From the daily archives:

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Terry Branstad

Terry Branstad

Former Governor Terry Branstad says he’s “learned a valuable lesson” in the opening weeks of his campaign for a fifth term in office. 

On Saturday, November 7, Branstad made his debut on stage with the five other candidates who’re seeking the Republican Party’s 2010 gubernatorial nomination.  It did not go well.

“I know there are some that say, ‘Well, you’ve been out of politics a few years. You may have lost a few, uh, you may have lost a few, uh, uh, of your steps,’” Branstad said at the start of that speech.

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King and Braley disagree on detainees, stimulus funds

by Dar Danielson 11/18/09 5:25 PM

Congressman Steve King, a Republican from Kiron is not backing down from his comments on bringing Guantanamo Bay prisoners to an Illinois prison just across the board from Iowa, despite remarks from Democrat Congressman Bruce Braley. Braley visited the prison in Thomson, Illinois and said King’s comments were hard to take seriously because King had [...]

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Missing eastern Iowa man found

by Pat Curtis 11/18/09 5:21 PM

A man who went missing Saturday night in eastern Iowa was found today. The Benton County Sheriff’s office confirms that 22-year-old John Skalsky, Jr. was found alive, but badly injured, over the noon hour. Family, friends and strangers had been searching for him since Sunday.
Skalsky did not have a car and left his home in [...]

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Obama billboard raising controversy in Mason City

by Radio Iowa Contributor 11/18/09 5:19 PM

A billboard in downtown Mason City is sparking conversations. It features a definition of socialism, along with the phrase “Obama-Nation — Live Free or Die” and the Communist symbol of a hammer and sickle.
Mark Tlusty of Rockford is spokesman for Concerned Citizens, the group that paid around $400 to display the sign for a month. [...]

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AFSCME voting begins Thursday on union concessions that’d save 479 jobs

by O. Kay Henderson 11/18/09 1:44 PM

The more than 9,000 dues-paying members of the AFSCME union who work in the executive branch of state government will begin voting tomorrow. If a majority of the union’s members vote “yes” to ratify an “understanding” with the governor, all executive branch workers will take five unpaid days off in order to avoid 479 layoffs. Danny Homan [...]

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St. Charles race for mayor finally decided after several changes

by Radio Iowa Contributor 11/18/09 12:12 PM

The mayoral race in the south-central Iowa town of St. Charles was finally decided Tuesday — a full two weeks after election day. The initial results, on election night, showed incumbent Joan Brown defeated challenger Dennis Smith by one vote.
Afterward, an absentee ballot arrived at the county auditor’s office in favor of Smith, which bumped [...]

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Report: middle class, poor Iowans pay higher percentage of income in taxes than wealthy

by O. Kay Henderson 11/18/09 11:47 AM

According to a new report, “middle class” and poor Iowans pay far more of their income in state and local taxes than wealthy Iowans do. 
The report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy shows Iowa households with an annual income of less than $20,000 pay about 11 percent of their income in state and local [...]

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