Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
President Bush acceded to Democratic urging yesterday to include labor and environmental guidelines on future trade deals, the New York Times reported:
The unusual agreement, which came after weeks of negotiations, would guarantee workers the right to organize, ban child labor and prohibit forced labor in trading-partner countries. It would also require trading partners to enforce environmental laws already on their books and comply with several international environmental agreements.
Trade has long been one of the most divisive issues in the Democratic Party. But after over a decade where free-traders seemed dominant, the tide may be turning. In the 2006 midterms, many Democrats trumpeted their opposition to free-trade agreements, especially some who the mainstream press considered conservative, like Heath Shuler. Iowans are likely divided on the issue. More from the Times:
Democrats representing the older industrial regions, where jobs have been lost because of imports of cheap textiles, shoes, machinery and other products made in Asia and Latin America, have generally been opposed to free trade deals… [On the other hand], farmers have become proponents of trade deals now that a large share of farm products are being exported. But lawmakers from farm areas have been skeptical of the administration’s record in negotiating trade pacts, insisting that they will not support them unless Europe and India open their markets.
Regardless of whether new trade deals are passed, the issue is not likely to go away anytime soon. For more on the matter, check out the dueling viewpoints of two progressive economists here.
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