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Tuesday, August 31
Good News and Notes from Iowa and DFIA
by
Linda Thieman
on Tue 31 Aug 2004 06:11 AM CDT
Good News & Notes from Iowa & DFIA
This great design is by Darrell Lewis of Clear Lake
DFIA Signs Pop Up in Scott County
It is
not widely known (because it got lost in the shuffle) that a couple of
weeks ago, when John Kerry came to the Quad Cities, DFIA Founding
Member Darrell Lewis suggested that we make up some signs for the Kerry
rally. So, DFIA Co-founder Dr. Alta Price had some special
Kerry/Edwards DFIA/BFIA signs made up for the occasion (11 x 14, thick,
shiny paper). The signs (see above) were designed by Darrell
Lewis and can be downloaded from the right sidebar of Blog for Iowa in
pdf format. (There’s also a great rainbow design.)
The
signs were a huge hit, according to DFIA Environmentalist Molly Regan,
who distributed them at the rally, and many Dems asked to take them
home. Molly agreed to this as long as they promised to use them
again somewhere.
Well,
Alta reports that last Saturday, when she and Molly were marching in a
parade in Molly’s hometown in support of the Democratic candidates,
they saw a pick up truck that the Scott County Democrats take around to
all the parades. The truck has all the candidates’ posters down
the sides. Says Alta, “Prominently displayed on the windows of
each side of the SCD truck, to my surprise, I [saw] the
Kerry/Edwards/DFIA/BFIA posters. This is a surprise because no
Deaner put those posters up.” The Kerry people had put them up!
Well, that just goes to show that you can’t beat a good design.
"But not this year"
For those of you working hard out in the heat and humidity, day in and day out, I add this cheering report from John Drury, Dean Dozen member and Democratic candidate for Iowa Senate in the 6th District:
While
going door to door in Hampton [the other day], I talked to an elderly
gentleman who told me that he was a Republican and that he had voted
Republican his entire life. And then he said, "But not this year."
Folks,
that seems to be the theme for this election year. Republicans, young
and old, are saying that they are fed up with the way this country is
being run, and are fed up with the partisan bickering in Des Moines.
Everyone realizes that the bickering accomplishes nothing for the
people of Iowa and they simply want it to stop.
John
told me that this man, who must have been in his mid 80’s, admitted
that he AND HIS WIFE had agreed to vote a straight Democratic ticket
this year, and John added, that it’s not really that unusual for him to
find people who feel that way.
Oh, and by the way, the Drury campaign has really been picking up steam
lately. Democratic Iowa Senate leader Mike Gronstal says that the
seat Drury is running for is now one of the top senate seats that
Gronstal's office is targeting. And there's excitement in the air
as the Drury blog, run by Darrell Lewis, reaches all new levels of
daily visitors.
The Drury blog has the great distinction of not only drawing folks into
the campaign but at the same time, creating a real sense of
community - not to mention it frequently offers up hard-hitting exposés
of right-wing Republican incumbent Thurman Gaskill. And believe you me,
there is a lot to expose. Click here to take a look.
Kerry Gets Solid Lead In Iowa
Looks like what John Drury is discovering on the ground is finally showing up in the Iowa polls.
According to the Centre for Public Opinion, John Kerry could carry the state of Iowa in the 2004 United States presidential election.
A poll
conducted by Zogby Interactive and published in the Wall Street Journal
Online found that 52.2 per cent of Iowa respondents would vote for the
Democratic nominee, while 45.2 per cent would support the junta.
Go Iowa!
Linda Thieman
Saturday, August 28
Nader Gets On Iowa Ballot
by
Linda Thieman
on Sat 28 Aug 2004 12:52 PM CDT
Nader Gets On Iowa Ballot
Quad-City Times
DES
MOINES — Ralph Nader’s slot on the Nov. 2 Iowa election ballot was
assured Thursday after state officials ruled that the independent
presidential hopeful’s nomination petition is valid.
A
three-member panel, including Secretary of State Chet Culver, Attorney
General Tom Miller and State Auditor David Vaudt concluded that the
petition filed earlier this month contains enough legally valid
signatures to put Nader and his running mate, Peter Miguel Camejo, on
the Iowa ballot. A Des Moines Democrat had challenged the petition’s
legitimacy.
Although
Nader is a long-shot candidate, his place in the race could have big
implications in a neck-and-neck battle between [pseudo-]pResident Bush
and the Democratic nominee, U.S. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. Several polls
conducted in Iowa show Bush and Kerry in a virtual dead heat, with
Nader drawing a small, but critical, slice of support.
(more)
Friday, August 27
Iowa Values Fund Deal Appears To Be In The Works
by
Linda Thieman
on Fri 27 Aug 2004 01:44 PM CDT
Iowa Values Fund Deal Appears To Be In The Works
by Darrell Lewis
Gov.
Vilsack has called a special session of the Iowa Legislature to deal
with the debacle brought on by legislative Republicans. Until
today the word was that the Gov. called the session absent an agreement
between himself and the Republican-controlled legislature.
The word
out now is that Senate Republicans are signing off on a compromise
offered by Governor Vilsack on the Iowa Values Fund, but only after the
proposal was endorsed by a powerful business group
Senate
President Jeff Lamberti said that since the Association of Business and
Industry signed off on the plan, Senate Republicans would now follow
suit. "I think they were waiting to see what ABI said - that was their
biggest concern," Lamberti said of his fellow Senators.
"Senator
Lamberti's frankness gives working families a rare peek behind the
workings of the Iowa Republican Party,” said State Senator Mike
Connolly of Dubuque. “Lamberti admitted that Republicans weren’t
concerned about the impact of proposed legislation on injured workers,
Iowa schoolchildren, college students and the tax burden on working
families.”
“Instead,
their only consideration was the opinion of a handful of business and
industry people. meeting behind closed doors in downtown Des Moines,”
Connolly said. “That is a slap in the face to thousands of hard-working
Iowa families, students and seniors."
Of
course, this is no surprise to us. We've been talking here for
months now about the self interest/special interest Senate leadership.
Isn't it
interesting as the election grows near, the radical right leadership in
the Iowa Senate suddenly seems to be concerned about doing what is
right, about doing what they could have done during the last
legislative session.
This article first appeared on the Drury for Iowa Senate website.
For more on this story, click here.
Poverty Up, Income & Health Insurance Down in Iowa
by
Linda Thieman
on Fri 27 Aug 2004 05:10 AM CDT
Poverty Up, Income & Health Insurance Down in Iowa
The Iowa Policy Project
New Census Figures Show Erosion of 1990s Gains
MOUNT
VERNON, Iowa (Aug. 26, 2004) Median household income has fallen while
poverty and the number of uninsured are on the rise in Iowa, according
to a new federal government report.
The U.S.
Census Bureau released new data Thursday from two surveys on poverty
and household income in Iowa and the nation. The Census Bureau figures
suggest that the improvements in income that occurred in Iowa in the
late 1990s were eroded during the recent recession and subsequent
lackluster recovery.
"It will
come as no surprise to many Iowans that our incomes are lagging. But
the new Census numbers hold a staggering loss of almost $2,900 in
median household income since 1999," said David Osterberg, executive
director of the Iowa Policy Project. "That gave Iowa the nation's
eighth-largest percentage decline - 6.5 percent - over the period. In
addition, the figures showed 1 in 10 Iowans were not covered with
health insurance in 2002-2003."
In figures adjusted for inflation to equal the purchasing power of the dollar in 2003:
*Median
household income in Iowa decreased by $1,497 between 2000-2001 and
2002-2003, falling from $43,184 to $41,687. This 3.5 percent decrease
in median income was not statistically significant, according to the
Census Bureau.
*While
that difference was not considered significant, the decline from the
1999-2000 period was considered significant. Between 1999-2000 and
2002-2003, median household income fell by $2,889 (or 6.5 percent);
from about $44,575 to $41,687.
*In the
1990s, by contrast, incomes rose substantially in Iowa. The income of
the typical Iowa household grew from $36,432 in 1992-1993 to $44,575 in
1999-2000. This is an increase of $8,143, or 22 percent. The new
figures show that much of the gain of the late 1990s has been lost.
*In
2003, 173,000 Iowans worked full time, year round and still earned less
than $20,000. This is equal to 17.8 percent of all full-time, year
round workers in Iowa.
The recent economic downturn also appears to be increasing the number of Iowans in poverty:
*The
poverty rate increased by 1.2 percentage points between 2000-2001 and
2002-2003 (rising from 7.9 to 9.1 percent). While this change was not
statistically significant, it suggests that more families are living
below the poverty line, which is $18,810 for a family of four.
*Poverty
rate estimates for 2003 were available for Des Moines, Waterloo, and
the Quad-Cities Metropolitan area. Their respective poverty rates were
7.3 percent, 16.8 percent, and 10.4 percent.
On a
positive note, it appears that child poverty rates in Iowa have
decreased from 13.7 percent in 2002 to 11.7 percent in 2003 (although
this change also was not statistically significant). For children under
5 years old, the decrease was significant, dropping from 18.5 percent
in 2002 to 14.6 percent in 2003.
Elderly
poverty rates also dropped from 8.5 percent in 2002 to 7.6 percent in
2003 (although, again, this change was not statistically significant).
The data
also provided a first look at changes in health insurance coverage
rates over the last year, with a statistically significant increase in
the rate of uninsured Iowans between 2001-2002 and 2002-2003; up from
8.5 percent to 10.4 percent.
In
comparison with the nation, Iowa showed mixed results. Iowa's poverty
rate of 9.1 percent is well below the national poverty rate of 12.3
percent, and Iowa's uninsurance rate of 10.4 percent is also below the
national uninsurance rate of 15.4 percent. However, Iowa's median
income of $41,687 is below the national median income of $43,349, a
significant difference of $1,663.
"We
still have not recovered in Iowa from the national recession of 2001,"
said Elaine Ditsler, research associate for the Iowa Policy Project.
"The declining income and increasing poverty is reflective of the
economic downturn that is affecting Iowa and the entire nation."
She noted Iowa's average annual unemployment rate has risen from 2.5 percent in 1999 to 4.4 percent in July 2004.
The
Census Bureau used data for the income analysis, poverty rates for all
people, and health insurance rates from its 2003 Current Population
Survey. For state analysis, the Census Bureau recommends using two-year
averages of that data in order to ensure accuracy. Other data came from
the bureau's 2003 American Community Survey.
The Iowa
Policy Project is a non-profit, non-partisan research organization
based in Mount Vernon. IPP reports are available to the public, free of
charge, on the web at www.iowapolicyproject.org
Sunday, August 22
Iowa Democrats Gaining Confidence for the Fall Election
by
Linda Thieman
on Sun 22 Aug 2004 03:30 PM CDT
Iowa Democrats Gaining Confidence for the Fall Election
Missouri Valley Times
It's all about defense this fall for Republicans trying to hold their grip on the Iowa Senate.
Twenty-five
seats are on the ballot in the 50-member Senate. And of those 25 seats
up for grabs, 18 are currently held by Republican senators. Democrats
must defend only seven seats.
Republicans hold a 29-21 majority in the Senate and have commanded the chamber since the 1996 election.
..."We
have been pleasantly surprised at how well things are going," said
Senate Minority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs. "So we're going
to continue to run aggressive campaigns."
Senate Majority Leader Stewart Iverson, R-Dows, is playing it cool.
"I think
we'll be OK," Iverson said. "I tell our candidates all the time, if you
don't go out and work you're not going to win. This is not rocket
science."
(more)
It's
telling, though, that Iverson would even have to remind his incumbents
of this. From what I've seen, it looks like the Republican incumbents
in the Senate are sitting on their, um, "laurels," totally unaware that public opinion is rapidly shifting, while the Democratic
opponents are out there, day in and day out, meeting the people and
working hard to win. Looking good, indeed!
Drake U. Professor Challenges Iowa Nader Petition
by
Linda Thieman
on Sun 22 Aug 2004 04:30 AM CDT
Drake U. Professor Challenges Iowa Nader Petition
Des Moines Register
A Drake
University journalism professor Friday filed a challenge to the
petition that put Ralph Nader on the [Iowa] ballot for president,
saying the petition does not meet the requirements of state law.
Lee
Baldwin Jolliffe , 50, a registered Des Moines Democrat, is asking
state election officials to declare Nader's petition invalid based on
her assertion that fewer than 1,500 of the 3,198 signatures on the
petition are from eligible electors.
She also
said the petition has other discrepancies, such as some people not
signing their name, not stating a correct address or not living where
they say they do. In addition, she said some of the people simply do
not exist.
"The nomination petition, therefore, does not meet the requirement of Iowa Code," Jolliffe said.
(more)
Thursday, August 19
Layoffs Cast Pall Over Iowa
by
Linda Thieman
on Thu 19 Aug 2004 05:01 AM CDT
Layoffs Cast Pall Over Iowa
540 Layoffs At Tama Meat Plant
KWWL.com
Shocking News Out of Tama
540 eastern Iowa meatcutters are out of a job. Iowa Quality Beef in Tama will suspend operations on Friday.
As plant
workers leave for home, they deal with a lot of uncertainty. The
company calls it a temporary layoff and the plant will stop all
operations. The president of Iowa Quality Beef says the cattle market
isn't good because of the Mad Cow Disease scare. And because of that,
there's less demand. Countries like Japan and Korea aren't accepting
beef from the U.S.
Ward Wehrman is an Iowa Quality Beef employee and says, "It's been kinda slow and we were all wondering if it was flying."
The
plant is the second largest employer in Tama County. Its closing is a
major blow to the economy and a big surprise for many workers. Simon
Trevino is another plant employee and says, "How am I gonna pay my
bills? I got two checks coming for this week, next week, and that's it.
Then I got to go file for unemployment or look for other work."
(more)
Layoffs near for Oakdale
Iowa City Press-Citizen
OAKDALE
-- Layoffs are imminent at the Iowa Medical and Classifica-tion Center
and could number up to 35 employees, the president of the union
representing a majority of the prison's employees said Tuesday.
..."(Today)
is going to be our first step. We're getting together local legislators
here to discuss what it (the layoffs) would do to us and our safety and
go that route," Hathaway said. "Then, we have a meeting Friday with all
our membership and we'll just go from there."
Hathaway
represents about 200 of the 320-person work force at the Oakdale
prison. It is not yet known what employees will be losing their jobs.
Hathaway said he represents all the correctional officers, clerical
workers and "blue-collar" workers.
As of
April, Oakdale had lost 23 permanent positions in the past two years
with seven current vacancies and two staff members serving in the
military. Hathaway said the prison has since lost more positions, but
he declined to say how many until today's press conference.
(more)
Dubuque Furniture Maker Lays Off Workers
Des Moines Register
A
Flexsteel Industries Inc. spokesman says the layoff of 50 employees at
its Dubuque plant isn't permanent, but a union leader says those jobs
will be transferred to another state.
On
Monday, the furniture maker laid off 27 employees in its Dubuque
upholstery division. Another 19 employees found out Wednesday that they
will lose their jobs early next week.
Flexsteel
spokesman Tom Baldwin said that retirements and increased business
levels could bring back job opportunities for some of the displaced
workers.
Baldwin
said Flexsteel, which announced in June it would shut down an
upholstery production line at the Dubuque plant, is trying to
streamline production efficiencies at its seven U.S. factories.
(more)
Working Condition Complaints Hit Record High at UI Due to Layoffs
Iowa City Press-Citizen
Worries
about budget cuts at the University of Iowa are causing feelings of
frustration and driving a record number of complaints related to
working conditions, according to the UI Office of the Ombudsperson.
In a
report released Wednesday, the number of new complaints in 2003-04
totaled 409. That is 106, or 35 percent, more complaints than last year.
...Recent
layoffs include 17 UI employees in June, followed by 31 layoffs at
University Hospitals in July. Employees now are waiting for future cuts.
(more)
Citigroup Announces Iowa Layoffs
IslandPacket.com
DES
MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Citigroup Inc. will close a credit customer service
center in suburban Des Moines next year, laying off 450 workers, as the
New York-based financial services giant continues to slash jobs
following last year's purchase of Sears' credit and financial services
arm.
The
workers at the West Des Moines center process credit applications and
accounts and contact cardholders about payments. Their work is expected
to be transferred to other Citigroup locations by the second quarter of
2005, the company said.
(more)
Wednesday, August 18
Fate of Iowa Values Hinges on Workers’ Comp Laws
by
Linda Thieman
on Wed 18 Aug 2004 04:46 AM CDT
Fate of Iowa Values Hinges on Workers’ Comp Laws
Quad-City Times
DES
MOINES (AP) — A former IBP meatpacking plant worker is at the center of
a high-stakes debate over how Iowa treats injured workers.
The
question that Jose Venegas’ workers’ compensation case raises is
whether businesses should get “credit” for past disability awards to
workers when calculating how much money employees should receive for a
new injury.
Business
and GOP legislative leaders say the Venegas case allows workers to
“double dip” — or get paid twice for the same injury.
“Iowa
has an unfair system that requires employers to pay and pay again,”
said Bob Wersen, chairman of the Iowa Association of Business and
Industry, a Des Moines-based business group.
Organized
labor leaders and attorneys representing injured workers say Iowa has
for decades seen each worker injury as separate, with each disability
cutting a worker’s earning power and ability to get a job.
Republicans
tried to reverse the ruling in massive legislation that included
creation of the $503 million Iowa Values Fund. Gov. Tom Vilsack’s
line-item-veto response to the legislation resulted in a state Supreme
Court ruling a year later that sidelined the state’s high-profile
economic development fund.
(more)
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