Rephonic
Artwork for Facing the Future

Facing the Future

The Concord Coalition
Social Security
Federal Budget
Medicare
Inflation
Fiscal Policy
National Debt
Concord Coalition
Congressional Budget Office
Economic Growth
Congress
Tariffs
Medicaid
Debt
Bipartisan Policy Center
Interest Rates
Deficit
Tax Cuts
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
Affordable Care Act
Tax Policy

How the nation’s fiscal and economic challenges, and possible solutions, impact current and future generations.

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes100Founded8 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
BusinessGovernmentNon-Profit

Listen to this Podcast

Artwork for Facing the Future

Latest Episodes

This week on Facing the Future, Joshua Gordon, a Vice President of Health Care at Arnold Ventures, explains why growing health care costs are a challenge for family, business and government budgets. He also suggests some bipartisan cost control ideas... more

YouTube

This week on Facing the Future, Bobby Kogan of the Center for American Progress explains why the national debt matters more than it used to and why artificial intelligence is not likely to fix the problem.

YouTube

This week on Facing the Future, we hear why the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) is warning the President and Congress that urgent and sustained action is needed to improve the nation's fiscal outlook. Jeff Arkin, Director of Strate... more

YouTube

This week on Facing the Future, Mark Warshawsky of the American Enterprise Institute explains why the projected finances of both Social Security and Medicare were substantially worse in the 2026 trustees report than they were last year and why early ... more

YouTube

Key Facts

Accepts Guests
Accepts Sponsors
Contact Information
Podcast Host
Number of Listeners
Find out how many people listen to this podcast per episode and each month.

Similar Podcasts

People also subscribe to these shows.

Cato Podcast
Cato PodcastCato Institute
The Good Fight
The Good FightYascha Mounk
Advisory Opinions
Advisory OpinionsThe Dispatch
The Ezra Klein Show
The Ezra Klein ShowNew York Times Opinion

Recent Guests

Jeff Arkin
Director of Strategic Issues at GAO
Government Accountability Office
Episode: GAO Warns on the Nation's Fiscal Health
Mark Warshawsky
Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute
American Enterprise Institute
Episode: Social Security's Turn For The Worse
Maya MacGuineas
President of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget
Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget
Episode: Mobilizing the Public on the Deficit and Debt
Jonathan Silver
CEO of Affinity Solutions
Affinity Solutions
Episode: Mobilizing the Public on the Deficit and Debt
Todd Harrison
Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute
American Enterprise Institute
Episode: Defense Increase Ask Is Short On Details
Kent Conrad
Former United States Senator, North Dakota
United States Senate (former)
Episode: Congress Should Stop Fast-Tracking Higher Debt
Alexandra Nica
Professor of Instruction, Economics, University of Iowa
University of Iowa
Episode: College Students Are Up To The Fiscal Challenge
Mike Aguilar
Founder and President, Fiscal Challenge
Fiscal Challenge
Episode: College Students Are Up To The Fiscal Challenge
Ti Nguyen
Fourth-year student, economics and international relations
University of Iowa
Episode: College Students Are Up To The Fiscal Challenge

Host

Bob Bixby
Host of Facing the Future

Reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars from 11 ratings
  • Dennis D. Karpf

    Necessary podcast for analysis of one of the greatest long-term challenges of our great constitutional republic.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    dennis.karpf
    United States5 months ago
  • Smart discussions for smart people

    This is informative thoughtful content by and for people who actually care about substance. Some really terrific inside experts and great explanations about the challenges facing our country.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Jfkfdr
    United States5 years ago
  • Real information information

    The folks that create this contact, as the intro says, are really great people. There is no mention of party affiliation or dogmatic beliefs only a presentation of ideas and suggestions. This podcast is about future ideas for policy and using our funds to make things work most beneficially.

    Apple Podcasts
    4
    new nicknamed
    United States6 years ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Thoughtful, data-driven policy discussions with experts
High-caliber guest roster that informs decision-making for sponsors
Some episodes can be dense and academic for casual listeners
Shows a commitment to nonpartisan, long-term solutions
Accessible explanations of complex fiscal issues

Top Government Podcasts

Strict Scrutiny
Strict ScrutinyStrict Scrutiny
American Potential
American PotentialAmerican Potential
5-4
5-4Prologue Projects
The Lawfare Podcast
The Lawfare PodcastThe Lawfare Institute
The DSR Network
The DSR NetworkThe DSR Network
Red Eye Radio
Red Eye RadioCumulus Podcast Network
Optimist Economy
Optimist EconomyKathryn Anne Edwards and Robin Rauzi
The Chris Plante Show
The Chris Plante ShowWMAL | Cumulus Podcast Network | Cumulus Media Washington

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Social Security's Turn For The Worse
Q: What reform options are discussed beyond simply cutting benefits?
Options include targeted benefit adjustments such as means-testing or capping benefits for higher earners, reforming the cap on taxable earnings, and broad revenue enhancements like aligning taxation of Social Security benefits with other taxes, plus considering indexing reforms to reflect cost-of-living more accurately.
Social Security's Turn For The Worse
Q: What are the main drivers behind the worsening long-term finances of Social Security and Medicare according to the guest?
The guest points to three main drivers: a lower fertility rate reducing the number of future workers, lower net immigration diminishing the pool of paying workers, and reduced income tax revenue as benefits grow and more costs are covered by general revenues; together these push the long-term deficits higher and the 75-year outlook considerably worse.
Economic Fallout from the Shutdown
Q: How could the subsidies and health policy be resolved given the political divide?
Possible pathways include a clean CR with written guarantees on subsidies or a side deal that promises written commitments to fix subsidies, though both sides worry about trust and enforcing such deals across administrations.
Economic Fallout from the Shutdown
Q: What are the immediate political bottlenecks keeping the government funded?
The two parties are stuck on finalizing a year-long funding package; Republicans want quicker funding with concessions on subsidies, while Democrats want guarantees and a broader agreement that includes health subsidies, with Senate dynamics requiring bipartisan support.
The Urgency of Social Security Reform
Q: Is a commission a viable route to force action on Social Security reform?
A BRAC-style solvency commission could be effective by presenting Congress with a clear up-or-down choice, creating political accountability, and avoiding protracted negotiations that delay reform, though it would require political buy-in and careful design to be credible.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
Gender Skew
Location
Interests
Professions
Age Range
Household Income
Social Media Reach

Frequently Asked Questions About Facing the Future

What is Facing the Future about and what kind of topics does it cover?

The show centers on the nation's fiscal and economic challenges, with a focus on policy implications for current and future generations. Episodes frequently dissect the federal budget, debt, entitlement programs, and how political dynamics shape reform or inaction. Guests are typically policy researchers, former policymakers, and think-tank experts who bring data-driven analysis on budgets, tax policy, healthcare funding, and economic growth. The program tends to emphasize bipartisan considerations and practical solutions, often highlighting the trade-offs of reforms and the potential long-term consequences for households. A notable strength is deploying high-profile economists and fiscal policy professionals to illuminate complex issues in... more

Where can I find podcast stats for Facing the Future?

Rephonic provides a wide range of podcast stats for Facing the Future. We scanned the web and collated all of the information that we could find in our comprehensive podcast database. See how many people listen to Facing the Future and access YouTube viewership numbers, download stats, audience demographics, chart rankings, ratings, reviews and more.

How many listeners does Facing the Future get?

Rephonic provides a full set of podcast information for three million podcasts, including the number of listeners. View further listenership figures for Facing the Future, including podcast download numbers and subscriber numbers, so you can make better decisions about which podcasts to sponsor or be a guest on. You will need to upgrade your account to access this premium data.

What are the audience demographics for Facing the Future?

Rephonic provides comprehensive predictive audience data for Facing the Future, including gender skew, age, country, political leaning, income, professions, education level, and interests. You can access these listener demographics by upgrading your account.

How many subscribers and views does Facing the Future have?

To see how many followers or subscribers Facing the Future has on Spotify and other platforms such as Castbox and Podcast Addict, simply upgrade your account. You'll also find viewership figures for their YouTube channel if they have one.

Which podcasts are similar to Facing the Future?

These podcasts share a similar audience with Facing the Future:

1. Cato Podcast
2. The Good Fight
3. Advisory Opinions
4. To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes
5. The Ezra Klein Show

How many episodes of Facing the Future are there?

Facing the Future launched 8 years ago and published 100 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact Facing the Future?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

Where can I see ratings and reviews for Facing the Future?

Rephonic pulls ratings and reviews for Facing the Future from multiple sources, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, and Podcast Addict.

View all the reviews in one place instead of visiting each platform individually and use this information to decide if a show is worth pitching or not.

How do I access podcast episode transcripts for Facing the Future?

Rephonic provides full transcripts for episodes of Facing the Future. Search within each transcript for your keywords, whether they be topics, brands or people, and figure out if it's worth pitching as a guest or sponsor. You can even set-up alerts to get notified when your keywords are mentioned.

What guests have appeared on Facing the Future?

Recent guests on Facing the Future include:

1. Jeff Arkin
2. Mark Warshawsky
3. Maya MacGuineas
4. Jonathan Silver
5. Todd Harrison
6. Kent Conrad
7. Alexandra Nica
8. Mike Aguilar

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

Find and pitch the right podcasts

We help savvy brands, marketers and PR professionals to find the right podcasts for any topic or niche. Get the data and contacts you need to pitch podcasts at scale and turn listeners into customers.
Try it free for 7 days