Todd Dorman

Cedar Rapids

Columnist at The Gazette (Cedar Rapids, IA)

Columnist for @gazettedotcom

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Articles

Opinion: Iowa's wetlands are at risk

1 week ago | thegazette.com | Todd Dorman

The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. In 2023, when the U.S. Supreme Court greatly curtailed the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to protect the Waters of the U.S., Iowa Republicans couldn’t have been more pleased with its decision in Sackett v. EPA.
Opinion: Gov. Reynolds remains silent as DOGE cuts medical research

1 week ago | thegazette.com | Todd Dorman

The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. In January, Gov. Kim Reynolds pledged $1 million to fund a team of epidemiologists who would work to understand Iowa’s growing cancer rate. “Every case of cancer is a tragedy,” Reynolds said. “And I’m concerned by the data showing that these tragedies disproportionately affect Iowans.
Opinion: A powerful executive now wants executive privilege

2 weeks ago | thegazette.com | Todd Dorman

The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. Gov. Kim Reynolds wants executive privilege, so she doesn’t have to release some documents to the media. As someone who scribbles for a living, I think this is a really bad idea. But you don’t have to be a journalist to see how another layer of secrecy could be blatantly misused by the current governor or future governors. At a congressional hearing in February, Gov.
Opinion: Trump is snuffing out the United States’ beacon to the world

3 weeks ago | thegazette.com | Todd Dorman

The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. It’s true a lot of people who voted for Donald Trump wanted to deport undocumented immigrants. And a lot is nearly 90%, according to exit polling. But did voters want the United States to become a very different country to make deportations happen?
Opinion: The forecast calls for Hurricane Elon to keep spinning

3 weeks ago | thegazette.com | Todd Dorman

The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. Most presidents faced with a natural disaster try to make the situation better. They declare presidential disasters in the stricken area and send federal help. As with so many things. President Donald Trump is different. Trump has created his very own disaster. Hurricane Elon is a ferocious storm. Its maximum sustained winds can’t be measured. Its warning cone covers the entire United States.
Opinion: We may be getting the Bird from Iowa Republicans

4 weeks ago | thegazette.com | Todd Dorman

The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. Gov. Kim Reynolds’ announcement that she won’t run again was a surprise. It would be just as surprising if Republican Attorney General Brenna Bird doesn’t run for governor. "In the weeks ahead, Bob and I will pray and consider what this decision means for our future," Bird said in a statement after Reynolds’ announcement. "I appreciate the calls of encouragement I've already received.
Opinion: Surprise! Gov. Reynolds isn’t running for re-election

1 month ago | thegazette.com | Todd Dorman

The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. So, next year Iowa will elect a new governor. This was unexpected. Gov. Kim Reynolds announced in a video this morning that she will not seek a third elected term in 2026. Recently, Reynolds seemed to hint she would run. Where to begin. You might have noticed I wrote about her a lot. Reynolds’ biggest accomplishment is putting her signature on billions of dollars in income tax cuts.
Opinion: Kim Reynolds is all in for Trump and DOGE

1 month ago | thegazette.com | Todd Dorman

The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. Gov. Kim Reynolds likes to say Iowa was DOGE before DOGE was a thing. Maybe it will become our new state slogan. DOGE stands for the federal Department of Government Efficiency, headed by billionaire Elon Musk. Musk and minions have run roughshod over federal agencies. Chopping, firing and eliminating.
Opinion: Iowa is no Wisconsin, but our courts are hardly politics free

1 month ago | thegazette.com | Todd Dorman

The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. So, there was quite a shindig up in America’s Dairyland this past week. How many fried curds, brats and Spotted Cows were consumed? I wouldn’t hazard a guess. Democrats, after last fall’s painful defeats, were elated by the outcome of a race to fill a Wisconsin Supreme Court seat.
Overcoming biases

1 month ago | thegazette.com | Todd Dorman

The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced. A state law signed Feb. 28, 2025, removes gender identity as a protected status from the Iowa Civil Rights Act, leaving transgender people vulnerable to discrimination. The rights of transgender people – those who present gender characteristics that differ from what has historically been expected of someone based on their biological sex traits – are under political attack across the United States.