Flyover Country

Flyover Country was pleased to by joined by Lindsey Boylan, a New York politician and whistleblower, to discuss the New York City mayoral race. Boylan, formerly a prominent senior official in New York State government, was the first person to publicly accuse then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment. She has shared her story in many forums including Medium, Vanity Fair, The Indypendent, X and Bluesky. I hope you enjoy our discussion of New York politics, housing affordability, income disparity, ranked choice voting, and much more.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blakerutherford.substack.com

Flyover Country was pleased welcome by Becky Pittman and Emily Wineland, co-founders of GoodChange, to discuss the evolutions in online political fundraising and what to expect in the 2026 political cycle. A lot has changed since Becky and Emily first joined the podcast, and it was a pleasure to visit with them about the dynamism of the industry, candidate engagement, and breaking down barriers to political participation.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blakerutherford.substack.com

Kendra Pruitt served as chief of staff to the Mayor of the City of Little Rock, Ark. before recently launching her consulting firm, Solution Seekers. She joined the Flyover Country Podcast to discuss politics and public service in the Heartland, navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, and what municipalities should to address pressing needs of the future.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blakerutherford.substack.com

Alice Driver is a J. Anthony Lukas and James Beard Award-winning writer from the Ozarks Mountains in Arkansas. Her most recent book is Life and Death of the American Worker: The Immigrants Taking on America’s Largest Meatpacking Company. You can explore all of her journalism here.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blakerutherford.substack.com

The Flyover Country Podcast is thrilled to be joined by Caroline McCoy of The Oxford American magazine to discuss her piece, “Arkansas’s Faulty Plan to Build a Mega Prison: And the Community that Exposed It.” Our free flowing discussion about the problems with this prison development informs broader attitudes about incarceration across the Heartland.

Please visit Caroline’s exceptional writing here.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blakerutherford.substack.com

Flyover Country was pleased to welcome JoBeth McElhanon, CEO of Lilias & Olive, to discuss entrepreneurship, Covid-19, and the courage to take a risk and launch a small business in the Heartland.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blakerutherford.substack.com

The Flyover Country Podcast was pleased to be joined by an old friend, Aaron Ament, a former Department of Education official and the President of the National Student Defense Legal Network to discuss DOGE, Trump, and student loan reform.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blakerutherford.substack.com

The Flyover Country Podcast was pleased to welcome Hallie Shoffner, a sixth generation farmer from Newport, Arkansas to discuss agriculture policy, farm subsidies, and the implications of the Trump administration’s funding freeze on family farms.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blakerutherford.substack.com

Frank Scott, Jr. is the mayor of Little Rock, Arkansas. He joined the Flyover Country Podcast to discuss the impact of the federal grant funding freeze on research universities and nonprofits, anti-diversity, equity, and inclusion rhetoric out of Washington, D.C., crime, economic development, and the role mayors can and should play in today’s political climate.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blakerutherford.substack.com

Randy Dixon, Director of News Archives and Media at the Pryor Center for Oral and Visual History at the University of Arkansas, joined the Flyover Country Podcast to discuss the importance of archiving our local news history, the value of news reporting on the present and the past, and the invaluable tool the Pryor Center archives will be for researchers across the world. Dixon is also a weekly contributor to “Ozarks at Large” on National Public Radio.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit blakerutherford.substack.com