YouTube | Instagram | TikTok | Twitter | Bluesky | Threads | LinkedIn
Happy Wednesday everyone and welcome back back to Cornhole Champions, where we throw bags at the state’s biggest stories. I’m Zachary Oren Smith. And this week, a familiar matchup.
When former US Rep. Dave Loebsack announced he wouldn’t run for reelection, he offered up some interview time to the local-yokels like me. He had served 13 years in Congress and had managed to keep as tight a hold on the seat as his multi-decade predecessor, the late US Rep. Jim Leach.
I asked Loebsack what he thought his legacy would be and you would have thought I called the then-66 year old Congressman a geezer. He told me he was focused on the work he had left to do on Capitol Hill. And particularly on finding a Democrat to fill the seat.
As it turns out, filling this Congressional seat representing the state’s southeastern quadrant has been one of the most exciting—at times psychosis-inducing—stories of my career.
Despite razor-sharp margins, Republican US Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks keeps finding herself past the post. Bleeding Heartland’s Laura Belin has called her Iowa’s “luckiest” politician. In my feature this week, I write about Democrat Christina Bohannan’s third shot at glory and whether Miller-Meeks’ luck will hold out.
But first…
Executive branch-ing out - With Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds stepping aside, Iowa's 2026 governor's race is shaping up like a political variety show. Republicans have Brad Sherman (the election-denying pastor who thinks being gay is satanic), state Rep. Eddie Andrews (a social conservative from a toss-up seat in Des Moines), US Rep. Randy Feenstra, and Attorney General Brenna Bird. Democrats have State Auditor Rob Sand and campaign veteran Julie Stauch.
Eminent domain, imminent drama - Last week, Reynolds vetoed a bill aimed at regulating the use of eminent domain for private carbon sequestration pipeline projects. This sparked a brutal response from her own colleagues, according to Iowa Capital Dispatch. State Rep. Steve Holt of Denison called it failed leadership, while state Rep. Bobby Kaufman (son of Iowa GOP chair Jeff Kaufman) promised to “kill every single piece of legislation that has Reynolds’ name on it” and called her Republican-megadonor Bruce Rastetter’s “errand girl.”
Bird law in this country… - Bird is suing Winneshiek County Sheriff Dan Marks over a Facebook post where he explained to his constituents the difference between a constitutional judicial warrant and an unconstitutional ICE detainer request. For context, here’s his full post that was deleted in reaction to the Bird’s actions, posted to Facebook Feb. 4, 2025:
People of Winneshiek County,
With the recent news, chatter and happenings surrounding federal agents from three letter agencies including ICE, FBI and others, I have fielded a fair number of concerns about their tactics and questions regarding the level of involvement or role the Winneshiek County Sheriff’s Office would play during such a visit or operation. Given what we have seen from these agencies, I share your mistrust and many of your concerns with the legitimacy of how these federal agents conduct business. Hopefully, the following helps clear things up as to my position and the role of my office in these situations.
The elected sheriff (sheriff’s office) serves as the chief law enforcement officer/peace officer of each respective county. You can (and should) always contact us, or the respective sheriff’s office of the county you are in, to help navigate these situations should you find yourself or others in an encounter with any federal agents. We are always willing to assist with verifying credentials and the legitimacy of any paperwork federal agents should have to make certain your rights are not being abused.
Our sole oath and allegiance are to the Constitution and the protection of an individual’s rights. Therefore, if the fed’s actions and paperwork are within constitutional parameters (such as proper and valid judicial warrants/court orders) we will assist if needed or requested to ensure their actions are carried out professionally and in the least intrusive fashion possible. If their actions or paperwork are not within constitutional parameters (such as non-judicially vetted “detainers,” which are very different than warrants and are simply an unconstitutional “request” from ICE or other three letter federal agency to arrest or hold someone), then we will make every effort to block, interfere and interrupt their actions from moving forward.
The only reason detainers are issued is because the federal agency does not have enough information or has not taken the time to obtain a valid judicial warrant. Simply put, they are not sure they are detaining the right person and need more time to figure it out. For the person who could be held erroneously (or determined to be someone other than who ICE is seeking), there is a gross violation of rights at hand. Specifically, these detainers are violations of our 4th Amendment protection against warrantless search, seizure and arrest, and our 6th Amendment right to due process.
You may say, “Those who entered our country illegally are not US citizens and, therefore, are not afforded constitutional rights!” But what if the person being held is a US citizen who happens to have the same name or shares other similarities with the subject of the detainer? Are you willing to sit in jail or a federal prison on an unconstitutional detainer with no right to due process until ICE clears your name? Or, if it were you or a loved one falsely arrested and/or detained, would you feel differently?
My office’s actions and involvement will solely be based on constitutional standards. They will not be based on opinions, politics or emotions.
Bottom line – due to my long-time stance on not recognizing detainers, I have acquired two labels from opposing political parties – both intended to negatively impact my reputation as sheriff. The first is “Sanctuary Sheriff” and the second is “Constitutional Sheriff.” Regardless of labels that others impose on me, I am uninterested in political agendas or propaganda stunts by either side. My job is to be fair, impartial, just and constitutional. Period. That is what I have done and will continue to do.
Thank you for your continued trust and confidence in me and my office to protect and defend your rights and freedoms.
Respectfully,
Sheriff Dan Marx
The irony? Bird’s pursuit could result in defunding a sheriff's department, making Republicans the unlikely champions of “defund the police.” Meanwhile, exactly zero Iowa county sheriffs signed federal 287G immigration agreements, and the Dubuque County Sheriff even warned his supervisors they might become targets for refusing. There are real constitutional concerns here, and that’s not just from the actual sanctuary cities crowd.
And now, why the third time might just be the charm…
Iowa constitutional law professor launches third bid against GOP Congresswoman
Christina Bohannan is taking another shot at unseating embattled US Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, after losing by just 799 votes in 2024.
Iowa law professor Christina Bohannan wants another rematch in 2026. She lost to US Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks in 2024 in a nationally-discussed squeaker that came down to just 799 votes.
“Mariannette Miller-Meeks has had three terms in Congress–three chances to do right by the people of Iowa,” Bohannan said in her campaign announcement. “Instead, she has taken over $4 million from corporate special interests and done nothing but vote their way.”
The decision to run comes seven months after Bohannan’s loss to Miller-Meeks following a district-wide recount. The razor-thin margin marked a dramatic improvement from Bohannan’s 2022 performance, when she lost by more than 20,000 votes.
Iowa’s 1st Congressional District has emerged as a high-stakes battleground, with two of the last three elections decided by margins under 1,000 votes. Miller-Meeks first won the seat in 2020 by just six votes against Rita Hart, currently Iowa Democratic Party Chair. She then expanded her margin to seven percentage points in 2022 before nearly losing in 2024’s nail-biter finish.
The district spans 20 counties across southeastern Iowa, with population centers in Scott and Johnson counties. It also encompasses a large population of rural voters and small towns. This geographic split has created a politically volatile mix that defies easy categorization, despite the district’s R+3 Cook Partisan Voter Index rating.
“This contest begins right where it ended – the biggest toss-up in the country,” Bohannan said in her announcement.
The 2024 results demonstrated remarkable ticket-splitting behavior among voters. While President Donald Trump carried the district by over 35,000 votes in the presidential race, Miller-Meeks won by fewer than 800 votes–a gap that political analysts say illustrates voters’ willingness to separate national politics from local.
Bohannan’s political trajectory shows steady improvement across multiple campaign cycles. The University of Iowa law professor first entered politics by defeating a 20-year incumbent in the state House Democratic primary, then served one term in the state legislature before launching her first congressional bid in 2022.
Her 2024 campaign demonstrated significant organizational growth, outraising Miller-Meeks $6.9 million to $5.4 million.
In her announcement, she criticized Miller-Meeks for supporting “cost-increasing tariffs that will force Iowa families to pay $4,400 more in higher costs per year” and for joining “Elon Musk’s DOGE efforts to cut Social Security, veterans’ healthcare, education, and law enforcement resources.”
Despite her narrow victory, Miller-Meeks enters the 2026 cycle facing several political vulnerabilities. The 69-year-old ophthalmologist and 24-year Army veteran has built a formidable political operation and proven fundraising ability, but recent voting patterns suggest growing unease among constituents.
Her 2024 Republican primary performance showed unexpected weakness, winning just 56% against relatively unknown challenger David Pautsch–a surprisingly modest margin for a two-time incumbent. Miller-Meeks has tried to brand herself as the Trump candidate in each of her elections. But Pautsch called into question her allegiance to Trump. She has since posted several videos of her trying to get face time with Trump.
Miller-Meeks also faces criticism for recent congressional votes, particularly her support for budget reconciliation legislation that would cut approximately $700 billion from Medicaid over 10 years. The Congressional Budget Office projects such cuts would eliminate coverage for 8.6 million Americans, including roughly 67,000 people in Iowa’s 1st District.
The abortion issue continues to dog Miller-Meeks, following Iowa’s implementation of a six-week abortion ban in 2024. Bohannan attacked Miller-Meeks’ co-sponsorship of the “Life at Conception Act” in their previous race, and reproductive rights are likely to remain a central campaign theme.
Question for you
It’s come up in a few conversations this week that no one wants to be a repeat loser. But it did take Miller-Meeks losing congressional races in 2008, 2010, and 2014 to win in 2020.
Is there something you’ve wanted to do but the thought of losing has kept you on the sidelines?
For me, it’s starting my own newsroom. At night sometimes, I like to run through my fantasy draft of Iowa journos I’d want to recruit: Joe Cress as lead photographer, Marissa Payne, Jared Strong as investigative reporter, Sarah Watson as politics reporter… There’s just so much brilliance in this market. But I find the thought of going independent, of trying to pull together a project of that size paralyzing.
Nonetheless, it’s one of those dreams I keep close to my chest many nights.
Write me back with the thing that you’ve wanted to do but haven’t by responding to this email. I might feature your thoughts in the next edition.
Answer from you
Last week, we talked about the comeback story happening in Perry as JBS Foods brings back some of the jobs that Tyson butchered. I asked what you thought would aid towns that haven’t been so lucky:
Sarah from Mason City: “Stop pretending every small town can be saved with the same cookie-cutter playbook. Instead of throwing good money after bad, the state should help people relocate to areas with actual opportunity, tear down the abandoned blocks, and turn the land back into something useful. Not every dot on the map deserves to exist just because it always has.”
ZOS: No town can survive on another’s playbook. I think that’s absolutely true. And I do think relocation funding from the state, incentivizing growth in markets that need it, is a great idea. While I don’t think any “dot” deserves to live, I do think it’s important to say out loud that the people there do. And if that means helping them manage the shrink of their town smartly, I think we owe it to our neighbors. We deserve to live and to live with dignity.
I wrote about this a while back for Iowa Public Radio in case it’s a topic you’re interested in.
Mike from Ottumwa: “Regional cooperation. Communities are all fighting each other for the same resources. We need to collaborate. Share fire departments, libraries, schools - everything. And ban economic development incentives that just move jobs from one Iowa town to another. If we're going to compete, let's compete with other states, not cannibalize ourselves.”
ZOS: I think thinking like a region is important. I do worry about he ways that county seats suck up service availability. Why should there be reliable fire service for a town, but not a township? But its expensive and as more people leave our small towns, cooperation will be increasingly important… So to will be taxing the rich to pay services that support the residents who create their wealth.
To all of you, thanks for writing in.
— Before you go —
Support this work by doing the following:
Sign up for Iowa Starting Line's flagship newsletter
Cornhole Champions is a weekly podcast powered by Iowa Starting Line with music by Avery Mossman and show art by Desirée Tapia. We are a proud member of the Iowa Writers Collaborative.
Your friendly neighborhood reporter,
Zachary Oren Smith
Political correspondent
Iowa Starting Line
P.S., If you are a diner owner reading this, I’ll still happily accept your biscuits and gravy. But in your heart-of-hearts, you know I’m right about the McGriddle.
Share this post