Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Gov. Branstad is ordering all flags in the state to be flown at half-staff today to honor Army Staff Sgt. Steve Blass, 27, of Estherville. Blass died in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan.
Press release from the governor's office: Gov. Terry Branstad is ordering all flags in the state to be flown at half-staff from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 26, 2013, to honor Army Staff Sgt. Steve Blass, 27, of Estherville, who died in a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crash in Kandahar, Afghanistan, on Monday, March 11. Blass’ funeral will be held at 2 p.m. on Tuesday, March 26, 2013 at the Estherville High School Gym. Brig. Gen. Derek Hill, Deputy Adjutant General of the Iowa National Guard, will be in attendance to represent the administration. The governor’s directive applies to all U.S. and state flags under the control of the state. H.R. 692, signed in 2007, requires federal government agencies in the state to comply with the …
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Rather than expand Medicaid, Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad prefers to expand a state-run system called IowaCare. Which do you prefer? Tell us what you think in the comments.
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Waukee Superintendent David Wilkerson analyzes Gov. Terry Branstad's proposed education reforms and outlines their potential affect on the Waukee school district.
From the Waukee Schools website: Note: David J. Wilkerson, Ph.D., Superintendent of Schools, wrote this article for the January 2013 Waukee district bulletin. As we enter another new legislative session a great deal of attention is once again focused on the state budget and various school reform proposals. After throwing many different reform plans out there during the 2012 legislature, none of which stuck, a number of study committees/task forces were appointed by the legislature. Most notable was the committee focused on teacher leadership and compensation. It appears this will be the centerpiece of the Governor’s reform efforts. There are five components to the Governor’s plan. I do support the plan being brought forward to improve Iowa…
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
The event has "outlived its usefulness" the Iowa governor says.
On the list of what defines Iowa, the Republican Straw Poll is right up there with waves of corn, the Hawkeye-Cyclone rivalry and the annual showing of the Butter Cow. But Gov. Terry Branstad has become the latest person -- and perhaps the most important one -- to come out in favor of killing, or at least altering, the GOP Straw Poll. The Straw Poll is part candidate beauty contest and major-part fundraiser for the Republican Party of Iowa. GOP activists pay for tickets, and candidates pay for tent space at the straw poll, which dates to 1979. “I think the straw poll has outlived its usefulness,” Branstad told the Wall Street Journal for an article published Tuesday. “It has been a great fundraiser for the party, but I think its days are …
Monday, September 24, 2012
The University of Minnesota is doing it but is it a good idea to sell beer at college football games in Iowa?
University of Minnesota fans might be getting a little tipsier at home games thanks to the Minnesota Legislature. Due in part to actions of Minnesota's Gov. Mark Dayton, wine and beer will now be served at Minnesota's TCF Bank Stadium, home of the Golden Gophers. Would that fly here in Iowa? Gov. Terry Branstad says not so much. During his weekly news conference at the Iowa Statehouse last week, Branstad said he would be "real careful" about considering the idea at the University of Iowa. “I think you would have to be real careful about that. They have had a lot of drinking problems anyway, and obviously there is a lot of beer consumed in the parking lots before the game. So I don’t know that you need to be selling it in the stadium,” he …
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Officials had to turn away spectators when more people than expected showed up to hear Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids.
GOP vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan criticized the president's jobs record and avoided the recent controversy set off by his remarks at the Republican National Convention last week, before a sold out crowd at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids on Tuesday, During his nearly 30 minute speech at the same venue - Johnson Hall - where President Barack Obama spoke in July, Ryan railed against Obama and the "failure" of his administration. "Jimmy Carter was fired in 1980 and Ronald Reagan was fired," he said. "And if you look at his jobs record, Obama was even worse than Jimmy Carter." He said that GOP nominee and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney's business experience well qualifies him to restore the economy. Romney …
Monday, July 9, 2012
Full-time state employees with an individual health insurance plan don't pay any premiums while workers in the private sector paid on average $832 a year, as of 2010.
Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad and others have said they will begin paying 20 percent of their health insurance premiums and have called on other state employees to do the same. Single full-time state employees don't have to pay any premiums for single health-insurance plans, while non-public workers paid $832 a year on average, as of 2010. Covering 20 percent would cost a single person on the least expensive insurance plan about $1,000 each year, according to a news release from Sen. Jerry Behn, R-Boone, who is wants to see state employees pay more for their insurance. Currently, state employees pay $265 to $280 a month for family coverage in three out of five plans available in January 2012. Part-time state employees pay more. Read what some …
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
With Gov. Terry Branstad's endorsement and Rick Santorum out, Republicans in the swing state of Iowa embrace Romney and turn their attention to general election.
Did Iowa's Gov. Terry Branstad get a tip, does he have more clout than people realize, or does he just have really, really good timing? Iowa's political insiders say it was coincidence that the Republican governor ended his silence and endorsed Mitt Romney as the GOP choice for president moments before news broke that Romney's biggest challenger, Rick Santorum, was suspending his campaign on Tuesday. "It's serendipity," said Eric Woolson, an Iowa GOP staple who was a campaign leader for former candidate Michele Bachmann. "For Gov. Branstad, it's terrific he came forward when he did -- although Santorum then stepped on Gov. Branstad's story -- so that Branstad was in front when he declared his support for Romney while it was a contested …
Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, a Republican, has endorsed Mitt Romney for president.
Update: Moments after posting this article. GOP presidential hopeful Rick Santorum has announced he is suspending his bid for president, according to multiple news outlets. Previous coverage: If you need another sign that the race for the GOP nomination for president is over, Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad has made an endorsement. Branstad endorsed former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney a few moments ago. Branstad had steadfastly refused to endorse a candidate throughout the Iowa Caucus season and ever since, even as Romney pulled further and further ahead in the delegate count. If you'll recall, Romney won, then lost the Iowa Caucus. In reality, the double-digit vote divide between Romney and Rick Santorum, who was declared winner, was so narrow…
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Recent campaign donations unearthed by the Des Moines Register show that Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad has received more than $150,000 in campaign contributions from a "pink slime" producer.
You’ve told us how you feel about "pink slime." That's the controversial beef product made from scraps of leftover meat and treated with ammonia. It's the one that's been pulled from shelves faster than Tickle Me Elmo. "I am furious that for years I did not know what I was feeding my children, not to mention myself," said a Patch commenter. "This is one of the worst food stories I have heard ever." You may know that Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad has been in the news lately defending the product, calling the media coverage a "smear campaign." He has called for a federal probe into the matter. “It’s time to end the smear campaign and to stop the use of inaccurate, inappropriate and charged words that are designed to scare people,” Branstad said …
Mark C. Cappuccio
10:50 am on Friday, November 23, 2012
I think most Republicans want to keep the Straw poll because it's a money maker, sues the ego of the GOP, and gives the state a boost. Elimination of the straw poll outweighs everything, plus the elimination would ease the poitical season which endlessly drags on and on. more ›