How Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie starts his day

Running a city is a gargantuan task, but Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie said he starts his work day in bite-size pieces.

State of play: Cownie tells Axios he begins his mornings with a temperature check from city staff on what he needs to know — whether it's an emergency at City Hall or an issue at a local park.

• "You do have touchstones ... what's going on in the city today?"

Axios asked Des Moines' five-term mayor about his morning routine:

⏰ Wake up: 7am. He looks at his phone first thing "unfortunately or fortunately, depending on how we look at it."

🍌 Breakfast: A big glass of water and a banana. If he goes out, he stops at Zanzibar and picks up coffee or Mexican hot chocolate.

• "That's one of the places I go because it's just a walk down the street."

🗞️ What he's reading: The Huffington Post, the Des Moines Register newspaper and sports news.