There are four simple things you can do to exercise your right to vote in our democracy this November: more

Secretary of State Paul Pate has served for a total of 15 years. He seems safe, familiar and a known quantity. more

As someone who writes both professionally and for fun, I can easily say that editing each piece of writing is my least favorite part of the job, especially as someone who can fall into being a perfectionist. more

It will never not be strange being someone who technically lived through 9/11 but also didn’t really. I was only six years old on Sept. 11, 2001, and I don’t remember what it was like after 9/11 or if my parents ever had a talk with me about it. I don’t even remember when we initially started talking about it at school. more

At the time of writing, it has only been about 24 house since the passing of the late, great Dolly Parton, and in that time I’ve read dozens of stories about the type of person she was and the legacy she’s leaving behind that stretches far above her songs and rhinestone-covered outfits. more

Did you know that if even if Rob Sand becomes governor of Iowa, we could still be stuck with the tax policy that has caused our state to drop from 25th to  50th in the nation for economic growth in the last year? Amendment 1 is on your ballot this midterm election and if it passes we will be frozen into the budget nightmare that has impoverished our schools, restricted our access to health care, cut inspections of nursing homes, allowed our infrastructure to crumble, kept our water dirty and reduced the budgets of our police force, fire stations and libraries. more

Recently, we had an emergency and called 911. The first officer arrived within two minutes, and the second officer within 30 seconds later. The ambulance arrived shortly after. Everyone was great and worked swiftly. more

For our rural communities like Durant, Bennett, Stockton, New Liberty, Moscow, and Wilton, ‘neighbors helping neighbors’ is not just a saying; it is foundational to who we are. We take pride in community and hard work, and we look out for one another through every season. more

In the last few months Iowa has become a battleground state with close races that not only could turn a red state purple, but could tip the balance in the U.S. Congress. more

As State Auditor, I’ve been sounding the alarm on the unaccountable private school voucher program for years. Politicians who like to lie say it’s because I’m against private schools. That’s not true at all.  more

As an educator who’s spent years building a foundation for children, I believe that school choice is a foundational freedom that Iowans should have. Parents should be able to have more say over where their kids go to school and more say over where their tax dollars are spent. more

I can remember a time, when I was a kid, that I took the phrase ‘Christmas in July’ about as seriously as I could. I put blankets over my bedroom window so I could pretend it was snowing outside, I put on my favorite winter pajamas, and I watched all my favorite Christmas specials – all in the middle of summer. more

Ashley Hinson says she is a minivan driving mom running for the U.S. Senate who sometimes has trouble keeping food in the fridge for her two teenage sons who attend public school, except… she’s a millionaire. She had over a million dollars before she ever ran, but she’s used her position in Congress to increase her wealth tenfold in the last four years. more

As you may have already read, I had the opportunity this past week to talk with Principal Ryan about the inclusive playground installed at West Liberty Elementary, meant to help students with physical or mental disabilities play alongside their peers. It’s a lovely idea, right? One that I’m not sure too many would be opposed to. more

Best to get the bad news out first. Our subscription prices are going up. more

Property tax reform has been a pressing issue for years. more

When your home state is repeatedly rated as one of the worst in the country for property tax burdens, something has to change. When you are consistently hearing from Iowans worried about property taxes year after year, something has to change. And when the same entities complaining about funding are spending money on things like hosting bird watching events and costly electric garbage trucks, something has to change. This was the mindset of legislators as we headed into session this year, determined to make real change in the lives of Iowa taxpayers, bring relief to Iowa families, and encourage fiscal responsibility to the communities that need it. more

She cofounded Women For Trump, Women for America First, supported ‘Stop the Steal’, planned and organized the January 6th Trump Rally  (not the riot that followed), but Amy Kremer’s latest venture, Humans First, is not one that Donald Trump is likely to approve of. This self-described conservative organization arranged the AI Data Center National Day of Protest on July 18th which involved 140 protests nationwide against the way data centers are being implemented. more

This newspaper—the one in your hands right now—you can do anything with it. more

This session, the legislature passed and Governor Reynolds signed into law House File 2676, the Iowa Make America Healthy Again bill, with Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. present for the historic bill signing. This comprehensive measure redirects taxpayer dollars toward genuine improvements in physical and mental health, rather than continuing policies that contribute to lifelong poor health outcomes — especially for children. more