2016
-
Finkenauer Friday: The First One!
The 2016 Iowa Legislative Session began on January 11th and with that, Iowa Starting Line has teamed up with State Representative Abby Finkenauer (D- Dubuque) to offer a weekly column. Finkenauer will share her take on the happenings at the State House, highlight topics that are not being discussed in the Republican-controlled Iowa House, and…
-
Labor Deploys Ground Forces To Iowa For Hillary
About 100 Ironworkers from central Iowa gathered at the Local 67 headquarters on the northeast side of Des Moines a few cold weekends ago to hear from their international president on the importance of caucusing for Hillary Clinton. Their mission that day was to send their members out to knock on doors of fellow labor…
-
Cruz Gets Caught In The Branstad-Vander Plaats GOP Civil War
Ted Cruz has made a lot of enemies in Iowa. Chief among them is the ethanol industry. Now several of Cruz’s important Iowa allies may be exacerbating his problems and opposition by unwittingly dragging him into a long-running internal Iowa Republican civil war. The conflict is a fight over the future of the Iowa Republican…
-
O’Malley’s 2nd Choicers Could Swing The Caucus – Where Are They Going?
Hillary Clinton went in to caucus night in 2008 in 2nd place. Nearly every entrance poll released showed her ahead of John Edwards, though still behind Barack Obama. But after the realignment period in the actual caucus – where candidate groups who don’t meet the Democrats’ viability threshold switch sides – Clinton ended just behind…
-
Sanders’ Behind-The-Scenes Work To Win Over Seniors
It was not the typical Bernie Sanders crowd. A dozen Iowans in their 60’s, 70’s and beyond, nearly all white-haired and wearing glasses, shuffled into the basement meeting room of the Estherville public library last Friday, to hear from a Sanders staffer about seniors issues. Estherville is in Emmet County, located in deep-red northwestern Iowa,…
-
Power Rankings: Iowa Caucus – Democrats (January). Too Close To Call
There’s fewer degrees of Fahrenheit outside in Iowa right now than there are days left until the Iowa Caucus, but not by much. The final Democratic debate before the caucus was held last night, and it reflected a much changed dynamic since months past. Hillary Clinton is fighting for her life in Iowa, much as…
-
The Faith-Based Push On Climate Change – Interview With Rev. Durley
As the environmental and climate change movement continues to build momentum and expand, a number of new partners join the coalition. One important addition has been the faith community, with leaders from a wide array of denominations adding their voice and unique perspective. One veteran civil rights activist and faith leader visited Des Moines recently…
-
How Bernie Sanders Helped Kill Rand Paul’s Campaign
Rand Paul’s presidential campaign hasn’t exactly gone as planned. Once seen as a rising star in the Republican Party, many saw him as poised to capitalize on his father Ron’s libertarian base of support and build upon it with Rand’s more conventional policies and a personality more palatable to mainstream conservatives. Instead, less than three…
-
Where’s The Beef, Bernie?
As caucus night draws near and the polls tighten, the Hillary Clinton campaign is putting increasing pressure on Bernie Sanders to release a detailed plan on his Medicare-for-all proposal. Namely: how is he going to pay for it? The newest battle began after Sanders himself told CNN on Tuesday night that he would release his…
-
Bernie Sanders Makes Big Push For Polk County
Central Iowa got a lot of love from Bernie Sanders on his latest 4-day swing through the caucus state, with Polk County seeing the Vermont Senator at a number of venues around the metro area. Sanders held two large rallies, one in Ankeny and one on Des Moines’ East Side, along with a Latino round…
