Amie here with your Tuesday events!

• If you’re in Mason City, go vote today.

• The televised Trump rally State of the Union is tonight, which you can watch here live. Or, you can watch The People’s State of the Union from MoveOn.org, or State of the Swamp from Defiance.org.

• The proposed Farm Bill sucks, apparently. Our state is also trying its own version of this (the Iowa Farm Act), which, among other things, would allow an unlimited amount of money to go toward “renewable fuel infrastructure.” 

In this issue: Candidate events, protests, this week’s viral post, and reader soundoff is back!

Candidate meet and greets:

US Senate candidate Zach Wahls:

• 7 p.m. Saturday, Ames

US House District 2 candidate Dave Bushaw:

• 4 p.m. Tuesday, Grinnell College Humanities and Social Studies Center
• 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Dubuque

US House District 3 candidate Sarah Trone Garriott:

• 1 p.m. Saturday, Des Moines

Iowa Secretary of State candidate Ryan Peterman:

• noon Saturday, Ames
• 3 p.m. Saturday, Boone
• 1 p.m. Sunday, Newton
• 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Oskaloosa

Iowa House District 33 candidate Randolph “Scotty” Scott:

• 3 p.m. Sunday, Des Moines

Iowa House District 38 candidate Brad Magg:

• 6 p.m. Thursday, Newton

Iowa House District 54 candidate Leila Staton:

• 10:30 a.m. Saturday, The Coffee Attic, Iowa Falls

Iowa House District 68 candidate Scott Bodley:

• 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Dubuque

Iowa House District 72 candidate Matt Robinson:

• 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Dubuque

Iowa House District 99 candidate Marcques Derby:

• 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Burlington

Featured protests and rallies:

Iowa farmers describe the growing crisis facing family farms as tariffs drive up input costs and gut export markets.

“There’s no plan,” said Crawford County’s Dave Muhlbaeur, “and all the while we see farmers suffering by no fault of our own.”

Watch here, then join the discussion on

• Facebook
• Instagram
• TikTok

Readers are invited to add to the conversation by emailing responses@iowastartingline.com. Please include your first name and last initial. You may also want to include your city, but that’s up to you. I may edit your content for conciseness or to correct typos.

SAVE Act:

• “They will really try to stop women from voting. This is interesting.” — Therese F.

Tax the rich?

• “I favor a wealth tax. I think 100% over $1 billion would work just fine.” —Jeff B.

• “By all means, and other states as well. 5% of what they earn is paltry, but can make a tremendous difference to all of Iowa.” — Clare L.

Jobs lost v. gained:

• “Do you have a comparison for 2025 the number of layoffs versus the number of ‘new’ jobs? I’m not talking about jobs where the DOGE terminated or laid off, and then had to call them back to work.” — Tammy M. (NOTE: Iowa Workforce Development says the state added 32,400 jobs in 2025, though not all those jobs were filled.)
  
  

Evelyn K. Davis:

• “Mom Davis once told me, ‘I never got a paycheck big enough to shut my mouth.’

   

  When I was considering resigning from an organization that was revealing racist tendencies, she wisely advised me to keep working from within: ‘Stay on the bus!’

   

  Her support for Jesse Jackson in the 1988 caucuses was instrumental in his then-astonishing nearly 10% statewide showing, cracking the door open for Obama’s Iowa victory 20 years later.”
  — David L.

More stories about:

• “State politics needs you to be on them like a pitbull on a canned ham.

  So many abnormal issues are being discussed at the Statehouse and most people cannot keep up with the firehose of depravities.

  Perhaps some more stories from some smaller towns about the real effects of the decisions made in Des Moines.” — Mike L.

• “Keosauqua Underground RR Museum.” — Lynn J.

• “I enjoyed the ‘best rest stops’ article—perhaps something similar could be done with an eye toward electric vehicles? Where are the good places to hang out and charge? Who has DC fast chargers? Who are the oases in stretches of otherwise featureless highways or crucial ‘top off here’ points before charging deserts?” — Alan S.

Problems at UnityPoint:

• “On April 17, 2025, I had a patient experience at UnityPoint Health – Grinnell involving multiple individuals in the GI clinic. This experience centered on communication failures and the mishandling of my appointment.

  On May 1, 2025, my son underwent surgery at UnityPoint–Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines, and our concerns involved administrative and billing issues following his procedure.

  As I attempted to address these matters, I encountered repeated communication barriers …

  UnityPoint’s response doesn’t seem to acknowledge the pain and distress that patients and their families have experienced. … I reached out for specific insights into this determination, especially given the ongoing issues I’ve faced with administrative and communication failures across several UnityPoint facilities. It’s been almost two weeks since I asked my follow-up question, and I’m still waiting for a response from them.

  These incidents raise concerns about systemic issues that negatively affect patient safety, access to care, and trust in the healthcare system. I continue to believe the organization failed to meet basic patient rights standards, including maintaining accurate records, providing clear and timely communication, and ensuring equitable access to care—particularly for patients with disabilities.” — Angelica D.

Replies to reader letters:

• “Cody’s blindness to the racist white nationalism of this administration and the unchecked violence of its masked and armed thugs says a lot about why s/he sees protesters as ‘communists.’ Evidence, too, of the effectiveness of right wing brainwashing.” — Greg C.

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