President Trump cries obstruction, but has nominated few ambassadors

President Trump is blasting Congressional Democrats for obstructing his nominations, but his administration has not nominated candidates for the vast majority of positions that require Senate approval. In fact, the administration has only nominated 10 ambassador-level positions, including the cabinet-level position of ambassador to the United Nations, former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley.

Pence backs up Trump’s economic efforts during visit to Iowa

Vice President Mike Pence waves to supporters Saturday as U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, speaks during her annual fundraiser in Boone. Vice President Mike Pence speaks during an annual fundraiser for U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, Saturday, June 3, 2017, in Boone, Iowa.

Trump will deliver, Pence tells Iowa GOP

Vice President Mike Pence on Saturday reassured Iowa conservatives, some of them cool to Donald Trump, that the president will deliver on his campaign promises to boost the economy. Speaking at the annual fundraiser of Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst, Pence told more than 1,400 Iowa Republicans that, thanks to Trump, "American businesses are growing again, they are investing in America again."

The Latest: Pence says Trump will deliver on economic agenda

Gov. Kim Reynolds, left, and Sen. Joni Ernst wave to the crowd as Reynolds takes the stage during the governor's Inaugural Celebration hosted by the Republican Party of Iowa, Friday, June 2, 2017, in Des Moines, Iowa. The unofficial inaugural event raises money for the Republican Party, a strategic move that highlights the GOP's focus on the upcoming midterm election and Reynolds' anticipated gubernatorial run.

Pence rallying GOP base in Iowa, where some cool to Trump

In this July 18, 2016, file photo, Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, speaks during the opening day of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. The Republican base in Iowa is unsettled, with conservatives disappointed by President Donald Trump so far and party leaders saying he's being undermined from within.

Abortion foes: Planned Parenthood failing; tax dollars wasted

Pro-lifers say declining patient numbers, the promotion of abortion at the expense of health care services and the shuttering of several facilities show that Planned Parenthood 's business model is failing and its taxpayer funding could be better spent elsewhere. The nation's largest abortion provider announced last week that it would close four clinics in Iowa, three in New Mexico, two in Colorado and its last remaining facility in Wyoming, despite continuing to receive more than $500 million in annual taxpayer funding.

GOP’s Cotton in Iowa: “I’m ready for that new beginning.”

Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton declared Americans "ready for that new beginning" in Iowa Friday, walking a delicate path by raising his national political profile at a time of turmoil for Donald Trump's White House. The 40-year-old freshman Republican senator sounded national themes as the guest at the Pottawattamie County Republican Party's annual fundraiser in Council Bluffs in conservative western Iowa.

Rising GOP figure Tom Cotton in Iowa as Trump faces turmoil

Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton was meeting Friday with Republican activists in the early presidential testing ground of Iowa, walking a delicate path by raising his national political profile at a time of turmoil for Donald Trump's White House. The 40-yer-old freshman Republican senator was scheduled to headline the Pottawattamie County Republican Party's annual fundraiser in Council Bluffs in conservative western Iowa.

Planned Parenthood to close 4 Iowa clinics after funding cut

What was supposed to be a joyous homecoming for a Colorado man whose 98-year prison term was cut short turned to heartache when he was detained by immigration officials just as he was set to be released. Planned Parenthood says it's closing four of its 12 clinics in Iowa after the Republican-led Legislature cut its state funding.

Iowa voters credit GOP lawmaker for opposing health bill

Rebuffing President Donald Trump and Republican leaders on the GOP health care bill seemed like a major political misstep for Iowa Rep. David Young, who quickly was punished by a political action committee linked to Speaker Paul Ryan. Nearly three weeks later, voters in Young's southwestern Iowa district - Republicans and Democrats - say the GOP congressman made the right move.

Trump Supporters Starting To Lose Faith?

Tom Godat, a union electrician who has always voted for Democrats, cast his ballot for Donald Trump last year as "the lesser of two evils" compared to Hillary Clinton. There's a lot that Godat likes about President Trump, especially his pledge to make the country great again by ignoring lobbyists, challenging both political parties and increasing the number of good-paying jobs.

The Latest: Pence to address influential GOP Jewish group

Vice President Mike Pence's speech to the Republican Jewish Coalition will be the visual evidence of the fruits of years of labor by the politically active group. The annual conference at billionaire donor Sheldon Adelson's casino resort on the Las Vegas Strip has become a de facto campaign stop for Republican presidential candidates over the past few years.

Pence to address politically potent Republican Jewish group

Vice President Mike Pence's speech to the Republican Jewish Coalition will be the visual evidence of the fruits of years of the politically active group's labors. The annual conference at billionaire donor Sheldon Adelson's casino resort on the Las Vegas Strip has become a de facto campaign stop for Republican presidential candidates over the past few years.

Democrats view of Iowa’s collective bargining bill

In response to the passing of Republican-sponsored, SF213 and HF291, bills that gut a Chapter 20 law that has worked well for forty years to the benefit of working men and women in Iowa, Iowa Democratic Party Chair, Derek Eadon issued the following statement: "This assault on worker's rights is an attack on thousands of Iowa families. This bill does nothing to create jobs in Iowa, and it will only make it more difficult for Iowans to get ahead in the future.

‘Don’t repeal Obamacare, improve it’: Republicans face wrath…

Republicans members of Congress, away from Washington for the Presidents Day week, are getting an earful as constituents have come out in force to voice displeasure for some of the party's policy positions, particularly the plan to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa held an event on Tuesday in which constituents voiced concerns about losing coverage if the law better known as Obamacare is repealed.

Court: Cops can’t ask for driver’s license unless suspicion

The Iowa Supreme Court has made it significantly more difficult for police to continue to ask questions or even ask for a driver's license during routine traffic stops if there is no reasonable suspicion a crime has been committed. In a ruling Friday, the majority of a divided 4-3 court overturned a 30-year-old Iowa legal precedent that said officers at least could ask drivers to produce their license during routine stops.

In Iowa, Trump voters cheer changes, dismiss petty fights

In struggling Wapello County, a swath of southeast Iowa Donald Trump was the first Republican to carry in 44 years, his earliest and most devout supporters cheer the new president's quick action on health care, trade, energy and immigration , including accelerated construction of the long-promised Mexican border wall. And yet, even these voters, to whom Trump disproportionately owes his presidency, roll their eyes at his ongoing fixation with his popularity.