40 Iowa Elected Officials Endorse Priorities Campaign

By Liz Larson, Iowans for Sensible Priorities

Top officials at the Iowa Statehouse favor funding Iowans’ priorities by redirecting money wasted by the Pentagon

Health care, education, and renewable fuels research are hot topics in the Iowa Legislature this session and officials are looking for new ways to fund these important programs.  Jack Kibbie, President of the Iowa Senate, says federal funding could make a big impact in Iowa.

“Iowa children deserve better schools and access to health care.  The plan proposed by Iowans for Sensible Priorities would provide our state with the money needed to solve these problems without raising taxes,” Kibbie said.

Iowans for Sensible Priorities suggests shifting money away from unneeded and expensive Cold War and nuclear weapons programs toward social needs such as education, health care, and energy independence.

Speaker of the House Pat Murphy also supports the plan.

“Our tax dollars could be better spent here in Iowa helping the people who need them most – our children.  It just makes sense to put our money to work for us rebuilding schools, providing health care for children, and helping us use the agricultural resources in our state to become energy independent,” Murphy said.

Dozens of other elected officials, including Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, U.S. Senator Tom Harkin, U.S. Representatives Bruce Braley and Dave Loebsack, and Des Moines Mayor Frank Cownie, have also endorsed the campaign.  For a complete list of the campaign’s elected official endorsements, go to sensibleiowans.org/supporters.php.

Iowans for Sensible Priorities is a non-profit, non-partisan organization based in Des Moines.  The group’s mission is to change the federal budget to reflect a national commitment to education, healthcare, energy independence, job training and deficit reduction -- all at no additional taxpayer expense -- by shifting spending from obsolete Cold War and nuclear weapons.  To learn more about the campaign, go to sensibleiowans.org.