Rick Smith

Democrats’ growing talk of a coming blue wave in November could backfire. The Democrats’ winning of special elections have fueled more talk about the anticipated blue wave. Even in the special elections that Democrats have lost, they are encouraged by the Republicans’ reduced margins. However, Democrats must beware of over confidence, particularly if it impacts…

Iowa Republicans’ tax negotiations continue shrouded in secrecy without input from Democrats or major stakeholders. They are ramming their reckless tax changes forward with an Iowa farm economy that is already distressed. If President Trump pushes his agriculture-killing tariffs forward, the Iowa economy could crater. In February the USDA released their annual net farm income…

The solution to gun violence in America should be a simple choice, according to high school students. They have eloquently simplified the public debate about guns into just two choices. Students are demanding that the public choose between a society with unlimited guns with few restrictions or a society dedicated to saving the lives of…

This past Sunday, April 22, the nation celebrated a day dedicated to the environment. However, the support for this recent Earth Day event has changed dramatically since that first celebration in 1970. The original Earth Day was truly a bipartisan celebration and a commitment by both Democrats and Republicans to protect the environment. Today, the…

Today, April 20, Iowa students will stage walkouts and demonstrations against gun violence at schools across Iowa. The event is organized by the group Students United Against Gun Violence Walkout. The group has events planned nationwide at over 2,000 schools. In central Iowa, many will board busses to come to the Iowa State Capitol to…

Andie Dominick, editorial writer for the Des Moines Register won the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing by exposing the Branstad/Reynolds Medicaid privatization catastrophe. Dominick was recognized for articles that the Pulitzer Prize Board described as, “examining in a clear, indignant voice, free of cliché or sentimentality, the damaging consequences for poor Iowa residents of…

The Trump/Republican tax cuts will play a crucial role in the 2018 midterms. Both Trump and the Republican leadership have made it clear they will run on their tax cuts, using them as the principle reason to justify their reelection. Today, April 17, there will be over 100 Tax March rallies protesting the Republicans’ $1.5…

Remember Senator Ernst’s campaign pledge to go to Washington and “Make’em Squeal?”  Little did we know that her Trump-led Republican Party would start a trade war that would make Iowa farmers “squeal.” President Trump’s tariff threats aimed at China have Iowa’s agricultural community in turmoil as they anticipate the loss of exports sales. Iowa’s agricultural…

Yesterday President Trump poured more fuel on the flames of the trade war with China, proposing to slap an additional $100 billion in tariffs on China. This is on top of the $50 billion he has already proposed. You can expect the markets to respond very unfavorably today to this latest escalation of Trump’s China…

The conservative media giant Sinclair Broadcasting has been in the news the past few days as many of their stations across the nation ran identical propaganda scripts. Sinclair currently owns six Iowa TV stations and they are attempting to acquire two more. Both WHO-TV, the NBC affiliate in Des Moines, and WQAD, the ABC affiliate…