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.
A proposed change to the Iowa Democratic Party’s constitution that would allow the party’s nominee for governor to select the lieutenant governor undermines the democratic process, the woman hoping to replace Lt. Gov. Patty Judge on the ticket told The Iowa Independent Saturday.
Barb Kalbach, a fourth-generation family farmer from Dexter, announced earlier this year that she would ask Democrats at the party’s state convention Saturday to vote for her to replace Judge on the Democratic gubernatorial ticket this fall. She began asking delegates for their support at county and district conventions, but last month the party announced it would change the rules to keep delegates from choosing the running mate, allowing them only to ratify the governor’s choice.
“That gives one person the power,” Kalbach said.
Most delegates are unaware of the change, she said, so Kalbach has spent most of the early hours of the IDP convention trying to educate them on the issue.
“Once the rank-and-file delegates hear about this, they are absolutely opposed,” she said. “But most don’t know.”
The change would make a challenge like hers impossible, Kalbach said.
Voting on the amendment is currently taking place.
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