Stories

The Iowa Senate passed a bill Tuesday that would help prevent Iowa soldiers from losing custody of their children because of their active-duty service. Senate File 2214 would protect Iowa Guard members’ and Reservists’ custodial rights during periods of federal activation. The bill would allow a court to order a temporary change of custody only [...]

Iowa Gov. Chet Culver outlined his agenda for 2008 during his Condition of the State address Tuesday morning, proposing a laundry list of nuts-and-bolts initiatives focusing on health care, the environment and education.

Proclaiming that “the condition of our state is strong,” Culver told a joint session of the legislature that it is time to build [...]

The new Senate Republican Minority Leader fired a shot across the bow as the 2008 legislative session opened on Monday morning, a clue that the upcoming session will be a truculent one.

Sen. Ron Wieck, R-Sioux City, said with an election coming in 2008,the Democratic leadership will shy away from making tough decisions necessary to make [...]

If the crowd at the announcement reception for Rep. Swati Dandekar is any indication, her upcoming pursuit of a seat in the Iowa Senate will continue to be as bipartisan as her past successes in House District 36.

Dandekar’s special guest at the reception in a Cedar Rapids home was Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal. He [...]

Iowa state Sen. Tom Hancock announced this morning at the State Capitol in Des Moines that he is endorsing Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd for president.
Hancock represents Senate District 16 that includes Delaware, Dubuque and Jones counties. He is past president of the Iowa Fireman’s Association, a 15,300-member organization of emergency service providers throughout the state.

Iowa Rep. Swati Dandekar, D-Marion, made it official this morning by announcing she will seek the state Senate seat currently held by Mary Lundby. Lundby announced Wednesday that she would seek a position on the Linn County Board of Supervisors instead of running for re-election.
“I know that I have some big shoes to fill,” Dandekar [...]

(Editor’s note: This post was updated at 5:45 p.m. to include an interview with Sen. Mary Lundby.)
In a move that won’t surprise many in eastern Iowa politics, Iowa Senate Minority Leader Mary Lundby announced today that she would not seek re-election to the Legislature and instead will run for a seat on the Linn County [...]

Iowa Sen. Rob Hogg will set off on his annual bike tour of District 19 on Saturday, June 2, with a few friends joining the fun. State Representatives Tyler Olson and Art Staed and Cedar Rapids City Councilman Tom Podzimek will travel the length of the tour. Cedar Rapids Mayor Kay Halloran plans to join [...]

A well known and controversial conservative – or, rather, “konservative” – blog went the way of the dodo Wednesday, as the man known online only as “Hershel Krustofski” (the name of the clown on Fox TV’s The Simpsons) announced the closing of his Krusty Konservative blog.
Krusty was the conservative muckraker of the Iowa blogosphere, frequently [...]