In this year-end special, hosts Brian Phillips and Derek Cohen sit down with Brad Johnson, Senior Reporter & Managing Editor at The Texan News, to recap the biggest political stories of 2025 and what they mean heading into the 2026 cycle.

From the unexpected twists in the Texas Senate race, to the fallout of mid-decade redistricting, to the biggest legislative wins and disappointments, this episode covers it all. We also unveil our Politician of the Year and Texan of the Year awards.

3:35 – Hot Take: Jasmine Crockett jumps into the 2026 Senate race
9:10 – DLCC targets the Texas House for 2026
11:43 – Democrats field candidates in every statewide/federal race
13:11 – Why Dems still struggle to build a top-tier slate
16:20 – 2025 Legislative Session recap: Was 2025 the most conservative Texas legislative session ever?
18:38 – Biggest wins of the year: Burrows, bail reform, ESAs, border
23:42 – Biggest disappointments: energy, tariffs, healthcare messaging
31:07 – Biggest story of 2025: Mid-decade redistricting; the THC fight and its ripple effects
35:10 – Under-the-radar wins: DEI enforcement & agency elimination
44:25 – Politician of the Year awards
55:19 – New Year’s resolutions for 2026

Why is buying a home harder than ever in 2025 — even worse than 2007? Sean Dobson, Chairman & CEO of Amherst (one of America’s largest real estate investment firms), joins The Right Idea to break down the real drivers of the housing affordability crisis and what can actually fix it. We dive deep into labor costs, local regulations, property taxes, garages nobody uses, the future of renting vs. owning, immigration’s impact on construction, and why gimmicks like 50-year mortgages or rent control won’t solve anything. If you want to understand why young families can’t buy homes anymore — and what policymakers should actually do — this is the episode.

01:14 – Hot Take: Why the Epstein file release won’t end the conspiracies
03:06 – Today’s guest: Sean Dobson (CEO of Amherst)
04:12 – What actually goes into the cost of building a house? (2/3 labor!)
05:58 – Modular homes, factory construction, and why it’s still only single-digit savings
09:15 – Can the average person even build their own house today?
10:34 – How local regulations silently drive up costs
11:26 – The $55,000 garage nobody parks in
14:29 – California’s ADU precedent & state vs. city power
17:20 – 2025 affordability worse than 2007? Here’s why
22:11 – Why politicians keep floating 50-year mortgages & subprime 2.0
24:19 – What does “affordable” even mean? (The 1/3 income rule)
26:07 – Texas property taxes: 40%+ of your housing cost?!
30:37 – Renting is not failure: Why the “American Dream” narrative is outdated
33:31 – The real labor crisis in construction (and immigration’s role)
39:53 – Rent control: Why it always backfires
42:26 – Sean’s magic wand fix: Restore credit access & rename the “subprime” crisis

In this episode of The Right Idea, TPPF's Brian Phillips and Derek Cohen break down how political activism has seeped into Texas healthcare — influencing diagnoses, treatments, and public policy.

They’re joined by Dr. Lisa Ehrlich, internal medicine physician and former TMA trustee, and Joseph Figliolia, Manhattan Institute policy analyst and author of a major report on the TMA’s drift into ideological advocacy.

Together, they examine:
* How the TMA embraced gender-affirming care despite weak evidence
* Why many physicians feel silenced
* How institutional capture happens inside medical organizations
* The impact on children, parents, lawmakers, and the practice of medicine
* What reforms are needed to bring medicine back to evidence-based practice

00:30 – Thanksgiving politics & family discussions
03:40 – Today’s topic: Gender ideology in healthcare
05:18 – Guest introductions: Dr. Ehrlich & Joseph Figliolia
05:42 – Why Joseph investigated the TMA
07:23 – Is the TMA doubling down despite national pushback?
09:07 – Evidence problems & reversals in Europe
10:25 – Dr. Ehrlich: What clinicians saw on the ground
11:38 – Social contagion & the rise of gender questioning
13:12 – Vulnerable populations & patterns emerging
14:58 – Why endocrinology led the shift
16:02 – “Science by consensus” and activist medicine
17:36 – The problem with WPATH & activist guidelines
18:33 – How TMA was captured: institutional mechanics
19:23 – Why doctors stay silent
20:57 – Fear of being labeled discriminatory
22:08 – Dr. Ehrlich: Intimidation inside the TMA
23:56 – Identity sections and cultural politicization
25:05 – Personal attacks vs scientific debate
26:31 – Medicine requiring ideological pre-commitments?
27:55 – Historical parallels (e.g., lobotomies)
28:58 – Pandemic mandates & ethical shifts
31:09 – Three separate issues: dysphoria, treatment, ideology
32:57 – Suicide risk, treatment failures, evidence gaps
34:18 – Is someone funding this movement?
36:01 – TMA’s definitions avoid “gender dysphoria” entirely
37:44 – The financial incentives behind affirming care
38:39 – Do associations influence medical boards?
41:15 – How TMA influences Texas policy
42:07 – Is Texas protecting kids effectively?
43:30 – Evidence-based standards being ignored
44:56 – CME problems: outdated, debunked studies
45:14 – Can the TMA be fixed?
47:34 – Structural governance problems
49:24 – What shoe drops next?
51:07 – The comprehensive HHS gender dysphoria review
51:35 – Dr. Ehrlich’s advice for physicians afraid to speak up