Iowa

After Iowa abortion ruling, should voters boot Justice David May? Rekha Basu weighs in.

Published

2 years ago

August 9, 2024

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After Iowa abortion ruling, should voters boot Justice David May? Rekha Basu weighs in.

Opponents of same-sex marriage waged ideological warfare against the courts in 2010. This time, Kim Reynolds, lawmakers and justices are responsible for the ideological warfare.

Rekha Basu
| Guest columnist

Rekha Basu is a longtime syndicated columnist, editorial writer, reporter and author of the book, “Finding Your Voice.”
She retired in 2022 as a Des Moines Register columnist.

Fifteen years ago, a group of evangelical political activists, furious over the Iowa Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling for same-sex marriage, plotted revenge. Led by Bob Vander Plaats of the The Family Leader, they formed the ironically named “Iowans for Freedom.”

Funded partly by out-of-state money, it campaigned against three of the Supreme Court justices who happened to be up for retention elections in 2010. And it succeeded in unseating three fine ones: Chief Justice Marsha Ternus and Justices Michael Streit and David Baker.

Fast forward to this year, when a reconstituted Iowa Supreme Court, a majority hand-picked by Iowa’s anti-abortion Gov. Kim Reynolds, turns back the clock 50 years with a 4-3 ruling effectively outlawing abortions after six weeks into a pregnancy. In doing so, the justices overturned precedent that had withstood previous Supreme Court challenges, deciding that abortion laws should not be assessed under the strict-scrutiny standard previously invoked.

And now, in response, some women are taking a cue from what Iowans for Freedom accomplished in 2010. They’re encouraging others to turn the page on the November ballot — literally — to the side where judicial retention votes are, and vote against Justice David May. He’s the only one who voted for the six-week ban who’s up this year.

So, how could anyone who opposed the 2010 campaign support the same tactic? Comparisons between the two efforts get complicated. Retention elections used to be mostly pro forma shows of support for sitting judges appointed on a nonpartisan basis, who were doing their jobs properly. In 2010, same-sex marriage opponents couldn’t accept that their religious-based agenda had lost in a court of law bound by the Iowa Constitution. So it used the elections to wage ideological warfare.

This time the ideological warfare has been waged by the governor, state lawmakers and the court’s new majority, by tampering with the once nonpartisan, constitutionally based process. Reynolds, an outspoken abortion opponent, called a special one-day session of the Legislature last summer to vote on the ban. Six weeks is before most women even know if they’re pregnant. Iowa’s Republican-led Legislature complied by passing it, though a nearly identical 2018 law had been permanently blocked. Reynolds had over the years appointed four new justices, including May, who could reliably be predicted to vote as they did.

More: Kim Reynolds picked this Legislature, and it steamrolled an extreme path for Iowa

The victims now will be untold numbers of pregnant women and girls, and children born to people ill-equipped to care for them.

“The ideological bias of this court does not reflect the will of most Iowans, and I’m not sure how far it follows the constitution,” said Des Moines’ Lea DeLong, the reproductive rights advocate who penned a letter making the case for opposing May’s retention. “My reading of the constitution is that it is intended to expand the rights and liberties of people.”

Her letter is being widely circulated by email. It points out that, as Reynolds’ appointee, May helped give Iowa “one of the most restrictive rulings in the nation against the rights of women.” It goes on to say, “It is an unfortunate development in our society that these kinds of actions against judges must happen, but I’m afraid we have had to learn some sad lessons from those who deny the rights of women. It is well known that most Iowans do not support these draconian restrictions on women’s lives and decisions.”

That’s true: 61% of Iowans polled support abortion rights in all or most cases. Still, the governor saw fit to impose her personal beliefs over the will of the majority.

DeLong is co-founder with Charlotte Hubbell of a group of some 15 women known as Iowans for Reproductive Freedom (one word but light years away from the group that waged the 2010 ballot battle). Formed in November, 2022, it has placed billboards defending reproductive rights on display around Des Moines.

They carry such captions as:

Reproductive Freedom Is KEY to a Strong Family.
Keep Government OUT of Women’s Health Care.
If Men Got Pregnant, We Wouldn’t Be Discussing This.

Though individual members support the ballot idea and are circulating DeLong’s letter, the organization isn’t officially involved in the effort. DeLong herself doesn’t doubt May is a good person. And she’s mindful that Reynolds would likely replace him with another justice of the same ideological bent. But she wants this to be a wake-up call. “It sends a message,” she said. “Maybe it will encourage people to think very seriously about what this court is doing to women.”

Unlike Vander Plaats’ well financed and heavily publicized initiative, she says, “We’re not trying to organize a campaign. We will do what women have always done before: Spread information to our friends.”

More importantly, the goal this time is protecting rights, not undermining them.

“Much as I don’t like the fundamental concept of doing this,” DeLong said, “I think so many destructive lines have been crossed.”

And she’s right. They have been.

Rekha Basu is a longtime syndicated columnist, editorial writer, reporter and author of the book, “Finding Your Voice.” She retired in 2022 as a Des Moines Register columnist. Her column, “Rekha Shouts and Whispers,” is available at basurekha.substack.com.

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Iowa

Nominations open for Iowa’s best breaded pork tenderloin contest

Published

8 hours ago

April 15, 2026

Press Room

Nominations open for Iowa’s best breaded pork tenderloin contest

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – The race to crown the state’s best breaded pork tenderloin is back again!

The Iowa Pork Producers Associated has opened nominations for the 2026 Iowa’s Best Breaded Pork Tenderloin Contest.

Nominations opened Wednesday and will close on June 1.

You can vote for your favorite sandwich here.

The annual contest spotlights some of the state’s best restaurants and sparks some friendly competition, the IPPA said.

IPPA picks the top 40-voted spots across Iowa. Undercover judges will eat at each location and rank the sandwiches on on taste, quality, physical characteristics, presentation and experience. The top five picks will be revealed in October, with the winner receiving a $500 prize and bragging rights.

Last year’s winners, Hometown Heroes in Grinnel, said their pork tenderloin sales were 20 times more after their win.

“Once we made the judging, we did what we do best,” Co-owner Kalyn Durr said in a statement, “we tried to put out a consistently great tenderloin sandwich for each and every order,”

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Iowa

Iowa house passes bill requiring parental consent for minors to receive HPV vaccine

Published

20 hours ago

April 15, 2026

Press Room

Iowa house passes bill requiring parental consent for minors to receive HPV vaccine

DES MOINES, Iowa (IOWA CAPITAL DISPATCH) – The Iowa House passed legislation Tuesday requiring parental consent for minors to receive certain vaccines associated with sexually transmitted diseases — a measure that Democrats said could lead to higher cancer rates in Iowa.

Iowa requires parental consent for minors to receive a vast majority of vaccinations. But there’s currently a carveout in Iowa law for human papillomavirus (HPV) and hepatitis B vaccines. Iowans under age 18 can consent, without parental approval, for these vaccines, as they specifically deal with sexually transmitted diseases and infections.

Senate File 304, which passed on a 63-29 vote — would remove this exemption, requiring parental consent for minors to receive HPV and hepatitis B vaccines. Rep. Austin Baeth, D-Des Moines, an internal medicine physician, said the measure was a “pro-cancer bill, period.”

At subcommittee meetings on the measure, advocates representing health care providers and organizations have said HPV is linked with multiple forms of genital cancer, including cervical, penile, anal cancer and vaginal cancers — and that studies have found the HPV vaccine in particular has been linked with much lower instances of cervical cancer especially when a person is vaccinated before age 17.

“We have, with these vaccines, a way to save people’s lives,” Baeth said. “And in a state with the fastest-rising cancer rates, the second highest cancer rate overall, we should be doing more to prevent cancer, not less.”

Rep. Jeff Shipley, R-Fairfield, who supported the bill, said the measure was not limiting access to the HPV vaccine, but ensuring that parents approve of these vaccines being administered to young children.

Rep. Megan Srinivas, D-Des Moines, said the reason why this carveout was introduced in Iowa law in the first place was because there were instances where a parent may not be a trusted adult in a child’s life — including in situations of child abuse or child sexual assault.

“This conversation about needing to always trust our adults does not take the bad actors into account,” Srinivas said. “And what we should be keeping in mind, as we are passing legislation, are the most vulnerable in our society, which are the children that we have been entrusted to protect. By removing one of the most important things we can do in protecting children who might be the victims, we are making a bad decision, and that is why I urge you to vote no on this.”

Rep. Austin Harris, R-Moulton, disagreed with the assertion that the measure was “pro-cancer” — saying it only subjects the HPV and Hepatitis B vaccines to the same requirements as other vaccines.

“Are we pro-polio because we require parental consent?” Harris said. “Pro-measles, pro-mumps, everything else? And I take it personally as someone who has a mother, who is a breast cancer survivor, to be accused of saying, ‘I’m pro-cancer.’”

The measure heads to Gov. Kim Reynolds’ desk for final approval.

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Iowa

Are tornadoes in Iowa possible today? Here’s what forecasters say

Published

1 day ago

April 14, 2026

Press Room

Are tornadoes in Iowa possible today? Here’s what forecasters say

Severe storms are expected to hit Iowa again Tuesday, bringing the possibility of tornadoes, large hail, and damaging winds.
The National Weather Service has issued an Enhanced Risk for parts of Iowa, indicating a higher chance of organized severe thunderstorms.
Forecasters warn that strong tornadoes and giant hail are possible with the most intense storms.
The severe weather threat is expected to continue through the week, with another strong system anticipated on Friday.

Severe storms are expected to sweep across Iowa again in the afternoon of Tuesday, April 14, with forecasters warning of all severe weather hazards possible — including tornadoes, large hail and damaging winds — as multiple rounds of storms move through the region through midweek.

The National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center has placed parts of Iowa under an Enhanced Risk (Level 3 of 5) for Tuesday, signaling a higher likelihood of organized severe thunderstorms, including supercells capable of producing strong tornadoes and very large hail.

What is the weather today in Iowa?

Forecasters expect storms to develop late Tuesday afternoon into the evening as a stalled frontal boundary sits across eastern Iowa into Wisconsin. A surge of warm, moisture-rich air moving north from the Missouri Valley will collide with steep mid-level lapse rates and strong wind shear, creating an environment supportive of severe storms.

If storms can form, they are expected to quickly become supercells.

“Large to giant hail and an intense tornado will be possible with the strongest storms,” the Storm Prediction Center noted, especially where wind shear is maximized near surface boundaries.

Are tornadoes in Iowa possible?

Yes — tornadoes are possible across Iowa Tuesday afternoon and evening, though forecasters say the setup is still uncertain and depends on how storms evolve during the day, according to the National Weather Service.

A key factor is a “cap” in the atmosphere that could delay or limit storm development, making the exact timing and placement of storms difficult to pin down early.

Even if afternoon storms remain scattered, activity is expected to increase later Tuesday night as a low-level jet strengthens over the Plains and Midwest. That pattern should help trigger more widespread thunderstorms, especially across southern and central Iowa.

Some of these storms may become elevated above the surface overnight, which could slightly reduce the tornado threat at that point. However, that setup would still support hazards such as heavy rainfall, frequent lightning and hail, particularly in stronger storm clusters.

Still, forecasters say all severe weather hazards remain on the table.

Tornadoes are possible, and a few could be strong if storms stay isolated and develop into discrete supercells.

Large to giant hail is also a concern within the strongest rotating storms that form along boundaries in the warm sector.

Damaging wind gusts may become more widespread later in the evening if storms organize into larger clusters or storm complexes moving across the state.

Storms continue through Friday

Additional severe weather is possible on Wednesday as another upper-level disturbance moves into the region. The exact risk will depend on how Tuesday’s storms evolve and how much instability remains in place.

If conditions recover, supercells with all hazards — including tornadoes — could redevelop across parts of Iowa during peak daytime heating. For now, forecasters have maintained a Slight Risk (Level 2 of 5) for Wednesday.

The active pattern does not end midweek. Another strong system is expected on Friday, bringing a new round of severe storms across much of Iowa ahead of a fast-moving cold front.

Behind it, temperatures will drop sharply over the weekend, with highs falling into the 40s and 50s and a hard freeze possible in northern areas by Saturday night.

Iowa weather radar

Iowa weather watches and warnings

Here are the watches and warnings for the area.

Stay informed. Get weather alerts via text.

Brandi D. Addison covers weather across the United States as the Weather Connect Reporter for the USA TODAY Network. She can be reached at baddison@gannett.com.

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