tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-297857722024-03-05T01:11:40.358-06:00Iowa Political Alert"Given the importance Iowa has in national politics, Iowa Political Alert puts an authentic rural Iowa voice out there in the political discussion. That way, people can read what the view of real people is in rural Iowa, instead of having some blogger in a Virginia suburb rattling away in his pajamas about what he thinks the Iowa view is.”Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.comBlogger644125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-47163914408197189252018-11-01T17:17:00.002-05:002018-11-01T17:17:58.931-05:00Grassley sings praises of economy under Trump<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKlOyDpY5EKtmB_N781OzjfrwC7OntzXQgDBsn4HUJfNTYRoFpBy1ccshyphenhyphenYIHOjzVNIzzulhfeFM3JMack4OiIpDzD_cDXH1-leZ5bPhGudIMrLFR4Sf4Jr54WzW4kM1bySKWP/s1600/GrassleyGWFlats.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKlOyDpY5EKtmB_N781OzjfrwC7OntzXQgDBsn4HUJfNTYRoFpBy1ccshyphenhyphenYIHOjzVNIzzulhfeFM3JMack4OiIpDzD_cDXH1-leZ5bPhGudIMrLFR4Sf4Jr54WzW4kM1bySKWP/s640/GrassleyGWFlats.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
Iowa has demonstrated strong economic growth during the past year, with steady job gains in manufacturing, a declining unemployment rate and impressive gains in median income, U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, said this afternoon.<br />
<br />
And he offered these points:<br /><br />· The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is estimated to lead to a 7.1 percent increase in wage and salary income for Iowa’s average household and increase median wages by $4,128.<br /><br /><br />· The unemployment rate in Iowa has fallen one percentage point since the election of President Trump and is the second lowest unemployment rate in the United States at just 2.5 percent.<br /><br /><br />· Monthly initial claims for unemployment insurance in Iowa have fallen by nearly 14 percent since President Trump was elected and recently reached their lowest level since 1999.<br /><br /><br />· Real median household income in Iowa increased by 5.2 percent to reach $63,481—the highest level ever recorded.<br /><br /><br />· Over a half a million customers have seen utility rates slashed in Iowa as a direct result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.<br /><br /><br />· Under President Trump, the percent of Iowans living below the poverty line decreased by 0.7 percentage points to 9.1 percent, reaching the lowest point since 2007.<br /><br /><br />· Manufacturing is Iowa’s fastest growing sector, with total manufacturing employment increasing by 6.2 percent since the election. Year-over-year job growth in Iowa manufacturing recently reached its fastest pace since 1998.<br /><br /><br /><br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-61478772530726577522018-11-01T17:03:00.003-05:002018-11-01T17:03:59.502-05:00Media Matters: Steve King twice promoted a white supremacist, anti-Semitic, Holocaust-denying website on TwitterMedia Matters reports the following:<br />
<br />
In previously unreported tweets, Rep. Steve King (R-IA) promoted a
website that advocates for the “geographical separation of the races,”
states that Jewish people are conspiring against Europe and the United
States, and pushes Holocaust denialism. <br />
<br />
Read the full story <a href="https://www.mediamatters.org/blog/2018/11/01/steve-king-twice-promoted-white-supremacist-anti-semitic-holocaust-denying-website-twitter/221964" target="_blank">here:</a><br />
<br />
<br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-56087493376667923062018-11-01T16:59:00.000-05:002018-11-01T16:59:09.513-05:00Vilsack says he sees himself in Peter Leo<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRuIwmqK1SpSP56Jb3UbPcdjW-98-nULnqmVdajV7HVdMXVlLW1KI4mzgTLZPD7_FSc6RYDlXPKOtXf6HR7sDfl_tz7PI2zyo1Fm93ZHFqfS_GM6M-dKmhnid0bDQUcwRaH5_C/s1600/Leo2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRuIwmqK1SpSP56Jb3UbPcdjW-98-nULnqmVdajV7HVdMXVlLW1KI4mzgTLZPD7_FSc6RYDlXPKOtXf6HR7sDfl_tz7PI2zyo1Fm93ZHFqfS_GM6M-dKmhnid0bDQUcwRaH5_C/s640/Leo2.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
<b><br /> </b><br />
<b>Iowa Democrats Big 3 boost their candidate in Carroll</b><br />
<br />
For months Peter Leo, a Democratic candidate for the Iowa House, has been telling Carroll-area voters his role model for government service is the low-ley, solutions-oriented former governor Tom Vilsack.<br />
<br />
It turns out the thinking is reciprocated — from Vilsack who said Leo, 34, reminds him of a younger version of himself.<br />
<span id="goog_685759534"></span><span id="goog_685759535"></span><br />
“I am struck by how many similarities there are between Peter’s efforts at becoming a state representative and my efforts about 25 years ago,” Vilsack, 67, said during a campaign event for Leo in Carroll Tuesday. “I campaigned in my Senate district on the theory that I was a lawyer practicing in a small town. I was married. I had two children. My wife worked in the school district, and I campaigned on better schools, better access to health care and better economic opportunities — and that’s exactly what Peter is saying.”<br />
<br />
Vilsack, a former U.S. secretary of agriculture who also served in the Iowa Senate, called into the Leo campaign rally at Kerp’s Tavern. Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller and Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald attended in person. About 20 people were at the event.<br />
<br />
The Nov. 6 election is about restoring sanity and substance to government in Iowa and the nation, Vilsack said.<br />
<br />
“Peter is the kind of guy you want in that Legislature,” Vilsack said. “He’s going to work with folks on the other side.”<br />
<br />
Leo is challenging State Rep. Brian Best, R-Glidden, a two-term incumbent in House District 12, which includes all of Carroll and Audubon counties and the eastern part of Crawford County.<br />
<br />
Vilsack said Leo, a Grinnell College-and-Drake University-educated lawyer who lives in Manning and practices law in Denison, is a change agent, and someone who brings an exceptionally strong resume to the race. Leo will be able to aggressively advocate for residents of west-central Iowa in a way few can, Vilsack said.<br />
<br />
“I think you have a potentially great future ahead of you if your friends and neighbors give you the opportunity to serve in the House,” Vilsack said of Leo. “Every once in a while people are blessed with a person who steps forward who has exceptional credentials. And shame on us if we don’t do everything we possibly can to take full advantage of someone who can be an extraordinary leader for our community and our state.”<br />
<br />
Fitzgerald urged people who are on IPERS, the government retirement system, to vote for Leo to ensure their pensions will be safe — security Fitzgerald said may not be in place under Republican leadership in Des Moines as interest groups — the Koch Brothers, the Polk County Taxpayers Association, the Iowa Taxpayers Association — are pushing to change IPERS from a defined-benefit retirement system.<br />
<br />
There are 733 retired people in Carroll County in the IPERS system, Fitzgerald said, noting they draw almost $10 million annually.<br />
<br />
“Think about that, that’s like taking a major employer out of the county,” Fitzgerald said of IPERS role in the economy of Carroll County.<br />
<br />
“There are threats,” Fizgerald said of IPERS. “It needs to be protected.”<br />
<br />
Miller, who has made Democratic outreach into rural Iowa priority in recent years, said Leo can help rebuild the party in western Iowa.<br />
<br />
“He’s a guy who is smart and capable,” Miller said.<br />
<br />
Tom VilsackDouglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-53838235565394612472017-07-03T15:53:00.003-05:002017-07-03T15:53:45.721-05:00Boulton releases statement regarding continued state budget shortfallIn the wake of the Department of Management releasing information showing the state being over $100 million short for the last fiscal year's budget, State Senator Nate Boulton, Democratic candidate for Governor, released the following statement:<br /><br />"With our state's economy growing and an increases in revenue from the previous year, it is beyond comprehension why after one round of mid-year budget cuts and then dipping into more reserve funds that Iowa still in a budget crisis," said Boulton. "It is time for Governor Reynolds and her Republican allies in the legislature to pull their head out of the sand and deal with the underlying problem: an explosion of unchecked corporate giveaways." <br /><br />"We are over $500 million and growing in corporate handouts at the expense of the critical services Iowans depend on. In this next legislative session, our state must take action to deal with this problem rather than letting it continue to sink our state's finances."<br /><br />Today the Department of Management released tax receipts for FY 2017 that showed state revenues would fall below projections and the state budget faces over a $100 million deficit.Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-69127052140659051082016-06-05T16:03:00.001-05:002016-06-05T16:03:26.161-05:00In round after round Bertrand pounds King back on heels<br /><b>By DOUGLAS BURNS</b><br />
<b>Carroll Daily Times Herald Columnist</b><br />Rick Bertrand, in a furious challenge to incumbency’s isolating and ego-inflating effects, landed bruising rhetorical punches on veteran U.S. Rep. Steve King during a GOP Congressional primary debate in Sioux City Friday.<br />
<br />Boxing from the same corner of the ideological ring as cultural and economic conservatives, Bertrand and King agreed on foundational issues for western Iowa Republicans.<br />
<br />“He’s good on life, he’s good on guns,” Bertrand said of King on abortion and the Second Amendment. Both men oppose abortion in virtually all circumstances and tout voting records in line with leading gun-rights groups. They also both defend construction of a wall on the Mexican border.<br />
<br />The defining question, Bertrand contended in Eppley Auditorium on Morningside College’s campus, boils down to a bread-aisle or bakery choice: fresh or stale?<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhbSRdFRPkuWppLvZd7O3FL9GcFb5wmTfwB6ezzwniajHAKEwcHwZWlmuSCv6qzwz3XFKHiE1JyngsTYGxVf5o8-6DjiX1zu1vb7RofOcJI3zG1iKxVFr0nTS0xBpFQNaHc6ih/s1600/Bertrand.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhbSRdFRPkuWppLvZd7O3FL9GcFb5wmTfwB6ezzwniajHAKEwcHwZWlmuSCv6qzwz3XFKHiE1JyngsTYGxVf5o8-6DjiX1zu1vb7RofOcJI3zG1iKxVFr0nTS0xBpFQNaHc6ih/s320/Bertrand.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">State Sen. Rick Bertrand talks about the Sioux City debate with supporters.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />“This congressman has run his course,” Bertrand said. “That’s why he runs to microphones.”<br />
<br />King, 67, a firebrand of the right with a national talk-radio and cable-TV profile and a catalog of incendiary remarks, is seeking an eighth, two-year term in Congress. Bertrand, 46, says all those years in Washington have made King tone deaf to the basics of representing one of the nation’s leading agricultural districts.<br />
<br />“Why do we think if we send the same people back, we’re going to get a different result?” Bertrand said.<br />
<br />A state legislator from Sioux City, Bertrand has limited himself to two terms in the Iowa Senate.<br />
<br />
Members of Congress should serve no longer than five, two-year terms, he says, pledging to go to Washington and come home after a decade or less.<br />
<br />“Politically, I ran on term limits,” Bertrand said. “I believe in term limits.”<br />
<br />King’s response: to compare himself to U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa.<br />
<br />“We should look at Chuck Grassley and see how he’s doing,” King said.<br />
<br />Grassley, 82, first elected to the Iowa Legislature during the Eisenhower Administration (1958), has served in the U.S. Senate since 1981. That’s an active political life of nearly 60 years collecting government paychecks and benefits.<br />
<br />“The difference is Chuck Grassley is relevant,” Bertrand observed, noting that Grassley is an effective champion for agriculture.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnOXfTsvIAxEhlMWT_GPKapIGFT6gH8heCWXKaTG1ebZ72TAFRuH2yRgyq9pofvMu19r2VtH8tPvr910OYm8tuT4aW9nhnyQ4MXB7GE0l3Tc8gVIWbhih5tS0To9GtgESflinU/s1600/King.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnOXfTsvIAxEhlMWT_GPKapIGFT6gH8heCWXKaTG1ebZ72TAFRuH2yRgyq9pofvMu19r2VtH8tPvr910OYm8tuT4aW9nhnyQ4MXB7GE0l3Tc8gVIWbhih5tS0To9GtgESflinU/s320/King.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Congressman Steve King speaks with supporters following the debate.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Here’s one of thickest strands in Bertrand’s case against King: Why is the congressman not the chairman of the U.S. House Agriculture Committee? That job is now held by Texas Republican Mike Conaway, who came to Congress after King.<br />
<br />King explained that the Texan leapfrogged him to the influential post because King lost favor with former House Speaker John Boehner, an Ohio Republican. Those “disagreements” with Boehner, King says, prevented as ascent that would have been a boon for Iowa’s small towns and farms.<br />
<br />Only minutes before criticizing Boehner, a fellow Republican, King bragged of being buddies with a well-known liberal gadfly in Congress.<br />
<br />“Dennis Kucinich was my best Democratic friend,” King said of the former Ohio liberal congressman.<br />
<br />Being friendly with which one of those Ohioans would have been better for Iowa?<br />
<br />Bertrand said conservatives can stick to their principles while still fighting for their districts. He says he’ll vote like King on key issues, but spend more time on jobs and business issues, and in developing personal and professional connections that lead to the chairmanship or ranking positions on the agriculture committee.<br />
<br />“Be nice, be personable, go out there and hang out with people,” Bertrand said.<br />
<br />Making the case for his effectiveness, King highlighted an earmark (specifically directed federal funding) he says he obtained for regulatory and planning work that led to the four-laning of part of Highway 20 in western Iowa.<br />
<br />“My name is on the earmark,” King said.<br />
<br />Fair enough. But conservatives like King killed earmarks and the projects they bring to rural America.<br />
<br />In one of his more stinging lines of the night, Bertrand said that while campaigning in the 39-county sweep of geography that is Iowa’s 4th District, he’s learned that many people on the eastern side of the King-represented territory, in places like Mason City and Chickasaw County, still think Tom Latham (a former congressman) is representing them.<br />
<br />King’s been more concerned about a “personal agenda” that includes the backing of Renewable Fuel Standard detractor Ted Cruz, a Republican presidential candidate, than learning what’s happening on Main Streets and farms, Bertrand said.<br />
<br />Cruz sponsored legislation as a senator from oil-rich Texas that would have killed the Iowa-commodity-boosting Renewable Fuel Standard. But King supported Cruz’s White House ambitions over the objections of Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad and a roll call of key farm interests.<br />
<br />“Ted Cruz and I disagree on the RFS,” King said, insisting that his plan all along has been to talk Cruz out of deep-sixing the RFS if the Texan were to win the presidency.<br />
<br />King’s support of Cruz led to one of the better closing arguments you’ll hear in a debate.<br />
<br />On the night of the Iowa caucuses, King falsely told his social-media followers Republican presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson — a popular figure who had advertised heavily in slices of western Iowa, including Carroll and Greene counties — was dropping out of the race.<br />
<br />“I’ve learned from the Ben Carson people … If anyone on Tuesday gets a text or a tweet from the congressman that says I’m dropping out on Tuesday, please disregard it,” Bertrand said.Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-79258755343925190062016-01-25T20:51:00.005-06:002016-01-25T20:51:57.881-06:00 Curtis: Oscars not racist, but Republicans are<br />
<br />By DOUGLAS BURNS<br />
<br />
Carroll Daily Times Herald<br />d.burns@carrollspaper.com<br />Jamie Lee Curtis, a Golden Globe-winning actress, said that had she been nominated for this year’s Academy Awards she’d attend rather than joining the boycott of some in the film industry protesting the total absence of minorities in acting categories.<br />
<br />“Of course I would,” she said. “It is not a racist organization. I would have much more difficulty showing up to a Republican event, which I think have either overt or covert racist ideologies. I don’t believe that the Academy of Arts and Sciences is a racist group of people.”<br />
<br />Curtis, a lifelong Democrat whose parents, actresses Tony Curtis and Janet Leigh performed at President John F. Kennedy’s inauguration, made the remarks in response to questions from The Daily Times Herald following her appearance in Carroll Sunday on behalf of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.<br />
<br />Curtis, a member of Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, says she supports efforts to broaden the membership reach of the organization that determines the Oscars.<br />
<br />“I think that the rules of membership should reflect the diversity of our industry, and they don’t,” Curtis said. “Having said that, it is a subjective art form. You are voting for who you think the best is, and I don’t believe that there’s a racist overlay to people’s choice.”<br />
<br />The issue is a lack of career opportunities, which Curtis said has to do more with the production end of show business.<br />
<br />Only white actors and actresses were chosen in the top four acting categories for the second year in a row.<br />
<br />Alejandro González Iñárritu, a Latino, is nominated for best director for “The Revenant,” which is positioned to be a major winner on Oscar night after doing well at the Golden Globes. Curtis described “The Revenant” as outstanding.Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-62442572528130506782015-12-07T16:03:00.003-06:002015-12-07T16:03:56.369-06:00America’s Renewable Future rips Cruz for not touring a biofuels plant<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4mtdvQfCziOcCyWqsVmdKwdlK3FewDBqaxJ0DPQvtP9srLkngofpE_wpMOAX1_OiTRQ5Ffhf-xyfXGRLhBaXAPr20LyAPssctsDcEVKFEjB114g0gVnPlW5rPWYHeJF2Gshxc/s1600/branstad+eric+15-12-03s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4mtdvQfCziOcCyWqsVmdKwdlK3FewDBqaxJ0DPQvtP9srLkngofpE_wpMOAX1_OiTRQ5Ffhf-xyfXGRLhBaXAPr20LyAPssctsDcEVKFEjB114g0gVnPlW5rPWYHeJF2Gshxc/s200/branstad+eric+15-12-03s.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eric Branstad</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
DES MOINES—America’s Renewable Future (ARF) is publicizing that 15 out of 16 candidates for president have either toured a biofuel plant or met with ARF leadership over the course of the election. The only candidate missing from the roster is Sen. Ted Cruz, whose staunch opposition to the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in favor of the oil industry has made him a target for ARF.<br /><br />Just last week Gov. Mike Huckabee, Gov. Chris Christie, and Carly Fiorina toured ethanol biorefineries across the state. Tomorrow Sen. Rick Santorum is touring Lincolnway Energy in Nevada, IA. Those candidates join Donald Trump and Gov. Martin O’Malley in seeing firsthand the benefits of the RFS at a plant.<br /><br />Sec. Hillary Clinton, Sen. Marco Rubio, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Gov. Jeb Bush, Gov. John Kasich, Sen. Lindsey Graham, Gov. George Pataki, Sen. Rand Paul, and Ben Carson or their campaigns have all met with ARF co-chairs or the organization’s leadership on the RFS.<br /><br />
“Every candidate, good or bad, has respected Iowans and the caucus process by sitting down with us and learning about the RFS, except for Ted Cruz,” said ARF State Director, Eric Branstad, “Cruz has ignored invitation after invitation to discuss the issue. He came to Iowa with his allegiance already established to the oil industry, not Iowans and not our caucus process.”<br /><br />
“We’re thankful to the rest of the candidates for taking this issue seriously and listening to Iowans,” Branstad added, “and we hope to hear more from them on the RFS, which is decreasing our dependence on foreign oil, providing 73,000 jobs to Iowans, and providing consumers a choice at the pump.”<br /><br /><br /><br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-11192504846710150382015-12-02T14:10:00.000-06:002015-12-02T14:10:05.192-06:00America’s Renewable Future: Cruz caught deceiving Iowans again<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaiV9mLMAgco6m6uZHk8tU4ib82QDTnWhWtX6zV1ucBdfbLx2uB1UVK__7qWi-9RY7o3Jnc8N7LAmPYU1DJIacoasaRPHx8qVWhfluBCev_THhntLpZ1KCVSP7aLwAuPBmYKzQ/s1600/free+summ13+15-01-24.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaiV9mLMAgco6m6uZHk8tU4ib82QDTnWhWtX6zV1ucBdfbLx2uB1UVK__7qWi-9RY7o3Jnc8N7LAmPYU1DJIacoasaRPHx8qVWhfluBCev_THhntLpZ1KCVSP7aLwAuPBmYKzQ/s640/free+summ13+15-01-24.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br /><br /> DES MOINES—America’s Renewable Future (ARF) newest radio ad highlights Sen. Ted Cruz’s hypocritical position on oil subsidies support at the expense of the unsubsidized Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The ad has drawn a plea from the Cruz campaign to be taken down, but the campaign’s letter provides further example of Cruz’s efforts to deceive Iowans about his support of oil subsidies.<br /><br /> Cruz is claiming that subsidies exclusive to the oil industry, like intangible drilling costs, “are analogous to ordinary business expensing that every other industry gets”. He is calling subsidies by another name and hoping Iowans don’t catch on. And now that he’s been caught, he’s claiming that he wants to get rid of oil subsidies, but he’s repeatedly told Iowa farmers and plant managers that those subsidies don’t exist. Cruz is trying to have it both ways, acting like a typical politician, and it’s Iowa farmers who will suffer.<br /><br />The speech in which Cruz mentions his support of ending “enhanced oil recovery credits for producing oil and gas from marginal wells” is meaningless considering that those provisions are inconsequential and taxpayers would see “no revenue effect” from them according to the Joint Committee on Taxation.<br /><br /> “This attempt is yet another example of Cruz lying to Iowans, only this time he’s been caught,” said ARF State Director, Eric Branstad, “He has personally introduced legislation to repeal the RFS, but none to repeal the billions in subsidies to the oil industry. In fact, he’s voted repeatedly against measures to close tax loopholes for oil and gas.”<br /><br />Cruz has close to a million dollars personally invested in oil companies, which is roughly equivalent to the over $1 million in campaign contributions he has received from the oil industry. The Super PACS propping up his campaign have received over $25 million from oil interests.<br /><br /> “Cruz is in the pocket of the oil industry and he’s doing its dirty work by trying to kill Iowa’s farm economy to line his own pockets,” Branstad added, “He’s oil’s attack dog and it’s time that Cruz came clean. We stand by our ad and so do the facts.”<br /><br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-76843418812035749302015-11-27T14:17:00.000-06:002015-11-27T14:17:05.116-06:00New Scientific Poll of Iowa Caucuses
<style>
<!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:"MS 明朝";
mso-font-charset:78;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:1 0 16778247 0 131072 0;}
@font-face
{font-family:Cambria;
panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4;
mso-font-charset:0;
mso-generic-font-family:auto;
mso-font-pitch:variable;
mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{mso-style-parent:"";
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:"MS 明朝";
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}
a:link, span.MsoHyperlink
{mso-style-noshow:yes;
color:blue;
text-decoration:underline;
text-underline:single;}
a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed
{mso-style-noshow:yes;
color:purple;
text-decoration:underline;
text-underline:single;}
@page Section1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in;
mso-header-margin:.5in;
mso-footer-margin:.5in;
mso-paper-source:0;}
div.Section1
{page:Section1;}
-->
</style>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>By Steffen Schmidt </b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Ben Carson and Hillary Clinton lead in the race for
president in Iowa, according to a new poll from Iowa State University and
WHO-HD. Some of the other results are more surprising. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Of likely Democratic caucus goers Clinton has support from
49.5 percent, Bernie Sanders 27.8, 13.7 percent are undecided, and 6.3 percent
said they would vote for someone else ("other.") <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Martin
O'Malley came in with a surprisingly low 2.7 percent. </span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Of likely Republican caucus goers Ben Carson has support
from 27.2 percent, Marco Rubio is second with 16.7 percent; undecided voters
are third, making up 16.2 percent; and Donald Trump is fourth with 14.7
percent. This is the first major scientific poll showing Trump so far behind. The
rest of the Republican field came in as follows:
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Ted Cruz - 8.9 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Jeb Bush - 4.9 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Rand Paul - 3.3 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Carly Fiorina - 1.8 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· John Kasich - 1.1 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Mike Huckabee - 0.9 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Chris Christie - 0.4 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Lindsey Graham - 0.4 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Rick Santorum - 0.2 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
These numbers suggest that many of the GOP contenders need
to consider dropping out unless their numbers pick up soon.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Attention to the 2016 caucuses is very high with 81 percent
of those polled saying they are following the race in Iowa either "very
closely" or "somewhat closely."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
About half of those polled also said they
"definitely" have decided or are "leaning" towards
supporting a specific candidate in the race. When asked what traits they found
most important from candidates "honest and trustworthy" was first at
38 percent, while "takes strong stands" came in second at 20.8
percent.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
"The economy in general" was cited by 22.2 percent
as the most important issue for 2016. The other issues ranked as follows:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Dissatisfaction with government,
Congress - 10.9 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Federal budget defect, federal debt -
10.0 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Gap between rich and poor - 6.3
percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Terrorism - 6.2 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Morality, ethics, religious issues
family decline, dishonesty - 5.5 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Health care, health insurance - 4.6
percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Foreign policy, foreign aid, focus
overseas - 4.1 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Immigration, illegal aliens - 4.1
percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Unemployment, jobs - 3.2 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Education - 2.3 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· The Environment, pollution - 2.2
percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Poverty, hunger, homelessness - 1.1
percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Crime, violence - 0.7 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Race relations, racism - 0.6 percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">· Judicial system, courts, laws - 0.1
percent</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We expect terrorism to rise as an issue of concern in the
coming days. <br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The most surprising response was the low ranking of illegal
immigration, which has been featured so prominently in the media and the
emphasis of the Republican candidates. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The poll was conducted by phone with 1,074 registered voters
between November 2-15. Margin of error is approximately 3 percent. For more
information please contact the ISU Political Science Department, <a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">515-294-7256</span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="mailto:polsci@iastate.edu"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">polsci@iastate.edu</span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">.
Prof. Mack Shelley. </span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-55304382287846737092015-11-22T12:47:00.001-06:002015-11-22T12:47:14.717-06:00Ernst says never to presidential runU.S. Sen. Joni Ernst<a href="http://siouxcityjournal.com/news/local/ernst-says-never-to-presidential-run/article_7bafa860-4470-52d2-886b-d53d683c18c6.html#utm_source=[domain]&utm_campaign=%2Femail-updates%2Fbreaking%2F&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline"> tells the Sioux City Journal</a> that she will never run for president.Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-79217668337619202962015-11-22T12:34:00.001-06:002015-11-22T12:34:00.553-06:00Congressman Young statement on terrorism and refugees<u><b>Congressman David Young, a Republican representing the Third District, released the following statement on terrorism and refugees:</b></u><br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO-wVK33KwTDHzcMu-2eG6ZeBu22UsLKLosGFadigE7AbsMRmtkuBqHsqQQ-6JGBR8xdU5GlWShqA2hC2Komvx-WGMGgALUBSqlSRc8fWXot218vAHAEODq00i_JGgDB-wR-8V/s1600/young+david+13-07-08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO-wVK33KwTDHzcMu-2eG6ZeBu22UsLKLosGFadigE7AbsMRmtkuBqHsqQQ-6JGBR8xdU5GlWShqA2hC2Komvx-WGMGgALUBSqlSRc8fWXot218vAHAEODq00i_JGgDB-wR-8V/s200/young+david+13-07-08.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Congressman David Young</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i>What happened in Paris is devastating and an act of pure evil. I know all across Iowa and America our hearts and prayers go out to France and her people.<br /><br />Our hearts also go out to those refugees fleeing from the violence and terror in Syria. We are a generous nation and have always welcomed those from abroad who are escaping war and oppression. We will continue to be involved in providing assistance to these children, women and men.<br /><br />However, we are in a very dangerous position as we consider opening our doors to those escaping violence in Syria and Iraq. It didn't have to be this way. From the beginning, President Obama has not taken the threat of ISIS as serious as a commander-in-chief should. On the morning of the Paris terrorist attacks, the president said ISIS was "contained" - just hours before they carried out one of the most deadly and sophisticated attacks since 9/11. The disconnect is alarming to Congress and to the American people.<br /><br />Now the Obama administration is charging full speed ahead on a plan to bring 10,000 Syrian refugees into the United States with no reliable way to vet whether these individuals are members of ISIS or have ties to other terrorist organizations. This makes me think back to 2009, when a flaw in the screening of Iraqi refugees allowed two al Qaeda-linked terrorists to enter the United States and settle in Bowling Green, Kentucky. In the aftermath of this case the Obama administration halted the refugee program for Iraqis for six months.<br /><br />It is clear, we need to press the pause button on the Syria refugee process. The most solemn and consequential responsibility of the federal government is to protect the American people. ISIS has publicly threatened to launch terror attacks on American soil, just like the threats they made to France before this attack and to Russia before downing a Russian passenger plane two weeks ago.<br /><br />Department of Homeland Secretary Jeh Johnson said, "It is true that we are not going to know a whole lot about the Syrians that come forth in this process."<br /><br />FBI Director James Comey stated, "My concern there is that there are certain gaps I don't want to talk about publicly in the data available to us."<br /><br />It would be reckless for the Administration and Congress to not take ISIS threats seriously. We have an obligation to implement a well-thought-out process ensuring - without question - any refugee admitted to the United States has been extensively vetted.<br /><br />That is why I joined an overwhelming bipartisan majority of 289 members of the U.S. House of Representatives to pass the American Security Against Foreign Enemies Act. This bill would require the Homeland Security Secretary, FBI Director, and Director of National Intelligence to certify refugees from countries with ISIS strongholds are properly vetted to ensure they are not affiliated with this terrorist organization. This is a commonsense step the federal government is required to take to fulfill its duty to protect Americans.<br /><br />The refugee crisis is a symptom to the broader problem: the lack of a coherent strategy to combat ISIS. The refugee crisis will persist and the very real threat of terrorist attacks on American soil will loom until these terrorists are defeated. <br /><br />Last week Congress passed a bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act - the annual bill to set defense policies for the upcoming year. The bill would require the president to finally put together a strategy to end ISIS' occupation of the Middle East. President Obama has threatened to veto it. It's time for America to lead. The president needs to sign this bill and put together a strategy to protect America, aid Syrian refugees, and work with our allies to defeat ISIS. <br /><br />We must all work together to combat this international threat against our way of life. I will work with anyone willing to achieve the goal of peace and respect for all.</i><br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-61509768240668560472015-11-22T12:25:00.001-06:002015-11-22T12:25:34.416-06:00Older voters owned Carroll County, Iowa elections<i><br /></i>
<h3>
<i>73.6% of voters were 50 and older; and only 17 people under 25 voted in City of Carroll</i><i></i></h3>
<b>By DOUGLAS BURNS</b><br />
<i>Carroll Daily Times Herald<br />d.burns@carrollspaper.com</i><br />Just 39 people under age 25 voted in municipal elections throughout all cities in Carroll County Nov. 3, according to the Auditor’s Office.<br />
<br />That’s just 1.5 percent of the total voters who cast ballots in those elections. On Election Day, there were 1,105 eligible voters in Carroll County between the ages of 18 and 24.<br />
<br />“Without voting, they’re not really securing that representation,” said Carroll County Auditor Kourtney Irlbeck.<br />
<br />Meanwhile, continuing a trend the Daily Times Herald has reported over the last decade, older voters showed in up in relatively large numbers. Factoring in all city elections this November in Carroll County, 73.6 percent of the voters were 50 and older — and 42.3 percent were 65 and older.<br />
<br />Comparing U.S. Census and election data reveals that seniors in Carroll County dramatically increased the influence of their actual population in the local elections.<br />
<br />According to the 2014 Census estimate, 19.2 percent of Carroll County’s population of 20,562 is 65 and older.<br />
<br />Seniors also posted the highest turnout with 1,054 of the 3,106 registered voters over 64 — or 33.9 percent turning casting ballots.<br />
<br />Countywide, voter turnout for all ages stood at 21.4 percent.<br />
<br />The 440 voters between the ages of 35 and 49 made up 17.6 percent of the voters, and the 178 voters between the ages of 25 and 34 accounted for 7.1 percent of the total vote in the county.<br />
<br />The balance of power in local elections for seniors holds for the City of Carroll, too.<br />
<br />According to election data, of the 1,810 voters in the Carroll city election — in which there were three contested City Council seats — 75 percent of the voters were 50 and older. People 65 and older made up 44.3 percent of the total vote Nov. 3 in the City of Carroll.<br />
<br />There were only 17 people under age 25 who cast ballots in the City of Carroll in this last local election.<br />
<br />In the City of Carroll, the 115 voters between the ages of 35 and 49 represented 17.7 percent of the total vote in the city. And the 115 people ages 25-34 represented 6.4 percent of the total vote.<br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-13419068306471951852015-11-21T10:18:00.003-06:002015-11-21T10:18:28.557-06:00Sanders statement on Trump Muslim commentsCHARLESTON, S.C. – Democratic Party presidential candidate Bernie Sanders issued the following statement today on Donald Trump's call for the creation of a database system to register Muslims:<br /><br />"This is an outrageous and bigoted statement. Mr. Trump should be ashamed of himself. We will not destroy ISIS by undermining the Constitution and our religious freedoms."Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-22003263556985995612015-11-20T15:58:00.001-06:002015-11-20T15:58:14.651-06:00What would Opa Trump say?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM_DoZyxEEZ89a3xJNMbPQ_7lejMmHDrmUrgogWXbMKGZ2QYFE8tVETHpNLuxep_atRrr7NcvTWw1e6kcqb_-rqIhxQhN-JqVJol5l5gX2FEfBIGndFM8KKQKs8XDoSoeXdwYa/s1600/free+summ+trum+15-01-24s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM_DoZyxEEZ89a3xJNMbPQ_7lejMmHDrmUrgogWXbMKGZ2QYFE8tVETHpNLuxep_atRrr7NcvTWw1e6kcqb_-rqIhxQhN-JqVJol5l5gX2FEfBIGndFM8KKQKs8XDoSoeXdwYa/s640/free+summ+trum+15-01-24s.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<b><br />By DAN MANATT</b><br /><br />Immigration was the centerpiece of Donald Trump’s campaign kickoff, and it was again at center stage at the recent GOP Fox Business debate. <br />
<br />At his kickoff, Trump famously said of Mexican immigrants, “...they’re sending (immigrants) that have lots of problems. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.”<br />
<br />And there’s the supreme irony of Donald Trump’s crusade against immigrants:<br />
<br />He is one of them.<br />
<br />That’s right. Trump is the grandson of Friedrich Drumpf, a German immigrant.<br />
<br />So are over one-third of all Iowans.<br />
<br />That German heritage makes Trump’s scapegoating of Mexican immigrants especially ironic, since Iowans’ German forebears were similarly scapegoated for much of Iowa’s history.<br />
<br />Researching our documentary “Whiskey Cookers: The Amazing True Story of the Templeton Bootleggers,” we discovered that the German-American ethnic identity was an essential part of the bootlegging story in western Iowa. It helped explain the socio-ethnic cohesion — especially in the face of the anti-German xenophobia — that created an environment where bootlegging was not only tolerated, but a pathway to express ethnic pride.<br />
<br />What does that have to do with Donald Trump and immigration? <br />
<br />Everything.<br />
<br />German immigrants settled Iowa from territorial days. But in the years immediately following the 1848 German Revolution, when the United States had a population of 23 million, 1.5 million Germans emigrated to America, increasing the population by 6.5 percent. In 1880, there were 261,650 foreign-born immigrants living in Iowa — fully 16 percent of the population. Today’s immigrants in Iowa are a blip by comparison — just 97,000, or 3.2 percent.<br />
<br />Iowa’s German immigrants had a reputation for hard work. They were also stereotyped and resented for speaking German, drinking too much beer, fighting too much, and their religion. <br />
<br />In the 1850s, the anti-immigrant “Know Nothing” Party accused newly arrived Germans of stealing elections by buying the votes of their fellow immigrants with steins of beer or bottles of whiskey — the 19th century version of today’s ballot-security controversies.<br />
<br />The Women’s Christian Temperance Union attributed much of the nation’s social ills to immigrants and their peculiar addiction — alcoholism. The WCTU even set up a pavilion on Ellis Island to educate immigrants on the error of their ways before they set foot on the American mainland. <br />When World War I came, all hell broke loose.<br />
<br />Thousands of Iowans marched against the German Kaiser — including the German-American boys whose families had just emigrated from Germany.<br />
<br />Yet on the home front, another war was being waged — against many of those same German immigrants families. In Denison, German-language books were burned. In Manning, the offices of the German-language newspaper, Das Manning Herold, were vandalized. In Audubon, a German-immigrant farmer was dragged around the square by a noose until he agreed to buy Liberty Bonds. In Gray, a minister was nearly lynched for preaching in German. <br />
<br />Throughout the state, and the nation, extra-judicial Citizen Defense Councils held kangaroo courts to determine if citizens were being sufficiently patriotic — with German-Americans frequently targeted. <br />
<br />Iowa Gov. William Harding issued an executive order — the infamous Babel Proclamation — forbidding citizens from communicating in any language except English in any public place — including churches. <br />
<br />Nor did World War I’s conclusion end the anti-German hatred and discrimination in Iowa.<br />In the 1920s, Iowa’s German immigrants faced discrimination and hate from a group new to the Hawkeye state: the Ku Klux Klan. The 1920s Klan was very active in the Midwest, and chose new targets: bootleggers, immigrants and Catholics — three groups they saw, not without reason, as overlapping. The 1920s Klan in Iowa burned crosses to intimidate immigrants, and trafficked in hysterical anti-Catholicism, circulating pamphlets claiming that the Catholic Knights of Columbus required their members to take an oath to, upon orders from Rome, murder their Protestant neighbors.<br />Western Iowa’s German-Catholics circled the wagons, organizing new Knights of Columbus chapters — a group founded on outreach to immigrants. They continued to hold their German Saints Day feast, but added a new secular character: Uncle Sam.<br />
<br />And Opa Trump?<br />
<br />A recent book, “The Trumps: Three Generations That Built an Empire,” lays out the fascinating immigrant history — and paradoxes — of the Trump family.<br />
<br />Friedrich Drumpf arrived in the U.S. in 1885 — ironically, three years after passage of America’s first anti-immigrant law, the Chinese Exclusion Act — and promptly Americanized his name to Frederick Trump. Trump came from Kallstadt in northern Bavaria, the same exact region from which many western Iowans emigrated. <br />
<br />Once in America, Trump headed west, settling in Seattle and then the Yukon, where he ran saloons that rented “private rooms” — the sort of activity that sparked deep protest from the Women’s Christian Temperance Union.<br />
<br />One parallel between grandfather and grandson: they both prefer European brides. Frederick Trump returned to the Old Country to court the “fräulein” next door — Donald Trump’s grandmother.<br />But like the immigrants of today, Opa Trump was incredibly hardworking, laying the foundation for the family dynasty that created the success that is Donald Trump.<br />
<br />Some may protest that Frederick Trump and his fellow German immigrants can’t be compared to today’s immigrants — while they were technically “undocumented” immigrants with no visa, they weren’t illegal immigrants. True. But they were accused of being impossibly un-American, and incapable of being assimilated into America’s mainstream. Political cartoons of the era portray German immigrants as subhuman and backward drunkards, unable to speak English and stealing ballot boxes at election time.<br />
<br />Given the Trump family history, and given the history of German-American Iowans being on the receiving end of anti-immigrant hatred, prejudice and violence, the anti-immigrant chords being struck in Iowa by Trump and others show shocking ignorance of our shared history.<br />It also shows a shameful insensitivity not just to today’s immigrants, but to the memory of Iowa’s own German immigrant grandparents and great-grandparents — and to Opa Trump.<br />
<br />Now, anyone who Googles my name could counter argue that (1) I’m not an Iowan; and (2) I’m a former Democrat political consultant. Guilty as charged. That said (1) my family came to Iowa in 1848, and I maintain deep ties to the state. (2) My great-grandfather John Klinkefus from Shelby County used to get bullied for speaking German; so this issue is personal for me. (3) As to partisanship, while I am former Democratic consultant, my bipartisan bona fides are equally strong — I have worked for several Republicans, including men who worked for Gerald Ford, Henry Kissinger and George H.W. Bush. <br />
<br />I can absolutely see why voters are drawn to Donald Trump. I just want them to be honest about Iowa’s own immigrant past.<br />
<br />For the grandchildren of Iowa’s German immigrants to ignore our common immigrant history and to feel no empathy when dealing with today’s Latino immigrants is unconscionable. <br />
<br />The starting point for Iowans when debating immigration surely has to be to acknowledge that we are the grandchildren of immigrants — and that our families have also suffered discrimination. <br />
<br />Iowans should remember their own immigrant heritage, and their own immigrant history, and in so doing act with a bit more empathy on immigration.<br />
<br /><b><i>(Editor’s Note: Dan Manatt is director of Democracy Films and of the documentary “Whiskey Cookers: The Amazing True Story of Templeton’s Bootleggers.”)</i></b><br /><br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-20399792775788854882015-11-19T15:56:00.002-06:002015-11-19T15:56:57.508-06:00Breaking news from Carroll Daily Times Herald<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">In Calhoun County, Iowa, militiamen's drunken political argument ends with gun shot, murder charge <a href="https://t.co/4vzE0rpBSs">https://t.co/4vzE0rpBSs</a></p>— douglaswburns (@douglaswburns) <a href="https://twitter.com/douglaswburns/status/667459253918146561">November 19, 2015</a></blockquote><script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-87787815387811370792015-11-13T16:40:00.001-06:002015-11-13T16:40:54.373-06:00Rubio campaigning in CarrollU.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, a Republican candidate for the presidency, will be hosting a town hall in Carroll on Monday, Nov. 23 at Greasewood Flats Ranch located at 1607 Griffith Road.<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8l6tELj9Zb26vU_fIP0oxnnizVObUZK5UCyU8qRCvlk9LrOwuz-GQvGe6kPSBfQw9ZMCC9oWbdoYBQUt3IKnmLIrH5q-ntoRI5tUbXdCSpfXbCKKGO5i4GuUPCIqHrBbpXlog/s1600/-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8l6tELj9Zb26vU_fIP0oxnnizVObUZK5UCyU8qRCvlk9LrOwuz-GQvGe6kPSBfQw9ZMCC9oWbdoYBQUt3IKnmLIrH5q-ntoRI5tUbXdCSpfXbCKKGO5i4GuUPCIqHrBbpXlog/s200/-1.jpg" width="157" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sen. Marco Rubio</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Doors will open at 8 a.m. with the town hall starting at 8:30 a.m. The event is open to the full public.<br />
<br />
Carroll Mayor Adam Schweers, an active Republican, and State Rep. Brian Best, R-Glidden, have endorsed Rubio.<br />
<br />
The latest <a href="https://www.blogger.com/U.S.%20Sen.%20Marco%20Rubio%20of%20Florida,%20a%20Republican%20candidate%20for%20the%20presidency,%20will%20be%20hosting%20a%20town%20hall%20in%20Carroll%20on%20Monday,%20Nov.%2023%20at%20Greasewood%20Flats%20Ranch%20located%20at%201607%20Griffith%20Road.%20Doors%20will%20open%20at%208%20a.m.%20with%20the%20town%20hall%20starting%20at%208:30%20a.m.%20The%20event%20is%20open%20to%20the%20full%20public.%20Carroll%20Mayor%20Adam%20Schweers,%20an%20active%20Republican,%20and%20State%20Rep.%20Brian%20Best,%20R-Glidden,%20have%20endorsed%20Rubio.%20The%20latest%20Real%20Clear%20Politics%20average%20of%20major%20national%20polls%20among%20Republican%20voters%20has%20real-estate%20mogul%20Donald%20Trump%20leading%20the%20GOP%20presidential%20field%20with%2024.8%20support%20compared%20with%2024.4%20percent%20for%20Dr.%20Ben%20Carson,%20a%20surgeon%20and%20author.%20Rubio%20is%20in%20third%20at%2011.8%20percent.%20The%20polling%20is%20an%20average%20running%20from%20Oct.%2024%20to%20Nov.%204">Real Clear Politics </a>average of major national polls among Republican voters has real-estate mogul Donald Trump leading the GOP presidential field with 24.8 support compared with 24.4 percent for Dr. Ben Carson, a surgeon and author. Rubio is in third at 11.8 percent. The polling is an average running from Oct. 24 to Nov. 4<br />
<br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-85145624252420812172015-11-11T13:05:00.004-06:002015-11-11T13:05:25.061-06:00Senator Ernst recognizes veterans today<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hmXmKdq14pQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-77017834112023804492015-11-09T14:24:00.002-06:002015-11-09T14:26:21.688-06:00Carroll County Iowa Democratic Party Co-Chair performs populist song<iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QFgnj0qsjrw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-49933701853443419942015-11-04T15:01:00.000-06:002015-11-04T15:01:07.246-06:00U.S. Senate leader gives Jefferson Dairy Queen a shout out<br />Who needs sprinkles and nuts when you get glowing Congressional floor speech topping your ice cream.<br />
<br />U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky Tuesday talked about Jefferson’s Dairy Queen while spinning anecdotes about colleague Charles Grassley, the Iowa lawmaker who just passed the 12,000-vote milestone — the last 7,474 of them consecutive.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgnwUbe9fztHbPEm0vK7yQeBhLcPqYH74BzH3fHI5FthevX4iZ3PSeSfhLkSW4b9-9c3Sfx43NVoLqF5fsvjad__D1YasWdNU6hrAVstJ2QHhIk8WWXK5vFDzF_rpp9xpZScmo/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgnwUbe9fztHbPEm0vK7yQeBhLcPqYH74BzH3fHI5FthevX4iZ3PSeSfhLkSW4b9-9c3Sfx43NVoLqF5fsvjad__D1YasWdNU6hrAVstJ2QHhIk8WWXK5vFDzF_rpp9xpZScmo/s1600/images.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />McConnell recognized Grassley’s work ethic, noting that besides not missing a Senate vote since 1993, the Iowan visits all 99 counties in his state every year — a feat known nationally — and generally spoken with great fondness and affection — as “The Full Grassley.”<br />
<br />Recently, Grassley, an Iowa Republican, completed another Full Grassley. And McConnell delighted in telling his Senate colleagues about Grassley’s way of treating himself after the town-hall, school-visit, business-tour endurance test.<br />
<br />“He gets a blizzard from Dairy Queen,” McConnell said in his Leader’s remarks to open Senate business. “Sometimes chocolate. Sometimes vanilla. But always swirled with Snickers. This year, he got to DQ so early he had to wait in the parking lot.”<br />
<br />And where was the Dairy Queen?<br />
<br />“He Tweeted about it,” McConnell said. “Here’s what he said: ‘I’m at the Jefferson Iowa Dairy Queen doing you know what.’”<br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-25391515177781699632015-11-02T18:21:00.002-06:002015-11-02T18:22:37.548-06:00Huckabee: If abortion is made illegal, women shouldn't be punished for having oneRepublican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is pro-life. He’s opposed to abortion and believes life begins at conception.<br />
<br />
So what if his position prevails, and abortion is again illegal in the United States? In that case, what should the penalty be for a woman who has an abortion or a physician who performs one?<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis6Dx90oGrC2AtOOnjQMIjqFVEyduqtdf2Dd33ez5Brl7-oVCajKtUW3fmTyPh2IQenNh0AZp7CkR4cT6oxuVbdDnDQHeUbUWdmM1P0xbvhXN-WTDRb_BPETVVP0WUiSGvk1RM/s1600/huckabee+mike+15-10-30.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEis6Dx90oGrC2AtOOnjQMIjqFVEyduqtdf2Dd33ez5Brl7-oVCajKtUW3fmTyPh2IQenNh0AZp7CkR4cT6oxuVbdDnDQHeUbUWdmM1P0xbvhXN-WTDRb_BPETVVP0WUiSGvk1RM/s200/huckabee+mike+15-10-30.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mike Huckabee</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
The Carroll (Iowa) Daily Times Herald put the question to Huckabee Friday during an interview on the sidewalk outside of Sam’s Sodas and Sandwiches in downtown Carroll.<br />
<br />
Here’s Huckabee’s answer:<br />
<br />
“The penalty shouldn’t be upon the woman,” Huckabee said. “In most every case, the woman having an abortion is also a victim. She’s either been talked into it by her friend, her boyfriend, her mother, her grandmother.”Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-1886977897615362152015-11-02T18:02:00.001-06:002015-11-02T18:02:21.523-06:00Leading Chicago Latino: Rubio ‘callous’ on immigration<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVRtUD6VqbLMiZC-LAP-RJxGXl0WhCGfdsLVMmC_MGjhjEwOdy16x1rsRH9_Ko5UirDGmh6zTmut6vaRo1AfnZPEt5N7xVZU-2z33amUXUTN5oVHV70kOCRE95Mqv2y2g-y9O9/s1600/garcia+jesus+15-10-31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVRtUD6VqbLMiZC-LAP-RJxGXl0WhCGfdsLVMmC_MGjhjEwOdy16x1rsRH9_Ko5UirDGmh6zTmut6vaRo1AfnZPEt5N7xVZU-2z33amUXUTN5oVHV70kOCRE95Mqv2y2g-y9O9/s320/garcia+jesus+15-10-31.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jesus "Chuy" Garcia</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Marco Rubio wants to change the very immigration system that allowed his family to migrate to the United States from Cuba.<br /><br />And the Republican presidential candidate’s call in the CNBC debate last week for a move from immigration based on family ties to a merit evaluation won’t sit well with the Latino community, says Jesus “Chuy” Garcia, a Cook County (Illinois) Commissioner whose progressive campaign forced a run-off in the recent Chicago mayoral campaign.<br /><br />“It seems rather inconsistent and callous because I think immigration in America has always had a connection to family,” Garcia, a Chicago political veteran who drew national attention with his challenge to Mayor Rahm Emanuel, said in an interview with this newspaper in Des Moines Saturday.<br /><br />Ending family chain migration abruptly doesn’t make sense, Garcia said.<br /><br />“Family is a great connector of people who are being productive and contributing to this country,” Garcia said. “While it shouldn’t be the only factor in determining who can come here, it has to remain one of the central facets of our immigration system.”<br /><br />Garcia, who dramatically boosted Latino turnout in his mayoral bid, said it is going to be challenging for Rubio to maintain his position on immigration.<br /><br />“It may be beneficial to him in winning the Republican nomination,” Garcia said. “But in a general election it will come back to bite him.”<br /><br />The topic of uniting families is “near and dear” to Latinos, Garcia said.<br /><br />In CNBC debate Rubio called for a major overhaul to the immigration system.<br /><br />“Today, we have a legal immigration system for permanent residency that is largely based on whether or not you have a relative living here.,” Rubio said. “And that’s the way my parents came legally in 1956. But in 2015, we have a very different economy. Our legal immigration system from now on has to be merit-based. It has to be based on what skills you have, what you can contribute economically.”<br /><br />Garcia attended the League of United Latin American Citizens dinner and awards banquet at the Des Moines Airport Holiday Inn where he, among other things, advocated for the presidential campaign of Bernie Sanders.<br /><br />Sanders doesn’t take money from Super PACs, and that’s key, Garcia said in a speech.<br /><br />“Big special interests have come to dominate politics in our country,” he said, adding that he has been a “long-time admirer” of Sanders’ politics.Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-5527917424081181782015-10-30T19:56:00.000-05:002015-11-02T10:56:15.068-06:00 O’Malley reaches for reins as Obama’s loyal heir<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiWpwWGC_dB9sbZKKlhUEpekiHOMd8yoNp65KQiRZUMeeKZHC87FOvxDdYFfiLxunpkvvE-njAoJF7dp3Lz3C2nJVIS_vozc9s803g3Lh74LWAenn7BUz1bA5i1bmcJqjSzxXz/s1600/IMG_9197.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiWpwWGC_dB9sbZKKlhUEpekiHOMd8yoNp65KQiRZUMeeKZHC87FOvxDdYFfiLxunpkvvE-njAoJF7dp3Lz3C2nJVIS_vozc9s803g3Lh74LWAenn7BUz1bA5i1bmcJqjSzxXz/s640/IMG_9197.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley spoke to about 20 people at a union hall in Denison, Iowa today.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Democratic presidential candidate Martin O’Malley Friday afternoon sought to position himself as the fresh face of his party with challenges to what he says are electability and loyalty issues with his primary opponents.<br />
<br />“We’re not going to solve our problems by debating the pros and cons of socialism,” O’Malley said. “We’re not going to solve our problems by declaring that all Republicans are our enemies.”<br />
<br />O’Malley added, “I do believe our country is looking for a new leader and they’re going to find it in one party or the other.”<br />
<br />Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders self identifies as democratic socialist. Hillary Clinton said in the CNN Democratic debate that some of the enemies she is most proud of making are Republicans.<br />
<br />Saying it is “compare and contrast” time, O’Malley, during speech at the United Food and Commercial Workers Union hall in Denison, said Sanders betrayed President Obama before the 2012 election cycle by seeking to recruit a more left-leaning primary challenger for Obama. O’Malley did not identify any of the potential 2012 Democratic candidates.<br />
<br />“A lot of us like Barack Obama,” O’Malley said. “In fact, when Senator Sanders was trying to get somebody to primary Barack Obama four years ago I was stepping up and working very hard for his re-election.”<br />
<br />After the speech the Carroll Daily Times Herald asked O’Malley directly if he thinks Sanders, a U.S. senator from Vermont, exhibited disloyalty to Obama during the president’s re-election campaign.<br />
<br />“Yes, I do,” O’Malley said. “I think that the president inherited a big mountain of challenges and what he needed was support in being re-elected. He didn’t need a challenge from the left or a challenge from within the party.”<br />
<br />O’Malley said he was out “early and strong” for Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign.<br />
<br />“Senator Sanders, meanwhile, was trying to recruit somebody to primary the president,” O’Malley said.<br />
<br />In an interview Saturday night in Des Moines, Sanders’ state campaign director Robert Becker dismissed the O’Malley claim as unfounded political nonsense. He said Sanders and Obama are friends.<br />
<br />Becker, who attended the League of United Latin American Citizens dinner in Des Moines, pointed out that Sanders continues to draw large, enthusiastic crowds in Iowa.<br />
<br />About 20 people attended the O’Malley event in Denison.<br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-6395413403999364202014-10-09T11:47:00.005-05:002014-10-09T11:47:33.400-05:00Loras College Poll finds Braley and Ernst tied<br /><br />DUBUQUE, Iowa— With less than a month to go, the race to replace retiring U.S. Senator Tom Harkin is all tied up according to the results of the new Loras College Poll released today. The first October Loras College Poll of the U.S. Senate race in Iowa yielded the following result:<br /><br />Bruce Braley 42.1 percent<br />Joni Ernst 42.4 percent<br />Other Candidate 3.7 percent<br />Undecided 11.8 percent<br /> <br />These new results from a survey conducted October 1-3, 2014, indicate a rise in support for Ernst since the Loras College Poll taken at the beginning of September. That poll showed Braley with the advantage. <br /><br />Name Identification and Favorability—Comparison of Loras College Poll Results<br /><br />Bruce Braley October September June <br /><br />Heard of, favorable 37.0 percent 36.3 percent 35.8 percent <br />Heard of, unfavorable 35.8 percent 33.7 percent 25.7 percent<br />Heard of, no opinion 18.8 percent 20.3 percent 25.0 percent<br />Never heard of/refused 8.4 percent 9.6 percent 13.5 percent <br /><br />Joni Ernst October September June <br /><br />Heard of, favorable 42.5 percent 36.9 percent 42.2 percent<br />Heard of, unfavorable 37.2 percent 39.5 percent 29.2 percent<br />Heard of, no opinion 14.7 percent 16.8 percent 20.3 percent<br />Never heard of/refused 5.6 percent 6.8 percent 8.3 percent<br /><br />“Our latest results indicate that State Senator Ernst has recaptured some of the momentum she possessed at the beginning of this important race for control of the U.S. Senate,” commented Associate Professor of Politics and Director of the Loras College Poll, Christopher Budzisz, Ph.D. <br /><br />“Ernst’s favorability ratings have returned to levels we found immediately following the June primary. While our September poll found Ernst’s unfavorable rating higher than her favorable rating, this most recent poll finds Ernst has righted that ship. It is important to note that despite the campaign advertising, Congressman Braley has managed to always have his favorable rating above his unfavorable in our poll results. That is impressive given the media barrage on both candidates,” said Budzisz. <br /><br /><br />Preferences of No-Party Registrants<br /><br />The Loras College Poll asked respondents to identify their party registration and their sense and strength of partisan affiliation. <br /><br />“Braley and Ernst displayed similar patterns of support from their respective parties, with both enjoying strong support from the party faithful. The battle appears to be for those who are registered as No-Party. Traditionally, this segment of the Iowa electorate accounts for around a quarter of all voters in a midterm election,” Budzisz commented.<br /><br />Of those all-important, No-Party registrants (comprising 21.5 percent of our random sample), the results for the U.S. Senate race were as follows:<br /><br />No-Party Registrants<br /><br />Braley 34.1 percent<br />Ernst 42.6 percent<br />Other Candidate 6.2 percent<br />Undecided 17.1 percent<br /><br /><br />Beyond the No-Party registrants, Democratic and Republican registrants may view themselves more as independents than partisans, and still others may respond that they are unsure as to which party they see themselves belonging. <br /><br />“Amongst all those voters who responded that they view themselves as politically independent or with an unsure affiliation, regardless of their specific registration, the news for Congressman Braley is better as he and Ernst exactly split this group 37.7 percent to 37.7 percent,” said Budzisz.<br /><br />Sentiments of voters on President Obama’s performance in office and the direction of the country serve as an important backdrop to this midterm election. The Loras College Poll surveyed likely voters in Iowa on both of these issues.<br /><br /> <br />Job Performance of President Obama<br />Comparison of Loras College Poll Results<br /><br />October September June <br />Approve 40.8 percent 40.7 percent 42.5 percent<br />Disapprove 52.2 percent 53.0 percent 54.2 percent<br />Unsure/Refused 7.0 percent 6.4 percent 3.4 percent<br /><br />President Obama’s job performance ratings remain virtually unchanged from previous polls. <br /><br />“Many Iowans remain critical of President Obama, and it is clear that this fact is having an impact on the Senate campaign from ads and mailers to campaign talking points,” Budzisz remarked. “The same general persistent negative pattern holds for the assessment of the direction of the country as it has for President Obama’s job approval.”<br /><br /><br />Direction of Country<br />Comparison of Loras College Poll Results<br /><br /> October September June <br />Right Track 27.5 percent 24.8 percent 30.7 percent<br />Wrong Direction 58.0 percent 59.5 percent 58.5 percent<br />Unsure/Refused 14.5 percent 15.7 percent 10.9 percent<br /><br /><br />Military Action and the Islamic State<br /><br />Given President Obama’s recent deployment of U.S. military forces in coalition operations against the Islamic State, or ISIS, the Loras College Poll asked voters whether they support this military action and whether or not they believe that the current strategy will be successful in defeating this organization.<br /><br />Current U.S. Military Action against Islamic State/ISIS<br /><br />Support Action 66.0 percent<br />Oppose Action 15.3 percent<br />Unsure/No Opinion 18.7 percent<br /><br />While a clear majority of respondents support the current military action, a plurality (43.3 percent) of respondents do not expect the current strategy to succeed in defeating the Islamic State. Nearly a third more are unsure of the strategy’s expected success.<br /><br />Expectation that Strategy will succeed<br /><br />Yes, expect it will succeed 24.8 percent<br />No, expect it will not succeed 43.3 percent<br />Unsure/No Opinion 31.8 percent<br /><br /><br />The Loras College Poll surveyed 600 likely 2014 general election voters; statewide results have a 4 percent margin of error. The survey was conducted October 1-3, 2014.<br /><br />· Survey conducted with a random sample of registered voters (from official Iowa Secretary of State voter file) who voted in the 2012 general election or who have registered since the 2012 election. <br />· Likely voter was defined within the sample drawn as those self-indicating they were “extremely likely” or “very likely” to vote in the 2014 election.<br />· While the sample was balanced for standard demographic variables such as age, gender and geography, it was not weighted for party. <br />· Survey included both landlines (80 percent) and cell phones (20 percent). <br />· The survey was conducted using live operator interviews through a contracted professional call center.<br />· Script development and methodology used for the survey received input from Republican campaign consultant Steve Grubbs, and Democrat campaign consultant Dave Heller. Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-88712133029186080362014-10-09T11:28:00.003-05:002014-10-09T11:28:28.787-05:00Al Jazeera America Presents Behind-The-Scenes Look at U.S. Politics and Three Definitive Political Races in “Midterms”<br /><i><b>New Three-Part Documentary from Director AJ Schnack (“Caucus”) Goes Inside Four Key Political Races in Three Swing States: Iowa, Colorado and North Carolina -- October 19, October 26 and November 2</b></i><br />
<br />NEW YORK– September 18, 2014 - Al Jazeera America today announced that Midterms, a three-episode documentary series focused on the upcoming American elections in 2014, will air Sunday, October 19th, Sunday, October 26th and Sunday, November 2nd at 9p ET/6p PT.<br />
<br />Chronicling four bellwether races in three swing states – Iowa, Colorado and North Carolina --Midterms is a portrait of the campaigns, issues and individuals in the year’s most heated political races. AJ Schnack, who directed the 2013 film “Caucus” about the 2011-12 Republican race in the Iowa Caucus, gained unprecedented access to the candidates and their staffs, going inside races that have the potential for political upsets that could predict the national mood come November 2014. An up-close, unbiased examination of U.S. politics, Midterms shows the personal and human side of running for office and the issues that may define the 2014 national elections, including health care, immigration and government spending in Washington.<br />
<br />“Midterms is a fly-on-the-wall look at some of the most hotly contested political races in the country,” said Shannon High-Bassalik, senior vice-president, documentaries and programs. “AJ’s unique access to the campaigns gives us a sense of what the candidates are really facing, as they tackle issues like outside money, negative campaigning, controversial ads, and the changing demographics in their districts.”<br />
<br />“We want the audience to have a close-up, intimate portrait of these candidates and the issues that will define 2014,” says Midterms director AJ Schnack. “We're thrilled to be working with Al Jazeera America to bring viewers a truly unprecedented, bi-partisan look at these races as they are unfolding.”<br />
<br />In Iowa, where 40% of voters are neither Democrat nor Republican, Midterms follows two tightly contested races. Al Jazeera America goes inside the race for the first open Senate seat in Iowa in nearly 40 years between Democratic Congressman Bruce Braley and Republican State Senator Joni Ernst. There, Ernst’s TV ads have helped even up a race that many had thought was safely democratic.<br />
<br />Schnack follows the Iowa race for one of the most competitive seats in the country: the House race for retiring Republican Tom Latham’s seat between former Democratic Iowa State Senator Staci Appel and Republican David Young.<br />
<br />In swing state Colorado, Midterms tracks a race in the competitive 6th district in the eastern suburbs of Denver, with Republican incumbent Mike Coffman challenged by former Democratic Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff. “Mike Coffman’s taking Spanish, Mike Coffman’s learning Korean,” Lynn Bartels, political reporter for The Denver Post, says about the candidates’ efforts to address the district’s changing demographics.<br />And in closely contested North Carolina, we follow what could be a $100 million Senate race between Democratic incumbent Senator Kay Hagan challenged by North Carolina Speaker of the House Thom Tillis.<br />Midterms is directed by AJ Schnack with producer Shirley Moyers and director of photography Nathan Truesdell. They are joined by series producer John Mernit, acclaimed filmmaker/editors Jeff Malmberg (Marwencol) and Jason Tippet (Only the Young), noted illustrator for the Des Moines Register, Mark Marturello and graphics designers Juan Cardarelli and Eric Levy (Undefeated).<br />Al Jazeera America’s documentary unit brings critically-acclaimed, long-form storytelling to audiences on Sunday evenings as part of the “Al Jazeera America Presents” strand. Previously aired documentaries Borderland, a four-part documentary series on immigration; The System with Joe Berlinger, an eight-episode series by the Oscar-nominated filmmaker Joe Berlinger that explores the criminal justice system in the United States, and Edge of Eighteen by Academy Award-winning director Alex Gibney.<br />Al Jazeera America is available in more than 60 million homes in the U.S. on Comcast, Time Warner Cable, DirecTV Channel 347, Dish Network Channel 215, Verizon FiOS Channel 614 and AT&T U-Verse Channel 1219. To find Al Jazeera America in your area, visit www.aljazeera.com/getajam.<br />---<br />About Al Jazeera America<br />Al Jazeera America is the new U.S. news channel that provides both domestic and international news for American audiences. It is headquartered in New York City with bureaus in 12 cities across the United States.<br />Visit Al Jazeera America online at http://www.aljazeera.com/america for the latest updates.You can also like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/aljazeeraamerica, follow us on Twitter @AJAM (www.twitter.com/ajam) and join the conversation using #AlJazeeraAmerica.<br />About AJ Schnack<br />AJ Schnack is a nonfiction filmmaker and writer based in Los Angeles. He is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism and a native of Southern Illinois.<br />His most recent film is Caucus (2013), a cinéma vérité portrait of the 2011-12 Republican race to first-in-the-nation Iowa Caucus. The film had its world premiere at the 2013 Hot Docs Film Festival in Toronto and celebrated its US Premiere in June as the Closing Night Film at the inaugural AFI Docs in Washington, D.C.<br />Schnack also recently released We Always Lie to Strangers (2013), about four families dealing with change and economic challenges in the tourist town of Branson, Missouri. The film debuted at the 2013 SXSW Film Festival, where it won the jury prize for Directing. His previous films include the ensemble documentary Convention (2009), which was released by IFC Films/Sundance Selects; Kurt Cobain About a Son (2006), which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival and was released theatrically in North America, France, Japan, Brazil, Australia and aired on More4 in the United Kingdom; and Gigantic (A Tale of Two Johns (2002), which premiered at the SXSW Film Festival and was released theatrically in North America by Cowboy Pictures.<br />In addition to the 2013 SXSW Directing Prize, Schnack won the award for Best Director at the 2013 Philadelphia Film Festival for Caucus. He was also nominated for a 2007 Independent Spirit Award for Kurt Cobain About a Son and was the first recipient of AFI Silverdocs' Cinematic Vision Award for that same film. He was recently an editor on Michael Rapaport's Beats, Rhymes and Life: The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest, which premiered at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, was acquired by Sony Pictures Classics and won the Producers Guild Award for Best Documentary.<br />He is the Founding Director of the Cinema Eye Honors for Nonfiction Filmmaking, which held its 7th annual ceremony at the Museum of the Moving Image in New York City in January 2014. From 2005-2011, he wrote the popular nonfiction film blog, All these wonderful things. He has served on juries at Sheffield Doc/Fest, CPH:DOX, DokuFest Kosovo, Los Angeles, AFI Silverdocs, Miami, Sarasota, Denver, Ashland and the Independent Spirit Awards & has curated panels at Sheffield Doc/Fest, AFI Silverdocs and True/False.<br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29785772.post-61138772116742470412014-09-08T11:58:00.003-05:002014-09-08T11:58:58.866-05:00Braley holds lead in Loras poll as Ernst's favorabilty numbers plunge<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsrNErIC5V3JUuv3SYyXTOxBFiZ4C1PPDPnY0uLPv5pRZkIH_E0oEFU1ndnT78N0opM4j46J7P5RjokWVg3Vagm6N6q5m-fxHtC32cDV-UmymRWTwsrbUVuAYr3T-yB4cpM3NK/s1600/ernst+joni+13-04-26s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsrNErIC5V3JUuv3SYyXTOxBFiZ4C1PPDPnY0uLPv5pRZkIH_E0oEFU1ndnT78N0opM4j46J7P5RjokWVg3Vagm6N6q5m-fxHtC32cDV-UmymRWTwsrbUVuAYr3T-yB4cpM3NK/s1600/ernst+joni+13-04-26s.jpg" height="200" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Senator Joni Ernst</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7iiCJslbM-WGGLECzcs_Lm4x0Aj-2OT72aZRzVjoOGitYYmB9nWe1LUOiUvXsURKXxPJRODHI7alg2m6ylLnLLRaBmox8veb7cQdog0InQVBUzw4v1lcl6KvtizMy0kJRNrlp/s1600/braley+bruce+13-02-19.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7iiCJslbM-WGGLECzcs_Lm4x0Aj-2OT72aZRzVjoOGitYYmB9nWe1LUOiUvXsURKXxPJRODHI7alg2m6ylLnLLRaBmox8veb7cQdog0InQVBUzw4v1lcl6KvtizMy0kJRNrlp/s1600/braley+bruce+13-02-19.jpg" height="200" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Congressman Bruce Braley</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
DUBUQUE — Democratic Congressman Bruce Braley holds a 4.8 percent edge over Republican State Senator Joni Ernst in one of the key races for control of the U.S. Senate. The post-Labor Day Loras College Poll of the U.S. Senate race in Iowa yielded the following result:<br /><br /><b>Bruce Braley 45.3 percent<br />Joni Ernst 40.5 percent<br />Undecided 14.2 percent</b><br /><br />These new results show a decline in support for Ernst from the Loras College Poll taken immediately after the primaries in June. That poll showed Ernst leading the race 48.0 percent to 41.7 percent. <br /><br />The U.S. Senate race in Iowa has garnered national attention, with two competitive candidates vying for the open seat created by the retirement of Democratic Senator Tom Harkin.<br /><br />“Most analysts have had the Ernst-Braley race as a ‘toss-up,’ and our new poll finds Congressman Braley with a slight edge, with the trend in his direction,” said Associate Professor of Politics and Director of the Loras College Poll Christopher Budzisz, Ph.D. “It’s clear that the heavy negative advertising has taken its toll on Ernst. In June, 42 percent of likely voters viewed her favorably, while just 29 percent had an unfavorable view. Her unfavorable rating has now jumped to over 39 percent and exceeds her favorable rating. Both candidates have seen their unfavorable rating increase, but Ernst’s is a more notable increase,” Budzisz remarked.<br /><br /><br />NAME IDENTIFICATION AND FAVORABILITY:<br />Comparison of September and June Loras College Poll Results<br /><br />Bruce Braley September June______<br /><br />Heard of, favorable 36.3 percent 35.8 percent <br />Heard of, unfavorable 33.7 percent 25.7 percent<br />Heard of, no opinion 20.3 percent 25.0 percent<br />Never heard of/refused 9.6 percent 13.5 percent <br /><br />Joni Ernst September June______<br /><br />Heard of, favorable 36.9 percent 42.2 percent<br />Heard of, unfavorable 39.5 percent 29.2 percent<br />Heard of, no opinion 16.8 percent 20.3 percent<br />Never heard of/refused 6.8 percent 8.3 percent<br /><br /><br />Beyond favorability, the Loras College Poll asked respondents to choose which candidate best represents the values of the respondent and whose position on issues is closest to their own.<br /><br /><br />Candidate Who Best Represents Your Values<br /><br />Braley 38.6 percent<br />Ernst 37.6 percent<br />Undecided/Refused 23.9 percent<br /><br /><br />Candidate Whose Positions on Issues Closest to Your Own<br /><br />Braley 39.8 percent<br />Ernst 37.8 percent<br />Undecided/Refused 22.3 percent<br /><br /><br />“Looking at the values and issue position question, it appears that neither candidate has a clear advantage,” Budzisz remarked. <br /><br />Looking at specific issues, however, differences clearly emerge between Braley and Ernst supporters, as well as the undecided. The Loras College Poll asked respondents to rate the importance of a number of issues as they consider the upcoming election. Below is the percentage of a candidate’s self-reported supporters who rated the specific issue as “critically important” or “very important.” Complete issue results available by clicking here.<br /><br /><br /><br />Illegal Immigration—rated as critically or very important<br /><br />Braley 42.9 percent<br />Ernst 65.8 percent<br />Undecided 53.2 percent<br /><br />National Debt—rated as critically or very important<br /><br />Braley 46.6 percent<br />Ernst 80.5 percent<br />Undecided 61.4 percent<br /><br />Income Equality—rated as critically or very important<br /><br />Braley 52.5 percent<br />Ernst 20.6 percent<br />Undecided 32.2 percent<br /><br />Environmental Issues—rated as critically or very important<br /><br />Braley 59.3 percent<br />Ernst 23.0 percent<br />Undecided 32.7 percent<br /><br />Foreign Affairs and National Security—rated as critically or very important<br /><br />Braley 74.4 percent<br />Ernst 81.3 percent<br />Undecided 66.1 percent<br /><br />Jobs and Economy—rated as critically or very important<br /><br />Braley 79.9 percent<br />Ernst 77.0 percent<br />Undecided 73.1 percent<br /><br />“We found the differences in issue importance largely track with established partisan lines. Within the results you can also see reflected some of the recent heightened attention on foreign affairs and national security, as well the continued mixed economic news and sentiment,” said Budzisz. “While jobs/economy is traditionally the most important issue voters list, foreign affairs and national security is certainly on the minds of Iowans. Over the past several months, there has been substantial media attention on international developments and national security, and I think we are finding that this is impacting Iowans as they consider the upcoming election.”<br /><br />While the survey sample was balanced for standard demographic variables such as age, gender and geography, it was not weighted for partisanship/party registration. Respondents were asked to self-identify their partisan affiliation and its strength.<br /><br />Self-identified partisan affiliation within random survey sample:<br /><br />Strong Democrat 23.8 percent<br />Not Strong Democrat 8.8 percent<br />Not Strong Republican 8.8 percent<br />Strong Republican 21.4 percent<br />Independent 33.8 percent<br />Unsure/Refused 3.3 percent<br /> <br /><br />The Loras College Poll surveyed 1,200 likely 2014 general election voters; statewide results have a 2.82 percent margin of error. The survey was conducted September 2-5, 2014.<br />· Survey conducted with a random sample of registered voters who voted in the 2012 general election or registered since the 2012 election. <br />· Likely voter was defined as those self-indicating they were “extremely likely” or “very likely” to vote in the 2014 election.<br />While the sample was balanced for standard demographic variables such as age, gender and geography, it was not weighted for partisanship. <br />Survey included both landlines (80 percent) and cell phones (20 percent). <br />The survey was conducted using live operator interviews through a contracted professional call center.<br />Script development and methodology used for the survey received input from Republican campaign consultant Steve Grubbs, and Democrat campaign consultant Dave Heller. <br /><br />For more on today’s announced results, please click here. Results for the gubernatorial election will be released on Tuesday, September 9, 2014, followed by results from the congressional races on Wednesday, September 10, 2014.<br /><br />The Loras College Poll is conducted several times each year. Loras College faculty and student researchers work as part of the survey research team to develop poll questions, analyze and interpret data, and assist with sharing the final results with local, regional and national media. Surveys are administered by professional, live callers through a contracted call center. <br /><br />Capitalizing on its location in the politically vital and vibrant state of Iowa, the Iowa Presidential Caucuses serves as a cornerstone of the Loras College Poll, with additional surveys focused on current events, social issues, economic issues, politics and more.<br /><br />Douglas W. Burnshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16207344249357992908noreply@blogger.com0