February 9, 2012

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Two sentenced in robbery at Congressman Boswell’s home

January 20, 2012 By

David Dewberry

Two men were sentenced to prison today for their roles in the break-in at the farm home of Congressman Leonard Boswell. Twenty-year-old David Dewberry and 19-year-old Cody Rollins admitted to going to the congressman’s rural home near Lamoni last July to rob him.

(Boswell talks about robbery)

Dewberry wore a mask and carried a B.B. gun, but fled the home after Boswell’s grandson got a shotgun and pointed it at him. Rollins drove the getaway car.

Dewberry was sentenced to no more than 25-years in prison after pleading guilty to first-degree robbery. Cody Rollins was sentenced to not more than 10 years for his guilty plea of aiding and abetting an attempted burglary.

Boswell’s wife Dody was friends with Dewberry’s mother, and the Boswell family released a statement after the sentencing directed to Dewberry.

See the statement below:

The Boswell family  impact statement:

David,
It is with heavy heart that we write this. We are pleased that you have decided to do the honorable thing by pleading guilty to your crime and accepting your punishment after committing the terror that you put our family through that summer night.

What makes the whole matter most frightful and disgusting to us is that we once welcomed you into our home. However, we will not let you or anyone else turn us into a bunch of fearful cynics – that simply isn’t in our nature and we won’t change now.

While we understand that you have had a tough and tumultuous life, it is simply no excuse and your actions have no place in a civilized society. Your sinister motives and plan were appalling; it is by God’s grace that no one was seriously injured. We hope that you realize how lucky you are that you weren’t killed that night.

All this said, we believe that God has a plan for you and this isn’t it. We hope that during your incarceration you can find peace in your life, that then you can find the virtue of good judgment, and from there find the righteous path.

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

Iowa delegation reacts to super committee’s failure

November 22, 2011 By

The reaction from Iowa’s two U.S. Senators to the “super committee’s” failure illustrates the divisions that led to the impasse. Democratic Senator Tom Harkin says Republicans doomed the deficit reduction talks by rejecting all tax increases, and even calling for new tax cuts. Republican Senator Chuck Grassley says the focus needs to be on reducing spending.

“Too many people seem to think that tax increases are a solution to this problem, but tax increases aren’t a solution because the money from higher taxes doesn’t seem to get to be used to reduced the deficit,” Grassley says, citing a study from Ohio University. “For the last 65 years, every new dollar in new tax increases has resulted in congress spending not just that $1, but $1.17.”

Grassley says with or without an agreement, federal spending has to be reduced and that includes cuts in Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Grassley also blasts President Obama for “blaming Republicans” for the super committee’s failure. ”But he doesn’t seem to engage or offer credible solutions for deficit reduction,” Grassley says.

From the other side of the partisan divide, Senator Harkin says Republicans “do not care about deficit reduction” and he says the only way to accomplish the goal is trhough “a fair mix of spending cuts and revenue increases.”

Congressman Steve King doubts the 25-percent across-the-board cuts that have been triggered will ever come to pass.

“We should remember that they don’t even start until the first day of January in 2013,” King says, “…after we have a presidential election, after a third of the members of the United States Senate are up for reelection and we have all the members of the house are up for reelection.”

Some members of congress are already talking about ways to act in 2012 to avoid the deep cuts to defense and other federal programs. King, though, suggests the decisions won’t come ’til 2013 — after the 2012 election results. 

“It’ll be a different congress and perhaps a different president that has time, then, to go in and change some of these mandatory cuts,” King says.

King made his comments during a meeting in Le Mars yesterday. Congressman Bruce Braley says, “partisan ideology is trumping common sense in Washington.” Congressman Tom Latham says Americans have a right to be frustrated by the “rampant dysfunction in Washington. Congressman Dave Loebsack says the super committee is another example of the kind of “brinksmanship” that led the country “to the edge” this summer when the government’s credit rating was downgraded.  Congressman Leonard Boswell calls it “shameful” that the super committee failed to broker a deal.

(Additional reporting by Dennis Morrice, KLEM, Le Mars)

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

Boswell: “time for us to bring our folks home” from Afghanistan

October 21, 2011 By

Congressman Leonard Boswell says he told Afghanistan’s president this past spring that American troops couldn’t stay there indefinitely. Boswell was part of a congressional delegation that visited Afghanistan in March and met the country’s president face-to-face.

“He said, clearly, that he hoped that we’d have permanent bases there,” Boswell says. “And I said, ‘I just want you to know I don’t support that. You’re at a crossroads. You’ve got a choice.”

Boswell, a retired military officer, says the U.S. has laid the groundwork for a new Afghan government.

“They’re going to have to choose, or they can go back to their tribal system,” Boswell says. “If they choose it, that’s their choice, but it’s time for us to bring our folks home.”

The decade-long Afghan War has been a “terrible cost” to the United States, according to Boswell, who served two tours of duty in Vietnam. Boswell not only opposes keeping U.S. military bases operating in Afghanistan, he wants all U.S. bases in Iraq closed down, too. President Obama announced today that nearly all U.S. troops would be out of Iraq by year’s end. It’s unclear what will happen with all the U.S. military bases there.

Boswell made his comments this morning during taping of the “Iowa Press” program which airs at 7:30 p.m. tonight on Iowa Public Television.

Other members of Iowa’s congressional delegation have issued written statements about withdrawal from Iraq.

Congressman Dave Loebsack (D-Iowa City): “First and foremost, the men and women, and their families, who bravely served in Iraq are owed a debt of gratitude and our unyielding respect and support.  Earlier this year, I wrote directly to the President to again urge him to withdraw our troops by the end of this year, and I applaud his announcement today.  It’s time for the Iraqis to take responsibility for their own country,” said Loebsack.  “We must focus on growing jobs here at home, and that includes helping our nation’s veterans find jobs when they come home.  As a member of the Armed Services Committee, I will continue to closely monitor the safety of our troops as they complete their responsible withdrawal over the coming months.”

U.S. Senator Tom Harkin (D-Cumming): “The men and women serving in our armed forces have more than succeeded in accomplishing the mission we asked them to do in Iraq. They have served honorably and heroically and they should be commended. I support the President’s decision to withdraw the remaining U.S. troops in Iraq by the end of the year.

“This misguided war has cost U.S. taxpayers more than $800 billion dollars and claimed the lives of 3,525 American service members and an untold number of soldiers who are physically and mentally injured.  The United States now has a responsibility to ensure that they receive the care they deserve.  I am pleased that U.S. involvement has come to an end in Iraq, I only regret it did not come sooner.”

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

Boswell would have preferred trial for Gaddafi

October 21, 2011 By

Congressman Leonard Boswell says the death of one of the world’s “dispicable” dictators shows the wisdom of having NATO and European nations take the lead in Libya.

President Obama has called it “leading from behind” — a statement Republican presidential candidates have ridiculed — but Boswell notes that no American soldiers died in the Libyan operation, and Muammar Gaddafi is now dead.

“I’m glad this dispicable person is no longer there. When I think about what he did at Lockerbie and so on, you know, he’s a bad person,” Boswell says. “And so they have taken it upon themselves to remove him and I wish and hope for all that I can think of that they are successful in being able to set up a democracy and the people of that country have the opportunity not to live under a dictator.”

Reports indicate Gaddafi was wounded by an air strike from a French aircraft and was later shot in the head by rebels who caught up with his convoy. By contrast, U.S. soldiers arrested former Iraq President Saddam Hussein, he was tried for his crimes and then hanged. Boswell says he would have prefered a trial for Gaddafi, but that wasn’t an option.

“This was a NATO operation…and I’m glad that we didn’t put boots on the ground, but you know we worked with our allies in NATO…and so I think that we did what we needed to do.”

Boswell is a retired military officer who served in NATO-related operations off the coast of Portugal and in Germany. Boswell says the European alliance is working and may play a growing role in conflicts on the African continent, but Boswell says it’s time to bring all U.S. troops home from both Iraq and Afghanistan — and close all U.S. military bases in those two countries.

Boswell made his comments this morning during taping of the “Iowa Press” program which airs tonight on Iowa Public Television.

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

Grassley says trade agreements will create jobs

October 13, 2011 By

Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says the free trade agreements approved Wednesday with Columbia, Panama, and South Korea will help the U.S. economy. Grassley says the National Association of Manufacturers estimates the agreements will create 100,000 jobs, the president says it will create 255,000 jobs.

Whatever the number he says they are good-paying jobs as he says jobs in exports pay about 15% above the national average. Grassley and fellow Republican congressmen Steve King and Tom Latham voted for the agreements. Democrat Senator Tom Harkin and Democrat congressmen Leonard Boswell, Dave Loebsack and Bruce Braley voted against it.

Grassley says agriculture, and especially, Iowa agriculture should benefit from the passage of the trade bills. Grassley says pork producers say the agreements will increase the cost paid by $10 per head and he says the U.S. lost a lot of market share of grain sales to Columbia. He says other countries took the market away from us.

The Democrats in the Iowa delegation say they voted against the bill because it will cause us to lose jobs. Senator Harkin says the loss in jobs outweighs the increases in agricultural trade.

By Denis Morrice, KLEM, LeMars

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

Iowa Republicans vote yes, Democrats no, on U.S. trade agreements

October 13, 2011 By

Iowa’s congressional delegation voted along party lines on the trade agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama that passed the U.S. House and Senate Wednesday. Republican Representatives Tom Latham and Steve King vote for the agreements along with Republican Senator Chuck Grassley.

Democrat Congressmen Dave Loebsack, Leonard Boswell and Bruce Braley voted “no”, as did Democrat Senator Tom Harkin. Harkin says all the estimates he has seen say the agreements will increase the trade deficit of America. “What is it we don’t get about our trade deficit,” Harkin asked.

He says the U.S. keeps making deals to “take away manufacturing jobs, increase our trade deficit” and increase the likelihood that we will borrow more money from China in the future. Harkin says the negative impacts of the agreements outweighed any increase in trade.

Harkin says the agreements will cost jobs in America, and he says it was a tough vote because the estimates say the agreements will increase agriculture exports. “And that’s beneficial obviously for the Midwest, but it’s going to decrease our manufacturing jobs in America, and that’s not good, you weigh those,” Harkin said.

Congressman Loebsack issued a statement saying,” at a time when our economy is struggling to recover, Congress should be focusing on creating jobs and promoting recovery, not threatening to ship Iowans’ jobs overseas.” And Boswell said the nation cannot allow trade agreements that only benefit big corporations at the expense of the working class.

“This shaky trade legislation is not a true job-creator,” Boswell said. “The reality is these deals put tens of thousands of jobs on the line during an especially difficult time for our country. Let us not forget the effects of previous trade agreements on our communities – the most vivid example being Newton when thousands of workers lost their jobs after the Maytag plant closure.”

Congressman Latham’s statement on the vote said: “Approval of these free trade agreements will create jobs across our state and open new markets for Iowa products and commodities. This is an important step in the right direction toward putting America back to work.”

Senator Grassley issued a statement that said in part: “Exports have an important part to play in the economic recovery effort. Private sector employers need an international trade agenda that opens new doors to sell U.S. agricultural goods, manufactured products and services. These votes in the Senate are a very important step in the right direction, but they were delayed unnecessarily for years, and the rest of the world is moving ahead without us.”

Congressman King had this to say about the agreements: “The Free Trade Agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama will provide a boost to Iowa’s economy by opening overseas markets to Iowa’s goods. “The benefits of increased trade with these countries will be particularly evident in Iowa’s agriculture sector, as these three FTA’s are expected to increase Iowa’s agriculture exports by $162 million a year and to create over 1,400 new agriculture related jobs in the state. I am pleased to support these important trade deals, and I look forward to Iowa receiving the economic benefits their enactment will provide.”

President Obama, a Democrat, supports the agreements.

(This story was updated at 11:33 to include comments from Congressman King)

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

Vilsack, Boswell tout President’s jobs bill

October 10, 2011 By

A few dozen construction workers gathered today near a bridge spanning Interstate 80 in Des Moines to show their support for President Obama’s American Jobs Act.

Bill Gerhard is president of the Iowa State Building and Construction Trades Council.

“We could be on almost any bridge in Iowa because there are 8,900 of them that are deemed structurally deficient or functionally obsolete,” Gerhard told reporters.

The American Jobs Act, among other things, would invest $50 billion in projects to rebuild roads, bridges and other transit systems around the country. Earl Agan, president of the Central Iowa Building and Construction Trades Council, says the nearly $500 million directed toward Iowa would provide work for 6,700 construction employees.

“Our grandfathers build these highways and bridges and they’re falling apart. Just let us rebuild them, let us finish the work our grandfathers did,” Agan said. Iowa Congressman Leonard Boswell, a Democrat, serves on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

“If we want our economy to pick up, we’ve got to get people back to work. It’s simple. And here’s something we have to do anyway. It has to be done. We have to take care of our infrastructure,” Boswell said. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack also spoke at today’s press conference. He said Iowa’s bridges are ranked third worst in the country.

“One out of every five bridges in this state are structurally deficient and are in need of repair. That’s twice the national average,” Vilsack said. Republicans oppose the President’s jobs bill and it’s unlikely to come up for a vote in the GOP-controlled House. Vilsack, a former Iowa governor, said Congress can’t afford to wait until after next year’s election to take action.

“This isn’t about election year, this is about putting Americans back to work,” Vilsack said. “We ought to put the national interest above political and party interest at this point. The President put this plan together and he took ideas from Democrats and Republicans. This has always been bipartisan.”

Vilsack said the package also includes payroll tax cuts, an extension of jobless benefits to help the unemployed, new tax credits for businesses that hire the longterm unemployed and additional money to help save and create jobs for teachers and first responders such as firemen.

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