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Harkin mystified by Republican opposition to financial reform

April 29, 2010 By

Legislation which Democrats say is designed to bring sweeping reforms to the nation’s financial industry will move forward in the U.S. Senate now as Republican opponents on Wednesday night dropped efforts to block debate on it. Iowa Senator Tom Harkin, a Democrat, says he was mystified by the Republicans’ actions.

“They were filibustering the bill because they wanted to see some changes made,” Harkin says. “Isn’t that what the amendment process is all about? We don’t have a rule here that says they can’t offer amendments. You bring a bill up and if someone’s got an idea on how to make it better, they offer the amendment. In fact, I’ve got a couple of amendments I’m going to be supporting on the bill that I think make it stronger.”

Iowa’s other U.S. Senator, Republican Chuck Grassley, says he opposes the legislation because it would lead to more government bailouts at taxpayer expense. Harkin says that’s just not the case. “This idea it’s a taxpayer (funded) bailout is just absolutely, totally false,” Harkin says. “What it was was setting up a fund that all of these institutions had to put money into. That was that $50 billion fund. It was not anything at all paid for by taxpayers.”

Grassley also disagreed with the bill’s proposed creation of a Consumer Protection Agency, claiming it would only bring more bureaucracy. Grassley says government doesn’t need to get bigger but existing agencies need to be given broader powers to be watchdogs in the financial world. Again, Harkin disagrees.

“The existing agencies have shown that they’ve got so much on their plate that they can’t do this,” Harkin says. “I am strongly in favor of a Consumer Protection Agency in the financial industry that will protect our consumers. We need somebody that’s independent that isn’t always just sitting down with the big banks and brokerage houses, but really is looking out for the consumer.”

Republicans had blocked debate on the financial overhaul bill the past three days. Senators are now beginning what’s expected to be two weeks of votes on amendments to it.

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

Iowa City police looking for shooting suspect and victim

April 29, 2010 By

Iowa City police are looking for a suspect and a victim in a shooting in the early evening Wednesday. Iowa City police were around 5:30 on a report of an armed man firing a gun several times at another man. Police investigators determined that multiple gunshots were fired and there was evidence of blood at the scene — suggesting that someone was injured.

But police say they don’t know how badly the victim was injured as he had left the scene before police arrived. The shooter also fled before officers arrived. The only description of the two is that they were black males.

A $1,000 reward is being offered by the Iowa City Area Crimstoppers for information that leads to the arrest of a suspect in this case.

Filed Under: Crime & Courts

Undercover gun, drug investigation in northwest Iowa leads to 25 arrests

April 29, 2010 By

A year and a half undercover investigation into drug and gun trafficking is over. Spirit Lake police chief Jeff Hanson says his department spearheaded the operation, code named “Operation Broken Arrow.”

An undercover agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms infiltrated what’s described as a large network of drug and gun traffickers in the Iowa Great Lakes region. Twenty five people, whose names are not being released yet,  are charged with over 50 felony counts.

Hanson says officials have seized one vehicle, cash, guns, marijuana, cocaine, crack cocaine and ecstasy. Authorities say the investigation was ended when one of the defendants hired the undercover ATF agent to violently assault and disfigure a local man. The intended victim wasn’t hurt and is in federal protective custody.

Fifteen local, state and federal agencies helped Spirit Lake with the investigation.

By Mark Bruggom, KICD, Spencer

Filed Under: Crime & Courts

Wind advisories in place, severe weather a possibility

April 29, 2010 By

Wind advisories are in effect today as winds are expected to gust over 40 miles-an-hour. National Weather Service meteorologist Roger Valhollek says the winds will warm things up, but the warm temperatures will lead to some severe weather. He says a rather unusually strong storm system for spring will move into the midwest tonight in a couple of pieces.

Volhollek says the first piece tonight will bring strong thunderstorms to western and northern Iowa. He says the severe weather threat will still be over the central portion of the state, with the severe weather most likely in the central and eastern counties. Iowa has seen very few tornadoes so far this spring, but Valhollek says that could change tonight.

Volhollek says there’s the potential for isolated tornadoes in the east and southeast tomorrow afternoon and tonight in the southern and far western counties. He says large hail and damaging winds would be the greater threat from these storms. Things should begin to calm down for the weekend with highs mainly in the 60′s to low 70′s to welcome the month of May.

By Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City

Filed Under: Weather

U-I Hospitals search for cause of missed billing

April 29, 2010 By

University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics administrators told the State Board of Regents Wednesday they’re working to find the “root cause” of missing some $11-million in patient billings. University Hospitals internal auditor Deb Johnston took a closer look because heart patient numbers were steady, but revenue was dropping.

She says they looked at three days in October and found that 47% of the procedures were not billed. After spotting the oversights patients or their insurance companies were billed, and hospital administrators still checking to see if patients receiving other services weren’t charged.

The Board of Regents also gave hospital administrators permission to go ahead with purchasing land -and other planning for a $52-million clinic project called River Landing. U-I vice president Jean Robillard says it is on a fast track.

He says they plan to open the River Landing in May of 2012. The Regents also approved a 6%  University Hospitals rate increase that will take effect July 1st.

Filed Under: Health & Medicine Tagged With:

Governor signs concealed weapons law

April 29, 2010 By
Govenror Culver signs the gun bill as law officers look on.

Governor Culver signs the gun bill as law officers look on.

Members of the National Rifle Association and a handful of sheriffs were on hand this morning as Governor Culver signed a bill into law which sets a statewide standard for issuing permits to Iowans who want to carry a concealed weapon.

The Iowa Sheriffs and Deputies Association had opposed the bill, but Cedar County Sheriff Warren Wethington made the trip to Des Moines today as a show of support for the new law.

“There was some tension and there will be, but after a year has passed and there hasn’t been any problems, it will all be forgotten,” Wethington says. Sheriffs will now have to submit their reasons, in writing, if they deny a concealed weapon permit, and the applicant can appeal that decision.

[Read more...]

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

Davenport man accused of using fake money for jail bail

April 29, 2010 By

A Davenport man is accused of trying to pass a bogus bill at the Scott County Courthouse. He went to the courthouse last week to bail a buddy out of the county jail, but 35-year-old Yancy Cochran ended up facing charges himself, for forgery.

The Quad City Times is reporting that Cochran gave a courthouse clerk 300 bucks in $50 bills April 21st to spring a friend who was in jail for unpaid parking tickets. But one of the 50′s was counterfeit.

Deputies didn’t have any trouble rounding Cochran up later on. He had gone to jail himself last Sunday night on unrelated assault and harassment charges. Deputies say Cochran admitted making the counterfeit bill at his house.

By Phil Roberts, Davenport

Filed Under: Crime & Courts
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