Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos held a private meeting with conservative lobbyists today, and excluded the public. Video recorded by Progress Iowa shows a number of prominent lobbyists in attendance at the Governor’s private capitol office.
“Kim Reynolds reminded us today who she really represents, and it’s not Iowans,” said Matt Sinovic, executive director of Progress Iowa. “It’s disturbing that she would host a meeting with the Secretary of Education about how to divert funds from public schools, and cut the public out of the process. These are our tax dollars and our neighborhood schools, and the public should have a seat at the table, not the Koch Brother’s lobbyist. Today’s meeting and their voucher proposal is a slap in the face to every student, parent, and educator in Iowa.”
Those identified as attending the meeting include:
The Iowa Republican Party received $20,000 and Senator Chuck Grassley received $2,700 from a donor who was recently charged in a prostitution sting, and Progress Iowa is calling for them to donate those funds to charity to support the fight against human trafficking.
Progress Iowa executive director Matt Sinovic issued the following statement in response to the news that Roger Stone, advisor to President Trump, has been arrested and indicted:
(more…)“It goes beyond partisan politics when an American citizen is arrested and indicted on charges of working with a foreign power to disrupt and destabilize our democratic elections.
Roger Stone’s indictment is a red-alert alarm that should wake up the conscience of every elected official, to step up and protect the ongoing investigation into Russian interference into our democracy. It’s time for Senators Ernst and Grassley to drop their partisan blinders and give their full support for legislation to protect the Mueller investigation.
The accusations in the indictment are startling, both for what they accuse Mr. Stone of doing to influence the election, and the lengths at which they went to cover it up. It is clear that there is a widespread effort to prevent witnesses from being honest, and prevent the special prosecutor from doing his job.
Senators Ernst and Grassley have a constitutional responsibility to do their job and ensure the rule of law. We hope they will start taking it seriously.”
For over a year, health care has been the dominant issue for Americans of all backgrounds, and the millions of Americans across the country who went to the polls in the 2018 midterms to voice their outrage over the Republican war on health care confirmed it. The mandate is clear: voters elected a “Health Care Congress” to lower costs and improve care. Today, Protect Our Care is releasing a comprehensive agenda for congressional action: The Health Care Congress: Cost, Coverage, Consumer Protections and kicking off a campaign in states and congressional districts across the country to pass it.
Rep. Bobby Kaufmann publicly bullied a number of organizations during the House State Government Committee meeting this morning, including Progress Iowa, if they continue to speak out in support of the Iowa Public Employees Retirement System, better known as IPERS. Kaufmann threatened to publicly brand Progress Iowa as a liar for bringing attention to the issue of retirement security, and for accurately pointing out the arguments that Republicans have made in the past to privatize the system.
(more…)Governor Kim Reynolds delivered her condition of the state address this morning, but a number of Iowa values were nowhere to be seen, according to an analysis of her own remarks.
Below is a list of words and terms that did not appear in the Governor’s remarks:
Iowans joined a press call today following Wednesday’s vote in the House of Representatives to pass the Allred Resolution – which authorizes House Counsel to go to court and defend the ACA in the Texas, et. al. vs. United States, et. al. lawsuit.
It’s no secret that Donald Trump lies. A lot. Like “7,645 false or misleading claims made by Trump since taking office” a lot.
But tonight, all the major networks are giving him airtime to share those malicious lies, to cover for a government shutdown that is entirely his fault (and one that he said he’d gladly accept blame for).
(more…)The sixth annual Progress Iowa Holiday Party will feature a number of national progressive leaders and potential Presidential candidates delivering keynote addresses, the organization announced today. Newly elected U.S. Reps. Cindy Axne and Abby Finkenauer will address the crowd, along with Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Indiana, U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley, U.S. Rep. and Iowa native Eric Swalwell, and entrepreneur and presidential candidate Andrew Yang will all speak at this year’s event, to be held Thursday, December 20th in Des Moines.
(more…)
This week families and friends will gather together to celebrate Thanksgiving. It should be a relaxing time. But, for a lot of us, there are dreaded political conversations on the menu. Thankfully we’re here to help you navigate them. We even have an email hotline for you. Just write to [email protected] and we’ll be there with sound advice!
(more…)
New exit polling released today shows that Iowans who voted in this year’s election support a wide variety of policies including a return of state-run Medicaid, dramatically increased education funding, and support of rights for workers. Click here to read the entire poll.
(more…)
Website Provides Resource Available In English And Spanish For Voters Who Want To Cast Their Vote Early
A new resource for early voting was launched by Progress Iowa today, at IowaVotesEarly.com, providing Iowans who want to vote early an easy to use site where they can find the closest voting location. Iowans can vote in person at their county auditor’s office and at satellite voting locations, as well as by voting by mail with an absentee ballot. Information is provided in both English and Spanish, and the site will be updated as more early voting sites are confirmed.