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Laura Belin, author of the blog Bleeding Heartland, updates you on developments in Iowa government, hosted by KHOI’s newsman Dennis Hart. An in-depth look at each week’s legislative actions, the governor, public agencies, and important events, as lawmakers act on matters that affect you and your family.
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Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with candidates at risk of getting knocked off the primary ballot: Democrat Xavier Carrigan in IA-03, Republican candidate for governor Eddie Andrews, and GOP State Senator Mike Bousselot. They covered the latest taxpayer-funded radio ads from Mariannette Miller-Meeks, other campaign news from the first, second, and third Congressional districts, and recent endorsements in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate and the GOP race for governor. The second half of the show focused on news from the state legislature: a proposed tax on health insurance companies, transparency and public access in the House and Senate, and where things stand after the second funnel on property tax reform, eminent domain, legislation to restrict the next governor's powers, and several "tough on crime" bills.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks spent half the show reviewing which Republicans and Democrats will be and won't be on the June 2 primary ballot for state and federal offices. Other topics covered: Donald Trump's PAC using a photo from the recent dignified transfer for a fundraising email, health care as an issue in Iowa's third Congressional district, the latest state revenue projections, early findings from state-funded research on Iowa's high cancer rate, and legislative happenings related to health policies, public assistance programs, and abortion.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with news related to the war against Iran: two Iowa soldiers killed and returned to U.S. soil, the Iowa delegation's votes and comments about the president's war powers, Governor Kim Reynolds' comments about the military campaign, and the Iowa National Guard stating that commanders do not speak in religious terms about military operations. In 2026 campaign news: Zach Nunn announced and postponed a fundraiser with Pete Hegseth, Randy Feenstra placed a huge ad buy, Feenstra and Rob Sand filed nominating papers, with Sand's campaign setting an Iowa record. The second half of the program focused on legislative news: health updates on two state senators, Iowa Senate subcommittees on property taxes, the House and Senate passing more bills targeting transgender Iowans, a House bill repealing affirmative action programs and bias training for police, the latest news on the House Republican crime package, and the demise of the "Charlie Kirk bill."
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with Iowa political reaction to the Trump administration's new military campaign in Iran and Iowa angles from last week's State of the Union address. They discussed several aspects of a big state government story: Governor Kim Reynolds has been traveling on an Iowa State Patrol airplane purchased with pandemic relief funds. Other topics covered: filing period begins for state and federal candidates, the DCCC backing candidates in the first and third districts, health care news that could be important in those Congressional races, Randy Feenstra's contributions from PACs connected to China-linked companies, and Iowa legislative action on bills related to higher education, the governor's powers, and firearms.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with Iowa political reaction to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on President Donald Trump's tariffs. The rest of the show focused on news from the legislature, including details on the House and Senate Republican agreement on K-12 school funding. They discussed a group of bills designed to limit the next governor's power and following the legislature's first "funnel" deadline, they covered some notable bills that are still alive (as well as a few that didn't advance) related to education, libraries, vaccines, health care, immigration, crime and courts, agriculture, the environment, energy policy, local government powers, and automated license plate readers.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks dove into the shake-up in the Democratic race for U.S. Senate after Nathan Sage ended his campaign and endorsed Josh Turek. They discussed what Turek and Zach Wahls have in common, some well-known supporters of each candidate, the contrasts they will draw as they appeal to Democratic voters, a new poll hinting at a talking point for Wahls, and a separate poll testing each Democrat against likely GOP nominee Ashley Hinson. Then they discussed Randy Feenstra's taxpayer-funded political ads and the Iowans in Congress voting to uphold Donald Trump's tariffs on Canada. The second half of the show focused on legislative news: school funding proposals, controversial bills related to Charlie Kirk, school dress codes, libraries, and abortion restrictions, and bills on elected officials' safety and renewable energy projects.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with news from the 2026 campaign trail: big endorsements for Chris McGowan in the fourth Congressional district, Matt Windschitl dropping his IA-04 campaign, Adam Steen banking on social conservatives in the governor's race, a weak showing for Randy Feenstra at the GOP off-year caucuses, and the DNC clearing Iowa Democrats to compete for an early slot in 2028. They covered some news from Congress: federal government funding and Senator Chuck Grassley's connection to FBI changes under Kash Patel. Most of the show focused on news from the Iowa legislature: proposed restrictions on abortion medications and local civil rights ordinances, a trio of "tough on crime" bills from House Republicans, the Senate GOP school funding plan, controversial measures advanced from the House Education Committee, and a House bill to strike all code references to affirmative action or "minority" grants.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with news about the partial government shutdown and the status of federal budget negotiations. They covered Donald Trump's latest Iowa rally, including notable remarks by the president and which members of Congress were (and were not) invited to speak. Other topics covered: a debate featuring four of the five Republican candidates for governor (you can guess who was the no-show), a poll testing messages about the Democrats running for governor, a new candidate for state treasurer, a new endorsement for Ashley Hinson, why the off-year precinct caucuses matter, and year-end fundraising by the Iowans running for U.S. House and Senate. Finally, they discussed the latest news from the Iowa legislature on property taxes and eminent domain.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with Iowa political reaction to another tragedy in Minneapolis. Next, they covered breaking news from the 2026 campaign trail, as three Iowans ended their Congressional campaigns on the same day. One of them, Taylor Wettach, is now running for state auditor. Christina Bohannan announced a new stance on health care reform, and State Senator Catelin Drey revealed her cancer diagnosis. Laura and Spencer also covered many Iowa legislative stories: a House Republican property tax plan, a House floor vote on eminent domain, a very different Senate GOP plan on eminent domain, a House Democratic clean water package, subcommittee action on over-the-counter ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine, more teaching restrictions on LGBTQ topics, and a possible smoking ban for casinos. Finally, they discussed the new Iowa Legislative Black and Brown Caucus and highlights from the fundraising reports for some Democratic and Republican candidates for governor. (More to come on candidate fundraising next week.)
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks each shared a favorite quote from Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., then got right to it, discussing key points from Governor Kim Reynolds' Condition of the State address, some topics Reynolds didn't mention, Democratic reaction, why the governor wants to eliminate elections for some county offices, and Laura's viral moment when the governor's staffer prevented her from entering a briefing. Other topics covered: what the Iowa Supreme Court chief justice is asking for, why the Iowa National Guard is deployed in Syria, the legislative priorities of Iowa's attorney general, state auditor, and secretary of agriculture, and early bills moving through Iowa House committees. They finished with some campaign news: two Democrats launched bids for secretary of agriculture, a ratings change for Iowa's third Congressional district, and why one Republican candidate for governor wants supporters to attend off-year caucuses in February.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with news from Congress: Zach Nunn votes to extend health insurance subsidies, Mariannette Miller-Meeks votes to override Trump's vetoes, pesticide immunity dropped from a government funding bill, Ashley Hinson defends ICE, Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst stick with the president on Venezuela. They covered the Iowa legislature's return from many angles: political and demographic changes since last year, key deadlines for the legislature's work, Senate Republicans' property tax bill, House Republicans' "tough on crime" proposals, the new Senate leader punishing rebels through committee assignments, and key remarks from top Democrats in both chambers. Finally, they discussed Kari Lake's prospects as a candidate in Iowa after she bought property in Davenport, and Ernst's endorsement of Hinson for Senate.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with Iowa political reaction to the U.S. attack in Venezuela and whether this could become a 2026 campaign issue. On the campaign front, they discussed the first TV ad aired in Iowa's U.S. Senate race, a Republican rival's challenge to GOP front-runner Ashley Hinson, and takeaways from the special election in Iowa Senate district 16 (another big Democratic overperformance). Other topics covered: how Iowa will use additional federal funds for rural health, the governor's new Nuclear Energy Task Force, new policies that took effect in Iowa on January 1, a big drop in traffic fatalities, and several topics to watch in the upcoming Iowa legislative session.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with some news from the Republican primary campaign for governor and a quick preview of the December 30 special election in Iowa Senate district 16. The rest of the show recapped major Iowa politics stories from 2025: news from the Iowa legislature, from campaigns for state and federal offices, from the Iowa delegation in Congress, and from the courts. They also flagged some of the most surprising political events of the year and a few important stories that stayed mostly below the radar. They ended the show with an update on Donald Trump's lawsuit against the Des Moines Register and its longtime poll director, Ann Selzer (filed a little more than a year ago).
Laura Belin and Dennis Hart cover the week in Iowa politics, starting with the latest news about the Iowa National Guard members recently killed or wounded in Syria. They discussed U.S. House maneuverings on health insurance and several stories related to Senator Chuck Grassley, along with updates on several U.S. House or Senate candidates. Other topics covered: J.D. Scholten retires from professional baseball, a Fox News panel ridicules an Iowa House candidate, why Governor Kim Reynolds will allow Iowa to participate in a USDA summer food assistance program, and Attorney General Brenna Bird's reservations about a presidential order on rescheduling marijuana.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with the tragedy in Syria, where two Iowa National Guard members were killed and three wounded in an ambush over the weekend. As the deadline to enroll in the Affordable Care Act was closing, they covered rising premiums for Iowans who buy through the ACA exchange, votes on competing U.S. Senate plans, the different health care positions staked out by Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Zach Nunn, and a rare 2-2 split in Iowa's U.S. House delegation on a collective bargaining bill. Other topics covered: Miller-Meeks registering to vote outside her district, the Iowa House district 7 special election, the start of early voting in Iowa Senate district 16, other Iowa Senate and House races to watch for 2026, Randy Feenstra skipping another forum, a big labor endorsement for Rob Sand, news in the IA-02 GOP primary, the state's latest revenue projections, and a prestigious award for former Governor Terry Branstad.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks covered a wide range of stories, starting with what last week's special U.S. House election in Tennessee could mean for Iowa's second Congressional district. They discussed the Iowa delegation's recent comments about extending health insurance subsidies, boat strikes off the coast of Venezuela, and Pete Hegseth, and Laura's exclusive reporting about taxpayer-funded ads promoting Mariannette Miller-Meeks. 2026 campaign stories included news from the races for governor, third Congressional district, and state treasurer. Other topics covered: Brenna Bird's 99-county tour, the Iowa Democratic Party's 2028 caucus survey, the University of Iowa's "Center for Intellectual Freedom," and a unanimous Iowa Supreme Court ruling for the State Auditor's office in its dispute with the Attorney General's office.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks review a (surprisingly not slow) week in Iowa politics. They discussed a forum featuring every GOP candidate for governor except the front-runner, how Randy Feenstra has been campaigning, two contenders competing to be the top enemy of Satanists, a dark money group's TV ad praising State Auditor Rob Sand, and another notable endorsement for Joe Mitchell in IA-02. Other topics covered: Iowa's secretary of agriculture slammed his potential challenger, two upcoming special legislative elections, a state agency shelved a privatization plan, the sale of the Cedar Rapids Gazette, an online news source for Ames, and developments in several politically salient lawsuits.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with news from Iowa's delegation in Congress: the Epstein files votes, Zach Nunn on health care reform, Mariannette Miller-Meeks on a stock trading ban, a House vote on "socialism," and Chuck Grassley donating his shutdown pay. They also covered lots of 2026 campaign news: Mike Bousselot bowing out of the governor's race, Adam Steen attacking "Satanists," high-profile endorsements for several U.S. House and Senate contenders, and more details on recent polls of the IA-03 and attorney general races. Finally, Laura explained the Iowa connection of the reporter President Trump recently called "Piggy."
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with the end of the federal government shutdown: when SNAP benefits resumed in Iowa, whether the Iowans in Congress have been paid lately, Laura's reporting on the Iowa earmarks in the federal funding bill, where things stand on health insurance premium subsidies, and a last-minute provision that could force most consumable hemp products off the market. They discussed news from Iowa's U.S. House races: Mariannette Miller-Meeks' GOP challenger and recent town hall in IA-01, a new independent candidate in IA-02, and a poll showing incumbent Zach Nunn losing to two Democrats in IA-03. Other topics covered: Chris Jones as a possible candidate for Iowa secretary of agriculture, the first week of Randy Feenstra's statewide tour, the future president of Iowa State University, and a third lawsuit filed by an Iowa educator fired over a social media post about Charlie Kirk.
Laura Belin and Spencer Dirks began with news related to the imminent end of the federal government shutdown and resumption of SNAP benefit payments. Two Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate are calling for Chuck Schumer to step down as Senate minority leader, and several Democrats running for Congress also criticized the deal. They discussed notable results from Iowa's local and school board elections, including a pro-labor Democrat winning in Council Bluffs and the Des Moines school bond passing by a wide margin. Other topics covered: Miller-Meeks finally holding a town hall, union recertification elections, Zach Lahn's campaign for governor, a big endorsement for Adam Steen, Rob Sand's latest comments on property taxes, the GOP candidate for an upcoming special state legislative race, the two finalists for the Iowa State University presidency, and a First Amendment challenge to Iowa's ban on placing candidate yard signs on corporate property.
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