February 2015

Good morning readers! As always, a lot happened in the political world this week. Enjoy our Sunday Grab Bag of shorter takes on a number of Iowa and national political topics: Jeb Bush and Rand Paul Struggle With Expanding Their Base at CPAC The media fawned over Jeb Bush’s performance at CPAC on Friday, the…

I will be doing a live-blog of sorts covering Day 2 of CPAC. Stick with me throughout the day as I do quick-takes on the major speeches. Will catch up on the early speeches of Gingrich, Rubio and Perry, and then move on to Paul, Trump, Santorum and Bush later. General Notes: There’s a guy…

Hillary Clinton made her first major speech of the year in Silicon Valley on Tuesday, dominating the day’s news cycle. Her remarks gave tantalizing hints as to what major themes would form the centerpiece of her campaign. Clinton gave an impressive performance that connected with the crowd, clearly laying out her support of women in…

Both the Iowa House and Senate passed a 10-cent increase in the gas tax yesterday in what will likely be this session’s largest legislative accomplishment (or failure, depending on your view). The vote breakdown in both chambers was fascinating, one of the few majorly controversial bills that doesn’t come down to a party-line vote. Democrats…

NBC’s Parks and Recreation’s seven-year run ends tonight with their series finale. Leslie Knope’s drive, decent humanity and love for her town built a loyal following of fans for the show. However, one thing always bothered me: the cost of her campaign for City Council in Season 4. Seriously, a bus tour? I’ve run several…

Supporters stressed the safety improvements for Iowa motorists that proposed legislation to allow driver licenses for undocumented immigrants could bring to the state. At a Moral Mondays meeting yesterday at the State Capitol, a gathering of progressive organizations described the start of a currently low-key effort to push for the changes. “We know unlicensed drivers…

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, a self-identified socialist, undertook a three-day visit to Iowa late last week to test out a potential presidential bid. From Thursday to Saturday, he hit liberal gatherings, county party events and colleges in Iowa City, Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, Tipton and Ames. His message focused on wealth inequality, the danger of…

Good morning readers! As always, a lot happened in the political world this week in Iowa. Enjoy our Sunday Grab Bag of shorter takes on a number of Iowa-based topics: Bernie Sanders Impresses During Iowa Trip Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders finished up a three-day swing through Iowa last night. Once again, his visits stuck mostly…

Update 3/6: DesMoinesDem got a poll testing Hillary negatives on March 5th. Layout seemed similar to this one. Around 6:00 this evening I got a call from Mountain West Research that asked a wide array of questions on presidential candidates and policy messaging, mostly focusing on policy. It lasted about 35 minutes. I would say…

Home to the state’s largest college, the University of Iowa, Iowa City features the greatest variety and quality of bars and restaurants than anywhere else in the state, save for Des Moines. There’s no shortage of sports and dive bars, and the University of Iowa has often been ranked among the top party schools in…