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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Ep57: IA-Gov Poll Results & Vicky Brenner Interview
Iowa Starting Line Podcast host Pat Rynard interviews Spencer Kimball of Emerson Polling about the new poll in the governor’s race and what all the numbers might mean. We also talk with Vicky Brenner, Democratic candidate for Senate District 13.
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Legal Bribery? Reynolds’ Latest Ethics Issue Sets Bad Precedent
Perhaps Governor Kim Reynolds should just stay off planes. The AP’s Ryan Foley reported this afternoon that Reynolds had once again taken a questionable plane ride paid for by a donor that has business with the state of Iowa. Dave North, the CEO of Sedgwick, a company that is contracted by the state to handle…
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Ep56: The Life Of A Down-Ballot Candidate With Rob Sand
Iowa Starting Line Podcast host Pat Rynard interviews Rob Sand, Democratic candidate for State Auditor, about what it’s like campaigning as a down-ballot candidate this year.
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Follow The Money On Reynolds, Wellmark And Pre-Existing Health Conditions
After years of state and national progress on healthcare access, Governor Kim Reynolds brought back one of the worst features of pre-ACA healthcare: denying coverage for pre-existing conditions. And the company that was chosen to offer up the new plans just so happens to have been a major contributor to the Brandstad/Reynolds ticket for years.…
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A Democratic Iowa House Majority (Part 4): Blue-Collar Districts
For Starting Line’s fourth piece about important swing districts in the battle for the Iowa House, we look at three blue-collar seats spread around the state. Democrats are mostly on defense here, and they really can’t afford to lose much in their effort to pick up a net of 10 seats for the majority. Blue-Collar…
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Cory Booker To Headline Major Iowa Democratic Party Event
Senator Cory Booker will headline the Iowa Democratic Party’s biggest event of the year in early October, the party announced this afternoon. He’s the featured guest for this year’s Fall Gala (formerly known as the Jefferson-Jackson Dinner), which will be held on Saturday, October 6. It’s the New Jersey senator’s first trip to Iowa this…
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A Democratic Iowa House Majority (Part 3): Rural Exurb Districts
In the third in our series of looks at competitive Iowa House seats that could decide the majority, we focus on three districts that wrap around metro areas in Eastern Iowa. A variety of circumstances in each could provide Democrats chances to fill the final piece in their 51-seat majority. Rural Exurb Districts: 3 Pick-Up…
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Federal Funding For Cedar Rapids Flood Wall Is Not As Advertised
The $117 million in federal funding for the Cedar Rapids flood wall is not as was originally publicly promised, Starting Line has confirmed from multiple sources. Last month, city leaders were informed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that $41 million of the federal funding that was announced in July will instead be a…
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A Democratic Iowa House Majority (Part 2): Eastern Iowa Suburbs
For the second in our series of in-depth looks at where the key Iowa House battlegrounds stand for November, we turn to suburban districts in the eastern part of the state. Iowa has seen similar trends to other parts of the country where suburban voters, who are typically college-educated and have higher incomes, are moving…
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Ep55: Interview With Senator Jeff Merkley
Iowa Starting Line Podcast host Pat Rynard interviews Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon about his thought process on running for president, what he thinks the country can learn from his former colleague John McCain and where all we stand on the President’s family separation policy that Merkley helped expose.
