Politically Speaking

On the latest episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum and Sarah Kellogg preview Tuesday's election. And STLPR's Abby Llorico talks with a media literacy expert about how the rise in misinformation affects how people consume political news. This episode also feature completely real (and not A.I.-generated) cameos from actor Jon Hamm...

Democrat Bethany Mann has a tough task running for Missouri’s 3rd District, which was drawn in 2022 to be favorable to Republicans. But during an episode of the Politically Speaking podcast, Mann said she’s been able to make inroads with voters who typically don’t vote for Democrats by listening to their concerns. “And that's why I think that running in what would normally be an uncontested seat i...

Sixteen years ago, Bob Onder lost a bitterly contested congressional primary to Blaine Luetkemeyer. Since that time, Onder’s political trajectory took plenty of twists and turns — including becoming a key member of Senate Republicans who openly fought with GOP leadership. But after beating his former Senate colleague Kurt Schaefer in an August primary, Onder could very well be on his way to Washin...

For several decades, Ray Hartmann was a regular on the Nine Network’s Donnybrook where he often clashed with other St. Louis journalists about a litany of local issues. He also started the Riverfront Times, which regularly took a contrarian view about politics and culture in the St. Louis region. But earlier this year, Hartmann announced he was leaving the journalism world to take on U.S. Rep. Ann...

For Republicans like Missouri Congresswoman Ann Wagner, intraparty rancor was a recurring theme throughout the past two years in the U.S. House of Representatives. Because of a fairly small majority, and Democratic control of the Senate and the White House, House Republicans weren’t able to accomplish many of their priorities. And the schisms within the House GOP became so bad that a renegade grou...

On this week’s Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, we welcome opponents of two high-profile Missouri ballot items to legalize sports betting and abortion. We’ll also examine new polling from the Midwest Newsroom and Emerson College taking the pulse of how Missourians feel about both of those issues.

For many close observers of Missouri politics, David Wasinger’s win in a crowded primary to succeed Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe was something of a surprise. The St. Louis County attorney narrowly edged state Sen. Lincoln Hough, a Springfield Republican who had nabbed a slew of key endorsements and raised a substantial amount of money. During an episode of the Politically Speaking podcast, Wasinger attribu...

Illinois U.S. Rep. Nikki Budzinski, D-Springfield, said she’s not taking anything for granted in her first reelection bid this November. “We're working really hard throughout the district to tell the story of the work that we've been doing in this first term and making the case for the work that I want to continue to be doing,” Budzinski said on the latest episode of the Politically Speaking podca...

On the latest episode of Politically Speaking, Missouri Chamber of Commerce's interim President Kara Corches explains why her organization is opposing Proposition A. That measure would raise the state's minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2026 and institute mandatory sick time for employers.

On the latest episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, former Missouri Ethics Commission executive director Liz Ziegler joins the show to answer a slew of listener questions about the state's byzantine campaign finance laws. Also on the program: Democrat Lucas Kunce makes the case about why he has a chance against GOP Sen. Josh Hawley. And the state's trade union members t...

On paper, Illinois’ 13th Congressional District could be winnable for a Republican, but it will be an uphill battle for Joshua Loyd, who’s hoping to unseat incumbent Nikki Budzinski in November. The biggest factor working against Loyd, R-Virden, is cash. At the end of the second quarter, Budzinski, D-Springfield, held a 123 to 1 fundraising advantage over her GOP challenger in the race to represen...

On the latest episode of Politically Speaking, author Heather McGhee talks about her support for a ballot item raising Missouri’s minimum wage. McGhee is a New York-based attorney who wrote the New York Times best-selling book The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together. Part of her work involved following the movement in Missouri to raise the minimum wage, particular...

On the latest episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, STLPR's Jason Rosenbaum talks with St. Louis County election directors Eric Fey and Rick Stream about GOP secretary of state nominee Denny Hoskins' push to hand count ballots. Rosenbaum also talked with voters in Illinois and Missouri who are getting involved in this year's presidential election — even though the resul...

Rep. Richard Brown, Assistant Missouri House Minority Floor Leader, returns to the show. The Kansas City democrat joins St. Louis Public Radio's Sarah Kellogg and Jason Rosenbaum to talk about his candidacy for Lt. Governor.

Democrat Randi McCallian is once again running for Missouri’s 8th Congressional District seat, a swath of southeast and southern Missouri that’s been represented by Republicans since the 1980s. Even McCallian admits her run against GOP Congressman Jason Smith is an uphill battle. The 8th District used to have significant pockets of Democratic voters, particularly in the Bootheel region. But Donald...

On this week's episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum talks with veteran political journalist Jo Mannies about the history of presidential debates at Washington University. Rosenbaum also talked about the upcoming presidential election with four students at MICDS. And Rosenbaum welcomes historian Cassandra Good onto the program to...

State Rep. Barbara Phifer declined to run for another term in the Missouri House, even though she was eligible to spend four more years in the General Assembly’s lower chamber. But the Kirkwood Democrat chose instead to run for secretary of state. While the race for that office typically doesn’t get as much attention as the U.S. Senate or governor, Phifer said the stakes are high enough for her to...

Mark Osmack has been out of the electoral fray for awhile, but he never completely abandoned his passion for Missouri politics. Osmack, a Valley Park native and U.S. Army veteran, previously ran for Missouri’s 2nd Congressional District seat and for state Senate. During an episode of Politically Speaking, Osmack received a phone call from Missouri Democratic Party Chairman Russ Carnahan asking him...

Elad Gross, the Democratic candidate for Missouri Attorney General, is the latest guest on Politically Speaking. Gross, who ran for Attorney General back in 2020, spoke to St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum and Sarah Kellogg about why he decided to run again and how he believes the office can serve Missourians.

On the latest episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum talks to Missouri AFL-CIO President Jake Hummel about labor unions are approaching the general election cycle. Rosenbaum also talks with SLU political science professor Christopher Duncan about third party candidate in Missouri and American politics. And Rosenbaum expresses his...

Missouri's U.S. Senate race between Republican U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley and Democrat Lucas Kunce will likely be the most high-profile contest on the state's Nov. 5 ballot. But there is another candidate seeking the office: Better Party contender Jared Young. The Webb City resident talks with STLPR's Jason Rosenbaum about why he believes a candidate who isn't a Republican or Democrat can make an impac...

On the latest edition of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum talks with UMSL's Anita Manion and STLPR's Sarah Kellogg about Tuesday's primary results. Rosenbaum also spoke with Wesley Bell, Mike Kehoe, Crystal Quade and Bob Onder about their big wins — and what they could mean for Missouri politics.

On August 6, Missourians will go to the polls to decide some of the most important primary elections in recent memory. On the latest episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, STLPR's Jason Rosenbaum talks with Sarah Kellogg and Jo Mannies about the big things to look for when the results come in on Tuesday. Rosenbaum also talks with Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Mike Ham...

The latest episode of the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air features Democrat Lucas Kunce explaining why he should take on GOP Sen. Josh Hawley in the fall. St. Louis Public Radio's Jason Rosenbaum also talks with former state Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal about her bid for Missouri's 1st Congressional District.

On the latest episode of Politically Speaking, state Sen. Jason Bean joins St. Louis Public Radio’s Jason Rosenbaum and Sarah Kellogg to discuss Gov. Mike Parson’s budget vetoes — and the future of the Missouri Senate. Bean represents Missouri’s 25th Senatorial District, which includes Stoddard, Dunklin, New Madrid, Pemiscot, Ripley, Oregon, Mississippi, Butler, Wayne and Carter Counties. The Holc...