Dear Friends, CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THIS WEEK’S PROGRAM: (01:12) A conversation with Rep. J.D. Scholten; (35:27) Big Oil uses the courts to try to silence opponents; (43:57) How Poland fought Continue Reading →
It’s no secret that I think the Iowa Democratic Party is an unmitigated disaster. That’s not a hard argument to make, given the scarcity of Democrats holding elected office at the Statehouse — super-minorities in both chambers and only one statewide elected official. When it comes to the US Congress, Iowa Democrats have exactly zero elected officials representing our state.
Iowa used to have a strong Democratic Party. And don’t get me wrong: Iowa needs a strong Democratic Party.
That can happen again if people start listening to this guy: State Rep. Josh Turek. Continue Reading →
This is solid, progressive-prairie populism, and it has deep roots in northwest Iowa. (The 1932 Farmers’ Holiday sported this poetic slogan: “Lets call a Farmer’s Holiday, a holiday let’s hold. We’ll eat our wheat and ham and eggs, and let them eat their gold”.)
J.D.’s message is timely and resonates with most voters. Which brings me to the obvious question:
WHY ISN’T J.D.’S MESSAGE THE IOWA DEMOCRATIC PARTY’S MESSAGE!?
Continue Reading →
CO2 PIPELINES. Rep. J.D. Scholten and I discuss legislation to restrict eminent domain. That conversation starts at the 30-minute mark of this week’s program. Legislation is moving in the Iowa House, and if you’ve got an opinion, now’s a great time to contact your rep and senator.
UKRAINE. There are no easy answers when it comes to ending the war in Ukraine. The predicted “new phase” of the war could even increase the risk of a nuclear exchange. Jeffrey Weiss and I discuss that.
I also ask Jeffrey how seriously we should take the resolution proposed by congressional Republicans to cut off military and financial aid to Ukraine. My own take: not very — though it probably won’t be retracted as was the letter from House Democrats to President Biden last October.
As Jeffrey sees it, there are a couple big-picture issues to keep in mind: “The US is spending close to a trillion dollars for the military-industrial complex and has a permanent war economy. The only people in the world who don’t know this are the people of the United States. Regarding this war specifically, one of the key questions we have to ask is what’s in the best interest of the people of Ukraine.”
MONOPOLIES. J.D. Scholten is tackling a problem that needs a bi-partisan fix. We discuss how Ticketmaster, Smithfield, Major League Baseball, and other corporate monopolies get away with gouging consumers due to weak anti-trust laws. Unless we do something, “the wealthy are going to get more wealthy and they’re leaving the rest of us behind,” says J.D. Continue Reading →
The RNC may find a way — perhaps gracefully, perhaps not — to show Trump the exit door while ushering in Mike Pence as the nominee of preference. The growing critique from Trump’s base, coupled with the embarrassing failure of his kick-off rally, make this a genuine possibility. Continue Reading →
Dear Friends, I’m encouraged that, more than ever, people are taking seriously the importance of voting. To those who still feel it doesn’t matter, let me share this story: When Continue Reading →