Good morning from Iowa Capital Dispatch.
“Small family farms aren’t going to win a race against multinational, vertically integrated corporations on producing the cheapest pound of protein. Frankly, I don’t want them to, because when lowest cost becomes the only goal, everything else starts to look like a cost to be eliminated.” — Tony Thompson, a farmer and candidate for Iowa Senate, arguing against the federal Save Our Bacon Act, which opponents argue penalizes small producers.
Former Social Security Administration Commissioner Martin O’Malley, left, Social Security Works PAC President Jon Bauman and Rep. Josh Turek speak to older adults at Scottish Rite Park on Sept. 9, 2026. (Photo by Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Social Security advocates joined Rep. Josh Turek Wednesday to speak with older adults about the U.S. Senate candidate’s commitments to preserving and expanding government systems that many Americans rely on for medical expenses and income.
Eliminating the cap on Social Security is the best option to ensure the program’s solvency in the future, Turek said. He said it’s “ridiculous” that regular Americans have to pay into Social Security year-round while the country’s wealthiest, like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, don’t have to pay any more past the $184,500 cap once they’ve met it, which happens early on each year.
Nate Willems, a Democratic candidate for Iowa attorney general said Sept. 9, 2026 he will not pull ads related to a pollution settlement in Iowa, despite threats of a lawsuit against him. (Photo by Cami Koons/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Democratic candidate for Iowa attorney general Nate Willems said Wednesday that “bullying does not work” on him and he won’t be pulling ads targeting current Attorney General Brenna Bird in relation to an Iowa pollution case.
Willems’ campaign has been threatened with a lawsuit from biofuel producer POET, after the campaign released an ad criticizing Bird for not pursuing further damages after it was discovered in 2024 that the plant had been releasing excessive amounts of pollutants that can cause cancer and other health issues.
Some Iowa producers argued Wednesday that the federally proposed Save Our Bacon Act will harm farmers by taking away diversified markets and by sending a message to consumers that they are not entitled to a choice in what they eat.
A coalition of Iowa organizations launched a campaign Wednesday opposing the Nov. 3 ballot issue that will ask Iowa voters whether to amend the state constitution to require a two-thirds majority vote of lawmakers to raise state personal and corporate income taxes.
Republican Sens. John Hoeven of North Dakota and Chuck Grassley of Iowa say they want to help U.S. beef producers grow their herds while President Donald Trump plans to import 300,000 metric tons of foreign beef meant to lower prices for consumers, North Dakota Monitor reports.
President Donald Trump headlined the first night of the first Republican midterm convention Wednesday, seeking to rally his base ahead of the November elections and dangling a “Trump dividend” to voters if his party retains control of both congressional chambers.
The Trump administration wants to overhaul the U.S. census to exclude noncitizens who don’t have a green card from the country’s next population count in 2030, according to a Wednesday notice in the Federal Register.
The Democratic-led states and voting rights groups suing to block enforcement of President Donald Trump’s executive order to restrict mail-in voting warned in briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday the policy would have disastrous consequences for the upcoming midterm elections if it is allowed to move forward.
Temporary protected status for 170,000 Salvadorans was set to expire at midnight Wednesday, but the Department of Homeland Security said protections will remain in place until the Trump administration makes a decision to extend or terminate El Salvador’s designation, in place since 2001.
The country’s two largest school districts — New York City and Los Angeles — banned most student use of artificial intelligence in classrooms for this school year as anxiety over AI’s effect on learning intensifies, Stateline reports.
Democratic U.S. Sen. John Fetterman made a surprise video appearance Wednesday at the GOP convention in Dallas, praising Republican Sen. Dave McCormick while vowing the pair of Pennsylvanians would continue working with President Donald Trump to “defend the steel way of life right here in the Steel Valley.”
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