Introducing RAW!

Why It Matters

The RAW podcast could reshape conservative discourse by linking personal wellness with policy, challenging regulatory capture and influencing future health‑related legislation.

Key Takeaways

• Heritage Foundation launches RAW podcast linking health, wellness, policy.
• Hosts discuss personal journeys shaping their health‑policy perspectives.
• Emphasis on regulatory capture undermining vaccine and food regulations.
• RFK Jr.’s alliance with Trump highlights cross‑ideological health concerns.
• Initiative aims to mobilize conservatives around chronic disease prevention.

Summary

The Heritage Foundation debuts the RAW podcast, a new series where hosts Jay Richards and Jennifer Galardi explore the intersection of health, wellness, and public policy. The show promises to dissect fitness, nutrition, mental health, and the ways government action can exacerbate chronic disease.

Richards recounts his five‑year tenure at Heritage, his 2020 book on fasting, and his critique of COVID‑19 lockdowns in “The Price of Panic.” Both hosts trace how personal experiences—from college fitness trends to California’s pandemic restrictions—led them to view regulatory capture as a core threat to public health, especially in vaccine and food‑safety oversight.

A pivotal moment cited is Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s 2022 Lincoln Memorial speech and his August 2024 endorsement of Donald Trump, which Richards says “all of your loves have come together.” Colleagues at Heritage encouraged a memo, prompting the launch of the initiative now branded as Restoring American Wellness.

By framing health issues as policy battles, RAW aims to galvanize conservatives around chronic‑disease prevention, challenge entrenched regulatory interests, and potentially reshape legislative agendas. If successful, the podcast could broaden the conservative agenda beyond traditional fiscal concerns to include personal and public health reform.

Original Description

Welcome to the premiere episode of the Restoring American Wellness podcast. Restoring American Wellness (RAW) is a new podcast from the Heritage Foundation exploring the ideas, debates, and policy questions shaping the future of health and wellbeing in the United States. Hosted by Jennifer Galardi and Jay Richards, the show brings together researchers, practitioners, and public figures to examine how health policy affects all Americans and institutions across the country under the timeless principles of limited government, the role of civil society, and the necessary foundations of family and community. 

Each episode features in-depth conversations with some of the most prominent voices within the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) movement. Guests will cover a wide range of perspectives and experiences, with an emphasis on careful analysis rather than trendy slogans and fads. From debates surrounding childhood vaccine schedules to federal food and nutrition reform,  mental health challenges to agriculture—no topic is off limits. The podcast will also examine broader structural issues in the U.S. health care system and the tradeoffs embedded in policy decisions. 

Restoring American Wellness aims to provide listeners with thoughtful, substantive conversations that encourage deeper understanding of one of the most consequential policy arenas of our time.