The T. Boone Pickens Channel

Nine years ago today, we launched the Pickens Plan. We knew we had a great idea, and people across the country agreed. We'd held focus groups and found that Americans knew about the problem, but saw that the country lacked an energy plan. They were hungry for something that would work, a specific energy plan that included a little bit of everything -- solar, wind, and natural gas. For the final podcast on the history of the Pickens Plan, I talk with Peter McCollum, strategic communicator and Partner at Whistle Lake Public Affairs, and Jason Huntsberry, President & CEO of Schenck Foods Co. Although they referred to themselves as "little cogs in a big machine," they were a major part of the tight-knit team that makes the Pickens Plan tick.

Washington, D.C. is as divided as it has ever been, and it has become difficult to set politics aside and get things done. But fortunately the Pickens Plan benefited from a bipartisan team that came together to promote a plan that has our nation’s best interests in mind. For the latest episode of the Pickens Podcast, I sat down with Rich Galen, a columnist and former press secretary for U.S. Senators Dan Quayle (R-IN) and Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-TX), and Amy Weiss, former White House Deputy Press Secretary to President Bill Clinton and press secretary and campaign manager for U.S. Rep Mike Synar (D-OK). These two have reached across the aisle to help make the Pickens Plan work. It just goes to show how successful you can be when you can look past personal politics to focus on a mission.

Tammy Haddad and Heather Lauer have helped get out the word about the Pickens Plan since I was drawing it up on whiteboards and restaurant napkins. Now, they’ve moved out from behind the scenes to tell stories from nine years of the plan and to discuss the success we’ve had since my idea in the summer of 2008. We recall meetings with Gov. Sarah Palin, Gov. George Pataki and Mike Bloomberg in New York. We discuss how the plan has grown and become a success, thanks to support from all ages and both sides of the aisle.

T. Boone Pickens is joined by Jay Rosser, his right hand man for 15 years who serves as his VP of Public Affairs, and seasoned political expert Tom Synhorst, who served as the Campaign Manager of the Pickens Plan. They reminisce about the beginnings of the Plan in the summer of 2008, how we were importing $1 billion of foreign oil (it’s about half that today), how we had no energy plan and no prospects for one from either Obama or McCain, and how the campaign focused on converting heavy-duty trucks from diesel to natural gas right from the get-go.

As I have been telling you for almost a decade, the benefits of natural gas as a transportation fuel are: It’s cheaper than diesel, it’s cleaner than diesel, it’s abundant, and it’s ours. Listen to this conversation between Fred Smith of FedEx, Chris Spear of American Trucking Associations, and me as we move into a new era of the way our Federal government looks at energy and environment.

We went back to several of the most interesting conversations T. Boone Pickens had for the Pickens Podcast series in 2016 and distilled those visits to our discussions of PEOTUS Donald J. Trump. This "greatest hits" episode features Laura Ingraham, Steve Forbes, Carl Icahn, Tom Daschle & Trent Lott, and Haley Barbour. You'll find these conversations fascinating during this Inauguration Season.

New York Times reporter Joe Nocera and I taped an interesting podcast shortly after our joint appearance at the Texas Tribune Festival. This is a wide-ranging conversation with a little focus on natural gas. I think you’ll find this conversation interesting and fun. It’s also a good summary on where we have been and where we are now on energy.

Higher Education: Why is it important and who should pay for it? I went into this discussion with Jack DeGioia, President of Georgetown University, and Eduardo Padrón, President of Miami-Dade College. These two college presidents had the tough task of trying to convince me that a college education should be available to any student that wants one. They came pretty close.

Legendary journalist Tom Brokaw and Michael Crow, President of Arizona State University, are my guests on this episode of the Pickens Podcast. They have teamed up to build a world-class Public Service Academy to create a next-gen class of young Americans who want to change the arc of civilian service to America. The idea is to produce civilian leadership in the same way we produce military leaders from West Point, Annapolis and the other military service academies. Tune in for this important discussion about the future of higher education and the future of public service.

Who can fix our broken Congress? That’s one of the key questions that Jane Harman will be trying to answer as she watches Monday night’s presidential debate. When I sat down with Jane, I knew of her strong Democratic credentials. I’m a committed Republican. I was worried that we’d spend a lot of time butting heads. In fact, we found some common ground, and some areas to explore further. Jane represented California’s 36th Congressional district for 18 years and is currently the president of the non-partisan Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. On top of these credentials, Jane also serves on the Commission on Presidential Debates.

Lou Holtz - a great friend of mine and a legendary football coach - joins me in a conversation to kick off college football season. I pressed and he gave his pick for National Champion. Lou was not only a great and winning coach, he was an inspiration to his players, teaching them more than blocking and tackling, but also teaching them about life. Listen to find out who this coach, teacher, and leader thinks will win it all this year.

Karen Tumulty is a senior political reporter for the Washington Post. She also moderated one of the few debates between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. Now she is writing a biography of Nancy Reagan. “Nancy Reagan was not only powerful,” Karen said, “but for perhaps the first time in history didn’t care who knew it. This will be a very different book than those that were written in the 1990s.” Tune in for this very interesting peek behind the scenes with one of America’s most respected political reporters.

This week’s Pickens Podcast is an interview with Dr. Neil Bressler, MD, a Professor of Ophthalmology and Chief of the Retinal Division at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Bressler is one of the world’s experts in treating the eye disease known as macular degeneration. I, along with about 8 million other Americans, have this disease, which used to be the leading cause of blindness in older Americans. Due to the research Dr. Bressler and his colleagues have been conducting at Johns Hopkins and elsewhere, 75-80 percent of people with macular degeneration can have their vision preserved using modern drugs and medical techniques. If you’re over the age of 60 or have a parent or relative who is, I think you (and they) will find this discussion interesting, informative, and inspiring.

One of the giants of the energy business, John Hofmeister, sat down with T. Boone Pickens for this week's episode of the Pickens Podcast. A proven leader and proven thinker, Hofmeister shares his top energy-related goals for the United States.

One of the most important biographers in America, Walter Isaacson, sat down with T. Boone Pickens for this week’s episode of the Pickens Podcast. Walter is the head of The Aspen Institute, and presides over the Aspen Ideas Festival, which is currently underway in Aspen. Isaacson talks about the biggest changes he’s seen over the past 20 years and the most important lessons he has learned from some of the best business people, politicians, and academics in the world.

Retired four-star General James Conway tells Boone that if we want to get rid of ISIS, we need to arm and train the Sunni Tribes and the Kurds, but the Iraqi government won’t let us. On energy, Conway says that the U.S. has become a puppet being manipulated by the Saudis. He believes that an energy plan is really a national security plan. Listen to this episode of the Pickens Podcast to hear what one of America’s smartest Generals has to say.

General David Petraeus tells T. Boone Pickens during this episode of the Pickens Podcast: “We have a vital national interest in maintaining our relationships with the Middle East countries and to ensure the free flow of energy to nations around the world.” Listen to this riveting conversation for more of General Petraeus’ insights on the Middle East today.

T. Boone Pickens talks with a man who started his career working for Richard Nixon in rural Mississippi and ended up being one of the most influential – and likeable – political figures of the last 30 years: Haley Barbour. Haley was Chairman of the Republican National Committee when the GOP took over control of the U.S. House and served two terms as Governor of Mississippi.

Have a seat and enjoy this Q&A featuring best-selling author and entrepreneur, Tony Robbins, and the Oracle of Oil, T. Boone Pickens. These two thought leaders cover a wide range of topics pertaining to domestic and global energy issues as well as strategic opportunities in the United States today. This is the second of a two-part conversation.