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USDA deputy tours flood damage along Missouri River

June 23, 2011 By

A top federal official has been touring damage to farms from the flooding along the Missouri River in Iowa, Missouri and Nebraska. Karis Gutter is the U.S.D.A. Farm and Foreign Service Acting Deputy Under Secretary. Prior to a meeting with residents of Hamburg on Wednesday, Gutter took an aerial tour of the farmland buried under water.

“We saw a fairly new grain bin that was being overrun by water and it turned over right in front of our eyes,” Gutter said. “So, what we saw was some farmer’s livelihood – not floating away on the river, but floating on their farm.” The U.S.D.A. has compiled preliminary estimates about the extent of damage to crops from the flooding.

“We’ve run quick numbers on the inundation areas and the crop land acres. In Iowa, we’ve got somewhere upwards of 300,000 acres in the impact area,” Gutter said. Another 130,000 acres in Missouri and 120,000 acres in Nebraska are impacted by the floodwaters. Gutter helps oversee two key USDA agencies that can assist with the recovery.

He says federal crop insurance policies will protect farmers who have losses due to the floods.

By Dan Skelton, KICD, Spencer

Filed Under: Agriculture, Fires/Accidents/Disasters

Debate over governor’s emergency powers

June 23, 2011 By

A legislator who is also a lawyer suggests there will be a “constitutional crisis” in Iowa if the legislature doesn’t approve a new state budget by June 30.

Governor Branstad has said he has a plan in his head to keep state government operating past that date, but House Democratic Leader Kevin McCarthy says Branstad appears to be claiming executive powers that don’t exist.

“The governor only has his so-called ‘broad powers’ that he’s been advocating for natural disasters such as floods or fires…or for civil unrest such as looting and rioting,” McCarthy says. 

[Read more...]

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

Bachmann wants to take “Iowa voice” to White House (audio)

June 23, 2011 By

Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann will kick off her campaign for the White House with a homecoming event in a northeast Iowa dance hall. 

Bachmann lived in Waterloo until she was in the sixth grade and she has stressed her Iowa roots in political appearances in Iowa over the past two years. Bachmann’s inviting the public to the Electric Park Ballroom on the National Cattle Congress fairgrounds in Waterloo this Sunday for a campaign event, staged on the eve of her formal entry into the presidential race.

“This has a great deal of memories for me,” Bachmann said of the venue.  “As a young girl we went to the Cattle Congress every year as a family and my parents, while they were dating and after they were married, often danced at the Electric Park Ballroom, so this is a great, wonderful memory. I’ll be joined by family and friends. And this is an event that we are inviting all of Iowa to attend.”

Bachmann will deliver a formal campaign “announcement” speech on Monday morning in Waterloo.  

“I want to be there to recognize and thank the people of Iowa for everything they have given to me and in particular their morals, their values, their character qualities because that has served me throughout my life,” Bachmann said this morning during a telephone conference call. “…It’s guided me as a mother, as a businesswoman, as a tax lawyer, as a foster parent. It’s guided me as a member of congress and those values will guide me as president of the United States.”

Bachmann will visit New Hampshire and South Carolina next week before returning to campaign in Iowa over the 4th of July weekend. 

“This is an Iowan who wants to take an Iowa voice to the White House,” Bachmann said. “It’s historic and I would like Iowa to be a part of this and come along with me on this journey.”

Bachmann also announced this morning that she plans to participate in the Iowa Republican Party’s Straw Poll this August.

Listen to Bachmann speak with Iowa reporters: BachmannCall

Filed Under: Politics & Government Tagged With: ,

An appeal for divine intervention

June 23, 2011 By

Two key legislative leaders are expressing optimism about the prospect for striking an agreement on the state budget and avoiding a state government shut-down.

House Speaker Kraig Paulsen, a Republican from Hiawatha, expects the legislature to wrap up its work next week, just before the next state budgeting year begins on Friday, July 1.

“We’re running out of time and there’s not a whole lot of margin for error,” Paulsen says. 

House Democratic Leader Kevin McCarthy of Des Moines senses a shift in momentum on budget negotiations.

“I do feel things are moving in a positive direction,” McCarthy says.

Representative Mark Lofgren of Muscatine made an appeal for divine intervention as he delivered the opening prayer in the House today.

“Please allow us to come to agreement soon,” Lofgren prayed. “Thanks so much. Amen.”

The House speaker says he’s “more than happy” to accept that kind of help after 170 days of discord over the state budget.  Small groups of legislators are meeting throughout today to bargain over details in the state budget plan. All 100 members of the House have been told to return to Des Moines on Monday to give final legislative approval to budget bills.

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

Closing arguments expected in Swanson trial

June 23, 2011 By

Closing arguments are expected today in the Michael Swanson convenience store murder trial after the prosecution finished presenting its case on Wednesday. The defense called one witness Wednesday, Swanson’s mother Kathy, who testified about the troubles Michael has been in since he was three.

She said he was diagnosed with A-H-D and a conduct disorder and began taking a series of medications that Mrs. Swanson says didn’t really work. The troubles continued for Michael, who admitted to his mother that he had thought about hurting his grandma and aunt at times because he was upset with them.

Mrs. Swanson said on the weekend prior to the November 15th shooting Michael appeared to be good and she hoped he had turned the corner. But on the morning of the 15th she found Michael missing along with her jeep and debit cards and said she knew something bad was going to happen.

During cross examination Mrs. Swanson admitted to talking to her son after his arrest about bi-polar disorder and his need to see a psychiatrist. When asked by the prosecutor if she had spent 18 years trying to keep Michael out of trouble, she said yes.

By Jeff Blankman, KCIM, Carroll

Filed Under: Crime & Courts

Harkin says President’s troop withdrawal plan not enough

June 23, 2011 By

Iowa Senator Tom Harkin says the plan to bring U.S. troops home from Afghanistan which President Obama outlined Wednesday isn’t nearly aggressive enough. Harkin, a Democrat, says America’s goals in that country have largely been met and it’s time for a more rapid withdrawal. He says the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost one-point-two trillion dollars, while 120-billion will be spent this year just in Afghanistan.

“And yet we’re told we can’t afford to invest in education in our country,” Harkin says. “We can’t afford to rebuild our highways, bridges, roads, things like that. We’ve gotta’ slash Medicaid for the poor. We’ve gotta’ cut Pell grants, and on and on, yet we can spend $120-billion dollars in Afghanistan.” Harkin says the primary reasons the U.S. went into Afghanistan are complete, quoting former President Bush, it’s mission accomplished.

“We went to Afghanistan to get bin Laden, to dismantle al Qaeda and to push the Taliban out of power,” Harkin says. “Bin Laden’s dead, al Qaeda is strong outside of Afghanistan and the Taliban is no longer in control. Why do we need to keep 90,000 troops there?” The president’s plan calls for 10,000 troops leaving Afghanistan by year’s end, another 33,000 leaving by September of 2012, and the remaining 66,000 pulling out by the end of 2014. Harkin says it’s time to re-think, in his words, “the so-called War on Terror.”

“We need to get out of these large-scale conflicts and refocus our efforts on smaller operations, intelligence gathering, law enforcement and cooperating with our allies,” Harkin says. “It looks like we’re going to have, at least through next summer, over 90,000 troops left in Afghanistan. That’s just unacceptable.”

The American deployment in Afghanistan currently includes 2,800 members of the Iowa National Guard.

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

Granstand seats almost sold out for Iowa Corn Indy 250

June 23, 2011 By

Only a few tickets remain for Saturday night’s Iowa Corn Indy 250. It is the fifth straight year the Iowa Speedway has hosted the event.

Iowa Speedway president Jerry Jauron says they have a limited number of grandstand tickets and then they will sell standing room only tickets once the grandstand seats are gone.

The race will cap a busy weekend at the speedway where there are six races over three days. This year’s Iowa Corn Indy 250 will be a first for the track. It’s the first time they have had the race under the lights and he says everyone is stoked for the race.

Jauron says it was the first Iowa Corn Indy 250 back in 2007 that put the Iowa Speedway on the map across the country and worldwide.

Filed Under: Sports
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