Iowa – Politics Plus

Open Thread June 6 2026

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:00 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jun 062026

I’ve been thinking about this for some time, and I’m not the only one. Several pundits have said that the GOP’s gerrymandering scheme may well backfire. Using numbers I’ve made up, here’s how. Let’s assume a red southern state has a majority minority district which in 2024 went blue by 12 points. It’s adjacent to a majority red district which went red by 10 points. So the state mashes them together and redivides them, expecting both to go red by maybe 8 points. But they haven’t taken into consideration how deeply the current regime’a approval ratings have descended. Some who voted Republican in 2024 will vote Democratic in 2026. I’m guessing that more will simply not vote. Those two dictricts could easily go blue by 2 points each – which would be enough. Especially if it happened in multiple states.

Yes, this page requests donations, and no, I am not asking you to donate. I just want us to be aware of this race. It is for Joni Ernst’s seat (Grassley’s current term will be up in 2028 – he will be 94 but may run again anyway.) Turek is endorsed by Elizabeth Warren (probaly by others, but she’s the one I just got the email endorsement from.)

This from Talking Points Memo is about Todd Blanche but Bill Polte is likely to be as big a problem.

The latest on Tina Peters – which IMO shows clearly why she should still be locked up. The next best thing would be laws at tgr Federal level, and Stale laws, County lawd, and municipal laws that no convicted felon can be eligible for public office.

Iowa Greets DeSantis with God-Tier Trolling

Posted by SoINeedAName at 4:20 pm Politics

Mar 122023

It’s always been a rite of passage for any politician hoping to become president to make a pilgrimage to Iowa in the dead of winter. And Ron DeSantis was no exception this weekend when he began that journey in Davenport, IA – one of the towns straddling the Mississippi River comprising the Quad-Cities (Moline & Rock Island in Illinois and Davenport & Bettendorf in Iowa). That’s where I grew up.

[SIDEBAR: Moline is the corporate headquarters of John Deere.]

DeSantis was hoping to get a warm welcome, and it seems the right-wing GQP base accommodated him. As we all are familiar with, part of that presidential campaign ritual requires candidates to mingle with the crowd and press the flesh of the attendees. And Ronnie was no exception.

On that cold February Saturday, DeSantis accompanied by Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds was absolutely delighted when an attendee gifted both of them with handcrafted snowflake silhouettes. They giddily grinned from ear-to-ear for the cameras while displaying their bespoke snowflakes.

But as the saying goes: The Devil is in the details.

If you look closely at the snowflake, you’ll note the mastermind creator has craftily and cryptically embedded mirror images of the word “FASCIST” that form each of the snowflake’s six dendrites.

This incomparable trolling became an instant viral sensation in the Twitterverse when someone with the nom de plume “MidlifeMisfit” or “IowaCaptive” (not sure how Twitter handles handles) Tweeted out the first photo – which has now garnered over 1.4 MILLION views!

My friend makes snowflakes to give to politicians who come to Iowa – there are special messages for odious Republicans- please look at the snowflake carefully 🤣😉 pic.twitter.com/Iilha9Wxn1

— IowaCaptive (@MidlifeMisfit) March 10, 2023

It got even wider coverage when Washington Post reporter Steve Goffman joined in the fun of sharing this masterpiece – gaining over 2.7 MILLION views!

At a Republican political rally in Davenport, Iowa today someone gave @GovRonDeSantis and @IAGovernor Kim Reynolds a handmade “snowflake” with the word "Fascist" secretly embedded in it. pic.twitter.com/as8UN3WRsp

— Steven Goffman (@SteveGoffman) March 11, 2023

I’ve put together a handy-dandy GIF of the pics I’ve seen of it for your viewing pleasure:

And someone at TikTok created a cute snow globe version of Ronnie enjoying his custom craft snowflake:

I haven’t found any identifying information WRT the lady in glasses who posed with DeSantis and Reynolds for the photos. She could be the creator – but I just don’t know. Then again, she might have decided to remain anonymous. (And given the type of people the GQP draws, that’s probably a wise decision.)

But I am hoping to see some T-shirts that incorporate her clever “Fascist Snowflake” theme – especially because it’s so fitting. Hell, even I threw together a mockup for a book cover that I’d likely buy:

In all honesty, Ronnie is a fascist at heart, and he truly frightens me. But in the meantime – let the fun begin!

Video Thread 6/18/21

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 1:00 pm Open Thread, Politics

Jun 182021

Glenn Kirschner – Positive Legal Stories: Obamacare; Flynn; Sanctioning Attorneys; DOJ Hits Discriminatory State Laws

Dave Muhlbauer for Iowa – He is running against Chuck Grassley. Direct link to campaign website (H/T Nameless) https://www.muhlbauerforiowa.com

Now This News – Biden Admin Plans to Invest in Jobs of the Future

Titus – Parody Infomercial

Liberal Rednack – Local News Reporter Drops “Bombshell” Live on Air – Reaction. The podcast cited was Yuesday, but it’ll be up on Trae’s channel for replay. They run about an hour so I don’t use them here.

Rocky Mountain Mike – Louie Gohmert’s Dark Side Of The Moon

Beau – Let’s talk about how Trump’s talking points are made….

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