Katherine Perkins

River to River's "Home State View" series helps us understand how the presidential candidates are viewed as leaders in the states they call home. Host Ben Kieffer interviews journalists who have spent years covering the candidates. We get the little-known details about each hopeful's history. Click the "play" button to listen.

This program originally aired on April 18, 2019

On this edition of River to River, host Ben Kieffer looks back on past conversations with presidential historian and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Doris Kearns Goodwin. Then, we hear highlights from a Q&A session with Kearns Goodwin at Hancher Auditorium after her Spring 2019 Levitt lecture about leadership in turbulent times.

KIEFFER: What can you tell us about the leadership qualities that Iowans should be looking for during this caucus season?

In this politics day edition of River to River, host Ben Kieffer talks with Rachel Caufield, professor of political science at Drake University and Chris Larimer, professor of political science at University of Northern Iowa about House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's decision to launch an impeachment inquiry against President Donald Trump. The move comes after a whistleblower reported concerns about a phone conversation between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

People come to Iowa from all over the world for many reasons. Moving to another country and building a new life in a new culture can be incredibly challenging. Raising kids in a culture that is very different from your own takes things to a whole new level.

Children that grow up in an adopted homeland share their parents' genes, but in many cases parents watch those children move away from tradition and embrace a new way of looking at the world. For example, many parents struggle with teaching their native language to their kids. 

Nick Offerman became a household name as the meat-eating, gun-loving, Libertarian macho man Ron Swanson on the television show "Parks and Rec." But, his career choices since that iconic role have taken him in a vastly different direction. And that's on purpose.

"If I can say no, I will," says Offerman. Leaving "daylight in his calendar," has allowed him to tour as a comedian. It allowed him to do the film "Hearts Beat Loud," co-starring Kiercey Clemons. And it's allowed him to work with British author and filmmaker Alex Garland on his FX series "Devs."

President Donald Trump expressed support for background checks in the days following two mass shootings in Texas and Ohio and then appeared to walk back those statements this week. Did a meeting with NRA CEO Wayne LaPierre change his mind? The President says no, clarifying that he still wants to "close loopholes," in the background check system.

Two weeks after a mass shooting shook the nation, members of Iowa's Latino community share their reactions to the hate-fueled violence.

The shooter, who killed 22 people in El Paso on August 3rd, told police he was specifically targeting Mexicans. Now, Latino Iowans are questioning their own safety.

This program originally aired on 2-9-18. 

For Nate Staniforth, a coin trick was his gateway to magic. He was 9-years-old and living in Ames.

"I just was captivated by the idea that I could perfect this and make it look like I made a coin disappear. That's all I wanted."

So, he did the trick on the playground. "The kids didn't laugh. They didn't clap. They just started shrieking and ran away."

The Gazette's newest columnist, Lyz Lenz makes her Pints and Politics debut on the heels of releasing her book, God Land: A Story of Faith, Loss and Renewal in Middle America. In the discussion at Millstream Brewing in Amana, hosted by Gazette investigative reporter Erin Jordan, panelists take up topics ranging from the likelihood of meaningful gun control legislation to overtime pay for nurses at UIHC.

Guests:

This program origionally aired 3-4-19.

The Iowa Cancer Registry's 2019 report shows new cases of most types of cancer are holding steady. Investigator Mary Charlton says the exception is cancers caused by the human papillomavirus or HPV.

Host Ben Kieffer continues his trek across Iowa on RAGBRAI. Thursday's ride took bikers 68 miles from Centerville to Fairfield.

On this episode of the limited-run Bike Shorts podcast, Kieffer interviews several people about how adversity inspired their participation in the ride. Sisters Abbie Buscher and Ellie Larsen talk about biking to honor and remember their late mother. Larry Jewell shares how his goal to ride RAGBRAI got him through treatment for stage 4 cancer.

We also meet a unicyclist on the route and ask the question, "Where ya from?"

Host Ben Kieffer takes us through preparations for RAGBRAI 2019, from loading up, to locating NPR's team "No Pie Refused," in Council Bluffs. We hear how teams are handling the storms and significant rain on Sunday, a 58 mile ride to Atlantic. Along the way we meet a 93-year-old doing his 7th RAGBRAI, and a couple rollerblading the 427 miles across Iowa.

Democratic presidential candidate Eric Swalwell is out of the race, while billionaire Tom Steyer is in.  Also this week, pressure increases for U.S. Secretary of Labor Alex Acosta to resign after a controversial plea deal and a court rules that President Trump may not block his Twitter critics.

On this politics day edition of River to River, host Ben Keiffer talks with analysts Steffen Schmidt of Iowa State University and Kedron Bardwell of Simpson College about these along with other political headlines. 

This week, President Trump obtained a massive amount of money for his re-election campaign.  After the first round of Democratic candidate debates, Senators Kamala Harris and Elizabeth Warren recieved top grades, according to a poll of voters.

On this edition of River to River, host Ben Keiffer talks with analysts about the debate aftermath, Trump's campaigning and Fourth of July plans along with other polictical headlines. 

This week, millions of Americans will meet the cast of Democrats trying to unseat President Donald Trump.

On this politics day edition of River to River, host Ben Kieffer talks with analysts about expectations for the first round of Democratic presidential debates as well as other political headlines.

Also, we continue our series of interviews about the leadership of 2020 candidates with a home state view of Andrew Yang, entrepreneur and founder of Venture for America. 

Guests include:

Joyology is a student-run club created by a group of Carlisle middle schoolers that focuses on generating positivity. The members try to spread kindness by writing kind messages on sticky notes and posting them on students' lockers, sponsoring kindness challenges to encourage other students to do acts of service and much more. 

The University of Iowa has received a $115 million research award -- its largest ever -- from NASA to study the interactions between the magnetic fields of the sun and the Earth. 

President Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden exchanged political jabs this week in Iowa. 

On this politics day edition of River to River, host Ben Kieffer is joined by political scientists Jim McCormick of Iowa State University and Tim Hagle of the University of Iowa for a closer look at these high profile visits.

They also discuss Iowa ethanol and what it means for the president and other 2020 hopefuls, protests in Hong Kong over extradition laws, and former Nixon White House Counsel John Dean's testimony before Congress.

President Trump has vowed to impose tariffs if Mexico does not stem the flow of migrants to the U.S. But Republicans are pushing back. 

Legislation that would have limited the powers of the Iowa Attorney General has been vetoed by Governor Kim Reynolds, an action seen by some Democrats in the Iowa legislature as a "power grab".

On this Politics Day edition of River to River, host Ben Kieffer sits down with two political scientists to analyze the deal struck between the governor and Attorney General Tom Miller.

  This conversation originally aired on 6-4-18. 

The Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Iowa has been approved to use a new therapy that harnesses the immune system to treat specific forms of leukemia and lymphoma. Dr. George Weiner is director of the center and says the therapy shows great promise.

President Trump's escalating trade war with China is drawing criticism, even from some members of Congress friendly to his economic policies. Congress is preparing to issue a second set of federal payments to farmers facing tariffs while trade negotiations continue.

In this political discussion on River to River, host Ben Kieffer talks with analysts about the politics of the president's trade policies, escalating tensions with Iran and the latest developments in the 2020 race for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Warm weather and rain has brought a beautiful bloom across the state, and with planting season upon us it's a great time to take action to prevent common pests and diseases that can plague your garden through the growing season. 

On this horticulture edition of Talk of Iowa, Charity Nebbe talks with experts about prevention and other efforts to establish a healthy garden.

Guests Include:

Former Vice President Joe Biden is visiting Iowa less than a week after making his 2020 presidential candidacy official, and Attorney General William Barr is testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee to answer questions about special counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. election. River to River host Ben Kieffer talks about these and other political developments of the week.

Guests include:

The longest serving Republican in the Iowa House announced Tuesday he would change his party affiliation and join the minority Democratic cacus. State Representative Andy McKean of Anamosa cited increasing discomfort with the GOP's agenda and his inability to support President Trump's re-election bid in 2020. The defection shrinks the Republican majority in the chamber. 

Eighty years ago, a small dedicated group of Quakers opened a hostel to provide shelter and a pathway to a new life for refugees who fled Nazi violence and aggression in Europe. Thus began the history of the Scattergood Friends Hostel in West Branch.   

During this segment of Talk of Iowa, we hear Edith Morgan Froehlig's memories. She was 11-year-old Edith Lichtenstein when she arrived with her family at the hostel, which provided shelter to 185 refugees between 1939 and 1943.