Roger welcomes Ted Tucker, executive director of the Foundation for Teaching Economics (FTE) and Lisa Chang, director of operations and teacher programs at FTE, to discuss the organization’s 50-year legacy of teaching the economic way of thinking to high school students and teachers. They share the fascinating history of FTE’s founding in the 1970s, the pivotal role of leaders like Milton and Rose Friedman and Gary Walton, and how FTE has evolved to meet the needs of a changing world.

They explore why economic literacy is so critical, yet often neglected today, how FTE’s experiential and activity-based learning approach makes economics accessible, and why an engaging introductory economics course can be life-changing for students. Plus, insights on the difference between economic literacy and financial literacy and the unique power of understanding opportunity costs and trade-offs.

Ted and Lisa reflect on the personal growth they see in students and teachers who attend FTE programs, share stories of alumni success and outline their vision for the next 50 years of economic education.

The Liberty + Leadership Podcast is hosted by TFAS president Roger Ream and produced by Podville Media. If you have a comment or question for the show, please email us at podcast@TFAS.org. To support TFAS and its mission, please visit TFAS.org/support.

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Roger welcomes Robert Lawson, economist, author, and director of the Bridwell Institute for Economic Freedom at Southern Methodist University. Lawson is the co-author of “Socialism Sucks: Two Economists Drink Their Way Through the Unfree World.”

In this episode, they discuss Lawson’s firsthand observations from socialist regimes including Venezuela, Cuba, and North Korea and how central planning continues to fail the people living under it. They explore the dangerous appeal of socialism in modern political discourse, the real differences between Scandinavian welfare states and actual socialist systems, and why economic freedom remains essential to human flourishing. Plus, they highlight the power (and unfortunate rarity) of an engaging and accessible economics education that equips students with a lifelong understanding of how the world works.

Robert Lawson is a founding co-author of the Fraser Institute's Economic Freedom of the World annual report, which presents an economic freedom index for over 160 countries tracking which nations thrive—and which collapse—based on policy choices. He received the 2025 TFAS Gary M. Walton Award for Excellence in Economic Education.

The Liberty + Leadership Podcast is hosted by TFAS president Roger Ream and produced by Podville Media. If you have a comment or question for the show, please email us at podcast@TFAS.org. To support TFAS and its mission, please visit TFAS.org/support.

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Roger welcomes Benjamin Hall, FOX News correspondent and New York Times bestselling author, for a powerful conversation about courage, recovery and resilience in the face of unimaginable adversity.

They discuss Halls’ harrowing experience surviving a Russian missile strike while covering the war in Ukraine, the loss of his colleagues that day and the long physical and emotional road to recovery that followed. Hall shares reflections from his latest book, “Resolute: How We Humans Keep Finding Ways to Beat the Toughest Odds,” offering insights into post-traumatic growth, the role of faith and family and the importance of community support. He also explains why he still believes in the mission of frontline journalism and the future of the free press.

Benjamin Hall has reported from conflict zones across the Middle East and Africa, earning widespread recognition for his courageous journalism. He is the recipient of the 2023 TFAS Kenneth Y. Tomlinson Award for Courage in Journalism.

The Liberty + Leadership Podcast is hosted by TFAS president Roger Ream and produced by Podville Media. If you have a comment or question for the show, please email us at podcast@TFAS.org. To support TFAS and its mission, please visit TFAS.org/support.

Support the show