On Wednesday, Gov. Kim Reynolds threatened Winneshiek County with the possible loss of all state funding after the county’s sheriff publicly restated his “long-time stance on not recognizing detainers” issued by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). In a post on Tuesday on the department’s Facebook page, Winneshiek County Sheriff Dan Marx explained he and his […]
Paul Brennan
Posted inEastern Iowa
Oliver Weilein wins almost 70% of the vote in Iowa City’s District C primary
Oliver Weilein won a decisive victory in Tuesday’s primary election for the open Iowa City Council seat in District C. According to the results published by the Johnson County Auditor’s Office, Weilein received 641 votes, which represents 69 percent of the votes cast in District C. Weilein will face second-place finisher Ross Nusser in the […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Locals form spontaneous march protesting Trump and Reynolds policies during ‘A Day Without Immigrants’
Businesses closed across the country on Monday as people participated in a Day Without Immigrants to protest the hostile actions and rhetoric from the Trump administration targeting immigrants and their communities. In Iowa, a group of Latino activists organized a Day Without Latinos as a way to support all immigrants on the day of protest. “In […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Peak Iowa: Getting his Phill of freedom
In the summer of 1820, as he led an army expedition across the territory that became Iowa, Capt. Stephen Kearney spotted “a large drove of Buffaloe … probably 5 thousand.” Of course, the animals weren’t buffalo. The big, shaggy beasts were bison. It doesn’t feel quite so pedantic to make that distinction now that Iowans […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Caitlin Clark will play on the Carver court again for an Indiana Fever preseason game in May
The Indiana Fever announced on Thursday the team will play a preseason game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Caitlin Clark and her teammates will face the Brazilian National Team in the game schedule for May 4. “We couldn’t be more excited to play at Carver-Hawkeye Arena and we know Iowa fans will deliver an unforgettable homecoming for […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Woman faces hate crime charges in vandalism spree that defaced two Muscatine restaurants with swastikas
The Muscatine Police Department (MPD) has arrested a person for the acts of vandalism last weekend that included spraypainting swastikas on Guadalajara Mexican Restaurant and Jibaro, a restaurant specializing in authentic Puerto Rican cuisine. In addition to swastikas, Jibaro was also defaced with the spraypainted message, “We don’t want you here.” In its statement on […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Two candidates, two different approaches to Iowa City issues featured at Monday’s forum
The withdrawal of Sharon DeGraw from the race for Iowa City Council last week leaves two active candidates in the primary on Feb. 4, and then again in the special election to fill the District C seat on March 4. (Early voting was already underway when DeGraw withdrew, so the primary will be held even […]
Posted inCommunity/News
RAGBRAI riders will follow a 400-mile path across northern Iowa this summer
RAGBRAI LII will take cyclists across northern Iowa in July, from southeastern Sioux County to the banks of the Mississippi in Clayton County. This year’s route, and the overnight town riders will be stopping in, was announced at the RAGBRAI Route Announcement Party in Waukee on Saturday. “This will be our second shortest route and […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Vandals deface two Muscatine restaurants with swastikas; owners stand firm: ‘We do not know fear’
Buildings in Muscatine were vandalized on Sunday, with swastikas spray-painted onto their exterior walls, according to the Muscatine Police Department (MPD). Two restaurants — Jibaro, which specializes in authentic Puerto Rican cuisine, and Guadalajara Mexican Restaurant — were targeted by the vandals. In addition to defacing both buildings with swastikas, the vandals also wrote “We […]
Posted inEastern Iowa
Sharon DeGraw withdraws from Iowa City special election, leaving two candidates for council
Sharon DeGraw announced on Friday afternoon that she was dropping out of the race for the open Iowa City Council seat in District C. DeGraw attributed her decision to “a personal matter,” and said she was “requesting privacy from the press and the public.” DeGraw’s unexpected last-minute entry in the race brought the number of […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Wahlburgers loses its biggest franchisee as Hy-Vee quits the celebrity burger business
Hy-Vee announced this week that it is getting rid of all the Wahlburgers still operating in its stores. Hy-Vee Market Grilles will take the place of the celebrity-adjascent burger joints. Interestingly, Hy-Vee’s news release about the change never mentions Wahlburgers. The West Des Moines-based supermarket chain simply said it will “transition all its in-store restaurant […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Peak Iowa: Poet John Berryman’s brief, troubled time in Iowa City
Content warning: Suicide The poet John Berryman’s chance to have a quiet, uneventful life ended early one morning in 1926 when he was 11. It ended when his father walked into the backyard with a gun and committed suicide. John was in his bedroom when it happened. The bedroom’s windows faced the backyard. It wasn’t […]
