Part 1: How Democrat Jennifer Konfrst plans to win over Iowa Republicans in 2022
State Rep. Jennifer Konfrst of Windsor Heights is the new leader of the Democrats in the Iowa House of Representatives.
Konfrst is taking over for Rep. Todd Prichard of Charles City, who stepped down as House Minority Leader in May. Konfrst was elected to the House in 2018 and served as House Minority Whip during the 2021 Legislative Session. She is the first woman elected to lead the Iowa House Democrats.
Iowa Democrats have an uphill battle to fight in the coming year. After the state went decidedly red in 2020, many are questioning Iowa’s longtime status as a swing state, but Konfrst isn’t ready to concede the state.
Part 2: The challenges facing a high-end cycling business during the pandemic
According to a recent survey from Goldman Sachs, 81% of American businesses are struggling to find qualified candidates, and 48% have had to raise prices to keep up with labor costs, supply problems and inflation.
TJ Tollakson, a former Ironman champion who just retired from that competition, knows the struggles of small business because he’s dealing with his own challenges while operating his high-end cycling business in Des Moines.
Part 3: Inflation should be close to normal by end of 2021, ISU economist says
Consumer prices are up 5% from last year, the highest annual increase since 2008. While some have blamed the rise on all of the federal money being pumped into the economy from COVID-19 stimulus bills, other economists say it’s a change in behavior toward the end of the pandemic that is driving the prices up.
Iowa State University economist John Winters expects inflation rates to be relatively normal by the end of the year.
Insiders Quick 6: Jennifer Konfrst
Jennifer Konfrst returns for the Insiders Quick 6 and says whether she will endorse a candidate from her party for governor next year.
Watch previous episodes of The Insiders here.
