Retail Politics Podcast

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S01E35 Howard Mortman, Politics of Congressional Prayer Jun 06, 2021

Show notes

The True House Speaker

Prayer Before Congress Older than Bill of Rights

June 5, 2021 – As C-SPAN spokesman Howard Mortman watched a lot of congressional footage before one daily tradition caught his eye: the prayer before each session.

Mortman has written the definitive history of congressional prayers with his book When Rabbis Bless Congress.

“The very first thing that Congress does, both chambers, is open with a prayer,” Mortman tells the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields. “It’s like nothing else that happens during the day. There’s no acrimony; there’s no hatred, there’s no debate, there are no votes.”

Mortman describes how prayer even preceded the formation of the Republic and the Bill of Rights. Listen and learn.

S01E34 Essay by Gerry Shields, Politics of Sacrifice May 30, 2021

Show notes

Remembering Those Who Died – And Those Who Survived

Many Silently Carry Physical and Psychological War Wounds

May 30, 2021 – Though Memorial Day honors those lost in the war, the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields took time to remember and reflect on the wounded who survived.

“It isn’t just the 378,000 Americans who died in wars over the last 80 years,” Shields said. “But, also, the one million wounded, many who came home crippled without limbs carrying emotional and psychological scars.”

And what is your most memorable war movie? We discuss.

S01E33 Jane Friedman, Politics of Publishing May 23, 2021

Show notes

The Monopoly on American Reading

Big Five Publishers Dominate While More Books Published Than Ever Before

May 23, 2021 – Despite more books published in the 5,000-year history of the printed word, America’s five largest publishing companies continue to dominate the market, an industry expert told the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields.

“These big New York houses account for a large majority of what gets published in the U.S.,” said Jane Friedman, publisher of The Hot Sheet newsletter, an essential guide to the publishing industry.

“It’s also what you see mostly stocked in bookstores,” she said. “Big publishers have the money and resources to really push these books into the hands of influencers, that includes reviewers.”

Book reading exploded during the pandemic as people were confined to their homes, Friedman said. Children’s books, mostly the young adult genre, led the way, she said. Readers also resorted to purchasing “backlisted” books, classics providing a guaranteed good read, Friedman said.

S01E32 Steve Lopez, Politics of California May 16, 2021

Show notes

California Scheming

A Bear, Porn Queen and Transgender Run for Governor

May 16, 2021 – What does a bear, porn star and transgender celebrity have in common? They’re all seeking to be California’s next governor.

Los Angeles Times Columnist Steve Lopez discusses the bizarre election to recall and replace California Gov. Gavin Newsom. One candidate is touring the state with a bear, calling himself the “beast” who will rein in California spending.

“I’m not embarrassed to say, I was rooting for the bear to break free and turn on him and maybe take a bite out of his rear end,” Lopez said.

S01E31 David Hawkings, Can Biden’s Focus Be Sustained? May 09, 2021

Show notes

Biden: Shows Ability Needs Agility

Mid-term Loss of the House in 18 Months Could Sink Presidency

May 8, 2021 – President Joe Biden is off to a fast start, remaining focused on vaccinating the country and restoring the economy, but faces monumental challenges in working with Congress on issues such as immigration and guns, the former editor of Congressional Quarterly Weekly magazine told the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields.

David Hawkings said the possible loss of Democrat control in the U.S. House of Representatives 18 months now could puncture Biden’s momentum.

“He has not allowed himself to get distracted by things that other people want to talk about,” Hawkings said. “That was not the book on Joe Biden...whatever caught his fancy; he would talk about. In contrast, he’s stayed pretty focused.”

And, should Donald Trump get more credit for his handling of the pandemic? Listen and learn.

Listen to the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields at: http://www.retailpoliticspodcast or on Apple or Spotify.

S01E30 Patrick J. Kennedy, Politics of Mental Health May 02, 2021

Show notes

Kennedy: Treat Mental Illness Like Cancer

American Mental Health, Addiction Treatment “discrimination”

April 25, 2021 – Former U.S. Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy kicks off national Mental Health Awareness Month on the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields stating that America’s failure to adequately treat mental illness and addiction is driving overdose deaths and mass shootings.

The son of former U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy discusses his own mental illness and addiction to deadly opiates, leaving Congress to start the Kennedy Forum, advocating for better mental health and addiction treatment.

Kennedy lauded the nation’s commitment to fighting cancer, but notes we have spent trillions – with a T – on that battle.

“We’ve spent a fraction of that on mental health,” he said.

Listen to the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields at:http://www.retailpoliticspodcast or on Apple or Spotify.

S01E29 Linda Chong, Vaccinating Against Hate Apr 25, 2021

Show notes

The Persecution of Asian Americans has a Hidden, Horrible U.S. History.

April 25, 2021 – Americans should enroll in racial sensitivity training and financially support anti-hate groups to combat the alarming rise of attacks on Asian Americans. A former journalist and Asian history scholar told the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields.

Linda Chong, a former China correspondent, blamed the 3,800 reported incidents of assaults and harassment reported since the start of the COVID 19 pandemic on unproven claims that the deadly virus started in China.

“The tensions have been simmering,” Chong said. “Suspicions of the Asian population in the U.S. is kind of something that unfortunately has gone hand in hand with American history...it seemed easier to scapegoat Asians.”

Unlike more well-known persecutions of Blacks and Native Americans, the terrorizing of Asians in the United States has mostly gone unreported due to fears of repercussions, Chong said. Like Blacks, Asians have been the subject of massacres, lynchings, and U.S. Supreme Court rulings undermining their citizenship, Chong said.

Chong has not told her 86-year-old parents of the recent violent spike against Asian Americans, she said.

“They’re very patriotic and very proud of being Americans, and this would devastate them,” Chong said. “They disavowed their Chinese citizenship in the 70s to become Americans; my father was so proud of it. I’m not sure he would feel the same way.”

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Listen to the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields at http://www.retailpoliticspodcast or on Apple or Spotify.

S01E28 Kevin Fogarty, Politics of the U.S. House Apr 18, 2021

Show notes

A House Divided

Americans Being Cheated by Stymied U.S. House Undermined by Political Selfishness, Renegade Posturing, and the Disappearance of Bipartisanship

April 18, 2021 – The U.S. House of Representatives is paralyzed by growing political factions wielding disruptive power and the lack of bipartisanship that once made the American legislature respected, a longtime Republican House staffer told the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields.

“The idea of reaching across the aisle is seen as a weakness now,” said Kevin Fogarty, a longtime chief of staff and legislative director for recently retired U.S. Rep. Peter King of Long Island.

“Unfortunately, a lot of that is leading to things not getting done,” Fogarty said.

Renegades in both political parties are putting their personal political careers over making the house function; Fogarty said: “You’re seeing the ‘not what you are for’ but ‘what you are against,’” Fogarty said.

Fogarty dishes on Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, AOC, and Republican upstart Marjorie Greene of Georgia.

Listen – and learn.

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Listen to the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields at http://www.retailpoliticspodcast or on Apple or Spotify.

S01E27 Gary McLhinney, American Police in Polar Peril Apr 11, 2021

Show notes

American Police in Polar Peril

Capitol Police Officer Death, George Floyd Officer Trial Puts Police Back in the News

April 4, 2021 – The testimony of eight Minneapolis police officers against colleague Derek Chauvin will likely doom the officer accused of murdering George Floyd, a veteran police analyst told the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields.

“If I put myself in the seats of the jurors, I think it’s pretty damning,” said Gary McLhinney, former president of the Fraternal Order of Police union in Baltimore. “You judge police officers’ actions by what their peers would do in a similar situation. I think the testimony so far has been that the average police officer, in that situation, would not have done what that particular police officer did.”

McLhinney, also a former Maryland police chief, said the recent death of U.S. Capitol police officer Billy Evans should sound the alarm that the force is understaffed and in rising danger since the Jan. 6 attack on the building.

“That job in particular now is very difficult because you’re trying to balance access with security, and those don’t go together very easily,” McLhinney said.

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Listen to the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields at http://www.retailpoliticspodcast or on Apple or Spotify.

S01E26 J. Jioni Palmer, the Politics of Christian Faith Apr 04, 2021

Show notes

Jesus Was a Political Rebel

Christian Faith Requires Challenging Oppressive Authority

April 4, 2021 – Being a true Christian requires challenging injustice and actively going out of your comfort zone to assist the poor, a former Washington journalist and men’s Christian minister told the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields.

As part of a special Easter episode, former Newsday congressional correspondent J. Jioni Palmer, now a men’s minister at the Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church down the street from the White House, said the Biblical figure Jesus was lynched for challenging government authority.

“If your religion ain’t a revolution, then you’re just getting high,” Palmer said. “I think Jesus was...definitely a political hero. Crucifixion was used to execute political prisoners.”

Jesus would welcome much of the past year’s political turmoil in America because it aligns with his teachings to heal the sick, feed and house the poor, and challenge oppressive authority, Palmer said.

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Listen to the Retail Politics Podcast with Gerry Shields athttp://www.retailpoliticspodcast or on Apple or Spotify.

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