Advertise on podcast: Heartland Politics with Robin Johnson

State Senator Mike Halpin, Democrat representing the 36th District which includes the Illinois Quad Cities, talks about the high cost of gas, food and housing, education and workforce development, AI, the recent closure of the Tyson plant, and his priorities for another term.

Brad Beekman, Republican candidate for the 36th State Senate District in Illinois, talks about his background and reasons for running, and key issues including the high cost of living, property taxes, state spending, schools and much more.

State Rep, Josh Turek, the Democratic nominee for the US Senate in Iowa, talks about how he would address high prices, managing trade with China, the war in Iran, bringing back manufacturing, AI, corruption, his choice of committees should he win and his major legislative priorities.

Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Republican incumbent from Iowa's 1st congressional district, talks about ways to lower costs, tariffs, bringing back manufacturing jobs, corruption, the Farm Bill, AI and much more. She closes with her favorite musical performers -- different choices depending on what's facing her that day.

Christina Bohannan, Democratic candidate for Congress in Iowa's 1st district, talks about high costs for housing, health care, food and gas and how she would address them, tariff policy, the Farm Bill, corruption, AI, and the rural vote and ends with her favorite Johnny Cash song.

Evan Barker talks about her book, Nothing Left: Confessions of a Democratic Operative that traces her rise from working class roots to consulting on major Democratic campaigns. Her initial enthusiasm during the Obama era turns into disappointment and disillusionment as the party turns away from its working class roots to focus on cultural issues. She addresses all this as well as her vote in the 2024 presidential race and advice for Democrats to recapture working class voters. Evan had a front row seat to the political realignment shaping our politics and her book is the most important of this campaign season to understand what's going on.

Rob Sand, Democratic candidate for Iowa Governor, talks about schools, the rising cancer rate in the state, government accountability & reform, data centers, economic growth, overcoming political polarization and much more.

TJ Stiles, Pulitzer Prize winner, discusses his book Custer's Trials: A Life on the Frontier of a New America. It's a fascinating account of Custer's life in the military, politics and family. Stiles talks about the many contradictions of Custer as they take place in a rapidly changing United States.

New York Times best selling author AJ Baime talks about his book, The Accidental President: Harry S. Truman and the Four Months That Changed the World. He discusses Truman's unlikely rise to the presidency, detailed looks at the day FDR died and Truman's first day as president, and the many events taking place early in his presidency including the fall of Berlin, the founding of the UN, victory at Okinawa, firebombings in Tokyo, the first atomic explosion, the Nazi surrender, the liberation of concentration camps, the Potsdam conference, the decision to drop the bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the surrender of Japan, the end of WWII and the beginning of the Cold War.

State Rep. Kam Buckner (D-16) talks about his role as lead negotiator for the state in keeping the Bears in Illinois, the latest on the talks, his diverse background and how it shapes his approach to key issues, the partisan divide in the nation and ideological divide in the Democratic party, actions taken by the legislature to address cost of living concerns, data centers and much more. Buckner, first elected in 2018, is a former aide to Sen, Dick Durbin and New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landreiu, was governmental affairs advisor to the Chicago Cubs and is the lead budget negotiator in the Illinois House.

Jeff Bloodworth, professor of American history at Gannon University, talks about his book, Losing the Center: The Decline of American Liberalism 1968-1992. The book examines the downfall of Democrats along ideological, racial, and class lines. Published in 2013, the book was prescient in seeing the rise of Trump and realignment of the two parties along class lines.

Zach Lahn, Republican candidate for Iowa Governor, talks about his reasons for seeking office for the first time, cost of living concerns, education, jobs, water quality, agriculture, taking on big corporations, data centers and much more.

Darren Bailey, Republican candidate for Illinois Governor, talks about the reasons for his candidacy, how he would address the skyrocketing cost of living, ethics reform, an Illinois DOGE, property tax reform, jobs and much more. He also discusses his decision to live in Chicago to help bridge the partisan and rural-urban divide.

Iowa House Speaker Pat Grassley (R-57) talks about the 2026 legislative session including property tax reform, criminal justice reform, water quality, education funding, health care and much more.

Josh Kraushaar, editor in chief of Jewish Insider and Fox News Radio political analyst, talks about the impacts of the Ukraine and Iran wars on American politics, the fissures produced in both parties, the rise of anti-Semitism and hostility towards Israel in the Democratic party, reasons for the rise of anti-semitism among young people/Gen Z voters, and the role of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in more negative views towards Israel.