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Congresswoman Abby Finkenauer's 1st District is home to a crucial constituency for Democratic presidential candidates working to win the Iowa caucuses and beyond, and on Thursday, at the start of Joe Biden's four-day swing in the state, he got a leg up there. "Joe...
President Donald Trump’s recent attacks on the Green New Deal demonstrate how taking a hard-line stance against the significant climate legislation may play a central role in his 2020 campaign platform. While speaking last Saturday to the Turning Point USA Summit in...
The clock is ticking down on the end of 2019, though here in the Starting Line office, we're mostly just concerned with who's covering what candidate this weekend. I thought it would be nice to take a moment to look back at the very exciting, transformative year we've...
Bob Thomas, the former chair of the Appanoose County Democrats, needed the clarity of a long winter's drive to finally commit to a presidential candidate. "Over Christmas, I drove down to Dallas, Interstate 35 the whole way, all by myself, and I made the decision that...
Pete Buttigieg is barreling toward an Iowa Caucus victory, and there's not a damn thing anyone's tweets can do about it. The month of December has given the South Bend Mayor his biggest challenges yet, including intense media questions over his work at McKinsey,...
They're filling the gas tank back up in John Delaney's big blue RV for a final blitz across Iowa in the last month leading up to the caucus. Delaney and his team will embark upon a 40-stop tour in January, focusing their time in many tiny towns in rural counties as he...
The 99-county tour. It's been an ambitious goal for anyone looking to win over Iowa voters in every corner of the state. Candidates have completed it and love to talk about it, and it's become somewhat of a unicorn to chase while campaigning in the state. It's a great...
The end of the year has a way of stirring things in your memory, from family to heroes, to all kinds of inspiration. I have been inspired by books and by movies, and more importantly, I am always inspired by unique individuals who have struggled and came through to...
On Pete Buttigieg's first trip to Iowa as a presidential candidate, during a bitterly cold day in February, he made a stop at Iowa State University in Ames to speak with a group of college students. Over forty young voters showed up, a good turnout for a then-unknown...
One of the tenets of Sen. Cory Booker’s 2020 presidential bid can be traced back to a Maya Angelou quote. “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel,” she said. The New Jersey Senator often...
Sen. Amy Klobuchar is in the midst of a 27-county barnstorm of Iowa, part of her effort to do the full 99-county tour before caucus night gets here. She's riding high after a solid debate performance, one that generated $1 million in donations to her in the 24 hours...
Sen. Cory Booker set off on his four-day bus tour of Iowa yesterday morning, loading into his newly-wrapped ride that was adorned with the names of voters from around the country who donated to his campaign. Now off the debate stage, Booker is devoting even more time...
Yet another Democratic debate is in the books, the sixth one featuring several more contentious moments between the candidates that many expected to finally come. Elizabeth Warren faced off with Pete Buttigieg over fundraising strategies, while Amy Klobuchar got in...
Eighteen-year-old Amalia Hochman is a challenging teenager to get ahold of. As a senior in high school, she’s busy, but not with extracurricular activities or studying for chemistry tests. Hochman is consumed by her work as a Sunrise Movement youth organizer. After...
Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst faces a challenging path to her first reelection in 2020, according to a poll published yesterday. The first-term incumbent holds only a 47% to 41% lead over likely Democratic challenger Theresa Greenfield. Ernst also has a 45% favorable and 43%...
Pat Rynard sits down with Des Moines Register Chief Political Reporter Brianne Pfannenstiel to talk about her article on whether new reporting from the Iowa Caucus could produce multiple winners. In the second half, Pat chats with Khizr Khan about endorsing...
Last night, people around the country took to the streets to demand accountability for Donald J. Trump, the fourth president in history to face impeachment. In Des Moines, hundreds of people gathered on the steps of the Iowa Capitol building with signs and chants....
Whenever a friend or relative dies, it’s not unusual to find ourselves dwelling on the conversations we wish had occurred or the questions that never got asked. That certainly was true with my parents, Noel and June, who left long before my brothers and I ran out of...
Pete Buttigieg added two more Iowa legislators to his endorsement column today, both of them from Des Moines' South Side. State Sen. Tony Bisignano and State Rep. Brian Meyer are announcing their backing of the South Bend Mayor today, adding two well-known legislators...
Five nights before the 2004 Iowa Caucus, John Kerry hosted one of his final Des Moines town hall events at the Playhouse Theater on 42nd Street. The room was packed with Democratic caucus-goers still undecided on who they'd support, and after the main program...
Grinnell, Iowa resident Alisa Schroeder lives in Willows Mobile Home Community, a manufactured housing site recently bought by a national company called Impact Communities. She’s a financially struggling single mom of an autistic son. Her brother, who has paranoid...
South Central Iowa Federation of Labor members volunteered to fill around 325 baskets of food, equal to about 6,500 individual meals, at the United Auto Workers Local 450 hall in Des Moines Friday morning. The food will be distributed to United Way agencies such as...
Several local races across Iowa have demonstrated to advocates that over time, housing issues have the potential to be winning campaign issues. Candidates in Urbandale, Iowa City and Ames won their bids for city council seats on platforms focused on affordable housing...
Andrew Yang recently kicked off his 23rd trip to Iowa as a presidential candidate with great news. He had made the December debate stage. "Just an hour ago, I became the seventh person to qualify for the December debates," said Yang, a New York entrepreneur, Tuesday...
We asked a group of Latinos in central Iowa what are their top three presidential candidates in preparation for the Iowa Caucus 2020, that will take place on February 3. From 70 Latinos interviewed, 34% said they will vote for Bernie Sanders, 31% for Elizabeth Warren...
I will never forget the movie “Fields of Dreams” and its popular quote: “build it and they will come." It may sound cliché, but it is true; when you build community, people gravitate toward that community or the persons who make that community great, regardless of...
The conservative energy non-profit that campaigned against President Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection is now set on targeting the Green New Deal and 2020 Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders' advocacy for it. In an advertisement released on Facebook and Instagram near...
Julian Castro took his new campaign message of ending Iowa and New Hampshire's status as the first presidential nominating states directly to Iowa caucus-goers last night. It did not go very well. Castro wanted to focus in on racial diversity and access problems with...
Housing has had a moment during the 2020 election cycle, but some are wondering if the nation’s growing need for affordable options can mobilize voters enough to implement policy changes. Advocates say the sheer impact of the housing crisis, growing political will and...
A group of ten African American leaders and elected officials are endorsing Sen. Elizabeth Warren for the Iowa Caucus, adding to her coalition-building efforts in the lead-off state. North Liberty City Councilmember Raquishia Harrington and Ankeny School Boardmember...
