John Ondrasik of Five for Fighting joins Susan Crabtree and Eric Eggers to talk about performing on the USS Nimitz for America's 250th, bringing a freed hostage on stage to play piano, and why patriotism became a political flashpoint.He explains how a song written after October 7th connected him to hostage families, why he thinks the arts decide the culture war, and what a California flag ban says about the country right now. Susan and Eric dig into the drop in national pride, the media's role, and whether the divide is as deep as the headlines claim.On Background is a production of the Government Accountability Institute.