2023
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Guest Post: Iowa A Testing Ground For Handmaid’s Tale-like Policies
We often hear people invoke “The Handmaid’s Tale” when legislatures make changes to reproductive health policies. Many people have watched the Hulu show based on the novel written by Margaret Atwood in 1985. I have taught Atwood’s novel in my courses at the University of Iowa and students are amazed by the important nuances missed…
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Clarence Thomas’ ‘Corruption’ Scandal Grows Even Bigger
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas failed to disclose a 2014 real estate deal between himself and Republican mega donor Harlan Crow, according to a new report from ProPublica. The deal involved the sale of three properties owned by Thomas and his relatives in Savannah, Georgia. The report claims that Crow, chairman of the Board of…
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Rep. Ro Khanna Headlines Launch Of Google/DMACC Partnership
Nearly 200 students, including many in rural and underserved communities, are on a fast path toward high-tech careers in a Google-backed program with a base in Des Moines — and ties to Silicon Valley and cutting-edge companies around the globe — that Congressman Ro Khanna shepherded from concept to classroom reality. Khanna, a Democrat who…
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Bill To Cut Food And Medicaid Benefits Goes To Reynolds’ Desk
Despite objections from working-class and low-income Iowans, food banks, and more than 200 Iowa religious leaders, Iowa House Republicans advanced a bill on Thursday to cut food and health-care benefits for thousands of Iowans. After a marathon debate, the Iowa House advanced SF 494 in a 58-41 vote. All 35 Iowa House Democrats voted against…
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Immigrant Moms of Legislators Share What They Love About Iowa
They came to Iowa knowing very little—or nothing—about what to expect. But once they were here, Hala Abumaizer-Scheetz, Kineret Zabner and Dr. Geetha Srinivas found kindness and community that has kept them in Iowa, even with other (less snowy) options out there. Abumaizer-Scheetz, Zabner and Srinivas are the mothers of Reps. Sami Scheetz, Adam Zabner…
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What the Latest Abortion Pill Ruling Means for You
UPDATE: Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito on Friday temporarily delayed Federal Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s ruling which sought to suspend the FDA’s approval for the abortion medication mifepristone. Alito’s ruling means mifepristone remains available according to each state’s abortion laws. The full Supreme Court is expected to rule on whether to uphold or overturn Kacsmaryk’s decision on…
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Cedar Rapids’ Rhodes Scholar to Nobel Nominee: Iowa Poet Paul Engle
Did you know Iowa can boast one of its own as a Nobel Prize-nominated poet? April is National Poetry Month, and Iowa has had its fair share of noteworthy poets. But perhaps our most successful is Paul Engle. Paul Engle was a lifelong Iowa poet who cared so much about writing he created programs to…
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Iowa House Votes To Legalize Guns On School And College Grounds
Iowa House Republicans voted on Wednesday to make it easier to bring guns on the campuses of Iowa schools, community colleges, and universities and to require public schools to implement K-12 gun safety curriculum that was developed by the National Rifle Association (NRA). HF 654 passed 62-37, with only two of 64 Republicans voting against…
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Iowa Nursing Homes Closures Accelerating; 696 Jobs Lost In Less Than a Year
The Iowa nursing home closings that began in 2022 are accelerating now—and they’re hitting small towns and rural communities the hardest. Colonial Manors of Manilla, which closed in July 2021—loss of 34 jobs—was the only Iowa nursing home closure that year reported to Iowa Workforce Development. But that began changing in July 2022, when the…
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You Might Be Owed Money If You Worked During 2015 Iowa Bird Flu Outbreak
Did you work to kill chickens or clean farms during the 2015 avian influenza outbreak in Iowa? You might be eligible for back wages. The federal government is trying to locate people who worked in Osceola, Sioux, and Cherokee counties in Iowa during the 2015 bird flu outbreak. That’s because the US Department of Labor…
