The Way I Heard It with Mike Rowe

What does it really feel like to fly into combat knowing you may not come home? Colonel Nick Nichols knows the answer. A 30-year Air Force veteran, F-16 pilot, and seven-time combat veteran, Nick now leads Folds of Honor, providing scholarships to the families of fallen and disabled service members and first responders.
Nick joins Mike to pull back the curtain on life in the cockpit, what deployment is really like, and the unlikely path that led him from the cockpit of an F-16 to a new mission with Folds of Honor. Then he tells Mike a deeply personal account of the one combat mission that still haunts him to this day
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This is a two-parter in one episode! Part One was recorded in May, when Mike sat down with Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins to talk about her vision for American agriculture, the challenges facing farmers and ranchers, and the future of food production in America. Four months later, Mike needed to follow up after President Trump's proclamation calling for 300,000 metric tons of additional beef imports—a decision that was met with concern by many American ranchers. So, Part Two was recorded in September. Mike asks the Secretary to explain the decision, what it means for American ranchers, and what it means for consumers. Two conversations, recorded months apart, with a lot more in common than you might expect.
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What happens when a nation forgets the value of the people who make, build, fix, and grow things? Historian, classicist, farmer, and Hoover Institution Senior Fellow Victor Davis Hanson joins Mike for a wide-ranging conversation about what America values—and what it may have forgotten. They explore the difference between the generalist and the specialist, the importance of the "muscular" trades, and why a strong middle class is essential to a healthy society.
Hanson also discusses his new book, The Counterrevolution: The Fall and Rise of Donald Trump and the MAGA Movement, which examines Trump's political comeback and argues that his return to power was part of a broader reaction to the political, cultural, and institutional forces that shaped the years between his two presidencies.
Tip o' the hat to our excellent sponsors
GoodRanchers.com/ROWE—100% of their meat comes from American farms and ranches and delivered straight to your door. Start your plan and get a FREE Ground Beef Bundle with your firs order.
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What if some of the food we've been told is convenient, affordable, and perfectly safe is actually making us sick? Alex Clark, host of the popular Culture Apothecary podcast and a passionate advocate for healthier food, joins Mike to discuss Breaking Big Food, a documentary in which she appears that takes a hard look at what's really behind America's processed-food problem.
The conversation explores how Big Food adopted tactics pioneered by Big Tobacco, the science and marketing behind ultra-processed foods, what happens when corporate interests collide with public health, and why it's so difficult to know what's actually good for us anymore.
But this isn't just a crusade for Alex—it's personal. She tells Mike about her father's battle with chronic illness and death, and how it inspired her mission to figure out why so much of what we eat seems determined to kill us. Alex gets fired up. Mike gets curious. And together, they ask a simple question: What exactly are we eating?
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Nearly 2,000 years ago, Roman Emperor Hadrian built a wall to protect the empire's northern frontier. Today, another Hadrian is building something very different—but with a similar purpose: helping protect America by rebuilding its industrial strength.
Chris Power is the founder and CEO of Hadrian, an advanced manufacturing company using AI and automation to produce critical components for America's aerospace and defense industries. Born in Australia, Chris believes America is the greatest country in the world—and he's determined to help keep it that way.
His mission is to reinvigorate America's industrial base, starting with the Defense Industrial Base. Chris joins Mike to discuss manufacturing, national security, and why America's ability to defend itself ultimately depends on its ability to make things.
Because sometimes the best defense isn't another wall. It's the ability to make what you need, when you need it.
Many thanks to our excellent sponsors
GoodRanchers.com/ROWE—100% of their meat from American farms and ranches and delivered straight to your door. Start your plan and get a free Ground Beef Bundle with your firs order. Good Ranchers—American meat delivered.
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