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.
Former Iowa GOP Rep. Jim Nussle faced two positive Senate panels last week considering his nomination to be director of the Office of Management and Budget. However successful the hearings were, the vote on his nomination is still in jeopardy because of Senate negotiations with the White House over three critical fiscal year 2008 appropriations bills.
The three bills each appropriate more money than President Bush requested, and Senate Democrats are happy with those totals, while Bush has threatened to veto the three bills should they exceed spending he has deemed appropriate. Senate Democrats are hoping to use Nussle’s nomination as the upper hand in negotiations over these appropriations bills. The outcome of the Democrats’ gambit will likely be seen later this week after Democratic leadership meet with Bush at the White House.
Last Tuesday’s and Thursday’s hearings indicated that the Senate is likely to keep challenging Bush on budgetary issues during his last 18 months in office, but the senators also seemed receptive of Nussle. You can see the Senate Finance Committee’s hearing on Nussle here from C-SPAN (Real Player needed to watch video).
Iowa Sens. Tom Harkin and Chuck Grassley have both announced their intention to vote in favor of Nussle’s nomination.
Should the Senate pass on voting on Nussle’s nomination until after the August recess, Bush could offer Nussle a recess appointment to the position. That move would likely inflame tensions between Senate Democrats and Bush even more and could make Nussle’s job as budget negotiator between Congress and the executive branch even harder.
Nussle was the congressman from Iowa’s 1st Congressional District from 1994 until January 2007. He left Congress to run for governor of Iowa and lost to Democrat Chet Culver in November 2006.
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