U.S. Agriculture Secretary and former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack advocated "cap and trade" legislation during a town-hall meeting at the Iowa State Fair, despite a hog farmer's plea that it would increase the cost of electricity and hurt small farmers.
"There is no question as I travel around the country ... [that] they are currently seeing the impact of climate change," Vilsack said. "There is an expectation of American leadership on this issue. The concern I have is that if we fail to lead on this issue ... it will impact not just the cap-and-trade conversation; it will impact our capacity to convince countries to do things in other areas."
Mike Ver Steeg from Inwood raised the issue with Vilsack during the hour-long meeting attended by about 200 farmers, union members, and elected officials.
"We need to not pass the cap-and-trade bill because I spend about $2,400 a month on electricity right now," Ver Steeg said. "If that goes through and I have to spend 30 to 50 percent more, I don't have profit right now. That's going to hurt small farmers like me."
Vilsack acknowledged that energy costs may go up but argued that in the short term, there would be offsets with cropping, fertilizer, methane, and nitrous-oxide reductions that would negate the increases.
"Agriculture generally, it's about a break-even proposition," he said. "Over the long haul, it is potentially tens of billions of dollars for net income opportunity for farmers and ranchers."
Asked later whether his position is unpopular in rural America, Vilsack said no. He said cap-and-trade provides the opportunity for innovation, and there's a division among farmers on the bill. He cited dead trees, erosion, and migration as effects of climate change. "The longer we delay dealing with this, the more expensive and the more dramatic it will be," he said.
Also during his visit to Iowa this week, Vilsack explained how roughly $2 billion available to help pork producers and dairy farmers has been exhausted, but he said the U.S. Department of Agriculture will still do what it can to help those struggling.
"We are cognizant of the need for help," Vilsack said. "We've purchased about $117 million of pork through our various commodity programs. It's about 72 million pounds of pork we've purchased. That's an increase of about 50 million over what we've done in the previous year. I realize that there's been a request for additional assistance. The problem has been in our capacity to respond. ... We had about a billion dollars available, and all of that resource except for the last couple of million dollars has been used because of the stress in so many different commodity areas."
Governor's Race Heats Up in the GOP
In one of the first direct attacks between Republican gubernatorial candidates, Christopher Rants this week dumped on Bob Vander Plaats' idea that the state should run Medicare and Medicaid for Iowans, saying it would break the bank and describing it as "the proverbial cure that's worse than the cold.
"Obama's plan spells trouble for Iowa, but the [Vander Plaats] plan spells bankruptcy," Rants said. "I don't think Bob has any idea just how much it would cost to have the state government take over the Medicare system, and all of Medicaid. This idea would almost double the size of our state budget."
Vander Plaats, a Sioux City businessman, made his comments about a new health-care plan for Iowa at the Marshalltown GOP Steak Fry, the Dallas County GOP picnic, and to Radio Iowa. But Rants said the plan would put Iowa's tax rate above neighboring states and kill Iowa's business climate. He said Vander Plaats "should know better than this."
Vander Plaats said in an interview with IowaPolitics.com that he was taken by surprise by the attack.
"I had to be chuckle to be quite honest with you ... ," he siad. "It almost sounded like he wanted to side with Barack Obama. It may be demonstrating very clearly who the frontrunner is in this race. Our goal is not to attack other Republicans. ... My goal is not only to run against the vision of Chet Culver; it's to run aggressively for the vision for Iowa."
Rants later told IowaPolitics.com that Vander Plaats is the frontrunner for the GOP gubernatorial nomination, but he said that's not why he called him out on his proposal.
"I called him out on it because it's a bad idea," Rants said in an interview with IowaPolitics.com. "As Republicans we're telling Iowans that we offer better ideas than Chet Culver. So if one of us offers a bad idea, I think they should be called on it."
Meanwhile, state Representative Rod Roberts said he's one of four Republican gubernatorial candidates who have been most actively campaigning this summer; he said the other top campaigners are Christian Fong, Rants, and Vander Plaats. Jerry Behn attends central-Iowa events, and Roberts said he hasn't seen Paul McKinley at any of the events.
"Relatively speaking, it is still early," Roberts said in an interview with IowaPolitics.com. "For several of us as candidates, it wasn't too early to begin the process to travel and to make an introduction to Iowans and share our message."
Roberts said he expects that well into fall, two or three or more people will still be seriously considering getting into the race. "Depending on their background and their status, they may have the luxury of being able to wait a couple more months," he said.
Roberts said he won't drop out, even if former Governor Terry Branstad or U.S. Representative Steve King enters the race.
King told IowaPolitics.com that he's still considering a run for governor next year but hasn't set a deadline for when he'll make a decision.
"I've not ruled that out," King said. "It would have to be clear to me on the path and the reason. The reasons are clear enough, but the path is another question. I just have to sit back and if it comes clear to me, I'd make an announcement. If it comes clear that I should not, then I'd also make an announcement."
Senate Minority Leader McKinley (R-Chariton) said that the possibility of Branstad entering the gubernatorial race has frozen the field, that fundraising is tough, and that while he's still exploring a run for governor, his recent focus has been on his work as the Senate Republican leader.
McKinley said he's been around the state in his capacity as the Senate leader. Since session ended, "I've been to every corner of the state three or four times," he said. He was the only presumed candidate not to appear at an IowaPolitics.com forum in July, and at a forum last weekend hosted by the Dallas County Republicans.
"I've had conflicts on both of those," said McKinley, who has an exploratory committee for governor and confirmed today that he still plans to step down as Senate Republican leader should he decide to run. "We'll see how things evolve," he said. "I've been in the exploratory phase and I've not made a final decision yet."
Culver Dismisses New Republican Poll
A new statewide poll commissioned by the Republican "Iowa First Foundation" found that 31 percent of those polled think Governor Chet Culver deserves re-election. Fifty-five percent of respondents said it was time to give someone new a chance.
The poll of 500 likely voters was conducted July 23 through 26 and has a margin of error of 3.7 percentage points.
In an interview with reporters, Culver dismissed the poll results.
"They mean nothing at all," Culver said. "We will have one poll that matters November of 2010. Terry Branstad was at 37 percent approval. These polls don't matter. If a Republican 527 wants to pay for a poll, they'll get the result that they want. A partisan, conservative 527 group led by a former Republican nominee for governor, Doug Gross -- they have no credibility."
Culver said that the same 527 tax-exempt organization that paid for that poll won't say who's giving money to fund it. It's not required to under law.
"Who are these people?" Culver asked. "Are they Iowans? Why won't they tell us who they are and how much money they're giving? What are they hiding from? ... And surprise, surprise, they have a poll that is favorable for them because it's a partisan, right-wing operation that is trying to defeat Democrats."
Culver maintained that he's not concerned about his re-election in 2010. "I am focused on getting the job done as governor," he said. "I love campaigning, I love competition, I look forward to a healthy debate and discussion about our state's future next year."
Gambling Revenue Down; New Polk County Casino Proposed
Gambling tax-revenue growth in Iowa has now been negative for three consecutive months, according to a new report by the Legislative Services Agency. In July, it was negative $1.4 million, or down 7.1 percent.
Despite a new Waterloo casino and recent expansions of casinos in Clinton and Dubuque, gambling tax revenue went down $6.4 million or 2.1 percent in the past 12 months compared to the previous year.
Nine of Iowa's 17 casino/track locations reported negative annual adjusted gross revenue growth for the 12-month period ending July 2009, according to Iowa Racing & Gaming Commission statistics.
Nonetheless, officials with Peninsula Gaming of Dubuque this week touted a proposed $150-million gambling venue in Polk County south of the Des Moines International Airport as one that would make more money for all involved with no risk, even though it would be Polk County's second casino.
"Our approach is to make more for everybody, more for the existing stakeholders every single month as a whole and to to do it with no risks," said CEO Brent Stevens. "This is not a gambling structure. This is a community center. This is about amenities, about restaurants, about fun, a little about racing -- which is important -- and a lot about the community."
The proposed Prairie Meadows South Racetrack & Casino would be run in partnership with Prairie Meadows in Altoona. Renderings show it would be a Frank Lloyd Wright-style building that along with a casino could include a steakhouse, sports bar, bowling alley, and radio station. A hotel and meeting space are also being considered. Outside, there would be quarter-horse racing and the ability for other equine activities such as professional rodeos, barrel racing, horse pulls, and tractor pulls.
The idea of a second casino in Polk County stemmed from a statewide gambling study by The Innovation Group that said in May that the Des Moines area could support a second casino, which could boost profits from the current $153.9 million to $286.3 million a year.
Members of the Polk County Board of Supervisors all said they were skeptical of the proposal for a second casino.
"I'm really puzzled, very candidly, as to why we're even having this discussion," said Supervisor Tom Hockensmith, a Democrat, who noted that Prairie Meadows in Altoona is already addressing recommendations from the study, such as building a hotel. "It doesn't make a lot of sense to me. ... I have not found one single constituent in my district who supports an additional casino in Polk County. Not one."
"It sounds like a great proposal," said Board Chair Angela Connolly, a Democrat. "But ... we have a lot of commitments to the community. We're not sure a second casino is what we need right now."
Wild Rose Entertainment also has a proposal for a second casino in Polk County, although it did not present it at today's supervisors meeting. The Prairie Meadows board meets again to talk publicly about the proposals August 26.
End-of-Life Comments Take on a Life of Their Own
Controversy over U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley's comments about the end-of-life provision in the U.S. House health-care bill continued this week. Meanwhile, Grassley and the "gang of six" spoke on a conference call for 90 minutes Thursday night and remained committed to working on a bipartisan health-care-reform bill.
President Obama used a town-hall meeting in Grand Junction, Colorado, to criticize Republicans such as Grassley who have hammered home the message that "death panels" would be formed as a result of one of the health-care-reform bills.
"So when I have people who just a couple of years ago thought this was a good idea now getting on television suggesting that it's a plot against grandma or to sneak euthanasia into our health care system, that feels dishonest to me," Obama said.
Grassley was among 42 Republican senators who voted in favor of the 2003 Medicare prescription-drug bill, which provided funding for counseling for end-of-life issues and care. But Grassley said he never used the words "death panel," and that the context and details of this year's proposal for end-of-life consultations are different from the 2003 Medicare-modernization legislation.
"The issue is whether end-of-life provisions should be part of legislation that's about controlling health-care spending, and which also creates a government-run health-care program, as the Pelosi bill does," Grassley said. "Doing so escalates concerns about the rationing of health care, since government-run plans in other countries ration to control spending. Putting end-of-life consultations alongside cost-containment and government-run health care causes legitimate concern."
Grassley said senators discussing a possible bipartisan Finance Committee bill took end-of-life provisions off the table weeks ago to avoid unintended consequences. He and U.S. Senator Arlen Specter (D-Pennsylvania) also exchanged words on the topic via Twitter.
"Called Senator Grassley to tell him to stop spreading myths about health care reform and imaginary 'death panels,'" Specter tweeted.
The controversy stemmed from comments Grassley made at a town hall meeting in Winterset that "you have every right to fear" a health-care bill that has counseling for the end of life, and "we should not have a government program that determines you're gonna pull the plug on grandma."
U.S. Representative Bruce Braley (D-Waterloo) accused Grassley of "doublespeak" after learning that Grassley had supported a 2003 Medicare bill that included optional coverage for end-of-life care consultations between patients and their doctors.
"Senator Grassley continues to repeat the ridiculous claim that paying doctors to discuss end-of-life care with their patients is somehow 'pulling the plug on grandma,' yet in 2003 he voted for a bill with a nearly identical provision allowing Medicare to reimburse doctors for end-of-life-care consultations," Braley said. "It's doublespeak like this that makes people cynical about Washington politicians."
Grassley said he was "shocked that Braley would attack a fellow Iowan before getting all of the facts" and said Braley was "taking my vote in 2003 completely out of context."
U.S. Representative Leonard Boswell (D-Des Moines) stressed that the counseling-at-the-end-of-life provision in the U.S. House health-care bill that's been widely publicized is a voluntary option.
"If an individual chooses ... they want to talk to their doctor about what is available and what they could do, the doctor can treat it like an office call and he gets paid for it," Boswell said. "Back to the individual, they can accept that discussion or they can reject it. If they can make a plan, they can change it the next hour or the next day or the next month. It is absolutely voluntary, and I can't understand why anybody would think that isn't good."
This weekly summary comes from IowaPolitics.com, an online government and politics news service. IowaPolitics.com staff contributed to this report.
