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Grassley cautious about hand over of security to Iraqis

June 30, 2009 By

Explosions over Baghdad last night were fireworks, celebrating what’s being called "National Sovereignty Day’ as Iraq forces are taking over the security of several major Iraqi cities and U.S. forces begin to pull out. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says the change-over has him cautious about the situation, for fear of renewed violence.

Grassley says, "I have a little bit of concern, but less concern now because it seems like we’ve, in the last three years, had a pretty structured approach to training their troops." Four American soldiers were killed in Iraq in the past day. Grassley says the U.S. occupation of Iraq has been made more difficult by the fact we don’t have the international support like during the Persian Gulf War nearly two decades ago.

Grassley says, "When you don’t have the cooperation of a lot of other people, like we have with Japan and South Korean and all of Europe since World War Two and the Korean War, without having massive support like that, there’s a limited period of time that we can police another country."

The hand-over of security today comes as part of a U.S.-Iraqi pact. Grassley says he hopes we’ve helped to bring a better and more prosperous future to the nation of Iraq.

"Our goal is to stabilize it and hopefully we’ve done that, but you really won’t know for a while," Grassley says, "I’m glad that this is happening. A little nervous, but not too nervous." Thousands of people attended outdoor rallies overnight and sang patriotic songs.

Iraqi leaders who spoke at the celebrations said the day of "sovereignty" could not have happened without America’s help. The 2003 invasion led to the capture and ousting of former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, who was tried, convicted and put to death in 2006.

Filed Under: Military, Politics & Government Tagged With: ,

Delta to pull out of Dubuque

June 30, 2009 By

Delta Airlines has announced plans to pull out of the Dubuque Regional Airport at the end of August. Airport manager Robert Grierson says Delta became Dubuque’s second hub just one year ago. The airport’s primary carrier is American Eagle, which offers flights to O’Hare in Chicago. "Having a second hub gives our customers another option," Grierson said.

"It also leads to competition between the carriers to help keep our airfares very competitive for the region." Earlier this year, Delta announced plans to reduce capacity by 10% compared to 2008. Grierson says the airline expanded into Dubuque just as the economy started slowing down.

He says the airline has also struggled with rising fuel prices and a decline in corporate travel budgets. "Then, you toss in the merger between Northwest and Delta…between those three things, that was it," Grierson said. Over the past year, Delta has served roughly 14,000 passengers in and out of Dubuque.

Grierson says there’s still plenty of demand for additional service in Dubuque, but it’ll be difficult to attract another carrier anytime soon. "This is a very difficult time for every airline. Whether you’re American, Delta or United – they’re all in the same situation," Grierson said. "We can continue talking with air carriers, but I don’t think anybody would be interested in doing any kind of expansion in the Midwest at this time."

Filed Under: Business Tagged With:

Iowa Policy Project says extend earned income tax credit

June 30, 2009 By

An eastern Iowa think tank is pushing legislators to allow more Iowa parents with children 18 and younger to qualify for a tax break. The federal Earned Income Tax Credit is for parents who work, but have low wages.

Twenty states, including Iowa, allow parents to claim a portion of that credit on their state income taxes, too. A report from the Iowa Policy Project concludes that increasing the state credit to 15% of that federal Earned Income Tax Credit would "lift more than three-thousand Iowa families out of poverty."

According to the report, expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit helps those families rely less on public assistance, as the parents’ take-home pay goes up. An Iowa Policy Project researcher says the change would make a long term "dent" in poverty, because children raised in poverty tend to earn less as adults and tend to rely on public assistance.

 

Filed Under: Education Tagged With:

Field continues to grow for John Deere Classic

June 30, 2009 By

The list of big names who will take part in next week’s John Deere Classic near the Quad Cities continues to get longer. Steve Stricker is currently ranked seventh in the world and already has a win on the PGA Tour this year and Tom Lehman won the British Open in 1996.

Tournament director Clair Peterson says Lehman gives them 13 past major championship players in the field and he says it adds frosting to what has been a growing field of golfers.

Peterson says the addition of Stricker means four of the top 10-ranked American golfers will be in the field. Kenny Perry just won a tournament and Zach Johnson has won twice and they are the top two in the FedEx points list. Perry is the defending champ of the tournament which begins July 10th. 

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With:

Drugs shaped like cartoons haven’t hit Iowa yet

June 30, 2009 By

Drugs shaped like cartoon characters and President Obama. Street drugs shaped to look like popular cartoon characters have been showing up in places like Kansas City, but law officers say they don’t appear to be prevalent in Iowa.

The brightly colored pills are often designed to look like Homer or Bart Simpson, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Transformers or Snoopy.

Officials worry that children could mistake the dangerous drugs for vitamins or candy. Brad Thompson is the assistant director of the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement. “We’ve been very fortunate in the fact that (Iowa) has not seen some of these other national trends as it relates to marketing specifically to children or younger adults,” Thompson said.

“I mean, sure there are some things out there we may not be aware of, but as far as any trends developing, we’re not seeing those in Iowa.” Thompson says parents should always be looking for warning signs that their child might be using drugs.

“You have to look for changes in normal behavior, especially as it relates to school and social skills. Bascially, anytime you see anything unusual in your children, I think you have to look at what the cause may be,” Thompson said.

Tests conducted on the drugs turning up in Kansas City have found traces of methamphetamine and heroin, though drug dealers are marketing the pills as Ecstasy.

Some of the tablets are also shaped like President Barack Obama’s head.

Find out more about talking to kids about drugs at the Partnership for a Drug Free Iowa website .

 

 

Filed Under: Crime & Courts Tagged With:

Body found in Missouri River, identity not known

June 30, 2009 By

A body was recovered from the Missouri River last night but could not be positively identified as being that of a missing South Sioux City, Nebraska, man. Thirty-one-year-old Bruce Wright has been missing on the river following a boating accident near Salix Saturday night. Wright was ejected from a boat, along with 33-year old Oscar Gomez, also of South Sioux City.

The body was discovered by a boater around 9:30 p.m., about 11 miles downstream from where the accident occurred. It was taken to St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center to be examined and identified by the Woodbury County medical examiners office. Oscar Gomez received prop cuts to his right leg and a left hip injury and was taken Mercy Medical Center.

The two men were thrown from the bow of the boat when the operator, 32-year old Samuel Gomez, slowed down suddenly. Samuel Gomez, of Jackson, Nebraska, was charged with boating while intoxicated. The incident remains under investigation.

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters

Downtown library branch a sign of recovery for Cedar Rapids

June 30, 2009 By

The Cedar Rapids Public Library took another step toward flood recovery with a ribbon cutting ceremony Monday to mark the opening of a downtown branch. The downtown Cedar Rapids Public Library transferred its operations to a west-side mall after the flood.

Library trustee Susan McDermott says downtown workers and residents now have a convenient place to check out and return books. “The library is the people’s university. This is where everyone that’s finished with the public school system has all of the learning that they need available at their fingertips for free,” McDermott says.

Resident Mary Russell-Curran says the library’s return to downtown is an important step in recovering from the flood. Russell-Curran says,”It’s wonderful to have a downtown location. Even though this is small, it gives people who work downtown a chance to pick up books and drop them off. It’s just a convenience factor and I think it’s very good for the morale of all of the library users.”

The opening of the downtown branch comes on the heels of an announcement that a new permanent library could cost as much as $45-million dollars. It’s estimated about half that money could come from FEMA.

The state has promised some money too and the library board is seeking a tax levy increase that will likely be on November’s ballot. A new permanent location could be built downtown within two years. 

Filed Under: Fires/Accidents/Disasters, Politics & Government
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