On a cement pad on the porch of a building at a little resort at the top of a mountain in the Mara region of northwestern Tanzania, a serious battle was underway: that being one of handmade spinning tops, of course.

It seems like I’ve seen this movie. The President sneaks into a caterer’s cart and onto a plane (Trump actually did this in Turkey when he realized our officials were incapable of keeping him safe.), leaving the other Air Force One as a decoy. James Bond (or as my son would have said, “Bond, savings bond.”) would have been proud.

After the primary in June, I announced my annual 100 Town Hall Tour, the second time I’ve gone around to every county in the state during this campaign, and the ninth time I’ve done so since running for State Auditor.

Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson and President Trump have recently warned us about the threat of communism. We boomers are familiar with the threat of communism. My Selective Service lotto number during the Vietnam War spared me. Other classmates of mine were not so fortunate. The vast majority of the Vets I knew back then vehemently protested sending more of their brothers off to confront the “threat” of communism.

I find it fitting, and more than a little ironic, that the fullness of my experience thus far in Tanzania can be expressed most clearly through the photos I haven’t taken. I find it impossible, for instance, to truly capture the feeling of duality I’ve come to know here. I’ve seen highrises in Arusha, and tiptoed up the unstable steps to the only second floor in all of Nyamuswa village.

I was fortunate to visit George Washington's home, Mt. Vernon, when I was 15 years old. I was walking around on this huge lawn and ran into a classmate from junior high in Brentwood, California. How about that?

The Primary Election is officially over.  The votes have been cast, the post-election Audit has been held, the Supervisors have canvassed the results and declared them official.  We have sent our results to Des Moines and vote credit for those who voted has been applied to their voting record.  So, now what?!  Now what are we busy doing?!  

“Mzungu, Mzungu!” the children excitedly cry out as I bike by. I smile and wave back, saying “Mambo!”—“How are you?” to which they answer “Poa!”—“Great!” The kids, known here as watoto (meaning “little ones”), run along on their little legs as I stop just down the road from their family’s house, at the office of Project Zawadi.
 

It’s the craziest thing to think I was alive for two years while Harry Truman was President. Then came Dwight. D. Eisenhower. I was going to write this column about Eisenhower. Ike, as  President, approved the coup de eta of Mohammed Mossadegh by the CIA and England’s M16 in 1953, basically creating the mess we have today with another unprovoked profit-centered war. 
 

We made it!  We made it through the 2026 Primary Election, the Post-Election Audit, and the Canvass by the Board of Supervisors.  The results are OFFICIAL now.  The work isn’t over yet as we are still wrapping up a lot of the administrative items on our end, but we see the light at the end of the tunnel now!  I thought it might be interesting to share some statistics about the Primary Election.  So, here you go: the 2026 Primary Election by Nu

For the first, and hopefully last, time in my life, I am a millionaire. I never planned for things to be this way (although I’ll let the cat out of the bag a little and say that I didn’t win the lottery or anything), I never really did anything to deserve it (not that most wealthy people do), and in fact, I never wanted this to happen at all (though I wouldn’t go and compliment my humility just yet).

I once met a guy at Walmart who wore a Yankees hat. I was wearing mine and he was from New York. I found mine at Affordables in a box of hats for a dollar. Being an actual New Era On Field cap, it was 40 times cheaper than a new one. For that price I can wear a “damn Yankees” hat.
 

The 2026 Primary has come and gone and while we have lots of election work yet to do in our office, one of the most important things is the post-election audit.  This is something that is completed after each election regardless of the size of the election or the voter turnout.  

The Hampton-Dumont School Board's recent decision to partner with a collection agency over nearly $24,000 in unpaid lunch fees has sparked intense local debate. But let’s be clear: this issue isn't new, and it isn't exclusive to our district. Unpaid meal debt is an evergreen conversation that schools, policymakers, and parents across the country have wrestled with for decades.

On Memorial Day, we must honor those who died serving our country, including the thousands of Iowans who gave their lives in defense of our freedoms and liberty. To serve your nation in uniform is one of the noblest callings, and this sacred day is for remembering those who made the ultimate sacrifice in service of it. In the last year, Iowa has seen more than anyone the cost of that service.