>> you are watching american history tv. follow us on twitter you for information and to keep up with the latest history news. all weekend long, american history tv is joining with our partners to showcase the history of des moines. to learn more about the city's honor 2014 tour, visit see cspan.org. this is american history tv on c-span 3. while in des moines we spoke brandstant.rry >> why the draw for candidates in des moines? >> this is where it all starts.

are very interested in meeting the candidates and asking questions, finding out where they stand. actually jimmy carter started it campaignaunched his is an unknown former governor of georgia. he came in second to undecided. that launched his campaign for president. many a candidate has come to iowa taking this is where it can be done. >> what would surprise others about iowa voters? >> i think people are surprised that here retail politics really matters. it is not about who has the most money are the best tv ads, it is who can do the best job of relating to people and answering their questions. and being available -- to judge the candidates, come to - -my advice to potential

candidates is come to iowa and show people what you stand for and that can make a real difference. it has happened again and again in this state. >> why are iowa voters different? what makes them different? voters take their responsibility seriously. we have a high number people that are registered to vote a high percentage of them to show up to vote. they are honest, hard-working, caring people. and they treat others with respect and dignity. i think this is a great place to start the presidential selection process because of the kind of people we have in the state of iowa. >> can you describe the political makeup of the state? >> we are about as purple as it can be. we are a very divided state politically. we have two democratic representatives and two republicans.

we have one democratic senator and one republican. while i was governor for a long time but then for 16 years we had 12 years where we had a democrat as governor. our legislature has gone back and forth between republicans and democrats. we have a fair system of free apportioning our legislature in congressional districts. and then the legislature has devoted up or down. we have very competitive districts. the state of iowa oftentimes will go different then maybe the nation in terms of who we choose rest because iowa voters a very independent, very thoughtful, and they choose the one they think best represents them. >> well, you were reelected in 2010. can you give us a history of your involvement in politics and if it different this time? >> it is.

the differences social media. when i was governor before, facebook did not exist and yet this time, when i came back and ran again in 2010, a couple of young men were law students has started a movement on facebook to draft me to run for governor. yet they convinced me. they got 10,000 people to sign up. if that many of people that could not vote when i was governor before, think i should come back to lead the state's revitalization, maybe i ought to do it. i'm proud i did. we have got the state's financial house in order. we have been able to reduce the property tax burden and reform education. and so we now have the seventh lowest unemployment in the country. r reelection in 2014 and i am running for reelection because we are not done yet. the lieutenant governor i have

big plans for an even brighter fouture. >> what would you say is the biggest misconception about iowa? >> a lot of people think it is, you know, agriculture like it was the 1950's. today, is a much more sophisticated situation. and it's not just agriculture. it is all of these other things we have going for it. it is the companies like facebook and microsoft and google. it's insurance and financial services. but it is also what we are adding to agriculture. so today, we are not just shipping out corn and soybeans. it'sbiofuels, pharmaceuticals, as well as food and feed to feed and to provide for a hungry world. >> what role has iowa played in developing the agricultural industry? >> we are the heart of

agriculture. iowa is the leading corn producing state, the leading soybean producing state. the leading pork producing state. the leading egg producing state. our cat lovers are increasing. we develop renewable fuels -- our cattle numbers are increasing. state university and the advances we have seen it agriculture, i think iowa is going to be a key leader. we have record enrollment at iowa state university. a lot of great jobs coming out of it. >> what about renewable energy? in renewableader energy. we are proud of that. i have been proud -- a proud supporter of ethanol. now we produce more renewable fuel in iowa. we have 42 ethanol plants. 12 biodiesel plants. we have two plants under

construction. we have dupont pioneer that is looking for something called biobutanol, the next phase in terms of renewables. i think that we've made a big difference in reducing our dependency on foreign oil and making america more competitive. we are very excited about the future. we are very concerned about what is happening with the epa wanted to reduce the renewable fuels helped reduce is our dependency on foreign oil. we think the epa should continue to follow the law and expand the use of biofuels. it has been good for america, good for agriculture, and created a lot of good jobs in this state. >> what problems do you see? >> there are always challenges out there.

one of our biggest problems is finding a people with the right skill set to meet the jobs being created in this state. this year we passed something we call home based iowa, because we know there are federal cutbacks in the military and there are a lot of talented people. we are saying we are limiting the tax on military retirement. we are offering in-state tuition to all of this military people that are leaving the military and their spouses and dependents. and we are matching them up with good jobs and careers in iowa if they will come to iowa. we also have something called iowa to upgrade the skills of iowans who do not have the skills in advanced manufacturing. it is a company called american college testing that offers the national career readiness certificate. we are encouraging all of our high schools offer that, our. community colleges we are offering it free of

charge for anybody that wants to assess their own skills and see if they can upgrade their skills the jobthey can meet requirements in the workplace. much different manufacturing environment that it was 30 years ago. >> where do you see iowa going in the future? >> i think the future looks very bright. we have our financial house in order. we are reducing taxes and attracting good paying jobs. we are working to revitalize education with the goal to be the number one state in american student achievement. i'm trying to lead by example. i lost enough weight to where my army uniform when i signed the home-based iowa bill on memorial day. so we are trying to do all we can to really lead the way in know what we want to be healthy, happy, we want to have really good jobs, and we want people to feel welcome in the great state of iowa. throughout the weekend,

american history tv is featuring des moines, iowa. our local content vehicles team traveled there to learn about its rich history. learn more about des moines and other stops on c-span's cities tour at c-span.org/local contact. you're watching american history tv all weekend, every weekend on c-span 3. american artifacts, a visit to the cia museum in langley, virginia where the museum curator presents election highlights and explains the museum's mission of preserving and presenting the agency's history. >> we are standing in the memorial lobby of the original headquarters building. this lobby has a number of significant memorials in it. every visitor to the agency comes through this entrance. every new agency officer takes their oath of office here in this lobby, in front of 107 of our fallen officers.

they walked across the agency field to take their place in the lobby. and the father of central intelligence is watching over their shoulders as they begin a career for our central intelligence agency in our nation. we are standing close to a sculpture of the father of central intelligence. donovan was tapped by president roosevelt in 1942 to head the office of strategic services. that organization had grown out of an earlier one hold the -- called the coordinator of information, our country's first non-departmental intelligence agency, established by president roosevelt to coordinate intelligence with the war growing overseas. the single star behind us commemorates the loss of 116 oss'ers who served during world war ii.