At long last, the property tax reform that Governor Branstad campaigned on in 2010 and every candidate, on both sides of the aisle, advocated for in 2012 is about to become reality. That is, as long as it passes the Democrat-controlled Iowa Senate. A sweeping tax reform package that legislators believe will provide the biggest [...]
Now that Congressman Steve King has decided to forego a United States Senate campaign, those interested in seeking the Republican nomination are now free to explore the idea openly. While former U.S. Attorney Matt Whitaker has already informally entered the race, others are likely to follow suit in short order. On Tuesday, the Des Moines [...]
The announcement by Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds that she will not to run for the open U.S. Senate seat in Iowa in 2014 triggered movement by a number of potential Republican candidates. While Congressman Steve King has still not definitely ruled out a Senate run, many Iowa Republicans are operating under premise that he’s not [...]
On Monday afternoon, Democrats in the Iowa Senate voted down two of Governor Terry Branstad’s nominees for the Board of Regents. The Senate rejected Robert Cramer, a Des Moines businessman with ties to a conservative group by a vote of 27 to 23. Appointees need at least 34 votes in favor of their confirmation to [...]
(DES MOINES) – Gov. Branstad today penned a letter and had it delivered to all 50 members of the Iowa Senate, expressing support for his nominees to the Board of Regents. In the letter, the governor notes that Craig Lang “successfully restored critical funding for our Regents system over the last two budget cycles and [...]
By Craig Robinson The Merriam-Webster dictionary states that the definition of the word tolerance is having, “sympathy or indulgence for beliefs or practices differing from or conflicting with one’s own.” Apparently being tolerant of views and beliefs contrary to your own isn’t good enough for some Democrat lawmakers in Iowa. No, if you don’t openly [...]
He entered the Iowa legislature hoping to make an impact and represent the needs of his right-leaning district. Instead, freshman legislator Jake Chapman is frustrated by Republicans’ inability to accomplish their goals in the Democrat-controlled Iowa Senate. As long as Democrats hold onto their narrow majority, conservative bills are bound for the dustbin. “We had [...]