2016

What is happening to our country? For generations, going all the way back to the 13 colonies, the Founding Fathers wanted this place to be different from other nations. People in America would be able to speak and think freely and move about at will. People would get to vote on the people who would…

Earlier today we took an in-depth look at where the Democrats and Republicans are spending the most money in state legislative races. Now let’s go district-by-district to see how much each candidate raised, what contributions were interesting and what it all means (we’ll start with just the State Senate – this took longer than expected). The…

The biggest fundraising report of the year for Iowa legislative races dropped yesterday, revealing important information on where each party sees their best pick-up opportunities. The mid-October report covers everything from mid-July to now, the timeframe where major amounts of money get spent in the down-ballot races. Democrats are essentially playing entirely on defense in the Iowa Senate,…

Senator Grassley is running ads bragging that he “works.” He claims he has a nearly perfect attendance record. He claims he rarely misses a vote. So why isn’t he fighting for Iowans that have been flood victims multiple times? Why can’t Grassley get adequate flood protection for Iowa? Our major cities have been hit by…

When politicians spend money to run negative ads that lack substance and the entire truth, they usually do so out of fear of their opponent. So, one can conclude that Iowa House Majority Leader Chris Hagenow is running scared, much as he should be because the four-term Republican legislator has a formidable foe in Democratic…

Hillary Clinton will get to 270 electoral votes with or without Iowa. It’s time for Iowa Democrats to look out for their own and make sure our state doesn’t become the next all-GOP controlled Wisconsin or Kansas. Democrats hold the slimmest of margins in the Iowa Senate, and are facing an all-out campaign advertising onslaught from…

You can’t grow up in a state like Iowa and not have close to an equal number of Republican friends, friends who are Democrats and friends who are politically independent. That’s certainly been the case for this kid from southern Iowa. Through the years, I’ve had some enjoyable debates with friends over the pluses and…

For months now, nervous Iowa Democrats have looked at electoral prediction maps with despair as states like North Carolina, Georgia and Arizona head to toss-up status while Iowa remains in a light red hue. Today a poll found that even Texas was only three points in favor of Trump. There’s been a frustrating lack of reliable…

Part two in a six-part series looking at the female Democratic candidates running for legislative office in Polk County On paper, she is arguably the most qualified candidate to run for state office this year, but a person only needs to talk to Heather Matson for a few minutes to confirm that she is much more…

In yesterday’s article Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, former Chief of Staff for Secretary of State Colin Powell, defended Hillary Clinton’s record as Senator and as Secretary of State. In the continuation of that interview, he expands on the root causes for the firestorm of conflicts across the Middle East. Both President Obama and Secretary Clinton have…