Pat Rynard founded Iowa Starting Line in 2015. He still keeps a close eye on Iowa politics, his dog’s name is Frank, and football season is his favorite time of year.
Pat Rynard
Latest from Pat Rynard
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Ep89: Beto’s In, Eastern Iowa Visits, Joni Ernst’s “Paid” Family Leave
The Iowa Starting Line Podcast host Pat Rynard is joined by State Representative Lindsay James to talk about candidates’ visits to Eastern Iowa, Elizabeth Warren’s ability to stay in the news, some Statehouse topics like the Ag Gag law, and Joni Ernst’s new “paid” family leave program.
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Gillibrand Plans Mississippi River Trip Through Counties That Flipped Iowa
Kirsten Gillibrand will take a tour next week through the Eastern Iowa counties that gave her predecessor in the Senate so many difficulties in the 2016 presidential campaign. The planned trip for next Tuesday and Wednesday takes Gillibrand along the Mississippi River, hitting Dubuque, Davenport, Muscatine, and Burlington. She makes a stop in Ottumwa before…
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Ep88: Sanders’ Return, His New Rural Pitch, Iowa Poll Results
The Iowa Starting Line Podcast host Pat Rynard is joined by Patty Judge to contrast Bernie Sanders and John Hickenlooper’s appeal and message. We also discuss Sanders’ new approach to rural America messaging, and we look at the latest Des Moines Register Iowa Poll.
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Beto O’Rourke Recruits Top Iowa Consultant, Plans Trip
Beto O’Rourke is moving ever closer to an official presidential campaign launch, and he now has a top Iowa political operative to steer his efforts here. CNN reported that Norm Sterzenbach has been assisting O’Rourke’s initial Iowa outreach here, something Starting Line’s sources also confirmed. It’s a major pickup for O’Rourke, a likely 2020 candidate…
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Sanders Returns To Iowa In New Role: Front-Runner
In many ways, it felt like Bernie Sanders’ 2016 campaign never ended. At his stops in Iowa this week following his official 2020 launch, Sanders rallied the faithful in packed rooms to get on board with his second run for the White House. In speeches that clocked in at just over an hour’s length, all…
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Monocle Money: Joni Ernst Raises Healthcare Industry Cash At DC Restaurant
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst was spotted yesterday morning walking into the Monocle Restaurant in Washington, D.C., for a high-dollar fundraising event with the healthcare industry. In a video captured by American Bridge, Ernst heads into the upscale steak and seafood restaurant, where she was reportedly joined by Senator Chuck Grassley for a fundraiser for her…
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Ep87: No Fox News Debate, Statehouse Funnel, Special Election
The Iowa Starting Line Podcast host Pat Rynard is joined by State Representative Jennifer Konfrst to talk about the DNC’s choice to not hold any debates with Fox News, and we discuss the always exciting Funnel Week at the Statehouse. And we take your questions on the upcoming special election in Cedar Falls.
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Republicans Target Students, Rural Iowans In New Voting Bill
A bill sponsored by Republican Senator Roby Smith is proposing a wide range of new voting restrictions in Iowa, including ones that would specifically make it harder for students, rural voters, and veterans to vote. Smith’s Senate Study Bill 1241 seems to take extra effort to make it harder for college students at the state…
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Big Donor To Grassley, Iowa GOP Busted In Florida Prostitution Sting
A major national Republican donor was charged with soliciting prostitution in the Florida sting that also nabbed New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft. John Childs, a billionaire who’s given $20,000 to the Republican Party of Iowa and $2,700 to Chuck Grassley, is one of hundreds of people ensnared in a sweeping bust of a sex…
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Ep86: A New Legislator’s Life, Governors Get In, Mike Pence Comments
The Iowa Starting Line Podcast host Pat Rynard is joined by State Senator Zach Wahls about what being a new legislator is like, and we discuss the candidates in the 2020 field. And we talk with Iowa Safe Schools Director Nate Monson about why the LGBTQ community wouldn’t consider Mike Pence a “decent man.”
