Next week America will be celebrating the uniquely American holiday of Thanksgiving.  It’s one of my favorite days of the year.  I love having a house full of family and friends.  Sure there is a noise level that is the equivalent of one of Elon Musk’s Space X rockets roaring into space and with about half of the 40 plus people sharing the meal, and half of them being under the age of 16, food will be flying like the food fight scene in Animal House.  But it's a wonderful time to see family from both near and far.  It’s wonderful to enjoy some traditional dishes like the dressing that goes with the turkey.  Too bad it’s only served once a year.  

But beyond the noise and flying food, I love the reminder that of all the things I’m thankful for, I am genuinely thankful to be an American.  I’ve had the privilege of traveling all over the world.  I’ve witnessed first-hand some remarkable cultures, scenery, and architecture.  I’ve observed all kinds of governments from democracies to tyrannies.  But I’ve never been to a place I thought measured up to the United States of America and I am thankful that by God’s grace, I was born here and have been blessed to raise my family here.

We hear the big-talk of celebrities who say they are going to “LEAVE THE COUNTRY!” because the election didn’t go they way they wanted.  Fine.  Please do go.  If these Hollywood “holier than thou’s” are so petulant that they would forfeit their liberties in the United States because the majority of their fellow citizens voted differently, then it would be truly wonderful if they did leave.  I even thought about starting a Go-Fund me  site to collect money to purchase 1-way tickets for the celebrities who say they will leave.  Let’s not let the cost of an airline ticket be an impediment to their “JOY” that apparently disappeared the failure of Kamala Harris and a 1 billion dollar campaign fund to defeat Donald Trump.  Some of us were glad about the election, but even in elections I wasn’t glad about, such as the 2020 election, I never contemplated moving out of the country over it.

As you are enjoying a family feast on Thanksgiving, be sure and take a few moments to reflect upon how good you have it in America.  Thank God you can worship Him without government permission.  Thank God you can still exercise free speech and express your beliefs, even if they are just plain crazy.  Thank God you can start your life in poverty, but through hard work, a good education, and taking risks, you can rise above your starting line and live a life of prosperity and security.  Thank God that you get to choose what kind of job you will have to support yourself and you can move to a different place if you want to, again without getting the approval of the government.  

America isn’t perfect, but how could it be with people like us living here?  But it is country where we pick our leaders, get to participate in the process of our Republic, and get to express our dissatisfaction with those we elect.  Even our Founders acknowledged we weren’t perfect but said we would work toward “a MORE perfect union,” even though we’re still not there yet.

Enjoy the turkey, ham, chicken, or brisket this week.  Savor the presence of your family and the fact they are willing to still speak to you.  And for some family members, you only have to put up with them once a year!

From all of us here at the Huckabee Show, we wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving, and thank you for being part of our viewing family.  And for tolerating the real turkey on our show—the host!

Ryan Walters taught eight years as a high school history teacher in his hometown at McAlester High School (MHS). During his time at MHS, Walters taught Advanced Placement (AP) courses in World History, U.S. History and U.S. Government. He also taught on-level history classes, special education classes and Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) classes. 

The Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) named Walters as an Oklahoma Teacher of the Year Finalist in 2016. He is passionate about the students of Oklahoma and advocating for their immediate and long-term success. 

In September 2020, Governor Kevin Stitt named Walters as Secretary of Public Education. As Secretary of Education, he was responsible for various agencies, boards, and commissions, including the State Board of Education, College and University Boards of Regents or Trustees, Office of Educational Quality and Accountability and the State Board of Career and Technology Education. 

Walters taught AP U.S. History at Millwood High School and McAlester High School. He is empowering teachers, parents and community leaders to improve Oklahoma’s education system for all students and previously served as Executive Director of Oklahoma Achieves, an education initiative of the State Chamber of Oklahoma that sought to get the business community more actively engaged in education. 

He is a lifelong advocate of improving Oklahoma’s education system and helping every student reach their full potential. 

A loving husband to his wife Katie, Walters has four children — Violet (6), Ella (4), Benjamin (2) and newborn Samuel. 

Ryan Collins is the CEO and President of Bethel School of Technology, the world's first online Christian coding bootcamp, ranked by Fortune Magazine as one of the top 10 coding schools in the nation. He is also the author of The God of Tech, a No. 1 new release in Christian Professional Growth on Amazon in 2023 that focuses on partnering with God to use technology as a way to magnify the love of Christ to everyone everywhere. 

Before starting Bethel Tech, Ryan spent over a decade building corporate education partnerships with Fortune-level companies, primarily focused on upskilling their workforce for the future of work.

Nashville Ballet is the largest professional ballet company in Tennessee, presents a varied repertoire of classical ballet and contemporary works by noted choreographers, including original works by Artistic Director and CEO Nick Mullikin, and other guest artists. Nashville Ballet and the second company, NB2, provides more than 55,000 arts experiences to adults and children annually through virtual and in-person season performances and Community Engagement programming. Nashville Ballet curriculum-based Community Engagement and Education Programs bring dance education to over 12,000 students in over 25 schools across 21 council districts in Middle Tennessee.

Considered America’s foremost expert on Inner Cellular Hydration, John Jubilee is the visionary behind and co-founder of Energized Health. Currently disrupting the Health & Wellness space with their breakthrough science, John & his team hold the key to unlocking health from the inside out.  Having helped tens of thousands of people for close to 30 years achieve optimal health at the cellular level, John’s team has the only proprietary patent pending protocol in America which transforms the human cell creating inner cellular hydration throughout the human body. This breakthrough science identifies that cellular hydration is the body’s number one health marker and the one to which all other wellness markers directly correspond.   Working alongside her husband and Co-Founder John Jubilee, Energized Health is disrupting the health industry utilizing a proprietary protocol proven to reduce the need for medications, reverse ailments, prevent diseases and energize people at the cellular level. A highly driven professional with over 20 years of experience owning and operating businesses, Chelsea is responsible for the overall image and success of the company.

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Colton Dixon first emerged as a phenomenon after finishing in the top seven on Season 11 of American Idol. Delivering a series of Idol albums, 2013’s A Messenger achieved “the biggest first-week sales by a new solo Christian act” and catapulted into the Top 15 of the Billboard 200 and #1 on the Billboard Christian Albums Chart. A year later, Anchor yielded his third and fourth #1 hits on Christian Hot AC with “More of You” and “Through It All.” In 2017, he returned to #1 on the Christian Albums Chart for the third time. He has collected a pair of Dove Awards and made appearances on Good Morning America, Entertainment Tonight and People magazine. During 2020, he embarked on a new chapter with Atlantic Records ignited by the self-titled Colton Dixon EP and runaway hit “Miracles.” 2022 saw him make his show-stopping debut at the Grand Ole Opry amid kicking off another era with “Build A Boat.” Between the original and duet version with multi-platinum country songstress Gabby Barrett, it has reeled in over 100 million streams. It stood out as “the longest running Mediabase Christian AC #1 song of 2022” and locked down #1 on the Billboard Hot Christian Songs Chart and Christian AC Airplay Chart. 2024 brings new music from Dixon, starting with his brand-new track, “Rest of My Life” being used as the closing song for the new Angel Studios film SIGHT, starring Terry Chen and Greg Kinnear, and brand-new radio single, "Up+Up."