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Yesterday Simon Conway of I Heart Radio’s WHO AM 1040 irresponsibly posted screenshots from an Indivisible closed Facebook group. The post contained member names and profile pictures and had to be edited to contain the disclaimer, “UPDATE: Any threats of violence...
A new forecast from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicts that the annual dead zone in the northern Gulf of Mexico will reach an area of nearly 8,200 square miles this summer, more than 50 percent larger than its average size. This huge dead...
Democrats have a new challenger in Iowa's 4th Congressional District to take on Steve King: J.D. Scholten, a professional baseball player and paralegal from Sioux City. He's returning to Iowa after playing professional baseball around the country and world, launching...
At the Iowa Democratic Party's State Central Committee meeting yesterday, party members set the official timeline for the 2018 caucus-to-convention process (in addition to electing Troy Price the new IDP chair). While non-presidential year caucuses and state...
Progress Iowa announced their headline speakers for their annual Corn Feed fundraiser this year: South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley. Congressman Dave Loebsack will join them on stage. They'll be part of a large speaker list, as...
Senator Bernie Sanders will be the keynote speaker for Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement’s Action Fund’s (CCI Action) annual convention in Des Moines on July 15th. This will be the first time Senator Sanders has returned to Iowa since the 2016 presidential...
“Something Different.” That could easily be the slogan for Cathy Glasson’s campaign for governor in 2018, as she said at one point in an interview with Starting Line that “Iowans want to see something different.” She believes Iowans will find just that in her...
Time and again this legislative session, Republicans passed legislation that supposedly polls very poorly with Iowa voters. And yet most political pundits predict that Kim Reynolds and the GOP ticket holds the upper hand heading into the 2018 election. A victory then...
Local Iowa television stations WHO in Des Moines and WQAD in Davenport could become considerably more politically conservative as a result of their acquisition by Sinclair Broadcasting. WHO is the NBC affiliate in Des Moines and WQAD the ABC affiliate serving...
The options for women's healthcare services are being dramatically reduced in Southeast Iowa thanks to the actions of local Republican lawmakers like Mark Lofgren, Tom Greene and Gary Carlson. Planned Parenthood announced today that they will close four clinics by the...
Speaking in a legislative conference room at the Statehouse just down the hallway from the office he hopes to soon occupy, Todd Prichard told supporters and the media he would campaign for “forgotten Iowans” as he launched his official gubernatorial bid. He kicked off...
Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar's appearance last night at the Polk County Democrats' Spring Dinner had all the hallmarks of a pre-Iowa Caucus event. She offered up many Iowa anecdotes and connections she has to the lead-off state, laid out a national vision for the...
As Iowa Democrats strategize on ways to rebuild the state party, they can begin by focusing on strengthening their county party foundation. The Democratic county parties - especially in rural areas - are the building blocks that the state party is built upon. It’s the...
Iowa Teamsters Local 238 has created an exciting new organizing group and are quickly reaching out statewide to partner with other progressive groups. In March they launched a Teamsters Community Action Network (TeamCAN), a 501(c)3 nonprofit which is separate from...
The Iowa Democratic Party has been conducting a 2016 post-election postmortem on why they lost rural Iowa so badly. One recommendation resurfaces in every one of these autopsies conducted over these losses. The suggestion is that urban Democrats must listen to the...
Science and fact-based scientific research is under attack by Republicans at all levels of government. The national scientific community is asking the public for support. There will be national Science Marches in cities all across the country tomorrow. Here’s the...
The Democrats’ quest to retake Terrace Hill kicked off in Quasqueton this weekend, a tiny, picturesque town in Buchanan County. Local Democrats held a county party fundraiser that five gubernatorial hopefuls attended. The contenders chatted with Northeast Iowa...
The Cook Political Report unveiled its new Partisan Voting Index scores for the nation's congressional seats, and it's all bad news for Iowa Democrats. Typically, Cook's ratings change little year-to-year, but the shifting voter loyalties resulting from Donald Trump's...
As Democrats look to their developing gubernatorial primary field, one new name would bring an experience as close as you can get to being a former governor: John Norris. Tom Vilsack's chief of staff for two years, few other Iowans have as long a resume in Iowa...
Iowa State Representative Lisa Heddens of Ames is simply looking to achieve "equality" in Iowa's laws on men and women's health procedures with a new amendment she proposed to Republicans' 20-week abortion ban. Heddens is encouraging her colleagues to pass her "Men's...
If Mike Matson pulls the trigger on a gubernatorial run and wins, it will be the revenge of the local official on Terry Branstad and Kim Reynolds’ legacy. A member of the Davenport City Council for the past ten years, Matson is fed up with the unfunded mandates coming...
Here at Starting Line, I've written several posts looking at precinct-by-precinct results from both the 2016 election and the Iowa Caucus to give readers a sense of how and why Iowa's voting trends are changing. No swing state shifted more than Iowa in the general...
In the world of Iowa politics, people move around from job to job a lot. This is especially so in the months after an election, as former campaign staffers figure out their next move. It hasn't been an easy transition for many Democratic operatives, as when all your...
After some quiet early months following the 2016 elections, the Democratic field to take on Kim Reynolds (or maybe Ron Corbett) is quickly taking shape. Last week Representative Todd Prichard officially launched an exploratory committee for governor and appears to be...
GPS Impact, the Des Moines-based political consulting operation, is expanding its reach once again in Iowa and national politics with several new hires. Trent Schacht, a well-known Iowa digital strategist, is joining the Iowa office. Julia Rosen, their new Director of...
Guest post from Elle Smith Will the Northern Iowa town of Mason City see its first ever Pride event? Teanna Corcoran and AJ Bradbury will test the boundaries of acceptance in this “River City.” What distinguishes a small town from the fantasies that you and I have...
In the midst of a bitter legislative fight over who should control the Des Moines metro's water supply, local residents strongly back the Des Moines Water Works' ability to stay independent, a new poll finds. Harper Polling, in a survey sponsored by Water Works, found...
Editor’s note: Following the 2016 losses in rural America, Democrats are struggling to find the magic sauce that will bring these voters back to the Democratic Party. This article by a rural Iowan provides a snapshot at why Trump and the Republicans were so successful...
The national group Indivisible has surged across America like a progressive tsunami. Beginning in mid-December with the circulation of the “Indivisible Guide: A Practical Guide to Resist the Trump Agenda,” the progressive movement’s membership has skyrocketed. Iowa...
Guest post from Eric Saylor Statehouse Republicans have mounted several high-profile legislative attacks on their political opponents this session, Planned Parenthood and public sector unions chief among them. However, Republicans are also pursuing their goals through...
