January 28, 2012

You are here: Home / 2009 / Archives for April 2009

Wariner wins, Lolo injured at Drake Relays

April 27, 2009 By

The 100th Drake Relays concluded with some impressive performances despite the rainy and chilly conditions. Two-time world champion Jeremy Wariner opened his outdoor season by winning the special invitational 400 in a time of 45.06 seconds.

Wariner says he was glad to be back at Drake despite the conditions. Wariner says he went to the Penn Relays last year to see what it was like and missed Drake. He says the fans at Drake always support you. Wariner says earlier in the week the weather was supposed to be in the 70′s and it didn’t turn out that way, but Wariner says he enjoyed himself.

It as a rough day for Iowa native Lolo Jones who suffered a hamstring injury while running the 100 hurdles and could not finish the race. A total of 12 records were broken during the meet.

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: ,

Gay marriage opponents make "last-ditch" effort today

April 27, 2009 By

Iowa Family Policy Center director Chuck Hurley talks with supporters at Polk County Administration Building. A prayer vigil was held at the Des Moines County Courthouse in Burlington this morning by those who oppose gay marriage.

 But in Des Moines at the Polk County Courthouse — a sort of epicenter for the debate since the court ruling which legalized gay marriage involved Polk County’s Recorder — there was no prayer vigil.

Iowa Family Policy Center director Chuck Hurley emerged from the recorder’s office shortly before eight o’clock to say he’d delivered "several thousand" petition signatures which urged the recorder to refuse to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples.

"We read the petition to the county recorder and they also understood that we would provide free legal defense if they would adopt the conscience clause and if they refuse to issue based on their right of conscience which has been recognized since before the Declaration of Independence in this country," Hurley told reporters.

The Polk County Recorder is issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples today. Hurley believes at least one of Iowa’s 99 county recorders may refuse to issue same-sex marriage licenses, however.

"I mean, we’ve heard from several county recorders, one of whom said that they were planning to resign. It’s a hard decision. We’ll see. It’s a hard decision. I told them that they need to make that public — they were asking for legal consultation," Hurley said. "We told them that they’ll defend them."

Hurley spoke briefly with two women who were there outside the building, each clutching several pages of petition signatures, urging the Polk County Recorder to refuse to issue same-sex marriage licenses. Julie Holthaus of Ankeny brought signatures from those who attend the Word of Victory Outreach Center in Ankeny.

"My pastor just wanted us to just take a stand for what we believe," Holthaus says. "God teaches in the Bible that marriage is between a man and a woman."

Hurley — of the Iowa Family Policy Center — told reporters that is a "truth" which is "uncomfortable" for the rest of the pro-gay marriage crowd who’d gathered outside the county courthouse this morning.

"This is about way more than recorders. This is about millions of Iowans being forced to accept something that they don’t believe in," Hurley said, and the woman standing beside him added an "Amen" to punctuate the point. "And so what do we the people do about our right of conscience? We petition the county recorders, kind of last-ditch effort. And then, where do we go from here? We ask, simply, for the right to vote."

Hurley’s group is among those pressing legislators to set the wheels in motion for a statewide vote on a constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage. The earliest such an amendment could be placed before voters is 2011 — if Iowans vote in 2010 to hold a constitutional convention. If that route is not taken, 2012 is the earliest a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage could be placed on the Iowa ballot.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts, Politics & Government Tagged With: , , ,

Flood warnings posted in several counties

April 27, 2009 By

Flood warnings are posted for some three-dozen counties across Iowa this morning after heavy rain most of the weekend. Severe storms also brought at least one tornado to eastern Iowa on Sunday afternoon. Jeff Johnson, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service, says flooding may worsen by midweek.

Most of the flood warnings are the result of the widespread weekend rain which is expected to impact rivers and streams, especially across central and eastern Iowa over the next couple of days. Johnson says virtually all of the state got at least some rain since Friday, with some areas getting many more inches of than others.

Weekend rainfall totals for some areas exceed six inches in the northeast, including parts of Marshall and Black Hawk counties, while heavy rain also fell in the southwest, over Cass and Guthrie counties. At least one tornado hit Linn, Delaware and Dubuque counties late Sunday afternoon, downing trees and power lines, damaging several farmsteads and destroying R-Vs parked at a Central City campground. No injuries are reported. Johnson notes that parts of Colorado, including Denver, are seeing snow this morning.

"That’s one of the reasons why we have this weather," he says. "You get the clash of the air masses in the spring months. You get all that instability and atmospheric energy and it all produces the thunderstorm activity we’ve seen." Johnson says much of Iowa may see a break from the clouds tomorrow (Tuesday) but more rain is expected by Wednesday and on toward the weekend. He adds, it shouldn’t get cold enough in Iowa for any snowfall. 

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters, Weather

Gay couples line up to get marriage licenses

April 27, 2009 By

Reporters interview gay couples waiting at the Polk County Administration Building. Today is the first day that gay couples can apply for marriage licenses in Iowa and around one dozen gay couples lined up at the Polk County administration building just before six o’clock this morning waiting for the doors to open.

Andrew Mahoney-Lamb and his partner Grant Lamb were the first in line, but didn’t plan it that way.

“No, we figured there’d be a lot of people here, so we figured we’d show up early and try to beat the rush,” Mahoney-Lamb says. Mahoney-Lamb talked his feelings about the wait. “Anxious, I just want to get it over with and have the piece of paper in my hand to show me that it’s actually true,” he says. Lamb says it’s important to them to see the license.

“Definately once that paper is signed, it’s sealed, then the reality will hit. That’s really what we’re waiting for, the seal from the recorder that says it’s all true,” Lamb says. The two say they’ve been a “couple” for three years and had a commitment ceremony a year ago. Ingrid Olson and Reva Evans waited in line with their son Jamison.

“You know walking up the stairs today, I mean, I got a big pit in my stomach,” Olson says. “I got a big smile on my face,” Evans says, “and it was just like, like I didn’t expect it, it was pretty powerful, it was just a great feeling.” Olson and Evans had tried to get a license four years ago, and were one of the couples who challenged Iowa’s gay marriage ban after being denied.

Olson says they have to reapply and there are couples who have their money in escrow who apply in 2007, but she says when they applied they were told marriage was between one man and one woman and the recorder wouldn’t accept their fee. Some couples applied for licenses in 2007 after a Polk County judge declared the state marriage ban unconstitutional, and then those cases were put on hold as the case was appealed to the Supreme Court.

Ingrid Olson, Reva Evans and son Jamison. At least two of the couples in line today were from out of state. Chris Tabor drove in from Jefferson City, Missouri with his partner Rusty Warning.

“We’ve been together for nine years — and for us when we heard the news — it was just a matter of planning the arrangement and coming up to Des Moines and getting it taken care of,” Tabor. Warning says it was an easy decision once they heard the Iowa Supreme Court Decision.

He says it was an instantaneous decision and the only question then was when they would be able to get off work to come to Iowa. Their marriage won’t be recognized back in Missouri, but Tabor says they don’t care. Tabor says,”It matters to us, that’s really why we are doing it. And we’re glad to see a state in the midwest do this, so we’re really happy about it.”

Both say they doubt Missouri will allow gay marriages anytime soon and both said they don’t care to lead the fight for gay marriage in their home state.

The law requires any couple who get a marriage license to wait three days before getting married, but they can request a waiver. 

Filed Under: Politics & Government Tagged With:

Gay couples ready to get marriage licenses today

April 27, 2009 By

Patrick Phillipps and Denny Schrock Same-sex couples will be allowed to legally marry in Iowa for the first time today following a landmark ruling from the Iowa Supreme Court earlier this month.

County courthouses statewide are expected to be much busier than normal as gay and lesbian couples rush to get marriage licenses and tie the knot.

Des Moines resident Denny Schrock and his partner plan to be at the Polk County Courthouse as soon as it opens. "I think it’s a wonderful day for Iowa and a wonderful day for equality," Schrock says.

The 55-year-old magazine editor says he and his soon-to-be-spouse, Patrick Phillips, will go from the courthouse to their church where the minister who united them in a religious service three years ago will repeat the process.

Then, he says, they’ll head back to the courthouse in downtown Des Moines to be among the first gay couples in Iowa to have their marriage license registered. Aside from the romantic implications of being united through a wedding ceremony, Schrock says the legal ramifications are also important — especially when it comes to things like death and taxes.

"It affects us in a number of ways, not the least of which is taxes, when we can file jointly or separately and the sort of deductions we can take," Schrock says. "It also affects us as far as our ability to visit each other in the hospital."

Once the state recognizes their partnership, should one of them fall seriously ill, the other will be able to make end-of-life decisions, something that would have likely taken a legal battle before the April 3rd state Supreme Court decision.

The state has issued an order that county recorders follow the court’s mandate, though some county recorders reportedly vow to resign rather than to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples. It’s expected Iowa’s most populous county, Polk, will be the busiest of the state’s 99 county courthouses today. Schrock and his partner are prepared for a wait.

"We do rather anticipate that there will be a line," Schrock says. "I don’t expect thousands but maybe dozens of people there waiting to take advantage of this opportunity. I know many, many people have been waiting a long time for this."

Opponents of gay marriage are in the process of launching an effort that would bring about an amendment to the state constitution banning the practice. Schrock says there’s concern for a repeat of what happened in California, but he hopes the effort to overturn the same-sex unions in Iowa is diffused.

"Once the marriage equality is in process, people will see that their world does not dramatically change," Schrock says. "The change really only occurs for those couples who are finally able to have marriage equality and we believe Iowans are very fair-minded and will understand and realize that this really is a matter of equality for all."

Lambda Legal plans to have observers at some two-dozen county recorders’ offices in Iowa today, though officials with the group say no trouble is anticipated. The Chicago-based firm was at the center of the lawsuit that resulted in the state high court’s ruling that the Iowa law which proclaimed marriage is only between a man and a woman is unconstitutional.  

Filed Under: Politics & Government

"Are we done?" Yes, the ’09 legislative session is history

April 26, 2009 By

The 2009 Iowa Legislature adjourned for the year after two marathon workdays that started Friday morning and concluded Sunday morning just before dawn. 

It was sometime around four o’clock Sunday morning when House Democratic Leader Kevin McCarthy of Des Moines started to share some closing thoughts with fellow legislators.

"It’s very, very — can’t say late. It’s very early in the morning," McCarthy said, with a laugh.

But a few minutes later, the partisan sniping resumed. Representative Scott Raecker, a Republican from Urbandale, complained about the spending plan Democrats developed and which got final approval in the wee hours of Sunday morning.

"I’ve heard it since I was a teenager from my father, that nothing good happens after midnight," Raecker said.

Shortly after five o’clock Sunday morning, the House concluded its work. House Speaker Pat Murphy, a Democrat from Dubquue, bid his colleagues good-bye

"And now after 103 days, or maybe it’s 104, it’s time for us to go back to our families and our other life outside the legislature," Murphy said.

The action shifted, then, to the senate. Senator Bob Dvorsky and a key senate staffer searched on Dvorsky’s laptop for an electronic version of the proposal that had just passed the House. "Is this it?" Dvorsky asked, as some senators laughed. Others milled about — trying to stay awake by staying on their feet. Senator Dick Dearden, a Democrat from Des Moines, was unhappy the bill tampered with hunting and fishing license fees.

"Can we hold on just a couple of seconds here?" Dearden asked. "I’d like to at least put a pencil to these numbers here and make sure they’re correct."

After a brief interlude, the senate finally passed the final bill of the 2009 session. It was just before six o’clock on Sunday when Senate Democratic Leader Mike Gronstal made the parliamentary move which ended the session.

"I would just like to thank all of the staff for their cooperation. I would say you can take most of the day off, after you finish your work," Gronstal said, to groans.

After two days and 38 work-hours of debating and waiting for the final deals to be struck, Senate President Jack Kibbie seemed surprised.

"Are we done?" Kibbie asked a staffer.

Kibbie then quickly offered this: "The chair would like to take this opportunity to thank everybody for their patience. It’s been wonderful working with you. Have a great summer."

After 15 weeks, those were the final "official" words of the 2009 legislative session.

AUDIO: Henderson report MP3 2 min

Filed Under: Politics & Government Tagged With: , ,

2009 Legislature sets aside nearly $500 million in flood recovery, prevention

April 26, 2009 By

Lawmakers involved in crafting the flood-related proposals which were passed by the 2009 Iowa Legislature believe nearly half a billion dollars in state spending has been committed to flood recovery and projects to prevent future flooding.

Senator Rob Hogg, a Democrat from Cedar Rapids, unsuccessfully pushed for a special legislative session last fall to respond to the disaster, but he’s pleased with the work legislators produced over the past 15 weeks.

"I think we have laid the groundwork for a very strong recovery from the disasters of 2008," Hogg says. "And I also think we’ve done a lot to make sure that the type of damage that happened in 2008 never happens again in the state."

For one thing, legislators set aside over a million dollars to establish an Iowa Flood Center at the University of Iowa. Another proposal requires 87 communities that flooded last year and another 31 that are on or near a flood plain to develop a flood prevention plan. Senator Pam Jochum, a Democrat from Dubuque, says that’s a key hurdle that must be cleared before residents in those 118 communities can get National Flood Insurance.

"It’s very much future oriented, to try and prevent flooding in the future," Jochum says, "and just as importantly to try to make sure that taxpayers aren’t continually footing the bill for damages caused by floods."

But to respond to the 2008 flooding, the State of Iowa will be spending a good chunk of taxpayer dollars to, among other things, rebuild fire stations in Palo, Elkader and Charles City; repair a railroad bridge in Waterloo; and provide millions to private citizens for repairs to their flood-wrecked homes. Tax credits will be advanced to help spur construction of apartment buildings and help bankroll renovation of historic properties in flood-ravaged cities.

The first flood-related bill to clear the 2009 legislature set aside $56 million for the state’s JumpStart program which provides grants to homeowners and businesses hit by flooding. House Republican Leader Kraig Paulsen of Hiawatha calls that the high-water mark of the year.

"While we started off extremely well in a bipartisan manner working on the disaster relief bill, some of that kind of fizzled and I’m not so sure we couldn’t have done more for those thousands of Iowans who still can’t sleep in their own bed at night," Paulsen says.

Paulsen and other Republicans have expressed concern about borrowing for disaster-related spending. Senator Steve Kettering, a Republican from Lake View, is a banker.

"Throughout the session, we have offered pay-as-you-go methods to handling the budget process, especially in light of the amount of federal money that’s coming down to Iowa," Kettering says.

But Senate Democratic Leader Mike Gronstal of Council Bluffs argues record flooding left the state no choice but to borrow money.

"We’re not going to do what Louisiana did and leave New Orleans in swamps. We’re not going to do that," Gronstal said this weekend during an impassioned speech on the senate floor. "We’re going to make sure we recover from last summer’s disasters, help our communities fix themselves up, pull themselves up and build a new future."

Check out The Blog for more details on the flood-related spending approved by the 2009 Iowa Legislature.

 

Filed Under: Agriculture, Business, Fires/Accidents/Disasters, Politics & Government, Weather Tagged With: , , , , ,
« Older Posts
Newer Posts »