Caucus Time is Upon Us
By Sam Garchik
Well, I'm back from Winter Break. I hope you all had a great 2007, because 2008 promises to be just as exciting. First note - Check out John Edwards on the BFIA poll. He's now in 3rd place, 15pts behind Obama, who is now the clear leader. Just 3 more days to vote, people. According to Zogby (who I think is kind of like caucus crack), Huckabee leads Romney by 2, and McCain by 13. On the D side, Clinton leads Obama and Edwards by 4 and 4th place Richardson by 25. So, it's going to be a close one.
The forecast in IC calls for highs of 26, partly cloudy and windy. Not a bad winter's day at all, it seems. Stay tuned for more..
To start this week off, I post an email from Rod Sullivan, who is a Johnson County Supervisor and veteran caucus attendee. Although his advice comes to you from the People's Republic, it's good statewide. Be good, and be present....
Rod Says...
Here are ten caucus tips, regardless of your party or candidate preference:
1. Caucus locations are not necessarily polling places! Double-check your caucus site!
2. Caucuses begin at 6:30 PM, but the lines will be long at 6:30. Get there earlier, if possible.
3. Do not bring a bunch of extra items you will not need. Your site will be crowded, and it will be easy to lose things.
4. Sign the nomination forms for candidates for local office, and take some time to learn about candidates for other elective offices.
5. If you are a caucus veteran, volunteer to assist the Temporary Chair at your location. She/he may need help with registration and any number of additional tasks. Try to be helpful.
6. Seating will be limited; most folks will need to stand. Try to identify folks who might need a chair, and help them get seated. Otherwise, get the chairs out of there.
7. If it is at all possible, walk to your caucus site. Parking will be a nightmare  guaranteed. If you live too far to walk, carpool. It will make the caucus process work better for everyone.
8. If you have kids between the ages of 10 and 16, bring them along. They can either observe the process or help out by watching younger children. If your child will be 18 by Election Day, she can fully participate in the Caucus.
9. If you can, stick around for the platform discussion. This hashing of ideas really is democracy at its best!
10. Finally, and most importantly, please be polite and understanding. We Iowans are given a tremendous privilege. Waiting in line, being crowded, being too hot or too cold, running late, etc. are the prices we pay to have lots of folks participate in our democracy. I assure you that everyone wants the caucuses to go as smoothly as possible, but problems do occur. Hang in there, and remember how lucky we are!
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Monday, December 31
Caucus Time is Upon Us
by
Sam Garchik
on Mon 31 Dec 2007 04:20 PM CST
Monday, December 24
12 Days Left to Caucus (SUng to the Tune of 12 Days of Christmas)
by
Sam Garchik
on Mon 24 Dec 2007 12:53 PM CST
12 Days Left to Caucus (Sung to the Tune of 12 Days of Christmas)
By Sam Garchik Ok, here it goes... On the 12th Day of Christmas, my true love brought to me 12 campaign buttons 11 blogger comments 10 fundraiswers 9 TV spots 8 new positions 7 town hall meetings 6 major speeches 5 mail pieces 4 ehthanol uses 3 healthcare fixes 2 Iraq exits and an endorsement from a union leader. Sing with joy while shoveling out your driveway on Jan 3. Merry Xmas, from the blog... Saturday, December 22
All the Democratic Party's presidential candidates would make good-to-excellent presidents. How to choose?
by
Sam Garchik
on Sat 22 Dec 2007 12:45 PM CST
All the Democratic Party's presidential candidates would make good-to-excellent presidents. How to choose? Nicholas Johnson, Iowa City Press-Citizen, December 22, 2007, p. 15A I grabbed this off of Johnson's Web site, and it bears repeating. __________ All the Democratic Party's presidential candidates would make good-to-excellent presidents. How to choose? Here are some suggestions from an Iowa-born old Washington hand. • Don't miss the caucus. Take a friend. New York's Boss Tweed said, "I don't care who does the electing, just so long as I do the nominating." This is your chance to do the nominating. Plus, it's fun.Experience at everything All have "experience" at something. But a president needs experience at everything. Who has the broadest, deepest range of experience? An American president is policy wonk in chief as well as commander in chief. Federal personnel director as well as national cheerleader. They must maintain our economy while improving our foreign relations. Above all, they must have superior, large-institution administrative skills and experience. When they negotiate and deal with other major institutions it gives them credibility as well as real understanding if they've worked within them: Congress, cabinet positions, municipal and state governments, international organizations, and negotiations with foreign leaders. We don't have a school for presidents. There's no parliamentary system to provide the ultimate prime ministers both administrative and legislative experience. Quality rankings So here are the qualities I'm looking for -- followed by my opinion of who ranks highest. • Experience administering large institutions (state or large city governments, corporations) -- Gov. Bill Richardson (governor; Secretary of Energy), Rep. Dennis Kucinich (mayor of Cleveland).You may have a different list of qualities and evaluation of candidates. But I hope this kind of approach may be helpful to you in a year when we are blessed with a very tough choice from among excellent candidates. _______________ Nicholas Johnson served as maritime administrator, FCC commissioner and presidential adviser for a White House Conference during the terms of three presidents. He now teaches at the University of Iowa College of Law and maintains the blog, FromDC2Iowa.blogspot.com.,/i> Friday, December 21
Untitled
by
Sam Garchik
on Fri 21 Dec 2007 12:42 PM CST
Attend your precinct caucus! By the IFL of Iowa I'm a Union Member, and think this is something any of you should consider when caucusing Our First-in-the-Nation Iowa Caucuses provide Iowans and Iowa union members an extraordinary voice in choosing the next President. Below are some sample Platform Resolutions. We encourage you to clip or copy these platform planks and present them at your precinct caucus. We support state legislation amending Chapter 731 and the pertinent parts of Chapter 20 of the Iowa Code to allow private and public sector workers in Iowa to negotiate "fair-share" clauses that ensure that all workers covered by and benefiting from a negotiated contract would share in the cost of the service provided. We support a prevailing wage law for Iowa construction workers on certain government projects to promote its proven beneficial effects on the economy, on construction quality and on worker safety. We support legislation that allows Iowa workers who are injured on the job to choose their own medical care providers. We support legislation that expands the scope of bargaining for public sector employees. We support passage by Congress of the Employee Free Choice Act to protect the rights of workers to form unions and bargain collectively. We support passage of HR 676 which would assure universal coverage of all medically necessary services for all Americans.
Thursday, December 20
IOWA SURVEY: COAL-FIRED POWER PLANT FREEZE FAVORED BY TWO-THIRDS OF MOST LIKELY CAUCUS GOERS, OTHER STATE RESIDENTS
by
Sam Garchik
on Thu 20 Dec 2007 11:29 AM CST
IOWA SURVEY: COAL-FIRED POWER PLANT FREEZE FAVORED BY TWO-THIRDS OF MOST LIKELY CAUCUS GOERS, OTHER STATE RESIDENTS
By Plains Justice Echoing Coal Roll Backs in KS and FL, 4 Out of 5 State Residents Favor More Energy Conservation Over New Coal-Fired Plants; Groups Call on Gov. Culver to Lead the Way. Listen to news event audio link Download full survey report (PDF) DES MOINES, IA.///December 20, 2007///Sending a clear message to state officials and presidential candidates, nearly four out of five Iowans (79 percent) –- including 69 percent of Republicans, 86 percent of Democrats and 79 percent of Independents – think that “Iowa should focus on increased (energy) conservation steps and more fuel efficiency to reduce demand for electricity before it constructs new coal-fired power plants,” according to a major new Opinion Research Corporation (ORC) survey commissioned by Iowa Interfaith Power & Light, Iowa Farmers Union and Plains Justice. Supporters of the “conservation/energy efficiency first” approach include 75 percent of the most likely caucus attendees, including 67 percent who will attend Republican caucuses and 88 percent who will participate in Democratic caucuses. As other states including Kansas and Florida take active steps to roll back plans for coal-fired power plants within their borders, Iowa officials are contemplating the future of two such facilities proposed for construction near Waterloo and Marshalltown. Another key finding of the ORC survey of 1,005 Iowa residents: Two thirds of likely Iowa caucus goers and 65 percent of all state residents – including 58 percent of Republicans, 71 percent of Democrats and 67 percent of Independents – favor a “one-year-long statewide dialogue in Iowa involving state officials, citizens, unions and utility company regulators to help shape the energy future of Iowa during which current coal-fired power plant plans would be frozen to allow for the most comprehensive discussion.” The survey commissioned by Iowa Interfaith Power & Light, the Iowa Farmer’s Union and Plains Justice also found that roughly nine out of 10 Iowans (89 percent) – including a nearly identical 88 percent of Republicans, 89 percent of Democrats and 88 percent of Independents — agree that “the state government of Iowa, as a matter of formal policy, encourage more public and private investment in alternative energy to help create new jobs in the state.” Commenting on behalf of Iowa Interfaith Power & Light about the new survey findings, Bishop Alan Scarfe of the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa said: “With all our eyes focused on the disappointing response of the United States administration to the conversation and conclusions of the Bali meeting, this is an opportunity for our own Governor of Iowa to demonstrate that many Iowans are among the people within the United States who nevertheless understand the deeper implications of the crisis upon us. From the perspective of the religious communities, the recently proposed coal-fired power plants threaten rather than assist our progress towards renewable energy. The intention of placing them in the demographics of our most at-risk individuals, Marshalltown with its large Latino population, and Waterloo with its greater number of African Americans may have the appearance of providing employment, but at great cost to the health of the participants, as well as the families in the proposed areas. Iowans have shown in this poll that they want time for discussions at the highest level of public representation” Iowa Farm Union President Chris Petersen said: “In a time of skyrocketing energy costs, Iowa Farmers Union supports legislation that promotes the advancement of renewable energy technology to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and fossil fuels and gives farmers the opportunity to own the means of production.” Carrie La Seur, president, Plains Justice, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and a member of the Iowa Power Fund Board said: “At a January Iowa Utilities Board hearing, an impressive slate of national experts will testify that the proposed Marshalltown coal plant would be a costly mistake. Iowa’s renewable energy revolution is the answer for our power needs, not a $1.5 billion investment in 19th Century technology. We call on the governor to protect Iowa’s investment by giving our energy and climate planning processes a chance to work before we permit any new coal plants.” Graham Hueber, senior research, Opinion Research Corporation said: “These findings are bad news for people who want to build coal-fired power plants in Iowa. The survey clearly shows that majorities of Democratic and Republican caucus goers – as well as other Iowa adults – would prefer to see an alternative that does not involve putting new coal-fired power plants in the state. We find strong support here for enhanced energy conservation and a major infusion of state and private investment dollars in clean energy. It is also evident that health concerns associated with power plant pollution are seen as a legitimate public health issue, particularly when it comes to children.” KEY SURVEY FINDINGS The ORC survey conducted for Iowa Interfaith Power & Light, the Iowa Farmer’s Union and Plains Justice also found the following: * More than three out of five Iowans (64 percent) – including 73 percent of Democrats, 54 percent of Republicans and 68 percent of Independents agree with the following statement: “ … the best energy alternative is greater efficiency and conservation to eliminate waste, combined with more wind, solar power and other alternative energy … doing this would ultimately save money in the form of economic benefits to the state, such as cleaner air, healthier children, and fewer public health risks. Therefore, we should not build additional coal-fired power plants in Iowa.” * More than three in five of Iowans (62 percent) are “concerned about the possible ill health effects - including asthma and heart problems - that could be experienced by you, your family members and others as the result of increased pollution from new coal-fired power plants in Iowa.” This figure includes less than half (48 percent) of Republicans, but 73 percent of Democrats. Three out of four individuals indicating that they will attend a Democratic caucus expressed concern about this issue. * Three out of four Iowans –- including 61 percent of Republicans, 86 percent of Democrats, and 75 percent of Independents — are less likely to support new coal-fired power plants when told: “Coal-fired power plants are the primary source of carbon dioxide pollution - a known contributor to global warming.” This view is shared by 72 percent of those most likely to attend a caucus, including 60 percent of those attending a Republican caucus and 85 percent of those attending a Democratic caucus. * More than three out of four Iowans (77 percent) -– including 68 percent of Republicans, 84 percent of Democrats and 79 percent of Independents — are less likely to support new coal-fired power plants in the state when told: “Much of the power generated at the new coal-fired plants in Iowa would be sold to out of state customers but Iowa would get all or nearly all of the resulting pollution.” * More than three out of four Iowans (77 percent) –- including 69 percent of Republicans, 85 percent of Democrats and 74 percent of Independents — are less likely to support new coal-fired power plants when told: “Hundreds of thousands of children live in Iowa within a 30-mile-radius of a coal-fired power plant.” This view is shared by 75 percent of the most likely caucus attendees, including 68 percent of Republican attendees and 84 percent of Democratic attendees. * Fewer than one in three Iowans (31 percent) –- including only 42 percent of Republicans, 23 percent of Democrats and 28 percent of Independents — see “access to affordable electricity” as a sufficient justification for building new coal fired power plants in the state. * Four out five Iowans -– including 71 percent of Republicans, 87 percent of Democrats, and 86 percent of Independents – think that older, “grandfathered” power plants should be required to “install the advanced pollution control devices required for new electricity-generating facilities” before new coal-fired power plants are built” in the state. This view is shared by 79 percent of the most likely caucus attendees, including 67 percent of Republican attendees and 88 percent of Democratic attendees. * Only about two out of five Iowans (42 percent) say they favor “building new coal-fired power plants in the state,” compared to a total of 58 percent who either oppose new plants or have not yet made up their mind. Only about a third (34 percent) of Democrats favor new plants, compared with 43 percent who oppose them and 23 percent who have not decided. Over half of Republicans (55 percent) support new plants, with 27 percent opposed and 18 percent undecided. Fewer than two in four Independents (38 percent) support new coal-fired power plants, compared to 33 percent who oppose them and 28 percent who are undecided. * Fewer than two out of five Iowans (37 percent) are aware of “pending plans for coal-fired power plants in Iowa near Waterloo and Marshalltown.” Awareness varies widely by region with 64 percent of those in the Cedar Rapids area (which includes Waterloo) knowing of such plan, 34 percent awareness in Des Moines (closer to Marshalltown) and only 22 percent in the rest of the state. * A third of respondents said that they will “definitely attend” or are “extremely likely” to attend a caucus, including 31 percent of Republicans and 40 percent of Democrats. * 39 percent of the respondents were Republican/Independents leaning Republican, 47 percent were Democrats/Independents leaning Democratic, 37 percent were Independents, and 2 percent were associated with other parties. * About nine out of 10 respondents (89 percent) said they are registered to vote. For full survey findings, go to http://plainsjustice.org/filings-for-marshalltown-iowa-coal-plant-proposal/ on the Web. METHODOLOGY Survey results are based on telephone interviews conducted among a representative sample of 1,005 adults aged 18 and over living in private households in Iowa. Interviewing was completed by Opinion Research Corporation during the period of December 7-11, 2007. The margin of error is plus or minus 3 percentage points for the complete sample of Iowa adults. Smaller sub-groups will have larger error margins. ABOUT THE GROUPS Iowa Interfaith Power & Light (http://www.ncrlc.com/IICEC.html) is part of a national network dedicated to protecting God’s sacred creation and safeguarding public health. Iowa Interfaith Power & Light has worked with more than 150 faith communities in Iowa to reduce global warming pollution while empowering those most impacted by higher energy costs, by increasing investment in energy efficiency and by creating new revenue streams through clean energy. The Iowa Farmers Union (http://www.iafu.org) works to sustain and strengthen the family farm agricultural system in the United States through education, legislation and cooperation. With headquarters in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Plains Justice (http://www.plainsjustice.org) is a public interest environmental law center working for environmental justice and sustainable communities in the Northern Plains region of the U.S., including eastern Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa. The Plains Justice docket includes Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and energy policy work. CONTACT: Ailis Aaron Wolf, (703) 276-3265, and aaaron@hastingsgroup.com. EDITOR’S NOTE: A streaming audio recording of the news event will be available on the Web as of 7 p.m. CT/8 p.m. ET on December 20, 2007 at http://plainsjustice.org/filings-for-marshalltown-iowa-coal-plant-proposal/. Wednesday, December 19
Ohio Voting Machine Review Has Major Implications For Iowa
by
Sam Garchik
on Wed 19 Dec 2007 10:58 AM CST
Ohio Voting Machine Review Has Major Implications For Iowa: Critical Security Vulnerabilities, Threats to Voter Privacy
By Iowans for Voting Integrity Iowa's discussion of purchasing new election equipment is likely to be affected by a landmark review of voting systems in Ohio. A report ordered by the Ohio Secretary of State and released December 14 found severe flaws in all of the voting systems Iowa uses. “The Ohio review looked at every system Iowa uses, and found real risks to the integrity of elections,” said Iowans for Voting Integrity co-chair Sean Flaherty. Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner said that the security problems discovered were “worse than she anticipated.” [1] Computer scientists who analyzed the software wrote that within a few weeks, they were able to subvert “every voting system they were provided in ways that would often lead to undetectable manipulation of election results.” Computer scientists have previously found that malicious code can be written to escape pre-election and post-election testing, running only under desired conditions.[2] The Ohio reviewers warned that it is “safe to assume that motivated attackers will quickly identify – or already have – these and many other issues in the systems.”[3] Equally troubling was a threat to voter privacy in the design of the TSx touch screen voting machine, made by Diebold/Premier and used in 71 Iowa counties. Ohio reviewers confirmed reports that the TSx records votes in its computer memory with a time stamp, allowing anyone with access to the system and knowledge of the time of day that a vote was cast to violate voter privacy.[4] Iowa Code 52.7 requires that all voting systems used in the state permit voting “in absolute secrecy.” Ohio Secretary Brunner has recommended scrapping all touch screens and using only optically scanned paper ballots. Flaherty said, “Hopefully, these findings will seal the fate of touch screen systems in Iowa”. Legislation signed by Governor Culver in May requires counties eventually to scrap touch screens and adopt a system of optically scanned paper ballots, which are marked by the voter and later tabulated by a machine. Funding is needed for counties to make switch as quickly as possible. Iowa's legislators, Governor Culver, and Secretary of State Michael Mauro are discussing funding for new equipment this month. Paper ballots are the beginning of the solution. Ballot scanners also use software, so hand-count audits of a sample of ballots to check the electronic tally are necessary. Audits are championed by many computer scientists who study voting systems, including a task force that included the former chief security officer of Microsoft and University of Iowa voting system expert Douglas Jones.[5] 16 states have laws requiring hand audits of election results.[6] “The combination of optically scanned paper ballots and hand audits provides checks and balances that build confidence in the system,'' Flaherty said. [1] “Ohio Elections Official Calls Machines Flawed.” By Bob Driehaus. New York Times, December 15, 2007. http://www.nytimes.com/ 2007/12/15/us/15ohio.html?_r=1&ref=us&oref=slogin [2] “The Machinery of Democracy: Protecting Elections in an Electronic World.” Report of the Brennan Center for Justice Task Force on Voting System Security, pages 43-45. http://brennancenter.org/ dynamic/subpages/download_file_39288.pdf [3] EVEREST Academic Review Team Findings, page 4 (page 22 of pdf), http://www.sos.state.oh.us/sos/info/EVEREST/ 14-AcademicFinalEVERESTReport.pdf [4] IBID, page 154 (page 172 of pdf) [5] “The Machinery of Democracy,” page 3. http://brennancenter.org/dynamic/subpages/ download_file_39288.pdf [6] “Manual Audit Requirements.” The Verified Voting Foundation. March 2007, http://www.verifiedvoting.org/downloads/ stateaudits1007.pdf For More Information Contact Sean Flaherty, Co-Chair Iowans for Voting Integrity 319-621-8651 sean@iowansforvotingintegrity.org www.IowansForVotingIntegrity.org Tuesday, December 18
Check out what Iowans tell the world about Caucuses
by
Sam Garchik
on Tue 18 Dec 2007 11:20 AM CST
Check out what Iowans tell the world about Caucuses
By Sam Garchik The Poll numbers continue to climb for Obama. He's overtaken Gravel and is in first in our caucus survey. Also, Edwards and Kucinich are basically tied for 3 and 4. Meanwhile, the US Sec of State's office has produced a video discussing the Iowa Caucus in Iowa City. It also shows two local activists explains a little history of the caucus process. You can find a direct link to the video here. It's pretty sweet Monday, December 17
Iowa Climate Change Advisory Council (ICCAC) Meeting in Davenport, Iowa - 17 December 2007
by
Sam Garchik
on Mon 17 Dec 2007 08:11 AM CST
Iowa Climate Change Advisory Council (ICCAC) Meeting in Davenport, Iowa - 17 December 2007
By Cliff Day I've been notified that The Iowa Climate Change Advisory Council (ICCAC) will meet in Davenport, Iowa on Monday, December 17, 2007 at The Rogalski Center of St. Ambrose University, 518 West Locust. This meeting will held from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm and is open to the public. Opportunities for public comment are scheduled for noon and at 3:20pm. A copy of the recently published agenda is enclosed. Extensive information on the role of the council and its sub-committees is available at http://www.iaclimatechange.us/ Click on the tab titled "ICCAC" for specific information concerning Monday's meeting. Cliff Day Environment and Alternative Energy Advocate IOWA CLIMATE CHANGE ADVISORY COUNCIL NOTICE OF MEETING #2 Monday, December 17, 2007 9:00 am- 4:00 pm CST Rogalski Center, St. Ambrose University 518 West Locust Davenport, Iowa, 52803 Call in #: 800.704.9804 Public conference code: 484 447# |
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