Bestselling author and podcaster Ryan Holiday and former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis discuss America’s founding ideals and why they still matter 250 years later in the second part of a conversation recorded at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.

Holiday and Mattis explain why adherence to Stoic virtues is valuable in the military and how falling back on one’s first principles can help navigate a crisis.

They reflect on the philosophical ideas that influenced early American leaders like George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. They also assess the importance of civic duty and participation in our democracy.

Using the example of Admiral James Stockdale, Mattis explains how members of the military respond to orders they believe are unjustified, and Holiday highlights the need for virtuous leadership as America looks to the future.

Support for Firing Line with Margaret Hoover is provided by Robert Granieri, Vanessa and Henry Cornell, The Fairweather Foundation, The Tepper Foundation, Peter and Mary Kalikow, The Beth and Ravenel Curry Foundation, Pritzker Military Foundation, Cliff and Laurel Asness, The Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation, The Marc Haas Foundation, Katharine J. Rayner, Charles R. Schwab, Lindsay and George Billingsley, The Meadowlark Foundation, Jared Stone, Al and Kathy Hubbard, and Craig Newmark Philanthropies.

Danielle Crittenden joins Margaret Hoover to discuss her new book, “Dispatches from Grief: A Mother's Journey Through the Unthinkable,” which details the aftermath of her daughter’s unexpected death.

Miranda Frum, who once worked for “Firing Line,” died suddenly in 2024 at age 32 as she was preparing to celebrate the five-year anniversary of a successful surgery to remove a rare nonmalignant brain tumor.

Crittenden and her husband, writer David Frum, navigated frustrating levels of bureaucracy as they dealt with legal and logistical challenges following Miranda’s death, and she continues to experience “digital haunting” as her devices provide sometimes unwelcome reminders of her daughter.

While “Dispatches from Grief” is decidedly not a self-help book, Crittenden offers advice both for mourners and for those who find themselves interacting with parents who have suffered the loss of a child. She also reflects on what she has learned from suffering and how her grief has evolved over time, as well as what Miranda might have thought of her writing the book.

WARNING: This episode contains discussions of suicide. Listener discretion is advised. If you or someone you know is experiencing depression or thoughts of suicide, help is available 24/7 at the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline (Call or Text 988).

Support for Firing Line with Margaret Hoover is provided by Robert Granieri, Vanessa and Henry Cornell, The Fairweather Foundation, The Tepper Foundation, Peter and Mary Kalikow, The Beth and Ravenel Curry Foundation, Pritzker Military Foundation, Cliff and Laurel Asness, The Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation, The Marc Haas Foundation, Katharine J. Rayner, Charles R. Schwab, Lindsay and George Billingsley, The Meadowlark Foundation, Jared Stone, Al and Kathy Hubbard, and Craig Newmark Philanthropies.

Margaret Hoover sits down with American Enterprise Institute Senior Fellow Yuval Levin and National Constitution Center CEO Emeritus Jeffrey Rosen to discuss the enduring ideals of America’s founding documents.

Levin and Rosen, who both contributed to the NCC’s new book “The Promise of America,” reflect on the shared principles and ideological differences between the nation’s founders and how those philosophical clashes have echoed through to the present.

Levin addresses the dysfunction of Congress in the modern era, how it became so polarized, and what can be done to bring it closer to what the founders intended. Rosen comments on proposals to increase the size of Congress and the difficulty of amending the Constitution.

The two constitutional scholars assess the state of executive power in the second Trump administration, and they look ahead to the challenges artificial intelligence may pose for American democracy.

Support for Firing Line with Margaret Hoover is provided by Robert Granieri, Vanessa and Henry Cornell, The Fairweather Foundation, The Tepper Foundation, Peter and Mary Kalikow, The Beth and Ravenel Curry Foundation, Pritzker Military Foundation, Cliff and Laurel Asness, The Margaret and Daniel Loeb Foundation, Katharine J. Rayner, Charles R. Schwab, Lindsay and George Billingsley, The Meadowlark Foundation, Jared Stone, Al and Kathy Hubbard, and Craig Newmark Philanthropies.