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.
Leaders in Washington should extend federal unemployment benefits in order to prevent thousands of Iowans from losing benefits at the end of this month, Gov. Chet Culver said Monday.
Culver said 76,000 Iowa workers will exhaust their jobless benefits on Feb. 28. Most have used the initial 26 weeks of state jobless benefits and a 13-week federal extension. He has written to Iowa’s congressional delegation urging the benefits be extended again.
Gov. Chet Culver
“While I understand the politics that plague Washington, now is the time for action, not more partisan politics,” Culver said. “It is a time for the federal government – for all of our national leaders – especially republican leaders – to put politics aside and take action to help Iowa families – to help all families across this country – deal with this national recession.”
A report issued earlier this month by the National Employment Law Project found 1.2 million Americans would lose their unemployment benefits at the end of this month unless Congress steps in to extend the filing deadline. By July, that number jumps to almost 5 million.
Last month a group of 30 federal lawmakers, including Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, urged party leaders to extend emergency unemployment benefits through the end of 2010.
“Iowans didn’t cause this recession,” Culver said. “And, they and their families don’t deserve to pay the price again.”
Culver’s words stood in stark contrast to U.S. Rep. Steve King, R-Kiron.
King told Sioux City NBC affiliate KTIV that extending unemployment benefits for workers (such as those who will soon lose their jobs when the John Morrell plant in King’s district shuts down in April) would turn a safety net into a “hammock.” Workers would just wait around for their unemployment check, King said, instead of going out and getting a new job.
But as the liberal blog Bleeding Heartland points out, a Moodys.com study found that extending unemployment benefits generates $1.63 in economic activity for every $1 spent by the government.
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