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.
Louisana Gov. Bobby Jindal told recently flood-ravaged Cedar Rapidians of his experiences during the Louisiana hurricanes. By and large, Jindal left politics at the door.
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal told the press not to read anything into his first trip to Iowa, and, in a Saturday morning presentation in Cedar Rapids, the Republican kept his focus on one thing: flood recovery.
But while the possible contender for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012 avoided much explicit talk of politics, his speech heavily emphasized his conservative ideology.
Jindal warned Iowans and other Americans facing recovery after a natural disaster not to depend on government agencies.
“Simply, people matter more than regulations and red tape,” Jindal said to the roughly 200 people in attendance at the flood recovery meeting. The audience, many many of whom operate businesses that were devastated or damaged by the June floods, answered with applause.
“Whenever there is a decision that has to be made between a well-intentioned government regulation and the immediate needs of people, always side with people,” said Jindal, who was elected governor in 2007, after his state was ravaged by Hurricane Katrina and a poor government response in the storm’s aftermath.
After telling a story of how a sheriff in Louisiana had to battle bureaucracy to continue rescuing people following a hurricane, Jindal summarized: “You don’t succeed by waiting for FEMA to tell you what to do. You tell them what you need. We didn’t want for the federal government to tell us what to do. We had a game plan.”
Jindal warned those facing recovery in Iowa that the end comes long after “the national press has moved on to the next thing,” and that the best thing public officials could do is to communicate with citizens throughout the recovery process.
“Transparency inspires confidence, and confidence promotes cohesion,” he said.
In his next breath, Jindal turned back to the overall theme of government response being less adequate than private sector alternatives.
“The government is crucial, but the private sector is too,” he said. “In too many instances, in many instances, a motivated private entity can move faster than a public entity. As leaders we need to enable that to happen.”
Jindal gave several examples of how companies, nonprofits and other entities were able to help in Louisiana in the days, weeks and months following the hurricanes. He also discussed unkept promises by government agencies.
“I’m not here to beat up on our federal partners,” Jindal said. “Look, we’ve got to acknowledge that their response was better in 2008 than it was in 2005, and we certainly hope it will be better next time there is a disaster whether that is in Louisiana or Iowa or another state. It’s not about pointing fingers. It’s not about saying they didn’t get it done, or this one didn’t get it done. It’s about making sure that you are adaptable and you are flexible. … You’ve got to be ready to partner with the private sector, with the faith-based groups and with others,” he continued.
“At the end of the day, your people really don’t care whether it is a FEMA-delivered MRE or whether it is an American Cross-cooked hot meal. All they really want to know is how they can get some help to get back on their feet so they can rebuild their lives.”
Jindal said early in his speech that as soon as the floods hit, he called Iowa Gov. Chet Culver. “When you faced flooding, I immediately called your governor to offer our assistance. I know that our recovery authority talked with your rebuilding organization.”
He closed his comments by saying that “sometimes it is better to ask for forgiveness, not permission — especially when dealing with federal bureaucracy.”
“It wouldn’t be enough to come and tell you about our response to the storms without telling you how impressed I am with our people,” he said. “… I think the true heroes in these storms — it’s not the government. It’s not the federal government, state government or local government. It’s really our people.”
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