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.
Iowa has already been visited by two potential candidates for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination, and the Boston Globe is reporting that another could be laying the groundwork across the country for a White House run.
Former Massachussetts Gov. Mitt Romney is hiring a team of staff members and consultants using money raised by his Free and Strong America political action committee, which most believe is a precursor to another presidential bid.
According to the Globe analysis, he spent $244,000 on contributions to congressional and other candidates between April and the November elections. He has spent more than twice as much on staff salaries and contracts to hire professional fundraisers, who are compiling contributor lists that will serve Romney well in a future presidential campaign.
In essence, Romney is financing a political enterprise that he can use to remain a national GOP leader and use as a springboard should he decide to launch another presidential bid for 2012.
In Iowa, Romney’s PAC spent $16,000 on two state House races and two state Senate races, including $10,000 for Republican Kim Reynolds in the southwestern Senate District 48.
Romney was long considered the frontrunner in the Iowa Caucuses until he was surprisingly defeated by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee in what turned into an ugly campaign.
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