Iowa Senator Joni Ernst questioned U.S. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack today on issues ranging from electric cars and ethanol to farm subsidies for billionaires during a hearing before the Senate Ag Committee. Ernst, a Republican, says it's hard to understand why the largest ten-percent of farms are … [Read more...]
Enrst says drug sniffing dogs should search all vehicles coming into U.S. from Mexico
Senator Joni Ernst says trained dogs should search every vehicle driving north through border crossings along the U.S./Mexico border -- to stop the flow of fentanyl and other illegal drugs. "Dogs are about as low tech as you can get, but they are one of the best ways to find those drugs," Ernst … [Read more...]
Iowa business owner lobbies for modernizing Small Business Administration
The owner of a Cedar Rapids business is in Washington, D.C., urging congress to modernize the Small Business Administration. Sydney Rieckhoff is the CEO of Almost Famous Popcorn, a company she co-founded with her brother 10 years ago when she was 14. "Ninety-four percent of small business owners … [Read more...]
Senator Ernst says cuts in defense spending ‘the wrong thing to do’
Republican Senator Joni Ernst says now is not the time to cut the Pentagon's budget. "We know that there are areas in our national defense where we are lagging behind," Ernst says. "If you take a look at what we call our nuclear triad, we know that we need to modernize. We are very, very far … [Read more...]
Ernst says House GOP impasse over speaker disrupting Republican agenda
Republican U.S. Senator Joni Ernst says the failure of House Republicans to elect a House Speaker could be sending the wrong message to foreign adversaries. "If they continue this, then it's disrupting what we're able to get done as members of congress. It's important than we do our work," Ernst … [Read more...]
Senator Ernst secures backing to get rid of Black Sea mines
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst says a provision in a bill the senate passed last night authorizes the U.S. military to train Ukrainian soldiers how to remove the explosives Russia's military has dumped in the Black Sea. "Reclaiming the Black Sea would be a major step forward for Ukraine's sovereignty," … [Read more...]
Ernst says, ‘I stand by my vote,’ on same-sex marriage bill
Local Republican committees in at least six Iowa counties have voted to censure U.S. Senator Joni Ernst for her vote to have the federal government recognize same-sex marriages. The move means all states must recognize same-sex marriages from other states, but Ernst said it does not force states … [Read more...]
Ernst votes for deal to block railroad strike, but blasts the move
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst has voted to block a strike by railroad workers and impose the labor agreement negotiated at the White House in September, but Ernst says she would have preferred to "keep congress out of it." Ernst, a Republican, says President Biden "could and should have done more to … [Read more...]
Iowa delegation in U.S. House votes to avert railroad strike
The four Iowans serving in the U.S. House have voted for a tentative agreement to prevent a railroad strike next week, but Congresswoman Cindy Axne was the only Iowan to vote to force the railroads to give workers paid sick days. Democrat Cindy Axne, along with Republicans Mariannette … [Read more...]
Grassley, Ernst split votes on bill to federally recognize same-sex marriages
Iowa's U.S. Senators have split their votes on legislation that would protect marriage rights for same-sex and interracial couples. The bill would grant federal recognition of same-sex and interracial marriages. Republican Senator Chuck Grassley voted against allowing the Senate to consider the … [Read more...]