On today's show:
– Heartland Signal’s Rich Eberwein with three stories you might have missed from our digital newsroom

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's show:
– Chicago TV newsman and political reporter Mike Flannery
– Greg Hinz, columnist for Crain’s Chicago Business
– John Fugelsang, actor, comedian, podcaster and radio host, TV pundit, and author of the forthcoming book “Separation of Church and Hate: A Sane Person’s Guide to Taking Back the Bible from Fundamentalists, Fascists, and Flock-Fleecing Frauds”

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's show:
– Alison Gash, professor of political science at the University of Oregon, author of “Below the Radar: How Silence Can Save Civil Rights,” and contributor to Washington Monthly; she is also the president of OurSchool, “a nurturing and creative anti-racist digital space for LGBTQIA+ young people and their communities to learn, celebrate, and thrive.”
– Army Maj. Gen. Randy Manner (Ret.), former acting vice chair of the National Guard Bureau, and member of National Security Leaders for America (NSL4A)
– David Hochberg, vice president of lending for Team Hochberg at Homeside Financial

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's show:
– Mark Jacob and Jennifer Schulze with our regular media hour
– Dave Levitan, science journalist, author of “Not A Scientist: How Politicians Mistake, Misrepresent, and Utterly Mangle Science,” and deputy editor of Splinter
– Democratic lawyer Michael Dorf

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's show:
– Yasmeen Bankole, candidate for Congress in the 8th Congressional District of Illinois 
– Justin Schmitt, president, The USAA Foundation, which is a founding member organization of Face the Fight, a collaborative initiative to address the crisis around veteran suicide; he’ll be joined by Sarah Pridgen of Rush University Medical Center
– Michael Kirk, PBS “Frontline” documentary filmmaker; his new film, “Trump’s Power & the Rule of Law,” premiered Tuesday on PBS and PBS.org

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's show:
– Eric Zorn, writer-publisher of The Picayune Sentinel
– Kendall Scudder, chair of the Texas Democratic Party
– Heartland Signal’s Rich Eberwein with three stories you might have missed from our digital newsroom

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's show:
– State Rep. Ann Williams (D-IL)
– David Atkins, Washington Monthly contributing writer; his latest piece is “The GOP’s Cruel Budget and the Authoritarianism Behind the ‘Big Beautiful Bill'”​​​
– Spencer Critchley, author of Patriots of Two Nations and host of the Dastardly Cleverness in the Service of Good podcast

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's show:
– Kainoa Lowman, communications associate at the American Economic Liberties Project and Washington Monthly contributor
– Stewart Reynolds, AKA Brittlestar, author of the 2025 book “Lessons from Cats for Surviving Fascism”
– Chris Bury, senior journalist-in-residence, DePaul University

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's show:
– Leah Litman, author of “Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes” and professor of law at the University of Michigan Law School
– Former Illinois Congressman (and former Republican) Joe Walsh
– Camaron Stevenson, national correspondent in Washington, D.C. for Courier

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's show:
– Jessica Valenti, author of the book Abortion. Our Bodies, Their Lies, and the Truths We Use to Win and the Substack newsletter “Abortion, Every Day with Jessica Valenti”
– Tom Villanova, retired president of the Chicago and Cook County Building and Construction Trades Council; he’ll talk about the Southland Friends of Labor Union Labor 101 Workshop
– Bushra Amiwala, Democratic candidate for Congress (9th Congressional District)
– Reid Davenport, director of “Life After,” a new investigative documentary “that exposes the tangled web of moral dilemmas and profit motives surrounding assisted dying”

Catch "Joan Esposito: Live, Local and Progressive" weekdays from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. Central on WCPT (heartlandsignal.com/programs/live-local-progressive).

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.