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Congratulations and thank you

I opened the weekend Times Republican this morning and saw the front-page article about the INA annual awards banquet in Des Moines. Your article moved me to write a note to the editor. I have been wanting to express my appreciation of the TR since last summer when I returned from vacation. I spent days reading nearly every word of the past editions which were delivered to my mail box. The papers provided an excellent way to catch up on all of the local news. On Sunday Feb. 1, I enjoyed sitting at my dining room table watching the snowflakes flutter about as I enjoyed reading my TR. I ...

The hypocrisy of Trump and Republicans

1. Denouncing the killing of protestors in Iran but defending the killing of 3 protestors who were American citizens by ICE. Recently, a woman in Minneapolis, who is disabled with a brain injury and is autistic, accidentally got into a blockade by ICE. She was told conversely by 2 agents to move her car ahead and to back up. Because she didn’t know which way to go, they dragged her out of the car and put her in a detention center, while she continued to ask for her medicine. Eventually she passed out in the cell and had to be taken to the emergency room. And Trump is worried about the ...

Let’s fix the old hospital

Dear Mikayla Foreman and others — you are an angel sitting in God’s arms. You have faced more obstacles and made it this far — don’t give up, you’re almost there! I have mental illness, a disabled nurse at the age of 45. I loved my career, but the emotional toll it took on me almost destroyed my life. The best hospital I worked at was Marshalltown’s old hospital. They didn’t need the union. I was proud to work there — the night shift alongside Mary Bartine — the only supervisor in my life who helped me, with my busy morning chores on the Skilled Unit and night ...

We need a new secretary of agriculture

Just days after Mike Naig announced that he will seek another term as Iowa Sec of Agriculture, he finally realizes that thousands of Iowa farmers and hundreds of thousands of Iowans have lost their health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Where was he during the past six months when we knew the One Big Beautiful Bill was the reason for the ACA subsidy cuts? Why didn’t he speak up then? Why didn’t Congress respond to calls to restore the subsidies? Their response? A government shutdown — the longest in history. Even then, Republicans did nothing to restore ...

53rd District run

On Feb. 23, the Secretary of State’s office is open for it’s elections department to accept petitions to run for office. After never getting out of the primary, I’m still incouraged at the 60 votes I got last time. I’ve been trying to think of subjects that resonate with the voters of the 53rd District and since I’ve been spending some time with my dad in the nursing home, I recently remarked to Shawn, a doctor friend of mine, that practically everybody there is in a wheelchair. He said they do that to reduce liability. I remarked if the doctors were in charge instead of the ...

Joni Ernst stands for life

Of course Senator Ernst stands for life, since she made sure to tell us that we’re all going to die.