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Another top-tier Democratic hopeful has released a detailed plan addressing the nation’s shortage of affordable homes as housing advocates push for even more coverage on the topic on debate stage. Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders rolled out an affordable housing strategy...
Guest piece from Christina Blackcloud, vice chair of the Iowa Democratic Party’s Native American caucus. Living in the first in the nation state comes with a kind of responsibility Iowans carry with pride. We hear from each presidential candidate, and we understand...
A new Des Moines zoning code was pushed forward by the city council despite pleas by local developers and housing advocates to make the changes more flexible for lower-cost building. Council chambers overflowed Monday evening as its members unanimously approved the...
The health care discussion in the Democratic presidential primary has been dominated by Medicare for All. Candidates are asked to pick a side, tell voters how they would pay for it and how universal coverage would affect the country's private health insurance...
"Frustration" was the word Congresswoman Abby Finkenauer often used to describe the mood of her agricultural constituents during a trip throughout her district last week. On Wednesday, Finkenauer met with multiple groups of concerned farmers, manufacturers and ethanol...
Iowa State University students won an important victory this month in their effort to fully exercise their right to vote on campus. It came in response to Republican-passed voter ID laws that made it more challenging for many Iowans -- especially college students --...
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst gets non-stop questions about her stance on health care issues when she's out at her town hall meetings. She often says she supports preexisting condition coverage despite voting five times to repeal the Affordable Care Act, a few of which had...
Michael Franken, a retired Navy admiral from Northwest Iowa, entered the U.S. Senate race today against Joni Ernst to "do what's right for Iowa" and stand up to the Washington establishment. "Iowans need a senator who will go against the grain in Washington and do...
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst said President Donald Trump understands he "really messed up with the farmers" when he approved 31 waivers allowing refiners to forgo ethanol blending requirements outlined in the Renewable Fuel Standards. However, Ernst said the President,...
Today the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals released a decision that adds another opportunity for a case in the Supreme Court concerning the crossroads between anti-discrimination laws and religious freedom. In a 2-1 decision, the panel of judges decided that a couple...
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst said she and Senator Chuck Grassley were able to slip messages about the Environmental Protection Agency’s proliferation of the Small Refinery Exemptions to Ambassador to China Terry Branstad before he met with President Donald Trump on Monday....
More than 200 union members showed up to the Iowa Federation of Labor Conference in Des Moines Wednesday to hear from over half the crowded Democratic presidential field. Before any of the candidates took the stage, union leaders welcomed the crowd to the conference...
Christie Vilsack, the former First Lady of Iowa, has weighed in on Democrats' effort to win a seat in the U.S. Senate with her endorsement today of Theresa Greenfield. "With all the gridlock and mudslinging in Washington, Theresa Greenfield is exactly the kind of...
Several common themes emerged from the first day of the Frank LaMere Native American Presidential Forum, but the top one was that a government’s priorities can be determined by where it puts its money, and each candidate promised money to address issues faced by...
Just hours after Congressman Steve King made offensive comments about rape and incest this morning, he was confronted by a constituent over a real-life example of incestuous rape in his district. Katie Koehler, a retired Mason City public school teacher, told King...
At the outset of his speech last week in Burlington, former Vice President Joe Biden told the crowd his remarks would be different than planned. “I planned on coming … to talk about agriculture policy, unions, rural policy, etc.,” said Biden, at a barn-themed event...
Climate change and environmental advocates flew a banner over the Iowa State Fairgrounds today, calling on Sen. Joni Ernst to acknowledge climate change and to act on policy. "We're out here today because Iowans are feeling the impacts of climate change more than ever...
By now, Iowa acivists have seen in-person or heard on TV more than two dozen Democrats running for president. Whether they attended the Hall of Fame dinner in Cedar Rapids, the Iowa Democratic Wing Ding Friday night in Clear Lake or an intimate gathering at a coffee...
Julian Castro said Donald Trump's attack on his brother, Joaquin Castro, amounts to an attack on campaign finance transparency laws. Joaquin Castro drew criticism from Republicans after he tweeted out the names of Trump donors following the El Paso terrorist attack,...
It’s the first week of the Iowa State Fair, which means every single presidential candidate is flocking to Iowa. Even if you live outside Des Moines or Clear Lake, you may have chances to see four or five candidates around your hometown over just a few-day span. Which...
J.D. Scholten is in for round two for Iowa's 4th Congressional District, eyeing a rematch with U.S. Rep. Steve King. He announced his candidacy this morning with a video narrated by Kevin Costner that's heavy on rural Iowa imagery. https://youtu.be/gMTfLJt5OHc "We’re...
U.S. Senate candidate Theresa Greenfield added another endorsement to her ledger late last week with the support of AFSCME Council 61. The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees is the nation's largest trade union representing public employees,...
Studies have shown that bald men are perceived as more intelligent, mature and as more dominant leaders than their hair-laden counterparts. If that's the case, then Cory Booker not only brought three charitable Iowans into his chrome dome club, he enhanced their...
Two weekends ago, Cedar Rapids held its second major multi-presidential candidate in as many months. The national press swarmed the streets of Iowa's second-largest city, over a thousand Democratic caucus-goers braved the overwhelming heat and candidates themselves...
By 1935, the New Deal was helping the American people and economy bounce back from the disaster of the stock market crash of 1929. National programs were putting people to work, building infrastructure like bridges, hospitals and schools and expanding access to...
A guest post from Bobbi Hancock, a longtime political activist from Council Bluffs. For 25 years, I was a registered Republican. I voted for the GOP candidate in five straight presidential elections. I caucused for Rick Santorum and worked tirelessly for Marco Rubio....
Maternal mortality is an issue that isn’t often widely acknowledged, but that’s changing with the 2020 race for president. Several candidates have staked out positions on how to address the issue, and many of the senators have already sponsored or co-sponsored bills...
Watching eight hours of forums is a lot to process. Unless you're going to sit down and watch all of them, like I did, it's hard to get a feel for how the candidates truly feel about some of these issues. Even then, it can all get sort of jumbled into one big...
Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst returned Monday from a trip to the U.S-Mexico border with a message for her constituents: "The humanitarian crisis at our southern border is absolutely real." Ernst, in the midst of her first re-election campaign, discussed the trip on the Simon...
Last week, coincidentally timed with AARP/Des Moines Register candidate forums, nearly all of the Democratic presidential candidates rolled out long-term health care plans, as well as plans to strengthen social security and combat rising health care costs. While...
