Tag: iowa

Trump Sues Des Moines Register and Pollster J. Ann Selzer for ‘Brazen Election Interference’ After Fraudulent Iowa Poll Shows Kamala Harris Ahead

President-elect Donald Trump is taking legal action against the Des Moines Register and its pollster, J. Ann Selzer, accusing them of “brazen election interference” and fraud.

On Monday morning, President-elect Donald Trump announced his intention to sue the Des Moines Register and its pollster, J. Ann Selzer, after Selzer’s manipulated final poll, published just days before the 2024 election, falsely claimed Kamala Harris was leading Trump in Iowa—a prediction proven wildly inaccurate when Trump secured a decisive 13-point victory in the state.

By late evening, Trump followed through, filing the lawsuit in Polk County, Iowa, under the Iowa Consumer Fraud Act.

The lawsuit targets the Des Moines Register, Selzer & Company, and the newspaper’s corporate parent, Gannett, Fox News first reported.

Trump’s attorneys argue the poll was a deliberate and orchestrated attempt to deceive voters and sway the election in Harris’s favor.

“Contrary to reality and defying credulity, defendants’ Harris Poll was published three days before Election Day and purported to show Harris leading President Trump in Iowa by three points; President Trump ultimately won Iowa by over thirteen points,” the lawsuit states.

The suit highlights Selzer’s reputation as a so-called “gold standard” pollster—an image that the media has long used to lend credibility to her work. Yet, as Trump’s lawyers point out, Selzer’s track record is far from spotless.

“Selzer had prided herself on a mainstream reputation for accuracy despite several far less publicized egregious polling misses in favor of Democrats” and said she “would have the public believe it was merely a coincidence that one of the worst polling misses of her career came just days before the most consequential election in memory, was leaked and happened to go against the Republican candidate.”

“The Harris Poll was no ‘miss’ but rather an attempt to influence the outcome of the 2024 Presidential Election,” the lawsuit states, adding that “defendants and their cohorts in the Democrat Party hoped that the Harris Poll would create a false narrative of inevitability for Harris in the final week of the 2024 Presidential Election.”

“Instead, the November 5 election was a monumental victory for President Trump in both the Electoral College and the Popular Vote, an overwhelming mandate for his America First principles, and the consignment of the radical socialist agenda to the dustbin of history.”

According to the lawsuit, the Democrat Party and its media allies were desperate for an artificial boost ahead of the 2024 election, given Kamala Harris’s undeniable weaknesses as a candidate.

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Biden Appointee Judge Upholds Iowa’s Crackdown on Questionable Registrations to Protect Election Integrity

U.S. District Judge Stephen Locher ruled in favor of Iowa’s initiative to scrutinize voter registrations flagged as potentially non-citizen.

This ruling, delivered Sunday, permits Iowa officials to continue investigating and challenging the validity of ballots cast by individuals on the state’s “questionable registrations” list—a measure aimed at ensuring illegal votes don’t dilute the voice of lawful citizens.

Judge Locher, appointed by Joe Biden, dismissed arguments from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) that the voter registration review threatens newly naturalized citizens’ voting rights, according to AP.

Instead, the judge underscored Iowa’s obligation to preserve the integrity of its electoral process, particularly following a U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing similar voter roll clean-ups in Virginia.

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Iowa Poll Watcher Sounds Alarm on Illegal Aliens Being Allowed to Vote

An Iowa poll watcher took to social media Friday to sound the alarm about illegal aliens being able to vote in her state.

Laynie Marsh volunteered to be a poll watcher in county when she discovered that illegal aliens are in fact able to vote in the upcoming election.

“I feel like this is something I need to share with every US citizen — I signed up to work this November 5th election poll — The reason why I did this was because I wanted to see firsthand for myself if illegal immigrants are actually being allowed to vote. And I’m here to tell you that yes they are,” she said.

“This is what I’ve been instructed. When someone comes in to vote, obviously you ask for their driver’s license. That’s normal, that’s how it should be. You present that, it gets scanned, and then that information instantly goes into the computer, it pops up a screen. If you’re already registered to vote I will instantly see that.”

“You get a ballot and a concealed envelope. Then you’re prompted on where to go to fill your ballot out. After you finish filling the ballot out, it goes into that concealed envelope and it’s handed back to me. Then it is put into the [voting] machine,” she continued.

“Here’s the problem: illegal immigrants are being given driver’s licenses,” she said. “They are being given non-driving licenses. They look exactly like my license, or all of yours. Whatever state they have chosen to reside in, their license looks exactly the same as that state’s license that everyone possesses. There’s no way for me or anyone else working that day to tell if they’re an actual U.S. citizen from looking at that. And they’re being allowed to vote.”

Marsh went on to explain how the illegal aliens are given a provisional ballot that’s separated from normal ballots and vetted by an unknown poll worker using basic information that doesn’t prove citizenship.

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Trans-Identifying 19-Year-Old Arrested After Expressing Desire To Shoot Up Elementary School

Iowa police arrested a trans-identifying 19-year-old on Monday and charged her with a “threat of terrorism” after she revealed in therapy that she wanted to shoot up an elementary school, The Daily Wire has learned.

The Norwalk Police Department announced Monday that it had arrested Margaret Anderson after being made aware last week of a “potential threat” to Oviatt Elementary School, located in Norwalk, Iowa. In a release, the department said that Anderson has been charged with a “Threat of Terrorism” under Iowa Code 708A.5, and had been processed into the Warren County Jail.

Anderson is a 19-year-old female who identifies as a transgender man, Warren County Attorney Doug Eichholz confirmed to The Daily Wire on Tuesday. The police department said on Monday that Margaret also went by Maxwell, raising initial suspicions that gender identity was at play in the case.

Eichholz said that the case arose out of statements that Anderson made to her therapist during the course of her “regular treatment.” The therapist then reported the statements to the Des Moines Police Department, he said, which forwarded the information to the Norwalk Police Department in her hometown.

“And then the investigation took off from there,” he explained.

According to Eichholz, the complaint about Anderson says: “The defendant stated that she had thoughts that she wanted to take a gun to Oviatt Elementary School in Norwalk, at 11 am through the cafeteria, and shoot children.”

The complaint did not contain context as to why Anderson was motivated to shoot children, the Warren County Attorney said. He noted that after Anderson shared these thoughts, she was immediately entered into Iowa Lutheran Hospital in Des Moines, which has a mental health facility attached. She was then arrested on Monday, Eichholz said, released Tuesday morning to house arrest with restrictions including a GPS bracelet, and is currently on pretrial release.

Shawn Holloway, superintendent of Norwalk Community School District, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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Rising cancer rates in Iowa linked to agricultural chemicals like glyphosate, atrazine and chlorpyrifos

Iowa is grappling with a stark and troubling reality: the state has recently been identified as having the fastest-growing cancer rates in the nation. This alarming increase in cancer rates has prompted a closer examination of environmental factors contributing to this troubling trend. A 2024 report by the Iowa Department of Public Health reveals that cancer rates in rural areas of the state, where pesticide use is more intensive, are significantly higher compared to urban regions. The study highlights that communities with heavy agricultural activity have seen a rise in cases of leukemia, lymphoma and breast cancer.

Iowa’s cancerous frontier dominated by glyphosate, atrazine, nitrates, chlorpyrifos

Iowa has seen a dramatic rise in cancer diagnoses, with 486 new cases per 100,000 people in 2024, surpassing the national average of 444 cases per 100,000. The estimated number of new cancer cases this year stands at 21,000, with approximately 6,100 deaths expected. This surge in cancer rates is particularly concerning given that Iowa’s cancer incidence now outpaces other states facing their own unique health challenges, such as industrial pollution, smoking and high obesity rates.

The state, known for its expansive agricultural landscape, relies heavily on pesticides to protect crops and maximize yields. The state’s agriculture sector uses a variety of chemical treatments, including herbicides, insecticides and fungicides. The most commonly used pesticides in Iowa include glyphosate, atrazine and chlorpyrifos.

Glyphosate, a broad-spectrum herbicide, is used extensively in the cultivation of corn and soybeans. Glyphosate disrupts the shikimate pathway of gut microbes and has been linked to an increased risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of cancer that affects the lymphatic system.

Atrazine, another herbicide, is frequently applied to control weeds in cornfields. Atrazine has been associated with endocrine disruption, which may increase the risk of certain cancers. Studies have found atrazine is responsible for alterations in the HPG axis, damaging reproductive function. It also has estrogenic effects, leading to  aromatase activation, including inhibition of PDE4 and altered hormone secretion — precursors to breast cancer.

Chlorpyrifos, an insecticide, is employed to combat pests in a variety of crops. Chlorpyrifos, although banned for residential use, is still permitted in agriculture and has been linked to developmental and cancer risks.

Nitrates, which are key ingredient in fertilizers used across Iowa, are linked to colorectal cancer.

In addition to herbicides, insecticides and fertilizer, radon — a naturally occurring radioactive gas — also poses a significant risk. Radon is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers and is particularly problematic in Iowa, where levels are six times higher than the national average. Radon can seep into homes undetected, further exacerbating health risks for residents.

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Iowa vaping bill draws opponents from retailers, health care groups

An Iowa bill that would add requirements to manufacturers of vaping and e-cigarette products has two surprising allies standing together in opposition: vape shops and health care organizations.

House Bill 682 and its companion legislation, Senate File 2402, would require vaping manufacturers who sell products in the state to include them on a new registry. The registration fee is $100 per product. Retailers could only sell products listed on the registry.

David Scott of Altria, a manufacturer of tobacco and related products, said the bill does not prohibit the sale of any legal product. What the bill does is prevent illegal products from overseas.

“China have over 50% of the (products) that are illegal,” Scott told a House Ways and Means subcommittee this week. “Three out of the five youth brands are illicit but they are still being brought in.”

The Food and Drug Administration created a similar registry on the federal level. In January, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the FDA’s decisions were made arbitrarily and capriciously and that the agency should reconsider its guidelines. Scott said the FDA admits it doesn’t have the resources to monitor the products.

“If you are not on the directory, the FDA has no idea what the ingredients are in your vape,” Scott said. “They have no control of your marketing and we have no idea of the manufacturing process.

Iowa is one of 23 states considering bills that would require a vaping product registry, according to Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association, an organization opposing the bills.

Sarah Linden, owner of Generation V in Council Bluffs and Davenport, told the subcommittee that the bill would put a strain on her business.

“It would eliminate 99% of the vapor products on the market,” Linden said. Retailers said vape users will find other ways to get their product if it is unavailable in their stores.

Retailers have an unlikely ally in health care organizations. The American Cancer Society is listed as “against the bill” in lobbyist declarations. The American Heart Association is undecided. CAFE Iowa Citizens Action Network, an organization that advocates for tobacco control policies to reduce its use, is also against the bill.

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Cops Arrested Him for a Fictitious Traffic Violation Because He Flipped Them Off

On a Friday night in July 2018, Des Moines police officers Ryan Steinkamp and Brian Minnehan saw Domeco Fugenschuh, a 22-year-old black man, driving west on Hickman Road. Steinkamp and Minnehan, both white, were assigned to a “special enforcement team” focused on illegal guns, drugs, and gang activity. They had no reason to believe Fugenschuh was involved with any of that, but they decided to follow him anyway because he “sat up slightly” and “turned his head to stare at the officers” as he passed them.

After the cops followed Fugenschuh for several blocks, he expressed his irritation at the unjustified attention by giving them the finger. Steinkamp and Minnehan did not like that, so they continued following Fugenschuh and pulled him over for an invented traffic violation. During the stop, the officers handcuffed Fugenschuh, roughed him up, searched his car, and arrested him for the alleged traffic infraction. They also charged him with marijuana possession after the car search turned up a bit of pot and a portable phone charger that they mistakenly thought was a digital scale.

When Fugenschuh sued Steinkamp and Minnehan for a litany of constitutional violations, they argued that they were shielded by qualified immunity, which bars federal civil rights claims against government officials unless their alleged misconduct violated “clearly established” law. Last Saturday, U.S. Chief Magistrate Judge Helen C. Adams rejected that defense, ruling that a jury should hear Fugenschuh’s allegations because it might reasonably conclude that Steinkamp and Minnehan ignored constraints that should be familiar to every police officer in the country.

The decision was a small victory for civil liberties, and the abuses that Fugenschuh suffered pale beside the sort of outrageous police conduct that tends to attract national attention. But this run-of-the-mill case nicely illustrates the wide discretion that the Supreme Court has given police officers to harass motorists for no good reason—leeway that cops nevertheless manage to exceed on a regular basis.

The facts of the traffic stop are mostly undisputed, conceded by the officers and/or verified by dash and body camera footage. Steinkamp and Minnehan pulled Fugenschuh over after he stopped at a red light, signaled a right turn, and turned onto 30th Street. When Steinkamp approached Fugenschuh’s car, he initially refused to explain the justification for the stop. Instead he ordered Fugenschuh out of the car and handcuffed him.

After Fugenschuh “asked numerous times why he was stopped,” Steinkamp claimed Fugenschuh had “cut off” a car that was moving north on 30th Street, as evidenced by the fact that the driver had applied his brakes. Fugenschuh disputed that account, which apparently irked Steinkamp, who “proceeded to bend Fugenschuh over the hood of the patrol car,” “pull his handcuffed arms up above his body,” and push his face into the hood of the car.

While frisking Fugenschuh, Steinkamp asked if he had insurance, at which point Fugenschuh began cursing at the cops. “You’re going to jail now,” Steinkamp responded.

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Man Who Destroyed Satanic Shrine In Iowa Capitol Charged With ‘Hate Crime’

Michael Cassidy, a Christian veteran who decapitated a Satanic shrine on display in the Iowa State Capitol building, has been charged with a ‘hate crime’.

Yes, really.

If you object to literal Satanic displays in public buildings you are now hateful.

Back in December, Cassidy, beheaded the caped figure placed in the building by The Satanic Temple, and threw the goat skull that was serving as its head in a bin.

Cassidy was quoted as stating that he took the action to “awaken Christians to the anti-Christian acts promoted by our government.”

Instead of simply charging him with misdemeanor damage to property or vandalism, the Des Moines Register reports that Polk County prosecutors charged the veteran with felony third-degree criminal mischief, arguing that the act was “in violation of individual rights” under Iowa’s hate crime statue.

A statement from the Polk County Attorney’s Office claimed that “Evidence shows the defendant made statements to law enforcement and the public indicating he destroyed the property because of the victim’s religion.”

Cassidy is raising money for his legal defense on his GiveSendGo page, which notes “Out of the millions of Christians in this nation, Cassidy was the first to act in bravery and conviction. He was not willing to see God reviled, especially in a building where lawmakers are supposed to honor Jesus Christ as King and look to his law for wisdom as they legislate with justice and righteousness.”

[ZH:] And of course, leftists have been tearing down statues all over the country with impunity.

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Ron DeSantis Blocks Disabled Parking Spots at Iowa Event When Its -12 Degrees Outside – Then Kicks Out Handicapped Man in Wheelchair Inside

As reported earlier – A disabled man in a wheelchair and a conservative podcaster, Matt Kim, were removed from Ron DeSantis’s campaign event on the eve of the Iowa caucuses. The reasons behind this unexpected removal remain unclear, sparking confusion and frustration among the individuals involved.

The incident, which was caught on video, shows the disabled attendee, who had just entered the venue, being promptly escorted out by security personnel.

When asked for an explanation, the security guard could only mention that he was “following orders,” leaving the disabled man visibly confused by the unexpected turn of events.

The individual was reported to be wearing a hat bearing the name of Brenden Dilley, host of The Dilley Show and a Trump supporter. Dilley took to social media to express his disbelief.

“Ron DeSantis just had a man in a wheelchair thrown out of his event because he was wearing a hat with my name on it, while he was listening to the speeches. Unreal,” Dilley wrote.

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Iowa school shooter at Perry High School confirmed by police to be student Dylan Butler, tied to ‘genderfluid’ and ‘transitioning’ social media posts

The suspect behind the Perry High School shooting has been reportedly identified as senior Dylan Butler, local outlet WHO 13 reports. Police confirmed the shooter’s identity. While several were injured, one boy, a 6th grader, was killed. The shooting took place in the morning prior to the start of the school day during a breakfast program.

The Thursday morning shooting in the Iowa school around 25 miles northwest of Des Moines, Iowa saw three people injured, including school principal Dan Marburger who was rushed into surgery. The only reported death is that of the shooter, who appeared to have died as a result of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Butler allegedly had a TikTok account where he went by the username “tooktoomuch.” The student’s last post was him inside a bathroom stall with a duffel bag on the ground next to him. The still video featured the words “now we wait” with a song called “Stray Bullets” playing. Police are investigating these assets.

The account, which has since been wiped by TikTok, featured an anime girl as the avatar, with the biography only featuring the gay pride flag and identifying as a “dj.”

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