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Justin Brady: [00:00:00] From the Jethro’s BBQ studio, I’m Justin Brady and this is the Iowa Podcast. Quick

Rep. Lindsay James: Nope

Justin Brady: Want some chicken wings? Spend 100 bu- $100, get $30 from Jethro’s. Just go to Iowapodcast.com, scroll to the top, click the banner, that’s it. Someone, well, not just someone, many people, but one person in d- in particular is looking for a promotion from the Iowa House to the big house. that?

Rep. Lindsay James: That is well done. I already saw, she was

Justin Brady: like, ” Oh.” Uh,

Rep. Lindsay James: Lindsay

Justin Brady: of course, joins us, looking for, uh, the US congressional seat in Iowa District 2. Thank you so much for coming on the show.

Rep. Lindsay James: absolutely. Thank you for having me.

Justin Brady: happy to use that

Rep. Lindsay James: And

Justin Brady: now

Rep. Lindsay James: you’re happy to use that on campaigns- Thank you, says our expert in the room. Perfect. Okay, I’m gonna file that away

Justin Brady: I don’t know if it was sympathy, like, “That was really corny,” or if it was like, “Oh, right, that was really good.” Um, so anyway, um, let’s talk about you want the big promotion,

Rep. Lindsay James: I’m, yes, I’m here for it. I’m ready for it

Justin Brady: [00:01:00] campaigning. Obviously, appreciate you coming in here.

Rep. Lindsay James: Oh, absolutely

Justin Brady: what

Rep. Lindsay James: is

Justin Brady: and we’ll keep it short ’cause I have so many questions.

Rep. Lindsay James: Sure

Justin Brady: that big pitch? Like, “Here’s my performance. I did a great job, and here’s

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes. Yes. Well, I’ll just tell you really quickly for those who are tuning in, I’m, I’m Lindsay James, obviously. Um, and I’m a mom, I’m a chaplain. I’ve spent eight years in the Iowa Legislature, and as I’ve knocked doors across this district, not just my own house district, but I’ve knocked thousands and thousands of doors over the years, and folks are telling me over and over again that they’re making, um, impossible choices because of their financial realities, living paycheck to paycheck, and they’re doing that in the wealthiest country in the world, and that’s not right. I think we can all agree that, on that. When the, quote, “big, beautiful bill” came down last summer, um, and I became aware that 27,000 Iowans were at risk of losing their healthcare in just Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District, um, that’s when I started to know that this is gonna be one of those moments that’s gonna require [00:02:00] more of me. And so then I started really wrestling with, um, you know, who, you know, who should step up into this moment? Am I being called to do that? And I had a deepening sense in that moment of like, yes, I’m being called to do everything I can to take my experience fighting for everyday working families in the Iowa Legislature and go fight on a bigger scale

Justin Brady: Got it. And so let- I wanna talk to the base here, ‘ cause

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes

Justin Brady: the election season, there is the temptation to talk to, um, you know, “My opponent’s doing this, and that’s not right,” or, “I’m doing…” Let’s talk just to the base, right? And so w- we’re obviously gonna talk to everyone throughout the episode, but the people who, like, look at your policies, we’re gonna dig into those of course, and they’re like, “I don’t, I don’t see one thing wrong. I, like, literally like all of

Rep. Lindsay James: Yeah, great

Justin Brady: I did read the article in Fox News about, hey, looks like she missed half the votes. And so that is a logical concern for even your base, saying, “I like these things, but Congress, like, that’s a little bit of a longer flight. Are you gonna [00:03:00] be there to vote for us?” What, what do you tell those people?

Rep. Lindsay James: Oh, absolutely. In fact, I’m really proud of my track record, um, of my work in the Iowa Legislature. I have stood up against, um, large private equity firms. I fought against big insurance industries. I’ve put forward protections for housing, um, when it comes to housing policy. I’ve, um, put caps on insulin prices. I’ve done all the work, but one of the things that I’m known for is showing up where it matters, which is on the porches of the families who are struggling most. I’m a chaplain, and chaplains show up, uh, in people’s hardest moments. And so I’ve knocked thousands of doors, as I said earlier, and I am going to show up every single day to– for working families, whether that’s on their front porch, having a conversation with them, whether that’s in their living room, whether that’s, um, you know, when a loved one is struggling in a hospital setting and they need advocacy. I’m gonna be there, and I’m also gonna be in Washington, um, fighting for the policies that are gonna help them every single day.

Justin Brady: [00:04:00] [00:05:00] Now you said where it matters.

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes

Justin Brady: everybody knows on this show we don’t do trick questions, we don’t do one-two punches. We

Rep. Lindsay James: Thank you, Justin. We’re,

Justin Brady: yes, It’s a great idea.

Rep. Lindsay James: yes

Justin Brady: W- were you, are you saying, and I’m not gonna put words in your mouth, the, the votes you didn’t vote on are [00:06:00] like this low priority stuff, or I don’t have an opinion on it, or I don’t feel c-

Rep. Lindsay James: No,

Justin Brady: me about those

Rep. Lindsay James: are every vote is a, as important of a vote, and legislators have to make calculations about, um, you know, priorities on a, at any given day. So I am proud of that track record. I mean, it, it, in fact, if you talk to any of my constituents, um, I… This is a legislative job is a part-time job, and I’ve never seen it that way. I’ve always been a full-time, deeply committed legislator, and that is because, um, for me, this is more than, um, a job. This is a call, and I feel deeply committed to caring for my neighbor. So that’s one of the things that in my faith commitments, caring for your neighbor is not optional, and so showing up for them is what’s important. And when you were talking, Justin, about, uh, let’s just communicate to the base, you know what the first thing that popped in my mind wasn’t a political affiliation or a base. The first thing that popped to my mind when you said that was my neighbor. My neighbor is my [00:07:00] base. Every single Iowan in Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District, um, is deeply important to me. And I think people, Justin, are longing for someone who is gonna do the work out of courage of conviction and a moral compass. And so my commitment to my, um, you know, constituents is I wanna do right by you, and I wanna do right by my neighbors because it’s not just a job. This is a call, and it’s a part of my faith commitments and how I live out my life

Justin Brady: I wanna touch on one of the things you mentioned here maybe 60 seconds ago. You mentioned taking on insurance companies or- Yeah … I don’t, I don’t wanna phrase it, but something of that nature. What does that mean, um, to take on the insurance companies?

Rep. Lindsay James: Ugh!

Justin Brady: doing… And, and this is a very, very complicated issue. We can dig in where we need to, but what d- what does that mean to Iowans? They’re like, “Okay, yeah, I mean, rates are going up. I know it’s not just the insurance companies, it’s laws, it’s regulations.”

Rep. Lindsay James: so brutal

Justin Brady: why are, why are we choosing to single out the insurance companies, and what are they doing wrong?

Rep. Lindsay James: Well, let me [00:08:00] tell you, um, a, a, a quick story here that I think folks will really appreciate ’cause I think it is, kind of sums up the reality of, um, the corruption, um, in the legislature here in Des Moines, but also the corruption in DC, which I have a track record of fighting against, and why this moment is going to require someone who has, you know, again, courage of conviction and fight in them to go push back against these large entities that have an outsized voice in all of the policymaking decisions that are happening. So, um, my first, you know, day of the Iowa legislature, so picture me, brand-new legislator, um, and I, uh, get taken around by, um, this, someone on the team to all of the different lobbyists who are sitting outside of the chamber, and I’m meeting the lobbyists for this big corporation and that big corporation. The big insurance industry, the pharmaceutical industries, and, you know, I’m looking around and I begin to wonder, “Well, where are the lobbyists and the advocates for everyday working families here in our state?” [00:09:00] And that moment, it became so clear to me that I would be responsible for every single time I was given a microphone or a megaphone, I was going to tell the story of those whose voices weren’t being heard at the Iowa Capitol. Those hardworking families doing everything they can to put food on the table for their kids, give their kids the education and life we know that they deserve. And so, um, my first, one of my very first speeches on the floor of the Iowa legislature was to do just that. There was a neighbor of mine who had lost healthcare services when Medicaid was privatized. You remember when that happened years ago in the state? It was, it was privatized, and he lost vital healthcare services. And so you know what I did? I stood up on the floor of the Iowa legislature and told his story, and I called out the company, Amerigroup, by name for denying him healthcare. And immediately following my speech, I got a request to speak to the Amerigroup lobbyist outside of [00:10:00] the chamber.

Justin Brady: Hmm. Mm-hmm

Rep. Lindsay James: So I went out, you know, ’cause I will speak to anyone who wants to talk to me. I’ll work with anyone who wants to work with me because this is about getting the work done and doing right by our neighbors. It’s not about politics. And, um, so I went out to speak with him, and you know what he said to me? He said, “Representative James, I know you’re new here in the legislature, but we just don’t do that.” And my response was, “Hmm, I don’t care what the norms of the Iowa legislature are. I care that my constituent gets the healthcare that he needs.” And you can imagine that conversation ended pretty abruptly because I was not gonna take that from him, and I am here for my neighbor, not for his special interest. And, uh, so I was surprised when he reached out the next day, Justin, and he said to… asked to speak again. And so I went out to speak with him outside of the chamber, and he said, “Representative James, I just want you to know I talked to my, uh, boss-” Last night, and [00:11:00] we’re gonna go ahead and reverse those decisions and restore the healthcare that your constituent needs. So that is the kind of fight that I’m known for in the Iowa Legislature. I’m not gonna mince my words if a company is denying healthcare services, um, that they’re responsible to provide. I am not going to mince my words with Whirlpool when they start shipping jobs overseas to Mexico, and constituents in Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District are having to start over and rebuild their entire lives because of that. I am not going to mince my words when there is something that is good and right and just, um, that needs to be said, and I am… You know, chaplains, we’re called into some of people’s hardest moments, and we have to tell the truth, whether it’s hard or not. And so I’m known for that, not in the legis- not only in the legislature, but as a person of faith and as a chaplain. I’m gonna go say some hard things to the folks in DC who really need to hear it.

Justin Brady: like let’s, the Whirlpool

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes.

Justin Brady: we don’t need to pick

Rep. Lindsay James: we don’t need to pick on-

Justin Brady: specifically, but just companies in [00:12:00] general.

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes.

Justin Brady: make stupid decisions,

Rep. Lindsay James: Absolutely. Sure

Justin Brady: in, i- in the US, people make dumb decisions, and often the market will say, “That’s pretty dumb. We think you’re disgusting. We’re not doing business with you,” right? The market sometimes decides, and usually brings the swift… I

Rep. Lindsay James: would ar-

Justin Brady: consumers are way more brutal, um, regulators in some cases than even lawmakers. They’re way faster sometimes. So at, where is the line, though? Because if I’m a company and I’m like, “Dude, you know, Representative James, I wanna ship jobs to Mexico. We’re gonna lose the company, or we’re not gonna keep shareholders happy, or we’re not gonna be a sustainable business if we don’t,” you step in and say, “Eh, there are going to be laws to keep jobs here,” or do you step out and say, “Bro, if you wanna do that, go right ahead. Not gonna look good, but I’m not gonna stop you.” Where, like where’s the line when

Rep. Lindsay James: Government

Justin Brady: actually step in, and when government should step out, for you, in your case?

Rep. Lindsay James: Yeah. So, I, you know, for me, this is about, um, government should not be serving the powerful. They should be serving the [00:13:00] people, and this is precisely when we step in. If, if we’re gonna give big corporate tax breaks to corporations who then abandon the very workers who, you know, built their success in a community and ship their jobs overseas, then there, there needs to be accountability there

Justin Brady: is interesting because this is kind of putting a f- a f- a tighter focus on this, which is like, you know, please push back if I’m

Rep. Lindsay James: if I’m wrong Oh, I will I hope so I will, Justin

Justin Brady: Um,

Rep. Lindsay James: If it’s

Justin Brady: just a private business doing their own thing, you’re like, “Whatever,” you know? I, I, I may

Rep. Lindsay James: have an opinion on

Justin Brady: it, but do whatever. But you’re saying, “If we gave you tax incentives for X, Y, and Z, you are gonna friggin’ follow through or I’m gonna come after you.” Is this the distinction I’m hearing?

Rep. Lindsay James: Well, the distinction I think this are twofold, because I also want to highlight the fact that the policy that’s coming from the Trump administration when it comes to tariffs, for examples, um, those are impacting that business as well. So when you have r- um, [00:14:00] policies that are harming our businesses, we need to be able to step in and help our businesses, um, when they are abandoning, as I would argue in this circumstance, um, you know, the very community where their success was built. Um, their success, Whirlpool’s success was built off the backs of everyday working families here in Iowa, and, um, it, and, you know, that means something, and it should mean something to that company. And so again, that’s where you step in. Um, but the, the trade policies, for example, the tariffs and, and things like that impact business. Um, I will tell you that we in Dubuque, where, um, that’s my home, uh, in Dubuque, uh, there were 100 jobs sent overseas to Mexico. An entire line shut down at one point in the last, um, year, last year and a half, and, um, they made that announcement. And they made that announcement, um, when, you know, they had some of their highest profits the company had ever had. And my conversations, you know, with the lobbyist of that, you [00:15:00] know, of that entity was around, um, you know, how is it that, you know, why is it that you’re sending jobs overseas? I wanna understand and I wanna help, and if there’s a problem, if there’s an issue, let’s resolve that so that we can keep hardworking families here in our state and our good jobs here in our country. And, um, you know, what we learn is those trade policies, um, there’s actually a loophole. So, um, you can get materials if you are from Mexico, you can get, um, materials much more easily, uh, from Asia into Mexico, and because of NAFTA, you can then trade easily back into the United States or ship back l- in- into the United States. So these tariffs are actually harming manufacturing in addition to our farmers. And so again, we need to have an honest conversation about the harmful policies that are making business, um, much more difficult for our companies ’cause we wanna take care of them as well. So we wanna make sure that they have the resources they need, the policies that make their operations work, but also be held accountable to people.

Justin Brady: you [00:16:00] mentioned the farmers. Yeah. And I would say this year, I, I’ve been doing this a little while, and this year agriculture, um, ’cause s- sometimes the, the, like Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, just due to population, influence votes. And agriculture, even though we’re an agriculture state, it doesn’t really take center stage. There are other issues that get brought up. But this issue, this year

Rep. Lindsay James: That’s huge

Justin Brady: a big issue. The cities care a lot. The obviously rural cares, like literally everybody cares. And one of those huge issues that kind of overlapping is organic, regenerative, runoff, air quality, water quality, tied to cancer rates,

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes

Justin Brady: I know this is something you care about, but there is one thing I had a big question, which is we have over here Bobby Kennedy, former Democrat, I would argue probably still a Democrat, um, that is now in the Trump administration ’cause he wants to get his, uh, agenda through. But then you’ve been kinda critical of Bobby Kennedy, but you’re both, in my mind, and clear this up for me- Sure kind of going after the same thing. Like he’s trying [00:17:00] to… I think he’s genuine. I think he is like going after dyes and, uh, bad foods and to try to get people healthier. But you’ve been critical. Where do you guys kind of align, but where do you also separate

Rep. Lindsay James: Sure.

Justin Brady: Sure … cancer, food quality, air,

Rep. Lindsay James: Oh gosh. Well, and, you know, I do think that part of, um, one of the things that is very clear about, um, my values and who I am is that I am a mom, and I care about our kids, and I care about our kids having their best chance at life. That’s why I’m so passionate about health, safe and secure communities. That’s why I’m so passionate about education, because these are the kinds of things that we need to have here in Iowa to give our kids their best chance. And I meet too many grandparents who are concerned that their kids are gonna… their grandkids or their kids might build a life in a different state. We are, you know, top 10 in the country for population drain, and it’s our young people. And so, you know, this is an important issue to me. One of the things that you, uh, talked about was [00:18:00] cancer, um, and cancer rates. So I feel deeply concerned about, um, cancer in this state. So we’re number one in the country for rising cancer rates. We’re number two in the country, yep, for the sheer number of rates happening. And, you know, I’ve, I’ve sat through presentations with, um, scientists and other folks who are really deeply immersed in this issue. And, um, and it’s so interesting because one of the things that, um, I heard a lot at the Capitol was, um, the majority pa- party and the people who were in power were blaming individual Iowans for the cancer rates. They were quick to say, “Oh, well, it’s… cancer is high in our state because of, of smoking, and obesity, and binge drinking.” Those are absolutely, um, scientific factors that cause cancer, 100%. But if that were the only factor, if those were the only factors in our cancer, we would look like every other state.

Justin Brady: up

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes. So we have to look at the environmental. And I think that that [00:19:00] has been, um, a hard conversation to have, but not for me. You know, for me, it is, um, talking about sustainability and our legacy and how do we support our farmers. And, um, when I’m talking to our farmers, you know, water quality and, uh, soil health are things that they care about too. And so let’s partner together and figure out a different way forward or a new way forward. And, um, I think they have some pretty fantastic ideas and… But they also… I mean, I wanna-

Justin Brady: guess, what does that look like though?

Rep. Lindsay James: Sure

Justin Brady: invited in here m- people from all ca- you know, all candidates, um, including g- both gubernatorial candidates, and, um, they both have some policy

Rep. Lindsay James: Sure

Justin Brady: know, and we’re, we’re gonna go into those on those episodes. But everybody does say the same thing, which is, “We should look at it.” And I’m like, “Okay, great. Everybody agrees we should look at it. What does that look like?” You know, day one, not day one, but everyone says day one, that’s not realistic. But you’re in Congress, and you’re like, “I’m gonna do X, Y, and Z to get these cancer rates [00:20:00] under control.” What is… Or

Rep. Lindsay James: What is, or just X. Yeah What is that?

Justin Brady: that

Rep. Lindsay James: Yeah. No, absolutely. Well, we can– There’s a couple things that we can do. First and foremost, we need to fund cancer research, um, to, to, to narrow in on, you know, what environmental factors are causing these particular issues. So we need to fund that certainly. But we can’t wait another 10 years for a robust, you know, farm bill. Like, we have to have real changes. And if you look at the subsidies for, um, practices like cover crops and setbacks or wetlands and prairies, those subsidies aren’t as great as the, the subsidies for corn and beans. And so, you know, we need to be thinking about, um, the farm bill and how we create opportunities for farmers to lean into those kinds of things. I, I had a great conversation

Justin Brady: just get rid of the subsidies or do you subsidize everything? ‘Cause it’s like almost like if you’re subsidizing everything, just don’t subsidize anything. But I don’t, I don’t know what your thoughts are

Rep. Lindsay James: I think that the– always the first step is to [00:21:00] subsidize, e-especially because our farmers are, um, really struggling economically right now. I talked to a farmer, ’cause I wanna put a, a fine point on this. I talked to one farmer, and I toured his operation, and, um, he had a, some incredible, you know, production and was so impressive. And he shared with me, so he’s a beginning farmer, and he is, you know, leasing the land, so he doesn’t own the land, but he’s working the operation. And he shared with me, um, that his family was making impossible choices because of the financial realities of the farm operation. And so I asked, “Well, what does that look like in your life?” And he shared with me that, um, his wife had to go get a second job in town because they could not afford health insurance. Too many families who are making impossible choices because of the rising cost of health insurance. And so his wife got a second job in town, but that meant he– they no longer had a second set of hands on the operation. And so, you know, his, his kid, who was a high school [00:22:00] student, who, you know, wanted to be involved in extracurricular activities and after-school programming and things like that, now had to give those up and make the impossible choice to come and be that second set of hands on the operation because they couldn’t afford another, um, employee. And so these are the kinds of impossible choices that our farmers are making, that our families are making, and they’re doing that in a country that is the wealthiest country in the world. And I would argue, Justin, that that is just simply not right. I am a person of deeply held faith commitments who cares about our neighbors, and there are specific policies that can help when it comes to the cost of living crisis in our country

Justin Brady: what I don’t hear, and maybe it, maybe you agree with this, is I don’t hear, just, I’m just picking the hot buttons, I’m not picking anything in particular.

Rep. Lindsay James: go for it. Yeah

Justin Brady: ban glyphosate, ban, uh, paraquat. Um, both of which, we had Dr. Deming in here, um, hi- I think his view, Deming Cancer

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes. Yeah.

Justin Brady: view

Rep. Lindsay James: Yep

Justin Brady: I don’t… You know, go watch the episode to get [00:23:00] the full view, but is basically like, yeah, we know glyphosate causes cancer. We don’t know the concentration or the degree of which it does. Some people say they do know, some… There’s a lot of disagreement in research. I, I feel like there is kind of a consensus that paraquat is pretty bad, and so would we see you at a minimum say, gone.” Like, let’s get something under control, or are you saying nope? Um, ’cause when I hear

Rep. Lindsay James: Undemort. Yes. In my mind-

Justin Brady: that’s still look at.

Rep. Lindsay James: Sure

Justin Brady: so would we see any immediate actions you’d take, or would it be… And then, then I have other

Rep. Lindsay James: Oh,

Justin Brady: brought up

Rep. Lindsay James: sure. Sure. Yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, you know, some of these questions, and I appreciate your, um, your persistence on this, um, are difficult because, you know, I gotta take a look at the bill in front of me before we make these kinds of decisions. Here’s what we know about our situation.

Justin Brady: in

Rep. Lindsay James: you’re a congressman.

Justin Brady: You

Rep. Lindsay James: that is,

Justin Brady: know

Rep. Lindsay James: is fair. Yes, yes. Okay. I’m gonna talk to Dr. Deming, and we’re gonna go get to work. Um, I will watch that. I will watch that episode. I’ll go back and re-watch that. That’s a good place to explain how a bill becomes a law. [00:24:00] Yes. Good. Good. Thank you. How…

Justin Brady: you.

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes, a bill becomes a law. That was a good Sorry.

Justin Brady: but sorry about banning

Rep. Lindsay James: yes.

Justin Brady: or yes or no. Yeah

Rep. Lindsay James: so here’s what we know. Here’s what we know. We know that, um, we have, you know, the highest rising cancer rates in the country. We know that there are, um, roughly 300,000 Iowans who are drinking from unregulated water wells. We already know that we have high level of nitrates in our water, and we know that companies like Bayer are coming to the legislature and now on the federal level and asking to be released from liability- Right if someone gets sick from their product. That is deeply alarming information, and so we need to do what everything we can to reverse that, and there are lots of ways in which we can start cleaning up our water, um, start getting an edge when it comes to our cancer research. Um, and some of that is funding our, you [00:25:00] know, water monitoring system. That is a thing that the Iowa legislature has stripped over the years. It’s funding for that, restoring that, releasing, um, more scientists and researchers to make sure that we know, as Dr. Deming said, you know, what, what are those rates and what does that look like?

Justin Brady: might wanna talk about funding, um,

Rep. Lindsay James: Good. Yes. Yes

Justin Brady: for an increase of funding on a lot of things. Maybe we’ll get to that. But you also, uh, to brought up healthcare

Rep. Lindsay James: Sure, sure.

Justin Brady: And so one of the

Rep. Lindsay James: Oh,

Justin Brady: brought

Rep. Lindsay James: yes.

Justin Brady: rise in healthcare insurance- Yeah … which everybody agrees is rising rapidly. Here’s the nuance I think most people leave out. I don’t know if there’s… I don’t know if it’s just common vernacular or if

Rep. Lindsay James: Sure

Justin Brady: reason it’s being left out. I actually don’t know. You

Rep. Lindsay James: Yeah

Justin Brady: Why don’t people talk about just healthcare costs? Like, why is the conversation always insurance? ‘Cause in my mind, if people are getting in more wrecks and then costs go up, I would wanna ask, “Wait, hold up. let’s not try to tell the car insurance

Rep. Lindsay James: Sure

Justin Brady: raising insurance rates ’cause car wrecks are going up. Let’s look [00:26:00] at why car wrecks are going up.” And then it turns out there are like a, there’s an alien invasion and UFOs are crashing and okay, let’s stop the alien invasion. being, would we look at healthcare costs increasing, and what would you do in that, uh, in that space? Because I know one thing that prevents smaller startups and companies from getting into healthcare, even though they have great solutions, is, and I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, but is the large blockade of the FDA that in many cases if a lot of people are honest is more of a regulatory capture tool,

Rep. Lindsay James: Sure.

Justin Brady: a safety tool. So would we see some red tape cutting? Would we see special programs to allow more innovation in healthcare? Would you focus on insurance or would you focus on the healthcare costs and why they’re rising to begin with?

Rep. Lindsay James: Yeah. Well, let’s talk a, let’s talk a little bit about that healthcare. So there are some initial steps that we can take legislatively and with policy that will actually help relieve the costs of healthcare. So, um, all of the Medicaid cuts, we can reverse those. Um, if you talk to [00:27:00] providers across the state, they’re– many of them are not able to take on a Medicaid patient because the reimbursement rates are so low.

Justin Brady: Mm-hmm

Rep. Lindsay James: um, you know, doing work and policies to increase the reimbursement rates for providers. They can’t keep their, you know, um, their overhead costs. Um, they ca- you know, can’t manage their businesses, ba- a basic business because those reimbursement rates are so low

Justin Brady: heard from some physicians, they’re just like, “We can’t accept patients in that category.” Right. Yeah. Right. And I won’t

Rep. Lindsay James: Call those people

Justin Brady: people out,

Rep. Lindsay James: Yeah. Yeah, and so there’s, you know, so there, that is something that we need to, you know, do right away is reverse those cuts. Um, I also talk about the fact that, um, you know, we can lower the age of Medicare. One of the things I just, um, had a great conversation with a group of law enforcement officers who, you know, are retiring around the age of 55, um, because they, um, you know, they’re… That’s a tough job on your body and, um, you know, they’ve put in their time and their work and that’s, that’s the, the age, um, [00:28:00] average age of retirement. But then they are having to figure out how to, to pay for healthcare, um, over the next 10 years. So, um, consider lowering the age of, of Medicare. And then, you know, capping costs for pharmaceutical, you know, drugs. Insulin is something that I have in the Iowa Legislature, I’ve put, I’ve, I’ve put forward legislation regularly to co- to cap the cost of insulin, um, because that is life-saving medication that so many people need, and, um, people are making impossible choices and rationing their, um, their insulin because of those costs. So let’s cap that. So, so this is a multi-prong, you know, issue and challenge that we’ve got to take a lot of different approaches to. But I, I like to tell the story ’cause I think that this, again, puts a really fine point on it. I was talking to a gentleman who, and this is gonna draw on the private equity, which we haven’t hit on yet.

Justin Brady: haven’t.

Rep. Lindsay James: Yeah I know. We’re gonna s- We’re getting to it … we’re gonna solve so many problems today- Yeah

Justin Brady: gonna sound so- Yeah

Rep. Lindsay James: in this 30-minute window. Um, but part of [00:29:00] what I think, um, is so important to hear about this story, so, um, there’s these large private equity firms that have come in and bought out, um, many mobile home communities across the state and across the country, and they’re price gouging those residents out of their home. I talked to a resident, um, on his porch who shared with me that he was making the impossible choice, “Do I pay for my increasing rent and keep my mobile home, or do I pay for my insulin medication and keep my foot?” This is a choice that one of our neighbors here in Iowa is making, a, a devastatingly impossible choice because of the role of private equity in housing and because of these large pharmaceutical companies who, um, the costs are so outrageous for his life-saving medication. These are the kinds of things that we need to address, and we need someone with courage of conviction and who has a [00:30:00] clear call to their neighbor to go and do these hard kinds of conversations and put forward these kinds of policies in DC. And one of the things, Justin, I think we’re seeing, people are exhausted by politics. They want someone with, you know, a moral compass and courage of conviction to go do the right thing by them. And so that’s where I’m like, this, this moment, we gotta– I gotta get there so that we can start reversing some of these realities for, um, everyday working families in our state

Justin Brady: And so to put a cap on it,

Rep. Lindsay James: Yeah

Justin Brady: one of the things I have heard is to fix this we will, um, expand Medicare. And to fix another thing, uh, expand cancer funding, and more subsidies for crops. And so I’m not in the camp where it’s like any spending’s bad. Governments have to spend. They have to spend money. It’s a reality of where we live. But where would you cut? Like, are there areas where you’re like,

Rep. Lindsay James: Oh,

Justin Brady: billions here. I don’t want any of that.” Like, what are some of the big

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes.

Justin Brady: say, let’s get [00:31:00] rid of the spending?

Rep. Lindsay James: I love, I love this question. I think of this as an investment, um, into our communities, into our neighbors, into our state. Um, and I’m a mom who’s parenting teenagers. Mm. Any parent who is parenting teenagers will tell you that fairness is one of their top issues. They want things to be fair, and when there are billionaires in our country who pay less taxes than working families, that needs to be addressed. And, you know, um, so that’s for me that this is about, um, making sure that billionaires pay their fair share into the system that, um, has built and they’ve profited from the system that we have created here in this country

Justin Brady: I- some numbers will say, well, billionaires pay over 50% of the taxes in the country. That number might be higher. I’m not a tax lawyer. Please check, please verify this myself. But when

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes,

Justin Brady: they’re like, “Okay, yeah, I want people to pay their fair share. I don’t

Rep. Lindsay James: Yeah

Justin Brady: to get a loophole,” [00:32:00] but they, they do pay. Like, one of the, let me, let me use the famous name, Elon Musk,

Rep. Lindsay James: sure

Justin Brady: Sure. People are like, “Ah, that guy didn’t pay any taxes.” Well, he actually, I think what’s left out of the conversation, uh, is that he is one of the biggest taxpayers in history. And so what does that, what does that actually look like? Like, I do want trillionaires and billionaires paying their fair share.

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes.

Justin Brady: is fair, though? And, and just to go back to the thing, where do we, the original

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes.

Justin Brady: are we cutting stu- cutting stuff?

Rep. Lindsay James: Well, and when you look at the extraordinary amount of money that someone has, and it’s because of the systems and the structures that we have built in our beautiful country. They have benefited off of that. Elon Musk has benefited off of that, and the workers who, um, propped up his success, you know, on their very backs. And again, um, I think that, you know, no one should have to make an impossible choice about insulin or their home. No mom should have to make the impossible choice, do I pay for my utility bill or do I buy my [00:33:00] daughter a winter coat? That’s another choice that someone shared with me that they were making. No family should make the choice of, um, do I pay for my rent or do I put food on the table for my kid in the wealthiest country in the world. That’s not fair. That’s what’s not fair. And so, um, that’s where we need to have the kinds of tax policies that we put forward that, um, that make folks who have benefited exponentially from hardworking families pay their fair share into the system

Justin Brady: Representative Lindsey James running for Congress in Iowa District 2. so much for

Rep. Lindsay James: Oh.

Justin Brady: Really appreciate you being

Rep. Lindsay James: Absolutely. Well, thank you for the conversation, and I loved the questions. I hope I get invited back

Justin Brady: Absolutely. And please tell us the website so people can learn more information about you and

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes.

Justin Brady: and

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes, absolutely. It’s, it’s Lindsay for Iowa is all of my social media, media handles, lindsayforiowa.com. You can find me, um, and that’s Lindsay with an A.

Justin Brady: Lindsay with an A.

Rep. Lindsay James: Yes.

Justin Brady: much for coming on the Iowa Podcast

Rep. Lindsay James: for coming on. Justin, thank you [00:34:00] for having me

Justin Brady: you for having [00:35:00]