Iowa news that works as hard as you do. Founded in 2015. Part of @CourierNewsroom
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At one Des Moines precinct tonight, an attendee brought in a concealed bottle of wine, dropped it, and it shattered everywhere
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A Davenport West High School senior yelled "Trans rights are human rights" during a scholarship ceremony with Gov. Kim Reynolds today.
Reynolds has signed legislation blocking gender-affirming care for trans youth and a "bathroom bill" this session.
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At Sen. Chuck Grassley’s raucous town hall in Hampton, Iowans’ anger with Trump and Musk boils over.
“Why do you believe President Trump is above the law … Why have you not spoken out?” one man asked the longtime senator
A video thread:
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Asked about Biden’s “decent man” comment on Pence, Warren says “I’m sorry. I followed Pence’s history on LGBTQ Americans, and I don’t think that is a decent position. I disagree.”
Reporter: “You don’t think the Vice President is a decent man?”
Warren: “No”
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Elizabeth Warren learns she’s been endorsed by the @DMRegister
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Steve King blows up at questioner who pressed him on the Pittsburgh massacre #IA04
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Here’s the other part of that #IASen exchange, where Theresa Greenfield nails the price of corn
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The crowd jeers and chants after Joni Ernst ends her forum after only 45 minutes, few questions
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Disaster in Omaha: Trump leaves supporters stranded in the cold after rally logistics fall apart. A dispatch from the ground on the chaotic scene before and after
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Dave Chappelle in Ames with @AndrewYang: “You take a poll in Dayton and say what would you rather have, $12,000 a year or health insurance? Everyone’s taking the money. Health insurance is great, but groceries are necessary too.”
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.@GovTimWalz at Iowa State Fair: “You’re not going to hear us (Democrats) debating the values of slavery … We’re not interested in banning books, we’re interested in banishing hunger from our schools … That’s what coming out of the [Biden] administration.”
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Asked about teacher pay in Shenandoah, @PeteButtigieg finished his answer with “We ought to honor our teachers a little more like soldiers and compensate them a little more like doctors.” #IACaucus
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.@BernieSanders warms up a little with his grandson
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Jokingly asked if he thinks wind turbines cause cancer, @BetoORourke says “I don’t think that wind turbines cause cancer, in fact I think they cause jobs.” #IACaucus
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Several minutes ago: State Rep. Ras Smith of Waterloo takes in a quiet moment by himself outside the House chamber following the unanimous passage of HF 2647, the police reform bill that he's been working all this week with leadership and the Governor on.
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One of the largest Iowa Caucus crowds we’ve seen yet this cycle, out for @PeteButtigieg tonight in Des Moines
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NEW: It's final. @PeteButtigieg has won the Iowa Caucus following the recount of a limited number of precincts
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“I’m glad they didn’t hang you,” one man says to Mike Pence as he passes by at the Iowa State Fair
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Iowa now revealing workplaces with large outbreaks. Perry's Tyson plant, which has avoided publicly disclosing their numbers, has 730 cases, or 58% of their total plant employees testing positive
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.@BernieSanders campaign declares victory in the Iowa Caucus, calls the SDE totals an "antiquated and meaningless metric" and says the count "will never be known with any kind of certainty." Releases a bunch of discrepancies in precincts they think will boost Sanders:
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FYI, the reporter followed up: "Do you think there’s anybody in the Trump Administration that you would see as decent?"
Elizabeth Warren's response:
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After we've covered nine Ron DeSantis events in Iowa with no problems, DeSantis’ team had four Shelby County deputies waiting for our reporters at his Harlan event today. They blocked our Ty Rushing, a longtime, well-respected Iowa journalist, from the event with no explanation
Welp, I got barred from covering a Ron DeSantis event in Harlan — one of three of his events I planned to cover today — with absolutely no explanation as to why.
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“What are you doing other than speaking?” a bus rider asks @PeteButtigieg
“Well, eating, I suppose,” he replies
#IaCaucus
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We have the Glasgow, Scotland satellite caucus results
1st Alignment:
Sanders: 9
Warren: 4
Buttigieg: 3
Yang: 2
Klobuchar: 1
Yang and Klobuchar not viable. One Yang person left
2nd Alignment:
Sanders: 9
Warren: 6
Buttigieg: 3
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What the crowd at @BetoORourke’s Waterloo rally for Eric Giddens looked like:
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Starting Line was at a press conference with Dave Chappelle and Andrew Yang at ISU in Ames. Here’s the video from those answers (1/?)
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In honor of State Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad endorsing @BernieSanders, here's that time from 2015 where Abdul-Samad introduced his macaw Jacks to the senator
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"He’s trustworthy. I believe it. He really does have Midwest values," said one Boone resident at @PeteButtigieg's recent visit
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.@BetoORourke in Waterloo says his run is “A campaign for everyone in this country, for all of America ... no one left behind” #IACaucus
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And here’s the @PeteButtigieg bus pulling into the Boone County event. Buttigieg is doing an on-the-record bus trip with reporters on the bus for next 3 days
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IDP Chair Troy Price answers question about why the party can’t change mathematical problems on the caucus night worksheets in the results:
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Man tells @PeteButtigieg he has a solution to the South Bend issues: just tell black people to stop committing crimes. Buttigieg: “Racism is not going to help.”
Buttigieg’s full response:
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Jake Chapman, the GOP Senate President who accused Iowa public school teachers of having a "sinister agenda" has been defeated by fellow State Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott
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Multiple media outlets now projecting that Mike Franken, a retired three-star admiral, will win the Democratic Senate nomination to take on Chuck Grassley in November.
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Joni Ernst went viral tonight for all the wrong reasons, as she couldn’t contain her glee in bragging about the political impact to Biden from Trump’s Ukraine actions.
Aside from giving up the GOP’s real game, her sarcastic attitude did her no favors
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.@BetoORourke in Iowa explains why his small dollar, no PAC money campaign strategy can work, cites his Texas race: “We showed that it wasn’t actually something that made us weaker, it made us much stronger only to rely on people.” #IACaucus
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“President Biden will be our nominee … President Biden wakes up every morning, doesn’t whine, puts policies forward that brought the country back,” @GovTimWalz says in response to a question about a Minnesota congressman who considered primarying Biden
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What it’s like to try to order a root beer float as a presidential candidate at the Iowa State Fair
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.@BetoORourke begins his Mt. Pleasant event addressing the massacre in New Zealand:
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Dave Chappelle on why he chose to endorse: “The wealth disparity between me and my neighbors is immense. It’s heartbreaking. And if you know a third of the people up the street can’t buy groceries, then you start to feel an imperative ... I said, well, I should say something.”
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“It’s your job” to provide oversight of the Trump administration, man says to Grassley. “We are depending on you and the others to help save democracy.”
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Evelyn Yang speaks on behalf of her husband @AndrewYang for one of the first times at an event at this Scott County Democrats dinner in Bettendorf
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Finally, here's the crowd chanting "Shame on you" as Joni Ernst left the forum in Maquoketa
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“Why did you commit treason on Jan. 6?” man asks Mike Pence at State Fair. Another man shouts the questioner down. Pence responds:
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“Go to a local office. Try to get an appointment! Right now you’re waiting a month. And we’re going to cut more staff?” Iowan says to Grassley about Social Security cuts and shutting down the agency’s phone service
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The rally today against Iowa Republicans’ homophobic legislative session shaping up to be one of the larger protests outside the Statehouse in recent years
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“He is making us afraid to stand up for our own rights because we’re then going to be sent to El Salvador,” one woman says of her concerns of Trump’s clashes with judges
“Judges rulings should be abided by,” Grassley replies as crowd grows angry
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In 2015, Donald Trump arrived at the Iowa State Fair in his personal helicopter. Today, @PeteButtigieg took the bus
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“When you first were elected, you were pretty independent. That was decades ago. It seems like you’ve become a very good foot soldier for the right wing and Donald Trump,” a man says to Grassley
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Current Iowa Caucus standings, plus changes from our Starting Line/@ChangePolls poll in May:
Warren: 28% (+16)
Biden: 17% (-7)
Sanders: 17% (-7)
Buttigieg: 13% (-1)
Harris: 8% (-2)
Booker: 3% (+2)
O'Rourke: 3% (-2)
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WATCH: During the Iowa House debate on the new abortion ban bill, Rep. Timi Brown-Powers (D-Waterloo) tries to add an amendment to exempt children from being forced to give birth. Iowa Republicans vote it down.
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Yang volunteers said the Iowans they find most willing to change their mind for @AndrewYang are Warren and Buttigieg supporters.
"So they end up like: ‘Wait, was I Yang Gang this whole time?’ Most people are Yang Gang but they don’t know it."
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Lot of people asking - the questioner was a member of the public, not a reporter. Both public and press in the room. This was part of a candidate forum series in Des Moines with the Des Moines Partnership.
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One big wildcard tonight? What happens with @AndrewYang's supporters. Do they stay viable in some precincts, what happens when they realign in places they're not?
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While top Iowa Republicans are refusing to acknowledge Joe Biden’s victory, they are immediately declaring a win in #IA02 where their candidate leads by 40 votes and recounts are all but certain
Thank you to the voters of #ia02!
I express to the voters my heartfelt gratitude and acknowledge Rita Hart’s grace and positive demeanor during this campaign.
The election is over, and it is time to move forward together and focus on the priorities that will best serve Iowans!
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BREAKING: Iowa State Rep. Andy McKean is leaving the Republican Party, joining Democrats in the Iowa House
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Joni Ernst's reelection campaign is not going well #IASen
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New from @PaigeGodden: Central Iowa's Postal Workers Union Local 44 announces they're endorsing @BernieSanders in the Iowa Caucus
Sanders has fought against Trump's privatization of the postal service, and proposes adding public banking to postal offices
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“Nobody’s above the law,” Grassley repeats at one point.
“Prove it!” an attendee yells back
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Only 34% of registered Iowa voters say they'll definitely vote to reelect Donald Trump, with 44% saying they definitely won't. How a year of 2020 Democrats campaigning in Iowa may have had an impact:
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"They’re great. He’s better.” - one attendee at @PeteButtigieg's Burlington event last week on the rest of the Democratic field and Buttigieg
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Some more of @AndrewYang on the court with @JDScholten
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Veteran asks Joni Ernst pointed question on Russia and Putin's interference in American elections
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Really incredible turnout for @BernieSanders at Luther College in Decorah, town of about 8,000 #IACaucus
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“Senator Grassley, I’m 70, and I’m more scared today than I’ve ever been. I don’t care if you’re a Trump supporter or not, the man has divided us! And he’s taken someone like you, that I’ve looked up to all my life”
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Steve King’s staffers spending their Sunday making racial attacks on Parkland students and getting into arguments with a survivor (Brandon Wolf) of the Pulse nightclub shooting
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New Guest Post: The story of an Iowa woman who grew up Republican, volunteered for Rubio, left the party over Trump, and became a Democrat to support @PeteButtigieg
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Dave Chappelle asked about Yang’s occasional use of jokes about Asians. Chappelle’s response:
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New from @Josh_Cook_: A look at how @AndrewYang's ground game in Iowa is organizing ahead of the caucus
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New Post: Democratic candidate Phil Miller wins big in special election in district that Trump carried by 22 points iowastartingline.com/2017/08…
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.@AndrewYang joins @DaveChappelle for the press gaggle before Chappelle’s show. “What I’m trying to do is make people aware of an option that I think is fantastic.”
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.@amyklobuchar gets choked up for a moment after a Vietnam vet in the front row starts crying after she mentions Trump’s tweet attacks on John McCain over the weekend. Walks up, puts her hand on him for a moment, tells a story about McCain #IACaucus
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Sen. Chuck Grassley compares Musk’s DOGE actions to what previous Democratic presidents have done to cut government.
Many in the crowd loudly disagree.
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One attendee complained about Republican senators’ treatment of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson in the hearings.
Grassley said that shouldn’t apply to him, notes that Sen. Durbin complimented him on how he’s handled the hearing
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Tim Walz asks the crowd in Des Moines what they want to see from Democrats
“Fight back!” one shouts
“Viral videos that show Democrats fighting back” adds another
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A cool moment from last night’s LJ Dinner that didn’t get tweeted: the @PeteButtigieg sections’ wristbands all lighting up at the same time when he’s announced and the music hits
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Marianne Williamson in Fairfield with @AndrewYang: “Isn’t it possible to be a happy warrior? Isn’t it possible to be a happy lefty?”
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Congresswoman-elect Ashley Hinson announces she has tested positive for COVID-19.
No word if related, but notable that she spoke at Donald Trump's large rally in Dubuque 12 days ago on Nov. 1
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.@AndrewYang on @DaveChappelle: “We bonded over the fact that we’re both dads, that we have the same hopes and dreams for the country.”
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Another packed room for @BernieSanders for his 3rd rally on this Iowa trip. He held a very large event in this same room I believe a few weeks out from the #IACaucus. Crowd today is just as big if not bigger if I recall correctly
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Getting testy in here. Lots of attendees shouting “Do something!” at Joni Ernst as she talks about gun laws
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Video thread from Chuck Grassley’s town hall in Corydon (Wayne County) today:
“I’m for the $35 cap,” Grassley told the crowd about insulin, a little over a week after voting against the insulin caps that passed and helping shoot down another one for privately-insured people
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I know it’s *very* early, but the size of the Iowa crowds Elizabeth Warren is getting now may be a bit of a canary-in-the-coal-mine moment for Trump - Democrats were fired up for the midterms, they seem even more energized to get this presidential race going #IACaucus
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The Joni Ernst SCOTUS comments are much more stunning in the actual video. Watch the 2 minutes. Ernst's reasoning for a lame-duck confirmation is simply that Republicans control the White House and Senate
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“Bernie has been working for me, now it’s my turn to work for Bernie.” - what @BernieSanders fans thought at his swing through Iowa this week
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Elizabeth Warren meets and spins a little girl after her Cedar Rapids event #IACaucus
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.@KamalaHarris handing out cookies, wishing people a happy Thanksgiving at the Turkey Trot in Des Moines this AM
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Per @nytimes tracker, Iowa is now the worst state in the nation for new COVID-19 positives per capita. Worldwide, only three small nations have higher rates. Iowa is one of the very top coronavirus hotspots in the entire world
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New from @libmeyer: For an electorate exhausted by Trump's division, Iowa caucus-goers find an emotional connection in @PeteButtigieg #IACaucus
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A reporter from Norway asks @PeteButtigieg a question (he told me afterwards it was about the Norwegian social model). After asking him to repeat it more slowly, Buttigieg replies in the same language
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.@BernieSanders takes the Soapbox stage to maybe the largest audience yet this State Fair
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