New post by AJ Jones @ajjonesrox.bsky.social: 50 years ago, we were all patriots www.bleedingheartland.com/2026/07/06/5...

You can listen to tonight's Iowa politics radio show right now on any podcast platform: "KHOI's Capitol Week" Tomorrow I'll send the audio file & a detailed written recap (for those who would rather read than listen) on my free newsletter: laurabelin.substack.com

Actually, Kevin, to take but one example, you went to Mar-a-Lago three weeks after the January 6 insurrection to help begin Trump’s restoration process.

In a few minutes @spencerdirks.bsky.social and I will be live on KHOI Radio to talk about a surprisingly busy week in Iowa politics. 89.1 FM in the Ames listening area or online: www.khoifm.org (will be on podcast platforms later as "KHOI's Capitol Week")

I talked with Democratic strategist @joetrippi.bsky.social about key races in Iowa, especially the campaigns for governor, U.S. Senate, and three of Iowa's four Congressional districts. #IAGov #IASen #IA01 #IA02 #IA03 www.lincolnsquare.media/cp/205659173

“The Republicans in Congress are more loyal to Trump than they are to their own institution so there are no checks and balances occurring across the branches,” Thomas Laehn (the Libertarian candidate for #IASen) told Douglas Burns last week. www.bleedingheartland.com/2026/07/05/n...

Happy Fourth of July! Dave Price, Kathie Obradovich, and I have a new episode of Iowa Down Ballot (recorded Friday morning). iowawriterscollaborative.substack.com/p/iowa-down-...

Announced during a historic heat wave. These guys are buffoons.

We sang all four verses of "America the Beautiful" as the closing song at our Temple tonight. Pretty sure I have never sung anything other than the first verse. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America...

New post: Herb Strentz reflects on the hopeful message for American democracy in John Adams' last words: “Thomas Jefferson survives.” www.bleedingheartland.com/2026/07/03/a...

The justices that upheld birthright citizenship in 1898 were racist men in a racist era who still could not avoid the plain text of the Constitution. What changed between is that the GOP now sees multiracial democracy as a threat rather than an ideal or aspiration www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

30 years ago today, Russia held a runoff election between President Boris Yeltsin and Communist Party leader Genadii Zyuganov. I covered the campaign extensively in my first writing job. In 2016 I wrote about the best and worst TV ads from that campaign: www.bleedingheartland.com/2016/06/16/t...

New post by Rick Morain: The Constitution's elasticity is a blessing and a curse www.bleedingheartland.com/2026/07/02/t...

Today #IA03 Libertarian candidate Marco Battaglia (Mark Andersen) filed in Polk County District Court, seeking to overturn a state panel's decision to exclude him from the ballot b/c Marco Battaglia isn't his legal name. Read the court filing: www.bleedingheartland.com/static/media...

Choose your own adventure, Iowa edition: NYT/Siena poll has #IAGov race at Sand 48, Lahn 47 #IASen race at Hinson 48, Turek 46 www.nytimes.com/interactive/... Fox News poll has Sand leading Lahn 53-44 and Turek leading Hinson 50-46 www.foxnews.com/politics/fox...

Iowa Senate district 21, covering most of Ankeny, highlighted as one of the DLCC's top 10 legislative races for July. Democratic State Rep Heather Matson is running for this open seat (the GOP incumbent, Mike Bousselot, fled to safer Republican territory). #ialegis www.dlcc.org/dlcc-top-10-...

Happy Iowa wildflower Wednesday! This week Diane Porter features Climbing Rose, one of Iowa’s several wild roses, and the trickery it uses to entice pollinators. #Iowa #wildflowers #nativeplants #nature #bees www.bleedingheartland.com/2026/07/01/i...

Iowa GOP nominee for governor Zach Lahn, who got a boost from the "MAHA" movement, is not moderating his anti-vax position for the general election. Still wants to pull COVID vaccines from the market. From "KHOI's Capitol Week":

Just posted Robin Opsahl's review of some significant new Iowa laws which took effect today (the beginning of the 2027 fiscal year): #ialegis #iagov www.bleedingheartland.com/2026/07/01/t...

Link to polling memo: taxrelief.org/wp-content/u...

It didn't get a lot of coverage, but Iowans for Tax Relief commissioned a poll of some key statewide races after the primary election. @spencerdirks.bsky.social and I spent several minutes discussing the key findings on "KHOI's Capitol Week." #IAGov #IASen laurabelin.substack.com/p/news-from-...

The GOP is charge on Capitol Hill - but for a second straight week, House Republicans had to send everyone home, unable to vote on a major defense bill amid GOP demands for action on the SAVE America Act. The House won't be back until July 13. jamiedupree.substack.com/p/house-gop-...

Dave Price and Kathie Obradovich on RFK, Jr's call to Rick Stewart, urging the Libertarian to end his campaign in Iowa's second Congressional district. (subscribe to "Iowa Down Ballot" to hear our whole discussion)

The fact that his 2 sons are standing right behind him while he is saying this is perfect

I thought it might be a slow week in Iowa politics, but @spencerdirks.bsky.social and I still covered a ton on “KHOI’s Capitol Week." -Libertarians go to court -new poll of statewide races -important court rulings and more. Audio & written summary: laurabelin.substack.com/p/news-from-...

one thing i find funny is that the founding generation would likely have been very enthusiastic about, say, muslim immigrants and intensely skeptical of all the catholics

For them, it does. They cannot conceive of a world in which someone they think should belong to a suboordinate class has the same rights as them. That's also why they hate the Reconstruction amendments. bsky.app/profile/gabr...

Bruce Lear: I don’t believe all politicians are liars and crooks. I respect those who are brave enough to put their names on the ballot and face public scrutiny. But I do know it’s time for voters to increase that scrutiny for greater accountability. www.bleedingheartland.com/2026/06/30/m...

"A prosecutor must act as a minister of justice. I mean, does anybody think Brenna Bird has acted as a minister of justice?" Nate Willems making his case to be Iowa's next attorney general:

Incredibly gifted communicator. Has he gotten that much better in six years, or did I not realize how good he was at this in 2020?

In a few minutes @spencerdirks.bsky.social and I will be live on KHOI Community Radio to talk about another busy week in Iowa politics. 89.1 FM in the Ames listening area or online: www.khoifm.org (will be on podcast platforms later this evening as "KHOI's Capitol Week")

Chief Justice Roberts: “We exempt the Federal Reserve from the Slaughter decision due to its unique historical relationship with my stock portfolio.”

This decision doesn't affect Iowa, because Republicans changed state law to prohibit counting any ballots that arrive after 8 pm on election day. (For decades Iowa did count late-arriving ballots, if postmarked by the day before election day)

As Trump spending on vanity/legacy projects consume at least a billion... Across the federal government, employees are working in buildings with persistent health/ safety problems, the result of decades of backlogged maintenance that totals as much as $50 billion www.nytimes.com/2026/06/28/u...

"I'm running for attorney general to defeat Brenna Bird." For those who haven't yet seen Nate Willems, Iowa Democratic nominee for AG, here's my video from a meet and greet in West Des Moines today. There's Q&A after his introductory remarks. www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-IX...

Prof. Wurman adds a UMich Law Prof to his group of birthright citizenship skeptics. These folks continue to spread mistruths and errors to the public, and distort the record, injuring the public’s historical memory. Wurman et al refuse to answer questions, but they want to be taken seriously.

New "Iowa Down Ballot" podcast is out! You can listen on any podcast platform, or watch here. iowawriterscollaborative.substack.com/p/iowa-down-...

New post by Randy Evans: When a leader's pen is mightier than an excuse Randy contrasts Gen. Dwight Eisenhower’s leadership style with President Donald Trump's way of assigning credit and blame. www.bleedingheartland.com/2026/06/26/w...

If you've never been to one of @robsandia.bsky.social's events and want to see what it's like, I recorded his town hall in Osceola (Clarke County) today. This video shows the entirety of Sand's remarks and the Q&A, with nothing edited out. #IAGov www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRto...

Fixed link: Listen to Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s whole phone call with Rick Stewart, in which he urges the Libertarian to end his campaign for Congress in Iowa's second district. www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyKd...

Update — a top Trump aide set this in motion, as White House tries to get third-party candidates out of tight races. James Blair asked RFK Jr. to call the Iowa candidates because Blair heard they respected him, according to two people familiar with the matter. with @iarnsdorf.bsky.social

This confirms what the CDC leader said before she was fired. Kennedy wanted the science to be cooked until it aligned with his politics.

Steve Corbin: The practice of the U.S. government holding ownership in firms creates conflict of interest between the government’s role as a regulator and a shareholder. It could also lead to politicization of corporate decision-making. www.bleedingheartland.com/2026/06/26/t...

Iowa House Rs are testing negative messages against Democratic candidates. (For instance, "[Democrat's name] supports sexually explicit material in Iowa's elementary schools [...]") If you receive one of these polls, please take screenshots of the Qs, and share them with me. Thank you in advance!

Sith Lord Russell Vought is attempting to seize complete control over federal grants to states and universities. @jimalwine.bsky.social and I wrote about the dangers to everything from science to transportation infrastructure.

It's late but still (barely) Iowa wildflower Wednesday! This week Katie Byerly highlights the distinctive features of Northern Bedstraw—so named because these plants were often used for mattress stuffing. #Iowa #wildflowers #nature #nativeplants www.bleedingheartland.com/2026/06/24/i...

How many Supreme Court justices would allow this policy to stay in place? At least two--but would there be five?

Thanks to those who have reached out to me regarding Derek Wulf's legal and financial entanglements. I welcome more insight from attorneys or experts in farm finances including foreclosures, refinancing, and debtor's exams. I'll keep all private communications confidential.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird and GOP nominee for governor Zach Lahn don't think Iowa's abortion ban goes far enough.