuses on building, producing, and distributing podcasts and radio programs that bring serious conversations to broad audiences. Website: Bernardoni Media & Marketing Blog: The Bernardoni Brief X: @BillBernardoni Guests Featured in This Episode Julian Zelizer Julian Zelizer is the Malcolm Stevenson Forbes Professor of History and Public Affairs at Princeton University and the author or editor of more than two dozen books on American political history, Congress, the New Deal, and the Great Society. Website: Julian Zelizer — Princeton University Substack: The Long View Dennis Kucinich Dennis Kucinich is a former mayor of Cleveland, a former U.S. congressman from Ohio, and a two-time presidential candidate. He spent much of his career arguing for working people, seniors, public services, and the protection of the social safety net. Website: The Kucinich Report X: @Dennis_Kucinich Romina Boccia Romina Boccia is Director of Budget and Entitlement Policy at the Cato Institute. Her work focuses on federal spending, debt, Social Security, Medicare, and entitlement reform. Website: Romina Boccia — Cato InstituteSocial Security Reform Hub: Cato's Hub for Social Security Reform Book: Reimagining Social Security — Cato Institute Listener Question As America turns 250, what do you think the federal government owes its citizens: a guaranteed safety net, a smaller and more localized support system, or something entirely different? Join the conversation and respond by sending us an email by visiting RadioFreeAmerica.media.
    Show More Show Less
    54 mins
  • America at 250: Due Diligence Trailer

    America at 250: Due Diligence Trailer
    Jun 1 2026

    The United States turns 250 this year — but what does the anniversary actually mean? Hosted by nationally syndicated radio host Bill Bernardoni and former Voice of America White House Bureau Chief Steve Herman, America at 250: Due Diligence cuts through the noise to ask the hard questions: What has the Constitution's promise delivered over 250 years, and where has it fallen short? Each episode brings together historians, former lawmakers, policy experts, and advocates to examine the debates that have defined — and divided — American democracy from the beginning. This is the podcast for listeners who want real answers, not hot takes — and who are ready to take an honest look at where America stands as it enters its next 250 years.
    Show More Show Less
    2 mins
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
No reviews yet