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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.
Democratic state Reps. Vicki Lensing and Mary Mascher, along with state Sen. Joe Bolkcom, have all joined 21 Makes Sense — an organization formed in support of Iowa City’s new 21 bar entry age.
The Iowa City City Council approved the bar age ordinance earlier this year and the measure went into effect this summer. Proponents — like the three Democratic lawmakers from Iowa City — say the ordinance helps reduce access to alcohol. But opponents — who say it shifts drinking to dangerous environments — have petitioned to have the measure put on the November ballot.
Bolkcom said he supports the measure for reasons of student health.
“It’s an impossible challenge for bar owners to place every single patron in their establishments who is underage,” he said. “The notion that those young people are not drinking seems to be kind of preposterous.”
For Mascher, concerns about student binge drinking, date rape, and fighting downtown have accumulated over the time she has lived in Iowa City.
“This is just a piece of the puzzle in terms of what we need to be doing to find alternatives for students,” the University of Iowa alumna said. “It’s gotten so much worse in terms of drinking culture, and we, as a community, need to address it.”
Other prominent backers of the ordinance include higher-ups at the University of Iowa — including President Sally Mason and football coach Kirk Ferentz — two former Iowa City mayors and at least three current city council members.
Iowa City voters blocked a similar ordinance as recently as 2007, largely fueled by a sizable push for students to show up to the polls and vote “no.” Iowa City blogger John Deeth has considered what a similar surge would mean for November’s other contests:
All other things being equal, more students voting in a 70% Obama county helps Democrats. On the other hand, many of the new voters in the 2007 election ignored the other offices on the ballot and voted only on the bar issue. On the other other hand, it’s easier to ignore unopposed city council members than it is to skip governor and senator.
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