Week in Iowa, March 3, 2024: Recap of news from across the state

Iowa GOP celebrates Trump ruling: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled this past week that states do not have the authority to keep candidates off the ballot for violations of the 14th Amendment, overturning a Colorado court decision that sought to disqualify former President Donald Trump from the state's primary ballot over his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. The U.S. Supreme Court found that Congress has sole jurisdiction to enforce the 14th Amendment.

Iowa Republicans applauded the ruling and said that attempts to remove Trump from the ballot were election interference. They said that voters should decide the election, not judges and legal activists.

Reynolds endorses Trump: Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds gave her official show of support to former President Donald Trump last week, even as the two butted heads throughout the Iowa caucus campaign. Nikki Haley dropped out of the race Wednesday, leaving Trump with no major opponents for the GOP nomination.

Biden wins Democrats' mail-in caucus: Iowa Democrats overwhelmingly voted for President Joe Biden in their first-ever mail-in caucus. The results of the contest, which Democrats were forced to change after they were kicked out of the first-in-the-nation spot by the national party, were announced on Super Tuesday. Biden won nearly 90 percent of the vote, while Marianne Williamson, Dean Phillips and "uncommitted" received between 2 percent and 4 percent.

Lawmakers target immigration: Senate and House lawmakers passed bills last week adding restrictions on undocumented immigrants and allowing state officials to arrest immigrants without legal status. Republicans said the bills were necessary to address a vast increase in illegal border crossings under President Joe Biden.

One bill would make a migrant found in Iowa who has previously been deported guilty of a state violation. Violators could be punished by up two two years in prison and could be issued an order to return to their country of origin. Another bill, which the House passed, would create a crime of human smuggling for someone who houses or transports an undocumented migrant for financial gain, with the intent to conceal them from police.

Teacher pay boost passes: Iowa House lawmakers passed a bill to increase the minimum salary for teachers to $50,000 over the next two years, the largest increase in teacher salary in the state's history. The bill, which needs approval by the Senate, comes as Republican leaders remain split on a proposal from Gov. Kim Reynolds to overhaul the structure and funding of the state's area education agencies.

Pregnancy bill sparks IVF debate: A bill to hike penalties for the nonconsensual termination of a pregnancy sparked a debate on its effects on in vitro fertilization at the Capitol this past week. The bill alters existing penalties, and changes the term "human pregnancy" to "unborn person," defined as "from fertilization to live birth."

They said ...

“The decision of who should serve as president belongs to the voters. Not only would this disenfranchise Coloradans, but Iowans as well who believe Donald Trump is the best candidate on the ballot. Frivolous attempts like this to harm the integrity of our elections should be struck down in similar fashion.” -- Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds on Supreme Court ruling that Colorado can’t remove Trump from ballot

“This is the first time that in Iowa, when you work third shift, or when you have small children and you don’t have child care in the evenings … you still got to have your voice heard. People still participated in this process.” -- Iowa Democratic Party chair Rita Hart on caucus results

Odds and ends

State Fair acts: Rock band Greta Van Fleet and country singer Brett Young will join the lineup at the Iowa State Fair this year, the fair announced last week. The artists are the final addition's to the fair's Grandstand lineup. Tickets range from $35 to $60 for the shows, which will be held Aug. 11 and 12.

School gun grants: Iowa House Republicans are advancing a bill that would create a $3 million grant program for schools to pay for guns and training for staff to carry guns at school. Lawmakers have a separate bill that would create a permitting process for staff to carry guns.

Water cooler

Trump leads Biden: Former President Donald Trump held a commanding lead over President Joe Biden in Iowa in a potential 2024 matchup, according to a Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa Poll. The poll found Trump had 48 percent of support among Iowa voters, while Biden had 33 percent.

Fentanyl penalty: Iowa House lawmakers passed a bill that would make someone eligible for a first-degree murder charge for selling or providing someone with fentanyl that leads to their death. The bill passed with bipartisan support, but some Democrats opposed it and said that it could bring severe punishment for someone who unknowingly shares a substance containing fentanyl in a social setting.