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.
[Commentary] If you could buy a cultural-political blender at Wal-Mart, and you tossed in the late great diplomat and statesman Averell Harriman with icon Johnny Carson — and then sprinkled in some Spanish spice — you might very well get New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.
With his super-clever, self-deprecating campaign commercials, barber-shop easy humor and one of the best resumes (based on range and gravitas of previous jobs held) of any candidate for the presidency in U.S. history, Richardson is making his mark in the Iowa Democratic presidential campaign.
Richardson doesn’t use the jolting jokes of a Chris Rock or the smug ironies of Bill Maher, two of the more popular wise guys in what is becoming Jon Stewart’s America. Richardson is more of a Carson guy: you’re in on the joke, too. It’s mashed potatoes and mac-and-cheese stuff, comfort-food funnies. He can make old people laugh. And anyone who can read a Census report knows this is political gold in Iowa.
Richardson drew substantial crowds (by our standards) in the western and nothern parts of Iowa in recent days, topped by an overflow crowd of more than 220 people who jammed a Fort Dodge Best Western conference room Wednesday night and stayed for two hours.
An exceptionally witty politician with impeccable comedic timing, Richardson drew as much warm and hearty laughter as he did applause in this north-central Iowa city of 26,000 with strong blue-collar and Democratic roots.
If you were running a comedy club, you’d book Richardson for another month. If you’re running a campaign in Iowa, you’d think: We have a chance to pull a Street Sense, the Kentucky Derby champ who came from back in the field to capture the roses.
Hooking the audience with humor, Richardson, a former United Nations ambassador, secretary of Energy and congressman (the Harriman part of the mix), ran through detailed serious policy proposals on issues ranging from Iraq (get out in six months) to education (set a minimum wage for teachers of $40,0000).
At one point in the evening Richardson asked the audience members what they thought of former Iowa Hawkeyes basketball coach Steve Alford going to New Mexico to coach. The crowd roundly booed and laughed.
“Are you laughing at me,” Richardson joked. “We are paying him a million dollars.”
Here are a few more Richardson witticisms from Fort Dodge:
On what he views as the futility of building a 10-foot-high fence on the Mexican border: “You know what’s going to be built: a lot of 11-foot ladders.”
On his wife asking him what he’s going to do about the issue of tainted pet food: “In my household the cats are more important than I am.”
Fort Dodge City Councilman Rich Inman, a former chairman of the Webster County Democratic Party, said Richardson clearly connected with the audience.
“I’m definitely leaning in the direction of the governor (Richardson),” Inman said. “I was very impressed.”
Inman said he thinks Richardson can reach across party lines.
“There were a lot of Republicans here and many independents as well as Democrats,” Inman said. “That’s one thing that really impressed me — his ability to just connect with the audience.”
And the humor is key for Richardson in Iowa, he said.
“That’s something I think is going to connect well with Iowans,” Inman said.
For his part, Inman said his personal decision on whom he’ll caucus for would come down to Richardson and U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.
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