State Rep. Rod Roberts, R-Carroll (file photo)

Roberts said an interview that he was officially out of the race for the House District 51 seat he’s held a stranglehold on for a decade. He’s now completely focused on the Republican primary for governor and a series of debates set to begin April 7 in Sioux City. Roberts is also scheduled to be the guest on public television’s “Iowa Press” on April 16.

“I’m all in,” Roberts said. “The risk is well worth the taking.”

Roberts is the least known of the three candidates now seeking the Republican nomination for a run at Democratic Gov. Chet Culver.

Former Gov. Terry Branstad served in that capacity for four terms, and Sioux City businessman Bob Vander Plaats is a leading conservative and was the party’s 2006 candidate for lieutenant governor. Roberts also has the smallest geographic base from which to launch his campaign, and he trails Branstad and Vander Plaats in fundraising.

All of that said, Roberts, who has been traveling the state since last summer, said there’s a hungering among GOP primary voters for a third option, a new voice.

“You’re 52 years old and the opportunity comes along,” Roberts said. “There are just too many interesting dynamics among the electorate to rule out a surprise candidate doing well.”

With Roberts out the big local political question remains: Who will run to succeed Roberts, a highly popular legislator?

One Republican, 41-year-old Joel Pawletzki of Carroll, an employee at Graddy’s tomato operation and a hospital dietician worker, has indicated an intention to run as a Republican for the House seat. But local Republican leaders say they are talking to possible other candidates as well.

“We’ve been meeting with them for the last several nights,” said Craig Williams of Manning, the Carroll County Republican Party’s chairman.

Williams, an ag-businessman who has long been active in GOP politics, has considered running himself but ruled it out.

“The timing is not right,” he said, citing business commitments.

Williams sees 2010 as a big year for Republicans, and wants to make sure a Republican is along for the ride in House District 51 which includes all of Carroll County and parts of Crawford County and Sac County.

“It’s a Republican season,” Williams said. “I think the momentum is on our side at the moment.”

At the same time, registered Democratic voters far out-number Republicans in Carroll County — the dominant geography in the district.

“Do I think it’s a safe Republican seat? Of course not,” Williams said.

As of March 1, there were 5,114 Democrats and 3,092 Republicans. Independents accounted for 6,608 registered voters in the county.

“I know the state Democratic Party is calling around,” said Carroll County Auditor Joan Schettler, a Democrat.

She added, speaking of both parties, “If someone’s interested in that seat, boy, this is the year to go after it.”

Time is running short for those who may want to make the move.

The filing deadline for state candidates is this Friday with the Secretary of State’s Office.

Candidates for a House seat need 50 signatures.

If no one emerges on the ballot the GOP could convene a convention and nominate a candidate there to run in November.

Theoretically, if the GOP could keep other candidates off the Republican ballot, and Roberts loses his gubernatorial primary bid, the party could appoint him for a House re-election bid after the June 8 primary.

“They would have to make sure there was no Republican candidate,” Schettler said.

But Roberts said he has no interest in such maneuvering on his behalf.

“I can’t do both,” Roberts said. “I’ve got to choose one or the other.”

Roberts has talked to potential candidates for the House seat as well. He didn’t reveal the identities of those people in the interview.

One local Republican, Carroll County Supervisor Mark Beardmore, has said he will not be a candidate for the seat.

“It’s humbling and pleasing to be thought of even in the same breath and same sentence as Rod Roberts,” Beardmore said.

But Beardmore said he made a commitment to do the job of supervisor and won’t seek the House seat now.

“I just don’t think it’s the right thing to do,” Beardmore said.

Eve Bottando talks about the event, the liberal/conservative divide and some of the moral issues of the Iraq war in this video.

Bottando is a graduate student at the University of Iowa.

The event was protested by hundreds of peace activists, but fans of the controversial political strategist were also present.

Rove fans Kirk Wilkie and Tom Roeder were excited to hear the “Architect” speak. Here is Roeder:

and Wilkie:

Peace activist Frank Cordaro spoke at a press conference organized by the University of Iowa Anti-War Committee before the event.

Cordaro was later escorted from the audience during the event. He shouted, “liar,” “shameful” and “war criminal” as he was led from the venue.

Outside the lecture hall, miniature flag-draped coffins were arranged at a display table to symbolize the nearly 4,000 U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq.

More from the event can be seen in a photo page of scenes from Rove’s talk and the events surrounding his visit here.

Also be sure to read I.I. reporter Tom Lindsey’s article.

Quoted in The Des Moines Register, Senate Minortiy Leader Ron Wieck of Sioux City has criticized the Democrats’ plan, which he said “dumps a tremendous amount of responsibility on the backs of Iowa businesses.” 

State Republicans propose an end to what they call a “catch and release system” in Iowa.  Angelo told Iowa Independent reporter Doug Burns that this practice makes local law enforcement “angry.”

Below the fold is a short interview with Angelo taped in the State Capital last week.Angelo told the Iowa Independent that the Republican proposal is “more comprehensive” in dealing with undocumented workers.

“This particular bill talks about mandates … our attorney general will negotiate a memorandum of understanding with the federal government in regard to when our local law enforcement picks up illegal aliens they’re going to be put into the federal system and deported ultimately. … “

Angelo said penalties for employers are also in the Republican proposal and would increase after repeat offenses. He listed some of the items in his task force findings:

“The Democratic alternative has basically one proposal and that is that you fine employers heavily if they’ve hired illegal aliens. … “

“We’re going to hire 14 additional troopers [one for] each state trooper district which will deal specifically with illegal immigration issues. There is free training available through the federal government to train local law enforcement in dealing with illegals.

“We’ll cut off all public aid except for emergency aid. We will deny admittance to the universities and we do have penalties for employers that do illegally hire illegal immigrants. But they’re an escalated scale of penalties. …”

Dem-sponsored H.F. 2026 fines corporate officers $10,000 for hiring undocumented workers.

Angelo and his wife, Ames attorney Tara van Brederode, were interviewed for a special Valentine’s Day feature by Iowa Independent reporter Doug Burns last week. 

In Highlight Reel Part 2: Comparing Candidate Endorsements, you can find more than a dozen candidate endorsements.

In this installment of the Highlight Reel, we’ll hear from the candidates talking about, well, other candidates. Sometimes candidates question each other using the mouthpiece of the media.  This Highlight Reel is limited to commentary from candidates on other candidates.

Below the fold, videos of the candidates talking about each other.Bill Richardson caught some flack from Joe Biden during the AARP debate in Davenport. In this video, responding to Biden’s attack, he said, “Joe Biden is my friend.”

Former governor Bill Richardson recently had questions for other Democratic candidates regarding Iraq.  He said they “decided to stop talking about Iraq.”

In this video, Mitt Romney is asked about the “illegal” war in Iraq.  He responds by saying he’s glad the U.S. didn’t follow Barack Obama’s plan which, as Mitt sees it, would have “yanked” troops out of Iraq too soon.

In this video shot by Iowa Independent reporter Dien Judge, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama calls out former senator John Edwards on his record with lobbyists and so-called 527 soft money groups.

Iowa Independent cameras happened to be rolling when John Edwards was asked about Obama’s criticism of the pro-Edwards 527 groups, some of which are directed by former Edwards’ staffers.

Chris Dodd slammed Hillary Clinton following the same debate in Davenport. He questioned her experience regarding health care reform.

And on a related topic, Obama had this to say about Clinton’s health care work fifteen years ago for her husband’s administration:

If you missed the Highlight Reel Parts 1 and 2, visit these pages for more videos from the presidential campaigns in Iowa:
Highlight Reel Part 1: Comparing Candidate Intros
or
Highlight Reel Part 2: Comparing Candidate Endorsements.

The crowd to see Mitt Romney at the Fuel and Nest Coffee Shop was spilling out the door and filling sidewalks on Sunday afternoon in Mt. Vernon, Iowa.

Among those stranded on the sidewalk outside the event was Rollie Ostrander. The Solon resident said he’d seen a few candidates, including some Democrats and, except for Hillary Clinton, he’d really listened to what they had to say.

He’s worried about the future for his children and grandchildren and was looking for a “strong” leader. He thinks he’s found that leader in candidate Romney.

Ostrander took a Mitt Romney campaign sign for his yard.

Watch a clip from the end of Romney’s speech below the fold.Wife Ann Romney introduced the former governor and presidential candidate in Mt. Vernon.  He gave a short speech that included a story about a soldier being brought back from Iraq. With his hand on his heart, Romney retold tarmac scene as an airplane unloaded the Iraq casualty.

This video is the end of Mitt’s speech in the crowded store.  He covers health care, cutting deficit spending, energy independence, and Iraq in this clip.

At one point a young girl offered Mitt a handful of cash, he took it momentarily and then joked, “We’ll do that when the cameras aren’t rolling.”

]]> http://iowaindependent.com/1745/videos-overflow-romney-event-in-mt-vernon-2/feed 0 http://iowaindependent.com/1740/video-sandy-greiner-talks-up-fred-thompsons-candidacy http://iowaindependent.com/1740/video-sandy-greiner-talks-up-fred-thompsons-candidacy#comments Sun, 30 Dec 2007 21:42:10 +0000 Adam Burke http://iowaindependent.com/1740/video-sandy-greiner-talks-up-fred-thompsons-candidacy Former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson was in Washington, Iowa on Saturday.

State Rep. Sandy Greiner of District 89 is a Thompson supporter. She told the Iowa Independent that she’s met all the candidates except for Rudy Giuliani.  She and other interested voters from her community were able to meet with Thompson and others behind closed doors and ask them about, as she said, “anything.”

She told the Iowa Independent, “In Fred Thompson, we have a man who has long-held” conservative beliefs regarding immigration, second amendment rights, and life issues.

A short video interview with Greiner is below the fold.Greiner is not worried by the perception of Thompson’s laid-back campaign style.

She said, “Age and treachery always overcome youth and exuberance.”

He also talked about “the mindset of our global enemy.”

Another clip from Thompson’s speech is below the fold.Congressman Steve King introduced the former Tennessee senator who took the stage from behind a curtain.

Thompson’s campaign slogan is “The Clear Conservative Choice,” to drive home this theme the film and television actor leaned heavily on a stage prop, his podium, that was made of clear lucite panels.

Thompson finished his speech with a sketch of his “sound conservative principles.”

Thompson’s tour bus crossed paths with John Edwards’ tour bus on Main Street in Washington, Iowa after the event. Thompson acknowledged Edwards who was visiting the public library, “I hope he learns something while he’s over there.”

The questioner, David Dickey, said that although he liked Clinton and would vote for her in the general election if she was the Democratic candidate, many of his friends were not Clinton fans. He asked her, “How can you convince people that you’re the right woman for the job?”

Here is the exchange:

A short video interview with Dickey can be found below the fold.Dickey declined to take a caucus pledge card when approached by a Clinton volunteer.  He told the Clinton worker that he wasn’t sure yet, but then he told the Iowa Independent that he is leaning towards caucusing for Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.

In this video David Dickey talks about Clinton, her opposition, and her response to his pointed question:

Iowa Independent reporter John Deeth has more from the event.

Jane I. Duax organized the event, the seventh in a continuing series of discussions around the state. She said that the meetings would likely continue after the Iowa caucuses so that resolutions can be refined and accepted at county conventions and eventually state conventions.

Duax, who works for Plains Justice in Cedar Rapids, led the discussion and will compile and distribute the results before Iowans gather in their precincts to vote on Jan. 3, 2008.

More videos from the event available below the fold.

Another participant, Kristi Lohmeier, works for the Iowa Policy Project. She was excited to see such a diverse range of participants and took away a big-picture, “holistic” view of the process. 

Lohmeier said she sees the state of Iowa “on the cusp of making some big policy decisions, and they know what the I.U.B. [Iowa Utilities Board] thinks, the state knows what the Sierra Club thinks,” but they haven’t heard from other groups.  She also said IPP is working to develop support for legislation that protects people on a number of levels.

Andrew Snow called the meeting “the beginning of the process” to building consensus for environmental policy. “The action is at the caucus,” when people can draft resolutions and add planks to party platforms, he said.

Snow works for the Sierra Club as a regional representative.

Plains Justice Environmental caucuses continue this week in Eldridge and Davenport, Iowa.

Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney gave a presentation in Muscatine on Thursday that included a video display with graphs, statistics and bullet points. His event was billed as a talk on his “Strategy for a Stronger America: Strengthening America’s Economy.” He talked and explained slides that gave statistical projections on subjects including taxes, immigration and U.S. oil dependence.

During a question-and-answer period, one man from the audience asked about drilling for oil in domestic territories, particularly in Alaska.

Romney said he thinks drilling in “Alaska is the easiest, the people of the state want us to drill there and the nation wants to drill there. Let’s do it. But in this case the Democrats are listening to extreme environmentalists that say no.”

During his answer Romney said 60 percent of U.S. oil is imported. The Energy Information Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy has predicted that imported oil will rise to 70 percent by 2025.

Romney went on to talk about energy from nuclear power and how the U.S. is “beholden to people like Putin, Ahmadinejad and Chavez,” referring to the current leaders of Russia, Iran and Venezuela.

Romney also took a question from Muscatiner Amanda Gott on “sanctuary” cities in the U.S.

Following his stop in Muscatine, Romney headed to Bettendorf, Iowa, for a press photo opportunity.