Vilsack says no to dove hunting season

Governor Tom Vilsack’s hint about his decision on the dove-hunting bill has turned into a promise. Vilsack last night issued a veto message — promising to strike down the dove-hunting bill which cleared the legislature. Joe Shannahan, a spokesman for the Governor, says legislators should turn their attention away from dove hunting to more important issues, like teacher pay and child protection.Shannahan says the Governor does not expect legislators to re-visit the dove-hunting bill again anytime soon. He says, “If this is the most important issue facing the people of Iowa, and funding for people’s kids going to school, funding for universities or reducing abuse in the state is a lesser issue to republicans, I think most Iowans would be appalled.”The formal copy of the dove hunting bill hasn’t reached Vilsack’s desk yet, so having him issue a formal veto message last night came as a surprise to some legislators, like Senator Mike Sexton of Rockwell City. Sexton isn’t sure there’s any political fall-out to the Governor, or to legislators like himself who supported dove hunting. He says on any issue you have the extremes on both ends. Sexton believes there’s a “hug group of people in the middle that we didn’t hear from.” He says lawmakers don’t know what those people in the middle are thinking’.”Sexton says there’s no plan to bring the issue up again this year.