When I saw former State Representative Joe Mitchell’s guest column in the Des Moines Register in late June, my first thought was, “What federal government job is he angling for?” His op-ed was an embarrassing piece of hagiography about Donald Trump—or as Mitchell put it, “the most consequential president ever.”

I got my answer on July 23, when the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced that Mitchell will serve as the agency’s regional administrator for the Great Plains, covering Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska.

Mitchell is a rising star again at the age of 28, when many ambitious politicos haven’t begun climbing the ladder. At every stage, he’s had help from the GOP establishment.

His comeback story shows how over-the-top public praise for Trump has become normal and expected behavior for even the most well-connected Republicans.

Matt Chapman is a concerned citizen living in Waukee. -promoted by desmoinesdem

The Waukee school board approved a settlement for almost $1 million to former human resource director Terry Welker on Monday. Two other lawsuits for wrongful termination are pending and one was dismissed in 2014.

The plaintiffs in these lawsuits are former district employees, who allegedly faced retaliation after reporting that Chief Operating Officer Eric Rose had used school property at home, allowed unauthorized individuals to use school facilities, and altered time cards.

While the crimes themselves are petty, the settlement is not and will give ammunition to lawmakers with an appetite to re-write Iowa’s education system.

Iowa House Minority Leader Mark Smith and Iowa Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal both issued statements yesterday challenging a document that listed all 150 members of the Iowa legislature as members of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). The group lobbies for conservative and pro-corporate policies in state legislatures around the country, often submitting model legislation that lawmakers propose on their behalf.

In an open letter to ALEC’s executive director, Smith said none of the 47 Iowa House Democrats have applied to ALEC for membership or paid dues. He questioned “why ALEC would accept payment of dues on behalf of legislators who clearly want no part of your organization,” adding that it “likely” violates Iowa ethics law for “a corporation or other entity” to pay dues to ALEC on behalf of lawmakers. I’ve posted the full text of Smith’s letter below.

Gronstal’s statement, which is at the bottom of this post, describes ALEC’s claims as “deceptive and deceitful,” since none of the 26 Iowa Senate Democrats is a member of the organization.

State Representative Brian Quirk announced today that he is no longer a member of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), which lobbies for a wide range of conservative and corporate-friendly policies in state legislatures. Up to now, Quirk had been the only ALEC member among the 40 Democrats in the Iowa House.

Follow me after the jump for background and details on Quirk’s decision, as well as recent comments about ALEC by former Iowa House Democrat Dolores Mertz.

The Iowa House Ethics Committee unanimously dismissed an ethics complaint against Republican House Majority Leader Linda Upmeyer today.