Congress wraps for 2025, governor flips on summer food aid

Dec. 22 edition of "KHOI's Capitol Week"

U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley speaks on December 16, next to a poster of a Des Moines Register photo from August 1920, depicting his mother Ruth Corwin Grassley and other women voters (screenshot from official Senate video)

I need to talk about what happened at CBS News over the weekend.

You may not know that early in my career, I covered Russian politics for about ten years, spanning the second half of Boris Yeltsin’s presidency and the early Vladimir Putin years. As a freelancer for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in the early 2000s, I extensively covered Putin’s crackdown on the Russian media. Again and again, the Kremlin used corporate media owners or shareholders to impose editorial changes on unfriendly outlets, especially private television networks. I saw many examples of self-censorship or bosses interfering with outlets that criticized the authorities.

So I was alarmed (though not surprised) when Bari Weiss, the inexperienced editor in chief of CBS News, intervened to stop “60 Minutes” from airing a segment featuring Venezuelan men who were tortured early this year in an El Salvador prison.

Weiss suggested the story lacked “sufficient context” and was “missing critical voices.” She later told CBS News staffers, “We need to be able to get the principals on the record and on camera.”

Sharyn Alfonsi, who reported the story for “60 Minutes,” was on target when she warned in an internal email, "Government silence is a statement, not a VETO. Their refusal to be interviewed is a tactical maneuver designed to kill the story. If the administration's refusal to participate becomes a valid reason to spike a story, we have effectively handed them a 'kill switch' for any reporting they find inconvenient."

I couldn’t count the number of times Iowa officials have ignored my inquiries. For example, in August and September 2020 I tried four times over a two-week period to get answers about Governor Kim Reynolds’ decision to use federal COVID-19 relief funds to pay part of her staff salaries.

In October 2020, I tried six times over three weeks to find out why those CARES Act funds were routed through another state agency, instead of being recorded on public databases as going to the governor’s office. The governor’s spokesperson also ignored my later questions about the decision to tap COVID-19 relief funds for that purpose.

Journalists should seek comment from official sources, as I regularly do. But you can’t hold the government accountable if you give them the power to decide what to publish. So while I have sometimes delayed stories waiting for comment, or spiked stories I couldn’t nail down, you have my word that I will never yank a story because the “principals” refused to go on the record.

Another reason to be grateful for my editorial independence, which wouldn’t be possible without support from readers.

I also want to thank all who came to hear me at the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa’s Crossroads lunch last Friday. The video is online here. I spoke for about 20 minutes about the upcoming legislative session about 2026 elections, then took questions for the rest of the time.

On to the latest edition of “KHOI’s Capitol Week.” The audio file from our December 22 show is at the top of this post. Longtime listeners will recognize the voice of Dennis Hart, who co-hosted the show for more than three years. You can also listen to “KHOI’s Capitol Week” through any podcast platform or smart speaker, and find all episodes from the past three years here.

Here’s the written recap, for those who would rather read than listen. If your email provider truncates this message, you can read it without interruption here.

Fallen Iowa National Guard members returned to U.S.

Following up on the tragedy we covered last week, the remains of Sgt. Nate Howard and Sgt. Edgar Torres-Tovar, who were killed in an ambush in Syria, were brought back to the U.S. President Donald Trump and members of Iowa’s Congressional delegation attended the “dignified transfer” at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. (The dignified transfer is a ritual for service members killed in action.)

Sgt. Howard and Torres-Tovar were the first Iowa National Guard members killed in military action since 2011.

The Iowa National Guard announced on Sunday that two soldiers recently wounded in the ambush in Syria have returned to the U.S. for treatment “at a dedicated military facility.” A third Iowa National Guard member who suffered less severe injuries in the same attack “was treated locally and returned to duty.”

None of the injured soldiers have been identified. The two transferred to the U.S. are in stable condition. Obviously we wish them all a speedy recovery.

All four U.S. House members and both U.S. senators from Iowa introduced a resolution honoring the lives, service, and sacrifice of Sgts. Howard and Torres-Tovar.

Libertarians push for “Defend the Guard” bill

Last week the Libertarian Party of Iowa called on state lawmakers to pass a bill that would prevent Iowa National Guard troops from being deployed into active combat zones overseas, unless Congress has approved a formal declaration of war. (Congress hasn’t done that since World War II; typically there is an authorization for the use of military force, which allows current deployments in the Middle East.)

I had never heard of these bills, so I looked them up. Eight Republicans co-sponsored House File 429: State Representatives Jeff Shipley, Mark Thompson, Mike Vondran, Sam Wengryn, Judd Lawler, Jason Gearhart, Thomas Gerhold, and Zach Dieken. The bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee, where State Representative Steven Holt never assigned it to a subcommittee.

Just one Republican, State Senator Jeff Taylor, introduced the companion bill (Senate File 227) in the Iowa Senate. It was referred to the Veterans Affairs Committee and assigned to a subcommittee, but the subcommittee never met to consider the bill.

The Libertarian Party of Iowa said in a statement, “Defend the Guard legislation does not weaken national defense. It restores the constitutional balance of war powers and ensures that deployments into active war zones occur only after open debate, lawful authorization, and accountability. That safeguard was deliberately ignored.” The party will push for the bill in 2026, but I doubt they will get far.

I mentioned on the show that some readers have asked me why Iowa National Guard members were involved with counter-terrorism operations overseas, and what kind of training they had for that kind of mission. I don’t know the answers yet, but I have asked the questions.

U.S. House approves Miller-Meeks health care bill

Both the U.S. House and Senate have gone home until the week of January 5. Before they left town, House members approved a health insurance bill sponsored by Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-01). We talked about this on last week’s show, but a quick reminder: this bill doesn’t extend the enhanced subsidies for people who buy health insurance through the Affordable Care Act exchanges. That’s more than 100,000 Iowans.

There are provisions that would help self-employed people and small businesses buy into larger group plans, require transparency for pharmacy benefit managers, and a few other policies designed to either let companies give employees money to buy health insurance, or make government payments to health insurance companies with the goal of lowering premiums.

All four Iowans in the House voted for this bill. Miller-Meeks has been out there selling it as a way to lower health insurance premiums for everyone. Most of the provisions wouldn’t do that for most people–certainly not in the short term. It’s also not likely the Senate will take up the legislation.

Nunn facing tough vote on ACA subsidies

Although Congress did not extend the enhanced subsidies for ACA health insurance policies, the House is expected to vote on that issue in January. To my surprise, four Republicans (all from other states) signed a discharge petition to force a floor vote on a Democratic bill to extend the tax credits for three years. They had tried without success to get a vote on a bipartisan subsidy fix as an amendment to the Miller-Meeks bill.

As we’ve discussed on past shows, Representative Zach Nunn (IA-03) is on record supporting a one-year or two-year extension of those subsidies, along with other changes to the law (such as tighter income limits for those who qualify). At the same time, he hasn’t pushed for GOP leaders to allow a vote on the bipartisan bill he co-sponsored.

Nunn will really be on the spot when this measure comes to the floor. He’s been out there saying he wants to help Iowans whose health insurance premiums are about to double, triple, or worse. Now if he votes against this bill, he will be going back on that promise. But if he votes for the bill, some conservatives might accuse him of voting for Obamacare. That is not an enviable position at all.

Assuming the ACA tax credits bill clears the House, it won’t get past the Senate. As we mentioned last week, that chamber already voted down a Democratic bill to extend the enhanced subsidies.

Grassley rejects call for hearings on boat strikes

We covered several stories related to Senator Chuck Grassley’s work, which continues to advance many of President Donald Trump’s political goals.

Benjamin S. Weiss reported for Courthouse News on Thursday that the Senate Judiciary Committee chair has ruled out hearings on the Trump administration’s strikes on boats alleged to be transporting drugs from Venezuela.

Democratic senators on the committee had urged Grassley to convene a hearing on what they called “extrajudicial killings” and “shocking violations of fundamental principles of due process and the right to life under U.S. and international law.” Congress has not authorized the use of force against Venezuela.

But Grassley told Courthouse News that he accepts “the Office of Legal Counsel’s well-written classified opinion explaining the administration’s lawful authority to conduct these strikes.” Grassley also said that since the boat strikes are military operations, the Armed Services Committee would have oversight authority. The senator added that Trump was “protecting Americans from a product that could kill them.”

Many Republicans, including Representative Ashley Hinson (IA-02) and Senator Joni Ernst, have cited fentanyl overdoses to justify the boat strikes. However, experts agree that if the boats are smuggling drugs from Venezuela, they would be carrying cocaine, not fentanyl. In addition, the small boats the Navy has struck would likely not have been capable of reaching the United States.

Grassley touts work on confirmations

On Friday, Grassley boasted to his almost 1 million followers on X (formerly Twitter),

In 2025 the Senate confirmed 31 US Attorneys which is on pace w 1st year of Biden admin & 26 federal judges that’s 7 MORE judges than first year of Trump's 1st term

As Chairman of Judic I will continue advancing/confirming I want Pres Trump's nominees 2b successful

He has certainly been trying to fast-track Trump’s nominees, as he did while he chaired the committee in 2017 and 2018. I would guess that Grassley wants to get this message out now because he is still taking heat from some of the MAGA contingent for using the “blue slip” system.

Over the summer, Trump repeatedly complained on his Truth Social platform about the blue slips and called on Grassley to end the practice, which has held up some nomination in the Judiciary Committee. The senator has correctly pointed out that thanks to blue slips, Trump has been able to fill some two dozen judicial vacancies that otherwise would have been filled by appointees of President Joe Biden.

As we noted in October, Iowa has Senate-confirmed U.S. attorneys, after those positions were filled by acting U.S. attorneys throughout the Biden administration. David Waterman was Trump’s pick for U.S. attorney in the Southern District of Iowa, and Leif Olson is running the office in the Northern District.

U.S. Senate Republicans changed the rules this fall to allow votes on groups of nominees, in order to take up less floor debate time. The Iowa Senate has done these “en bloc” confirmation votes for many years, but it’s a new thing in Congress.

Grassley calls Mar-a-Lago search “a miscarriage of justice”

I reported in July on how Grassley has been using his leadership role on the Judiciary Committee to avenge Donald Trump. We saw another example of this last Tuesday, when Grassley posted what he called “shocking new documents.” The documents supposedly showed the FBI did not think there was probable cause to search Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in 2022.

Grassley concluded, “Based on the records – the Mar-a-Lago raid was a miscarriage of justice.” But that’s not the whole story.

The main document Grassley highlighted was undated. Investigative reporter Carol Leonnig observed that “FBI agents worried about probable cause for search in May/June 2022, BEFORE they obtained surveillance tapes showing Trump aides secretly removing boxes of records.” She added, “Senior FBI officials stated the tapes gave probable cause to justify the raid in August 2022.” You can read more here.

It’s striking that Grassley is still pushing ahead with the narrative that Biden officials weaponized the Justice Department. He has not objected to DOJ officials opening investigations and in some cases seeking indictments against the president’s political adversaries, acting on direct orders from Trump.

Grassley wants Treasury to issue coin honoring women’s suffrage movement

One more story about Grassley: he took to the Senate floor last Tuesday to urge the Treasury Department to correct what he called a “very big mistake.” The U.S. Mint will issue commemorative coins to mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, but the Treasury abandoned some approved designs, including one that would have honored the women’s suffrage movement.

Grassley is particularly interested in this issue because his mother, Ruth Corwin Grassley, was among the first women in Iowa to cast a ballot after the 19th Amendment was ratified in August 1920. She was voting in a referendum on school consolidation in Black Hawk and Grundy counties.

He’s spoken about this before, and I wrote about it at Bleeding Heartland in 2019. Incidentally, Iowa had allowed women to “vote on bond/tax issues in municipal elections, independent school district elections, the annual district township meeting, and in special elections” since 1894. So Ruth Corwin Grassley probably didn’t need the 19th Amendment to cast that ballot.

Anyway, Grassley co-sponsored a bill in 2019 that “authorized the U.S. Mint to issue special edition silver dollar coins commemorating the adoption of the 19th amendment in 1920.” He said in his speech that “the current Treasury Department abandoned the designs that were first suggested and the women’s suffrage coin was one of those.” He added, “I’m kind of shocked that the executive branch of government would change what was studied for a while and suggested. It didn’t meet the ideology of this administration...”

Grassley hopes the administration will reconsider “honoring the suffragettes with a coin.” I find it hilarious that anyone would be surprised the Trump administration abandoned an initiative that honored women. These people bash “DEI” and have cut many Congressionally approved programs.

Final note: historians generally prefer the term “suffragists” to “suffragettes” these days.

Another Republican running in IA-01

Last week Iowa Public Radio reported that Tyler Hegewald is running for Congress in the first district, where the incumbent Miller-Meeks already has a primary challenger, David Pautsch.

Hegewald actually announced his campaign on December 8, but I only learned about it from IPR’s reporting. Note to candidates: put me on your press distribution list!

According to IPR, Hegewald used to be a Democrat but presents himself as an Abraham Lincoln Republican. He’s currently a server at a restaurant in Amana, and he previously owned a soup company in Cedar Rapids. “Hegewald said his working-class background and his time as a business owner give him an insight into how decisions that are made in Washington, D.C., affect everyday Iowans.”

He’s unlikely to be a significant factor in the June primary. Miller-Meeks will spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on the race, and Pautsch (who received about 44 percent of the 2024 primary vote) has been actively campaigning for almost a year.

Doug Jensen drops out in IA-04

Last Monday, Doug Jensen ended his campaign for the Republican nomination in Iowa’s fourth Congressional district. He said in a statement that he needs to focus on his young children, as his wife (a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force) will soon be deployed overseas.

He’s the second Republican to leave this race. Kyle Larson, a farmer from Humboldt County, dropped out in September.

Jensen’s exit leaves four Republicans seeking the nomination in the fourth district: Siouxland Chamber of Commerce leader Chris McGowan, State Representative Matt Windschitl, Iowa Tea Party founder Ryan Rhodes, and Christian Schlaefer.

As we’ve mentioned, McGowan is looking like the front-runner for now. He leads the field in fundraising and has endorsements from high-ranking U.S. House Republicans. I’m very curious to see whether Trump will endorse in this primary, and whether Windschitl and Rhodes put up strong fundraising numbers in the fourth quarter.

Three Democrats are seeking the nomination for this House seat: Dave Dawson, Stephanie Steiner, and Ashley WolfTornabane.

Wahls slams DSCC “meddling” in Senate primary

Last week, State Senator Zach Wahls claimed in a fundraising email that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer “is meddling in Iowa’s Democratic primary to help his handpicked candidate win.”

This has been simmering below the surface since the summer. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee has not endorsed in Iowa’s primary, but it’s an open secret that their preferred candidate is State Representative Josh Turek. Politico recently reported that the DSCC is “warning consultants against working with Wahls and Nathan Sage.”

In 2023, Iowa Senate Democrats voted Wahls out as minority leader. He is wearing that setback almost as a badge of honor, saying in many interviews and speeches this year that he’s willing to take on his own party’s establishment, “and I have the scars to show for it.”

The recent fundraising email included this passage: “My name is Zach Wahls, and I am running to bring real leadership to the U.S. Senate. I’m sick and tired of D.C. insiders like Chuck Schumer, who for years have written off small towns and rural communities, thinking they can decide what’s best for Iowans.”

Sage calls for data center moratorium

Last Wednesday, another Democratic candidate for Senate, Nathan Sage, called for “a complete moratorium on the construction of data centers” and more regulations of artificial intelligence. He came out with this statement right after Senator Bernie Sanders said something similar.

Sage told Radio Iowa, “MidAmerican came out and talked about rates going up 13% and we have 200,000 Iowans who are right now late on their utility bills, and I think that the increased demand on our power grid is going to cause a lot of problems.”

In a campaign news release, he said, “The tech billionaires who have already rigged the economy for themselves and bought a generation of corrupt politicians are now trying to drive up our utility costs, dirty our water, buy up our land, and take our jobs to further consolidate their power and wealth.”

J.D. Scholten retires from professional baseball

We don’t often cover sports on “KHOI’s Capitol Week,” but I wanted to follow up on a story we covered last year. State Representative J.D. Scholten announced last week that he is retiring from professional baseball, closing what he called “an improbable chapter from the last two summers.” He unexpectedly returned to the roster of the Sioux City Explorers in July 2024 and continued to pitch for them this year. He went 6-2 in eleven starts in 2024 and 1-1 in four starts this season.

Scholten is the oldest person in the American Association league history to earn a win on the mound, as well as the “only elected official to play professional baseball while actively serving.” You can watch his retirement announcement here.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown has the jersey he wore in that first game he pitched in July 2024.

photo from September 2024, courtesy of Iowa House Democrats and J.D. Scholten

Scholten represents part of Sioux City in the Iowa House and has not yet announced whether he’ll seek a third term in the legislature.

He said in last week’s statement, “The last two summers have been magical for me. I often think about a line from a movie I like that says ‘How do you make God laugh? Have a plan…’”

Fox News panel fat shames little-known Iowa House candidate

Speaking of improbable stories, last week, Fox News host Greg Gutfeld and panelists on his show spent several minutes mocking the weight of a state House candidate in western Iowa.

To me, this episode illustrates how Donald Trump has degraded public discourse and made it acceptable to ridicule people for no good reason.

Douglas Burns interviewed Democratic candidate Benjamin Schauer (a public school band teacher and city council member in the small town of Dunlap) and wrote this post for The Iowa Mercury:

Fox News' Gutfeld, his national panelists, mock small-town Iowa House candidate's weight, calling him 'Benjamin Broken Buttons' amid a barrage of mean-spirited jokes in viral segment

How did Fox News personalities even know Schauer exists? He posted an Instagram reel featuring an endorsement from Stephanie Steiner. She’s backing Schauer in part because he supports universal health care, a major priority for her. Some MAGA influencers started making fun of Schauer’s weight, which is probably how the image found its way to Fox.

Schauer has spoken candidly about obesity and lack of access to health care. As Burns reported, Schauer has explored some medical interventions to address his weight, but those wouldn’t be covered by his insurance.

Iowa will participate in USDA’s summer food program

I had to change our format on Monday, after Governor Kim Reynolds announced that the state will participate in the USDA’s summer feeding program known as Sun Bucks or Summer EBT. Reynolds had kept Iowa out of that program for the past two years.

What changed? The USDA approved a waiver request for Iowa to restrict food purchases in line with a new state law that goes into effect on January 1.

Summer EBT gives $40 per month (total of $120 for the summer) for each child who qualifies for free or reduced-price school lunches. Parents can use those funds at any grocery store or farmers market. An estimated 240,000 Iowa children will qualify for the program. The waiver means parents won’t be able to use these EBT cards to buy any food that is subject to the sales tax (such as candy, pop or soda, some prepared foods).

Reynolds said in a statement that food assistance programs should address “both hunger and health” and that in the past Sun Bucks “lacked a focus on nutrition.”

I feel like this is a tacit admission that her alternative summer feeding program, called “Healthy Kids Iowa,” wasn’t as helpful or far-reaching as Summer EBT will be.

For months, reporters had been asking the Iowa Department for Health and Human Services for data on Healthy Kids Iowa. The agency released the final report on the food box program a few hours after Reynolds announced Iowa will pick up Summer EBT for 2026.

According to the report HHS released, “66,786 unique children received food packages.” Most of them did not participate in all three summer months.

Many advocates criticized that program for offering less choice to families and being inaccessible to many. Former State Representative Chuck Isenhart estimated that in Dubuque County, about two-thirds of children who would have been eligible for Summer EBT got no help from the pilot program.

Some parents who did participate were surveyed about the Healthy Kids Iowa. Asked whether they would prefer that food box approach or a Summer EBT card to buy groceries at any store, “Over half (57%) chose Summer EBT while one-fourth (25%) chose Healthy Kids Iowa. Nineteen percent of respondents reported no preference between programs.”

The Iowa Hunger Coalition celebrated the governor’s announcement, with Paige Chickering of Save the Children Action Network calling it “a huge win for every single Iowan”: “It’s a win for Iowa’s kids, it’s a win for Governor Reynolds, it’s a win for retailers, it’s a win for rural economies, it’s a win for food banks and food pantries, and it’s a win for Iowa’s anti-hunger advocates – who have relentlessly worked to ensure Iowa participates in Summer EBT.”

I spoke with Chickering on Monday afternoon, and she emphasized that summer EBT reaches many more kids. She also mentioned that the program was developed after years of research pointing to the limitations of food box programs, especially for access in rural areas.

Luke Elzinga, who chairs the Iowa Hunger Coalition, said in the statement, “While the Iowa Hunger Coalition remains opposed to SNAP food and beverage restrictions, we are overjoyed that Governor Reynolds recognizes the importance of the SUN Bucks program and has chosen to participate in 2026.” He added, “Hundreds of thousands of Iowa’s kids will be better off during the summer as a result.”

Trump orders marijuana rescheduling; Bird quietly objects

We spent a couple of minutes on a story I covered over the weekend. Last Thursday, Trump signed an executive order loosening restrictions on medical marijuana. Attorney General Brenna Bird was among eight Republican AGs who quietly expressed concerns about that order.

I explained the context on the show; you can read more in my post:

I am grateful to Iowa Capital Dispatch, because I wouldn’t have seen the joint statement Bird signed, if not for their coverage. Bird’s office didn’t release a statement about rescheduling marijuana, or post about it on their social media.

Coming next week: our year in review

Spencer Dirks and I will spend much of next week’s show recapping the top stories in Iowa politics from 2025. But I wanted to give Dennis Hart a chance to weigh in, since he won’t be at the mic next Monday. He flagged the decisions of Governor Reynolds and Senator Ernst not to seek another term, and of course the Iowa legislature’s bill stripping transgender people of civil rights protections.

That’s all for now. Whether you’ve already finished celebrating the Winter Solstice or Chanukah, or are looking forward to Christmas or Kwanzaa, I wish you all a restful and joyous holiday week.