2017

On Tuesday the Republican Senate silenced Senator Elizabeth Warren during a hearing for Senator Sessions’ nomination as Attorney General.  Majority Leader McConnell claimed Senator Warren violated the decorum of the Senate by simply reading a letter from civil rights icon Coretta Scott King. Meanwhile, Republicans make lame excuses as President Trump lies with impunity. Have…

On the same day that Republican Secretary of State Paul Pate finally revealed his “election integrity” bill that aims to make it harder to vote in Iowa, it was revealed that the Dallas County Auditor had left 5,842 ballots uncounted in the November election, 13% of the total votes cast there. In a bombshell story…

If you don’t have as much income as you thought, you need to reduce the amount you spend. In a nutshell, that’s the situation Iowa finds itself in as the fiscal year goes on. Recently, the Iowa General Assembly voted to cut $118 million in spending to account for less-than-expected revenues. The state universities are…

Republican legislators are moving swiftly on their just-released bill that would make vast changes to Iowa’s collective bargaining law. The House will fast-track the bill through both a labor subcommittee and the full committee today. The Senate brings it up in subcommittee today and will hold their full committee vote on Thursday. Legislators on both…

After Republicans rode a wave of working class frustration into national and state office in 2016, some of those blue collar voters might expect legislators in Iowa to go to work on their behalf. Instead, this Iowa legislative session has been marked by numerous attempts from the new all-Republican majorities to undermine working people’s wages. One…

As the race for Democratic National Convention chair enters into the final stretch in February, many branches of the party are hosting forums with the seven major contenders. The national party’s Disability Caucus plans on hosting a virtual forum this upcoming Sunday, February 12th, at 7:00 pm CST. Former Iowa Senator Tom Harkin and former California Senator…

At a public hearing today of the Iowa House Education Committee, members of the public voiced their frustration over yet another year of inadequate school funding. Last week Republicans rammed through a bill in one day in the Iowa Senate that provided only a 1.1% increase in school funding for 2018. The measure is now…

It is assumed that the Republicans in the legislature will introduce anti-public employee bills today. It may range from Governor Branstad’s proposal to remove health care from the current menu of benefits to an all-out assault on public employees rights to negotiate their futures. Every Iowan should be concerned about any changes to the proven…

President Trump’s Muslim ban is so incredibly cruel because of the paralyzing fear it has created in America’s immigrant and refugee communities. It is based on a totally dishonest claim that it makes America safer, yet according to many United States Diplomats, it’s already proven to have damaged our security. The Foreign Service is circulating…

Among the many lies conservatives told or bought into about President Barack Obama, two come especially to mind in light of the new president’s proclivities. The first is that Obama had a messiah complex: He saw himself as the savior of America – or at least of the Democratic Party. The second is that he…