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.
(Commentary) Answering your phone the week before caucus night in Iowa is like playing Russian Roulette, minus the possibility of a fatal head wound, of course. You never know who or what will be on the other end of the phone, but odds are in favor that the call is politically related. Those Iowans who have yet to kick into survival mode and still don’t screen their calls may find themselves ensnared by a robo-caller; a campaign volunteer; someone conducting a survey or poll; or, deity-of-your choice forbid, a push poller.
Today, I took my chances and answered the phone, and lo and behold, I found myself on the receiving end of negative-messaging survey/poll. The caller asked for me by name and asked if I would be interested in participating in a brief survey regarding the Iowa caucuses. In an attempt to disguise the negative messaging, the caller asked me if I planned on caucusing and which candidate I was caucusing for next week.
Next, she instructed me to listen to some statements about some of the candidates and whether the statements would or would not influence my vote. First she read a statement about Sen. Barack Obama’s plan for universal health care and how, according to a number of experts, it would not cover 15 percent of America’s population. To back this assertion up, she read a quote from New York Times columnist Paul Krugman:
Caller:
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