Tonight at 8 PM ET, we’re releasing America in Person: Iowa on YouTube.
This story feels especially connected you, to this community.
Many of you helped me plan and think through the trip before I went—what to look for, who to talk to, the issues and questions that mattered. Your input was real, and tuly helpful.
A talk with Josh Turek, Democratic candidate for US Senate in Iowa.
Then we went out across Iowa: the State Fair, farm country, town halls, a Des Moines barbershop, a farmers market, and beyond. The result is a short film about a state that has become politically exciting again—and, more importantly, about what ordinary people are asking election to do for them.
We talked with Democratic candidates Rob Sand—running for governor, and leading right now—and Josh Turek—running for senator in a neck-and-neck race. And we heard from voters what matters to them in this election; some of the issues they raised surprised me. Maybe you, too.
And as we travelled around the state, a question rose in my mind, quietly at first, then insistently: What are elections for?
I’d listen to people, their concerns, their frustrations, their love for our country—and it bothered me. A lot. Good people, trying to make a life, asking only for a decent chance at it. And yet finding, in so many ways, that in our country, in our time, their dreams remain out of reach.
And I thought: If our political system isn’t working for them—but works for the wealthy and well-connected—then what are we doing?
What are elections for?
I’m enormously grateful that you make this work possible. Independent reporting like this is exactly what I hoped Real Patriotism could become: get out of the studio, go somewhere, listen closely, and bring back something that feels different from the daily political shouting.
Paid members get an early look today, before the public release—and at 6 PM ET I’ll be live with them for a Q&A about the reporting, what surprised me, what didn’t make the film, and what I came away thinking about Iowa.
For everyone else: join me at 8 PM tonight on YouTube for the premiere of America in Person: Iowa. I hope you’ll watch—and I’d love to hear what you think.