Blue Dog Radio

Welcome to Blue Dog Radio, a podcast that cuts through the noise and gets to the heart of what really matters. Across the country, one honest conversation at a time.

This show is a traveling exploration of American values. Recorded in D.C. living rooms, front porches, union halls, and small-town diners with the people who still believe in doing what’s right, even when it’s hard.

We sit down with current members of Congress, emerging candidates, and everyday Americans who carry the burden of common sense in an age of dysfunction.

At its core, Blue Dog Radio is about community, character, and commitment.

We are rooted in the belief that politics should serve real people in real places, and that truth, decency, and good faith still matter.

Whether you're from the Gulf Coast, the Pacific Northwest, the Midwest plains or the Maine woods, this is a show about finding common ground and reminding ourselves what we’re trying to build, together.

Last refreshed: May 19th, 2026 at 6:48 AM ⓘ

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Episodes

Fight Like Hell

Raised by a single mother and a grandmother dealing cards in Nevada casinos, Shannon Bird learned early that opportunity rarely arrives without a fight. In this episode of Blue Dog Radio, Bird's story ranges from a Reno trailer park to the Colorado legislature, reflecting on class, public schools, dissent, housing, democratic faith, and the women who taught her backbone. This is a conversation about stewardship over performance and why government should still be in the business of watching out f...

Apr 29, 2026•32 min•Season 1Ep. 11

Dairy Breakfasts and Double Shifts

“When you overperform like that… you do it again.” Rebecca Cooke came within two points of flipping Wisconsin’s 3rd District in 2024. Now she’s back. A waitress, small business owner, and daughter of a dairy farm family, Cooke doesn’t talk about working class life as a message. She’s lived it and loves it. In this episode of Blue Dog Radio, we sit down with Cooke to talk about the campaign that almost broke through, what she learned from a narrow loss, and why she believes this time is different...

Apr 10, 2026•41 min•Season 1Ep. 10

The Doctor Will See You Now

The Central Valley has a healthcare problem and Washington keeps sending politicians. In this episode of Blue Dog Radio, we sit down with Dr. Jasmeet Bains, a practicing family physician, current California State Assemblymember, and Blue Dog candidate for Congress in CA-22. Here we talk about what it looks like to serve a community that’s been overlooked for too long. Before politics, Bains was treating patients in rural clinics across the Central Valley. People without insurance. Families losin...

Mar 25, 2026•37 min•Season 1Ep. 9

Hickory Nut Gap

Jamie Ager-North Carolina 11 This week on Blue Dog Radio, we sit down with Jamie Ager: fourth generation farmer at Hickory Nut Gap Farm and candidate for Congress in North Carolina’s 11th District. We spent a week with Jamie in Western North Carolina, walking the hills of Hickory Nut Gap Farm, talking through the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, and digging into what leadership looks like in a place forged by land, legacy, and fierce independence. In this conversation, Jamie reflects on growing up...

Feb 26, 2026•39 min•Season 1Ep. 8

Barbacoa, Big Red, & Protecting the American Dream

Johnny Garcia-Texas 35 In this episode of Blue Dog Radio, we sit down with Johnny Garcia, a deputy sheriff from Bexar County who’s running for Congress in Texas’s 35th District. Johnny talks about growing up on the west side of San Antonio, the influence of his mother, and working construction and plumbing before entering law enforcement. He shares what he learned managing programs inside the county jail, serving on patrol, and working as a SWAT hostage negotiator. Experiences that shaped how he...

Feb 05, 2026•31 min•Season 1Ep. 7

Loyal to the Soil: Work, Place, and the People Who Stay

What does loyalty to a place really mean? In this episode of Blue Dog Radio , we explore what it looks like when work, community, and identity are rooted in the same soil. You’ll hear from Virginia Olsen , a fifth-generation Maine lobsterman, on the meaning of working waterfronts and generational stewardship. From the forests of Washington State, Peter Janicki , a generational logger, shares what it means to balance working forests, family livelihoods, and responsibility to the land. And to clos...

Jan 15, 2026•51 min•Season 1Ep. 6

Deciding to Listen: What Voters Actually Want

Politics spends a lot of time talking about voters and not nearly enough time listening to them. In this episode of Blue Dog Radio, we talk with political analyst Simon Bazelon about the people who actually decide elections. Not the loudest voices online, but the voters in the middle who are trying to get through the week with some stability, dignity, and hope. Here we dig into what these voters really care about, why life feels harder than it used to, and how the economy, costs, and basic quali...

Dec 04, 2025•26 min•Season 1Ep. 5

Episode 4: The Hours That Hold Us Together

There’s a kind of wealth that doesn’t show up on Wall Street. It’s measured in sleep, sanity, and the time we give to one another. It’s the real economy of American life. In this episode we explore what’s called the non-market economy through three conversations that reveal how time and dignity shape our daily lives: Dr. Jamie Zeitzer , a Stanford sleep scientist, explains how the biology of modern society has fallen out of rhythm and what that means for health, productivity, and happiness. Dill...

Nov 13, 2025•50 min•Season 1Ep. 4

Episode 3: Faith and the Common Good

In this episode of Blue Dog Radio, Representatives Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and Jared Golden sit down for a candid conversation about faith. Where it comes from, how it anchors their work, and what it means to hold belief in something larger than politics. They talk about the traditions that shaped them, the values that still guide them, and how faith helps them stay grounded in a world that too often rewards cynicism over service. From humility and forgiveness to the idea of grace in Washington,...

Oct 27, 2025•42 min•Season 1Ep. 3

Episode 2: Back to the Land — The Wendell Berry Episode

In Episode 2 of Blue Dog Radio , Marie Gluesenkamp Perez and Jared Golden go Back to the Land — a conversation inspired by the writings of Wendell Berry. They explore the difference between knowledge and wisdom, the value of generational work, and how staying rooted in home and community shapes their approach to public service.

Oct 14, 2025•39 min•Season 1Ep. 2

Episode 1: What It Really Means to Represent Home

Welcome to Blue Dog Radio, where we cut through the noise and talk about what really matters to Americans in every corner of this country. This show is about common sense, community, and making politics work the way it's supposed to, for real people in real places. Episode One – “What It Really Means To Represent Home” – is the first of a three-part conversation between two of the youngest Blue Dog leaders in Congress: Marie Gluesenkamp Perez , an auto repair and machine shop owner from Washingt...

Sep 26, 2025•41 min•Season 1Ep. 1

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