The Tudor Dixon Podcast: Mike Rogers on Reviving Michigan—Jobs, Education, and the Fight Against Rising Crime

Date: October 27, 2025
Host: Tudor Dixon
Guest: Mike Rogers (Former Congressman, Former House Intelligence Committee Chairman, Current Candidate for U.S. Senate, Michigan)

Episode Overview

This episode centers on Michigan’s decline in manufacturing and education, the state’s rising crime rates, and the critical role a U.S. Senator can play in reversing these trends. Tudor Dixon and Mike Rogers, both deeply connected to Michigan’s manufacturing legacy, dissect the state’s struggles and layout Rogers’ conservative vision for Michigan’s recovery, emphasizing the importance of skilled jobs, educational reform, and public safety.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Michigan’s Manufacturing Decline and Opportunities for Revival

• Michigan’s Lost Manufacturing Edge: Rogers criticizes Democratic leadership for the loss of 30,000 manufacturing jobs and a slip in national education rankings (“Mississippi does better than Michigan right now in education”—[03:46]).
• The Need for Technical Skills: Both recall their fathers’ shop backgrounds—Dixon’s in the foundry, Rogers’ as a shop teacher—emphasizing the pride and value of hands-on skills.
• Advanced Manufacturing: Rogers notes the shift from traditional foundries to advanced manufacturing:

  “We probably won't get a whole surge of foundries come back. But what we can now get is that advanced manufacturing where the jobs are important for our national security.” ([04:55], Mike Rogers)

• High-Paying Technical Jobs Exist:

  “About a week ago where one of the guys who runs a very sophisticated computing drilling machine makes a quarter of a million dollars a year.” ([05:55], Mike Rogers)

• Modern Machine Shops:

  “You go to some of these machine shops… I could eat off the floor.” ([06:32], Tudor Dixon)

2. Connecting Youth to Careers and Addressing Educational Failures

• Disconnect with Young Men:

  “The men in Michigan are not going to school, they're not going to trade school, they're not going to college. What is happening to the young men in the state of Michigan? This is a crisis.” ([10:19], Tudor Dixon)

• Skills Gap: High school graduates struggle with basic skills like reading a measuring tape or doing fractions.

  “Three shops tell me they had to take the question of reading a measuring tape off the interview… Now they have to come in and teach them fractions. Now these are high school graduates.” ([13:00], Mike Rogers)

• Whole Word Learning vs. Phonics:

  “The secret sauce is… phonics. They use phonics to get these kids ready… because years ago the education establishment decided that whole word learning was the ticket. Well, guess what? Whole word learning has been a disaster.” ([18:51], Mike Rogers)

• Educational Accountability and Remediation: Rogers advocates for mandatory reading remediation funded by Title I dollars.

  “If you can't read going into the fourth grade, then you have to go through it… And here's the key... If you're not reading in fourth grade by the fourth grade, you have a 70% chance of going to prison or being on…” ([19:53], Mike Rogers)

3. Intergenerational Cycles, Parental Literacy, and School Responsibility

• Parental Involvement and Literacy:

  “We've talked to kids… who didn't have a book in the house… Because the parents can't read.” ([21:37], Mike Rogers)

• Cycle of Illiteracy:

  “You're going to help your kids because that's what's happening is you have this cycle of parents who can't read and not reading to their kids.” ([21:37], Mike Rogers)

• Teacher vs Administration:

  “It is not the teachers. So I have a lot of teachers in my family… what they're finding is… you get a student in who isn't reading, even at the third grade level. How do you teach fifth grade material?” ([23:25], Mike Rogers)

4. Political Leadership, Policy Proposals, and Democratic Shortcomings

• Holding Schools Accountable:

  “Mississippi, about $9,000 a student. Michigan, $14,000 a student. Their reading scores are higher than Michigan. It's not money.” ([25:49], Mike Rogers)

• Call for School Choice: Michigan not leveraging federal scholarships that could help students attend better schools.

5. Crime, Public Safety, and the National Guard

• Violent Crime in Detroit:

  “We're about 400% higher than the national average in violent crime, aggravated assault, rape, 180% higher than the national average. Detroit is the second most dangerous city by population in the country.” ([27:50], Mike Rogers)

• Democrat Leadership Response:

  “They're happy with a murder number. I do not understand this. I think people in those neighborhoods deserve every bit of safety to walk to the store, to go to church…” ([28:17], Mike Rogers)

• National Guard Deployment: Rogers supports deploying the National Guard to Detroit to prevent murders—opponents and the governor disagree.

  “I would welcome the National Guard. Your opponents and the governor of the state said they would… never want the National Guard here… They said no.” ([29:17], Tudor Dixon)

6. Progressive Policies, Sex Work, and the Threat to Michigan Values

• Progressive Democrat Threats: Dixon and Rogers warn about progressive candidates aligning with extreme policies—citing support for legalizing prostitution and socialist ideals.

  “Do you want to look your daughter in the eye as a senior in high school and say, hey, sex trafficking work. That's an option, right? No. God, no. We can't let ourselves get there.” ([51:50], Mike Rogers)

• Potential Federal Impact:

  “You have a candidate on the Democrat side who is saying, ‘I'm for [socialist] policies,’ and if that goes to the federal government and you get enough support… nothing sounds insane today after the things that I have seen coming out of the progressive wing of their party…” ([51:50], Tudor Dixon)

7. Senate Race Importance, Trump Endorsement, and Call to Action

• State at a Crossroads:

  “We haven't had a Republican in 32 years. So the Democrats have been in charge and our voice in Michigan for 32 years. Hey, how's that working out for you?” ([46:49], Mike Rogers)

• Senate Majority Math: 60 votes needed to override Democratic blockades and enact reforms.
• Grassroots Mobilization & Trump Endorsement:

  “President Trump's endorsement was phenomenal. But the most important person that the endorsement that I will get… is somebody in a neighborhood walks next door and says, hey, I'm going to tell you why I'm voting for Mike Rogers.” ([52:51], Mike Rogers)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “I think we should have shop in every high school in America.” ([05:43], Mike Rogers)
• “Mississippi does better than Michigan right now in education.” ([03:46], Mike Rogers)
• “They had to take the question of reading a measuring tape off the interview… Now they have to come in and teach them fractions.” ([13:00], Mike Rogers)
• “If you're not reading in fourth grade by the fourth grade, you have a 70% chance of going to prison or being on…” ([19:53], Mike Rogers)
• “Detroit is the second most dangerous city by population in the country. And what Democrats are saying is nothing to see here.” ([27:50], Mike Rogers)
• “Do you want to look your daughter in the eye as a senior in high school and say, hey, sex trafficking work. That's an option, right?” ([51:50], Mike Rogers)
• “We haven't had a Republican in 32 years… How's that working out for you?” ([46:49], Mike Rogers)

Important Timestamps

• [03:46] – Michigan’s manufacturing and education crisis
• [06:27] – Modern machine shops and skilled jobs
• [10:19] – The crisis among young men and career pathways
• [13:00] – Basic skills gap: measuring tape and fractions
• [18:51] – Phonics vs. whole word learning and reading reform
• [25:49] – School funding vs. accountability; Mississippi comparison
• [27:50] – Detroit crime rates and lack of Democratic response
• [29:17] – Deploying the National Guard to fight murders
• [41:45] – Energy costs, the Keystone pipeline, and classroom politics
• [46:49] – Call to flip the Senate and reflect on 32 years of Democratic control
• [51:50] – Warning against normalizing sex trafficking and legal prostitution
• [52:51] – Grassroots power and importance of local advocacy

Overall Tone & Dynamism

• The conversation is passionate, personal, and direct. Rogers draws on his own blue-collar upbringing, legislative experience, and FBI background, channeling urgency around Michigan’s decline and possibilities for rebirth. Dixon supplements with personal anecdotes and sharp critiques of Democratic leadership, using a tone that is pragmatic, unapologetically conservative, and focused on grassroots solutions.

Calls to Action

• For Michiganders: Get involved in the upcoming Senate race—vote, volunteer, donate, and talk to your neighbors.
• On Education: Advocate for accountability, phonics-based reading programs, and community-driven remediation initiatives.
• On Public Safety: Demand active solutions to Detroit’s crime crisis, support National Guard intervention, and call out leaders for ignoring dangerous neighborhoods.
• On Policy: Resist progressive/socialist policies that threaten Michigan’s values; focus on tangible outcomes over ideological purity.

Final Takeaways

Mike Rogers and Tudor Dixon argue that Michigan stands at an inflection point. They urge a return to practical, work-based education, renewed pride in manufacturing, accountability in schools, and seriousness about crime and public safety. They position Rogers’ candidacy as essential to halting what they frame as a tide of dangerous progressive policies and reclaiming Michigan’s promise for the next generation.

For more episodes, visit tutordixonpodcast.com or listen on the iHeartRadio app and Apple Podcasts.