January 2015

I wanted to write a special thank you to our readers for a great week and let you know about some updates on the blog. First off, thank you again for reading our posts and sharing them around. If you can’t tell, I’m having a lot of fun with this, and I really hope you…

Run Warren Run’s Des Moines office opening Thursday evening felt like many other caucus campaign launches. Excited supporters gathered to see how they can help. Staff and volunteers shared their moving stories of why they supported the candidate. A wish list of office supplies hung on the wall. Volunteers stuck around afterwards to make calls.…

Hoping to recapture the magic of his 2012 Iowa Caucus win, Rick Santorum crisscrossed the state in the days following Steve King’s Freedom Summit in Des Moines. From Sioux City to Davenport, the former Pennsylvania Senator dropped in at some of his old haunts to rekindle an interest in another presidential run. Yet even as…

Iowa Democrats have reason for optimism as they look to the future, despite the terrible results from the 2014 election. A crop of inspiring leaders are looking for their moment on the bigger stage. Republicans like Terry Branstad and Chuck Grassley won’t be around in office forever, but even before they depart, multiple opportunities exist…

Jake Oeth, Bruce Braley’s former political director, has been brought on by Martin O’Malley’s PAC to begin outreach efforts in Iowa, according to a Politico story posted early Tuesday morning. Starting Line as well had heard from multiple sources in Iowa that Oeth had been recruited by O’Malley to start laying the groundwork for a…

At an age where many young people are still figuring out their direction in life, newly-elected State Representative Abby Finkenauer walks onto the floor of the Iowa House each day with a passion and purpose unlike many others. Elected from District 99 in Dubuque, Finkenauer, a 26-year old Democrat, already looks like she belongs because…

More than 20 Republican leaders in all addressed Steve King’s Freedom Summit on Saturday, speaking to a crowd composed of the most conservative voting bloc in American politics. It was mostly what we’ve come to expect from candidates trying to appeal to what they think the far-right Fox News crowd wants to hear. The more…

Republican leaders and consultants were probably letting out sighs of annoyance on Tuesday night upon seeing Iowa Representative Steve King’s newest offensive comment pop up on their Twitter feed. “#Obama perverts “prosecutorial discretion” by inviting a deportable to sit in place of honor at #SOTU w/1st Lady. I should sit with Alito,” read his tweet.…

Governor Terry Branstad and others described a new pro-ethanol campaign group as an educational opportunity for presidential candidates, though the real message was clear: if you want to do well in the Iowa Caucus, you should support the Renewable Fuel Standard. America’s Renewable Future, a large bipartisan coalition, announced at the State Capitol today a…

Starting Line will offer a series of Iowa Travel Guides to all of Iowa’s main cities throughout the course of the year for visiting journalists and campaign staff to use on their trips. Let’s start out with the Capitol City. Des Moines has undergone a cultural renaissance in the past ten years. The downtown and…