Heartland Signal

Heartland Signal

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Austin Linfante

Elections Melissa Bean wins Illinois 8th District primary, set to reclaim old seat By Austin Linfante – 3/17/26
Melissa Bean, a former three-term U.S. representative, is projected to win the Illinois 9th Congressional District Democratic primary, which makes her likely to win back the seat she held 15 years ago.
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Democracy Daniel Biss wins Illinois 9th District primary in bellwether election for Democrats By Austin Linfante – 3/17/26
Daniel Biss, the 48-year-old mayor of Evanston, Ill., is projected to win Illinois’ 9th Congressional District Democratic primary in a race some saw as a sign for what Democrats want in their new leaders.
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Democracy Federal agents arrest Minnesota candidate, journalists in anti-ICE church protest — all are Black By Austin Linfante – 1/30/26
Federal authorities arrested Jamael Lundy, a Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) state Senate candidate in Minnesota, along with other protesters and independent journalists for their roles in a protest at a St. Paul church earlier this month.
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Health care 260,000 Michiganders to lose health care as GOP Senate candidate Mike Rogers cheers on the cuts By Austin Linfante – 10/21/25
During a radio interview last week, Michigan Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Mike Rogers repeated the widely debunked lie that President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) tax law will not kick citizens off Medicaid.
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Democracy ‘No Kings’ rallies galvanize smaller cities and towns throughout Heartland By Austin Linfante – 10/20/25
Last Saturday’s “No Kings” rallies garnered an estimated 7 million people to rally against President Donald Trump and his administration’s monarch-like control of power. Much of the attention has been on the largest rallies in cities like New York City, Chicago, Washington D.C. and San Francisco.
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Chicago Sen. Tammy Duckworth talks Trump’s threats on Chicago with WCPT’s Joan Esposito and Chris Bury By Andy Miles and Austin Linfante and Chris Bury and Joan Esposito – 9/11/25
On Tuesday, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) spoke with WCPT’s Joan Esposito and guest contributor Chris Bury to give first-hand updates on how many National Guard troops President Donald Trump might send into Chicago and where they would stay.
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Democracy Missouri House Minority Leader Ashley Aune talks state GOP’s rumored redistricting scheme with WCPT’s Patti Vasquez By Andy Miles and Austin Linfante and Patti Vasquez – 8/20/25
Earlier this month, Missouri House Minority Leader Ashley Aune (D-Kansas City) spoke with WCPT’s Patti Vasquez about the state GOP’s likely attempt to further gerrymander the state to benefit President Donald Trump next year.
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Democracy Texas State Rep. Trey Martinez-Fischer talks fighting back against MAGA with WCPT’s Richard Chew By Andy Miles and Austin Linfante and Richard Chew – 8/14/25
Last week, Texas state Rep. Trey Martinez-Fischer (D-San Antonio) spoke with WCPT’s Richard Chew about his state GOP’s redistricting scheme and how he and his Democratic colleagues are urging blue-state governors to fight back.
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Democracy Texas state Rep. Chris Turner talks about Trump’s and Abbott’s gerrymandering with WCPT’s Patti Vasquez By Andy Miles and Austin Linfante and Patti Vasquez – 8/12/25
Last week, Texas state Rep. Chris Turner (D-Grand Prairie) spoke with WCPT’s Patti Vasquez about the ongoing chaos in his state as Republicans try to gerrymander the state in favor of them.
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Georgia Imminent ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ still threatens rural hospitals that treated many mass shooting victims By Austin Linfante – 7/03/25
Under President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” funding for rural hospitals that treated victims and helped save lives in mass shootings like the one in 2022 in Uvalde, Texas would be threatened.
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