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.
If you are keeping score at home, you can now scratch two potential Republican presidential candidates off your list for 2012.
Last week, U.S. Sen. John Ensign (R-Nevada) admitted an extramarital affair with a staffer.
Today, in an awkward press conference after a mysterious five-day disappearance, South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford admitted that he traveled to Argentina to carry on an affair of his own. No one — not even his wife, his staff, or his lieutenant governor — seemed to know where he was for most of his trip.
Both Ensign and Sanford had sparked speculation that they might run for the Republican nomination for president in 2012.
Ensign had recently visited Iowa to raise money for the American Future Fund, kicking off a round of stories about his chances at the nomination (admittedly, even before the affair, he was not a frontrunner).
Sanford had not made the ritual first trip to Iowa yet in advance of 2012, owing in part to the fact that he was considered a serious enough candidate that he did not need the buzz that an early stop in the Hawkeye state could fuel. Political observers in Iowa and across the country saw him as an ideal GOP primary candidate because of his apparently strong conservative credentials on both fiscal and social issues.
Though affairs are not always career-ending mistakes in politics, in the eyes of Iowa’s socially conservative Republican base, they almost certainly have a half-life of more than three years. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has reportedly eyed a presidential bid more than once since his extramarital activities came to light, but lukewarm support among social conservatives, combined with other factors, seemed to deter him.
If Sanford and Ensign ever had a chance at winning the 2012 Iowa Caucuses, it is likely over.
And, even if neither of them was really interested in running for president anyway, their value as campaign surrogates has also significantly decreased, at least for the foreseeable future. When Iowa’s Republican nominee for governor needs a keynote speaker for a fundraiser or campaign rally, there will be two fewer men to invite.
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