New candidates, Sand town halls, Iowa impact of SCOTUS rulings

June 30 edition of "KHOI's Capitol Week"

Congressional candidate Chris McGowan (left) and state auditor candidate Abigail Maas in photos originally published on their campaign Facebook pages

I want to thank the many readers who commented on my previous post or reached out to me directly to share their memories of my parents, or their own stories of parent loss or raising a grieving child. Writing a personal essay is way outside my comfort zone, but I strongly believe our society doesn’t properly acknowledge how bereavement can affect our lives.

Spencer Dirks and I were in our comfort zone Monday evening, as we covered yet another busy week in Iowa politics and a surprising amount of breaking news. The audio file for the June 30 edition of “KHOI’s Capitol Week” is at the top of this post, for those who prefer to listen. The full show archive (going back to February 2021) is available on KHOI’s website.

Here’s the written summary of the latest show, for those who would rather read. If your email provider truncates this post, you can read it without interruption here.

Senate debates budget reconciliation bill

While we were live on the air, the U.S. Senate was still mired in debate over the bill Republicans call big and beautiful and Democrats call big and bad. Tuesday morning, Senate leaders managed to flip Lisa Murkowski’s vote and push the whole thing through with Vice President JD Vance breaking the tie.

One of my big takeaways was that GOP leaders didn’t need to offer Iowa’s senators anything to keep them on board. All weekend, we saw Congressional reporters covering how some senators insisted on more help for rural hospitals, a Medicaid carve-out for their state, or some other change to the bill. But there was never any doubt that Senator Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst would vote for it. They didn’t even ask for anything that would lessen the blow for their constituents.

On last week’s show I mentioned that the Senate parliamentarian had ruled against some of the language on cuts to the largest federal food assistance program (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP). I anticipated Republicans would rewrite those sections, because they really need those budget savings to make the math work.

Indeed, Senate Republicans “cured” their Byrd rule problem with the SNAP cuts. One of the provisions, on shifting more food assistance costs to states, could be devastating to Iowa.

The Iowa Hunger Coalition noted in a June 30 blog post that “If these SNAP cost-share provisions pass and are signed into law, the state of Iowa could be on the hook for upwards of $40 million annually.” That whole piece is worth a read.

Iowa is already spending more this coming year than the state expects to take in, so we don’t have tens of millions of extra dollars lying around to cover food assistance.

Senator Grassley was able to get the parliamentarian to approve some of the Judiciary Committee’s language that would limit how federal judges can issue injunctions, and would help the Trump administration fight those injunctions.

Miller-Meeks, Nunn express concern over Medicaid cuts

All four of Iowa’s U.S. House members voted for the budget reconciliation bill in May. But last week, Representatives Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-01) and Zach Nunn (IA-03) were among sixteen House Republicans who signed a letter warning House and Senate leaders against making deep cuts to Medicaid. The Senate’s version of the bill would reduce federal Medicaid spending by nearly a trillion dollars and would make tax changes that threaten rural hospitals in particular.

The letter states, “Protecting Medicaid is essential for the vulnerable constituents we were elected to represent. Therefore, we cannot support a final bill that threatens access to coverage or jeopardizes the stability of our hospitals and providers."

Or can they?

The Des Moines Register reached out to the Miller-Meeks and Nunn offices: “Neither lawmaker answered whether signing onto the letter indicated they would vote against the Senate bill if it returns to the House as proposed.”

I would bet the farm on them going along with leaders’ efforts to jam this bill through before July 4.

State Senator Rocky De Witt passes away

We had sad news to report from Sioux City: first-term Republican State Senator Rocky De Witt died last week after battling pancreatic cancer for about a year and a half. He was a gun dealer and a Woodbury County supervisor before defeating a Democratic incumbent in 2022.

As a relatively new legislator, De Witt didn’t chair any committee. He was best known for floor managing a state constitutional amendment that would require a supermajority vote to raise income taxes or corporate taxes (but not sales or use taxes). At Bleeding Heartland, I posted the video of his closing remarks from that debate, along with tributes that many colleagues and contemporaries shared last week.

De Witt was one of those defiant dozen Republican senators who vowed not to vote for any appropriations bills until the Iowa Senate debated a House-approved bill on eminent domain. But then he voted against that pipeline bill (House File 639) on the floor.

Special election coming soon in Iowa Senate district 1

On Monday afternoon, Governor Kim Reynolds scheduled the special election to choose De Witt’s successor for Tuesday, August 26. This district covers most of Sioux City, other than the south side/Morningside area, and some rural areas of Woodbury County.

At Bleeding Heartland I shared more details about the political landscape and recent voting history of this area. The GOP has a voter registration advantage, and De Witt defeated a Democratic incumbent in 2022. Voters living in Senate district 1 preferred Donald Trump to Kamala Harris by 54.7 percent to 43.4 percent in the last presidential election. That was slightly narrower than Trump’s margin of victory statewide.

While Sioux City has been trending toward Republicans, I expect the August 26 race to be competitive, given the large Democratic overperformances in all three special Iowa legislative elections this year.

Former Woodbury County Supervisor candidate John Herrig emailed Woodbury county Democrats on Monday to express his interest. He had a long career negotiating contracts for the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, District 6.

I learned on Tuesday that local activist Catelin Drey is also seeking the Democratic nomination. When I was in Sioux City last week, some Democrats mentioned school board member Treyla Lee as a possible candidate.

I’m not aware of any Republican candidates yet, but we’ll surely have more to report soon.

Chris McGowan running in IA-04

Speaking of Woodbury County, last Wednesday we got our first confirmed Republican candidate for Congress in Iowa’s fourth district, where the incumbent, Randy Feenstra, is expected to run for governor.

Chris McGowan is the longtime president of the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce. He’s also a military veteran and father of six who grew up in Sioux City and has five generations of family roots in IA-04. In an interview with KCCI, he said he wants to bring his economic development background to Washington. He has lobbied Congress on issues to benefit his community and said he “can be a very strong ally and advocate.”

McGowan has said his priorities would be national security and a robust national economy, with a focus on the “tax climate and regulatory environment.”

While he said he can be a “strong voice” in Washington, DC, and clearly can raise a lot of money for a campaign, to me he looks like the kind of person who could have won a GOP primary in Iowa 20 years ago–not in the MAGA era.

We don’t have any other confirmed Republican candidates here. State Senator Lynn Evans has said he is considering it. I’ve heard a lot of speculation about Iowa House Majority Leader Matt Windschitl running for Congress, and I think he would be hard to beat in a GOP primary.

There are no declared Democratic candidates here–as we mentioned on last week’s show, Ryan Melton (the 2022 and 2024 nominee in IA-04) has bowed out of the race.

Kevin Techau ends campaign in IA-02

I wasn’t expecting the press release I received Monday afternoon from Kevin Techau’s campaign. June 30 was the end of the second fundraising quarter, and turned out to be the final chapter of Techau’s bid to represent Iowa’s second Congressional district.

The Democrat said in a statement,

It is regrettable that too much of our politics is about money. And I still hold out hope that with greater civic engagement, democracy rather than dollars, will ultimately prevail. But campaigns aren’t just about convictions — they require resources to be competitive. And the reality is, this campaign’s fundraising simply hasn’t met the threshold level that this race demands. As such, I am announcing effective today, that I am suspending my campaign for Congress.

This is a real blow to Democrats who had hoped Techau (a former Iowa Director of Public Safety and U.S. attorney) could make this district competitive. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added IA-02 to its target list in April, but national groups aren’t going to spend money here without a candidate who can raise a lot of money.

Techau had been traveling around the district and had recently written an op-ed criticizing Republican incumbent Ashley Hinson’s vote for that budget reconciliation bill.

Giving Hinson a pass this cycle could help her in 2028 when she is expected to run for U.S. Senate (assuming Grassley retires).

Abigail Maas running for state auditor

Another Monday surprise: Iowa County Supervisor Abigail Maas announced that she will run for state auditor in 2026. She’s the second declared Republican candidate in that race, following Lieutenant Governor Chris Cournoyer.

Maas was re-elected to a second term as Iowa County Supervisor in 2024 and currently serves as vice-chair. Here’s an excerpt from her campaign announcement:

Known for her focus on fiscal responsibility, she has led efforts to cut property taxes and ensure careful oversight of public funds.

She was a part of the first class to graduate from the Iowa State Association of Counties’ Certified Supervisor Program and has helped other supervisors navigate their budgets. With a background in accounting and financial audits, Maas was recently appointed to the Iowa Municipalities Workers Compensation Association Board. Her deep knowledge of local government budgets and state code gives her an edge in identifying fraud, waste, and abuse.

Maas told the Des Moines Register that she wants the state auditor to help fix the problem of rising property taxes across Iowa.

She’s got a tough road ahead of her in the GOP primary. Governor Reynolds and some other prominent Republicans have already endorsed Cournoyer. I think the GOP establishment is not going to take a chance on history repeating itself. In the 2022 primary, little-known Todd Halbur upset Mary Ann Hanusa, the establishment choice for state auditor.

The state party subsequently didn’t invest in the auditor’s race, and Rob Sand was able to squeak past Halbur in the November election.

First Zach Wahls digital ad dings Ernst on term limits

State Senator Zach Wahls launched the first digital ad of his U.S. Senate bid last week. It’s a negative spot about the incumbent, but in a plot twist, the ad does not mention Joni Ernst’s infamous remark that “we all are going to die.” UPDATE: An astute reader points out the ad does include that quote! I should have said it doesn’t lead with her recent gaffe.

Instead, Wahls is highlighting Ernst’s lesser-known pledge to serve only two terms and support term limits. Here’s the spot, which includes a clip from a 2014 GOP primary debate.

Wahls may feel he can set himself apart from the field on this issue because he and State Senator Sarah Trone Garriott have advocated term limits and introduced legislation on that subject.

If you’re thinking, hang on, I’ve seen some ads highlighting Medicaid cuts and Ernst’s town hall gaffe, it’s very likely you have. Some outside groups aligned with Democrats have been making that case in radio and digital ads.

A quick reminder about who’s running for Senate on the Democratic side: Nathan Sage, J.D. Scholten, and Zach Wahls are actively campaigning. Des Moines school board member Jackie Norris seems likely to join the field soon. State Representative Josh Turek hasn’t ruled it out.

I’m fascinated by this race, because we’ve never had four or more Democratic candidates in a primary who can run well-funded statewide campaigns.

Rob Sand seizes middle ground at town halls

State Auditor Rob Sand kicked off his series of 100 town halls last week. They’ve been well-attended. He’s not sounding like a typical Democratic candidate. Speaking to an audience in Waukee, he said he doesn’t like political parties and was initially registered as an independent, but later “picked my poison” by registering as a Democrat to vote in political primaries. However, he said, “we should be talking about the fact that it is poison, we should still be talking about the fact that no matter what your party is, partisanship in this state and in this country has gone too far.”

Sand is not really acknowledging his Democratic opponent Julie Stauch. Instead, he is running a general election style campaign, with appeals to the middle.

Although many Democratic activists are excited about Sand, I saw some angst last week about how he had compared his own party to “poison.” In addition, he told one town hall audience that he supports food restrictions for people using SNAP benefits (e.g. not allowing them to purchase pop or candy). Democrats in Congress and the state legislature have opposed such policies; endorsing them is the opposite of throwing red meat to your party base.

As I mentioned in my preview of the Democratic primary for governor, Sand alarmed a lot of people during an interview with a conservative radio host soon after he launched his campaign. WHO Radio’s Simon Conway asked him, “Do you think biological boys or men should play women’s sports?” and Sand answered, simply, “No.”

He did go on to say, “I think a lot of those social issues are really distractions from the pocketbook stuff that’s making Iowans hurt.” Within the LGBTQ community, some people were not concerned about the way Sand handled the question, but others were very worried.

Stauch took a different tack when the Des Moines Register asked her about the transgender sports ban: “Equality is a concept that if everybody doesn't have it, nobody has it,” she said. “That whole bill, I thought it was ludicrous and punitive towards less than 20 children who just are trying to be who they are. And I don't condone that, nor do I stand with that.”) That’s more in line with what I would expect to hear from a candidate in a Democratic primary.

Will this race to the middle work for Sand?

His problem is that he doesn’t just need to win independent voters. As I discussed at length in this piece, he would need record-setting Democratic turnout as well as a clear majority of no-party voters (and probably also some crossover Republicans) in order to win the November election.

You probably need a large base of motivated Democratic volunteers to help win over those independents in the general election campaign. It’s a very hard needle to thread, and I want to emphasize again how challenging the math is for Democrats in any statewide race, given the Iowa GOP’s voter registration advantage and turnout advantage in midterm elections.

Also, Republicans are not going to cede the middle ground to Sand. Last week, State Senator Mike Bousselot spoke to a conservative group and characterized Sand as a “wolf in sheep’s clothing” and “rich Des Moines liberal.”

Trump coming back to Des Moines

President Donald Trump is coming to Des Moines this Thursday, July 3, to kick off a year-long celebration of the 250th anniversary of the U.S. He’ll give a speech at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, which will be his first stop in Iowa since he won the 2024 caucuses.

Supposedly this event is about 250 years of the United States. But Trump does tend to go off-script at public appearances. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear him talk about some of Iowa’s 2026 candidates, and there is speculation that he will (at last) endorse Attorney General Brenna Bird for governor. She’s certainly been working hard for that.

Quick reminder of who’s running for governor on the Republican side: Former State Representative Brad Sherman (an early Trump endorser) and current State Representative Eddie Andrews are already running. U.S. Representative Randy Feenstra is almost certainly running. He is raising big money and running statewide television commercials. (A lot of major GOP donors are on Feenstra’s finance committee.)

Bird hasn’t announced her plans. If she gets Trump’s endorsement she will run for governor.

Officially, Bousselot is exploring a bid for governor. I think he may run for attorney general if Bird runs for governor. Either way, Bousselot isn’t likely to seek re-election to the Iowa Senate, where his Ankeny-based district will be a top Democratic target.

Iowa angles on U.S. Supreme Court rulings

Last week we talked about the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to uphold Tennessee’s gender-affirming care ban for minors. We closed out this week’s show by talking about how three more recent SCOTUS rulings could affect Iowa.

Birthright citizenship

We started with the birthright citizenship case known as Trump v. CASA, Inc. The six conservative justices didn’t rule on whether President Donald Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship is constitutional, but they agreed with the Trump administration’s position that lower court judges can’t issue nationwide injunctions. They can only grant relief to parties to the case.

What does that mean for babies born in Iowa to undocumented parents? There’s a lot of confusion. The order won’t go into effect until 30 days from June 27, and there’s a chance it could be on hold again by then.

While the SCOTUS majority said District Court judges can’t issue nationwide injunctions, they left open the option that if states sue the federal government, there could be an injunction affecting those states. The also left open the option for a class-action lawsuit to proceed. A couple of class-action suits have been filed, but getting a national class certified is a cumbersome process.

Alternatively, the executive order may go into effect in red states that didn’t challenge the policy. Does it mean that babies born in Iowa to undocumented parents would be stateless citizens? Could they be deported, while babies born in Illinois would be U.S. citizens who could not be deported? No one seems to know.

The dissenting Supreme Court opinions warned that the majority was rewarding the administration for unconstitutional actions. The Trump administration didn’t even ask the court to rule on whether the order was constitutional. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in her dissent that a future administration “may try to seize firearms from law abiding citizens or prevent people of certain faiths from gathering to worship… That holding renders constitutional guarantees meaningful in name only for any individuals who are not parties to a lawsuit.”

Iowa Republican elected officials praised the Supreme Court ruling. Attorney General Bird, who submitted a brief defending Trump’s executive order, said in a statement, “One judge should not be setting immigration policy for the whole country. President Trump properly used his authority under federal law to keep suspected terrorists and foreign tourists—including from China—from being rewarded with anchor babies just by virtue of entering the country.”

To be clear, the vast majority of undocumented immigrants in Iowa are not suspected terrorists or foreign tourists.

I also noted that Bird and other Republicans didn’t have a problem with conservative judges issuing nationwide injunctions against Biden administration policies. For instance, District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of Texas tried to block distribution of mifepristone (an abortion medication) across the country.

Iowa Capital Dispatch published comments from Grassley, Hinson, and Feenstra, who praised the birthright citizenship ruling. The legal news site Law360 quoted Grassley as saying he’ll keep working to enact a bill he has introduced (the Judicial Relief Clarification Act), which “would codify key provisions in Friday's Supreme Court ruling by limiting the applicability of federal court orders to only the parties before the court and requiring parties looking for universal relief to use the class-action process.”

Excluding Planned Parenthood from Medicaid

In another case published last week, the six conservative Supreme Court justices ruled that South Carolina can exclude Planned Parenthood from the state’s Medicaid program. What does that mean for Iowa?

Our state already created a separate family planning program in 2017, for the sole purpose of excluding Planned Parenthood. Ironically, that was because federal courts had blocked other state efforts to exclude Planned Parenthood as a Medicaid provider. (Federal law guarantees Medicaid patients the ability to choose "any qualified and willing provider.")

In 2019, Republicans in the Iowa legislature excluded Planned Parenthood from receiving federal sex education grants. The Iowa Supreme Court upheld that law in 2021.

The new SCOTUS decision is still very important, because Planned Parenthood’s remaining clinics in Iowa—soon there will be only two of them—do see a lot of Medicaid patients. I expect Republicans to introduce legislation in 2026 to disqualify Planned Parenthood as a Medicaid provider here. That would cut thousands of Iowans off from their preferred source for family planning services such as contraception, STD testing, and well-woman care.

Parents can opt kids out of lessons with LGBTQ-themed books

In another closely watched case, the six conservative justices held that parents can opt their children out of lessons with LGBTQ-themed books. This case originated in Maryland’s largest school district.

The majority ruling by Justice Samuel Alito could prompt many parents to make religious objections, not only to books, but also to science lessons. School districts may change their curriculum just to avoid parents pulling their kids out of classes.

Justice Sotomayor warned in her dissent that this ruling goes against a longstanding principle of public education, that people come together and may learn about things that are different from their own faith.

Thanks so much for reading or listening! Spencer and I will be back next week to talk about the budget reconciliation bill, more campaign developments, new state laws, and some noteworthy Iowa Supreme Court rulings we didn’t have time to cover in May and June.