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What Iowa Candidates Said, and Did Not, at the Polk County Dems Steak Fry.
(September 14, 2025) At the Polk Democrats 2025 Steak Fry, eight candidates for the U.S. House and Senate gave attendees a preview of their campaigns. The Steak Fry has always been more about energy, food, and volunteers than policy details. But with families facing rising health costs, struggling schools, a water crisis, and a government
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Labor Day Update: Iowa Workers Rose Up this Year.
(September 1, 2025) Labor Day is more than a holiday, it’s a reminder of generations of Iowans who fought for fair pay, safe workplaces, and dignity on the job. This past year since the last Labor Day, everyday workers carried that fight forward with new contracts, organizing drives, and successful picket lines despite efforts by
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Moms for Liberty is Right. DMPS is Skirting Iowa Law, Just Not the One They Think.
(August 22, 2025) Starting September 8, middle and high school students Des Moines Public Schools will be able to use their school IDs as library cards at any of the six Des Moines Public Library branches. Twelve thousand students will gain access to more than 400,000 books and digital resources. For kids without a card,
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Should Teachers Have the Same Rights as Everyone Else?
(August 19, 2025) School is starting. Most teachers are going to have a great year, but for many reasons, some will not. In most jobs, if conditions are poor, if you are reassigned to a position you weren’t hired for, or if a new opportunity comes along, you can resign. You might lose a bonus
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Annie’s Foundation vs Moms for Liberty: Who are the Better Moms?
(August 17, 2025) Yesterday at the Franklin Library in Des Moines, two very different visions of motherhood and community stood face to face. Moms for Liberty, the national group known for pushing book bans and restrictive school policies, hosted an event inside. Outside, Annie’s Foundation, born in a Johnston garage, set up with free books,
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10 Questions About Water Quality Iowans Should Asking Candidates for US House and Senate.
(August 14, 2025) Iowa’s water quality crisis is no longer a distant policy debate. it’s in our taps, rivers, and lakes. This summer, nitrate levels in the Raccoon and Des Moines Rivers surged, prompting central Iowa’s first-ever mandatory lawn watering ban while utilities struggled to treat the water. PFAS, the so-called “forever chemicals,” have been
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Iowa Settled for Seven Cents a Fish.
(July 31, 2025) In Iowa, if you want to legally catch a trout, it’ll cost you $14.50 for your trout fee. Add a $22 fishing license, and you’re paying nearly forty bucks a year to enjoy the quiet peace of a riverbank, rod in hand. And if you happen to catch one too many? That
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When Washington Unravels, Iowa Schools, Hospitals and Water Pay the Price.
(July 27, 2025) Executive orders. Big something bills. Federal employees leaving en masse. It feels constant. It can feel far away. But it’s going to get real for Iowans—when a rural hospital closes, when a storm hits without warning, when kids return to schools less prepared, when farmers can’t get what was promised, when the
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The Quiet Power Behind Iowa’s School Boards
(July 22, 2025) If you care about what’s happening in Iowa schools, then you should care about who’s advising our school boards—because it’s not just about library books or LGBTQ+ rights. School board attorneys help decide whether a district follows civil rights laws. Whether it pushes back on ICE requests. Whether school construction complies with
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Should Iowa Be Talking More About Cannabis Reform?
(July 14, 2025) Driving around Iowa, you may notice billboards advertising recreational cannabis dispensaries. Recreational cannabis remains illegal in Iowa—so who are those ads targeting, and why? With over a decade of data from states like Washington and Colorado, and 24 states plus Washington, D.C. legalizing adult-use cannabis, the economic and social impacts are no