Farm income was up going into planting season, but not as high as president says
Julia Shanahan, Politics Editor
May 22, 2020
If your time is short: President Trump claimed at a Jan. 30 Iowa campaign rally that net farm income has increased 50 percent since he has taken office. With multiple farm relief packages making their way through Congress, income is on the minds of farmers as they begin harvesting fields. While ...
Did Sen. Ernst flip her position on health care funding?
Sarah Watson, Managing Editor
May 20, 2020
Edited by Lyle Muller and Marissa Payne If your time is short:Â Democrats and Republicans were at loggerheads in April over whether to sandwich more funding for hospitals and testing with dollars for the Paycheck Protection Program as money ran out for the federal small business loan progr...
Iowa City businesses reopened cautiously commencement weekend
Sarah Watson, Managing Editor
May 17, 2020
Zoey Sletterhaugh’s parents drove five hours from Kansas City to be with their daughter in Iowa City for her virtual commencement ceremony this weekend. The trio, which was supposed to include her grandparents, in their 80s, and her brother, wholives in Colorado, spent the morning taking p...
Young people are less at risk of dying from COVID-19, but not immune
Rylee Wilson, Politics Reporter
May 12, 2020
Edited by Lyle Muller and Marissa Payne If your time is short: State Rep. Jeff Shipley wrote that young people have a higher risk of dying from the HPV vaccination than of COVID-19. No deaths have ever been linked to the HPV vaccine. While young people are less at risk of dying of C...
From 2016 election to 2020 caucuses, political process inspires UI graduates
Caleb McCullough and Julia Shanahan
May 10, 2020
Graduating Hawkeyes have benefited from a front-row view of the nation’s presidential-nomination process, as many came onto campus months before the 2016 election and are leaving not long after the 2020 first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses. University of Iowa senior Alex Byrnes served as Iowaâ...
Governor shifting coronavirus strategy to “managing and containing” virus
Caleb McCullough, Assistant Politics Editor
May 7, 2020
Gov. Kim Reynolds said she is shifting her coronavirus response strategy from mitigation to managing and containing the virus as she moves to partially reopen several retail businesses statewide Friday. “Originally it really was about protecting Iowans, there were so many unknowns, and it w...
Progressives in Iowa are disappointed by Biden’s nomination – but most still plan to vote for him
Rylee Wilson, Politics Reporter
May 5, 2020
Iowans who caucused in February for younger or more progressive candidates are grappling with the reality of Joe Biden’s status as the Democratic nominee, but a handful The Daily Iowan spoke with said they plan to vote for him. The DI spoke with voters and former caucusgoers from a variety of age r...
Governor’s push for reopening creates rift with health experts
Caleb McCullough, Assistant Politics Editor
May 4, 2020
Though public health experts are warning against reopening the state too early, Gov. Kim Reynolds is pushing for a quick return to business across the state, backed by a swath of Republican legislators. Though she said her decisions aren’t political, response to Reynolds’ actions has fallen fairly evenly along party lines. On April 24, nine Rep...
Gov Kim Reynolds on Iowa’s response plan to COVID-19: ‘This isn’t political’
Lauren White, News Reporter
May 4, 2020
Gov. Kim Reynolds rejected the notion that the state’s COVID-19 response has been based on political decisions, despite many Iowa Democrats disagreeing with Reynolds’ decision to not issue a shelter-in-place and to reopen parts of the state. Reynolds said during her daily press conference on...
Iowa lobbying group pushes for coronavirus drug price controls
Caleb McCullough, Assistant Politics Editor
April 29, 2020
Some advocates in Iowa for lowering pharmaceutical prices are worried that once drug companies enter the market, COVID-19 drugs and treatment will be largely unaffordable without intervention from Congress. Iowa Citizens Action Network, in conjunction with the national organization Lower Drug Pri...
Johnson County leaders recommend still avoiding nonessential travel as other counties set to phase in reopening
Sarah Watson, Managing Editor
April 28, 2020
Even as the governor relaxes restrictions statewide on religious gatherings and farmers markets, some Johnson County organizations are hesitant to begin in-person gatherings next week, opting to continue with delays or no-contact operations to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. North Liberty Baptist...
Iowans strongly encouraged to vote by mail in June primary, in-person voting still an option
Rylee Wilson, Politics Reporter
April 28, 2020
Iowa’s primary elections — where voters will choose candidates for the U.S. Senate, House, and Statehouse races — will proceed as scheduled June 2 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, though voters are highly encouraged to cast their ballots through the mail to prevent the spread of the novel coron...