Podcasts about iowa democratic

On Iowa Politics is a weekly news and analysis podcast that aims to recreate the kinds of conversations that happen when you get political reporters from across Iowa together after the day's deadlines have been met. Tackling anything from local to state to national, On Iowa Politics is your weekly dose of analysis and insight into the issues affecting Iowa.This week, we discuss the Iowa courts upholding their decision to leave libertarian candidates off the ballot and the Iowa Democratic caucus being left out of early voting once again.This episode was hosted by Gazette Des Moines Bureau Chief Erin Murphy and produced by Southeast Iowa Union Producer Peter Kamp. It features Gazette Deputy Bureau Chief Tom Barton, Lee Des Moines Bureau Chief Hailey Peck, Jared McNett of the Sioux City Journal and Gazette columnists Althea Cole and Todd Dorman.

Chuck Todd revisits his interview with Iowa Democratic senate candidate and four-time Paralympian and gold medalist Josh Turek for a deeply personal and politically sharp conversation. Josh shares his remarkable journey—from being born with spina bifida caused by his father’s exposure to Agent Orange, to discovering wheelchair basketball as a pathway to college, to becoming one of the winningest athletes in Paralympic history. He opens up about the emotional challenge of leaving the sport he loved and what ultimately pushed him toward public service. Together, Chuck and Josh explore how the ADA reshaped life for disabled Americans, why adaptive and women’s sports remain undervalued, and how equal access—not guaranteed equal outcomes—remains the core civil rights debate for the disability community. The conversation widens into an unvarnished look at rural politics, Iowa’s sharp rightward turn, and the policies reshaping life in small towns. Josh breaks down why Medicaid denials have exploded, how school choice is quietly devastating rural school districts, and why tariffs—when used chaotically—are crushing family farms. He tackles complex cultural issues such as religion’s decline, the trans sports debate, and why Democrats shouldn’t cede Christianity or populism to the right. They also cover climate messaging, the stakes for U.S. policy in Israel and Ukraine, and whether Congress should step in to regulate collegiate athletics. With insights on Iowa’s political future, the 2026 Democratic opportunity, and even some NBA talk (yes—Jokić and Jordan both make an appearance), Josh Turek offers one of the most candid, wide-ranging conversations you’ll hear about the Midwest, disability rights, and the future of American politics. Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 1:45 Josh Turek joins the Chuck ToddCast 3:15 Josh’s journey as a gold medal winning Paralympian 4:30 Josh’s fathers exposure to agent orange caused his spina bifida 6:15 Wheelchair basketball was his pathway to college 7:30 What do we not value adaptive & female sports in America? 9:45 How hard was it to walk away from basketball? 11:30 What inspired the decision to go into politics? 12:45 There was a 1000% increase in Medicaid denials in Iowa 14:15 The ADA made things better, still a long ways to go 15:30 The ADA gave disabled Americans an onramp to society 18:15 The debate over equal access vs. equal outcome 19:00 Who is the Turek/Trump voter? 21:30 The difficulty of breaking through as a Democrat in rural America 23:30 Iowa has shifted rightward, but could shift back to swing state status 26:45 The right candidate with the right message can win red Iowa counties 29:00 School choice sounds great, but is a huge problem for rural America 30:30 Rural schools are struggling and closing under school choice policies 32:00 There are no standards for private schools spending tax dollars 34:45 Not all tariffs are bad, but Trump’s tariff regime is chaotic 35:45 Tariffs are crushing family farms 36:45 What’s the plan to keep people in Iowa and reverse brain drain? 39:30 How has the decline in religious participation affected Iowa? 40:45 Pushing back against the narrative that Democrats can’t be Christian 41:15 What’s fair to the trans community when it comes to organized sports? 42:30 Politicians shouldn’t be involved in the trans sports conversation 43:15 Why have many Democrats turned to socialism over capitalism? 44:15 We need regulated capitalism and a progressive tax structure 45:00 We are living in a country of have’s and have nots 46:30 Addressing climate change without scaring voters about the economy 48:00 What’s your position on Israel? 49:00 The U.S. should stand in solidarity with Ukraine & aid them 50:00 Does Congress need to get involved in regulating collegiate sports? 53:15 We need more genuine populists in congress to push back against oligarchs 55:00 Nikola Jokic is Josh’s favorite basketball player to watch 56:30 Michael Jordan is the GOAT 57:30 Historic opportunity for Democrats in Iowa in ‘26 58:45 Democrats focused too much on identity in Iowa 1:01:15 Public schools will be a huge issue for Iowa voters 1:03:00 If Democrats can’t win Iowa in this environment, it could take a generation 1:07:15 There are three great candidates for the Iowa Democratic senate seat 1:08:15 Primaries sharpen candidates and improve party registrationSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Interview Only w/ Josh Turek - Why Democrats Struggle…And Can Still Win In Iowa In this episode of the Chuck ToddCast, Chuck sits down with Iowa Democratic senate candidate and four-time Paralympian and gold medalist Josh Turek for a deeply personal and politically sharp conversation. Josh shares his remarkable journey—from being born with spina bifida caused by his father’s exposure to Agent Orange, to discovering wheelchair basketball as a pathway to college, to becoming one of the winningest athletes in Paralympic history. He opens up about the emotional challenge of leaving the sport he loved and what ultimately pushed him toward public service. Together, Chuck and Josh explore how the ADA reshaped life for disabled Americans, why adaptive and women’s sports remain undervalued, and how equal access—not guaranteed equal outcomes—remains the core civil rights debate for the disability community. The conversation widens into an unvarnished look at rural politics, Iowa’s sharp rightward turn, and the policies reshaping life in small towns. Josh breaks down why Medicaid denials have exploded, how school choice is quietly devastating rural school districts, and why tariffs—when used chaotically—are crushing family farms. He tackles complex cultural issues such as religion’s decline, the trans sports debate, and why Democrats shouldn’t cede Christianity or populism to the right. They also cover climate messaging, the stakes for U.S. policy in Israel and Ukraine, and whether Congress should step in to regulate collegiate athletics. With insights on Iowa’s political future, the 2026 Democratic opportunity, and even some NBA talk (yes—Jokić and Jordan both make an appearance), Josh Turek offers one of the most candid, wide-ranging conversations you’ll hear about the Midwest, disability rights, and the future of American politics. Go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Got injured in an accident? You could be one click away from a claim worth millions. Just visit https://www.forthepeople.com/TODDCAST to start your claim now with Morgan & Morgan without leaving your couch. Remember, it's free unless you win! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Josh Turek joins the Chuck ToddCast 01:30 Josh’s journey as a gold medal winning Paralympian 02:45 Josh’s fathers exposure to agent orange caused his spina bifida 04:30 Wheelchair basketball was his pathway to college 05:45 What do we not value adaptive & female sports in America? 08:00 How hard was it to walk away from basketball? 09:45 What inspired the decision to go into politics? 11:00 There was a 1000% increase in Medicaid denials in Iowa 12:30 The ADA made things better, still a long ways to go 13:45 The ADA gave disabled Americans an onramp to society 16:30 The debate over equal access vs. equal outcome 17:15 Who is the Turek/Trump voter? 19:45 The difficulty of breaking through as a Democrat in rural America 21:45 Iowa has shifted rightward, but could shift back to swing state status 25:00 The right candidate with the right message can win red Iowa counties 27:15 School choice sounds great, but is a huge problem for rural America 28:45 Rural schools are struggling and closing under school choice policies 30:15 There are no standards for private schools spending tax dollars 33:00 Not all tariffs are bad, but Trump’s tariff regime is chaotic 34:00 Tariffs are crushing family farms 35:00 What’s the plan to keep people in Iowa and reverse brain drain? 37:45 How has the decline in religious participation affected Iowa? 39:00 Pushing back against the narrative that Democrats can’t be Christian 39:30 What’s fair to the trans community when it comes to organized sports? 40:45 Politicians shouldn’t be involved in the trans sports conversation 41:30 Why have many Democrats turned to socialism over capitalism? 42:30 We need regulated capitalism and a progressive tax structure 43:15 We are living in a country of have’s and have nots 44:45 Addressing climate change without scaring voters about the economy 46:15 What’s your position on Israel? 47:15 The U.S. should stand in solidarity with Ukraine & aid them 48:15 Does Congress need to get involved in regulating collegiate sports? 51:30 We need more genuine populists in congress to push back against oligarchs 53:15 Nikola Jokic is Josh’s favorite basketball player to watch 54:45 Michael Jordan is the GOAT 55:45 Historic opportunity for Democrats in Iowa in ‘26 57:00 Democrats focused too much on identity in Iowa 59:30 Public schools will be a huge issue for Iowa voters 01:01:15 If Democrats can’t win Iowa in this environment, it could take a generation 01:05:30 There are three great candidates for the Iowa Democratic senate seat 01:06:30 Primaries sharpen candidates and improve party registrationSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, Chuck Todd breaks down an extraordinary week in politics marked by a near-unanimous House vote to release the Epstein files and growing signs that Donald Trump’s decade-long grip on American politics may finally be loosening. He examines the cracks emerging in Trump’s coalition, the administration’s tariff pullbacks amid rising food costs, and the mounting Trump fatigue driving Republicans to quietly distance themselves. Chuck also tackles Trump’s escalating attacks on female reporters, his contradictory dealings with Gulf states, and the likelihood that the DOJ may cite an “open investigation” to keep the Epstein files sealed. Beyond the Trump saga, Chuck dissects the troubling implications of the Olivia Nuzzi scandal, the shameful rhetoric surrounding Epstein’s victims, and the broader damage to journalism. He wraps with a preview of the TN-07 special election, the legal upheaval over Texas’s redistricting maps, and why today’s partisan map fights echo battles not seen since the 1840s. Then, Chuck sits down with Iowa Democratic senate candidate and four-time Paralympian and gold medalist Josh Turek for a deeply personal and politically sharp conversation. Josh shares his remarkable journey—from being born with spina bifida caused by his father’s exposure to Agent Orange, to discovering wheelchair basketball as a pathway to college, to becoming one of the winningest athletes in Paralympic history. He opens up about the emotional challenge of leaving the sport he loved and what ultimately pushed him toward public service. Together, Chuck and Josh explore how the ADA reshaped life for disabled Americans, why adaptive and women’s sports remain undervalued, and how equal access—not guaranteed equal outcomes—remains the core civil rights debate for the disability community. The conversation widens into an unvarnished look at rural politics, Iowa’s sharp rightward turn, and the policies reshaping life in small towns. Josh breaks down why Medicaid denials have exploded, how school choice is quietly devastating rural school districts, and why tariffs—when used chaotically—are crushing family farms. He tackles complex cultural issues such as religion’s decline, the trans sports debate, and why Democrats shouldn’t cede Christianity or populism to the right. They also cover climate messaging, the stakes for U.S. policy in Israel and Ukraine, and whether Congress should step in to regulate collegiate athletics. With insights on Iowa’s political future, the 2026 Democratic opportunity, and even some NBA talk (yes—Jokić and Jordan both make an appearance), Josh Turek offers one of the most candid, wide-ranging conversations you’ll hear about the Midwest, disability rights, and the future of American politics. Finally, Chuck gives his updated ToddCast Top 5 governor’s seats most likely to flip in 2026 and answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment. Go to https://getsoul.com & enter code TODDCAST for 30% off your first order. Thank you Wildgrain for sponsoring. Visit http://wildgrain.com/TODDCAST and use the code "TODDCAST" at checkout to receive $30 off your first box PLUS free Croissants for life! Got injured in an accident? You could be one click away from a claim worth millions. Just visit https://www.forthepeople.com/TODDCAST to start your claim now with Morgan & Morgan without leaving your couch. Remember, it's free unless you win! Timeline: (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements) 00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction 00:30 Near unanimous decision in the house vote to release Epstein files 01:15 It feels like Trump’s lame duck period has begun, but impossible to know 02:15 Trump’s coalition is starting to crack 04:00 Trump’s ten year run of dominating politics is starting to end 05:00 Administration is pulling back tariffs to lower costs of food 06:45 Republicans will distance themselves as Trump fatigue sets in 07:45 Trump’s attacks on female reporters are shameful 09:15 Trump’s deals with gulf states undermines his America First agenda 11:00 DOJ might withhold files under guise of “open investigation” 12:30 Neither Biden or Trump leaned on Saudis over Khashoggi’s murder 13:30 Middle east monarchies are dictatorships with different titles 15:00 We’re past the point of holding Saudis accountable for Khashoggi 16:30 Presidents have to deal with less than ideal allies 17:30 Trump’s attacks on the press are abhorrent & dictatorlike 19:00 Olivia Nuzzi sleeping with a source compromises her journalism 21:15 The Nuzzi scandal feels like watching a car wreck 22:00 The scandal brings shame upon the journalism world 23:30 Megyn Kelly trying to differentiate Epstein’s victims is shameful 25:00 Hiring a reporter that sleeps with sources is beyond the pale 25:30 Preview of special election in TN-07 26:45 If TN-07 is within 5 points, it’s a very favorable environment for Dems 28:00 Texas’s new redistricting maps have been thrown out in court 28:45 If CA maps stay but TX is thrown out, it’s a karma moment for Trump 30:45 Last time partisan redistricting happened like this… was the 1840’s 38:00 Josh Turek joins the Chuck ToddCast 39:30 Josh’s journey as a gold medal winning paralympian 40:45 Josh’s fathers exposure to agent orange caused his spina bifida 42:30 Wheelchair basketball was his pathway to college 43:45 What do we not value adaptive & female sports in America? 46:00 How hard was it to walk away from basketball? 47:45 What inspired the decision to go into politics? 49:00 There was a 1000% increase in medicaid denials in Iowa 50:30 The ADA made things better, still a long ways to go 51:45 The ADA gave disabled Americans an onramp to society 54:30 The debate over equal access vs. equal outcome 55:15 Who is the Turek/Trump voter? 57:45 The difficulty of breaking through as a Democrat in rural America 59:45 Iowa has shifted rightward, but could shift back to swing state status 01:03:00 The right candidate with the right message can win red Iowa counties 01:05:15 School choice sounds great, but is a huge problem for rural America 01:06:45 Rural schools are struggling and closing under school choice policies 01:08:15 There are no standards for private schools spending tax dollars 01:11:00 Not all tariffs are bad, but Trump’s tariff regime is chaotic 01:12:00 Tariffs are crushing family farms 01:13:00 What’s the plan to keep people in Iowa and reverse brain drain? 01:15:45 How has the decline in religious participation affected Iowa? 01:17:00 Pushing back against the narrative that Democrats can’t be christian 01:17:30 What’s fair to the trans community when it comes to organized sports? 01:18:45 Politicians shouldn’t be involved in the trans sports conversation 01:19:30 Why have many Democrats turned to socialism over capitalism? 01:20:30 We need regulated capitalism and a progressive tax structure 01:21:15 We are living in a country of have’s and have nots 01:22:45 Addressing climate change without scaring voters about the economy 01:24:15 What’s your position on Israel? 01:25:15 The U.S. should stand in solidarity with Ukraine & aid them 01:26:15 Does Congress need to get involved in regulating collegiate sports? 01:29:30 We need more genuine populists in congress to push back against oligarchs 01:31:15 Nikola Jokic is Josh’s favorite basketball player to watch 01:32:45 Michael Jordan is the GOAT 01:33:45 Historic opportunity for Democrats in Iowa in ‘26 01:35:00 Democrats focused too much on identity in Iowa 01:37:30 Public schools will be a huge issue for Iowa voters 01:39:15 If Democrats can’t win Iowa in this environment, it could take a generation 01:43:30 There are three great candidates for the Iowa Democratic senate seat 01:44:30 Primaries sharpen candidates and improve party registration 01:45:00 Toddcast Top 5 - Governor seats most likely to flip parties 01:46:45 Katie Hobbs is the most vulnerable incumbent governor 01:48:00 #1 Kansas 01:49:30 #2 Michigan 01:51:15 #3 Georgia 01:53:30 #4 Wisconsin 01:54:30 #5 Iowa 01:56:30 Honorable mentions 01:57:30 Ask Chuck 01:58:30 Can we trust the Epstein files will be complete if they’re released? 02:00:15 Are you aware of the Montana vs Montana State football rivalry? 02:03:15 Has your view on CA redistricting changed after the election result? 02:05:30 How can you reach people stuck in the Fox News bubble? 02:11:30 Does Amy Acton or Tim Ryan have a better shot at winning OH governor? 02:13:30 Suggestion to make a conspiracy theory documentarySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rebecca Katz, founder of New Deal Strategies, is coming off her second consecutive cycle as General Consultant on signature Democratic Senate wins - including Ruben Gallego in Arizona and John Fetterman in Pennsylvania. In this episode, Rebecca talks in depth about both of those races and the lessons to be mined for Democrats in the future. And she also discusses her early days on Capitol Hill, important lessons learned working for high profile figures like John Edwards and Harry Reid, and much more with one of the most successful operatives working in Democratic politics.IN THIS EPISODERebecca's roots in a politically-engaged family in Philadelphia, PA...Interning on the Hill for her hometown member, Congressman Chakah Fattah...How Rebecca gravitated toward the communications department on campaigns...How she's a different political operative coming out of Philadelphia...How Rebecca knew she didn't want to stay in Washington...Rebecca's front row seat to the chaotic 2004 Iowa Democratic caucus as part of John Edwards' 2004 Presidential campaign...Rebecca's take on John Edwards' raw political talent...Rebecca recalls an incredibly awkward job interview with Senator Harry Reid and how she ultimately ran the Reid War Room to oppose the Bush Administration...Rebecca's first intersection with John Fetterman in 2015 and how his underdog 2016 Senate loss set him up to subsequently win two statewide races...Inside Fetterman's 2022 Senate race over Dr. Oz despite the candidate dealing with serious health complications...Rebecca helps launch Ruben Gallego's 2024 AZ Senate race...How Gallego overperformed the presidential race by 8 points en route to an important win...What other campaigns can learn from Gallego's success among Latino voters...What led Rebecca to start her firm, New Deal Strategies...Rebecca on the role that a General Consultant plays on campaigns...What Rebecca looks for when hiring new staff...Rebecca's most unusual work habit...AND Americans Coming Together, Max Baucus, Central High School, Clark University, Andrew Cuomo, Dean kids, The Fels Institute, JFK Jr., Ted Kennedy, Kari Lake, David McCormick, Jim Messina, Middle Seat, New Jersey Summers, Cynthia Nixon, John Roberts, Bernie Sanders, Allyson Schwartz, Kyrsten Sinema, Snookie, Students for Choice, Harris Wofford...& more!

Iowa Democratic leaders gather in Cedar Rapids for guaranteed protections for access to contraception. Waterloo community members are gathering signatures to let voters approve or deny a plan to realign the high schools. A recent study shows oxbows can remove some nitrates from streams and rivers. And Aminah Nalani is creating spaces in Des Moines for the queer community.

Listen to political reporters from across Iowa talk about this week in politics.This episode was hosted by Erin Murphy, the Gazette Des Moines Bureau Chief, and features Gazette Deputy Bureau Chief Tom Barton, Lee Des Moines Bureau Chief Caleb McCullough and Jared McNett of the Sioux City Journal.Looking for audio from The Gazette's February Pints & Politics event? Listen here.This episode was produced by Bailey Cichon. Intro music is “Chillin' with Jeris” by Copperhead. Outro music is "Spotlight" by ChiSongWriter featuring Alicia Monéé.

Everything seemed to go well during the 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses — until it came time for results. Welcome back to Caucus Land.

@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and ThreadsCo-HostsAdam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85  (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)Rachel Parker @msraitchetp   (Post) Sean Diller @SeanDillerCO   (Twitter and Post)https://heartlandpod.com/JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!“Change The Conversation”Belin found her love of politics growing up with parents and siblings who discussed current events at the dinner table. She has followed Iowa elections closely since the 1980 caucuses, when she took on the role of liberal Republican candidate John Anderson for a classroom debate. She first participated in an Iowa Democratic caucus as a Paul Simon supporter in 1988.She found her love of writing about politics as an analyst for the Prague-based Open Media Research Institute and later for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. She covered Russian campaigns and elections, parliamentary politics, and media issues full time from 1995 to 1998 and on a freelance basis for RFE/RL from 1999 to 2005, spanning most of Boris Yeltsin's presidency and the early Vladimir Putin years.As Bleeding Heartland's lead author, Belin continued to use the handle desmoinesdem through 2018 and now writes about Iowa politics under her own byline.

@TheHeartlandPOD on Twitter and ThreadsCo-HostsAdam Sommer @Adam_Sommer85  (Twitter) @adam_sommer85 (Post)Rachel Parker @msraitchetp   (Post) Sean Diller @SeanDillerCO   (Twitter and Post)https://heartlandpod.com/JOIN PATREON FOR MORE - AND JOIN OUR SOCIAL NETWORK!“Change The Conversation”Belin found her love of politics growing up with parents and siblings who discussed current events at the dinner table. She has followed Iowa elections closely since the 1980 caucuses, when she took on the role of liberal Republican candidate John Anderson for a classroom debate. She first participated in an Iowa Democratic caucus as a Paul Simon supporter in 1988.She found her love of writing about politics as an analyst for the Prague-based Open Media Research Institute and later for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. She covered Russian campaigns and elections, parliamentary politics, and media issues full time from 1995 to 1998 and on a freelance basis for RFE/RL from 1999 to 2005, spanning most of Boris Yeltsin's presidency and the early Vladimir Putin years.As Bleeding Heartland's lead author, Belin continued to use the handle desmoinesdem through 2018 and now writes about Iowa politics under her own byline.

Everything seemed to go well during the 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses… until it came time to record the results. There was no momentum for any candidates on caucus night because of a faulty smartphone app. President Joe Biden had a poor showing and signaled the DNC to move Iowa back in the calendar ending the state's coveted long held first-in-the-nation position.

This is Stephen Schmidt from the Gazette Digital News Desk, and I'm here with your update for Thursday, June 29.According to the National Weather Service it will be a partly sunny day in the Cedar Rapids area on Thursday, with a high near 92 degrees. There will be widespread haze again, mostly before noon. There will be chances for showers and thunderstorms both in the morning and in the evening hours heading into Friday.The Iowa Department of Natural Resources issued an update late Wednesday extending the haze air quality advisory. The advisory stated that fine particulate levels near or above EPA health standards are expected to remain elevated Thursday and persist in Eastern Iowa through Friday.Iowa state officials have reversed course and will apply for federal assistance to provide food for Iowa school children from low-income families during summer break, following weeks of lobbying by anti-hunger advocates.Alex Carfrae, a spokesperson for the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, told The Gazette late Tuesday the state will participate in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's summer program this year. The deadline for states to apply is July 14.Earlier this month, a department official told a member of the Iowa Hunger Coalition that Iowa was not going to participate in the summer Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer — or P-EBT — program this year, according to an email obtained by The Gazette.That would have meant forgoing a potential $28.2 million, or $120 per eligible child, in federal food aid for an estimated 235,000 children who would have received free or reduced-price school meals this past school year.Tuesday's announcement comes after Iowa Democratic lawmakers last week implored Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds to apply for the federal assistance, and after weeks of lobbying by members of the Iowa Hunger Coalition.A North Liberty man, who was convicted of sexually abusing a boy over a year or so when the boy was 5 or 6 years old, was sentenced to 80 years in prison this week.Sixth Judicial District Judge Andrew Chappell, during Monday's hearing, ran four of the sentences for 38-year-old Thomas Dean Jesse, consecutively, and the others were run concurrently for a total of 80 years. Jesse was convicted of one count of lascivious acts with a child and 40 counts of second-degree sexual abuse.Chappell said Jesse must serve 70 percent of three of the sentences before being eligible for parole.Jesse was charged in January 2022 after a relative saw his laptop with videos that depicted dozens of acts of Jesse sexually abusing a 5- or 6-year-old boyIowa will receive $35 million in federal infrastructure money for bridge and road improvements across the state, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced Wednesday.The funding will be split among three projects:•$24.8 million to replace nine bridges across the state•$10 million to rebuild Main Street in Cedar Falls between University Avenue and Sixth Street• And $300,000 to evaluate approaches to improving infrastructure connecting downtown Clear Lake to Interstate 35.

The Iowa Democratic and Republican parties are fighting over the caucuses. Republicans in the Iowa Senate sent a bill to the governor's desk that would loosen some child labor laws. Plus, how pregnant people enrolled in Medicaid risk losing that coverage just two months postpartum.

On this week's edition of the On Iowa Politics podcast we bid farewell to the Iowa Democratic caucuses.On Iowa Politics is a weekly news and analysis podcast that aims to re-create the kinds of conversations that happen when you get political reporters from across Iowa together after the day's deadlines have been met.This week's show is hosted by The Gazette's Des Moines Bureau Chief Erin Murphy and features Gazette Deputy Bureau Chief Tom Barton, Sarah Watson of the Quad City Times, Lee Des Moines Bureau Chief Caleb McCullough, and Gazette Columnist Todd Dorman.The show was produced by Stephen M. Colbert, and the music heard on the podcast is courtesy of Porch Builder and Copperhead.

This is John McGlothlen with The Gazette digital news desk and I'm here with your update for Labor Day, September 5th. According to the National Weather Service, it will be mostly cloudy today in the Cedar Rapids area, with a high near 74. Winds from the northeast 5 to 10 mph. Then tonight, partly cloudy with a low around 62. With Labor Day weekend serving as the unofficial kickoff to the fall campaign season, former U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack joined Iowa Democratic candidates running for state and federal office gathered at Sutliff Farm & Cider House in Lisbon on Saturday for a campaign rally to help elect Liz Mathis and Christina Bohannan. About 350 people attended, according to Mathis' campaign. Mathis, a Democratic state senator from Hiawatha, is running to unseat Iowa Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson of Marion in Iowa's newly reconfigured 2nd Congressional District. Bohannan, a University of Iowa law professor and Democratic state representative from Iowa City, is running against Iowa Republican U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Ottumwa in Iowa's new 1st Congressional District. Mathis and Bohannan criticized Hinson and Miller-Meeks for voting against the federal infrastructure bill signed into law while praising projects supported by their funding. –

Lots of State Fair politics over the weekend in Iowa: Democratic candidate for governor Deidre DeJear says she'll prioritize public schools and mental health if she's elected, and congressional candidate Zach Nunn says he'll push for more tax cuts in Washington if he wins in November. Also a federally-funded rental assistance program that's helped thousands of Iowans during the pandemic will end in a few weeks.

The autopsy results are in for the three family members who were killed last month at Maquoketa Caves State Park. Iowa Democratic leaders say a Kansas vote to uphold abortion rights this week shows the same could happen in Iowa. Plus, how Republicans are making conservation controversial.

Former Republican Congress member Jim Leach recently announced his endorsement of Iowa Democratic candidates in the upcoming midterm election.

On this edition of Iowa Press, Rep. Ras Smith (D - Waterloo) and John Deeth, a Democratic activist from Iowa City, discuss potential changes to the Iowa Democratic Caucuses and where Iowa may end up on the road to the White House.

McAuliffe campaign scrambled to 'kill' Fox News story, emails revealTeam McAuliffe emails reveal an effort to 'kill this' Fox News storyVirginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe's campaign raised eyebrows by spending nearly $60,000 to hire a high-profile attorney known for masterminding election-related legal challenges. When Fox News sent the campaign a request for comment, the McAuliffe campaign scrambled to "kill" the story, according to emails mistakenly sent to Fox News.Less than a month before Election Day, McAuliffe's campaign spent $53,680 on the services of the Elias Law Group, a firm that Marc Elias started earlier this year, Fox News previously reported. VideoElias had formerly worked as a partner at the law firm Perkins Coie, which the Hillary Clinton campaign hired in 2016 in order to conduct opposition research on Donald Trump – research that included the infamous Christopher Steele dossier. Republicans have accused Elias of lying to hide the Clinton campaign's role in funding the dossier.House Republicans accused Elias of having a "serious conflict of interest" when he represented Iowa Democratic candidate Rita Hart in her effort to overturn the results of her extremely narrow loss to Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks.Fox News reached out to the McAuliffe campaign for comment following a suggestion by George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley, who wrote that McAuliffe hiring Elias is an "astonishing move." McAuliffe spokeswoman Christina Freundlich responded to the email with a message apparently meant for colleagues, not for Fox News."Can we try to kill this," Freundlich wrote.For More Info:https://www.foxnews.com/politics/team-mcauliffe-emails-reveal-effort-to-kill-this-fox-news-storyhttps://www.spreaker.com/user/9922149/mcauliffe-campaign-scrambled-to-kill-fox

Former President Donald Trump is scheduled to speak at a rally on the State Fairgrounds in Des Moines Saturday night. Iowa Democratic leaders say Republican leaders should promise they won't draw their own political boundaries. Plus, tractor accidents are the leading cause of death and serious injuries on farms.

The topic: How does American politics appear from the perspective of a Chinese scholar? How do Chinese observers process the U.S. electoral system through the prism of China's own historical and contemporary political development? What are the most important things that Americans and Chinese people misunderstand about politics in the other country? Our guest: Ren Junfeng is a professor of political science at Fudan University, Shanghai, China. Professor Ren specializes in Western political thought and American political history. He has served as visiting professor at the University of Hong Kong, St. Anthony's College, and Oxford University in England, and as a visiting Fulbright Scholar at Harvard University. He visited Iowa to observe the lead-up to the 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses. A Beijing publication recently featured his reflections upon that experience. Complete episode transcript: tinyurl.com/1tebagrj. The series: David Skidmore and Kyle Munson produced this podcast series in conjunction with Skidmore's Spring 2021 U.S.-China international relations course at Drake University. Your hosts: David Skidmore is a Professor of Political Science at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, where he has taught since 1989. Skidmore's teaching and research focuses on U.S. foreign policy and U.S.-China relations. During the 1996-97 academic year, he taught at the Johns Hopkins-Nanjing University Center for Chinese and American Studies in Nanjing, China. He also served as a Fulbright Scholar based at the University of Hong Kong in 2010-2011. He is past Director of the Principal Financial Group Center for Global Citizenship (2002-2017) and the Nelson Institute for Diplomacy and International Affairs (2012-2017), both at Drake University. Skidmore is author, co-author or editor of six books including a monograph titled The Unilateralist Temptation in American Foreign Policy (Routledge, 2011), and has published numerous articles or chapters in various academic journals and books. His most recent research focuses on China's Belt and Road Initiative. His editorial writing has appeared in Fortune, U.S. News and World Report, Salon, The Conversation, the Diplomat, Global Times and the Des Moines Register. Kyle Munson is a journalist, writer, podcaster, and content strategist who currently works in content marketing and financial services. He previously spent 24 years with The Des Moines Register/Gannett in a variety of roles, including eight years as columnist. In 2017 he was awarded a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting to report on U.S.-China relations early in the Trump administration as Amb. Terry Branstad began his tenure in Beijing. That resulted in the project “Iowa in the Heart of China.” Munson also reported on Chinese President Xi Jinping's 2012 visit to Iowa. He has volunteered and served as a board member with Iowa Sister States, a nonprofit dedicated to citizen diplomacy. He currently chairs the board of the Western Iowa Journalism Foundation. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/uschina/message

[NOTE: This episode was originally published under our sister-podcast, Weekly Grooves. In our effort to share relevant behavioral science information, we are republishing it here. We hope you enjoy it.] Listeners, especially in the United States, are already aware of the debacle from the Iowa Caucuses and how the Iowa Democratic party used a new app to help streamline the caucus results. You’re probably also aware that the processes and technologies failed, and results were not available for days afterwards. The delay has caused a plethora of online conspiracy theories and that’s our topic for this week. In the absence of good data, we make it up. Some of the richest conspiracy theories Kurt and Tim found include: 1.) The Democratic party didn’t like the results that they were seeing, so they were changing them. 2.) The Russians or the Chinese had hacked the app and were messing with us. 3.) The Republicans had hacked the app and were trying to rig the election. 4.) Hillary Clinton had helped build the app and was using it to get back at Sanders. And our all-time favorite conspiracy theory (5.) involves the Illuminati and how they were controlling the outcome.  With all this swirling around, Kurt and Tim discuss why it’s humans to engage in conspiracy theories and some of their psychological underpinnings, the personality types that are most prone to believing a conspiracy theory, and what we can do to inoculate ourselves from this sort of thinking. We are reason-seeking machines and are more likely to ask “why” before we fully understand “what” happened. Join us for a quick review of why we experience conspiracy theories in the first place and what we can do about them. © 2020 Weekly Grooves / © 2020 Behavioral Grooves Kurt Nelson, PhD: @WhatMotivates Tim Houlihan: @THoulihan Links Online conspiracy theories flourish after Iowa caucus fiasco:  https://apnews.com/8ae0e5172130f81265172fbd3e65094a The Psychology of Conspiracy Theories, 2017, Douglas, Sutton and Cichocka:  https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0963721417718261 The psychology of conspiracy theories: Why do people believe them, John Grohol PsyD: https://psychcentral.com/blog/the-psychology-of-conspiracy-theories-why-do-people-believe-them/ Closed Belief System: https://issuepedia.org/Closed_belief_system Conspiracy theories: the science behind belief in secret plots, The Guardian, https://www.theguardian.com/science/brain-flapping/2013/sep/05/conspiracy-theories-science-belief-secret-plots Fundamental Attribution Error: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_attribution_error Hanlon’s Razor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanlon%27s_razor Illuminati: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20170809-the-accidental-invention-of-the-illuminati-conspiracy Lantian, A., Muller, D., Nurra, C., Douglas, K. (2017).

Current events weighing on you? Want to take a break and return to a simpler time when our biggest concern was a mobile app being sideloaded to serve the Iowa Democratic caucus? The I Don't Know What I'm Doing podcast and Paul's inability to edit things in a timely manner is here to serve you on that front and so many more. Talking Points: Papa John's lawsuit, spelling of caucus, what to do on the bench for a year, design-thinking on the 5-star rating system, making slime Intro & Outro - "Golden Sunrise" by Josh Woodward (http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Josh_Woodward/The_Wake_1790/JoshWoodward-TheWake-NoVox-10-GoldenSunrise) provided under https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Chris and Jordan discuss why the Iowa Democratic caucuses disaster was less about tech and more about corruption. Afterwards they review Marriage Story (23:40).

What does NASA, SpaceX, and the Iowa Democratic caucus result tallying app have in common? They both have to make feature vs costs trade offs. We go on to discuss when it makes sense to go serverless and when it doesn't (hint: it's not a binary decision)Resources: Iowa Democratic Caucus voting app woes: https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/4/21122737/iowa-democractic-caucus-voting-app-android-testfairy-screenshots-app-storeMonolith's are the Future:https://changelog.com/posts/monoliths-are-the-future

Did the Trump Administration offer Julian Assange a pardon if he would "play ball"? Should a teen be put on the sex offender list for LIFE for receiving non-nude pictures of his girlfriend? And can you be in violation of copyright if you use the word "did"? Also, learn about why the Iowa Democratic caucus was such an abject failure, and check out the wonderful applications the West Midlands police don't want your child using.

Fox Kitten appears to combine three APTs linked to Iran. LokiBot is masquerading as an installer for Epic Games. Unsigned firmware found in multiple devices. Extortionists threaten to flood AdSense banners with bot traffic. China says the Empire of Hackers is in Washington, not Beijing. Iowa Democratic caucus IT post-mortems continue. Japan connects SoftBank breach to GRU. And more on that hacker-madness poster from the West Midlands. Ben Yelin from UMD CHHS on wireless carriers selling location data. Guest is Kaitlin Bulavinetz from Washington Cyber Roundtable on facilitating conversations among the industry.  For links to all of today's stories check our our CyberWire daily news brief: https://thecyberwire.com/issues/issues2020/February/CyberWire_2020_02_18.html Support our show

The 2020 Iowa Democratic Caucus Fiasco: A Failure of Technology Contracting Former Razorfish and Huge software development expert, Chris Stetson, and technology law attorney, Jay Ward, do a “failure analysis” of the 2020 Iowa Democratic Primary controversy, focusing on the failure of an app developed by Shadow Inc. to accurately report the caucus results. What lessons can be learned for buyers of enterprise software?

- the Iowa Democratic party chooses a new leader,

PAPER. BALLOTS. It's a pretty simple process, right? So why is there always someone trying to mess it up? With a review of the disaster that was the Iowa Democratic caucuses, Adam and Mike discuss options to introduce technology to the election process, as well as whether it's even a good idea. (My bet's on Diebold...)

Nia and Aughie discuss the messy Iowa Democratic caucus.

On Midwest Week, about ten days later, we're still waiting for final results from the Iowa Caucuses.

Michael Bower joins JT to talk about the fallout from last week's failures of the democratic Caucus system in Iowa.

Welcome to Mic Drop Radio! On today's show, we introduce ourselves and our missing host (Parker), talk about the vision we have for the podcast, discuss the Democratic Primary race and much more. Grab an ice cold Miami Cola, sit back and enjoy the content, and listen as we discuss what's going on in today's world. We can't wait to bring you much more content in the near future.

RadioPublic|LibSyn|YouTube|Patreon|Square Cash (Share code: Send $5, get $5!) Last night, for once the Trumps weren’t the most talked about parasite family . The Academy says “Thanks Obama”. Donald hasn’t yet figured out who to expel or investigate in Hollywood, but once Rudy’s free to infiltrate, the DOJ will be waiting. David Waldman hopes we can learn something from the Iowa caucus debacle before we forget about it. Pete Buttigieg officially took more delegates in IA, while Bernie got more votes. The Iowa Democratic party refuses to correct its math errors, although there could be a recanvass, or maybe even a recount. Of course, the RNC is always standing by to compound any errors. Next caucus, possibly next debacle: Nevada. New Hampshire voters are now saddled with the paradox of choice in Tuesday’s primary, with Nevada and South Carolina soon after. Greg Dworkin lets us know what to look for, and forward to.  Sanders and Buttigieg lead in NH, but with different voters. It doesn’t sound as if they’ll be picking up each other’s supporters any time soon. Neither of them have a grip on black voters like Joe Biden, if that is even what Joe has. Meanwhile, the UK declares the 2019 Coronavirus an imminent threat as confirmed cases top 40,000 in at least 24 countries with nearly half catching it in the hospital.

Impeachment witness Lieutenant Colonel Vindman fired from White House; Attorney: Vindman fired for "Telling the Truth"; Impeachment witness Bill Taylor says Lieutenant Colonel Vindman, Ambassador Yovanovitch have been "Unfairly Attacked"; Photos of Giuliani in Spain suggest Lev Parnas has more material to share with investigators; Iowa Democratic Chair: Caucus mistakes "Categorically Unacceptable"; Iowa Democratic Chair admits he didn't use failed app at the center of caucus counting controversy; Sanders: Won't ask for full recanvas of Iowa results; Deadline extended for candidates to challenge Iowa results; Sanders hits Buttigieg over wealthy donors; Trump mocks Democrats over Iowa counting troubles; Trump: Democrats "Fried" their votes in Iowa; Trump's Big Week: Acquittal, Poll Numbers, Jobs Report; Some Sanders fans use hostile tactics to drown out critics; Coronavirus infections spur cruise ship quarantines amid growing global concerns over spreading threat;To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy

-Rooster and Crow are joined by an angry Sparrow hawk. -The Iowa Democratic caucus was a sh*t show. -Would You Rather questions are asked and answered: WYR find a wallet and turn it in or keep it and say nothing. WYR be reincarnated or ascend to heaven when you die? WYR be a member of a country club or a book club? WYR keep working if you won the lottery or retire with your winnings? WYR have your favorite nursery rhyme or your favorite toy come to life? -The State of the Union address was fascinating! -The State of the Union rebuttal was ridiculous! Email us: rooster@breadandcircusespodcast.com crow@breadandcircusespodcast.com

Buy a round! Become a Patron! Links Young Frankenstein (musical) (Wikipedia) Spaceballs (1987) - Spaceballs: The Documentary (YouTube) The 2000 Year Old Man – 1967 (YouTube) Monty Python's Almost the Truth (Netflix) 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses (Wikipedia) Rich Little Doing Johnny Carson (YouTube) Buy a round! Become a Patron!

It's been a big week in American politics: Monday: the long awaited Iowa Democratic caucuses failed to give results; Tuesday: Trump gave his State of the Union address; Wednesday: the Senate Republican majority voted NOT to convict Trump of high crimes and misdemeanors or to remove him from office; and today Trump gave a 63-minute victory speech -- Harold Meyerson comments. Next up: February is Black History month -- we talk with Taylor Branch about Martin Luther King Jr. from 1965 and the Selma campaign to 1968 and the Memphis sanitation strike.

Our week-long celebration of the Iowa Democratic presidential caucuses strays into consideration of Joe Biden's "No Malarkey" wagon train, an MSNBC personality blaming low-turnout on children in cages, and a Buttigieg supporter's surprise and alarm at learning that her favorite candidate is homosexual. Right Angle is a production of our Members, who are, nevertheless, not responsible for this carnival of absurdity. Join them, and find your people at https://BillWhittle.com/register/

We covered a variety of topics on this episode of ABL Live!, including President Donald Trump being ACQUITTED ON BOTH ARTICLES OF IMPEACHMENT - “abuse of power” and “obstruction of Congress.” There was also the issues of the Iowa Caucus Dumpster fire, the excellent State of the Union Address + Democrats’ reaction to it, Super Bowl 54’s halftime show + other antics, an Iowa Democratic party voter requesting her vote for Buttigieg back after finding out that he’s gay, and much more! --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/anthony-logan/support

Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks join Judy Woodruff to discuss the week's political news, including the Senate's decision to acquit President Trump on both articles of impeachment, Trump's State of the Union address, the messy Iowa Democratic caucus results and which 2020 Democrats have momentum going into the New Hampshire primary.

In this Patreon round, Mike and Kurt dive into the controversy surrounding the 2020 Iowa caucus. With Mayor Pete and Bernie Sanders both claiming Iowa victory, who's the real winner? Does the dubious outcome of the caucus foreshadow a presidential contest fraught with failures for the Dems? Or is the delay in Iowa results just a minor blip on an otherwise fair and reasonable primary election? Join us as Mike and Kurt drink mai tais and debate these questions - and more - on the February Patreon-only episode of Right Brain Left Brain!

Listeners, especially in the United States, are already aware of the debacle from the Iowa Caucuses and how the Iowa Democratic party used a new app to help streamline the caucus results. You’re probably also aware that the processes and technologies failed, and results were not available for days afterward.The delay has caused a plethora of online conspiracy theories and that’s our topic for this week. In the absence of good data, we make it up.Some of the richest conspiracy theories Kurt and Tim found include: 1.) The Democratic party didn’t like the results that they were seeing, so they were changing them. 2.) The Russians or the Chinese had hacked the app and were messing with us. 3.) The Republicans had hacked the app and were trying to rig the election. 4.) Hillary Clinton had helped build the app and was using it to get back at Sanders. And our all-time favorite conspiracy theory (5.) involves the Illuminati and how they were controlling the outcome. With all this swirling around, Kurt and Tim discuss why it’s humans to engage in conspiracy theories and some of their psychological underpinnings, the personality types that are most prone to believing a conspiracy theory, and what we can do to inoculate ourselves from this sort of thinking.We are reason-seeking machines and are more likely to ask “why” before we fully understand “what” happened.Join us for a quick review of why we experience conspiracy theories in the first place and what we can do about them.© 2020 Weekly GroovesKurt Nelson, PhD: @WhatMotivatesTim Houlihan: @THoulihanLinksOnline conspiracy theories flourish after Iowa caucus fiasco:  https://apnews.com/8ae0e5172130f81265172fbd3e65094aThe Psychology of Conspiracy Theories, 2017, Douglas, Sutton and Cichocka:  https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0963721417718261The psychology of conspiracy theories: Why do people believe them, John Grohol PsyD: https://psychcentral.com/blog/the-psychology-of-conspiracy-theories-why-do-people-believe-them/Closed Belief System: https://issuepedia.org/Closed_belief_systemConspiracy theories: the science behind belief in secret plots, The Guardian, https://www.theguardian.com/science/brain-flapping/2013/sep/05/conspiracy-theories-science-belief-secret-plotsFundamental Attribution Error: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_attribution_errorHanlon’s Razor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanlon%27s_razorIlluminati: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20170809-the-accidental-invention-of-the-illuminati-conspiracyLantian, A., Muller, D., Nurra, C., Douglas, K. (2017).

The 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses devolved into chaos when the system for reporting results failed. Technical issues, human error and reporting inaccuracies delayed the outcome for days, and the repercussions are still playing out. On the twentieth episode of Caucus Land, we take a look at the app that broke the caucuses and how Iowa Democrats are responding.

Reform or Revolution? Why is one doomed to fail while the other is the only path capable of delivering us from capitalism and bringing about the vital changes necessary to tackle the manifold problems of our age? In the wake of the confusion and disillusionment caused for many by the 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses we decided to read Rosa Luxemburg's classic piece 'Reform or Revolution'. With eerily familiar parralels to the present moment this piece is as relevant as the day it was written over 120 years ago, join us as we witness how Luxemburg deals a devastating hammer blow to the idea that reformism is a possible path to social revolution. This episode also marks the first episode from our series on Marxist feminists. As Thomas Sankara said, “Women hold up the other half of the sky.” The book club recognizes that including the voices of nonmen in our studies is not a niche activity, but is in fact an essential step in gaining the most comprehensive view of the material conditions of the past and present as we possibly can; so we’ve planned this series to amplify the ideas that nonmen have been bringing to the conversation for centuries. From Federici’s analysis of women as a means of primitive accumulation to Luxemburg’s essay of the benefits of revolution vs the impossibility reform, each of these works confronts history and the movement for social change through the lens of the experiences of nonmen in society. Follow us on Twitter at @RBCpod and feel free to message us if you need links to companion resources or have any questions. You can also find us on our new site at www.prolesbookclub.wordpress.com where you can find ebook copies of the works we're covering and more. If you'd like to join the book club, you can join our podcast's discord server Red Book Club: https://www.patreon.com/redbookclub including access to our Red Book Club server and more. Thanks to @NunezKeenan for the intro theme; you can find more of their work here: http://tiny.cc/keenan Thanks to the Craig bot for helping us to record via Discord! Outro music: Chopping Block - Sheer Mag https://sheermag.bandcamp.com/

Conspiracy theories abound to explain the Democratic Iowa caucuses cluster-foul-up, from the machinations of Donald Trump and Vladmimir Putin, to rank incompetence, and beyond. Bill Whittle dubs it beclown-a-palooza. Right Angle is a production of our Members, and you can join them right now to unlock new levels of engagement at our site, including comments, a Member-written blog, backstage content and more. Register today and find your people at http://BillWhittle.com/register/

Iowa Democratic party blames coding issue for caucus results delay, couple with coronavirus in San Benito being treated at UC San Francisco, Walgreens to pay settlement lawsuit over bogus prescriptions, and one of Iowa's caucuses happened at Stanford University last night. Local people. Local stories. From the KCBS Radio Newsroom, this is "The All Local" for the morning of Tuesday, February 4, 2020.

Let's watch pressed and polished, Hilary Clinton dump the rest of her oppo' research on Bernie Sanders while O'Mally sings backup.  This episode will start an hour early for the Wine Cellar so we can just roll along with the show.  We'll be muting and commenting throughout.  The Wine Cellar needs your subscription at Patreon to move forward and grow into a full, functioning independent network.  Here is the link.  https://www.patreon.com/WineCellarPodcast?ty=h  It would also help a great deal to get your one time investment at our paypal link.  https://www.paypal.me/PhoenixandWilliam