February 2019
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Soup, Spaghetti, And Lots Of Democrats
Iowa Democrats get their first taste of some multi-candidate caucus events during the next two weeks, served up with sides of soup and spaghetti. Three Democratic county parties will host at least two to three presidential candidates at their local fundraisers in Central and Southern Iowa. The Monroe County Democrats will hear from Amy Klobuchar,…
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State Help Shouldn’t Overlook Our Small Towns
Community leaders always prefer to see the glass as half full instead of dwelling on trends and policies beyond their control that could easily produce anxiety — or ulcers. I had a friend for many years who fit that description. I would call him an optimistic realist. I’m sure he had opportunities to follow a…
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GOP Court Scheme Is “Largest Judicial Power Grab Ever Attempted”
Republican legislators have introduced bills in the Iowa House (HSB 110) and the Iowa Senate (SSB 1101) that are a direct attack on Iowa’s merit-based judicial selection process. The Iowa group Justice Not Politics describes the proposed changes as the largest judicial power grab ever attempted in Iowa. Iowa’s current merit-based judicial selection process significantly…
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How Iowa’s Caucus Reform Will Change Campaign Strategies
The Iowa Democratic Party unveiled their long-discussed plan to reform the Iowa Caucus process yesterday, laying out what would be the most significant changes to the caucus since its creation. They included a new virtual caucus option, an important tweak to viability procedures, a new reporting system for the raw vote, and a recount option.…
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Ep80: Caucus Changes, Midwest Field, And Cory Booker Interview
The Iowa Starting Line Podcast host Pat Rynard is joined by former Lt. Governor Patty Judge to talk about proposed changes to the Iowa Caucus, the recent candidates visits, and how the field of Midwest candidates is shaping up. And we interview Senator Cory Booker during his first trip to Iowa.
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Why This Iowan Is Caucusing For John Delaney
A guest post from Paula Meyer of St. Ansgar, Iowa. She’s one of John Delaney’s Iowa campaign co-chairs. I first heard John Delaney speak in Washington, D.C. in 2013 about his ideas to create and fund an infrastructure bank that would pay for over $1 trillion of infrastructure without raising taxes. I came home and…
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Comparing The Democrats’ Iowa Caucus Event Styles
It’s a little under a year out from the Iowa Caucus, and presidential candidates are already inundating the state to make their pitch to local activists. What’s particularly fascinating from these initial visits is that the Democrats’ campaigning and event styles are just as diverse as the field itself. You can already start to see…
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Cory Booker’s Unity Message Will Test Whether Twitter Is Wrong
For a man who drew national fame in part because of his clever use of social media while mayor of Newark, Cory Booker’s message for his 2020 bid most certainly does not match the mood of today’s political Twitter. In his first journey to Iowa after his presidential campaign announcement, Booker stuck to an optimistic…
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The Other Way That Pete Buttigieg Stood Out In Iowa
Even in an incredibly crowded 2020 field, there’s plenty of ways that Pete Buttigieg, mayor of a mid-sized Midwestern city, stands out: he’s young, gay, and an Afghanistan War veteran. But his first appearances in Iowa after his presidential campaign announcement were noteworthy in a much more simple way: how bluntly and honestly he answered…
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Ep79: Early Relationship Building In The Iowa Caucus
The Iowa Starting Line Podcast host Pat Rynard is joined by Representative Jennifer Konfrst to talk early relationship building and outreach from the presidential candidates, as well what’s happening at the Statehouse this week.
