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.
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The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
DES MOINES — Wednesday’s “tea party” protest at the state capitol did not actually involve much tea, but it gave a wide variety of conservative constituencies a soapbox to voice their concerns.
The crowd, numbering around 700 people, brandished placards of all kinds, ranging in subjects from immigration to global warming to the Federal Reserve. One moment, the crowd was chanting “Let Us Vote,” the mantra of same-sex marriage opponents in Iowa. The next, they were booing a proposal to eliminate Iowans’ ability to deduct federal income taxes from state income taxes.
Many attendees wore t-shirts with slogans from talk show host Glenn Beck and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul’s failed 2008 bid for the Republican presidential nomination, but there were few footprints of the state’s elite GOP establishment. Elected officials were few in number, and the crowd seemed less interested in boosting any party or candidate than they were in simply “throwing the bums out.”
Despite the lack of involvement from the party establishment, the event did seem thoroughly planned. Organizers scheduled brief speeches from everyday Iowans who had complaints about their elected officials, and time limits were enforced. There was a large, plywood sign labeled “Declaration of Independence,” to which protesters were encouraged to affix their names.
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