Pat Rynard founded Iowa Starting Line in 2015. He still keeps a close eye on Iowa politics, his dog’s name is Frank, and football season is his favorite time of year.
Pat Rynard
Latest from Pat Rynard
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Contentious DSM Mayor Race Heads Toward Unpredictable Finish
An expensive, surprisingly close run-off election for the Des Moines mayoral seat comes to a close tomorrow. The final weeks have featured attacks and counter-attacks as both candidates have criticized each others’ records and backgrounds. Voters have been inundated with TV ads, online videos, text messages, calls and mailers for Iowa’s largest city’s top job,…
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How Cory Booker’s Message Of Love Can Still Win In Iowa
In Iowa, the voters are angry. Even the really old ones, like 95-year-old Bud Guthrie, a World War II veteran who lives in rural Story County. He’s so upset by Donald Trump, that Guthrie, a lifelong Republican, has now switched to being a lifelong Democrat, as he told Sen. Cory Booker in early November. “As…
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Giddens: Elizabeth Warren Will End The Corruption That Has Captured Our Government
Guest op-ed from State Sen. Eric Giddens of Cedar Falls. Our nation’s guiding principle is enshrined in our founding document: the government derives its power from the people, and the people direct the operations of their government. That’s what the Declaration of Independence says, and it’s the optimistic view of government that I grew up…
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With Vilsacks’ Help, Biden Makes Very Explicit Electability Push
It was an hour and a half into Joe Biden’s event in Knoxville, Iowa, and the former vice president wasn’t ready to leave. Taking his third question after his staff called for a “last question,” Biden walked into the crowd to an older gentleman emphatically raising his hand. The man choked up as he told…
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Iowa GOP Rep Calls Trans Flag-Flying A ‘Rainbow Jihad’
The acknowledgment of transgender Iowans appears to have deeply upset a pair of Republican lawmakers in Iowa. State Rep. Skyler Wheeler called the flying of a transgender flag over the Iowa Capitol for a few minutes “one of the most egregious acts of political aggression I’ve ever seen.” In an interview with The Iowa Standard,…
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Mayors Presidential Forum Is Coming To Waterloo
The issues and challenges that Iowa cities face will get their time on the national stage early next month, as the U.S. Conference of Mayors and Accelerator for America brings a major presidential forum to Waterloo. Mayor Quentin Hart of Waterloo will welcome candidates to his city to discuss topics from housing to transportation to…
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Elizabeth Warren Lands New Iowa Endorsements After Debate
Elizabeth Warren brought her number of Iowa state legislator endorsements to ten today following last night’s Democratic debate. Cedar Rapids State Representative Art Staed announced he’d be in Warren’s corner on caucus night, along with 24 other notable Iowa Democratic and community leaders. “Elizabeth Warren has the passion and intellect to unite and lead our…
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When Everyone Thinks They Have A Chance, No One Does
It is past time for more candidates to drop out of the presidential primary. Seventy-nine days out from the Iowa Caucus, we still have 17 Democratic contenders in the race. The total number started going in the wrong direction this past week with Deval Patrick’s entrance, and it could climb by one more if Michael…
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Poll: Amy Klobuchar, Tom Steyer Picking Up Steam In Iowa
A recently-released survey from PPP Polls has good news for Amy Klobuchar and Tom Steyer in the lead-off caucus state. Both are moving up in the still-crowded Democratic primary, with Klobuchar polling at 9% and Steyer at 6% in Iowa in this survey. Klobuchar’s new showing has her just outside the top tier of front-runners…
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Iowa Caucus TV Ad Wars Heat Up – What They’re Saying
We’re starting to enter peak advertising season here in the Iowa Caucus, as messages from presidential candidates compete with holiday ads on the TV screens. Starting Line counts eight different Democratic contenders with spots on Iowa TV this week, most of which are running in the Des Moines and Cedar Rapids media markets. Let’s take…
