Congraulations Iowa! You're now number 1... in Covid! (Des Moines, Iowa City: 2014, house)

[atler8]

A White House coronavirus task force has gotten the word to Iowa state government of it's new "red zone" status that comes amidst the dire new explosion there both in case numbers per 100,000 residents as well as in it's testing & positivity rate as found in a 9 page report sent last week that has not been made available for public viewing.

Nevertheless, the Des Moines Register got it's hands on the report first & now CNN has done the same.
With neighboring South Dakota & even North Dakota both reporting sharp new increases in Covid, the upper Midwest now seems to be at the forefront of the newest alarming breakout of the virus in the U.S.

A week and a half ago, Governor Kim Reynolds of Iowa struck out sharply at the media as she charged that they were trying to scare Iowans. And last week, as many of you may recall, she was a featured prime time speaker at the RNC. Her address, solidified her status as an ardent supporter of the president but notably failed to make note of the Covid outbreak in Iowa.

The White House task force recommended the institution of mask mandates so it will be interesting to see how the governor suddenly spins & does a turnabout so as to reverse her firm opposition to such a policy. Also up for debate is how she will respond in the face of the rising rates of Covid at the universities in the state.

Folks, it's a shameful situation in the state of Iowa; a mess that just did not have to happen as it has. Covid now has hit Iowa hard a full 7 months after the possible implications of a potential pandemic became known to American medical & public policy experts & some politicians.

But because of a combination of massive failures at the federal leadership level starting in January with the President and continuing on down to Governor Reynolds and her intransigent rules & mandates, the state is now plunged into a health crisis that will further impact everything from education and on through all sectors of commerce.

Iowans have a right to wonder if anyone is really in charge & how the residents of the state are going to work their way through the crisis. In addition, many must be scratching their heads trying to recall how it came to pass that Iowans got stuck with such ineffective leadership at both the federal and the state level!


https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/01/polit...rus/index.html




p.s. Please excuse the spelling error for "congratulations" in the thread title. I suffer from notable vision loss but am unable to correct the the thread title now.

[fezzador]

Iowa has some really, really crappy Republican leadership these days and it shows. It doesn't take rocket science to figure out that a statewide mask mandate isn't a huge ask, and can slow down the spread of Covid. Grassley, and especially Ernst and Reynolds seem to do nothing but parrot Trump and seem satisfied just doing the bare minimum to serve and protect their fellow Iowans from the Covid and the recent derecho (which is still being cleaned up across the state).


Unless there's going to be a change of leadership (doesn't matter if it's D or R - just competent) in the next couple of years - both Gubernatorial and in Washington, there might be a second sharp drop in population coming. Unfortunately when Iowans get fed up, they vote with their feet, as that's exactly what happened throughout the 1980s during the farm crisis. Iowa has made some strides in the 90s and 00's to retain some of their brainpower, but that's in serious jeopardy now. Even progressive hubs like Des Moines and Iowa City will find themselves losing out on young college-educated talent to cities in other states, and maybe even other countries.

[atler8]

Originally Posted by fezzador

Iowa has some really, really crappy Republican leadership these days and it shows. It doesn't take rocket science to figure out that a statewide mask mandate isn't a huge ask, and can slow down the spread of Covid. Grassley, and especially Ernst and Reynolds seem to do nothing but parrot Trump and seem satisfied just doing the bare minimum to serve and protect their fellow Iowans from the Covid and the recent derecho (which is still being cleaned up across the state).


Unless there's going to be a change of leadership (doesn't matter if it's D or R - just competent) in the next couple of years - both Gubernatorial and in Washington, there might be a second sharp drop in population coming. Unfortunately when Iowans get fed up, they vote with their feet, as that's exactly what happened throughout the 1980s during the farm crisis. Iowa has made some strides in the 90s and 00's to retain some of their brainpower, but that's in serious jeopardy now. Even progressive hubs like Des Moines and Iowa City will find themselves losing out on young college-educated talent to cities in other states, and maybe even other countries.

Piggybacking on what you wrote, fezzador, Senator Joni Ernst is just so disappointing & beyond that actually awful! What she won't say so as to deflect from a criticism of her or the president or where she won't lower herself into conspiracy theory territory is shocking at the very least!
Look at her new "So skeptical", statement linked below about the number of Covid deaths & also note of how she's hinting that doctors are raising the Covid death count so as to be reimbursed more money for reporting a death as due to Covid! I kid you not, the woman is shameless!

The senator does not embrace science which is becoming a more common fault with the republican party of today as compared to it's past views on science such when I was a child or young adult living in small town Iowa and in the midst of a Republican household.

And Iowans, remember well that Ernst is the one who, in 2014 during her campaign to run for the open U.S. Senate seat in Iowa, famously said of President Obama, "...we may have to look at impeaching him...". For what, I'm sure that I don't know.

Borrowing a famous line taken from a U.S. Senate hearing in the 1950's that was directed at the infamous Senator joseph mccarthy of Wisconsin who shortly thereafter was censured by the full Senate, "Have you no sense of decency, Senator?"

https://iowastartingline.com/2020/09...es-for-money2/

[fezzador]

I hope Iowans have enough sense to vote Ernst out, she's such a Trump shill. I don't think she really cares much about what happens back in Iowa, but to be brutally honest I don't really have a lot of faith in Iowa voters anymore. She'll get votes regardless because of that "R" next to her name, not because she's actually done anything of substance while in office. She is consistently rated as the third-worst sitting Senator this year (behind Mitch McConnell and Susan Collins) but it's sad that a lot of Iowans don't give a you-know-what. Iowa is turning into Mississippi, minus the Baptists.



Though I think she is fighting an uphill battle, I do think Theresa Greenfield would be an improvement over Ernst, but then again, so would a bucket of mud. She's that bad. I think Greenfield's biggest flaw is that been sort of an unknown - she doesn't have much of a political background and I could see that working against her. Frank Cownie and Bruce Teague could be interesting candidates should they ever express any Congressional aspirations. Teague especially - having an African American senator could do wonders for the state of Iowa, though it's not likely that will happen anytime soon.



Reynolds is equally ineffective as Ernst is and it's a crying shame it's not a gubernatorial election year. She's one of the 10 least popular sitting Governors, but it doesn't mean she's guaranteed to lose the election in 2022. A lot can happen in two years.


And I say all of this as a registered Independent, but I do lean conservative - I just call out ineffective leadership on both sides. Iowans deserve better than this, or at least I'd like to think so.

[smpliving]

It’s devastating but not surprising to hear Senator Joni Ernst’s remarks blaming our healthcare providers regarding Covid. At least two infectious disease experts at the University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics have expressed on social media their disappointment at her very painful remarks, as they have been working around the clock for months to save lives, and their expertise and pleas ignored by the Iowa Governor throughout this COVID crisis in Iowa.

I believe there is some glimmer of hope for Iowa, as I think we will see several of our young emerging leaders run for higher office in 2022/2024, notably State auditor Rob Sand, State Senator Zach Wahls, and I pray that our current #IA01 Congresswoman, Abby Finkenauer, will be re-elected this year against Ashley Hinson. Abby continues to be actively involved and actually on the ground working physically with us in recovery efforts from the derecho.

[fezzador]

I've heard some good things about Abby. Maybe she'd like to take a shot of unseating Grassley in 2022 if he chooses to run again.

[SuperSoul]

Covid testing has been found to be flawed, often testing for any coronavirus (most of us have had colds) antibodies. Italy study found 99% of so-called “covid deaths” were actually due to other factors (co-morbidities). Like the flu - mostly people survive unless they were already struggling.

It’s sad how many still don’t see how this is a plandemic.

[smpliving]

Originally Posted by fezzador

I've heard some good things about Abby. Maybe she'd like to take a shot of unseating Grassley in 2022 if he chooses to run again.

I think Rob Sand might have a better shot at the US Senate than Abby, although I’m hearing rumors he might run for Governor in 2022. Congresswoman Cindy Axne from the Des Moines area would be an even better candidate than Abby, IMO. I like both of these women representatives, but I’m betting on Cindy Axne if not Rob Sand for Senate.

(Michael Franken, Retired US Navy Vice Admiral is another Iowan to watch in 2022. He ran for the Democratic Party nomination in 2019 but lost to Theresa Greenfield). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_T._Franken

[mustang84]

I am so tired of Reynolds, Ernst, and Grassley. Thank god for small favors that Steve King is finally on his way out. It's sad to see how the outside world looks at Iowa today. It wasn't very long ago that we were a purple state known as being a place where common sense, friendliness, and a "live and let live" attitude were the rule of thumb. We were even a little progressive in some ways.

It has been hijacked by a gaggle of science-denying, conspiracy-consuming socially conservative do-nothings that are more invested in kissing Trump's behind and staying in his good graces than serving the people of this state. It came as no surprise when the Gazette starting reporting that the state was fudging the COVID numbers. My family and I have been saying this for months. There has been a complete dereliction of duty to protect the public health, safety, and welfare and Reynolds, Dr. Pedati, et al should resign if they have any honor left.

[fezzador]

Originally Posted by mustang84

There has been a complete dereliction of duty to protect the public health, safety, and welfare and Reynolds, Dr. Pedati, et al should resign if they have any honor left.

Fat chance of that happening anytime soon. These buffoons have too many friends in high places and any steps towards impeachment (though completely deserved) would be a useless gesture. The only way they leave office is if they get voted out.


What's sad is that there are still lots of Iowans who are completely OK with the lack of transparency, the inaccurate reporting of Covid numbers, and the ho-hum response to the derecho.