Iowa

Finkenauer’s Senate Bid Faces Skepticism After Ballot Woes

Published

3 years ago

May 14, 2022

Finkenauer’s Senate Bid Faces Skepticism After Ballot Woes

By THOMAS BEAUMONT, Related Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Abby Finkenauer ‘s bid to clinch the Democratic nomination for an Iowa U.S. Senate seat wasn’t alleged to be so fraught.

She’s one of many extra outstanding Democrats within the state, constructing a wunderkind fame within the Legislature earlier than toppling a Republican congressman in 2018. She was the second-youngest girl elected to Congress, serving to Democrats retake management of the U.S. Home that yr.

And although she would go on to lose the Democratic-leaning district in 2020, her stature suffered little. She raised her profile on cable tv and aggressive electronic mail assaults on incumbent GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley, all of which helped her elevate thousands and thousands of {dollars} forward of her Senate run.

However Finkenauer’s marketing campaign confronted surprising bother final month when, no less than for a second, it appeared she would not be allowed to compete within the June 7 major. A choose discovered errors in Finkenauer’s nominating petitions after Republican activists challenged her filings.

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Although the Iowa Supreme Courtroom in the end assured her spot on the poll, the turmoil — and Finkenauer’s response — prompted some outstanding Democrats to provide one other look to her chief major rival, retired Navy admiral Mike Franken. Some Democrats blame Finkenauer, who blasted the Republican-appointed state choose’s ruling as “deeply partisan,” for shortly blaming political motivations and never acknowledging her personal marketing campaign’s organizational errors.

“It actually simply struck me the fallacious manner,” stated Bonnie Campbell, a former Iowa lawyer basic and previous Democratic nominee for governor.

Campbell had contributed cash to Finkenauer’s marketing campaign but in addition had been eying Franken. Finkenauer’s remarks tipped the scales, she stated.

“It’s the identical factor Donald Trump says, that that is all about politics,” Campbell stated. “I believed, what are my alternate options?”

Finkenauer’s marketing campaign declined a request for an interview for this story.

There’s little dependable polling within the major and whoever survives the Democratic contest faces a frightening problem in Grassley, who raised more cash by means of March than Finkenauer and Franken mixed.

Including to the problem, Iowa has shifted sharply to the fitting over the previous decade, making the Democratic Senate major a type of take a look at case for the celebration in Iowa and different once-competitive northern rural states in regards to the path again to energy.

Nonetheless, Finkenauer retains the backing of extra Democratic state legislators than Franken. She acquired the endorsement final month of the Iowa Federation of Labor, Iowa’s largest union group. She additionally had raised greater than $3 million to Franken’s $1.8 million, in accordance with the newest finance filings.

Finkenauer has the next nationwide profile along with the cable information appearances, partly as a daily spokeswoman on the presidential marketing campaign path for Joe Biden forward of the 2020 election.

However Franken has quietly constructed a aggressive marketing campaign, backed by senior former celebration officers similar to Campbell and former Lieutenant Gov. Sally Pederson. Franken, a distant second-place finisher in Iowa’s 2020 Senate major, additionally raised more cash within the first quarter of 2022 than Finkenauer, and had more cash readily available coming into the second quarter. Franken was additionally first to start airing TV adverts, which started in April. Finkenauer deliberate to start promoting subsequent week.

Although Finkenauer and Franken are an in depth match on coverage, they current strikingly totally different profiles.

At 33, Finkenauer is greater than 30 years youthful than the 64-year-old Franken. Her message leans closely on her working-class upbringing in blue-collar Dubuque, because it did in her two congressional campaigns and campaigns for state legislature. Typically with a large smile, she campaigns with an impassioned edge, as she did at a latest state Democratic fundraiser.

“I’ll by no means ever neglect the place I come from and who I battle for,” Finkenauer promised 600 state celebration activists on the Iowa Occasions Middle in Des Moines.

Tall, graying and standing ramrod straight, Franken’s method is unassuming. With a dry humorousness, Franken spends most of his marketing campaign time answering viewers questions, selling an ordinary progressive platform however with a peaceful unfamiliar in a lot of politics in the present day.

“I am additionally working to dial down political rigidity to attain these items,” Franken advised the group on the Des Moines banquet.

Finkenauer has been on a political course since faculty when she volunteered as a university pupil for Joe Biden’s 2008 marketing campaign and later as a legislative web page. She received an Iowa Home seat at age 24 in 2014, incomes a fame as a vocal member within the minority celebration, and U.S. Home seat 4 years later.

Franken has skippered ships around the globe, but in addition labored on Capitol Hill longer than Finkenauer, as a legislative aide to the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts and the Division of the Navy’s legislative liaison throughout the Obama administration.

It is Finkenauer’s stylistic distinction with the 88-year-old, gravelly-voiced Grassley that make her the higher selection for Andrea Phillips, a former deputy state Democratic Get together chairwoman.

“The contrasts with Abby — you realize, youthful, contemporary concepts, newer era — it presents voters with a clearer selection,” stated Phillips.

Phillips, although, wish to have heard Finkenauer take duty for her marketing campaign’s administrative mistake. When requested repeatedly by reporters, Finkenauer has not stated she was at fault for errors the Iowa Supreme Courtroom discovered not important sufficient to maintain her off the poll.

Finkenauer’s marketing campaign provided the naked minimal of signatures wanted from totally different counties, leaving herself nearly no margin for error. However the choose discovered a small handful of signatures out of the 5,000 obtained by Finkenauer’s marketing campaign weren’t correctly dated, as required by state legislation.

“As a supporter I in all probability would have favored her to return out and apologize,” Phillips stated. “As a supporter I’d have favored to have seen an electronic mail from her saying that.”

On the celebration fundraiser, Des Moines Democrats Suzanne and Tom Fross had been cut up on the influence of the episode. Suzanne Fross, a retired state worker, stated, “She dealt with it advantageous. It was a Republican ambush.” Her husband, a producing supervisor, stated, “It was embarrassing. She ought to have owned as much as it.”

But, neither have determined who they’re going to help with lower than a month to go.

Veteran Dubuque Democratic celebration volunteer Diane Gibson stated she “did not want a lot of a nudge” to think about Franken after the episode.

“Abby hasn’t taken duty for her personal marketing campaign’s failure to do the job,” stated Gibson. “That is the mark of a rookie.”

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Iowa

Four Iowa hospitals ranked among the best for maternity care by U.S. News & World Report

Published

57 minutes ago

January 1, 2025

Press Room

Four Iowa hospitals ranked among the best for maternity care by U.S. News & World Report

Four hospitals in Iowa, including one in Des Moines, have been named among the high performers for maternity care in the United States by U.S. News & World Report.

U.S. News analyzed 817 hospitals across the United States for seven metrics: rates for cesarean section, severe unexpected newborn complications, breast milk feeding, routine vaginal birth after cesarean deliveries and episiotomies and whether a hospital meets new federal criteria for “birthing-friendly” practices and tracks and reports outcomes for patients of different races and ethnicities.

Only half of evaluated hospitals were recognized as being among the best for maternity care.

The U.S. News ratings focused only on uncomplicated pregnancies and not high-risk ones, such as those involving mothers with diabetes or high blood pressure or who are pregnant with twins.

“The hospitals recognized by U.S. News as best hospitals for maternity care showcase exceptional care for expectant parents,” Jennifer Winston, a health data scientist at U.S. News, said in a news release. “These hospitals demonstrate significantly lower C-section rates and severe unexpected newborn complications compared to hospitals not recognized by U.S. News.”

What Iowa hospitals were named best for maternity care by U.S. News?

The hospitals in Iowa City, Mason City and Cedar Rapids received excellent ratings for minimizing avoidable C-sections, with less than 24% occurring in connection with first-time, low-risk pregnancies at full term.

At MercyOne Des Moines, severe newborn complications were low compared to the other three hospitals, where complications occur at an average rate, U.S. News said. Severe newborn complications occur when full-term newborns with normal birth weight and no preexisting conditions are injured or develop infections.

The median hospital rate of severe newborn complications is 13 per 1,000 births, according to U.S. News.

MercyOne Des Moines, Mercy Medical Center Cedar Rapids and the University of Iowa Health Care Medical Center all have an episiotomy rate of less than 5%. An episiotomy, a surgical cut made in the perineum during childbirth, is not recommended for routine use except in specific clinical cases.

The national and Midwest averages for babies exclusively breastfed during their hospital stay are 49% and 51%, respectively. The Cedar Rapids, Iowa City and Mason City hospitals exceeded these averages, with Mercy Medical Center Cedar Rapids being the highest at 81%.

What other hospitals in the Midwest were named high-performing hospitals for maternity care by U.S. News?

Here are the number of hospitals recognized as high-performing for maternity care in states bordering Iowa.

Cooper Worth is a service/trending reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at cworth@gannett.com or follow him on X @CooperAWorth.

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Iowa

How to watch Iowa women’s basketball vs Penn State today: Time, stream for Hawkeyes

Published

8 hours ago

January 1, 2025

Press Room

How to watch Iowa women’s basketball vs Penn State today: Time, stream for Hawkeyes

Hoping to kick off 2025 with a productive showing, Iowa women’s basketball plays at Penn State on New Year’s Day. BTN+ will stream the noon contest.

The Hawkeyes (11-2, 1-1 Big Ten Conference) took down Purdue in their Big Ten home opener on Sunday. Iowa has won 10 straight over Penn State, with nine of those coming by double digits.

Meanwhile, Penn State (9-4, 0-2) had a decent run in the non-conference but has opened league play with losses to Indiana and Minnesota. The 90-54 stumble on Saturday against the Golden Gophers was a particularly ugly affair.

Here’s how to watch Iowa women’s basketball vs. Penn State on Wednesday, including streaming and radio info.

Watch Iowa women’s basketball vs. Penn State on BTN+ ($)

What channel is Iowa women’s basketball vs. Penn State on today?

Iowa vs. Penn State will stream on BTN+, which requires a subscription.

Iowa women’s basketball vs. Penn State time today

Date:  Wednesday, Jan. 1
Start time:  noon CT

The Iowa women’s basketball vs. Penn State game starts at noon CT from Bryce Jordan Center in University Park, Pennsylvania.

Iowa women’s basketball schedule 2024-25

*Indicates Big Ten Conference game

Nov. 6: vs. Northern Illinois (W, 91-73)
Nov. 10: vs. Virginia Tech (W, 71-52)
Nov. 13: vs. Toledo (W, 94-57)
Nov. 17: at Drake (W, 86-73)
Nov. 20: vs. Kansas (W, 71-58)
Nov. 24: vs. Washington State (W, 72-43)
Nov. 28: vs. Rhode Island (W, 69-62)
Nov. 29: vs. BYU (W, 68-48)
Dec. 7: vs. Tennessee (L, 78-68)
Dec. 11: vs. Iowa State (W, 75-69)
Dec. 15: at Michigan State (L, 68-66)
Dec. 20: vs. Northern Iowa, (W, 92-86)
Dec. 29: vs. Purdue (W, 84-63)
Jan. 1: at Penn State*
Jan. 5: vs. Maryland*
Jan. 9: at Illinois*
Jan. 12: vs. Indiana*
Jan. 16: vs. Nebraska*
Jan. 19: at Oregon*
Jan. 22: at Washington*
Jan. 28: vs. Northwestern*
Feb. 2: vs. USC*
Feb. 6: at Minnesota*
Feb. 10: at Nebraska*
Feb. 13: vs. Rutgers*
Feb. 17: at Ohio State*
Feb. 23: vs. UCLA*
Feb. 26: at Michigan*
March 2: vs. Wisconsin*
Record: 11-2

We occasionally recommend interesting products and services. If you make a purchase by clicking one of the links, we may earn an affiliate fee. USA TODAY Network newsrooms operate independently, and this doesn’t influence our coverage.

Dargan Southard is a sports trending reporter and covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.

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Iowa

Iowa State hopes its execution matches its effort in Big 12 home opener vs. KU

Published

17 hours ago

December 31, 2024

Press Room

Iowa State hopes its execution matches its effort in Big 12 home opener vs. KU

Iowa State Cyclones’ head coach Bill Fennelly reacts from the bench during the fourth quarter against USC Upstate Spartans in the NCAA women’s basketball at Hilton Coliseum on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024, in Ames, Iowa. © Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

AMES — Bill Fennelly’s a self-described worrier.

“I worry about a lot of stuff,” said Iowa State’s veteran head coach, whose team (9-5, 0-1 Big 12) faces Kansas (10-2, 0-1) at 2 p.m. tomorrow in its Big 12 home opener at Hilton Coliseum. “That’s my number one trait, quality: I worry well,” Fennelly said.

But — and you should have known a “but” was coming — the last thing Fennelly’s worried about as conference play kicks into high gear is the Cyclones’ resiliency.

ISU has endured humbling losses to No. 2 South Carolina and seventh-ranked UConn, as well as a pair of six-point setbacks to No. 23 Iowa and 11-1 Oklahoma State. The Cyclones have fought back from steep deficits in almost all of their losses, however, and Fennelly said his leadership core formed by senior point guard Emily Ryan, center Audi Crooks, and guard/forward Addy Brown buoys his hopes that Big 12 season could still bring considerable success.

“Obviously, moral victories don’t mean crap to anybody, but I think it shows that they’re gonna keep competing, and that’s kind of been the case all year,” Fennelly said. “Now, there’s competing and then there’s execution that comes with a level of effort.”

In other words, hard work doesn’t always translate into positive results. ISU hopes that eventually its best efforts will lead to a string of victories that could start against a Jayhawks team that features dynamic playmaker S’Mya Nichols, who leads her team in scoring (21.4 points per game) and assists (4.9).

The star sophomore point guard scored 16 points and had four assists in both meetings with the Cyclones last season, which the teams split.

“S’Mya Nichols is a pro,” Fennelly said. “You look at her numbers and it’s staggering. … She’s got the ball in her hands a lot. She’s really, really good at what she does. And then defensively, (Kansas always has) smart pressure, man-to-man, physical defense, tough to score on.”

So ISU is facing another formidable challenge — something they’ve embraced already by even scheduling teams such as South Carolina and UConn.

“We knew what was coming,” said Brown, who ranks second on her team in scoring (14.1 points per game) and rebounding (7.3). “We knew what we signed up for. They’re both great teams and I think we needed to see that type of talent early on just to prepare for our conference.”

Nineteen of those regular season Big 12 games remain — and ISU’s still poised to be a contender if its execution can match its effort.

“We’ve had teams, we’ve had games (since) forever and I would walk out and say, ‘We really, really played hard,’” Fennelly said. “But if you don’t guard right (and) if you don’t make shots, you lose.”

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