Stories

“Iowa’s investment in ethanol production has brought economic development to agriculture, and we need to protect that investment,” Thicke said. “However, it is time to reassess, and consider how future investments in renewable energy can be better targeted to profit farmers and better protect our natural resource base.”

An anonymous source tells the New York Daily News that former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack may not be the country’s next Secretary of Agriculture after all. He may move over and take the spot of New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who withdrew his name from contention for Secretary of Commerce earlier this week.
A well-placed source [...]

The selection of former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture was more political pay back to the Hawkeye State than smart policy, according to an editorial by the Fort Dodge Messenger.
The Messenger, which endorsed John McCain, calls the move a “thank you” to Iowa for helping get Barack Obama elected president and [...]

During his two terms as Iowa governor, Vilsack endeared himself to both the left and the right. But the Democrat who was both the first to enter and the first to leave the 2008 presidential campaign had his critics.

Former Gov. Tom Vilsack has been tapped to be the nation’s next Secretary of Agriculture, and most observers greeted the selection warmly.