ITR Live is back following the Thanksgiving holiday to discuss the final disposition of the office apple pie.  John has completed part of his collection with another century-old presidential campaign poster.  

The crew spends time exploring the question if whether or not Iowa's economy is in a recession, and if so, why?  What are the strengths and challenges of Iowa's economy, and what might that hold for the future of tax reform initiatives?

You can read more from John Hendrickson at the ITR Foundation website on the question "Is Iowa Recession Ready?"

ITR Live is ready for a big Thanksgiving and we have a free-wheeling, action-packed episode to help you get ready too.  The American Farm Bureau Federation released their annual Thanksgiving Dinner Cost Survey, which shows a nearly 20% increase from last year in the cost of your thanksgiving dinner. To make ends meet, maybe it's time for American families to finally get rid of green bean casserole and cranberries.

There are still a few remaining recounts happening in Iowa legislative races, but that isn't slowing down preparations for the 2023 Iowa legislative session. Committee Chairs and Vice Chairs have been announced, and what might that mean for conservative reforms next year and beyond?

ITR Live is back with a free-wheeling, fun-filled episode of tax policy, politics and World Cup Soccer.  John has has the first-ever ITR Live book review, "Taxes Have Consequences" by Art Laffer, Brian Domitrovic, and Jeanne Cairns Sinquefield. What historical lessons can be learned from a look at the last 100 years of tax policy in America?

Congratulations are in order to Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds on her new role as Chair of the Republican Governor's Association. Governor Reynolds will have an even larger platform to showcase the success of Iowa's conservative reforms on the national stage.  

Sarah and John review a recent ITR Foundation article explaining who is not to blame for your rapidly-rising property tax bill. It's not the county assessor, and it's not the arbitrary level of your tax levy rate. The among that you pay in taxes is driven by one thing: locally elected officials and the budgets that they set. 

Following last week’s elections, ITR Live continues to look at what we have learned from the results. Among the many questions that are being posed around the country, we look at where the conservative movement should go from here. Fiscal conservatism clearly works in Iowa and in several other states across the country, and conservative governors in these states were handed convincing re-election victories. Should conservatively run states like Iowa continue on the same path, or should they change their governing philosophies?

Voters in Iowa made their voices hear clearly and decisively. Iowans want to continue on the path of fiscal restraint, lower taxes, and a defense of traditional cultural values. Iowa voters knew exactly what they were voting for when they re-elected Governor Kim Reynolds and expanded the majorities led by Senate Leader Jack Whitver and House Speaker Pat Grassley. This episode responds to a recently Des Moines Register editorial that argues the opposite – that these leaders should change course and no longer advance the conservative, pro-growth policies on which they recently won.

And what about the pending announcement from former President Donald Trump of his plan to seek re-election? Is this a good thing and is the timing right?

How can Iowa count votes so quickly and accurately, but in other states it takes weeks?  ITR takes one more look at election 2022, what is left to be decided in Iowa and across the country.

The ITR Foundation Poll had the most consistent and most accurate data in the 2022 Election. In five of our polls over the course of the last year, we knew what was coming. In every race we tested, we nailed it.

Governor Reynolds’ 19-point margin of victory was nearly identical to what was measured in the final October ITR Foundation Poll.  

Based on our polling data, we knew that Senator Grassley’s re-election was never in doubt.  The average margin in our three polls of this matchup (11.3) was less than one point different from Grassley’s final margin of victory (12.1).

When other polls tried to show Attorney General Tom Miller winning in a blowout, we had it right all along. In February, the ITR Foundation Poll was the first to show Brenna Bird with a lead over Attorney General Tom Miller. In every iteration of our poll, we had this as a very close race.

What time did you go to bed on election night?  The ITR Live crew stayed up way past their bedtimes to watch the election results roll in. On little sleep, Chris, Victoria and John get together to discuss what have we learned so far from the results of Election 2022 in Iowa.  Who won, who lost, and what is still left to be decided. Did anyone's crazy predictions come to pass?  

While the national results were not what many of us expected, the election here in Iowa was a different story. Today's episode of ITR Live takes a look at what happened and attempts to draw some early conclusions about what the election results might mean for the future of our state and our country.

Join ITR Live host Chris Hagenow, John Hendrickson and Victoria Sinclair for a breakdown of Election 2022, specifically what to expect in Iowa’s state legislative races. What are the issues that are behind these campaigns and do they have the right strategy?  Race by race we take a look at what to expect this coming Tuesday night, including each guest bring one big prediction.

ITR Live also has it's first regular segment where we find out what package John received today. It's the new unwrapping/unboxing show that you won't want to miss.  

The most recent Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation Poll, conducted by Cygnal, shows support for conservative candidates and incumbents remains strong, while the economy continues to be top of mind for Iowa voters. Listen to Chris Hagenow, Victoria Sinclair and John Hendrickson discuss the results.

As election day draws near, the political environment for Republicans in Iowa remains strong. In every iteration of the ITR Foundation Poll this year, both Governor Kim Reynolds (+19) and Senator Chuck Grassley (+11) have held double-digit leads over their Democrat opponents. The race for Iowa Attorney General remains a toss-up. The last three ITR Foundation polls have indicated a statistical dead heat between Democrat incumbent Tom Miller and Republican challenger Brenna Bird.

When asked which issue was most important in deciding who to vote for,  more Iowans (32.3%) chose inflation and the cost of living as their top priority than any other policy matter.

Read the full ITR Foundation Poll results here: https://taxrelief.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/ITR-Foundation-Poll-October-31-2022.pdf

The ITR Live Shufflin' crew of Chris Hagenow and Alan Ostergren are in studio to talk about important, timely topics ranging from the 1985 Chicago Bears to Iowa's place on the national stage. What do conservative leaders in other states think of Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and the conservative victories she has secured for the people of our great state?  Why are they so interested to find out what's going on?  

Alan also brings an update on his work at Kirkwood Institute. Did you know that the United States Constitution applies to the City of Cedar Rapids?   

Find out more about the Kirkwood Institute: https://www.kirkwoodinstitute.org/

Special Announcement: On another action-packed episode of ITR Live, we have a special breaking news announcement from Chris Hagenow that election 2022 watchers won't want to miss. John Hendrickson also has exclusive breaking news from his homeland of Minnesota.

The gang discuss a recent article from Bloomberg which posits "GOP Poised to Cement Grip on Iowa, Ending Its Swing-State Status".  While the headline is exciting for the team in red, Chris argues that the grip has already been cemented, and what's happening in this election is just the new normal.

The Tax Foundation has released it's 2023 State Business Tax Climate Index.  As Iowa begins to phase in its series of recently enacted tax cuts, we can see how much tax reform was truly needed in Iowa, and John again has the inside scoop on how strong Iowa will compare once we are done.