Wednesday Morning Read - Corbett for Governor, Trump to Cedar Rapids, Guns banned in Courthouses

Corbett for Governor - Cedar Rapids Mayor Ron Corbett formally declared Tuesday his Republican candidacy for governor, saying he is poised to shake up the 2018 race with a 'new game plan' for Iowa.

A former Speaker of the Iowa House and two-term city mayor, Corbett, 56, introduced a 'core four' platform of issues, saying Iowa has receded in K-12 education, has an unfair, uncompetitive and complicated income tax system, has failed for years to address water quality issues and needs more compassion for the well-being of Iowans. Read more about his platform and initial rally here.

Firearms Banned in Courthouses - The Iowa Supreme Court issued an order Monday that bans weapons in all 99 courthouses and justice centers across the state.

The policy prohibits guns from all courtrooms, court-controlled spaces and public areas of the courthouses and other justice centers, Chief Justice Mark Cady said in the order. The order doesn't interfere with the authority of county or city officials to determine employment policies for their employees who may work in offices within the court buildings or affect the authority of law enforcement to carry weapons while performing their duties within those buildings. Read more about what this means for Iowa courts here.

An open letter to President Trump - From The Gazette's Editorial Board it begins: 

Welcome to Cedar Rapids, Mr. President.

The last time you visited us, you were a candidate for the presidency. Now, you're the commander in chief. And you'll no doubt be happy to know interviews by Gazette reporters show some of the local voters who supported you are still in your corner, even after your rocky start. Read the full letter here.

Stanzi is #3 - Ricky Stanzi continues to wait to throw his first pass in a professional football regular-season game, but now he does so in Canada.

Stanzi, whose last game at quarterback for Iowa was the Hawkeyes' Insight Bowl win over Missouri, is the No. 3 quarterback for the Canadian Football League's Calgary Stampeders. Read more about Stanzi's future here.

Quotable - 'The bottom line is the fireworks are the contributing factor that led to the fire."

Fireworks have been blamed as the cause of another house fire in Cedar Rapids. Read more about how this happened and what city officials think needs to be done here.