Iowa
Iowa GOP Chair: Political parties should work to lower rhetoric
Republican Party of Iowa Chairman Jeff Kaufmann, who will give the speech this week formally nominating Donald Trump to be elected president, expressed shock and disbelief at Saturday’s apparent assassination attempt of the former president during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
The shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, is being investigated as an attempted assassination of the former president and presumptive Republican nominee, law enforcement officials say. The FBI identified a 20-year-old man as the suspected shooter.
A former fire chief attending the rally with family was killed, as was the gunman. Two other spectators also were critically wounded, according to the Associated Press.
Kaufmann said the Republican National Convention, which begins Monday in Milwaukee, will proceed as a “four-day commercial for Donald Trump.”
He said the news and images from Saturday’s shooting were “surreal” and “hard to believe.”
“Understanding that this has to be dealt with swiftly and condemned strongly,” Kaufmann said. “And it looks like, right now, that’s happening on both” sides of the political spectrum, “which at least, will be able to possibly help to prevent this in the future.”
Republican Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird, who endorsed Trump ahead of the January Iowa caucuses, also will speak at the RNC.
Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, in a statement released Saturday, said she also will be in Milwaukee and “will proudly stand with him (Trump) and our party.”
“As President Trump showed when he walked off the stage, we will not cower to such terror,” Reynolds said in her statement. “… America will get through this, together, and President Trump will lead us into the next four years.”
Kaufmann said he has “not changed one semicolon” and will proceed with his speech focusing on the importance of Iowa’s role in the presidential nominating process and keeping Iowa’s first-in-the-nation status on the Republican presidential primary calendar, the need for change in the White House and the promises of a second Trump presidency he said would help cut spending, cut taxes, support law enforcement and enhance border security.
“I don’t want the tone to change,” he said of the RNC in the wake of Saturday’s attack.
“I think it’s important to be honest with you that we proceed really with the same message that we were always going to proceed with,” he said. “ … We cannot allow one person to change the practice of our democracy, and that means whether it’s here in Milwaukee for the Republicans, or, as far as that goes, God forbid, in Chicago with the Democrats. I just think both political parties need to continue with what we were going to do in our time-honored tradition of our conventions.”
Kaufmann spoke to The Gazette by phone after driving into Milwaukee for the RNC.
“There is police everywhere,” he said. “I mean, once you get close to the perimeter, it is everywhere. I passed through two checkpoints. I don’t know if that was planned already. I believe it was.”
He said both political parties should work to lower the political temperature and heated rhetoric in the presidential race, and strongly condemn political violence in the aftermath of the shooting.
Kaufmann, who has repeatedly disparaged President Joe Biden and Democrats as endangering the country and claimed Democrats would try to steal elections in Iowa if given the chance, called for unity and respectful dialogue in the face of political disagreements.
“This is absolutely unacceptable,” he said. “I’ve been to several of those (Trump) rallies, so I can almost place myself in the situation of that pandemonium. And, wow. My heart goes out for him. And I would say that whether it was a Trump rally or a Biden event — or you name it — that there’s no time for anybody to even give a second thought of danger that might face people when they’re going to practice their democracy.”
Former President Trump called Sunday for unity and resilience as shocked leaders from both major political parties recoiled from the shooting that left Trump wounded but “fine.” Iowa politicians were quick to react to the shooting, offering prayers and support for the former president.
Biden, who is running against Trump, was briefed on the attack and spoke to Trump several hours after the shooting, the White House said.
“There’s no place in America for this type of violence,” Biden said late Saturday. “It’s sick. It’s sick.”
Many Republicans, including some vying to be Trump’s running mate, quickly blamed the violence on Biden and his allies, arguing that sustained attacks on Trump as a threat to democracy have created a toxic environment. They pointed in particular to a comment Biden made to donors on July 8, saying “it’s time to put Trump in the bullseye.”
Republican former presidential candidate and U.S. Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, who is on Trump’s shortlist for vice president, posted on social media without knowledge of the shooter’s motivations: “This was an assassination attempt aided and abetted by the radical Left and corporate media incessantly calling Trump a threat to democracy, fascists, or worse.”
Georgia Republican Congressman Mike Collins baselessly accused Biden for the apparent assassination attempt against his political rival.
“Joe Biden sent the orders,” U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga., wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
There is no evidence that President Biden was involved in the shooting. Biden’s comment to donors on July 8 referred to beating Trump in the election.
“Look, this is a full contact sport that we’re in,” Kaufmann said. “… And I don’t expect that is going to change in the presidential race. But when you move beyond to the next level of name calling, that’s what I think we can do to lower the temperature right now. We got to get through a convention, but I think that’s something that both parties can actually work on together.”
Asked whether we will see a change in tone and rhetoric from Trump — who has described his domestic opponents as “vermin” and said immigration is “poisoning the blood” of the U.S., echoing fascist dictators — Kaufmann said: “Right now, as a grandfather and a father and a husband, my guess is he’s thanking God above that he was saved, not necessarily the tone of his rhetoric.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com
With June rapidly finishing up, that means the Iowa high school softball season is preparing to enter the stretch run of the year.
The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union State Softball Tournament will begin Monday, July 20, in Fort Dodge at Rogers Park, bringing together many of the top teams and players in the state. High School On SI Iowa currently provides a Top 25 state softball power rankings, so now, we need to see who the top players are.
Below are the nominees for the High School On SI Iowa Class 1A Softball Midseason Player of the Year in each classification. Stats listed with the player are from Bound and based on those numbers imputed as of June 26, 2026 at noon CT.
Feel free to vote as many times as you like, with voting set to close on Friday, July 3, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. CT.
High School On SI Iowa Class 1A Softball Midseason Player Of The Year Nominees
Rachel Eglseder, Edgewood-Colesburg, Senior
Eglseder owns a 16-5 record, striking out 225 batters with a 1.66 earned run average while adding 11 extra-base hits and 40 RBI at the plate.
Rylee Mudderman, Kee, Junior
Mudderman continues to be a difficult out, batting .488 this season with two homers, 11 doubles and four triples. She has driven in 38 and scored 35 times, stealing 10 bases.
Faith Shirbroun, St. Edmond, Senior
Speaking of tough outs, Shirbroun owns a batting average of .606 this season, recording seven homers, 17 doubles and five triples. She has driven in 36 and scored 37 times, stealing 22 bases while setting several school records for hitting.
Sydney Lovrien, Clarksville, Senior
The ace for the defending state champions, Lovrien is 13-5 with 100 strikeouts in 86 innings pitched. She also has 23 hits and 21 RBI at the plate.
Sam Kruckenberg, Mason City Newman Catholic, Senior
A veteran now, Kruckenberg owns an 18-4 record with 227 strikeouts and a 1.23 earned run average. She is batting .440 with five homers, 11 doubles and 23 RBI at the plate.
About Our Midseason Player of the Year Voting
High School on SI voting polls are meant to be a fun, lighthearted way for fans to show support for their favorite athletes and teams. Our goal is to celebrate all of the players featured, regardless of the vote totals. Sometimes one athlete will receive a very large number of votes — even thousands — and that’s okay! The polls are open to everyone and are simply a way to build excitement and community around high school sports. Unless we specifically announce otherwise, there are no prizes or official awards for winning. The real purpose is to highlight the great performances of every athlete included in the poll.
Follow
The Iowa chapter of the Land Improvement Contractors of America (LICA) officially opened a new facility on its 80-acre demonstration farm in Marshall County Thursday.
Iowa LICA President Scott Bohle said having classroom and meeting space will make it easier to educate the next generation of professional contractors, along with government employees, lawmakers and students, to help conserve soil and water in the state.
Bohle said the building “gives people a place to gather, collaborate and continue the important work that defines our association.”
Just outside the new space are wetlands, terraces, sediment control basins, bioreactors and other features, which members have built since LICA purchased the farm near Melbourne in 2000.
“We call it the one-stop shop, where you can see anything being put to practice by our landowners,” said Kelby Kiefer, executive director of Iowa LICA.
Together, these “edge-of-field” practices remove 50% of phosphates and almost 100% of the nitrates from the runoff of a 1,000-plus acre watershed, according to the association.
Adding more wetlands, saturated buffers and bioreactors across the state are a key part of Iowa’s Nutrient Reduction Strategy. It aims to cut nitrogen and phosphorus losses from farm fields by 41% and 29%, respectively.
The strategy is part of a broader effort to reduce nutrient pollution in the state’s waterways and the Gulf of Mexico by 45% compared to the 1980-96 baseline period. It does not include a target date.
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said the state has accelerated edge-of-field practices in recent years, in part through the Batch and Build model. The approach bundles projects in a targeted watershed to reduce costs and save time for farmers and contractors.
Nearly 150 nitrate reducing wetlands and around 500 saturated buffers, bioreactors and multi-purpose oxbows had been built in the state as of 2024. Thousands more will be needed to meet the state’s nutrient reduction targets.
“[Clean water is] something we need to be focused on, and we can be proud of the work that’s happened, but we know that we need to do more,” Naig said. “Buildings like this help.”
Naig said scaling up conservation infrastructure across the state will require more skilled contractors. He described them as the “critical link” between concepts and “getting things on the ground.”
“It’s from that point where you say, ‘We have a design that’s ready to go, a willing landowner,’ but somebody needs to make it happen,” Naig said. “The land improvement contractor sits in that very important spot.”
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Mark Roering returned to Iowa City Regina 30 years after serving as an assistant coach, and in just two seasons, he has transformed the Regals into one of Class 2A’s most dangerous teams.
“I was a senior in college. I just had finished playing baseball myself and was doing high school in the summers. Had one of those magical seasons here losing in the state finals,” Roering said. “I was just ready for something new.”
Prior to being hired at Iowa City Regina in 2024, Roering coached nine seasons at Dowling Catholic, where he helped the Maroons reach the state tournament six times. Regina was below .500 in three of the four seasons before his arrival. His first season at the helm, Regina went 22-6.
“I think the biggest difference is practice. Everybody is so much more locked in. Really that just comes from him. He gets on us everyday, he has to make the drive and hour and a half every day so we want to give that back to him for all the time and effort he’s put into us,” junior Trey Streb said.
Streb also described Roering as a very emotional coach who cares deeply about the team and winning.
The Regals’ bats have become a significant threat. Regina ranks fifth in the state and second in Class 2A with a .379 batting average and has the fourth fewest strikeouts among state teams.
“It’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced and it’s been super competitive and it’s nice to be with people who want to win and will do whatever it takes to win,” senior Emmett Burke said.
The team already sits at 20 wins with eight regular season games remaining.
Roering said the transformation comes when players start believing they can win in any situation.
“Winning is contagious just like losing is contagious,” Roering said. “Kids they start believing and it gets really dangerous you know that they can win no matter what situation they’re in.”
The turnaround has positioned the Regals to make a postseason run. With only one senior on the roster, the team could remain a threat next season.
“No matter what, we’re going to fight and we’re not going to roll over. We’re going to do what we need to do to win,” Burke said.
“We’re big competitors. We don’t accept defeat and I think that’s one of my favorite parts about this team,” Streb added.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
-
Los Angeles, Ca1 hour agoMan found guilty of sex trafficking victim along L.A.’s Figueroa Corridor
-
Detroit, MI1 hour agoNo. 23 overall pick in the 2026 NHL draft | Detroit Red Wings
-
San Francisco, CA2 hours agoSan Francisco Pride kicks off with rainbow lasers, ValQueeries celebrate at Valkyries Pride Night
-
Dallas, TX2 hours agoHow to buy Egypt vs. Australia World Cup soccer tickets
-
Miami, FL2 hours agoHelping Venezuela: Miami search-and-rescue team prepares to deploy
-
Boston, MA2 hours agoHow to buy Paraguay vs. Germany 2026 World Cup tickets in Boston
-
Denver, CO2 hours agoDenver Broncos Roster Breakdown: Center—The Depth Question
-
Seattle, WA2 hours agoIran-Egypt: Seattle World Cup Pride match updates
