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.
U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin (Lauren Victoria Burke/WDCPIX.COM)
Not only will the Senate be working weekends through December on health care reform legislation, but it could also spend the upcoming weekend in session, Sen. Tom Harkin told D.C.-based newspaper The Hill.
Harkin, who chairs the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, said Democrats will have the 60 votes needed to overcome a GOP filibuster. And if Republicans try to stall debate by asking that the entire bill be read on the Senate floor he promises a delay to Thanksgiving break.
If that happens, Harkin said, the majority party is likely to use a procedural maneuver to keep the Senate in session this weekend.
“If the Republicans want to stay here this Saturday and Sunday to read the bill, then let them stay here,” Harkin said, adding that Democrats would hold a “live quorum,” where the sergeant at arms requests the presence of all absent senators.
“I’ll tell you, we’re going to do something like that,” Harkin said. “We are planning to do something that would require Republicans to be there 24 hours a day, and if they leave the floor, we’ll ask unanimous consent to dispense with the reading, and that’ll be the end of it.”
The goal, Harkin said, is to pass a bill before the Christmas holiday. He predicts a motion to proceed to a vote will be held Friday.
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