Around The Counter With Molly & Friends

Hey folks, Molly here. Before we pull up our stools today, I want to let you know that this episode is heavy. We are talking about neonatal loss, emergency medical complications, and abortion care. These are deeply personal, tender topics that touch so many families sitting at kitchen counters across the country. If this isn't the right listen for you today, no worries at all. Give yourself grace and we'll see you next week. Executive Summary Navigating complex healthcare legislation can feel overwhelming, especially when medical facts get buried beneath polarized political soundbites. In this episode of Around the Counter with Molly & Friends, host Molly Jones breaks down Idaho’s reproductive healthcare landscape alongside maternal and pediatric nurse Tasha Hussman. Drawing from her background in nursing and her own personal loss, Tasha offers a clear, accessible translation of the medical procedures that safeguard mothers during catastrophic pregnancy complications. The discussion focuses on the systemic consequences of Idaho’s restrictive abortion statutes. When Tasha suffered a concealed placental abruption and life-threatening silent labor at 19 weeks while living in Maryland, her clinical team acted immediately with misoprostol and a surgical dilation and evacuation that saved her life. In Idaho today, the ambiguity surrounding statutory exceptions creates profound legal jeopardy for physicians, causing delays in acute care and accelerating an unprecedented exodus of obstetricians and maternal-fetal medicine specialists that leaves rural regions without maternity care. Examining Idaho Proposition 1—the citizen initiative on the ballot known as the Reproductive Freedom and Privacy Act—Molly and Tasha explore how the measure restores decision-making authority to patients and licensed clinicians. By comparing Idaho’s framework with neighboring Utah and conservative faith traditions, this episode illustrates why practical healthcare policy must prioritize maternal survival and long-term family wellbeing. Key Takeaways: * Emergency Obstetric Care Mechanics: Severe complications such as concealed placental abruptions cause rapid, unpreventable internal hemorrhages that require urgent induction or surgical intervention to save the mother’s life. * The Delay Factor in Restrictive Statutes: Vague statutory definitions force clinicians to delay treatment until a patient’s vital signs deteriorate to near death, exposing women to life-threatening risks of sepsis, organ failure, and future infertility. * Regional Healthcare Deserts: The threat of criminal prosecution has caused nearly one-third of Idaho’s obstetric specialists to relocate or retire, forcing rural hospital units to shutter and exacerbating healthcare shortages across the Mountain West. * Bipartisan Coalition for Maternal Health: Over 110,000 Idahoans across conservative and rural districts backed Proposition 1, reflecting broad common ground among mothers, grandmothers, and families who recognize that protecting maternal health is foundational to thriving communities. *Executive Summary and key takeaways generated by AI and edited by humans. Podcast is purely human. Thanks for pulling up a stool. Want to grab a glass and join the conversation? Here’s how: * Love it: Hit that heart button to show you like this post. * Join the Conversation: We’d love to hear your thoughts on today’s piece. * Restack: Share this out to your personal feed to help us expand our reach. * Share the warmth: If this resonated, feel free to forward it to a friend. We can also be found on Instagram, Threads, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. Or, check out our 2026 midterm election prediction model, Tiny Model. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aroundthecounter.substack.com

Utah sits at a pivotal crossroads regarding the future of the Great Salt Lake. In this episode of Around the Counter with Molly & Friends, we are doing something different. In partnership with Where the Water Was, we interviewed activists, organizations, and regular people about the problems facing Great Salt Lake, their solutions, why they are running 260 miles to raise awareness, and what their favorite memories of the lake are. This isn’t a normal podcast, but this isn’t a normal problem. Learn more about Where the Water Was and how you can get involved, donate to Grow the Flow & Utah Rivers Council, Sign the People’s Charter for the Great Salt Lake, and/or vote for Great Salt Lake champions in the midterm elections on November 03, 2026. If you want to follow along more closely, we’re doing all sorts of cool stuff over on Footprints Instagram. Thanks for pulling up a stool. Want to grab a glass and join the conversation? Here’s how: * Love it: Hit that heart button to show you like this post. * Join the Conversation: We’d love to hear your thoughts on today’s piece. * Restack: Share this out to your personal feed to help us expand our reach. * Share the warmth: If this resonated, feel free to forward it to a friend. We can also be found on Instagram, Threads, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. Or, check out our 2026 midterm election prediction model, Tiny Model. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aroundthecounter.substack.com

Wyoming’s political landscape offers key insights into rural Western policy. Executive Director Corey Cronin analyzes Proposition 1 property tax cuts, the Freedom Caucus primary defeat, and public land impacts. Executive Summary In this episode of Around the Counter with Molly & Friends, host Molly Jones sits down with Corey Cronin, Executive Director of the Wyoming Civic Engagement Network (WYCEN) and longtime campaign strategist. Drawing on his extensive experience in both Utah and Wyoming state politics, Corey breaks down the major legislative shifts happening in Wyoming and explains why neighboring states like Utah share an almost identical political DNA. From local budget dynamics to regional culture wars, the discussion reveals how policy trends tested in rural Western states rarely stay contained within state borders. Corey pulls back the curtain on Wyoming’s Proposition 1—a citizen-led ballot initiative proposing a 50% residential property tax cut. While tax relief sounds appealing on the surface, Corey explains how taking a “chainsaw” to property taxes undermines essential community infrastructure like public education, volunteer fire departments, rural health care, and emergency medical services. The conversation also covers the historic outcome of Wyoming’s recent primary election, where voters turned away from hardline extremists, stripping the state’s Freedom Caucus of its house majority following high-profile budget battles and the infamous “Checkgate” floor scandal. Key Takeaways * Proposition 1 Impacts: A proposed 50% property tax cut acts as a heavy-handed solution that risks defunding critical local infrastructure, including public schools, volunteer fire departments, and rural emergency medical services. * Freedom Caucus Upset: Conservative Wyoming voters rejected hardline tactics in the primary elections, defeating nine incumbents and removing the Freedom Caucus from its legislative majority after extreme budget proposals. * The Checkgate Scandal: Public trust was shaken when a lobbyist was photographed handing donor contribution checks directly to lawmakers on the House floor right before a major tax vote. * Regional Policy Testing: Out-of-state interest groups frequently use low-population Western states like Wyoming and Utah as testing grounds for far-right policy agendas before exporting them nationwide. * Organizing Versus Mobilizing: Building sustainable community power requires deep relationship-building and local coalition work rather than relying solely on single-event rallies or short-term mobilizations. *Executive Summary and key takeaways generated by AI and edited by humans. Podcast is purely human. Thanks for pulling up a stool. Want to grab a glass and join the conversation? Here’s how: * Love it: Hit that heart button to show you like this post. * Join the Conversation: We’d love to hear your thoughts on today’s piece. * Restack: Share this out to your personal feed to help us expand our reach. * Share the warmth: If this resonated, feel free to forward it to a friend. We can also be found on Instagram, Threads, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. Or, check out our 2026 midterm election prediction model, Tiny Model. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aroundthecounter.substack.com

Habitat for Humanity Greater Salt Lake addresses Utah’s housing crisis through zero-interest mortgages, sweat equity, critical home repairs, and legislative advocacy like the 21st Century Road to Housing Act. Executive Summary Buying a home in Salt Lake County now requires an estimated annual household income of $147,000, leaving roughly 91% of Utahns priced out of the traditional housing market. In this episode of Around the Counter with Molly & Friends, host Molly Jones sits down with Chelsi Chant, Director of Marketing and Development for Habitat for Humanity Greater Salt Lake, to break down what it really takes to transition local families from daydreaming to keys in hand. Moving beyond the traditional image of hammers and nails, Chelsi explains the modern multi-county impact of Habitat’s programs across Salt Lake, Davis, and Tooele counties. From zero-interest mortgage qualifications and 225 hours of family sweat equity to critical home repair programs that enable aging residents to stay in their homes safely, this conversation peels back “the machine under the hood” on how local non-profits build long-term community prosperity. They also dive deep into the economic engine of the Salt Lake Habitat ReStore, missing middle housing, urban developments like the Fleet Block project, and how grassroots policy advocacy helped shape major federal and state housing packages. Key Takeaways * The Utah Housing Math: Utah’s median home price currently requires an annual household income of $147,000, pushing the average age of first-time homebuyers to an all-time high of 40 years old. * Sweat Equity and Education: Families earning between 30% and 80% Area Median Income (AMI) complete 225 hours of sweat equity and financial literacy classes to earn an at-cost, zero-interest mortgage. * Aging in Place: Habitat’s critical repair program conducts 100-point safety inspections so elderly and disabled residents can safely maintain their homes and age in place. * The ReStore Economic Engine: The Habitat ReStore diverts tons of usable building materials from Utah landfills while generating funds for new home builds and emergency disaster relief. * Policy and Building: Grassroots advocacy in Washington, D.C. helped advance the federal 21st Century Road to Housing Act, complementing local Salt Lake City initiatives like the mixed-use Fleet Block development. *Executive Summary and key takeaways generated by AI and edited by humans. Podcast is purely human. Thanks for pulling up a stool. Want to grab a glass and join the conversation? Here’s how: * Love it: Hit that heart button to show you like this post. * Join the Conversation: We’d love to hear your thoughts on today’s piece. * Restack: Share this out to your personal feed to help us expand our reach. * Share the warmth: If this resonated, feel free to forward it to a friend. We can also be found on Instagram, Threads, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. Or, check out our 2026 midterm election prediction model, Tiny Model. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aroundthecounter.substack.com

Visual Storytelling, Grassroots Power, and Utah Public Lands. How Photos, Plus Codes, and Local Power Are Saving Utah’s Public Lands. Executive Summary: In this episode of Around the Counter with Molly & Friends, host Molly Jones sits down with Alma Baste, visual storyteller and public lands policy associate at Stewardship Utah. Together, they explore how photography and creative narrative bridge the gap between urban Utahn perspectives and rural communities. Alma shares on-the-ground experiences from her grassroots organizing on the Navajo Nation—from implementing open-source "plus codes" to solve rural voter registration challenges to supporting local Indigenous leaders like Daylene Redhorse in building long-term community power.The discussion moves beyond false political choices to examine the real-world mechanics of public lands policy, including rural economic diversification, federal PILT (Payments in Lieu of Taxes) tax funding, and the balance between outdoor recreation and conservation. Alma breaks down the vital role of Indigenous co-management, Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), and the key distinctions between tribal coalitions and government advisory commissions in preserving sacred landscapes like Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante. Key Takeaways: Visual Storytelling as a Policy Tool: Capturing everyday rural moments and vast natural landscapes connects urban audiences to rural issues through shared human experiences and visual empathy.Plus Codes Grant Electoral Representation: Utilizing plus codes in remote areas of the Navajo Nation provided precise geographic coordinates, correcting precinct mislabeling and empowering voters to elect the first Navajo-majority county commission.PILT Taxes Offset Rural Infrastructure Costs: Federal Payments in Lieu of Taxes ($53.4M awarded to Utah in 2026) replace local property tax revenue on public lands, helping rural counties fund critical services like search-and-rescue and road maintenance.Indigenous Co-Management and TEK: Integrating Traditional Ecological Knowledge alongside federal land management prioritizes long-term environmental stewardship, cultural access, and sustainable resource use over simple extraction or consumerism.Shared Ground in Outdoor Recreation: Hunters, anglers, climbers, and backpackers share a core desire for preserved open spaces, opening up opportunities for collaboration when policy discussions move past outrage rhetoric. *Executive Summary and key takeaways generated by AI and edited by humans. Podcast is purely human. Thanks for pulling up a stool. Want to grab a glass and join the conversation? Here’s how: * Love it: Hit that heart button to show you like this post. * Join the Conversation: We’d love to hear your thoughts on today’s piece. * Restack: Share this out to your personal feed to help us expand our reach. * Share the warmth: If this resonated, feel free to forward it to a friend. We can also be found on Instagram, Threads, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. Or, check out our 2026 midterm election prediction model, Tiny Model. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aroundthecounter.substack.com