Clay Masters
Clay Masters is Iowa Public Radio’s Morning Edition host and lead political reporter. He was part of a team of member station political reporters who covered the 2016 presidential race for NPR. He also covers environmental issues.
Clay joined the Iowa Public Radio newsroom as a statehouse correspondent in 2012 and started hosting Morning Edition in 2014. Clay is an award-winning multi-media journalist whose radio stories have been heard on various NPR and American Public Media programs.
He was one of the founding reporters of Harvest Public Media, the regional journalism consortium covering agriculture and food production in the Midwest. He was based in Lincoln, Nebraska where he worked for Nebraska’s statewide public radio and television network.
He’s also an occasional music contributor to NPR’s arts desk.
Clay’s favorite NPR program is All Things Considered.
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Donald Trump chose Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad as ambassador to Beijing because of old ties with President Xi Jinping and Iowa's history of trade with China. Branstad will have a tough job.
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At Iowa freshman Sen. Joni Ernst's motorcycle ride and barbecue fundraiser, Trump didn't attend the ride but addressed participants, in a much-needed bid to draw support from influential GOP leaders.
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Ankeny, Iowa is one of the fastest-growing cities in the country and an example of a growing urban/rural divide. The presidential campaigns are shifting focus in this critical swing state.
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Ted Cruz won the Iowa Republican Caucuses on a platform that included opposing ethanol, a key Iowa industry. Does this mean future presidential candidates won't have to support the corn fuel?
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Donald Trump attacked fellow Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz at a rally in Iowa on Friday night.
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Bob Vander Plaats, the president of the conservative Christian group the Family Leader, is throwing his support behind the Texas senator. Vander Plaats has previously backed Iowa caucus winners.
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After months of looking at a number of Republican candidates, the state's evangelicals appear to be shifting toward Cruz.
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Candidates' waning interest in the corn fuel shows that Iowa's role in shaping policy debates may be declining.
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The hyperfocus on Iowa as the first presidential nominating contest has meant more money — and sometimes leaving allegiances behind — for consultants, who can make up to $10,000 a month.
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Among heating lamps and sneeze guards, you could just meet the next president. Candidates love the chain because it's ubiquitous and cheap.