Free Republic

Des Moines—Only weeks after taking this key state in the presidential race by surprise, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker defended his front-runner status in Iowa by pledging to support a federal ethanol mandate, shifting his position on renewable fuels at a Republican roundup on farm issues.The GOP governor and a lineup of other major potential presidential contenders—including former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush—took the stage before hundreds of spectators and media at the Iowa Ag Summit at the state fairgrounds here.In the moderated discussion with ethanol magnate Bruce Rastetter, Walker dropped his previous flat opposition to ethanol mandates, offering a new stance...

DES MOINES, Iowa — Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is telling Iowa Republicans and agribusiness leaders that he opposes the federal standard for renewable production, including ethanol.At a forum focused on agricultural issues on Saturday, Cruz likened the federal renewable fuel standard to "corporate welfare."Cruz tells the audience of roughly 1,000 that he has "every bit of faith that businesses can continue to compete, continue to do well without going on bended knee to the government."

Can someone explain why the "party of limited government" continues, with a straight face, to support ethanol? Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa says about the heavily subsided product, "Everything about ethanol is good, good, good." Really? Really? Really? Supporters of ethanol -- which we make from corn -- say it reduces our dependence on foreign oil, is cheaper and aids the environment because it burns cleaner than non-blended fossil fuels. In 1996, The New York Times wrote: "At a time when Congress has been overhauling the nation's systems of agricultural subsidies, and public officials across the country have considered...

Can someone explain why the “party of limited government” continues, with a straight face, to support ethanol? Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa says about the heavily subsided product, “Everything about ethanol is good, good, good.” Really? Really? Really? Supporters of ethanol — which we make from corn — say it reduces our dependence on foreign oil, is cheaper and aids the environment because it burns cleaner than non-blended fossil fuels. In 1996, The New York Times wrote: “At a time when Congress has been overhauling the nation’s systems of agricultural subsidies, and public officials across the country have considered...

Senator Ted Cruz (R., Texas) managed to turn a disagreement with a crowd of Iowa businesses and farmers into an applause line at the Iowa Agriculture Summit. Cruz reiterated his opposition to the Renewable Fuels Standard, a popular policy in Iowa that presents a thorny problem for many Republicans who campaign against crony capitalism but want to win the GOP presidential nomination. “I recognize that this is a gathering of a lot of folks where the answer you’d like me to give is ‘I’m for the RFS, darnit;’ that’d be the easy thing to do,” he said. “But I’ll tell...

Des Moines — Only weeks after taking this key state in the presidential race by surprise, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker defended his front-runner status in Iowa by pledging to support a federal ethanol mandate, shifting his position on renewable fuels at a Republican roundup on farm issues. The GOP governor and a lineup of other major potential presidential contenders — including former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush — took the stage before hundreds of spectators and media at the Iowa Ag Summit at the state fairgrounds here. In the moderated discussion with ethanol entrepreneur Bruce Rastetter, Walker dropped his previous flat...

... be hailed a hero for trying to avert disaster' An investigation into the 1959 plane crash that killed Buddy Holly and three others could now be reopened after a respected pilot brought forward new factors as to how the aircraft may have gone down. At the time of the crash, the Civil Aeronautics Board ruled the probable cause of the crash was error by the pilot, Roger Peterson, who took off from Mason City to Moorhead, Minnesota, in inclement weather, even though he was qualified. The chartered plane crashed in Iowa not long after takeoff, killing Holly, Peterson, and...

DES MOINES, Iowa —Jeb Bush’s quest to win over Hawkeye State skeptics begins this weekend. The former Florida governor returned to Iowa for the first time in three years on Friday, making clear he’ll contest the early-voting state if he launches a presidential campaign, as expected. Though GOP conservatives may initially be wary of the establishment favorite, he'll start trying to assuage those concerns and road test his 2016 message in very different settings and to very diverse groups. “First impressions matter,” former Iowa Republican Party political director Craig Robinson told The Hill. It’s a rapid fire weekend for the...

Four of the 24 Republicans who serve in the Iowa Senate are announcing Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is their pick for the GOP’s 2016 presidential nomination. Senator Brad Zaun of Urbandale says he’s watched what Walker has done in Wisconsin. “I thought we needed someone with some executive experience and I’ve spent some time privately with him and asked a lot of questions and am 110 percent behind him,” Zaun says. Zaun was the Republican Party’s nominee for one of Iowa’s congressional seats in 2010 and he was a leading contender in the third congressional district in 2014. Zaun says,...

As reporters and members of Congress begin to dig into the Clinton email scandal, former Democratic presidential candidate has announced an upcoming visit to Iowa. He'll be in the important caucus state from May 5-7, as part of a training sessions for the Climate Reality Project, of which he's chairman.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush Back In Iowa, Courting Wary 2016 Voters Jeb Bush By SEEMA MEHTA The Iowa campaign begins for Jeb Bush with two-day visit to first caucus state. Jeb Bush has romped when it comes to 2016 money, but now courts voters. In his first appearance in Iowa since announcing he was weighing a run for president, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on Friday fondly recalled campaigning here with his father but said he would work to differentiate himself from both former President George H.W. Bush as well as his brother, former President George W. Bush. “There...

900 likely Iowa Caucusgoers, 250 media members and a slew of their presidential hopefuls. That is what awaits the speakers at Saturday’s Iowa Agriculture Summit. The first time event, produced by GOP power broker Bruce Rastetter, will be different from any multi-candidate event in Iowa history. “Unfortunately, until now, there has not been a forum solely dedicated to matters that directly affect Iowa farmers who feed and fuel not just the country, but the world,” Rastetter said.Each of the presidential candidates will address the audience, then have a conversation with Rastetter about agriculture-related issues. Topics will include modern agriculture, renewable...

Sheryl McDonald, a retiree, voted for both Presidents Bush. “But I’m finding out they did some things we got stuck with,” she said. “I do not want to see Jeb Bush run,” she added. “He turns me off.” Scarcely anyone at a meeting of the Green County Republican Party here in central Iowa recently had anything kind to say about Mr. Bush, the former Florida governor. They objected to his moderate stances on immigration and education standards. But they also complained matter-of-factly about fatigue with his family — especially after the presidency of George W. Bush, whom they blamed for...

In one of the party’s best pickup opportunities this cycle, Democrats have zeroed in on second-time candidate Monica Vernon to win Iowa’s 1st District. Freshman Rep. Rod Blum, a Republican, holds the seat. But the district’s composition is competitive, if not left-leaning: In 2012, President Barack Obama won it with 56 percent. (SNIP) On the other side, there’s concern in the state Blum might not get much help from Washington, D.C. after voting against John A. Boehner for speaker on his first day in office. Iowa Republicans noted Blum didn’t make the National Republican Congressional Committee’s initial list for the...

A phenomenal thing has happened in Washington: Progressive advocates and conservative forces have united around legislative action supported by the strong majority of the American people. Groups as disparate as the Center for American Progress and ACLU on the left and the Koch Brothers on the right; Republican Sen. Rand Paul and Democratic Sen. Cory Booker; and over two-thirds of the American people all support major overhauls to America's criminal justice system. (SNIP) Yet it would appear Grassley just doesn't wanna change the rules. Grassley is the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Simply put, given the generally powerful position...

WEBSTER CITY, Iowa —Opening statements started Tuesday in the trial for a man accused of killing his former girlfriend's 5-year-old daughter. Prosecutors say 35-year-old Casey Frederiksen was watching Evelyn Miller for her mother in July 2005 when he sexually abused the girl and stabbed her to death. He is charged with first-degree murder and sexual assault. Prosecutors say all the evidence points to Frederiksen as the person who killed Miller. During opening statements, Iowa Assistant Attorney General Scott Brown told jurors this is a case about innocence shattered. He said Frederiksen had the opportunity and motive to kill Miller. Brown...

A dozen potential Republican presidential candidates are about to sit down, one by one, with the biggest GOP donor in Iowa — a multimillionaire few people outside the state have ever heard of. Bruce Rastetter, an agribusiness mogul who’s made a fortune in pork, ethanol and farm real estate, has long worked behind the scenes to help bankroll conservatives across the country, but Saturday is a public coming out party of sorts for Rastetter as he hosts the first Iowa Agriculture Summit. It’s an event designed to promote farm policy in a state where pigs outnumber voters 10 to 1,...

Includes both his speech and questions from Sean Hannity. 24 minutes.

Southern California Edison (SCE) IT workers replaced by H-1B contractors have become the latest Exhibit A in Congress for reformers of the visa program. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who has long advocated for changes to the H-1B program to protect U.S. workers, said the Edison layoffs illustrate how some employers "are potentially using legal avenues to import foreign workers, lay-off qualified Americans, and then export jobs overseas. "I was shocked by the heartless manner in which U.S. workers were injured," said Grassley in a Senate floor speech Wednesday. (SNIP) "The sponsors of the bill claim it will 'boost our competitiveness...

More than two dozen states have joined the Texas lawsuit opposing President Obama’s executive amnesty for millions of illegal aliens, but more eye-opening is the list of Republican governors whose names still do not appear on the suit. The seven Republicans who have thus far elected not to join the suit aimed at reining in Obama are Chris Christie of New Jersey, Terry Branstad of Iowa, Larry Hogan of Maryland, Susana Martinez of New Mexico, Matthew Mead of Wyoming, Charlie Baker of Massachusetts and Bruce Rauner of Illinois. Five of those seven states – Maryland, Iowa, New Mexico, Massachusetts and...