Posted March 02, 2022in Political Mercury
First elected in 1958 to the Iowa Statehouse — during the Eisenhower administration — U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, has served in public office continuously for more than 60 years — and that’s too long, said former Iowa Congresswoman Abby Finkenauer, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for the Senate.
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Posted February 02, 2022in Political Mercury
Republican Jim Carlin says reports of Sen. Charles Grassley’s assured reelection later this year are greatly exaggerated. In fact, Carlin, a state senator from Sioux City, who is challenging the venerable Grassley in the GOP primary, says many Iowa Republicans are tired of Grassley, who has served in public office since 1959, the end of
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Posted January 05, 2022in Political Mercury
As a western Iowan who worked in two packing plants, grew up the son of a teacher and machinist and served decades in the Navy, Ret. Adm. Mike Franken sees himself as the sort of independent-minded — and branded — Democrat who can cut through GOP-leaning tribalism in a statewide
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Posted December 01, 2021in Political Mercury
And Michael Steele thinks country is in ‘staging area’ for civil war. Gov. Kim Reynolds insists a life in Washington is not for her. But Michael Steele, the former chairman of the Republican National Committee and a high-profile political analyst, sees Iowa’s Republican governor as a strong potential candidate for the presidency. “She should be in
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Posted November 03, 2021in Political Mercury
Thousands gather at Iowa State Fairgrounds on Oct. 9 to advocate for the former president. Supporters of former President Trump who showed up in the thousands at the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines expressed anxieties with the economy — especially gas prices — along with major distrust of President Biden and the media.
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Posted October 06, 2021in Political Mercury
The nation’s longest-serving state attorney general says his health and vitality are strong. Tom Miller, the nation’s longest-serving state attorney general, will seek an 11th four-year term in the office next fall, saying he is “energized, challenged and fulfilled” by such efforts as the pursuit of anti-trust cases against dominant tech companies — like Facebook —
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Posted September 01, 2021in Political Mercury
Dr. Glenn Hurst wants less-traditional police, more mental-health services. Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Glenn Hurst said Iowans need only look at his small city of Minden to see life in a defund-the-police environment. Echoing the sentiments of many calling for major reforms around the nation — and slashing or
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Posted August 04, 2021in Political Mercury
The 49-year-old South Dakota governor is supremely telegenic and wonderfully folksy, smart and unapologetic. The recent Family Leader Summit in Des Moines served as a one-two punch, and something of a conservative strategy preview of the next two election cycles: hit Democrats on national issues, notably critical race theory on which speaker
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Posted June 30, 2021in Political Mercury
An obsession with balance can obscure the truth. In his brilliantly performed new audio book “The Bomber Mafia,” Malcolm Gladwell, using expert reporting, inviting prose and riveting sound effects, including actual audio recordings of the sources quoted, raises a historical question that indeed does enter the “both sides” structure. Should the United
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Posted May 24, 2021in Political Mercury
Manilla Democrat plans to spotlight farming, education, infrastructure and health care. Former Crawford County Supervisor Dave Muhlbauer, a Manilla farmer and cattleman with deep family roots in rural Iowa politics, this morning announced his bid for U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley’s seat. Muhlbauer, who describes himself as an “old-school farming-labor Democrat,” is
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