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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Posted May 05, 2021in Political Mercury
In an age of scarcity (for many) and excess (for the few), the language and policies of diversity become zero-sum. What another gets, you lose. So goes the polarized thinking that has turned our public square into a fever swamp of resentments and recriminations. For too many rural Americans, the term “diversity”
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Posted March 31, 2021in Political Mercury
The mother of a 7-year-old Iowan said she’s used the recently launched and increasingly popular public-minded Twitter account Iowa Vaccine Alerts as a real-life and contemporary example of what the iconic children’s television host Mr. Rogers used to advise kids in need. “When I was a boy and I would
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Posted March 03, 2021in Political Mercury
At age 87, U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley, first elected to office during the Eisenhower administration, smiled broadly when pressed by audience members about a potential re-election campaign next year in a town hall at Landus Cooperative in Jefferson recently. “I can do 20 right now,” Grassley said, referring to push-ups.
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Posted February 03, 2021in Political Mercury
In incoming U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, Iowa has not just an experienced hand leading a federal agency vital to the Hawkeye State’s economy, but he is a close adviser and friend of President Biden. We saw the genuine connection and affection between the Bidens and Vilsacks as they
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Posted January 06, 2021in Political Mercury
Fresh from freshman orientation in Washington, D.C., Congressman-elect Randy Feenstra, R-Hull, says he’s encouraged at prospects for bipartisan work in the capitol on agriculture. Having a fellow Iowan — former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack — in the top job at the U.S. Department of Agriculture would be a big boost
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