Free Republic

Newly released FBI memos detail a sensitive investigation into fundraising in the Carter White House that started with a comparison to Watergate but fizzled after uncovering special access for donors but no criminal wrongdoing. The memos were released from the file of Charles Manatt, an Iowa native and former Democratic National Committee Chairman who was interviewed during the investigation. The records became public after Manatt died in July at age 75 in Richmond, Va. Manatt grew up on an Audobon farm and studied rural sociology at Iowa State University before ascending to the top of the fields of law, business...

When an employee of Link Strategies was arrested Friday for trying to steal the Iowa Secretary of State’s identity, it was not the first time the Democrat consultant group was investigated for criminal activity aimed at tearing down a Republican opponent. Back in 2002, while Link Strategies was running Tom Harkin’s senatorial campaign, the group was involved in an infamous “taping” scandal. The 2002 incident became one of the most talked about stories in Iowa politics that year. A Harkin campaign staffer arranged to have a supporter tape-record a private strategy session conducted by Harkin’s Republican opponent, Greg Ganske. The...

en. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) said that Newt Gingrich would be a "heaven-sent" nominee for President Obama's reelection campaign and that there was "silent cheering" from the Obama campaign about his emergence in the GOP race. The senator went on to dismiss the former Speaker as a "bomb thrower" in a call with reporters Thursday. "I was in the House with Newt, as a matter of fact, years ago. I can remember him being a bomb thrower at that time," Harkin said. "One of those people always lobbing things around - I thought at that time, in his early career in...

Senator Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Representative Peter DeFazio (D-Oregon) are set to propose a tax on financial transactions similar to what is being proposed in Europe (as if that lends them any support). It is being marketed by the folks behind it as very small, so small that Tom Harkin bets that "nobody would even feel it". Statements like that further convince me that he has absolutely zero knowledge of the financial world, not surprising given that he has had a total of 2 years of private sector experience (practicing law 37 years ago after he lost a Congressional election)...

Should we use ethanol for fuel? Certainly. Should we use corn to make that ethanol? Certainly not. Sure, we want to get over our need for foreign oil. Sure, we want to find a renewable fuel for our vehicles. Sure, ethanol could work just fine. But don’t make it from corn. Here’s what I’m talking about. The president and a bunch of powerful people in Congress have been working over recent years to hold up corn-based ethanol as the answer to our future energy-supply needs. When he talks about it, the president says corn-based ethanol is our only hope of...

A top aide to Iowa Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin supplied an answer last year to a thorny question a friendly witness would face the next day at a pivotal hearing on for-profit colleges, raising questions of witness tampering, an email obtained by The Daily Caller shows. As Harkin prepares for another event on the same subject at 2:00 p.m. today, the email raises fresh concerns about the senator’s committee conduct after he recently faced accusations from Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigators that he pressured them on an error-ridden report unveiled at the very same hearing. That Senate Health, Education, Labor...

Boeing Labor Fight Takes Over Harkin HearingBy Melanie Trottman May 12, 2011, 4:47 PM ET An effort by Senate Democrats Thursday to highlight the problems of the middle class turned into a partisan debate over the merits of Boeing Co.’s effort to build a non-union airplane factory – a project now under attack by the National Labor Relations Board. Chicago-based Boeing’s general counsel, invited by Republicans to be a witness at a Senate panel led by Sen. Tom Harkin (D., Iowa) , portrayed Boeing as a company that could be frustrated in its effort to create good-paying manufacturing jobs by...

For 16 years I've been telling you that if the Democrats gained enough power in Washington, they would attempt to seize the money you have in your 401K, IRA and private pension plans. Many of you poo-pooed me, calling me "over-the-top" or unable to back up my claims. Maybe you might be interested in knowing that just last Thursday, a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a hearing on retirement savings and security. WebGuy forwarded me lots of emails of people asking me to prove it. So here you go. You can watch the committee meeting right here...

The week of August 2 the U.S. Senate is scheduled to begin debate on a new comprehensive energy bill introduced by majority leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada). Senators Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Richard Lugar (R-Indiana) have offered an amendment that is being strongly endorsed by corn growers and other ethanol supporters. The Harkin-Lugar amendment would: Mandate the production of flex fuel vehicles by requiring all new cars and trucks sold in the U.S. be flex fuel, Require the installation of blender pumps nationwide to dispense mid- and high-level ethanol blends, Create a federal loan guarantee program for pipelines to carry ethanol...

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) suggested Thursday that Democrats might attempt to move "card-check" legislation this year, perhaps during a lame-duck session. Harkin, the chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, strongly disputed that the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA, or "card-check") was dead in the Senate. "To those who think it's dead, I say think again," Harkin said on the liberal Bill Press radio show. "We're still trying to maneuver," the Iowa Democrat added, explaining that if Democrats can't move the bill in its entirety, they might try to pass key parts of the union-organizing legislation...

In reaction to news that Transocean Ltd., the owner of the destroyed oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, intends to distribute $1 billion to private shareholders, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) signed a letter with 17 of his Senate colleagues to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder requesting that the Department of Justice investigate the corporation’s pending transactions. The announcement by Transocean came after a closed-door meeting of company executives and weeks after the Transocean-owned Deepwater Horizon oil rig was destroyed. In the early days of the leak, BP estimated that some 5,000 barrels per day were leaking into the Gulf...

I don’t blame you if you’re thinking ” New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Los Angeles, and Des Moines. Yes – Des Moines, Iowa. You see, not every corporate insurance job is where you might expect it to be. Des Moines is a fine example of that. Unless you’re an insurance “insider,” Iowa is probably the last place you’d think to go to find a high-powered insurance career, but you’d be making a big mistake by not looking there. As amazing as it seems, over 60 major insurance companies have chosen Des Moines to locate their corporate headquarters. On top of that,...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The top Democrat on the Senate health committee says insurance companies who refuse coverage to people with pre-existing medical conditions are engaging in discrimination. Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa told participants at the White House's health summit that such refusals are akin to racial discrimination that was legal during parts of the last century. Harkin says it's time to end discrimination based on health in this century. Democrats are pushing a health care overhaul that would make it illegal for insurance companies to refuse coverage to people who have conditions such as asthma or diabetes.

"I love Tom Harkin. I'm totally familiar with his idea," Reid said during a news conference on the Capitol on Thursday. "It takes 67 votes, and that, kind of, answers the question."

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) soon intends to introduce legislation that would take away the minority’s power to filibuster legislation. Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) in the next few weeks intends to introduce legislation that would take away the minority’s power to filibuster legislation.

December 22, 2009 Harkin: Dems Focused on Health Reform Big Picture Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, responded Tuesday to widespread criticism that Democrats only garnered the 60 votes needed to defeat Republican stalling tactics on the health reform bill by catering to self-interest, saying Democrats are focusing on the big picture; "trying to cross a demarcation line." Harkin dismissed deals dubbed vote-buying by GOP senators as "small stuff" that distracted Americans from the primary focus of the overhaul bill. "We have to keep our eyes on what we're trying to do here. We're trying to cross a demarcation line," Harkin told...

Party leaders who spoke at a weekend fundraising banquet urged Iowa Democrats to “stand up” against Republicans and “stick with” the president. Congressman Bruce Braley of Waterloo was among the first to speak at the Iowa Democratic Party’s Jefferson-Jackson Day Dinner on Saturday night.“It’s not acceptable for Democrats to be walking around looking glum because now is not the time for doubt. Now is not the time for fear,” Braley began.  “And now is not the time for silence.” Braley brought the crowd of Iowa Democrats to its feet by the end of his six-minute speech.“I want, as she sits in her...

A new Des Moines Register poll is great news for Iowa Senator Charles Grassley, as well as GOP gubernatorial hopefuls Terry Branstad and Bob Vander Plaats. It is very bad news for Iowa's current Governor.

Harkin to Succeed Kennedy as Health Panel Chair Sen. Tom Harkin, the next most senior Democrat on the Senate panel focused on overhauling the nation's health care system, will fill the seat held on an interim basis by Sen. Chris Dodd. FOXNews.com September 08, 2009 WASHINGTON -- A fierce proponent of the public option and proud, self-identified firebrand liberal will chair the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, formerly held by the late Sen. Edward Kennedy, FOX News confirmed late Tuesday. Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, the next most senior Democrat on the Senate panel focused on overhauling the nation's...

Harkin get hammered at Des Moines Town Hall!

YOU GOTTA SEE THIS. YOUTUBE VIDEO

Health-care outbursts foreshadow a hot August (with links to info on LIAR Tom Harkin, see below) DES MOINES, Iowa -- Loud outbursts, hot tempers and pleas for civility at town hall meetings around the country Saturday foreshadowed a long, hot August as Democratic lawmakers returning home faced resistance to proposals to reform the nation's costly health care system. At a meeting in Des Moines, Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, was interrupted several times by people in the audience shouting criticism and questions, even though he said he didn't expect Iowans to take part in what he called "scare tactics, misinformation...

A health care event sponsored U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin erupted into a shouting match Saturday afternoon, when opponents of health-care reform yelled pointed questions and criticisms to the Democratic senator. It echoed other health care events sponsored by members of Congress around the country in recent days that have been disrupted by protestors, although no one was arrested at Saturday’s event. Uniformed police officers were present as roughly 200 people turned out to see Harkin at an inner-city health care center to voice their opinions or ask questions about health care. “This is not health reform, this is control, control...

A group of senators are discussing dropping a key provision in the card-check bill in order to win centrist support in the upper chamber. But congressional aides and union officials said no agreement has been hammered out yet on an alternative to a bill that is organized labor’s top legislative priority. They stressed that that every piece of the legislation is up for discussion in order to earn 60 votes to beat back a certain Senate filibuster. A report in The New York Times Thursday said senators led by Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) had decided to remove the card-check or...

Notes: The following text is a quote: THE BRIEFING ROOM THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary ________________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release July 15, 2009 Statement by the President on the Health Care Reform Legislation Passed Today by the Senate HELP Committee "Today, thanks to the unyielding passion and inspiration provided by Senator Edward Kennedy, the HELP committee he chairs has produced a proposal that will finally lower health care costs, provide better care for patients, and ensure fair treatment of consumers by the insurance industry. Like the legislation produced by the House of Representatives, this proposal would offer Americans...

Democrat Al Franken, right, with his wife Frannie Franken smile as they meet the media at their house in MInneapolis Tuesday June 30, 2009 after the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Democrat in the Senate race against Republican Norm Coleman. (AP Photo/Andy King) Al Franken, the newest member of the U.S. Senate, will be the guest speaker at Sen. Tom Harkin's annual steak fry Sept. 13. Franken, who is expected to be seated in the Senate next week after winning recounts and court challenges in his upset of Minnesota Sen. Norm Coleman, will headline Harkin's 32nd...

Ashby Jones: The Senate unanimously passed a resolution on Thursday apologizing for slavery, making way for a joint congressional resolution. Click here for the WaPo story. “You wonder why we didn’t do it 100 years ago,” Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), lead sponsor of the resolution, said after the vote. “It is important to have a collective response to a collective injustice.” Memo to Senator Harkin: We had a collective response. It was called the Army of the Potomac. Not to mention the Emancipation Proclamation, the 13th Amendment, the 1964 Civil Rights Act, and decades of affirmative action. Jones continues: Randall...

The Senate unanimously passed a resolution yesterday apologizing for slavery, making way for a joint congressional resolution and the latest attempt by the federal government to take responsibility for 2 1/2 centuries of slavery. "You wonder why we didn't do it 100 years ago," Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), lead sponsor of the resolution, said after the unanimous-consent vote. "It is important to have a collective response to a collective injustice." The Senate's apology follows a similar apology passed last year by the House. One key difference is that the Senate version explicitly deals with the long-simmering issue of whether slavery...

Names of the six senators who voted to fund the closing of GITMO: Durbin - Illinois Harkin - Iowa Leahy - Vermont Levin - Michigan Reed - Rhode Island Whitehorse - Rhode Island Source: michellemalkin.com

After many setbacks, the “card check” bill’s chief Senate sponsor is expressing new optimism that the legislation, which would ease union organizing, could be on the Senate floor this summer.In recent weeks, Tom Harkin , D-Iowa, has been meeting with a small number of senators, with occasional input from Majority Leader Harry Reid , D-Nev., to hash out alternatives to the legislation (S 560, HR 1409) that would still reflect its basic purpose: making it easier for workers to certify and join viable unions.Compromise has been on the agenda since the legislation was introduced in March, but strategies have...

WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--It appears Sen. Arlen Specter's planned party switch will restore his electoral safety but won't, at least according to a Senate colleague, come with the trappings of a chairmanship. Specter, R-Pa., who chaired the Senate Judiciary Committee before Republicans lost control of Congress in 2007, will retain his seniority when he migrates from the Republican Party to the Democratic Party. His nearly three decades in the Senate will catapult him above other Democrats on several committees. But although that means he now has the seniority to chair the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that oversees the departments of Labor, Health...

Becoming Illegal The Honorable Tom Harkin 731 Hart Senate Office Building Phone (202)-224-3254 Washington, DC 20510 Dear Senator Harkin, As a native Iowan and excellent customer of the Internal Revenue Service, I am writing to ask for your assistance. I have contacted the Department of Homeland Security in an effort to determine the process for becoming an illegal alien and they referred me to you. My primary reason for wishing to change my status from U.S. Citizen to illegal alien stems from the bill which was recently passed by the Senate and for which you voted. If my understanding of...

Dear Friends, This week, I was just as outraged as I am sure many of you were, when I learned that millions of dollars were paid out in bonuses to employees at companies that received bailout funding. I am dumbfounded to think that some of the very people at AIG whose recklessness caused such harm to the financial system and our economy are now being rewarded. What’s more is that the Federal Reserve and the Treasury Department knew about these bonuses before they went out and did not aggressively act to stop them. The Treasury needs to step up oversight...

WASHINGTON -- Key Senate Democrats are wavering in their support of legislation that would give more power to labor unions, dealing a setback to labor's top priority as businesses warn of the damage the bill would cause. A woman wears a model house on her head during a rally in Washington to support the "Employee Free Choice Act." The battle over the "Employee Free Choice Act" -- expected to be introduced Tuesday -- is seen as a power struggle among labor unions and businesses, as well as a test of whether moderate Democrats and Republicans will push back on Democratic...

Posted by: Jeremy Pelofsky Tags: Front Row Washington, Iowa, pigs, Tom Coburn, Tom Harkin Some might think it would be hard to defend spending $1.8 million on researching how to deal with the odor from pig manure, but Senator Tom Harkin found it pretty easy to do. Harkin, an Iowa Democrat, succeeded in getting the funds included in the $410 billion omnibus spending bill that is pending in the Senate, drawing protests from some like Senator John McCain that it is wasteful spending of taxpayer dollars. “I’m sure that David Letterman will probably be talking about it and Jay Leno...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two prominent supporters of stem cell research said on Thursday they had reintroduced a Senate bill that would allow federal funding for human embryonic stem cell research, in anticipation of President Barack Obama's support for the work. Senators Tom Harkin, an Iowa Democrat, and Arlen Specter, a Republican from Pennsylvania, said their bipartisan measure would allow federal funding for research using stem cells taken from human embryos left over from fertility treatments. "It is the same bill that both houses of Congress approved in 2007, but was vetoed by President Bush," they said in a statement. Obama...

Barry, it's impossible to ignore the ongoing discussion and renewed calls from members of Congress to bring back the Fairness Doctrine or what many are saying will be legislation that will go by a different name.  As we've discussed before , the Fairness Doctrine is an antiquated Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rule dating back to the 1940s that was abandoned in 1987 during the Reagan administration.   In theory, the Fairness Doctrine was designed to enhance political discourse by requiring television and radio broadcast stations to "cover vitally important controversial issues of interest in their communities" and "provide a reasonable opportunity for...

U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, is pushing for return of the Fairness Doctrine even as some of his Democratic colleagues are quietly backing off the idea. Originally instituted in 1949 by the FCC, the Fairness Doctrine required broadcasters over the public airwaves to give equal time to opposing political views.

Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, has become the second U.S. senator in a week to endorse a return to the ideas behind the so-called "Fairness Doctrine," a plan that was abandoned under President Reagan in 1987 as unnecessary and unconstitutional. The plan, originally introduced in 1949, demanded that radio and television stations give "equal" time to conservative and liberal opinions on political issues under the threat of penalties or license revocation.

Bill Press continues to press for the return of the Fairness Doctrine. I guess he probably figures it'll take a law to make anyone listen to his drivel. We have to keep a close eye on these bastards in the Senate - There is no question that they intend to curtail liberties in America, and the easiest way to get that done is to shut up all the conservatives first.

Harkin says he's shocked House Republicans didn't back stimulus bill Thursday, January 29, 2009, 3:28 PM By Darwin Danielson Iowa Senator Tom Harkin, a Democrat, says he's shocked the $800-billion economic stimulus bill passed the U.S. House without a single Republican vote. Harkin says it's surprising with all the people being laid off and conservative economists saying the government needs to do more, not less. "I 'spose someone can always say 'well I found something wrong with the bill', but I think there's a heck of a lot more good in it than bad," Harkin says. Harkin says he hopes...

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Sen. Tom Harkin is proposing new legislation that he said would increase the demand for American cars. Along with Sen. Dick Durbin, of Illinois, Harkin introduced a bill earlier this week that in turn would take older, less-fuel-efficient cars off the road, while also giving buyers a big bonus. The Sell Fuel Efficient Cars Act would provide a rebate of $10,000 to buyers who trade in a car more than 10 years old for a new American car. Officials said the reason for the act is to help create demand for American cars and preserve jobs...

Friday, November 7, 2008 12:00 PM CST Iowans played role in Obama victory The state of Iowa can take its share of credit for the history-making campaign of President-elect Barack Obama, and not just because of the 54 percent to 44 percent margin of victory for Obama Tuesday within the state. It started back in January, when Iowa stunned the nation by giving Obama a victory in the Iowa caucuses. In addition to Obama’s win in the caucuses, Hillary Clinton finished a disappointing third place, behind John Edwards. That showing went a long way in taking the “ability” out of...

Something’s missing on Iowa’s political landscape this year: Tom Harkin’s always red-hot race for reelection. Yet despite the low-to-invisible profile of Harkin’s Republican opponent, Christopher “Who?” Reed, Wednesday’s KCCI poll showed the businessman and first-time candidate with 39 percent of the vote. That might not sound like much, but with near-universal name ID, John McCain got the same 39 percent in that same poll. Christopher Reed in Postville, IA.A Research 2000 poll shows Reed at 40 percent, and the Des Moines Register poll had him at 34 percent two weeks ago, with Harkin in the low 50s in each. So...

Iowa Senator Tom Harkin’s lead over Republican challenger Jack Reed has dropped 10 points this month, but he is still poised to handily win his bid for re-election in November. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in the Hawkeye State finds Harkin ahead 54% to 40%. This is the incumbent’s smallest lead since tracking of the race began in June. Last month, Harkin led 58% to 34%. He is currently seeking his fifth term in the Senate. In his last re-election bid, Harkin beat his Republican opponent, Greg Ganske, 54% to 44%. Reed is a Navy veteran and businessman.

Harkin: Gas cheaper because of ethanol By Ian Swanson Posted: 07/24/08 11:39 AM [ET] Ethanol is keeping gas prices as much as 40 cents cheaper, according to Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), one of the Senate’s top supporters of corn-based renewable fuels. As a result, the Bush administration should deny Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s (R) request that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cut in half the federal mandate requiring the oil industry to blend 9 million gallons of ethanol into the nation’s gas supply, Harkin said. “Ethanol is keeping gas 24 to 40 cents cheaper than it otherwise would be,” Harkin...

Dear Rob: Thank you for contacting me. I am always glad to hear from you. At a time when Americans are working harder to make ends meet, I share your concern about the high cost of gasoline. Iowans are paying record prices and it's creating a ripple effect throughout our economy and the problem only seems to be getting worse. These prices make living our daily lives a real challenge. I am fully committed to changing the course of America's energy policy - to transition America away from our crippling dependence on foreign sources of oil. These debilitating prices are...

DES MOINES -- Republican Congressman Steve King carries a copy of the Constitution with him everywhere he goes. He said it reminds him of the oath he took when first elected in 2002 to Congress. King stressed at Saturday's GOP state convention that Constitution could come under fire if Sen. Barack Obama is elected in November. "If we don't exercise our rights, we will lose them," said King, noting he has defended the Constitution even when it wasn't popular, cheap or easy. "Even when we have a Constitution (we think) is a guarantee that doesn't mean it is a guarantee...

As you no doubt know, the Senate last week voted to confirm Gen. David Petraeus -- slandered less than a year ago by MoveOn.org as "Gen. Betray Us" -- by a 95 to 2 vote. Which two senators voted against Petraeus, despite his historic achievement: dramatically changing U.S. military strategy in Iraq and turning what looked to be America's defeat at the hands of al-Qaeda and Iran's proxies into a clear success? The answer (drum roll please): Senator Tom Harkin (D., Iowa) and Senator Robert Byrd (D., W.V.) voted against him. Interesting, don't you think, that both Harkin and Byrd...

In the Des Moines Register, Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said that the worldview of Navy veteran Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., who is the son and grandson of Admirals, has been shaped too much by the military. "He has a hard time thinking beyond that," Harkin told reporters. "I think he's trapped in that. Everything is looked at from his life experiences, from always having been in the military, and I think that can be pretty dangerous.""It's one thing to have been drafted and served, but another thing when you come from generations of military people and that's just how you're...