ThoughtsA collection of articles for the Des Moines Register and other thoughts

Give the Guy a Chance

As I send my daughters off to college, I can’t help but wonder if their professors will issue them their grade for the term on their first day of class based upon how they dress, comments they make, or where they choose to sit in the class room?  Or will their professor wait until they […]

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Why is the GOP Letting the Media Pick?

Why are Republicans letting CNN pick our Presidential nominee?  Fox I might understand, but CNN? Confused? Not a surprise.  Most in the GOP don’t realize what is happening – except those in the highest level of the establishment in Washington DC.  Us folks out in the cornfields, well, we’re just going about our regular lives […]

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Future Republican Majorities

To many the Republican Party is nothing but a bunch of old white guys.  To hear the Democrats describe us, you’d think they were talking about Ted Knight’s Judge Smalls at Bushwood. I’m proud to say, despite what might be blaring from your television, this ain’t your father’s GOP anymore.  I’m going to brag for […]

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Obamacare is Dead, Long Live Robertscare

With Thursday’s US Supreme Court decision in King v Burwell, Chief Justice Roberts writing for the majority cemented the Affordable Care Act as the law of the land. Oh there will still be plenty of legal challenges to it, and there will be an attempt to replace it should a Republican occupy 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. […]

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Not All That Bad

“Hot air” and “lawmakers were left to fritter away their time on non-sense bills” is how the editorial board of this paper saw the just adjourned session of the Iowa legislature. No doubt because this newspaper’s priorities were not addressed. But one tax hike a year is probably all this legislature, let alone the taxpayer, […]

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Too Early to Proclaim a Front Runner

Last weekend CPAC; the annual Conservative Political Action Conference gathering of conservative activists, consultants, and politico fan boys, came and went with Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker finishing a close second to perennial CPAC straw poll winner Rand Paul. Walker is receiving heightened scrutiny as the Governor has surged to “front runner” status in Iowa, at […]

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Caucus Snapshot

Less than eleven months remain before the first votes are cast selecting our next President. The Granite Staters like to say Iowa picks corn and New Hampshire picks presidents. The truth is Iowans decide who’s left for New Hampshire to pick from. I wrote last month I’d be exploring the GOP field in my coming […]

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First Look at the Iowa Caucus

In 372 days Iowans will trudge through snow to vote in Iowa’s presidential caucuses. The campaigns have started in earnest and 2015 will be make or break for some candidates. There are a more than a dozen Republicans (you aren’t reading this column for any insight on Democrats) running – or laying the ground work […]

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Finding Gratitude

ast week as I stared out the windows of the Minneapolis airport watching the snow fall and the ground crew struggle with luggage in the frigid temperatures, I thought about how thankful I should be for those outside helping me get to my destination. Thus began my weeklong experiment in finding gratitude in all things. […]

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