Iowa Starting Line
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Iowa’s little-known Black history
Plus: Meet a candidate, protests, and a viral post Share with a friend Amie here. It’s February, the shortest month, and that clearly sedated groundhog saw his shadow yesterday, meaning six more weeks of winter (ughhhhh). It’s Black History Month. Here are some cool stories of Black Iowa history you might not know about.…
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6 Iowa waterfalls that are even more stunning in winter
Plus: Your emails and Positively Iowa Share with a friend 🗣️ It’s Friday: Time for Only in Iowa, Positively Iowa, this week’s pet photo, and reader replies. RAGBRAI route announced: The annual cross-state party on wheels will start this July in Onawa and end up in Dubuque, organizers announced this week. It’s the shortest route…
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Trump comes to Iowa today. Here’s what to know
Plus: Meet a candidate, protests, and a viral post Share with a friend Amie here. President Donald Trump is in Iowa today and will be giving a speech at the Horizon Events Center in Clive at 3 p.m. (A link to register for the event has apparently been taken down.) Are you headed to the…
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How Iowans are supporting Minnesota’s ICE strike
Plus: Your emails and Positively Iowa Share with a friend 🗣️ It’s Friday: Time for Only in Iowa, Positively Iowa, this week’s pet photo, and reader replies. Okoboji is still holding its annual Winter Games this weekend, despite the below-zero temps. You may be unaware of the true context of MLK’s “I Have a…
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Are you walking out of work today?
Plus: Meet a candidate, protests, and a viral post Share with a friend Amie here. Happy 11th anniversary to Iowa Starting Line, started by Pat Rynard as a deep dive into Iowa politics on Jan. 19, 2015. We’ve grown and broadened our scope of news since then, but we still love our politics. Are…
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🗣️ ‘Listen, commie,’ and more angry reader letters
Plus: Your emails and Positively Iowa Share with a friend 🗣️ It’s Friday: Time for Only in Iowa, Positively Iowa, this week’s pet photo, and reader replies. Iowa’s first women’s sports bar, Heroics, is now open, and they’re having an official launch party Saturday. Iowa is the first state to ‘gain more control…
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Growing backlash to AI traffic cameras in Iowa
Plus: Protests, viral post of the week, and more Share with a friend Amie here. The Iowa Legislature started up for the year on Monday. We’ve still got the Republican trifecta we’ve had for years now, but thanks to special elections going Democrats’ way, there’s only a GOP supermajority in the House—meaning Senate Republicans need…
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🪧 Venezuela, ICE protests around Iowa
Plus: Your emails and Positively Iowa Share with a friend It’s Friday, January 9, 2026. 🗣️ It’s Friday: Time for Only in Iowa, Positively Iowa, this week’s pet photo, and reader replies. ICE and Venezuela protests: After a woman was shot and killed by a federal agent in Minneapolis this week (donate to a…
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Have you caught the ‘super flu’ yet?
Plus: Protests, viral post of the week, and more Share with a friend Amie here. Lucky me, I caught one of the viruses going around Iowa during break. It’s likely the “super flu” variant going around (not covered by the shot), as flu activity is “very high” across the state right now (and the nation…
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🎇 What’s giving you hope in 2026?
Plus: Positively Iowa and what got us through Share with a friend Amie here. It’s been a tough year. For those of us who believe a better, more just world is possible, watching our state and federal leaders make it smaller and meaner has been disheartening and demoralizing. For those of us going through…
