Sunday, August 12, 2012
The President will spend three days in Iowa next week, reportedly the longest consecutive time he's spent in one state during this campaign.
When the sitting president of the United States decides to spend three days in your state, far from Washington D.C., you know something has to be up. What's up - up in the air, that is - are Iowa's six electoral votes. Six may not seem like a lot in the 270 electoral votes scheme of things, but in this race, six votes may be enough to decide the election. And, as President Barack Obama gears up to devote three days to Iowa this week - Council Bluffs and Boone on Monday; Oskaloosa, Marshalltown and Waterloo on Tuesday; and Dubuque and Davenport on Wednesday - it is clear he wants Iowa. Iowa is one of less than 10 states that are considered undecided in the presidential race. With less than three months of campaigning to go, both Obama …
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, who initially had opposed a fuel tax increase, now says he's open to hearing the other side. The fuel tax debate will come before the Iowa Legislature this session.
While some doubt it will muster enough support, a bipartisan group of legislators now predicts an increase in Iowa's fuel tax will pass. The details of the proposal are still being worked out, but officials are exploring a plan in which they would find $50 million in savings in the Iowa Department of Transportation and then consecutive 4- or 5-cent per gallon fuel tax increases, in 2013 and 2014. Iowa’s fuel tax is 21 cents per gallon for gasoline and 19 cents for ethanol-blended fuel. The tax was last increased in 1989. Each 1-cent per gallon increase is expected to generate $22 million a year, meaning the increase would generate between $176 million and $220 million a year in additional revenue when fully phased-in. That's disconcerting …
Thursday, December 29, 2011
The candidate avoided the state for months, but is visiting Cedar Falls and Ames today and was in North Liberty last night.
Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is visiting Cedar Falls and Ames today as part of a last-minute Iowa bus tour that seems to be trying to make up for months of missed face time in the state. Ever since the Ames straw poll in August, which Romney declined to attend, the former governor of Massachusetts has been conspicuous by his lack of presence in the state. Now, with only a few days until the Jan. 3 caucus, he's finally showing up in the place, Ames, that was the unofficial start of Iowa's campaign season. But not having campaigned in Iowa may not actually hurt Romney on caucus night, some political experts say. "He put in a lot of time and effort four years ago," University of Iowa political science professor Tim Hagle said. "He's …
