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Sunday, October 3
Vanishing State Budgets: Iowa's Response to the 2001-2004 State Fiscal Crisis
by
Linda Thieman
on Sun 03 Oct 2004 04:59 PM CDT
 Vanishing State Budgets: Iowa's Response to the 2001-2004 State Fiscal Crisis
Iowa Policy Project
New Report Compares Responses of Iowa, Other States
DES MOINES, Iowa - Iowa's handling of the recent fiscal crunch differed markedly from other states as Iowa opted to cut revenues at a time services already were being threatened, according to a new report.
"Iowa is
not in the mainstream of other states in its response to the fiscal
crisis of the last few years. We have eroded our ability to provide
public services in ways that will require significant work to repair,"
said Charles Bruner, executive director of the Child & Family
Policy Center (CFPC) and a co-author of the report with Mike Crawford,
senior research and administrative associate for the CFPC.
The
report is the first of several to be released in the coming weeks by
the Iowa Fiscal Partnership, an initiative of the CFPC and the Iowa
Policy Project, two Iowa-based nonprofit, nonpartisan organizations
that collaborate on Iowa tax and budget policy analysis.
The
series will illustrate the impact of Iowa's budget decisions on
education, human services, local governments and fiscal stability
during the fiscal crisis of 2001-2004. Among findings of the first
report, which compares responses of Iowa and other states to those
challenges:
-Iowa
already had contained general fund growth more than other states from
1995 through 2001, but also enacted somewhat larger tax cuts from 1996
to 2001 than those enacted in other states. Between 2001 and 2004,
unlike the national trend, Iowa actually cut general fund spending and
reduced taxes further.
-While
states overall increased general fund spending by 7 percent from 2001
to 2004, Iowa actually cut general fund spending almost 8 percent
during the period. Only Michigan (10.6 percent) and South Carolina (9.6
percent) cut spending more.
-States overall raised taxes 4.3 percent from 2001 to 2004; Iowa cut taxes 2.2 percent.
-While
Iowa's K-12 education spending growth was lower than that for the
country overall, K-12 expenditures fared better than general-fund
expenditures as a whole.
-States
that did increase taxes from 2002-2004 went to a variety of sources for
revenue. The largest source came in personal income taxes, with
cigarette and tobacco taxes next, followed by sales and use taxes and
corporate income taxes.
Iowa Fiscal Partnership reports will be available on the web at www.iowafiscal.org. The CFPC is on the web at www.cfpciowa.org, and the IPP is at www.iowapolicyproject.org.
Stop Outsourcing Our Future! Goes to Keokuk Oct. 4
by
Linda Thieman
on Sun 03 Oct 2004 12:56 PM CDT
 Stop Outsourcing Our Future! Goes to Keokuk Oct. 4
A Town Hall Meeting for people concerned about good jobs, the environment, and a healthy future for their community
Monday, October 4
6:30-8:00 PM
Keokuk City Council Chambers
415 Blondeau St., Keokuk
Join
your friends and neighbors to learn about global trade agreements now
being negotiated by the Bush administration, their implications for
good jobs, a clean environment, and healthy communities, and the choice
that voters have in the Presidential election on the issue of
outsourcing our future.
Panelists
-David Osterberg, Executive Director, Iowa Policy Project
-Bill Olmsted, At-Large Alderman, Keokuk City Council
-Jerry Kearns, Staff Representative, United Steel Workers of America
AND
-Jim Jontz, former Congressman from Indiana and President Emeritus, Americans for Democratic Action
Thanks to Jerry Kearns, the meeting will be televised live on local public access TV.
Other Town Hall Meetings in Iowa
Ottumwa, Oct. 11, Ottumwa Public Library, 7:00-8:30pm
For more information, click here.
News and Notes: DNC Compiles Clips of Bush's Facial Expressions
by
Linda Thieman
on Sun 03 Oct 2004 10:29 AM CDT
 DNC Compiles Clips of Bush's Facial Expressions
They say
the sigh killed Al Gore in the presidential debate 4 years ago.
This year, we are making much of Bush's seeming irritability,
frustration, and ticked off facial expressions during last week's
debate. And rightly so! LOL
I know I would hate to stand
there and be criticized for destroying the world for an hour and a half
on national TV. But, hey, no one's perfect. Stay the
course! Stay the course!
Click here to see the clips that the DNC put together for our maximum enjoyment.
[Thanks to Matthew for alerting Blog for Iowa to this delicious delight!]
Blog for Iowa is Six Months Old!
October 1st was Blog for Iowa's six-month anniversary.
We had our heaviest traffic ever
during the month of September, with almost 23,000 distinct hosts served
and over 44,500 page views. That's an average of over 760
visitors per day and almost 1,500 page views per day. No wonder I
have to keep upgrading our bandwidth every month. Had to upgrade
it 3 times in September.
So, as of Oct. 1, our page views for the six months we've been up total just over 156,000.
Democracy for Illinois: Sunday in the Park Without George!
Eric Davis in Illinois sent this our way
Democracy for Illinois is leading a
coalition of progressive groups across Illinois to hold “Sunday in the
Park Without George.” Modeled after similar events in New York (see www.democracyinthepark.org),
on October 10th and again on the 24th, citizens will be taking
advantage of the free weekend minutes on their cell phones to place
personal calls to undecided voters in so-called “swing states,”
primarily Wisconsin [and perhaps Iowa and/or Missouri].
Volunteer coordinators will be on-site in parks in Chicago, in the
suburbs and collar counties and in other Illinois communities such as
Rockford, Peoria and Champaign to train and help interested citizens
make their voices heard in these crucial battleground states. This is
one of several identical events planned for Illinois on this day, so
make sure this is the one closest to you!
Click here for more information or to sign up to attend.
Kerry Wins Debate on Points and in Perception
by
Linda Thieman
on Sun 03 Oct 2004 05:10 AM CDT
 Kerry Wins Debate on Points and in Perception
MoveOn.org
The debate Thursday night
was a make-or-break moment in our campaign to win back the White House.
Now the verdict is in: with confidence and conviction, Kerry made the
case against Bush's disastrous foreign policy -- and Bush couldn't take
the heat.
Friday's editorial by the Boston Globe
sums it up: "Ladies and gentlemen, you wake today to a whole new
presidential race. Last night, John Kerry won as clear a debate victory
as we've seen since Ronald Reagan outdueled Jimmy Carter in 1980…The
Democratic challenger seemed more serious and substantive, more
knowledgeable and confident, than the man who holds the job."
It's
become a truism that the post-debate spin matters as much as the debate
itself. We've got a running start -- the reaction nation-wide was
overwhelmingly in John Kerry's favor. But it's critically important
that we all get out there and help seal the deal.
Over the
weekend and into the coming week, Americans will look to the
letters-to-the-editor pages of their local newspapers to confirm their
perceptions about the candidates and their performances.
Please take a few minutes today to write a letter highlighting how Kerry confronted Bush with the truth and the way that it rattled and angered Bush. We've set up an online tool that highlights some key talking points and makes it easy to find your local newspaper.
To write a letter to the editor, go here.
John Kerry's performance was very strong. But what sealed the deal for many commentators was how rattled Bush got when confronted with the truth about his policies.
The Washington Post derided his "stammering and pausing," the New York
Times said he was "scowling and grimacing" and "petulant," the Boston
Globe noted his "sighing, clenching his teeth, rolling his eyes," the
LA Times said he seemed "tired and annoyed," and CBS News described
Bush as "scowling at times and looking away in apparent disgust at
others." Mark Halperin of ABC News summed it up: George Bush was
"remarkably angry-seeming."
Kerry has said before that George Bush lives in a "fantasy world of spin."
Last night that fantasy world began to crumble. Bush appeared angry
that anyone would dare to challenge his view of the facts. Faced with
the reality of the mess he has created in Iraq, and challenged for
repeatedly misleading the American people, he retreated, falling back
on his trite slogans over and over and over.
One of
the most compelling moments of the debate came when George Bush once
again tried to connect Iraq and 9/11. But Kerry wouldn't let him do it,
and Bush scowled at his powerful response. We've put together a great
web video that captures this moment. Check it out now at:
http://www.moveonpac.org
Even the
conservative pundits gathered on Fox News had to admit that Kerry
looked pretty good last night. Bill Kristol said, "I think Kerry did
pretty well, and…we're going to have a real presidential race." And
right-wing commentator Joe Scarborough conceded: "I don't see how
anybody could look at this debate and not score this a very clear win,
on points, for John Kerry."
And the voters agree.
ABC News said, "John Kerry won the debate," pointing to a poll of
independent voters who declared Kerry the winner, 45% to 36%. CBS News
said, "John Kerry won the debate," and found Kerry up by 15 percentage
points among uncommitted voters. Even Gallup, a polling firm which has
consistently skewed Republican, found Kerry winning by 16 percentage
points, with a whopping 46% of the viewers saying that the debate made
their opinion of Kerry more favorable. On the web, clickers delivered a
landslide: with over 250,000 votes cast on the CNN website, 77% of the
viewers thought that Kerry won, as opposed to only 19% for Bush.
Kerry's
win will transform the presidential race. As voters get to actually
meet the man Karl Rove has demonized, they realize he presents a
serious alternative to Bush's reckless policy of endless war. But it's
up to us to seal the deal for our friends, family, neighbors, and
communities, as these perceptions are forming. Please take a moment to write a letter to the editor today here.
With
a month to go, this race is turning around. Kerry is building momentum.
The polls are narrowing. And on November 2nd, we're going to win this
thing.
Overnight, a group called Safer Together put together a remarkable rapid-response ad featuring women
watching the debate whose loved ones are in Iraq. The ad juxtaposes
Bush saying "I see on the TV screens how hard it is, and we're making
progress" with emotional comments from these women who feel the real
impact of the war. You can watch it online at:
http://www.sistersspeakout.com/
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