John Waters is a native of the Omaha area, a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, and a veteran of the United States Marien Corps. John served our country for seven years. After returning to civilian life, John went to the University of Iowa to get his law degree. John worked in the first Trump Administration as a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security in Washington, D.C. Reacclimating to civilian life can be difficult for our veterans and John wrote a book, “River City One,” to cope with getting back to civilian life. He currently works as an attorney in Omaha and writes for Real Clear Politics.

Nebraska State Senator, Brad Von Gillern began serving District 4 of the Legislature in 2023. Since being elected to the Legislature, Senator Von Gillern has focused a great deal of time understanding and trying to find ways to change the tax structure in Nebraska. Leading up to the 2026 Session, Senator Von Gillern offers his thoughts on tax reform, how we address property taxes, and he shares his take on the current petition initiatives being circulated.

Bo Jones, co-owner of Tru-Built Construction was looking for ways to recruit more employees, especially young people to the construction industry. He had an idea - create a platform for business and industry to interact with students and prospective employers to make connections. Over several months of thought and idea, Bo came up with the concept for CareerPathway.com. Now this platform has over 4,000 students regularly engaging with over 300 employers. Applications are being sent to companies for jobs, scholarships, internships, and more. Learn more about CareerPathways.com.

Michael Helman is a 2015 graduate of Lincoln Pius X High School. After his career at Pius, Helman went to Hutchinson Community College where he was the 2017 National Junior College Player of the Year. He then went on to play two seasons at Texas A&M before being drafted by the Minnesota Twins, and currently is on the Texas Rangers roster. Helman discusses his baseball career and the ups and downs of professional baseball.

Bruce Rasmussen is the retired Athletic Director of Creighton University Athletics. He started as the women's basketball coach in 1980 and became athletic director in 1994, serving as AD until 2021. During his tenure at Creighton, Bruce recruited and retained head coaches who were committed to Creighton and advancing their programs. Bruce's leadership and vision created excellent facilities for all sports at Creighton. Finally, Bruce helped lead Creighton's transition from the Missouri Valley to the Big East Conference.

Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen was elected in 2108 and reelected in 2022. As Secretary of State, Evnen oversees Nebraska elections, serves as Nebraska's Ambassador to the world, and is involved in registering businesses. All of these areas will be covered this week in our episode of Speak Up.

Nebraska State Senator Carolyn Bosn – chair of the Judiciary Committee. Senator Bosn discusses her background and the impact of being appointed following the resignation of Suzanne Geist. Senator Bosn explains the inner workings of the Judiciary Committee and how they are working on issues related to the justice system. Senator Bosn also brings perspective to the ICE detention facility in McCook and her experience and understanding of the current state of the Work Ethic Camp in McCook.

Sam Fischer is a retired political operative with decades of experience working in politics in Nebraska and around the country. Sam has been involved in races at all levels of politics. We talk some politics and podcasting with Sam, who has been doing his own podcast in retirement.

Sam Fischer is a retired political operative with decades of experience working in politics in Nebraska and around the country. Sam has been involved in races at all levels of politics. We talk some politics and podcasting with Sam, who has been doing his own podcast in retirement.

Nebraska First District Congressman Mike Flood – after serving 10 years in the Nebraska Legislature, Mike Flood was elected to Congress in June 2022, reelected in November 2022 and again in November 2024. Congressman Flood recently hosted the Flyover Fintec Conference in Lincoln and talked about the importance of the conference for Nebraska. He recently filed an ethics complaint against Representative Ilhan Omar and shares the background as to why this was done. We also discuss the Big Beautiful Bill affects Nebraskans, Congressman Flood’s role as chair of the Main Street Caucus.