Podcast Segments:

* Iowa Coast to Coast (statewide news)

* From Iowa Capital Dispatch: Iowa Rep. J.D. Scholten ended his campaign for U.S. Senate Monday, endorsing his Iowa House colleague Rep. Josh Turek to become the Democratic nominee in 2026. Scholten, a Sioux City Democrat, entered the race in June after U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst had responded at a town hall to critics of Medicaid cuts included in the GOP budget reconciliation law with “well, we are all going to die.” In a statement Monday, Scholten said he believed the conversation on Medicaid cuts included in the “big, beautiful” law would be crucial in 2026. “There are still so many issues facing Iowans today but we can’t sit by while healthcare is ripped from millions of Americans,” Scholten said. “And there is no better Democrat in Iowa to talk about healthcare issues than my friend: State Rep. Josh Turek.” Turek, a Democrat from Council Bluffs, launched his campaign on Tuesday. The two-time Paralympic gold medalist said his family relied on public assistance programs like Medicaid, as well as Iowa’s Area Education Agencies and free summer lunch program as he was growing up, having gone through 21 surgeries by age 12 for spina bifida. Turek said he was “honored” to have Scholten’s support in the race.

* Cauc Talk (political news)

* Social Security customer service is crumbling - From the Jeremy Maske in the DM Register: For almost 25 years I have worked for the Social Security Administration right here in Des Moines. It’s behind the scenes work that has been incredibly rewarding — solving problems, ensuring thousands of Iowans get their pay in retirement. I’m also a leader in my union, American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more than 27,000 Social Security workers in thousands of field offices and teleservice centers. But instead of protecting our national lifeline, recent policy changes have pushed the Social Security workforce, and the communities we serve, to our limits. Massive layoffs and pressure for staff to retire early are leading to growing cracks in the once dependable system. These changes come as the Social Security Administration reaches its 90th anniversary Aug. 4. One client needed to schedule an in-person appointment for a replacement Social Security card. I couldn’t believe the numbers on my screen. The next available appointment was in the fall, more than five weeks away. That’s just one example of many. More than 70 million Americans rely on their earned benefits and are now enduring an entirely manufactured crisis of longer wait times, field offices forced to turn people away, and volatile policy changes and reversals. This piles on to already record-low staffing. According to a new study, 46 states, including Iowa, lost Social Security staff between March 2024 and March 2025.

* Black mayors are pushing back against the Trump administration on crime - From the AP: As President Donald Trump declared Washington, D.C., a crime-ridden wasteland in need of federal intervention and threatened similar federal interventions in other Black-led cities, several mayors compared notes. The president's characterization of their cities contradicts what they began noticing last year: that they were seeing a drop in violent crime after a pandemic-era spike. In some cases, the declines were monumental, due in large part to more youth engagement, gun buyback programs and community partnerships. Now, members of the African American Mayors Association are determined to stop Trump from burying accomplishments that they already felt were overlooked. They're using the administration's unprecedented law enforcement takeover in the nation's capital as an opportunity to disprove his narrative about some of the country's greatest urban areas. Trump argued that federal law enforcement had to step in after a prominent employee of the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, was attacked in an attempted carjacking. He also pointed to homeless encampments, graffiti and potholes as evidence of Washington “getting worse.” However, statistics published by Washington’s Metropolitan Police contradict the president and show violent crime has dropped there since a post-pandemic peak in 2023. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson scoffed at Trump’s remarks, hailing the city’s “historic progress driving down homicides by more than 30% and shootings by almost 40% in the last year alone.”

* Wider Scope

* MSNBC is changing it’s name - From the AP: Changing its mind about keeping its name, the MSNBC news network said Monday it will become My Source News Opinion World, or MS NOW for short, as part of its corporate divorce from NBC. The TV network, which appeals to liberal audiences with a stable of personalities including Rachel Maddow, Ari Melber and Nicole Wallace, has been building its own separate news division from NBC News. It will also remove NBC’s peacock symbol from its logo as part of the change, which will take effect later this year. The name change was ordered by NBC Universal, which last November spun off cable networks USA, CNBC, MSNBC, E! Entertainment, Oxygen and the Golf Channel into its own company, called Versant. None of the other networks are changing their name.

* A.Iowa

* Stats from a study from Howdy.com: Key findings:

* 59% of workers use AI at least daily

* 56% pay out of their own pockets for more powerful AI tools at work, averaging $68 monthly

* 67% feel energized by integrating AI into their workflow

* 9% say AI has damaged their sense of self-worth at work

* 75% are expected to use AI officially

* 22% feel pressured to use AI in situations they’re unsure about

* 16% of professionals sometimes pretend to use AI

Artificial intelligence (AI) is taking over the white collar workspace as daily updates provide opportunities to optimize. However, potential does not always lead to smooth implementation.

Among workers who use AI, the vast majority are expected by their employer to use it in some capacity.

* 51% are officially expected to use AI

* 24% are unofficially expected to use AI

Of professionals expected to use AI, 25% received no training. A similar number received formal training, and a third were given dedicated time to learn AI.

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