135. Milo Ventimiglia. Actor and Activist. From Vietnam to Afghanistan to This Is Us. A Whole New Reason Senator Joe Manchin Sucks. Hollywood’s Biggest Union Strikes. The Fight for the Global War on Terror Memorial. Celebrity Tourists in War Zones.

Milo Ventimiglia (@MiloVentimiglia) is an actor, director and producer. And one of the hottest stars in America. He’s also a really nice, hard-working and fascinating guy. And a guy with very strong opinions about everything from Afghanistan, to Senator Joe Manchin’s obstructionism, to a strike in Hollywood by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) union. Milo is a fighter who stands up for what he believes in--not just in the roles he plays--but also in real life. And this is Milo the fighter as candid as you’ll ever hear him. After early recognition for roles with Sylverstor Stallone in Rocky Balboa, on Gilmore Girls and the NBC series Heroes, Milo went on to star as Jack Pearson in the massively popular NBC drama, This Is Us. Now, the humble son of a Vietnam vet is a household name. He has received three Emmy nominations and won a Screen Actors Guild Award. But over a decade before that, Ventimiglia toured Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan with the USO in support of US troops. And he’s done it multiple times since. Now, he’s using his star power to help veterans and to stand with working people. He’s supported veterans charities, and for the last month, has been making phone calls to US Senators to help a generation of men and women who’ve served since 9/11 create a Global War on Terror Memorial on The National Mall in Washington. Milo’s been a friend of our host, Paul Rieckhoff (@PaulRieckhoff), for many years. They’ve worked together on issues, appeared together on political talk shows, and spent late nights hanging out in Hollywood getting pancakes. Milo shares the inside scoop on what’s to come on This Is Us, he’ll take us behind a red carpet with Nicole Kidman, and he’ll talk about creating a super action hero movie with past Independent Americans guests like, Bradley Whitford, Jeffrey Wright, Wes Chatham, Jon Bernthal, Jane Horton and Henry Rollins. You will be entertained. And inspired. It’s another conversation that keeps it real. The kind to help you stay vigilant. Because eternal vigilance is the price of freedom. Our host, national security and political analyst and Army veteran Paul Rieckhoff takes you behind the scenes for candid conversations with top leaders from all backgrounds. It’s a bold and blunt perspective you won’t find anywhere else on the media landscape. You can support the show and join our dynamic community of listeners by joining the IA Patreon community. You’ll get access to events, guests, merch discounts, and exclusive content. And you’ll help us keep speaking independent truth to power. You can also WATCH the full conversation with Milo and Paul here: https://youtu.be/3cudG4PGvVw Independent Americans is powered by Righteous Media. On social media or www.IndependentAmericans.us. Stay vigilant, America. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.