Iowa
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10:46 a.m.
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Advocates for a public health insurance option available to all Americans have been peppering U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley with comments at his public events for months. Sometimes he deals with the questions well, but for a guy like Grassley who is known for his verbal shots from the hip, a slip-up was inevitable. Last week in [...]...
Iowa Independent - 10:13 a.m.
His past donations to Democratic candidates were based on friendships, not on politics, GOP gubernatorial hopeful Christian Fong said in an e-mail to the Iowa Independent. Since entering the race for governor last week, Fong has faced repeated questions surrounding campaign contributions to Democratic state Reps. Tyler Olson and Elesha Gayman in the months leading up [...]...
Iowa Independent - 8:48 a.m.
The Iowa Attorney General's Office has advised the Iowa Department of Public Health that a married lesbian who gives birth cannot list her spouse on the child's birth certificate, according to Michael Gartner's must-read scathing commentary in this week's Cityview. Excerpt: [Attorney General Tom] Miller's lawyers based their advice on the fact that the decision made no direct reference to the ...
Bleeding Heartland - Sun 9:40 a.m. - 6 clicks 
Happy Independence Day to the Bleeding Heartland community! I'm hoping for dry weather today after rain soaked parade-goers in West Des Moines last night. How are you celebrating the holiday? Charles Lemos listens to the Broadway musical 1776 every year on the 4th of July. Sounds like a good tradition. Over at Slate, Troy Patterson made the case against fireworks . I enjoy big fireworks dis...
Bleeding Heartland - Sat 7:42 a.m.
The smoking rate among Iowans has delcined from 19% in 2007 to 14% in 2008. From Bleeding Heartland ... ...it's been a full year since the Iowa Smokefree Air Act went into effect. The public smoking ban was one of the most controversial bills considered during the 2008 legislative session, and advocates praised the law's success at a press conference this week. According to a recent Iowa De...
Century of the Common Iowan - Fri 11:22 a.m. - 5 clicks
An Iowa man, whose only previous encounter with the law was a 2006 operating-while-intoxicated conviction, was sentenced to the maximum allowed by state law for failing to disclose to a one-time intimate partner that he was HIV-positive. The case, which has not resulted in the one-time partner actually contracting HIV, has been used as evidence by some who say it's time that state criminal transmi...
Iowa Independent - Fri 10:27 a.m. - 6 clicks
A friend sent me an e-mail she received from the Iowa Farm Bureau. Excerpt: Mary Kay Thatcher, AFBF director of public policy, tells Agriculture Online that Farm Bureau doesn't anticipate the massive climate change bill passed by the House last week to pass the Senate this year. And the New York Times reported Tuesday that opposition from Farm Bureau and other agricultural groups threatens to k...
Bleeding Heartland - Fri 10:27 a.m. - 5 clicks
Iowa communities of all sizes will hold public celebrations of Independence Day this weekend. Most of the parades take place on July 4, but a few cities, such as West Des Moines, schedule a parade for the evening of July 3. As I wrote here a year ago , I encourage Bleeding Heartland readers to volunteer with your local Democrats on this holiday. Parades are a fun way to spend an hour or two with ...
Bleeding Heartland - Fri 8:08 a.m. - 8 clicks
I mentioned in this post that it's been a full year since the Iowa Smokefree Air Act went into effect. The public smoking ban was one of the most controversial bills considered during the 2008 legislative session, and advocates praised the law's success at a press conference this week. According to a recent Iowa Department of Public Health survey, 14 percent of Iowans smoke. In 2007, IDPH re...
Bleeding Heartland - Fri 12:41 a.m. - 8 clicks
Republicans are not being honest with Iowans about the state of the budget and have chosen to play politics instead of working to overcome challenging economic realities, Gov. Chet Culver said Thursday....
Iowa Independent - Thu 5:21 p.m. - 3 clicks
Democrats and Republicans in the state capitol have drawn a line in the sand this summer over whether Gov. Chet Culver should call a special session of the legislature to balance Iowa’s budget, and the debate shows no signs of quieting down. The Iowa Constitution requires the state to balance its budget at the end of [...]...
Iowa Independent - Thu 12:02 p.m. - 9 clicks
Senator Chuck Grassley has been holding town-hall meetings around the state this week, and the Iowa Democratic Party highlighted a fun clip from his June 30 meeting in Waukon. A constituent wanted to know why his health insurance policy was so much more expensive than Grassley's, despite having less generous coverage. The senator advised the questioner to "go work for John Deere" if he wante...
Bleeding Heartland - Thu 12:01 p.m. - 7 clicks
An Iowa sisterhood that developed out of shared grief has no interest in increasing its numbers. In fact, the five founding Iowa women are hard at work to decrease their prospective membership pool. Tiffan Yamen, Kate Safris, Janet Petersen, Jan Caruthers and Kerry Biondi-Morlan discovered one another in 2003 after each had experienced the death of an infant daughter, and their shared experiences...
Iowa Independent - Thu 9:42 a.m. - 10 clicks
Iowa's 2009 fiscal year ended on June 30, and if the Legislative Service Agency's projections are correct , net revenues will fall well short of what legislators anticipated when they approved the 2009 budget. The Legislative Service Agency puts the possible shortfall at $161 million , whereas Iowa's budget director Dick Oshlo says things don't look that bad: Total gross receipts for FY 2009...
Bleeding Heartland - Thu 9:41 a.m. - 12 clicks
Bob Krause, who is running for U.S. Senate next year against five-term incumbent Chuck Grassley, was in the news last week with some sensible comments about health care reform. He encouraged Grassley to demand higher reimbursement rates for Iowa health care providers in exchange for dropping his opposition to a public option in the Senate bill: Iowa ranks 49th in Medicare reimbursement, Krause...
Bleeding Heartland - Wed 8:01 p.m. - 15 clicks
Iowa could end the 2009 fiscal year with $161 million less in net revenues than expected, according to estimates by the Legislative Services Agency. That could force Gov. Chet Culver to call a special session to balance the budget....
Iowa Independent - Wed 2:01 p.m. - 5 clicks
In announcing his candidacy for governor, 32-year-old Christian Fong has managed to shake up an already contentious Republican battle to unseat Gov. Chet Culver. With no formal political experience, Fong’s positions on the issues are still a mystery to most voters. Unlike his GOP competition, who have endured numerous campaigns and been thoroughly vetted, Fong is [...]...
Iowa Independent - Wed 9:52 a.m. - 11 clicks
In a previous report, The Iowa Independent detailed the criminal case of a Bremer County man who was charged and convicted to 25 years in prison under the state's criminal HIV transmission law. Although this case was by no means the first to be prosecuted under provisions of the statute some consider archaic, its details have provided a springboard for Iowa's launch into a larger national debate r...
Iowa Independent - Wed 8:48 a.m. - 4 clicks
July 1, 2009 is a big day: the 4,800 residents of Windsor Heights are no longer divided by three zip codes. It couldn't have happened without Congressman Leonard Boswell's legislative efforts last year , and that probably wouldn't have happened without Ed Fallon's primary challenge . (Note: WHO's Dave Price attended last night's event celebrating our new zip code .) Don't feel left out if yo...
Bleeding Heartland - Wed 7:13 a.m. - 8 clicks
UPDATE: The Des Moines Register reports that Franken will headline Senator Tom Harkin's steak fry on September 13. The 2008 elections finally ended today. Norm Coleman conceded the U.S. race in Minnesota following a unanimous state Supreme Court ruling in Al Franken's favor. Talking Points Memo posted their Top 10 moments from the mostly infuriating, sometimes comical Franken-Coleman saga ....
Bleeding Heartland - Tue 5:42 p.m. - 5 clicks
June 29 was exactly 120 days since the federal government released highway funds to the states as part of the economic stimulus bill (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act). Smart Growth America marked the occasion by releasing a review on how wisely states are spending the transportation money . The 120-day mark is significant because it is the point by which states and territories are requ...
Bleeding Heartland - Tue 1:17 a.m. - 9 clicks
The I-JOBS Board met in Cedar Rapids today and awarded money for the first time, approving eight flood recovery projects worth $45.5 million. All of the projects are in Linn County except for $500,000 awarded to help the city of Elkader build a new fire station. More details are in this press release from the governor's office , which I have posted after the jump. Attacking the I-JOBS bonding pr...
Bleeding Heartland - Mon 6:04 p.m. - 8 clicks
The good news is, the Iowa Democratic Party's Hall of Fame event on Saturday night raised close to $200,000 , twice as much as the Republican Party of Iowa brought in with last Thursday's "Night of the Rising Stars." Even better, Democrats paid reasonable prices (starting at $35, I believe) for heavy hors d'oevres and a ticket to hear Tom Vilsack, Christie Vilsack and Sally Pederson. In contras...
Bleeding Heartland - Jun 29 - 7 clicks
From HealthReform.Gov ... THE HEALTH CARE STATUS QUO: Why Iowa Needs Health Reform Congress and the President are working to enact health care reform legislation that protects what works about health care and fixes what is broken. Iowans know that inaction is not an option. Sky-rocketing health care costs are hurting families, forcing businesses to cut or drop health benefits, and strainin...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 29 - 7 clicks
Today, the right-leaning news aggregator The Bean Walker ran a headline: THE CAMPAIGN KICKS OFF TODAY. The link and reference refer to a GOP fundraiser in Sac County this morning that brought together four likely candidates for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. Those men are Rep. (and former Speaker of the House) Chris Rants of Sioux City; 2006 Lt. Governor candidate Bob Vander Plaats ...
Bleeding Heartland - Jun 29 - 6 clicks
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius issued reports on Friday detailing the problems with the "health care status quo" across the country. You can find the reports at HealthReform.gov . The report for Iowa is here , and I've also posted it after the jump. Among other things, it shows the percent increase in family health insurance premiums since 2000 and the percentage of uninsu...
Bleeding Heartland - Jun 29 - 6 clicks
The Waxman-Markey American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) barely passed the U.S. House of Representatives on a 219-212 vote today. As you can see from the roll call , Iowa Democrats Bruce Braley (IA-01), Dave Loebsack (IA-02) and Leonard Boswell (IA-03) voted for the bill, while Republicans Tom Latham (IA-04) and Steve King (IA-05) voted against. King claimed ACES "could be the most col...
Bleeding Heartland - Jun 26 - 5 clicks
Here's a quote from Sen. Jay Rockerfeller (D-WV) about bipartisanship and health care reform... "But do you want to be non-partisan and get nothing? Or do you want to be partisan and end up with a good health care plan? That is the choice." -- Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-WV), quoted in the Charleston Gazette , expecting little Republican support in passing health care reform. Sen. Grassley, howev...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 26 - 5 clicks
From University of Iowa Student President and current Sierra Club staffer Mark Kresowik: Friends, tomorrow a remarkable bill will be voted on in the U.S. House of Representatives. It's called the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES), was drafted by Congressmen Waxman and Markey, with some excellent work by our own Congressman Braley, and would be the first time our U.S. Congress made ...
Popular Progressive - Jun 25 - 6 clicks
Sitting here in Iowa, even without knowing what is the unvarnished truth concerning the outcome of the Iranian presidential election, it is still hard not to speak about the obvious horrors going on within the borders of Iran. There are some points of clarity that can be seen even half a world away: - Brave people of conviction are marching by the thousands in Tehran, other Iranian cities, and in...
Popular Progressive - Jun 22 - 4 clicks
The weather here in Iowa is atrocious. What’ new? It’s sweltering here with humidity through the roof. To make matters so much worse, the monitor went out on the computer. So I’m hooked up to a 14 inch one, having to reconfigure everything, and most of it won’t work right. My reader now doesn’t allow me to [...] ...
A Feather Adrift - Jun 22 - 5 clicks
The Des Moines Register wrote this editorial this morning about the merits of a public option. So how do you decide whether a public option for health insurance is a good idea? Ask people who already have it. And you won't have any trouble finding them. About one-third of Americans - nearly 100 million people - already use Medicare and Medicaid, which together cover seniors, the disabled and ...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 21 - 6 clicks
Yesterday, State Rep. Christopher Rants (R-Sioux City) posted on Twitter that he plans to file exploratory committee papers so he can being raising money and officially campaign for the 2010 race for governor. Here's more from the Des Moines Register ... Rants, who has been meeting with GOP activists for months about a possible campaign, said he had met his early target for fundraising pledge...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 20 - 3 clicks
Sen. Grassley appeared on MSNBC today to discuss economic regulation where he said greed is human nature . And when asked if the banks are in any position to protest if they're not going to make as much money, Grassley comes back with this: Greed is human nature. We shouldn't blame greed any more than you'd blame gravity when a plane has an accident and goes down. I'm sorry Senator, but I th...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 19 - 3 clicks
Howard Dean has a petition online where you can send a letter to your Senators telling them to support a public option in health care reform. Sen. Grassley needs to hear from you. ...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 19 - 7 clicks
Image via Wikipedia Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty will probably be a frequent visitor in Iowa over the next couple years. From Political Wire ... Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R), who has decided against running for a third term in 2010, "will spend the next two years traveling the country to see if he can build enough support to run for president in 2012," his associates ...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 16 - 7 clicks
The Des Moines Register published this story about the poor air quality in the state, saying that pollutant level are nearing federal limits, which would require the state to mandate costly improvements from bussinesses. The air across Iowa is so polluted that the state is perilously close to violating new federal limits aimed at protecting human health. Yet Iowans have no way of knowing what ch...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 15 - 5 clicks
From Rebuild Iowa Office RIO : Governor Chet Culver, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA), and Congressman Dave Loebsack (IA-2) yesterday announced that Iowa will receive $516.7 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for disaster recovery. This brings Iowa’s funding from HUD’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program to nearly $800 million to date. The f...
Popular Progressive - Jun 10 - 3 clicks
Given that the Iowa City Consolidated School District board of directors have elected to close Roosevelt school, here is a suggestion. Reopen it as an alternative learning center for those kids who are behind the learning curve . Educational research shows that kids who are behind by the third grade seldom catch up. If the children in the primary grades in the ICCSD who are falling behind had a...
Popular Progressive - Jun 10 - 5 clicks
Dear Senator Grassley: My monthly health insurance premiums are killing me, literally. I wish I was speaking hyperbolically. And no, I’m not a hypochondriac: Who could afford to these days with skyrocketing health care and insurance costs, especially in the midst of an economic crisis? One of my biggest fears, other than Congress sabotaging a golden opportunity to reform health care (If only ...
Political Fallout - Jun 9 - 5 clicks
From Stateside Dispatch... With Iowa lawmakers facing not only fiscal problems similar to many states, but the need to pass flood and tornado recovery bills, lawmakers met both challenges by the end of the session. However, the rest of the agenda for progressives saw a mix of wins and losses, with most high profile reforms falling short, but many good progressive policies becoming law. And, th...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 9 - 7 clicks
The upcoming Iowa Arts Festival in Iowa City reminds me that during the Great Depression, artists were brought together to produce some of the greatest art of this or any century through the Works Projects Administration (WPA). Grant Woods' murals in the Iowa State University Parks Library stands magnificently, as do Edgar Britton's in Waterloo's public library. As I learn more of schools and un...
Popular Progressive - Jun 8 - 2 clicks
Kay Henderson from Radio Iowa is reporting that Jackie Norris has been replaced as Michelle Obama's Chief of Staff by one of the First Lady's long-time friends. According to news release issued late today by the White House , Jackie Norris will no longer work for the first lady, but instead will serve as senior advisor to the Corporation for National and Community Service. Norris met the Obamas...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 8 - 4 clicks
Rep. Christopher Rants (R-Sioux City) is running for Governor even though he hasn't officially announced it. From the Sioux City Journal ... Republican state Rep. Christopher Rants said Wednesday he's edging closer to running for governor, saying the party wants someone who can bridge gaps between social and fiscal conservatives. "I think people realize that we need a candidate who has...
Century of the Common Iowan - Jun 8 - 5 clicks
Iowa City has been a nuclear free zone, a free speech city, and hopefully a sanctuary city (if Father Rudy Juarez and other compassionate people have their way) where immigrant workers will not be hounded by the local police to do the work that ICE is responsible for to enforce antiquated federal law. As it stands, most of these workers are not taking jobs from hardworking Americans, but taking ...
Popular Progressive - Jun 2 - 3 clicks
