Essential Estrogen

While speaking to Cedar County Democrats Saturday night, Congressman Dave Loebsack said that he's made progress on campaign promises and that he's proud of the accomplishments made by Congress thus far in Washington.

"I personally ran on one theme," he said. "That was restoring hope and opportunity that George Bush and the Congress of the United States had taken away from millions of Americans and tens of thousands of people in the 2nd District. We haven't gotten as far as we want to yet, but we've done a heck of a lot of good things."

Increasing the minimum wage, making education more affordable, restricting lobbying, creating additional ethics reform and implementing the recommendations of the 9-11 Commission are successes Loebsack highlighted during his speech in front of an audience of roughly 100 people in Tipton.

The former Cornell College professor earned audible audience approval when he acknowledged that much more could be accomplished with a Democrat in the White House.

"I spoke a lot about health care when I ran for this office -- and you spoke with me about health care," he said. "It's one of the most important things across this district and across this country. We're trying to begin in Congress by not only protecting the 37,000 Iowa children who were on the State Children's Health Insurance Program, or HAWK-I as it is known here in Iowa, but by providing it to 26,000 more. We want to cover 10 million American children in the United States. President Bush wants to cut 840,000. We want to override his veto."

Loebsack said that although he is unsure if there are enough votes in the House to override the president's veto, he is certain that the program will be maintained -- and that the Democrats will push for expansion.

"When we bring this up again in January 2009 and we have a Democratic president, we are going to fulfill the promise to make sure at least 10 million American children are covered by this program," he said. "With your help, we are going to do that."

With only so much money available in the budget, he said, it is doubtful many domestic issues will be addressed by Congress "until we begin to disengage from Iraq."

Loebsack, who recently returned from a fact-finding trip to the Middle East, described the trip and his disappointment with the way it was covered by at least one member of the media.

"When I got back from Iraq, I landed at Andrews Air Force Base at 4:20 in the afternoon and I was in my office at about 5 o'clock," he said. "At 5:20 I was on the phone, talking to about seven different reporters. One of the first ones I talked to was Jane Norman of the Des Moines Register. If you look at what she wrote, it's interesting because -- Obviously, I'm learning how to do this, right? I should know that sometimes a reporter isn't going to report the whole story."

Loebsack said he took issue with the coverage in the Register because he didn't feel it was accurate.

"What got reported in that story was that 'Loebsack thinks that everything is hunky-dory in Iraq' and that we're making great progress and all the rest," he said. "The fact of the matter is that certain parts of Iraq have had some limited military success. Just because there's some limited military progress doesn't mean that we need to stay in Iraq for the next 30 or 40 years. That is what President Bush wants us to do. I still am committed to beginning a disengagement tomorrow from Iraq and having our troops out over the course of the next 12 months."

Response from Jane Norman, the Des Moines Register:

"Iowa Independent reported that Rep. Dave Loebsack said that "he took issue with the coverage in the Register because he didn't feel it was accurate." Rep. Loebsack since this meeting has acknowledged that he was quoted accurately in the Oct. 23 Des Moines Register article to which he was referring. The article reported that he said conditions in Anbar province have improved since his last trip there earlier this year, but the question is how much and how much political progress has been made as well."

He said that he went to Iraq for a wide variety of reasons, but primarily he went there to speak to the troops. He spoke with members of the 833rd Engineer Company out of Ottumwa, who are back in Iraq on their second tour.

"They were here in our country for only 14 months before they were sent back," he said. "This is an engineering unit that goes out and dismantles [improvised explosive devices]. It is not an easy job as you can imagine. Just before I got there a group of four of them had been involved in an IED incident."

Although Loebsack could not provide all the details of the incident, one soldier was injured, and while the congressman was told the soldier would recover from his immediate injuries, he said there is no guarantee that "he hasn't suffered traumatic brain injury."

"We just won't know that for some time," Loebsack said. "He was inside this vehicle -- it's called a MRAP -- and his life was saved because this vehicle is a wonderful vehicle. It's a great vehicle for protecting soldiers, but if you get blown up and your vehicle gets thrown into the sky and you come down, you may not have the outward appearance of injuries. There is a good chance that [the trauma] can cause a lot of other injuries, like brain injury. And, as you know, that can lead to post-traumatic stress disorder as well as a lot of other things."

Loebsack, as leader of the delegation, was able to make decisions as to where the group would visit. One of the places he chose was a base in nearby Kuwait, he said, because the particular camp was a logistics hub.

"I asked the commander there if tomorrow President Bush decided that the mission was not to continue to send troops to Iraq, but the mission, in fact, was to reverse that and bring the troops and equipment home could Camp Arifjan handle the job? And he said it would be no problem," Loebsack said. "So, we know we can do it. We know that if we change the mission, we can get the troops and the equipment out."

Although Loebsack says he now knows that we can get the troops and equipment out from the United States' several dozen bases in Iraq, he remains unsure as to exactly how long it would take.

"It's going to take a long time," he said. "I don't know if we could do it in 12 months. That's my goal. The bottom line is that the decision has to be made now -- it can't wait."

In about 10 or 15 minutes, New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton will begin a speech on energy policy at the Clipper Wind Turbine plant in Cedar Rapids. Well over 150 people are here, not counting the 50 or more members of the press.

It's a good day to discuss wind power in Iowa as a cold, northern wind is gusting.

Looking around the room, there are some notables here. I just saw Linn County Supervisor Jim Houser walking through the crowd. Rep. Swati Dandekar, who has endorsed Clinton, is here too. Cedar Rapids City Councilman Justin Shields and Alan Bernard, both affiliated with Hawkeye Labor are in the front row.

The stage backdrop is done in John Deere green and Hawkeye yellow-gold. It reads:

"Powering America's Future
New Energy - New Jobs

In addition to the main backdrop, there are several signs to the left of the audience, all in the same color scheme and with the same phrase. One of them has been mounted in a wind turbine head.

The venue has become much more quiet as some machinery has been shut down. Several of the plan workers are sitting and standing on equipment, waiting on the show to begin. It's 10:38 a.m. -- so we're roughly 5 minutes late with the start, but there are still spectators coming in the door.

10:50 a.m. - Iowa Sen. Rob Hogg has walked in with Clinton. The audience is giving both a standing ovation.

Hogg is providing the introduction, stating that he and his family have been impressed with how Clinton has taken charge for American families. While this may not be an endorsement, it rather sounds like one and the audience is responding.

Hogg has finished and there was no official endorsement in his introduction, but he had nothing but nice things to say about Clinton. She's now at the lecturn and making the necessary introductions of notables in the audience. Rep. Todd Taylor is here as is Christie Vilsack.

Clinton says it's good that we are here at Clipper for this speech because the things that are happening here are the future of America.

At the top of the world, she says you hear the stories of global warming and can see the evidence with your own eyes. There are no skeptics to global warming in the Arctic Circle, she says.

"The last two decades of the 20th century were the warmest in 100 years," she said.

"Our dependence on foreign oil threatens our security. Nationwide, diesel recently hit an all-time high. Two-third of Americans now say that rising gas prices are a hardship for their families. Meanwhile, we are more dependent on foreign oil today than we were on 9-11."

"A carbon economy compromises our health. Nearly a third of our childhood asthma cases are caused by pollution and environmental contaminants.

She's now hitting the Bush administration and their lack of response to global warming. She says he's pushed science out of Washington. She's hitting the gag order on the Fish and Wildlife Services employees for discussing the plight of the polar bears.

Clinton believes that America is a nation of problem-solvers. She is listing off historical evidence for her theory -- the great depression, landing on the moon, etc. -- "for this generation of Americans, climate change is our space race... it is our response to the great depression."

She's very proud she says, that Al Gore won the Nobel Peace Prize for sounding the alarm.

A group of general issued a recent report that exposed in detail, she says, the implications global warming has on national security. "The price of inaction is far higher than the price of action," she said. "I believe America is ready to take action."

"There is something for everyone to do and success will require each of us to do our part," she said. "So, if you're ready for change, I'm ready to lead."

This is her biggest applause line so far with members of the audience reacting positively to her campaign motto.

She's reading down the white-sheet now -- information I'll post in detail later -- that outlines her energy plan.

"The Department of Energy estimates we can reduce energy use in residential buildings by 20 percent by 2020," she said. "I think we can do better than that.

"For the past three decades California has held its electricity use per person flat," she said. "During that same period, energy use in the rest of the nation skyrocketed by 50 percent."

Since California has prospered, Clinton says this is proof that a new economy based on renewable fuels and lowered greenhouse gases can flourish.

She says her goal will be the 20 percent -- despite the fact she said we can do better. She wants incentives for saving power instead of producing more.

"Fourteen states already have some sort of efficiency goals for power companies," she said.

"It's time to start building a 21st century grid," she said. "What if we harnessed all the advances in information technology."

She wants to know why we can't or haven't combined technology to conserve energy. Why can't we time our dishwashers and other appliances to come on during off-peak hours? Making appliances more efficient would save consumers $54 billion between now and 2020, she says.

"We will phase out the incadescent lightbulb," she said, "and joked that Thomas Edison would approve of the change.

This move will cut national electric bill over $8 million dollars over 8 years, she says. Buildings account for 40 percent of America's carbon emissions.

"This is happening in Iowa right now," she said. She highlighted the Great River Medical Center in West Burlington and received applause from the audience for that as well.

She said she wants the federal government to not only set the rules, but set the example. All federal buildings built after noon on inaugration day will have to be carbon-neutral.

11:20 a.m. -- The Model T got better gas mileage than today's typical SUV, she says.

"I believe America should do what we do best," she said. "We should lead the innovation race. As president I will raise the fuel efficiency standards to 40 MPG by 2020 and 55 by 2030. But I'm not going to ask the car manufactures to do it alone. I will be a good partner."

She says she will work with auto makers to cover the added costs they will incur. She also wants to see plug-in hybrids -- "cars offer promise of 100 mpg."

"The good news is that Detroit is already embracing this new technology," she said. "But the plug-in revolution cannot happen fast enough."

She says we've got to increase access to public transportation. "I want to increase funding for public transit by more than $1.5 million dollars each year."

Huge applause when she says she intends to end the tax breaks that oil companies now receive. "We're going to give these companies that have made the highest profits in the history of the world," she said. "We cannot make the middle class pay twice."

11:30 a.m. -- "We need to look no further than Clipper Wind Power," she said. "In a few short years, Clipper has set an example of how creating clean energy can create good jobs."

Just one of the turbines that will be fueled by these great generators can power 800 homes without producing any pollution at all, she said. As president I will be a good partner for Clipper and for other companies that not only create good jobs -- but in my opinion being a good patriot.

Being a good patriot means ending our dependence on foreign oil, she said, and received a standing ovation from the audience.

We will excelerate production of advance coal technologies, she said. I will provide funding immediately for 10 large-scale projects. In the meantime, we need to stop building coal plants the way we have been.

"I want to bring together the best minds to think together, outside the box," she said. "American can lead the world's green revolution. We are the best in the world -- let's start acting like we are the best again."

You've heard of blue collar jobs, you've heard of white collars jobs -- "this will create 5 million green collar jobs."

"We can't do this alone," she said. "We can't act like the world doesn't need our leadership like we have for the past six and a half years. We have to prove that moving away from a carbon economy is good for growth."

Again she hits on the Bush administration and its refusal to lead on energy policy. She says she will put together an E8, built on the G8 that will bring leaders together to discuss energy and the environment.

"Every single American will have a role to play," she said. "On Wednesday I will outline in greater detail how individuals can play a role. If every home replaced just one 60-watt lightbulb with one compact flourescent it would save enough energy to power 3 million homes in a year. There's something everyone of us can do."

"I'm going to challenge communities, schools, cities and individuals to do the same," she said.

11:40 a.m. -- "I will reform the Department of Energy," she said. "I will focus their mission to move us toward energy independence. This is a transformational challenge to our nation and government... I will start meeting it on day one."

She is hitting on FDR's fire-side chat where he called Americans to the table about WWII.

"Americans were up to that task," she said. "The task before us demands the same urgency and requires the same resolve. Just as the Greatest Generation rose to the occassion, I believe the Greenest Generation will do the same."

No audience questions so... That's it for now. I'll gather some audience reactions and have a more formal write up for later.

Three Iowa courts will open their doors on Saturday, Nov. 17, solely for the purpose of finalizing adoptions. Dozens of families will have either their international, private or state adoptions from foster care finalized on that date as a part of an event designed to celebrate and promote adoption.

This is the seventh year Iowa courts have taken part in the national observance. It's a day when courts, judges, attorneys, adoption professionals, child welfare agencies and advocates volunteer their time so that families and children can finalize adoptions.

The Polk County Courthouse in Des Moines will host an event from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Adoption professionals will be available to talk about adoption and foster parenting. A formal program is scheduled for 10:30 a.m.

In Council Bluffs, the Pottawattamie County Courthouse will have observances from 9 a.m. to noon.

District Associate Court Judge Kim Riley and Associate Juvenile Judge James McGlynn will preside at the adoption of more than 30 children in Webster City at the Hamilton County Courthouse. The event there begins at 8:45 a.m.

In November 2001, Des Moines joined 15 other cities to celebrate families, finalize adoptions and draw attention to the increasing need for qualified foster and adoptive families. More than 500 people attended the initial event -- and at least that many are expected for the 2007 celebration, according to event organizers.

The original Adoption Saturday was the brainchild of Los Angeles Judge Michael Nash and collaborators in 1998. It was organized in a response to a lack of docket time in which to finalize adoptions. While adoptions are not routinely delayed because of lack of time in Iowa, the Polk County Model Court decided to sponsor the event for many reasons.

"We wanted to be able to provide a family-friendly atmosphere for these special meetings," said Judge Connie Cohen, who served as Model Court Lead Judge when the program was initially launched in the state. "It was also an opportunity for many relatives and other guests of the families to attend the proceedings without having to take time off from work or school. And, we hoped to draw attention to the growing need for families willing to open their homes and hearts to Iowa's neediest children as well as to provide information to the public."

The number of placements in Iowa through the Department of Human Services has grown in the past seven years. In the year 2000, 822 children were placed. In 2007, that number has increased to just over 1,000.

The Department of Human Services measures adoption performance on timeliness, not overall numbers of placements. Timeliness is measured from the day of removal to the day of adoption. Most removed children are reunited, but when Iowa courts terminate parental rights, states must quickly find a permanent home. The national standard is adoption of 27 percent of these children within two years of removal. Iowa's performance rate is 47 percent, twice the national average.

Speaking to about 100 people at a fundraiser for Cedar County Democrats on Saturday Night in Tipton, Rep. Nate Reichert said a new energy economy is "the greatest opportunity Iowans have had in at least two or three generations."

The Muscatine resident, who has represented District 80 in the Iowa House since 2004, was tapped to be the chairman of the Standing Committee on Energy Policy. He wrote the first draft of the Iowa Power Fund, a four-year, $100 million effort intended to spark development of renewable energy technologies. The fund was one of Gov. Chet Culver's top legislative priorities, although it wasn't passed through the Legislature until late in the last session.

"We had Gov. Culver talking about how we could grow our renewable fuels industry and we can grow our renewable economy," Reichert said. "We talked a lot about that, but one of the big pieces that I felt was very important with this was that we need to have a plan to make our energy independent by the year 2025 in Iowa."

While the goal is lofty and the plan is not yet written, Reichert says it is in process.

"The plan must include things that we as individual citizens can do," he said. "How can we make an impact on this equation? How can we make our carbon footprint a little smaller? How can we figure out a way to include more renewable fuels in our day-to-day lives?"

The cheapest source of energy, according to Reichert, is energy that is not used. "It's conservation," he said. "It's about changing light bulbs and making things more efficient."

Reichert said he's happy to be a part of those conservation efforts through his work as chairman of the Energy Efficiency Interim Committee, which is studying ways to make the Iowa economy more efficient.

"The [new energy economy] could be the driving force for our economic growth for decades to come," he said.

He pointed to new businesses in Iowa such as the plant in Keokuk that provides manufacturing for wind turbines as part of the way new energy will drive the Iowa economy.

"I think we are going to be seeing more of those types of announcements as we get the Power Fund up and going and we start bringing the new energy economy jobs into Iowa," he said. "So, not only can we be energy independent by 2025, but we can be the world's leader in making that happen. We will not only be using that type of energy, but we will be creating and designing it."

When Iowa begins to bring in those "good jobs," Reichert said the state will then be able to keep younger people here because they will be able to "build a life and a family around it."

Reichert continues to serve as an ex-officio member of the Iowa Power Fund Board of Directors. Other legislative ex-officio members are Sen. Roger Stewart, D-Preston; Sen. Hubert Houser, R-Carson; and Rep. Chuck Soderburg, R-LeMars. Gregory Geoffroy, Kent Henning and Mary Jo Dolan will also serve as ex-officio members, representing Iowa's institutions of higher learning.

Voting board members are Chairman Fred S. Hubbell of Des Moines, Lucy Norton of Clive, Glenn Cannon of Waverly, Peter Hemken of Des Moines, Carrie LaSeur of Mt. Vernon, Patricia Higby of Cedar Falls and Thomas Wind, of Fairfield. Iowa Department of Economic Development director Mike Tramontina, Department of Natural Resources Director Rich Leopold and Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey also have a voting seat at the table.

When the legislation and subsequent appropriations were passed last spring, a new Office of Energy Independence was created. Roya Stanley, who had been active for more than two decades in the fields of renewable energy and energy efficiency, was hired as Iowa's director of that office in late summer.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's white paper on energy and the looming climate crisis was a long time coming, but at least one Iowa environmental activist believes it was worth the wait.

"I thought the speech was great," said Mike Carberry, a regional field director for Iowa Global Warming, after listening to Clinton's remarks on Monday. "She pretty much covered the questions that we ask the presidential candidates on all different levels of renewable energy and on global warming reduction."

Carberry, who has attended events for nearly all the presidential candidates and focuses on their energy and climate change policies, said it was important for Clinton to come out on this issue.

"I think that Hillary has been lacking in some of her policies in regard to global warming reduction until this point," he said. "But she hit a home run today because she covered all the bases. Whoever wrote this policy obviously knows what he or she is doing and talking about. If everything she talks about today gets implemented with her as president -- or if anyone as president enacts those policies -- it would go very, very far into helping us find those global warming solutions that we need."

For the first time, according to Carberry, Clinton stopped talking about energy policy as if she was a Republican.

"Hillary, up to this point in the campaign, has been talking a lot about just energy independence," he said. "Now, energy independence is something that is a very worthy goal. Energy independence really doesn't address global warming because you can find more fossil fuels domestically, you can burn more coal and you can build nuclear power plants. Up until this point, a lot of her talks have been similar to the way a Republican talks about global warming reduction. [Republicans] really don't [address it]. So, now she's really risen up and is on par with the rest of the Democratic candidates on these issues."

While Carberry believes Clinton's energy speech today at Clipper Turbine Works, Inc. will most likely prevent her from being discounted by environmentalists based on her energy policy, her Democratic opponents were quick with criticism.

"Ambitious goals are laudable, but without an honest discussion of how you achieve those goals, it's nothing more than empty rhetoric," said Hari Sevugan, communications director for Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd's campaign. "I don't know how it would do in a public poll, but leading experts agree that a corporate carbon tax targeted at polluters is needed to reverse the effects of global warming. That's why the chairman of the Clinton White House Climate Change Task Force calls Dodd's plan the gold standard in the field."

The campaign for Illinois Sen. Barack Obama typically doesn't issue statements based solely on another candidate's speeches. Today, however, was an exception and the campaign's Iowa spokesperson spoke sharply in reference to Clinton's voting record in the Senate.

“You can’t bring about change on our energy policy if you change your position to suit the politics of a presidential campaign,” said Josh Earnest, Obama's Iowa communications director. “When she had the chance to lead, Senator Clinton voted multiple times against legislation to increase production of renewable fuels and to increase fuel efficiency standards. To stand up for rural America and break America's dependence on foreign oil, we need a leader who won't just tell people on the campaign trail what they want to hear, but one who will tell the American people what they need to hear like Senator Obama did when he called for increased fuel efficiency standards during a speech in front of automakers in Detroit.”

In a move that won't go unnoticed by Iowa's agricultural and bio-fuels community, the Obama team highlighted news articles from April 2002 that reported Clinton signing a letter that opposed a proposal to triple the amount of ethanol gasoline nationwide.

Clinton's 12-Point Plan

1. A new cap-and-trade program that auctions 100 percent of permits alongside investments to move us on the path towards energy independence;
2. A comprehensive energy efficiency agenda to reduce electricity consumption 20 percent from projected levels by 2020 by changing the way utilities do business, catalyzing a green building industry, enacting strict appliance efficiency standards, and phasing out incandescent light bulbs;
3. A $50 billion Strategic Energy Fund, paid for in part by oil companies, to fund investments in alternative energy. The SEF will finance one-third of the $150 billon, 10-year investment in a new energy future contained in this plan;
4. Doubling of federal investment in basic energy research, including funding for an ARPA-E, a new research agency modeled on the successful Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
5. Action to transition our economy toward renewable energy sources, with renewables generating 25 percent of electricity by 2030 and with 60 billion gallons of home-grown biofuels available for cars and trucks by 2030;
6. Ten "Smart Grid City" partnerships to prove the advanced capabilities of smart grid and other advanced demand-reduction technologies, as well as new investment in plug-in hybrid vehicle technologies;
7. An increase in fuel efficiency standards to 55 miles per gallon by 2030, and $20 billion of "Green Vehicle Bonds" to help U.S. automakers retool their plants to meet the standards;
8. A plan to catalyze a green building industry by investing in green collar jobs and helping to modernize and retrofit 20 million low-income homes to make them more energy efficient;
9. A new "Connie Mae" program to make it easier for low and middle-income Americans to buy green homes and invest in green home improvements;
10. A requirement that all publicly traded companies report financial risks due to climate change in annual reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission;
11. Creation of a "National Energy Council" within the White House to ensure implementation of the plan across the Executive Branch; and
12. A requirement that all federal buildings designed after January 20, 2009 will be zero emissions buildings.

"For this generation of Americans, climate change is our space race," Clinton said. "It is our home-front mobilization during World War II and it is our response to the Great Depression."

Although Clinton has been test-driving pieces of her energy policy for the past few weeks, Monday marked the first time she placed it -- all 17 pages -- on the table for public inspection. She will continue to expand on the plan during policy addresses in Newton today and in New Hampshire on Wednesday and Thursday.

"Iowa nice" was alive and well at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids last night. More than 900 people turned out to see and hear Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, many of them arriving 30 or 45 minutes before the event's scheduled start time. Unless trips to nearby vending machines were counted, few left the college's recreation center while the group waited for nearly an additional hour for the Democratic contender to arrive.

While this may be extreme behavior even for Iowans, more known for their political patience and prowess, this was no ordinary audience. Many wore Obama t-shirts. Some had traveled from outlying parts of the county. Young and old were not only content, but arguably elated to sit in plastic folding chairs or on metal risers while campaign staff danced around and led supporter chats. Fired up? Fired up! Ready to go? Ready to go! The majority of those in the audience were supporters before they ever entered the room... and many of the few undecideds added to the pile of supporter cards staff collected at the end of the event.

The town hall meeting was the kick-off of the campaign's "Change We Can Believe In" tour and in prepared remarks Obama combined his trademark "hopeful" politics with humor, as well as a few soft swipes at both his Democratic opponents and the current White House administration.

While discussing the rising cost of gasoline, Obama played to the crowd by using strategic pauses that rivaled any stand-up comedian: "It doesn't help that you put my cousin, Dick Cheney, in charge of energy policy. (pause) I've been trying to hide this for a long time. (pause) Everybody's got a black sheep in the family."

Obama supporter Roy Porterfield attended the event with two friends, one who recently decided to support the Illinois Senator and a second who remains undecided.

"Every time I hear him, he clarifies his position on something a little further -- I get a little more information," Porterfield said. "It helps me intelligently talk about him to other people."

Talking to people and bringing them into a chosen campaign is something that is becoming increasingly more important to Iowans who have selected a candidate and are preparing for caucus night. Porterfield's undecided friend has been leaning toward New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-New York, but he proudly says that the friend "was very impressed" with Obama.

"So, I came tonight to not only hear him again, but to bring a potential new supporter," he said. "It was a good event."

Coggon resident and lifelong Iowan Jane Carney, whose son Christopher represents Pennsylvania's 10th District in the U.S. House of Representatives, was at the Linn County Obama for America office volunteering before coming to the event. Although she helped her son with his Congressional campaign, she said this is the first time she has volunteered on a presidential campaign.

"The first time I heard [Obama] speak was during the Democratic National Convention," Carney said. "I went to where my husband was sitting in the family room and I told him to turn on the television, that he was about to see the next president of the United States."

National pundits often indicate that Iowans, in particular, don't like it when candidates separate themselves from one another on the issues. Carney said, at least when it comes to her, the pundits are wrong.

"I liked it when he compared himself to Clinton," she said. "I like that he made that separation and that he said how he differed from her. I think it is important -- right now -- for him to start making his own stance and separating himself from the others."

Megan Ronnenberg, a 19-year-old sophomore at Kirkwood, is also volunteering on her first presidential campaign. She saw Obama in February at a rally held at Kennedy High School in Cedar Rapids just after he had announced his candidacy in Illinois, but didn't become active with the campaign until August.

"Everyone has things that they personally care about and mine are all the environmental issues," she said. "I've heard him speak about energy and our dependence on foreign oil before tonight. I really feel he's right when he says every president that we've had since Nixon has promised to get us off our dependence on foreign oil. No president has really followed through with that, but I believe [Obama] can."

Polly Alnutt, a resident of nearby Marion, also saw Obama for the first time during the February rally. Before she attended that event, Alnutt said that she wasn't certain she would be supporting Obama.

"I was undecided at that point. After that, however, I felt that I would support him," she said. "I've watched the debates and pretty much everything on television. I read a lot. I like [Obama's] honesty. I also like the fact that he can give hope where there hasn't been any."

When asked about her most prominent issue when deciding on a presidential candidate to support, Alcutt, like many other Iowans, is quick to point to the Iraq war.

"I think Obama will do everything he possibly can to end the war. Secondly, I think we need his hope... just hope for everything, to make everything better," she said.

Alcutt, who has seen Obama four times now, has heard most of his talking points on the stump. One thing that drew her attention during the last debate and again last night, however, was Obama's insistence that he and the newly confirmed attorney general would investigate President George Bush's signing statements for violations and possible prosecution. Signing statements are written notes issued at the time a bill is signed into law, indicating an opinion of the executive branch.

"I heard him say in that debate that he was going to investigate some of the secretive things that had been done by the previous administration," she said. "I really liked that. In fact, I asked the young guys in the [campaign] office if I was the only one who heard it during the debate. I didn't hear anyone in the press discussing it or the pundits discussing it. I really wanted to hear more about that and, tonight, he made it clear that he is going to investigate."

Obama will deliver a speech about working families and the American dream in Bettendorf on Wednesday morning. He will also make appearances at events in Muscatine, Burlington and Fort Madison on that day. On Thursday, he will hold a town hall meetings in Fairfield, Knoxville and Ottumwa and visit with Lucas County Democrats in Chariton. The tour continues on Friday when he will host a discussion in Des Moines before holding a town hall meeting in Sioux City. The five-day tour will end on Saturday at a Des Moines rally with Grammy Award winner John Legend and the Iowa Democratic Party's annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner.

For readers who have not heard the story behind the Fired up. Ready to go. chant, an audio clip of Obama telling the story can be accessed below:

The campaign for Arizona Sen. John McCain has sent a media advisory this morning, announcing that Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback, a former Republican presidential hopeful, will endorse McCain during a press conference in Dubuque. In addition, the Politico is reporting that Christian leader Pat Roberson will throw his support behind former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani. (The Radio Iowa blog has an mp3 of the Robertson endorsement.)

Statement from Brownback

"Today I am proud to endorse my friend and a true American hero, John McCain, for President of the United States. While I respect all of the Republicans running for president this year, John McCain is the only candidate who can rally the Reagan coalition of conservatives, Independents, and conservative Democrats needed to defeat Hillary Clinton or any other Democrat in the general election next year. John McCain has spent a lifetime standing up for human rights around the world, including a consistent 24-year pro-life record of protecting the rights of the unborn. John McCain alone has the courage, leadership and character to lead our party to victory in 2008 while keeping faith with our most cherished values -- life, faith and family."

Following the press conference in Dubuque, McCain and Brownback will travel together to Des Moines and then Sioux City, holding additional press conferences in each location. There was speculation, when Brownback dropped from the race for the White House in mid-October, that Brownback would endorse one of the other Republican candidates. Some believed he would endorse former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney while others argued he was more closely aligned with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. Following his departure from the race, Brownback personally met with Giuliani to discuss abortion. At that time, Brownback said he would consider Giuliani because he heard the candidate had changed his position on late-term abortion and had pledged to appoint strict constructionists to the courts. It can only be assumed that Brownback was not pleased with the way that meeting ended.

While not a national favorite, Brownback had won favor with many notable Iowans and had earned a third-place finish in the Republican Party of Iowa's presidential fundraiser known as the Ames Straw Poll -- a contest in which McCain refused to participate. Some of Brownback's most prominent Iowa supporters came from social conservative channels -- Iowa Family Policy Center president and former state representative Chuck Hurley, Iowa Right to Life president and executive director Kim Lehman, Grace West Church pastor Bob Deever, Casey's General Store founder Don Lamberti, Dubuque County anti-abortion activist Ellen Markham, River Life Ministries pastor Francis Frangipane, Monroe First Baptist Church pastor Jack McCullough, West Des Moines Crossroads Fellowship pastor James Peterson, Council Bluffs Heartland House pastor Jim Kohl, Scott County anti-abortion activist Luana Stoltenberg, State Sen. Mark Zieman, Scott County anti-abortion activist Mary Ann Logan, Linn County anti-abortion activist Michelle Howe, Iowa Sen. Nancy Boettger, Des Moines Walnut Creek pastor Nick Bal, Des Moines Kingdom House of Prayer pastor Randy Bixby, Des Moines Calvary Apostolic Church pastor Rex Deckard, Marion Wind and Fire Ministries pastor Ric Lumbard and Ames Stonebrook Community pastor Tim Borseth.

McCain, who has not been polling high or pulling the heartstrings of Iowa social conservatives should receive at least a small boost in the state from this endorsement. Still, it's an odd move for Brownback, who has found lock-step movement with even the most extreme of the party's social conservatives a comfortable pace -- even while working on the sidelines with the likes of the late uber-liberal Paul Wellstone to enact human trafficking laws and Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Joe Biden to craft Iraq policy. McCain rebuked social conservatives during his 2000 bid and has done little to smooth over his previous statements against the movement, including dismissing Jerry Falwell as an "agent of intolerance."

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Robertson's endorsement of Giuliani has its own dynamic. In Iowa, at least, Giuliani has continually scored lower in the polls due to his more moderate stances on abortion and same-sex marriage -- two issues on which Robertson and Giuliani have severe and clear differences. Many of the GOP faithful here can be overheard discussing why so many Christian leaders have pushed for either Romney or Giuliani. Conventional Iowa wisdom is that the party is willing to throw socially conservative values overboard if releasing such baggage means another four years in the White House.

Iowa House Speaker Pat Murphy, D-Dubuque, has appointed State Representative Tyler Olson, D-Cedar Rapids, as chair of the Health Care Services subcommittee that will examine ways to make health care more affordable for small businesses.

"After just one year in the House, Representative Olson has quickly gained the respect of his colleagues through his hard work and ability to find consensus on complex issues. I trust Representative Olson to help us find new ways to help small businesses control their high health care costs," said Murphy.

Olson was also appointed to the House Commerce Committee, which considers all legislation regarding business, financial institutions, insurance, utilities and real estate. The Health Care Services subcommittee chaired by Olson is part of the Commerce Committee.

"Businesses large and small are struggling with the competitive disadvantage of rising health care costs that often get passed on to employees," said Olson. "I look forward to building on our association health plan legislation passed in 2007 by listening to consumers, businesses and health care leaders."

Olson also serves on Economic Growth, Environmental Protection, Ethics, Human Resources, and Ways and Means. A native of Cedar Rapids, Olson is an attorney at Bradley & Riley, PC and represents the 38th House District.

Americans Against Escalation in Iraq have issued a press release marking both 2007 as the deadliest year yet for American troops in Iraq and that, for the first time, 50 percent of Americans "strongly disapprove" of President George W. Bush. With these latest figures, Bush now beats former President Nixon's record.

"For years a majority of Io