Iowa
Psst! Iowa's conservative economic development doctrine is not working • Iowa Capital Dispatch
We should talk.
Please go to a quiet corner of the room, away from prying eyes and ears, and then read this column. If you tell anyone what I wrote here, I will deny it and claim an imposter posted under my name. Here is what you need to know: It is not working.
The cold, stark reality of this came to me when two events took place. The first was when I watched the conclusion of the Indianapolis 500 and observed the winning car drive over the black and white checkered tile to the winner’s circle sponsored by Hy-Vee. Hy-Vee, which closed three stores serving middle-income Iowans and cut the hours on another, could afford the pretty penny it took to land that advertising spot.
If that wasn’t enough, just this past month the darling of Iowa manufacturing, John Deere, started announcing layoffs a few at a time, but the total is now approaching 2, 000. The blame lay on the fact that the price of corn was falling, down under $5 a bushel.
The company, which recently drew its own national television audiences last weekend with the annual John Deere Classic golf tournament, had assets last year of $104 billion, up 15% from the previous year. Even with lower farm income projections for this year, Deere expects profits this year to exceed $7 billion.
Then came the kicker, the cold glass of water thrown in your face: Deere will move further operations to Mexico in 2025-2026.
It raises the question: What more can we give them and other large corporations so that they will come and stay in Iowa? That is the challenge when you consider all our state government has done since 2012:
- Under Gov. Terry Branstad, we cut taxes on business equipment and commercial property.
- We reduced the required contributions employers must make to the unemployed insurance fund and lowered and delayed benefits to those out of work.
- We have expanded the labor force by allowing children 14 years old to work in factories, removed any restrictions on those 16- or 17-year-olds who are now permitted to work the same hours as an adult. This expanded the labor source in Iowa and reduced costs.
- Iowa has given outright $30 million for manufacturers’ plant modernization.
- Most recently, $93 million was made available to any two businesses that would create a mega site for future commercial enterprises to locate.
- We crippled labor unions by basically abrogating the collective bargaining act for public employees. We require unions to certify their right to bargain for their members by mandating annual votes of approval of the membership.
- We reduced and will eliminate income taxes on businesses’ highest-paid executives while cutting lower wage earners’ taxes only slightly.
- We have lost count of how much cash and land we have given away to the titans of capitalism under the promise that it would create “good jobs.”
Even a critic would not say that our leaders have not pursued an aggressive and expensive policy of a conservative doctrine of economic development. But here is what I want you to know: It is not working.
A few factors jumped out in support of this conclusion. First, Iowa’s population grew in 2022 a reported 0.01% and of that growth, a substantial number was from immigrants. The average state saw a population increase of 0.03% and some went as high as 5 and 6%.
More bad news was what the Bureau of Economic Analysis told us most recently. Among all states, Iowa was 48th for growth in personal income. That was second-lowest score nationally, tied with Mississippi. Upon graduation, 46% of our college graduates leave Iowa and seek employment elsewhere. Over 300 teachers are planning to depart the state after we gutted Area Education Agencies. Nationally, our rank among those high school students taking the SAT continues to decline.
Now a cynic would argue that this plan represents what our leaders want Iowa to become: A primarily Christian, not public, taught population, poorly educated but worker trained. But I assume the governor and her allies are working in good faith.
To be helpful, I would only make one minor suggestion. Until recently, Iowa’s motto was “Iowa A Place to Grow.” Bring it back, it’s good. But a special and specific slogan for wealthy individuals and international corporations of vast financial resources: “Come to Iowa. Get the money and run, like a Deere, to Mexico.”
We all have witnessed the governor’s capacity for retribution for those who drew her wrath.
I deny that I wrote this article.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – Iowa City police are asking the public’s help identifying persons of interest connected to a vandalism investigation.
Police said a business was vandalized in the alley behind the 200 block of East Washington Street on Sunday at 2:35 a.m.
Investigators would like to speak with the persons of interest pictured. Police ask anyone who recognizes these individuals to contact them.
Anyone with information or security camera footage of the incident should contact the Iowa City Police Department at 319-356-5275. Iowa City Area Crime Stoppers is also offering a reward up to $1,000 for information that leads to an arrest.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
Iowa State football coach Jimmy Rogers assesses the Cyclones’ spring
Iowa State football coach Jimmy Rogers assesses the Cyclones’ spring
Spring commencement arrives at Iowa State this weekend, with a whole new generation of Cyclones set to get their diplomas and move on to the next things in their lives.
The options and choices will set their path for, potentially, the years and decades ahead.
Which got me thinking about the choices and circumstances of this school year that came for Iowa State athletics. There were no shortages of inflection points at which, it seems, programs and an entire athletics department pivoted to new directions.
Let’s explore.
What if Iowa State had hired Taylor Mouser as head football coach?
This seems to be the most discussed “Sliding Doors” moment for Iowa State football fans regarding head coach Matt Campbell’s departure to Penn State. And with good reason. It’s the most obvious, could have had the most immediate impact on the program and would have been largely seen as a continuation of the most successful run in school history.
Would promoting the Iowa State offensive coordinator, though, have been the right move?
If you assume a best-case scenario in which some of the star Cyclone players on offense – think Rocco Becht, Ben Brahmer, Carson Hansen, etc. – stay at Iowa State and a bulk of the coaching staff does as well, there are still likely defections that weaken the roster. Nothing like we saw back in December, but, still, there would be holes – and Campbell’s shoes – to fill by a first-time head coach taking over for a legend.
The calculation, as I see it, has to be – does the Year 1 continuity and relative stability gained by hiring Mouser provide for better long-term results than hiring Jimmy Rogers, who has the benefit of head-coaching experience?
It certainly would have made the fan base feel better back in December, but would it have positioned Iowa State to have better results in 2027 and beyond?
The roster almost certainly would have been “better” in 2026 if Iowa State retained Mouser, but would that have created a more solid foundation for the future or just delayed decay?
This “What If” becomes a lot less intricate and interesting if Rogers just wins a ton this fall and going forward.
What if Penn State had been able to hire Kalani Sitake as its football coach?
I think this is the most interesting question on the list.
By reports, Penn State was on the verge of hiring Sitake from BYU when the Cougars’ boosters – led by the Crumbl Cookie fortune – banded together to put together a financial package to keep Sitake in Provo.
What if they hadn’t, though?
Sitake goes to Penn State, and Dec. 5, 2025, is an uneventful day in Iowa State history rather than one of its most feverish.
But … what happens a few weeks later when Sherrone Moore is fired at Michigan?
Rather than plucking 66-year-old Kyle Whittingham from Utah/forced retirement, do the Wolverines try to make a Michigan Man out of an Ohioan? Does Campbell inherit the seat of Bo Schembechler?
And, for the sake of this thought exercise, if Campbell did move to Ann Arbor, does the timing of that decision change athletics director Jamie Pollard’s options and calculus about Iowa State’s opening? Is Jimmy Rogers still available? Or would he have taken a different opening or opted not to leave Pullman at that later date? Is Mouser the answer in this scenario?
Or is the Buckeye State distaste for the state Up North too much and Campbell returns for Year 11 at Iowa State?
Addy Brown on what went wrong in Iowa State’s loss to Syracuse
Iowa State’s Addy Brown talks about her team’s struggles in a loss to Syracuse in the NCAA Tournament.
What if Addy Brown doesn’t get hurt?
Iowa State women’s basketball was 14-0 on Jan. 4 when it played Baylor in Waco, and the season felt sure to realize the potential that was clear before it started with one of coach Bill Fennelly’s best rosters.
The Cyclones, though, returned home with their first loss and with Addy Brown sidelined with a back injury.
Four more losses in a row followed, and when Brown returned to the floor after six weeks, the Cyclones’ season was floundering.
They salvaged an NCAA Tournament bid, but a first-round exit gave way to a roster collapse with nine players – including Brown and superstar Audi Crooks – leaving via the transfer portal, putting Fennelly’s tenure and future under fire.
If Brown doesn’t get hurt – or just isn’t out as long – does that change the trajectory of the season? The offseason? And what the eventual end of Fennelly’s Iowa State career looks like?
What if Joshua Jefferson doesn’t roll his ankle?
The most recent “What If” I think is also the most straightforward.
If Jefferson’s ankle doesn’t roll in the early minutes of Iowa State’s first-round NCAA Tournament blowout win over Tennessee State, I think the Cyclones get a long second weekend in Chicago, but the Final Four drought probably remains intact.
Jefferson’s rebounding and offensive impact are, I think, enough to give the Cyclones the edge against Tennessee, but Michigan, the Cyclones’ would-be Elite Eight opponent, was just a juggernaut.
I’m not sure even a full-strength Iowa State team would have had more than a puncher’s chance. The Wolverines were just one of the best college basketball teams we’ve seen over the last few decades.
Iowa State columnist Travis Hines has covered the Cyclones for the Des Moines Register and Ames Tribune since 2012. Contact him at thines@amestrib.com or (515) 284-8000. Follow him on X at @TravisHines21.
One of the top Iowa high school football prospects in the state has made his college decision official.
Iowa City Regina High School senior-to-be Tate Wallace has announced he has verbally committed to the University of Minnesota in the Big Ten Conference. Wallace picked the Golden Gophers and head coach PJ Fleck over a finalists Notre Dame, Nebraska, Arizona, Arizona State and Wisconsin.
Wallace narrowed down his list of schools to six at the end of April before making his final decision.
Iowa City Regina Football Standout Tate Wallace Ranked As No. 2 Overall Prospect In Iowa High School Football
The 6-foot-2, 226-pound linebacker is considered the No. 2 overall prospect in the state of Iowa for high school football, and is the No. 21 linebacker in the Class of 2027, according to 247Sports.
In the 247Sports Composite rankings, Wallace is No. 2 in Iowa high school football, No. 29 at linebacker and No. 359 for the Class of 2027.
Along With Minnesota, Tate Wallace Currently Holds Offers From Schools Such As Arizona, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Iowa State
Wallace currently holds 16 total offers including from the previously mentioned Minnesota, Notre Dame, Nebraska, Arizona, Arizona State, Wisconsin, Iowa State, Kansas State, Purdue, Tennessee, West Virginia, Eastern Michigan, Miami (Ohio), Toledo, UNLV, North Dakota and North Dakota State.
As a junior, Wallace registered almost 50 tackles on defense, with 29 of them being counted as solo stops. He had 18 tackles for loss, 8.5 quarterback sacks and forced two fumbles, as Iowa City Regina advanced to the state championship game of the Iowa High School Athletic Association State Football Championships.
Future Minnesota Golden Gopher Has Been Key Two-Way Starter For Regals
Wallace also hauled in 40 passes for 611 yards with 10 receiving touchdowns on offense for the Regals. As a two-way player for Iowa City Regina during his sophomore season, Wallace had 27.5 tackles, including 16 solo stops, four tackles for loss and a quarterback sack, adding 51 receptions for 752 yards and eight touchdowns.
Back in March, Wallace announced seven spring visits to Notre Dame, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Arizona, Kansas State and Arizona State. He also visited Tennessee this past fall, taking in an SEC contest with the Volunteers.
Along with his success on the football field, Wallace helped lead the Regals to the Iowa High School Athletic Association Boys State Basketball Tournament this past winter. He earned High School on SI all-state honors in the process.
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