The Trump administration paused funding for Job Corps centers nationwide, including Iowa's top-rated Ottumwa facility. The cuts eliminate 125 jobs in one of Iowa's poorest counties while stranding vulnerable young people mid-program.

On this episode of Cornhole Champions, Zachary Oren Smith, Amy Rivers, and Avery Staker dig into how a major shift on high ripples out into a small town.

Toss some bags about the “Big Beautiful Bill’s” big, ugly impacts… a "research victory” leaving US research in the hole... and why egging's decline may be our country's greatest recession indicator.

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SHOW RUNDOWN:

00:00 - Egging Houses and Economic Anxiety

05:00 - Federal Medicaid cuts threatening small-town hospitals, focusing on "Big Beautiful Bill" reconciliation package

08:00 - Work requirements, cost-sharing increases, and federal matching rate reductions for expansion states like Iowa

09:00 - Tony and Lori Lukken family facing loss of Medicaid waiver for ventilator-dependent care in Sergeant Bluff

12:30 - Iowa's Waiver System Problems - Lack of appeal process compared to neighboring states like Nebraska and Missouri

13:30 - Hospital Funding Mechanics - How hospital taxes create federal match funds that get redistributed back

16:00 - Trump administration announcing $10 million study of train derailment health effects in East Palestine

19:00 - 1,400 terminated research grants versus single $10 million study

20:30 - Community skepticism about "too little, too late" approach

22:30 - Trump administration pausing 99 contractor-operated centers including Iowa's top-performing Ottumwa facility

28:00 - Personal Story - Ajai Long's transformation from couch-hopping and depression to stable employment through Job Corps

30:00 - Generational Investment Concept - How current spending prevents future costs and breaks poverty cycles

32:00 - Community Impact - Comparison to Iowa Wesleyan University closure and difficulty replacing specialized employers

33:30 - Show Wrap - Promotion of YouTube, newsletter, and Iowa Starting Line content

35:30 - Post-Credits Banter - Joking about federal government and fake January 6th meeting story

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