Category: Iowa

Iowans Prepare for Surge in Visits from Democratic Party Presidential Hopefuls

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The race to challenge President Donald Trump in November 2020 kicked off in earnest Saturday, when the first major Democratic Party hopeful to announce her candidacy visited with voters across Iowa. A larger-than-usual deluge of candidates — possibly up to two dozen — are expected to hit the state within the coming year, including an unprecedented number of women and minorities. Top contenders include Senators Cory Booker, Kamala Harris — both of whom visited last fall — Kirsten Gillibrand and Amy Klobuchar. Former U.S. Representative and businessman John Delaney announced in mid-2017 and has been actively working to raise his name recognition in the state. “It’s definitely much sooner this time,” Pat Rynard said of candidates who have already declared their intention to run. Rynard is a former Democratic campaign staffer who runs the political news site Iowa Starting Line. During the run-up to the 2016 election, for example, the first Republican and Democrat hopefuls formally announced their bids in March and April of 2015. “I think it’s a reflection of how big the field is, and the fact that there aren’t any front-runners,” Rynard said. He expects recent poll results indicating voter preferences for former Vice President Joe Biden…

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Elizabeth Warren Admits She’s ‘Not a Person of Color’ at Iowa Campaign Rally

Anthony Gockowski

The 2020 race for the White House began in earnest Friday when Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) hosted multiple campaign rallies in Iowa, the first in the nation caucus state. On Saturday morning, Warren continued her campaign across the state, but was asked about her infamous DNA test during a Sioux City stop. “Why did you undergo the DNA testing and give Donald Trump more fodder to be a bully?” one Iowan in attendance asked Warren, who said she was “glad” the question was asked. “I genuinely am, and I’m glad for us to have a chance to talk about it. I am not a person of color. I am not a citizen of a tribe. Tribal citizenship is very different from ancestry. Tribes and only tribes determine tribal citizenship, and I respect that difference,” Warren acknowledged. “I’m just gonna put it all out there.” Senator Elizabeth Warren explains why she took a DNA test to determine her heritage #tictocnews pic.twitter.com/dqQTpRHeXw — Bloomberg Originals (@bbgoriginals) January 5, 2019 She explained that while growing up in Oklahoma she heard “the family stories of our ancestry,” and said that her claim to Native American ancestry was used against her when she first ran…

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Iowa Attorney Jim Larew Talks to The Tennessee Star Report About Possible 2020 Democratic Presidential Candidates

Julie Carr

On Friday’s Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – the Star Team chatted with Iowa attorney, Jim Larew about his thoughts of who will run as a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate. Larew served as general counsel for former Iowa Governor Chet Culver, a Democrat, from 2007 to 2011, and simultaneously as chief of staff from 2010 to 2011. At the conclusion of the show, Larew offered a very interesting psychological interpretation as it pertains to who will break out from the pack, breaking the process down to that of “celebrity status” within the party. Leahy: You know, Elizabeth Warren is in Iowa and we have a good friend from many years ago, a leading attorney in Iowa, a Democrat, Jim Larew on the line with us. Jim, welcome to the Tennessee Star Report! Larew: Well, thank you it’s been a long time, nice to hear from you. Leahy: It’s been a long time. We went to college together.  We were roommates in Washington, D.C. one summer when you were working for Senator John Culver (D-IA). Larew: That’s right.  You may know, that…

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New Poll Shows Good News for Trump in Iowa

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by Molly Prince   President Donald Trump currently has the support of an overwhelming majority of Iowa’s Republicans, according to a Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom Iowa poll released on Sunday. The poll shows that two-thirds of Republicans in Iowa say they would “definitely vote to re-elect Trump” if the general election for president were held today. Trump also has a positive approval rating, with 81 percent of respondents approving of his job as president thus far — alternatively, only 14 percent disapprove. Furthermore, over three-quarters of Iowa’s Republicans view him favorably. Interestingly, the poll shows that despite the support that Trump is receiving in Iowa, the state’s Republicans would also welcome a challenge to the presidency in 2020. Sixty-three percent of respondents backed a Republican challenger, while 26 percent thought a challenger should be discouraged. With all of the issues facing Trump, the only issue that polled underwater was his use of Twitter. When asked if it has been a good move to post “potentially inflammatory messages on Twitter on a regular basis,” only 19 percent of Republican voters agreed. More than 70 percent of respondents referred to the move as a “mistake.” The issue most commended by respondents was sending…

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Illegal Immigrant Charged With Murder of Iowa College Student Mollie Tibbetts

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Mollie Tibbetts

by Evie Fordham   A Mexican national illegally residing in the U.S. has been charged with first degree murder in the disappearance and death of Iowa college student Mollie Tibbetts, officials said at a press conference at Poweshiek County Sheriff’s Office in Iowa Tuesday afternoon. Christian Bahena Rivera, 24, was charged with murder. He had resided in the area for four to seven years, officials said. He led investigators to the body’s location after confirming that he interacted with her while she was running and she felt threatened by him. Rivera said he “blacked out” at some point during their interaction, officials said. Her body was found covered with corn stalks in a farm field near the small rural town of Brooklyn, Iowa. First degree murder charged in Mollie Tibbetts disappearance. 24-year-old Cristihian Bahena Rivera, 24. Rivera lives in Poweshiek Co. Authorities confirm "he is an illegal alien." pic.twitter.com/W00podixui — KWWL (@KWWL) August 21, 2018 Officials said surveillance footage of a black Chevrolet Malibu SUV cruising around the area where she was last seen led them to the suspect. “On Aug. 21, ICE lodged a detainer with the Poweshiek County Sheriff’s Office on Christian Bahena-Rivera, 24, an illegal alien from…

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The Special Interests Behind the Unsustainable ‘Renewable Fuel Standard’

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corn

By Printus LeBlanc   The ethanol lobby and corn farmers are teaming up to keep the government mandated gravy train flowing into their bank accounts. After a deal was reached between the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), several Senators, and oil refiners regarding the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), the deal suddenly collapsed when it got to the White House. The deal made sense for everyone involved, so the question must be asked, what happened and why? The RFS is a government rule, established by the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The rule mandates renewable fuels, mostly corn ethanol, be blended with gasoline. Of course, this became an instant cash cow for corn farmers and ethanol refiners. The government had just mandated anyone that drives a vehicle must use their product. But just like Obamacare didn’t do what it was supposed to do, the RFS didn’t do what it was supposed to do. The first problem is ethanol efficiency. According to the Department of Energy, E10 and E15 get 3 to 5 percent fewer miles per gallon than regular gasoline. E85, the flex fuel, gets a horrible 15 to 27 percent fewer miles per gallon. If the purpose of the RFS was to increase…

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Ingraham: ‘Phenomenal’ Trump Speech in Iowa Reminds Why ‘We Want Him on the Road’

Tennessee Star Staff

LifeZette Editor-in-Chief Laura Ingraham said the “phenomenal speech” delivered by President Donald Trump in Iowa Wednesday “reminds us we we want him on the road,” during an appearance Wednesday night on Fox News’ “Hannity.” Ingraham noted the president has always been best able to communicate his agenda and message directly to the American people. “[Trump] rallied…

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