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.
Congress officially sent the new farm bill to President Bush Tuesday.Bush has promised to veto the bill, despite the fact that that it was passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives last week by veto-proof margins.
The current extension of the 2002 Farm Bill, which covers a wide variety of federal agricultural and nutrition initiatives, including the food stamp program, will expire on Friday, May 23.
House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, D-Minn., issued a statement Tuesday urging Bush to sign the bill into law. “I hope that President Bush will seriously consider the many positive steps this bill takes to improve nutrition programs that are important to so many Americans, particularly during these difficult economic times; to expand and improve conservation programs that help farmers protect the environment; to continue and improve the safety net for farmers; to support fruit and vegetable producers and to encourage renewable energy production from cellulosic sources,” said Peterson.
“We made every effort to work with Administration officials throughout the Farm Bill process, even when they showed no interest in coming to compromise on these important issues,” Peterson said. “While the President has pledged to veto the bill, I hope that the strong, bipartisan votes in the House and Senate will demonstrate its importance to the American people and lead him to sign it into law.”
Do you know where to vote on Election Day? Do you know what to bring with you? Get comprehensive voter information for your state here.
Sign up for our email newsletter