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Trump’s polling lead and legal troubles loom over GOP presidential field as candidates collide in Iowa for critical audition | CNN Politics

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Trump’s polling lead and legal troubles loom over GOP presidential field as candidates collide in Iowa for critical audition | CNN Politics




CNN
 — 

Former President Donald Trump has lobbed insults at Iowa’s popular Republican governor, broken with the state’s evangelical pastors, quarreled with an influential Christian leader there, skipped its key political gatherings and has spent less time in the state than most of his top competitors.

But if Iowa Republicans are bothered by any of Trump’s affronts, it has yet to affect his support in the first caucus state on the GOP’s nominating calendar. Heading into Friday, when nearly every Republican presidential contender will descend on Des Moines for the state GOP’s Lincoln Dinner, Trump remains the unquestioned front-runner in Iowa and nationwide. Behind him is a field of candidates straining to navigate a race overshadowed so far by the former president’s popularity among Republicans and his mounting legal problems – two realities that appear intertwined.

Those legal troubles threatened once again to upend the political scene on the eve of the dinner. Special counsel Jack Smith on Thursday brought additional charges against Trump in the case over his alleged mishandling of classified documents after leaving the White House, accusing the former president of obstruction and two aides of attempting to delete security camera footage after the Justice Department had issued a subpoena. A potential third indictment of Trump related to the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol, looms over the weekend as well.

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Several candidates are flashing troubling signals less than six months before Iowans head to their caucuses to pick a nominee. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is slashing staff and rebooting his campaign amid stalled support and spending woes. Former Vice President Mike Pence, at risk of not reaching the donor threshold to qualify for the first GOP debate, is pleading for $1 contributions. And former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has yet to break out in polling despite being the second major Republican to enter the race.

Perhaps only South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott enters Friday’s Lincoln Dinner with any tailwinds. Deep-pocketed donors have lately expressed renewed interest in Scott, and a new Fox Business poll of Iowa showed him closing in on DeSantis for second place in the race. Still, he remains well behind Trump, who has so far publicly demonstrated little concern for Scott’s challenge. Ahead of the event, Trump attacked DeSantis on his Truth Social platform Thursday, calling the Florida governor a “COMPLETE DISASTER for American Farmers and the people of Iowa.”

Thirteen presidential candidates are scheduled to address Friday’s dinner, the Iowa Republican Party’s largest annual fundraiser and a must-stop on the campaign circuit that not even Trump could avoid. Among those speaking are leading contenders DeSantis, Pence, Scott, Haley, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. More recent entrants such as former Texas Rep. Will Hurd and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez will look to give their long-shot bids a boost as well. The lineup notably excludes former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, whose campaign is staked on a strong primary performance in New Hampshire.

Trump will address the reception last, a sign that he still commands deference from the party even as he has upended the state’s nominating traditions once again.

The former president has not aggressively campaigned in person, making just four visits to Iowa since declaring his 2024 candidacy in November. His reticence to get behind anti-abortion policies lately has frustrated some evangelical leaders in the state, where Republicans recently enacted a six-week ban on the procedure that was later blocked by a judge. He has repeatedly ducked events in the state that have featured other contenders, most recently the Family Leadership Summit, organized by influential Christian conservative Bob Vander Plaats, where candidates fielded questions from former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. Trump’s campaign cited a scheduling conflict, but his allies painted Vander Plaats, a once and current critic of the former president, as a biased host.

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And, in an outburst that would be wildly counterproductive for perhaps any other candidate, Trump ripped into Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds for remaining neutral in the state’s nominating fight.

“I opened up the Governor position for Kim Reynolds, & when she fell behind, I ENDORSED her, did big Rallies, & she won,” Trump wrote on Truth Social about his support for Reynolds when she ran for a first full term in 2018. “Now, she wants to remain ‘NEUTRAL.’ I don’t invite her to events!”

Reynolds has said she will appear with any Republican candidate who invites her, schedule permitting. Most of the field will sit down with the governor for a series of chats at the State Fair in August. Trump has made no such commitment.

Other Republican candidates quickly rallied to Reynolds’ defense, clearly identifying Trump’s attacks on a popular GOP governor as a critical misstep. Haley called Reynolds a “conservative rockstar” in a tweet. Burgum told CNN’s Erin Burnett that Reynolds was “doing a great job being neutral.” Never Back Down, a super PAC supporting DeSantis, bought time on Iowa’s airwaves for an ad that controversially featured AI-generated audio of Trump’s voice reading his Truth Social post attacking Reynolds.

Yet, a Fox Business survey of Iowa Republicans taken in the days after showed Trump’s commanding lead remained intact.

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The stickiness of Trump’s support in Iowa comes even as campaigns and their supportive super PACs have outspent the former president’s allies 8-to-1 on television ads in the state. Never Back Down has spent the most on commercials to date, about $4 million.

Trust in the Mission PAC, which is behind Scott, is planning to spend $18 million but that includes an eight-figure investment to reserve fall advertising in hopes it can boost his campaign as he is gaining momentum.

Candidates have also scheduled more time in the state than Trump, who will leave Iowa for a Saturday rally in Pennsylvania after Friday’s dinner. Scott appeared with Reynolds in Iowa on Thursday night, while DeSantis kicked off a bus tour through the state hosted by Never Back Down, an arrangement that is demonstrative of his campaign’s financial troubles that nevertheless blurs the line that is supposed to exist between candidates and outside political committees.

Haley will hold a town hall in Iowa City on Saturday. Pence has two events planned in Iowa for the weekend.

In recent political history, the Iowa caucuses have served as a first test of a presidential candidate’s viability, but not necessarily as a kingmaker. Its role has been to narrow the field, but its past winners – Ted Cruz in 2016, Rick Santorum in 2012 and Mike Huckabee in 2008 – ultimately ceded the nomination to someone else.

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The intensifying focus on Iowa by the candidates this year is illustrative of the challenge ahead for those Republicans who increasingly view the outcome there as a more definitive verdict on whether anyone can wrestle the party from Trump. Even DeSantis, who once harbored ambitions of mounting a national campaign through the fall, has retreated to the early nominating contests with more people in his orbit now viewing Iowa as must-win or close to it.

“We’re not getting a mulligan on 2024,” DeSantis told Iowa Republicans in Chariton on Thursday. “You either go, you get the job done or you don’t. I will get the job done.”



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Hard work and dedication paying off for Northern Iowa star Tytan Anderson

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Hard work and dedication paying off for Northern Iowa star Tytan Anderson


WATERLOO, Iowa (KWQC) – Northern Iowa basketball star Tytan Anderson is a coach’s dream.

“You talk about a thrill for a head coach and just to be able to be around him each and everyday” said UNI head coach Ben Jacobson.

When the Panthers need a big play, they count on Anderson.

“He knows his teammates trust him his teammates know he’s gonna come through and our fans know he’s gonna come through and that’s one of the coolest part of being around him” said Jacobson.

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Anderson is leading the Panthers in scoring and rebounding. He’s 13th on the program’s all time scoring list and 7th in rebounding.

“This is every kids dream I mean every basketball player’s dream is to just be apart of a family be apart of a team that really trusts you and loves you” said Anderson who was First Team All State for North Scott High School his senior year in 2020.

Anderson’s talent is impressive, but his work ethic is what sets him apart.

“The situation doesn’t determine or dictate how Ty feels because his habits and routine are really good and he trusts and believes that it matters” said Jacobson.

“That’s why we offered him a scholarship, you know we’re watching him in an AAU game playing against two or three guys that were 2 or 3 inches taller 40 50 pounds heavier and he got under the skin of both of those guys just because he plays so hard”.

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In a college basketball world where players often transfer from one school to the next, Anderson has stayed loyal to the Panthers.

“He could have went out and got more money you know we’re paying him, he’s making a decent amount with us but he could have gotten more, he loves his teammates he cares about this place and he made a decision to come back here.”

“Instilling that same trust that coach Jacobson had in me and just returning the favor and having trust that he’s gonna build the team and assemble a team that’s gonna do something special and we still have an opportunity to do something very special” said Anderson.

Loyalty and hard work. The same Values Anderson learned at North Scott.

“I wanted to be apart of something bigger than myself, I wanted to be apart of a family just like I had always been growing up I was always on great teams led by great coaches.”

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“What comes to my mind is just toughness the mental and physical toughness with Ty, he’s always had that” said North Scott head coach Shamus Budde who coached Anderson when he was in high school.

“He was raised that way. His dad Tim Anderson who’s on our staff still to this day has always talked to Ty about doing the little things on the court you add all that in their and plus his intelligence, he’s one of the smartest people I’ve ever been around and one of the smartest basketball players as well.”

“They’ve always pushed me I mean Shamus was a great coach and he still is and I love that man like no other I mean he’s just I appreciate him everyday for the type of player that he made me become” said Anderson.

Giving his all to the game that has given him so much.

“I have such a supporting group, supporting fans community, team, I mean everybody around me is just very solid and I appreciate that for sure.”

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Iowa student reflects on years away from home as Russia & Ukraine war reaches third year

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Iowa student reflects on years away from home as Russia & Ukraine war reaches third year


CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (KCRG) – Since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in 2022 millions of people have fled the country, as fighting continues many of them have been unable to return home.

It’s been more than three years since Ukrainian student Iryna Hodun last saw her family in person. She was 16 years old when she originally came to the United States as part of an exchange program, just months later Russia’s invasion began.

Today she’s a a student at the University of Northern Iowa and studies interior design. She keeps up with her family and speaks with her mother every day on the phone, but she misses her home.

”It’s challenging, the reality has changed a lot,” Hodun said. “Whenever you grow up living a peaceful life, a lot of people take it for granted.”

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None of her family has been harmed. They live in the western part of Ukraine, away from most of the fighting; however, they have still had to take shelter multiple times for bombings. She’s found a great community of friends in Cedar Falls but she’s excited to one day being able to return to Ukraine.

“Specifically in Cedar Falls, people are very nice and very welcoming,” Hodun said. “I would be very excited to see my mom, my dad and my grandparents and I would just love to go back to my city.”

The last two months have brought developments with major talks around ending the war but with the U.S. and Russia excluding Ukraine from the bargaining table.

“If it’s the peace that we are going to agree to terms of the aggressor and imperialist who supports war crimes, land taking, it’s not peacemaking, that’s surrender,” Hodun said.

Ultimately she is staying optimistic about the days ahead.

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“I’m always hopeful that we will get what we deserve,” Hodun said. “The people who lost their families, who lost friends and, lost things from the war, they will get the justice they deserve because those people need it the most.”



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Pittsburgh Steelers Becoming Possible Suitor for Iowa Hawkeyes Star

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Pittsburgh Steelers Becoming Possible Suitor for Iowa Hawkeyes Star


The Iowa Hawkeyes have a few key players heading off into the 2025 NFL Draft. Headlined by running back Kaleb Johnson, fans will have more players to continue rooting on at the professional level.

Johnson saw his draft stock skyrocket throughout the 2024 season. He is now in a position where he should end up being a second round lock, if not ending up being selected late in the first round.

Plenty of teams around the league need help at running back. Fans are now anxious to see where he ends up going.

An intriguing name has been brought up as a potential suitor. That team is the Pittsburgh Steelers.

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Adam Hulse of SportsKeeda has named the Steelers as one of the top landing spots for Johnson in the draft.

“The Pittsburgh Steelers are currently considering what to do with both of their running backs, Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, pending free agents,” Hulse wrote. “It’s unclear if they will bring either of them back, but it’s unlikely that they will re-sign both. They could pivot to the 2025 NFL draft to address the position, so Johnson makes a ton of sense for them.”

During the 2024 college football season, Johnson was the main driving force of the Hawkeyes’ offense. He carried the football 240 times for 1,537 yards and 21 touchdowns. Those numbers average out to an elite 6.4 yards per carry. He also chipped in 22 catches for 188 yards and two more scores.

Those numbers would look awfully good in the Pittsburgh backfield. Johnson could end up becoming a long-term workhorse for whoever ends up landing him.

No one knows who the Steelers’ quarterback will be in 2025. Justin Fields and Russell Wilson are two options, with Aaron Rodgers being a name that has been connected quite a bit to Pittsburgh as well.

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Whoever ends up being the quarterback, the presence of Johnson could help take a lot of pressure off of the passing game.

READ MORE: Iowa Hawkeyes Should Consider Calling Rick Pitino

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READ MORE: Iowa Hawkeyes Star Working Out with Aaron Rodgers Before Draft

READ MORE: Fran McCaffery Has Heartbreaking Reaction to Iowa Hawkeyes Loss to Oregon

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READ MORE: Former Iowa Hawkeyes Star Could Land with New England Patriots



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