Essential Estrogen

The opening bell has sounded and, by all accounts, 2007 will be quite a year for women in politics. Currently, 87 women serve in the U.S. Congress -- 16 in the Senate and 71 in the House. In addition, for the first time in history a woman, Nancy Pelosi, has been named Speaker of the House.

A further inspection, however, shows the glass to be more empty than full -- although it is less empty than it ever has been. Women comprise just over 16% of the U.S. Congress. If we look back through the years at the U.S. Congress, there have been a total of 11,744 people elected to office. Of that, only 223 of those elected have been women. (Iowa has never sent a woman to federal office.)

In looking at the state legislatures around the nation, women hold roughly 24% of the seats available. When looking only at women of color, females comprise roughly 5% of the available state seats.

Here in Iowa, nearly 23% of our state legislators are women. Unfortunately, that figure is rather misleading since the vast majority of women legislators serve in the Iowa House (28% - 28 out of 100 available seats). On the other side of the capital, women make up only 12% of the Iowa Senate (6 out of 50 available seats).

As the good folks over at Vote. Run. Lead. are quick to remind us, "This country has been around for 228 years, but women have only had the right to vote for 84." Yes, we've come a long way, but there's much more road for us to travel. Let's get to it.

Here's a quick rundown of some of the bits and pieces you've might have missed:

Upcoming Peace Rallies

The folks over at Century of the Common Iowan have a nice list of the upcoming peace rallies in Iowa.

Clinton to headline for Boswell

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is scheduled to headline a fundraiser to kickoff Iowa Rep. Leonard Boswell's re-election campaign. The fundraiser is slated for April 21 in Des Moines, according to the Clinton camp. No other details are yet available.

Judge appointed to national council

Iowa Lt. Gov. Patty Judge was appointed to serve on the State, Local, Tribal and Territorial Government Coordinating Council for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The appointment is for one year and Judge said she plans to keep rural areas a focus of the group as well as major population centers.

Judge was also earlier named by Gov. Chet Culver as the Homeland Security Advisor for our state.

Fair Share bill waits for another day

There were not enough votes in the Iowa House for Democrats to want to debate Fair Share this week. And, according to the Des Moines Register, Rep. Dawn Pettengill (D-Mt Auburn) was seen by Republicans leaving the Democratic meeting with tear-stained cheeks.

The bill will sit throughout this week and is anticipated to come to the floor the week after.

Jacoby steps in for Petersen

Rep. David Jacoby (D-Coralville) was named interim Chair of the House Commerce Committee while Rep. Janet Petersen (D-Des Moines) is out on maternity leave.

The committee regulates business, financial institutions, insurance, utilities and real estate. It is one of the most powerful in the Iowa House.

In addition to his new assignment, Jacoby also serves on Appropriations, Human Resources and State Government committees. He is also a member of the Administrative Rules Review Committee.

It could be worse

According to Reuters, a Finnish member of parliament is aiming for re-election by campaigning with a translation of his web site into Klingon, used in the television series "Star Trek."

While we sometimes wish candidates spoke in obscure languages so they couldn't dominate every new cycle, Klingon is extreme even for us. Further the foreign politician said there have been translation difficulties since Klingon doesn't have words for tolerance and many colors (such as green, the party under whose banner he is running in the national elections tomorrow).

Of course, non-warriors can access his site in English, Swedish and Finnish.

There's a quick and interesting read in the Quad City paper today about one of Iowa's newest Democratic Congressmen, Bruce Braley. It seems that Braley, a freshman from Iowa's first district, chaired a House meeting. While this may not seem like a big deal, the article states that historians at the paper "could not find any Iowa freshman to chair a subcommittee back to at least 1959."

EE is also happy to note that the 'initial chairing' was done in order to take testimony from female business owners in reference to the difficulties they've faced in winning federal contracts. The hearing coincided with the Women's Chamber of Commerce conference. Braley has stated that he plans to push government agencies to lower barriers and reach out to female-owned companies, especially those in the midwest.

We'll be holding you to that promise, Bruce!

A military recruiter has come under scrutiny following a heated email exchange which she initiated. According to reports, a male civilian placed his resume on Careerbuilder.com where it was noticed by Army Recruiter Marcia Ramode. Ramode sent an inquiry email to the civilian who responded that he was not interested in a position and that he was gay.

What followed was a three-day email exchange in which Ramode, using her official military account, labeled the civilian as "disgusting and immoral" and tells him to "migrate to another country." (All the while using some of the most horrible grammar I've ever seen. When I first read the emails, they were so horrible I thought it must be a joke. Sadly, it isn't.)

In one email the recruiter states (capitals and all): "YOU GO BACK TO AFRICA AND DO YOUR GAY VOODOO LIMBO TANGO AND WANGO DANCE AND JUMP AROUND AND PRANCE AND RUN ALL OVER THE PLACE HALF NAKED THERE AND PRACTICE YOUR GAY MORALS OVER THERE THAT'S WHERE YOU BELONG."

More information available at The Frontlines and Pam's House Blend.

The good folks over at IowaPolitics.com (We just discovered today that EE is included in their blogwatch -- THANKS!) have the full text of Sen. Staci Appel's comments on Election Day Voter Registration.

Here's a taste:

...While access to participate in our democracy is important, it is equally critical that we maintain the integrity of every vote.

This proposed legislation is quite strict. It requires an individual to provide proof of residence with a photo id in order to register and vote on Election Day. It also requires the individual to sign a written oath testifying that they have not already voted in any other precinct.

This legislation I believe with the proper safeguards and training is an effective way to improve voter access and participation...

Marie Wilson and all the great people at The White House Project have finished up training sessions in Minnesota.

The sessions were held over a three-day period in Chaska at the Conference Center. For those interested in running for office (soon or someday) the information provided is extremely valuable. There are two more training sessions planned this spring. The next will be April 27 to 29 in Mableton, GA and the final will be May 19 and 20 in Denver, CO. Applications are being accepted for both sessions.

For those who want a sneak peek of the program, several video clips have been posted.

If you haven't already, head over to Crooks and Liars and check out the video of Ann Althouse and Jessica Valenti. Wow.

Planned Parenthood has formed a Pill Patrol and needs volunteers to sign up and check local pharmacies for emergency contraception.

A broad coalition of social-action groups and ministries will sponsor a forum Friday in Des Moines to urge U.S. Rep. Leonard Boswell to stand up against a presidential veto of domestic-spending increases. Then, members of the coalition will sit down to a 98-cent lunch to show how little is left on the plate of food-stamp recipients.

Social-action and religious groups have joined together as a part of this coalition. The social-action groups are Iowa Citizen Action Network; the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO; Food Bank of Iowa; RESULTS; the Iowa Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers; Every Child Matters; Working Families Win; Iowa Community Action Association; Child and Family Policy Center; and Iowans for Sensible Priorities. The religious community is being represented by Social Witness Advocacy and Education Ministry for the Iowa Conference of the United Methodist Church, United Methodist Conference, and National Catholic Rural Life Conference.

"New leadership in Congress has meant a change in thinking and passage of a budget that is fair for all Americans," said Charlie Wishman, organizer for ICAN. "However, the president promises to veto any proposal that exceeds the levels he set out earlier this year -- levels that contained many cuts to vital discretionary programs. Once again, this president will use his veto power to subvert the needs and the will of Americans, only to stay the course on dangerous budget cuts that will affect millions of Americans.

"Our message to Congressman Boswell is that he needs to stand by this budget, and vote to override this president’s veto,” Wishman said.

Boswell, a Democrat representing the 3rd District, has been invited to attend the event; however, it is not known at this time if he will be there or if members of his staff will be available.

Speakers at the meeting include Wishman, who will present a budget overview; Carrie Fitzgerald, senior health policy associate with Child and Family Policy Center, will speak about the State Children's Health Insurance Program and children's health care; Lana Ross, executive director for Iowa Community Action Association, will speak about ICAA's programs; Jos Linn of RESULTS and Karen Ford of the Food Bank of Iowa will speak about food stamps and providing for the hungry in our communities; and Matt Tapscott of AFSCME will discuss the issues of child-care providers.

A "food stamp lunch" is being planned during the forum. The meal will be provided at no cost to event participants and will match as closely as possible the 98 cent per meal average benefit of food stamp recipients.

"While many members of Congress have been taking the 'Food Stamp Challenge' and living on a food-stamp budget for a week, our attendees will be asked to participate in just one meal," Wishman said.

Iowa Citizen Action Network is also encouraging those who live in Iowa's other congressional districts to contact appropriate members of Congress. Residents can find out who represents their districts by visiting Yahoo! News for an interactive form and map.

"We need Iowans to encourage their representatives to override any veto," Wishman added. "These programs -- like Head Start, food stamps and children's health care -- help kids learn and stay healthy. They've suffered deep cuts in past years and we need a budget that reflects are values of caring for all of our families and that will help communities thrive."

The forum will begin at noon in Meeting Room 3 at the Des Moines downtown public library, 1000 Grand Ave.

Americans Against Escalation in Iraq will launch its "Iraq Summer" tonight in Des Moines under the guidance of Director Sue Dinsdale. Iowa native Dinsdale understands it's an important step for the organization, but for her it's one more stop on a long journey.

"When you have a child in the military you expect them to be gone during family celebrations, birthdays and Christmas," Dinsdale said when asked about her son's two tours in Iraq. "I come from a military family, but it still killed us when he was there. It's such a reckless and senseless war."

Jesse Dinsdale, who received his separation papers from the military this past February, joined the Army National Guard while he was still in high school.

"This is what he wanted to do and we talked to him about it, but didn't consider it a bad thing," she said. "Because of his age, we had to sign papers to allow him to enlist."

Jesse completed basic training between his junior and senior years of high school. Once his time in the National Guard was complete, he switched to regular Army duty and served in Kosovo before being deployed to Kuwait in early 2003.

"I still remember the night we invaded Iraq," she said. "We were watching television because we just felt something was going to be happening soon. There was some Bob Barker special on and when it ended I felt relieved like maybe nothing was going to happen. I went upstairs and had the television on up there when programming was broken into with a special report."

Dinsdale says she picked up the phone and called her son who was stationed along the Iraq-Kuwait border. He and the soldiers with him had no idea the invasion had started.

From the beginning, she says, she didn't think this conflict was one our nation should be pursuing.

"At that time, I didn't really speak out against the war," she confided. "I was more concerned about him being deployed there, getting myself through the next day and keeping our family stable."

Once her son had completed his second tour of duty and was closing in on his last days in the military, she found her voice.

"I was watching television and saw a breaking report about Ana Nicole Smith's death," she said. "That was right before the anniversary of the invasion of Iraq and it really set me off. I looked at all of what was going on in Iraq and was very upset a celebrity's death was breaking news."

Active in the Story County peace community, Dinsdale helped plan their recent large peace rally and served as one of the speakers. She met Iowa Citizen Action Network Program Director Phillip Cryan and he asked her to speak at U.S. Rep. Tom Latham's office. From there she was contacted by AAEI organizers and eventually invited to sit down with U.S. Sen. Harry Reid and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to offer her first-hand perspective.

While she's still shocked that she sat down with "two of the most powerful people in our nation," Dinsdale says another meeting is keeping her focused.

"I came home this past Thursday and there was a vehicle I didn't recognize in the driveway," she said. "I came in and Jesse introduced me to a soldier he had served with while in Iraq. That soldier came over and hugged me and thanked me for all I was doing. There are some people who believe that when we hold vigils and peace rallies here that we are demoralizing our troops there. I asked this soldier about that and was told the soldiers over there talk and ask each other if the people back home really care about them and wonder why we aren't working to bring them home."

The AAEI is a non-partisan national campaign currently focused on the upcoming national debates on troop escalation -- a project dubbed "Iraq Summer." Iowa partners include ICAN, Iowans for Sensible Priorities and AFSCME.

"The organization nationally has targeted over 40 members of Congress in about 15 states," she said. "We want to let those legislators know the American people are watching them and will know if they vote with Pres. [George W.] Bush against the will of the people."

Roughly 100 organizers have been hired and sent to hot spots throughout the U.S. In Iowa, there are five organizers on the ground with U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley and Rep. Tom Latham in their sights.

The state launch takes place tonight, June 30, at Old Fire Station No. 4 in Des Moines. They event will begin at 7:30 p.m. and will coincide with a birthday party for the facility. The group hopes this will be the start of a very hot summer for Grassley and Latham.

"When September comes -- the time when Congress is expected to decided whether or not Pres. Bush's escalation strategy has worked, and vote to change course -- Sen. Grassley and Rep. Latham will have little doubt about how Iowans view their continued votes to authorize the president's endless war," Dinsdale concluded.

One of the newest Iowa faces in the beltway, Rep. Dave Loebsack, says the work done last November to elect Democratic majorities in both houses of Congress was "a down payment."

"You all know it is going to take an increase of the majority in the House and Senate and a new president to put this country on the right track," Loebsack said during remarks at the 2nd Congressional District Democratic Workshop in North Liberty. "We are now and will continue to do all we can between now and January of 2009, but we are going to have to have a new president."

The former Cornell College professor told the 70 or so Democrats gathered that media reports of a "do-nothing Congress" are gravely mistaken.

"You hear a lot in the media about how this Congress is like the last one -- that it's a do-nothing Congress," he said. "We've done a lot more than the media are telling you, especially in the House of Representatives."

While outlining the accomplishments made by the House within the first 100 hours of the last session, Loebsack was also quick to admit the progress he and other Democratic lawmakers made was in vain.

"I can't control George Bush, unfortunately," he said. "I can't control what happens in the Senate and Tom Harkin can't control what happens in the Senate. That's because we've got [Minority Leader] Mitch McConnell acting as the biggest road block this side of George Bush to what we're trying to do in this country."

McConnell, R-Kentucky, remains one of the strongest supporters of the war in Iraq, which he considers an integral part of the war on terrorism. In June, however, he told a contingent of troops in Kentucky at Fort Campbell when they were about to ship out on a 15-month deployment to Iraq, "The majority of the public has decided the Iraq effort is not worth it. That puts a lot of pressure on Congress to act because public opinion in a democracy is not irrelevant."

Loebsack says that "Iraq is the most contentious issue in America."

"I said while I was campaigning and I continue to say that Iraq was a war that never should have happened," he said. "Now that we are there, we've got to figure out what we're going to do. As far as I'm concerned we've got to begin to remove our troops tomorrow. I certainly don't want to see them there any longer than a year if that's at all possible. We're not getting that done because George Bush is stopping us. My view, for what it is worth, is that George Bush is going to try to stop everything we do."

Despite the obstacles, he says the slim Democratic majority in Congress will continue to work and do "whatever it can" to make changes.

"We are trying to take a number of steps [between now and January 2009]," he said. "We are trying to bring to the floor of the House a number of measures that aren't going to satisfy everybody -- they don't satisfy me by any means. They fall far short of what I think everyone in this room would like to see us do, but with them we can continue to build some type of political momentum."

Like January 2009, Loebsack believes September is too far away.

"I've spoken with some Republicans on the other side of the aisle -- people like Walter Jones who, two years ago, came over to our side on this," he said. "We are trying to get more Republicans on board and not wait until Sept. 15 for this to happen. We have to keep pushing because it is time we get our troops out of the middle of a civil war that cannot be won."

Most of all, Loebsack stressed that he and his colleagues in the House were not going to just roll over and hope for reinforcements after the next general election.

"Even when George Bush vetoes something, we're going to keep pushing it," he said. "We're not giving up. He's going to be gone in January of 2009 and we're not going to just sit back and do nothing in the meantime.

"When we talk about moving this country in a different direction, we are talking about the minimum wage, helping workers organize better, universal health care, getting out of Iraq, higher education, and having more funds and resources available for students to go to college at all levels. We are talking about the things we talked about in the campaign and we are working to make them realities."

Iowa's 2nd District Congressman Dave Loebsack will host a series of meetings beginning tomorrow and continuing through Friday.

"During this tour I will be able to meet individually with community members in all 15 counties of the second district to discuss your concerns regarding educating your children, health care, ethics reform, economic development, renewable energy, security, agriculture and other issues important to Iowa," Loebsack said in a prepared statement.

• Tuesday, Aug. 7:
• Linn County -- 9 a.m.
  Cedar Rapids Public Library, Study Room D
  500 1st Street SE, Cedar Rapids
• Cedar County -- 11 a.m.
  Tipton Public Library, Story Time Room
  206 Cedar St., Tipton
• Muscatine County -- 2 p.m.
  Muscatine City Council Chambers
  215 Sycamore St., Muscatine
• Louisa County -- 3:45 p.m.
  state Bank of Wapello, Meeting Room
  306 North 2nd St., Wapello
• Des Moines County -- 5:30 p.m.
  Burlington Public Library, Small Group Room 2
  210 Court St., Burlington
• Wednesday, Aug. 8:
• Lee County -- 9 a.m.
  Fort Madison City Hall, Council Chambers
  811 Avenue E, Fort Madison
• Lee County -- 10:30 a.m.
  Keokuk City Hall, Council Chambers
  415 Blondeau St., Keokuk
• Henry County -- 1:30 p.m.
  Mount Pleasant City Hall, Council Chambers
  200 Monroe St., Mount Pleasant
• Jefferson County -- 3 p.m.
  Fairfield Public Library
  104 W. Adams St., Fairfield
• Van Buren County -- 4:30 p.m.
  Van Buren County Hospital, Conference Room B
  304 Franklin St., Keosauqua
• Thursday, Aug. 9:
• Davis County -- 9 a.m.
  Bloomfield Courthouse, Magistrate Courtroom
  100 Courthouse Square, Bloomfield
• Appanoose County -- 10:45 a.m.
  Drake Public Library
  115 Drake Ave., Centerville
• Wayne County -- 1:30 p.m.
  Wayne County Court House, Basement Conference Room
  101 N. Franklin St., Corydon
• Wapello County -- 4:30 p.m.
  Ottumwa City Hall
  105 E. Third St., Ottumwa
• Friday, Aug. 10:
• Washington County -- 9 a.m.
  Washington Public Library
  120 East Main St., Washington
• Johnson County -- 11 a.m.
  Iowa City Public LIbrary, Room E
  123 S. Linn St., Iowa City

Residents unable to attend one of the above meetings, but who would like to voice a concern or need to Rep. Loebsack, are encouraged to call his district office toll-free at 1-866-914-4692 or visit his website.

Iowa's 4th District Congressman Tom Latham received a welcome home basket today when he returned to Ames following the August recess.

Several constituents delivered a “Feel the Heat” basket as part on ongoing effort by the Iowa ‘Iraq Summer’ Campaign to encourage Latham to change course from supporting the President’s Iraq policies and instead vote for a safe and responsible end to the war.

The basket included a card that read:

“Representative Latham, included in this 'welcome' basket are several items to remind you of the President’s current policy on the war in Iraq, with the hope that you will take a stand and join with your constituents in opposing and ending the President’s endless, reckless war."

The basket held Iraq War Wrong Way Hot Sauce, a Support the Troops fan, a Photo with a Personal Choice, some Sensible Priorities Cookies and some ‘Support the Troops, End the War’ bumper stickers.”

"I believe that we speak for the majority of Mr. Latham's constituents when we tell him that we are sick of this war, and want nothing more than for it to end," said recent Ames High School grad Spencer Arritt. "We have been in Iraq far too long, and I hope that Mr. Latham can take a step away from the his party's line to realize that."

Over the last several weeks Americans Against Escalation in Iraq’s “Iraq Summer” campaign has rolled out the welcome mat in preparation for Latham’s arrival by signing up hundreds of his constituents as volunteers, holding rallies, planting "Support the Troops, End the War" lawn signs and going door-to-door in his new hometown of Ames. With a goal of planting 6,000 yard signs throughout the state, the "Iraq Summer" sign drive was officially kicked off in Altoona last month at the home of Dr. Larry Koenig, a lifelong Republican who served in the United States Marine Corps during the Vietnam War and whose daughter and son joined the United States Army. His son is currently on active duty.

Promises to re-establish America's reputation in the world and to uplift Iowa's middle class were nearly as prevalent as ears of warm, buttery corn in Clinton today at Rep. Polly Butka's Corn Boil. In fact, if it hadn't been for the signs being waved by candidate supporters as their favorite spoke at Alliant Energy Field, it might have been difficult to distinguish which of the four visiting Democratic candidates were speaking from home plate.

"I've been to many of these events," said new Cedar County resident Cheryl Larson, who reluctantly admits to being undecided. "I keep hoping to hear something new -- something that will distinguish one of them from the pack. When you boil it all down, they all stand in pretty much the same spot. I don't want to see them attacking each other, but I am looking for something to draw me to one candidate over another."

Delaware Sen. Joe Biden continued his quest to both explain his vote to continue Iraq funding and to separate his beliefs from those of his opponents.

"The truth is that when we voted several months ago on dealing with whether we were going to fund the troops another six months -- the truth is I was the only Democrat to vote for it," he said. "I know a lot of you are angry. Every other Democratic candidate running for president was among the 14 'no' votes. I was told that voting to fund the troops could cost me the election here in Iowa. But, ladies and gentlemen, the truth is as long as there is a single American troop in Iraq... we have a sacred obligation to protect them."

Gary Bowen traveled across the Mississippi River for the sole purpose of attending the event and hearing Biden speak.

"I'm not sure if I heard everything I wanted to hear," he said. "I wanted to come and see him in person -- never have seen any of them before today -- because you so rarely hear of a politician's son going to war. When I heard that his son was told he'd ship out next year, I had to come. I respect that and I respect what he did with the funding. I could see myself making the same decision, because I wouldn't play politics with our soldiers."

Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards again attempted to distance himself from New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton by calling on those in the audience to demand candidates separate themselves from special interest money.

"We need to make it absolutely clear that the Democratic Party is party of the people, not the party of Washington insiders," Edwards said. "We can do that starting today if we, the Democratic presidential candidates and the Democratic Party, will never take a dime from Washington lobbyists. We are not representing them. All of us need to do this to send a clear, absolutely unmistakable signal to America about who we are and what it is that we represent. We don't need just rhetoric, we need change -- real change."

The war in Iraq held a prominent place in remarks by all the candidates.

"I don't know about you, but I think the last election was a mandate from the American people," he said. "It was a mandate for change. It was a mandate for the Congress to hold this president's feet to the fire and end this war in Iraq. It was a mandate that said, 'If you submit a bill to the president for funding of the troops, it must have a timetable for withdrawal.' If Bush vetoes it, they must send another bill with a timetable for withdrawal. If he vetoes it, they should send another one. They should stand their ground and force this president to end this war because he will never do it unless we make him do it."

Clinton, joined on home plate by former Gov. Tom Vilsack and former First Lady Christie Vilsack, was also adamant that the war must end, although she did provide a qualifier to withdrawal.

"As much work as we need to do here at home, we have a big set of challenges around the world," she said. "There are so many problems in our country that have been made worse by this president and his vice-president. I'm prepared to take those on because I know how important it is to start day one reversing the damage that George Bush and Dick Cheney have done to our country around the world. We will start by bringing our troops home from Iraq as soon as we responsibly can."

Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd agrees the Bush administration has caused harm to the nation.

"We all understand what great damage the Bush administration has done to our nation," he said. "Let's bring our troops home from Iraq. We all know the harm that war has caused to our nation. And, frankly, we can't wait more than another year until January 2009. Democrats need to stand up now in the United States Senate and House of Representatives."

While all the candidates had at least a line or two in their remarks to discuss international trade and local labor concerns, Dodd was the only speaker to directly address recent problems with imported products.

"How about the president maybe standing up and suspending the food, the toys and the toothpaste coming from China?" he said. "What is it doing for our families and our children to tolerate those kinds of trade policies? Allowing that is not standing up for America."

The candidates resumes were on display for those in attendance. Edwards highlighted his work in the courtroom to prove he had the fortitude to stand up against "rich corporations." Dodd pointed to his work on behalf of women and children including the authoring of the Family Leave Act and his continued work to pass a version that provides paid leave. Biden highlighted his experience with foreign policy and his long-standing belief that the American people deserve to hear the truth, even when it isn't what they want to hear. Clinton focused on her experience as First Lady and how that "up close and personal" look at the executive branch had firmly prepared her to fulfill the office.

"You don't have to be against anybody," Clinton said. "I just want you to be for me. I know how hard this job is. I've seen it up close and personal. I understand that it is the hardest job in the world, but I feel full prepared and ready to do this job."

Each of the candidates appearing at the corn boil were also scheduled to appear this evening at the Workers for a Better Iowa program in Cedar Rapids. While there might have been a few moments of overlap between when one candidate arrived at Butka's event and another left -- for instance, Dodd and Edwards met briefly outside the event and shook hands -- most of the time candidate paths did not cross.

The candidates will remain in Iowa tonight and are scheduled to participate in the ABC-TV/Iowa Democratic Party debate early tomorrow morning in Des Moines.

Neurologist Selden Spencer is continuing his quest to represent Iowa in the United States House of Representatives by launching a new interactive web site.

"A large part of any campaign these days is internet presence," Spencer said in a letter to supporters. "Our new site is fun and vibrant, with tools for you to use in helping us to send a new voice to Washington to represent Iowa's fourth district."

The site, which was previously limited to primarily blog postings, now has a calendar of events, a photo gallery, Spencer's public appearance schedule, a volunteer form and accepts online contributions. Those interested in certain policy issues are now able to contact the candidate directly via the site.

Spencer lives in Huxley while practicing medicine in Ames. He launched an unsuccessful bid against Republican Tom Latham in 2006, garnering 43 percent of the vote.

Rep. Bruce Braley, D-Iowa, has some new shoes to fill in the beltway this fall.

Shortly before the August recess, Rep. Jim Oberstar, D-Minnesota, who serves as chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, tapped Braley for service as the vice-chairman of the subcommittee on highways and transit. Braley will serve as second-ranking majority member of the subcommittee, led by Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Oregon.

"I am excited to be named vice-chairman of this subcommittee," Braley said. "It will allow me to have greater input on important transportation projects in Iowa and across the country. I look forward to working to promote the increased use of renewable energy and helping Chairman DeFazio tackle the important issue of highway safety in the wake of the Minneapolis bridge tragedy."

House rules require a vice-chairman from the majority party to be named to each committee and subcommittee to preside when the chair is not present.

Braley made history in January when he became the first freshman congressman from Iowa picked to chair a committee or subcommittee since 1959. He will continue to serve as chairman of the Subcommittee on Contracting and Technology, which is under the House Committee on Small Business.

"These committee assignments allow me to have a direct impact on the needs of eastern Iowa, from strengthening our economy on the Small Business Committee, to promoting ethanol on the Transportation Committee, to investigating government waste, fraud and abuse on the Oversight Committee," he said.

Rep. Leonard Boswell, who represents Iowa's 3rd Congressional District and chairs the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy and Poultry, will be honored tomorrow at the Rayburn House Office Building by the National Farmers Union.

In appreciation of his efforts on behalf of America's farmers, ranchers and rural communities, NFU will give Boswell the Golden Triangle Award. The award is NFU's highest honor and is presented to select members of Congress or the White House administration in recognition of outstanding leadership on issues affecting rural America.

Recipients this year were chosen for their leadership on a variety of issues such as support for emergency disaster assistance for producers that have suffered from devastating weather circumstances, the promotion and production of fuels from the farm, and need to develop fair agriculture trade agreements. This year, the award will be presented to 28 members of United States House of Representatives.

"The NFU continues to protect and enhance the economic well being and quality of life for family farmers and their communities," said Boswell. "I'm truly honored to receive this award from them."

The award will be presented during a Congressional reception tomorrow night. In past years Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin and Sen. Chuck Grassley have also received this award.

Congressman Bruce Braley introduced a piece of legislation this morning that would require the federal government to write documents in simple, easy-to-understand language.

The Plain Language in Government Communications Act -- HR 3584 -- is a bipartisan bill that targets tax returns, federal college aid applications and Veterans Administration forms. Basically, any form, publication and publicly distributed document must be provided in a "clear, concise, well-organized" manner that follows the best practices of plain language writing. A complete description of the Federal Plain Language Guidelines is available online. There are also examples of before-and-after applications of the initiative.

"Anyone who's done their own taxes knows the headache of trying to understand pages and pages of confusing forms and instructions," said Braley, who represents Iowa's 1st District. "There is no reason why the federal government can't write these forms and other public documents in a way we can all understand.

"Writing government documents in plain language will increase government accountability and will save Americans time and money. Plain, straightforward language makes it easy for taxpayers to understand what the federal government is doing and what services it is offering."

The bill has been referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

Peace, as evidenced by the Cost of War rally in Cedar Rapids today, is proving to be a common interest for people of many varied backgrounds.

"The measure of a great nation is not its great wealth nor its great power, but what a nation does with that wealth and power -- whether it creates great misery and destruction or whether it creates great joy," said Wendy Barth, president of Women for Peace Iowa.

While Barth and members of area peace organizations have been protesting the Iraq war before it even officially began, others who attended today's rally are relative newcomers.

Young mom Jessica Pannell attended the rally today and spoke about her own anti-abortion believes carry over into her thoughts on the war.

"I believe we should try to protect life at every stage from birth to death," she said. "That includes especially our young men. I believe that if we are serious about protecting life that we will protect the lives of our soldiers and protect the lives of people abroad."

Clergyman Blair Frank said he came out because of a fundamental disagreement with current foreign policy.

"I'm here because I believe war is wrong," he said. "It isn't the answer. I feel that more people are going to give voice to that, but that some people are afraid. And I think that we can overcome the fear as we realize that we are more alike one another than we are different. There are people all across the spectrum of society that are being adversely affected by war. We are now starting to hear the voice -- and it's going to grow."

Karl Knutson, a retired school teacher, said he was happy to be at the rally, but was disappointed more people didn't show up and express their opinions.

"I saw the small item in the paper that there was a rally to try to get out of Iraq. If I'm close to any of those types of events, I try to attend," he said while noting that he was on the 1st Avenue bridge in Cedar Rapids for the vigil that noted the fourth year of the war. "I was disappointed with turnout that night and I'm disappointed in many ways with turnout today too. I'm still hopeful that someday there will be more people that will see the light and and not support this horrendous war."

While organizers said they would have obviously like to have filled downtown with individuals calling for an end the war, they also said gathering roughly 25 people to rally and deliver petitions to legislators on a workday wasn't insignificant.

The rally was organized by Women for Peace Iowa to both call attention to the war and for delivery of a petition to the offices of United States Sens. Tom Harkin and Chuck Grassley and Congressman Dave Loebsack.

Text of the petition:

Mandate for Peace

Petition to stop funding war and fund a safe withdrawal.

To Our Senators and Congressman,

I oppose the war in Iraq. I believe this war violates American values, wastes taxpayers' dollars, harms the Iraqi people, fuels anti-American sentiment, and makes us less safe. I believe the best way to end the war is to stop funding it. Congress should provide funding only as needed for safely withdrawing all of our troops (all by the Embassy guards) out of Iraq and out of the region. Support the troops; bring them home safe, now.

Amy Logsdon of Iowa Citizen Action Network said her organization is involved because the most Americans are opposed to the war.

"We've gotten involved in the efforts to end the war in Iraq because we believe in government of the people, by the people and for the people," she said. "We call on our Congressional representatives to to stand with the people and not stand in lockstep with the president on this immoral and wrong-headed war."

Sue Dinsdale, who heads up Iowa operations for Iraq Project and has a son who has completed tours of duty in Iraq, says she's involved because she has to be in order to bring about an end to this war.

"I am traveling across the state to visit Sen. Grassley's office ... to let him know how we feel," she said. "I got a call during this rally today and heard that he had voted, once again, wrong on the Levin-Reed amendment. That just reinforces how important it is that everyone needs to speak out and make their voice heard."

The petitions were circulated by Women for Peace Iowa over a 20-day span and contained roughly 750 signatures. None of the lawmakers were in their offices when the petitions were delivered, but many in attendance spoke with staff about their personal concerns in relation to the war.

"This is what you do when you are in a democracy," said local activist and Women for Peace Iowa member Judith Pedersen-Benn. "It is important to make sure our representatives understand what we want."

Abstinence-only funding through Title V, Section 510 has been on life-support since June. Today it seems that Congress is prepared to unplug the equipment.

Officials in the office of Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, have confirmed that language regarding the reauthorization of the program -- previously attached to the Children's Health Insurance Program bill by the U.S. House -- was not included in the final language of the compromise bill issued today. The action leaves Congress a nine-day window to reauthorize this stream of federal funding for abstinence only education.

The Iowa Department of Health receives roughly $318,000 in yearly funding through Title V, Section 510. Nationwide, the program provides more than $40 million a year in matching funds to states. The state hardest hit, if the program expires on Sept. 30, is Texas, which garnered nearly $5 million for state-run and/or state-approved abstinence-only sex education programs. The program allows states to reissue funds to community-based programs that, in turn, provide abstinence-only education to schools, civic groups, churches and parents.

Before a recent $600,000 grant to Bethany Christian Services of Northwest Iowa from the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (Family Youth Services Bureau) was announced, Title V was the only federal funding stream for abstinence only education in the state of Iowa. The grant to Bethany is non-matching and will be used to pay for a project titled "Keyed-In to Abstinence."

The prospect of Title V, Section 510 language surviving the conference committee of the U.S. House and Senate was dim from the beginning. In addition to reauthorizing the program for another five years, members of the House changed federal guidelines that govern not only that particular funding stream for abstinence education, but also all three streams of funding. The new guidelines were less strict and called for information distributed through the programs to be medically accurate and research-based -- something Republican legislators have previously opposed.

As it stands now, however, even if this avenue of funding expires, the original guidelines remain in place for the remaining two streams -- Community-Based Abstinence Education, originally known as Special Projects of Regional and National Significance-Community-Based Abstinence Education, and the Adolescent Family Life Act, a part of Title XX. Under Title V funding, states ultimately decided which programs received funding. For both CBAE and AFLA, however, all decisions bypass the state approval process. Between the remaining two programs, the federal government distributes more than $120 million.

Neither the folks who advocate abstinence-only education nor those who support comprehensive sex education were pleased when a re-authorization of abstinence-only funding through Title V was not a part of the compromise Children's Health Insurance Program bill. It seems Congress could only respond by sticking to the status quo.

As Wendy Norris of Colorado Confidential reports, last night both houses of Congress approved the program's second emergency 90-day extension.

Title V, Section 510 is one of three federal funding streams for abstinence-only sex education. It is paid to state departments of health that, in turn, re-grant the money to organizations throughout the state. The other two streams -- Community-Based Abstinence Education (CBAE) and Adolescent Family Life Act (AFLA) -- are granted directly to organization and bypass state control.

Until recently, Title V was the only funding for abstinence-only education in Iowa, providing roughly $318,000 per year in matching funds to the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services. Earlier this month the Administration on Children, Youth and Families (Family Youth Services Bureau) announced a $600,000 non-matching grant to Bethany Christian Services of Northwest Iowa. The grant to Bethany will be used to pay for a project entitled "Keyed-In to Abstinence."

There are strict guidelines associated with monies from Title V, Section 510 -- guidelines that many believe should be changed to ensure medically accurate information is provided. The U.S. House, following the first three-month extension of the Title V abstinence-only program, approved changing the language within the guidelines so that they would be less strict. This change, along with a program reauthorization under the new guidelines, was attached to the House version of the Children's Health Insurance Program bill. The reauthorization and enhanced guidelines, however, were not included in the recent compromise bill. Even if it were, however, that bill remains under threat of presidential veto.

Many who support abstinence-only sex education, such as televangelist Pat Robertson, have been calling on constituents to demand that Congress not only continue to fund Title V, Section 510, but to keep the strict guidelines that do not require medically accurate or science-based content.

"Is this another legacy of the Democratically controlled Congress?" asked Robertson during a Sept. 20 broadcast. "Let's have more sex in the schools. Are they saying our kids are like little animals and they are going to go breed like bunnies so we might as well give them condoms? I think that's the message, but that isn't the message that we need to send.

"Sexuality is a sacred thing. It is the creation of human life, made in the image of God. It's a very important thing. It isn't just something where you hook up with this one and then you hook up with that one. But, that's the message. It is on college campuses. It is in these schools, and the educators are buying into it. If you want to fix some of this you'll stop the teachers from pushing that thing that was going on -- I think it was a program called SIECUS by Mary Calderone and it must have been 30 or more years ago that was free sex and the whole thing. That's Planned Parenthood's plan -- to have kids have as many babies as they can, then we can start sterilizing them."

Opponents of abstinence-only education have also had strong words, most of which have been directed at Congress.

"First, Congress funds the abstinence-only programs," said Advocates for Youth President James Wagoner. "Then, they commission a study that showed the ineffectiveness of the programs. Then, they ignore the findings of the study. And, now, they continue to fund the programs. Their actions defy logic and common sense."

The stakes are high because the guidelines that govern Title V, Section 510 also govern the other two federal funding streams. Had the Title V stream been allowed to expire, the guidelines would have remained in place for the remaining to streams. Had the changes suggested by the House of Representatives been signed into law, all three streams would have come under the mandate of providing medically and scientific accurate curricula and added requirement of proof that the programs being taught reduce pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS rates.

Advocates for abstinence-only education have vowed they will continue to fight for nothing less than abstinence-until-marriage education without a comprehensive component. Advocates for science-based sex education have also vowed to continue to fight for what they believe is necessary and potentially life-saving information for America''s youth. Since the emergency extension only takes the program through Dec. 31, there's little doubt Congress and the public will be hearing more in the weeks to come.

Congressmen Bruce Braley and Leonard Boswell have issued statements in regard to the President's veto of the Children's Health Insurance Program, a program that would extend health insurance to more than 25,000 additional Iowa children.

Rep. Bruce Braley:

"The President just doesn't get it. With the stroke of his pen, 26,000 Iowa kids could have gotten health insurance coverage for the first time. Instead, President Bush's veto has jeopardized the health insurance coverage of the 37,000 Iowa kids currently covered by the HAWK-I program.

"Congress will now try to override the President's veto. Given the strong bipartisan support this program has received, I hope Republicans who have sided with President Bush over children will reconsider their vote and see the long-term benefits of insuring 3.8 million more American kids.

"And I certainly hope Congressman King will reconsider his opposition to children’s health insurance and join a unified Iowa Congressional delegation in supporting a program that provides such clear benefits for Iowa kids.”

Rep. Leonard Boswell:

“I’m extremely disappointed that the President did not exercise the right to change his mind, but instead, turned his back on millions of uninsured children in this country. The American people strongly support the SCHIP legislation—both Republicans and Democrats-- and it’s a shame that this president vetoes popular bipartisan legislation, such as the Stem Cell bill and now SCHIP.”

Note: I'm on my way out the door to a candidate event. If more statements from Iowa officials surface while I'm gone, I'll add them when I return.

Iowa's federal lawmakers have issued statements in regard to the president's veto of the Children's Health Insurance Program, a program that would extend health insurance to more than 25,000 additional Iowa children.

Statements by Congressmen Bruce Braley and Leonard Boswell were printed earlier today.

Congressman Dave Loebsack:

“We have a moral obligation to protect and nurture our children and provide them with every opportunity to succeed. By vetoing this overwhelming bipartisan legislation, President Bush has broken this promise, jeopardizing the future health coverage for millions of low-income children.

“In Iowa, HAWK-I provides health benefits, including doctor’s visits, vaccinations, prescription drugs and other critical services, to over 37,000 lower-income children. With the health, well-being, and future of our children are at stake, President Bush has shown complete disregard for the needs of hardworking, tax-paying, low-income American families.

“Even if the President disagrees, the health and wellbeing of Iowa’s children is of the utmost importance. I will not let the President’s politically misguided veto endanger the HAWK-I program or the health of Iowa’s children.”

Senator Tom Harkin:

“Just two short days after the President declared October 1st Child Health Day and recognized the important role CHIP has played in helping poor children stay healthy, he has decided to turn his back on the health of millions of American kids. The CHIP bill has the overwhelming support of Democrats and Republicans, nurses, doctors, teachers and health insurance companies, for one reason – because it works. Once again, President Bush’s rhetoric fails to match his actions, and this time it is at the expense of children across the nation. I pledge to work with my colleagues in the Senate to continue fighting for working families by overturning this veto.”

There is not any statement in relation to the veto on Congressman Tom Latham's site or Congressman Steve King's site. King's site continues to prominently feature his his challenge to Iowa Gov. Chet Culver for a debate on SCHIP (known locally as HAWK-I). King also asserts that the expansion would make it easier for illegal immigrants to get taxpayer funded health insurance.

While Sen. Chuck Grassley's site also does not reflect a statement on the veto, his views toward the SCHIP bill stand in stark contrast to Republican counterpart King.

When the U.S. Senate passed the bill, 67-29, Grassley said, "The legislation gets the children’s health insurance program back on track by making states enroll low-income children and cutting off adult coverage. About half the new money is just to keep the program running for the kids already on it. The rest goes to enroll more than 3 million new kids. The compromise bill we voted on today kept all the key provisions of the Senate bill, including a cap on new spending of $35 billion. The legislation sunsets in five years. The support of 18 Senate Republicans for the bill is testament to the strength of the bill and the success of the program. A lot of misinformation has been spread about this bill. But in Iowa, you can’t call a cow a chicken and have it be true. Along with keeping SCHIP going, Congress needs to pass tax incentives to help more low-income families get health insurance, and I’ll be working on those policies this year with Republicans and Democrats in the United States Senate.”

Grassley went even further in his remarks on the Senate floor regarding the passage of the bill:

Mr. President, the Congress is poised to pass the reauthorization and improvement of the children's health insurance bill on a substantial bipartisan basis. In the House of Representatives, 40 Republicans who had voted against the House bill voted in support of this compromise bill. The Senate is, once again, poised to pass this bill with strong bipartisan support. This is a bipartisan compromise. It has broad support from Republicans and Democrats. It will help as many as 4 million low income uninsured children. About half the new money is just to keep the program running. The rest of the new money goes to cover more low income children. It provides better options for families to afford employer coverage. It takes even more steps to address crowd out. It phases adults out of the program. It discourages states from covering higher income kids. It rewards states that cover more of the lowest income kids. It puts the lowest income children first in line.

Here's what it's not: It's not a government takeover of the health system. It does not undermine immigration policy. It's not expanding the program to cover high income kids. It’s a good bill. I urge my colleagues to support this important bill for children.

Yesterday, the Ranking Member of Senate Budget Committee made some remarks on the Senate floor about the children's health insurance bill pending before the Senate. I would like to address the issues raised by my friend and colleague, Senator Gregg. Senator Gregg repeatedly referred to the children's health insurance bill as leading to a nationalize system of health care. He said, “The goal here is to radically expand the size of a public insurance program to families who are doing quite well - families making up to $80,000 who may not have children or whose children may already be insured by the private sector - because they want to move more people onto the public insurance system because they want to have a nationalized system.” Mr. President, I have one simple question to ask all the critics of this bill who, when confronted with the actual policies in this compromise respond by shrieking: “$80,000!! $80,000!!!” And that question is - if this bill became law tomorrow, how many families earning $80,000 a year would be eligible for CHIP. The answer is: None. As they say in baseball: You can look it up.

I have one simple question to critics who, when asked to respond to what is actually in black and white in the bill, react by screaming: “National health care! Socialized medicine!” And that question is -- under what contorted reasoning is a capped block grant inclusive of policies that prohibit new waivers for parents, phases childless adults completely off the program and limits matching funding for higher income kids, nationalized health care? I guess you can call something, anything you want, but in Iowa you can't call a cow a chicken and have it be true.

Now, on the issue of the so-called "Budget Gimmick" that the Ranking Member of the Budget Committee also spoke to, I have this response. Senator Gregg said yesterday, “There’s the problem that there is a scam going on, a scam in this bill as to how it's paid for. This chart reflects the increased cost of the bill as it goes forward, but in order to adhere to their own budget rules, which they claim so aggressively to be following, such as pay-go, they have to take the program in the year 2013 from a $16 billion annual spending level down to essentially zero. In other words, they are zeroing out this program in the year 2013. That's called a scam.”

Now, Mr. President, I am a proud member of the Senate Budget Committee. I believe in fiscal discipline and spending restraint. I agree that under a Republican controlled Congress, spending was out of control. Part of the reason why Republicans lost control of the Congress is because we were unable to control spending. I believe that part of the reason that the President is threatening to veto this bill is that he is trying to play catch up for failing to veto six years of spending bills. I agree that fiscal discipline ought to be applied to spending bills and that we should pay some attention to the level of spending and to how spending is financed. Don't get me wrong, that is a good thing. But the place to start is with Appropriations measures, NOT the SCHIP bill.

So let me focus on the criticism that has been made about how this SCHIP bill is financed. We need to step back and look at the whole picture. The SCHIP program is a pretty small part of that picture. The thing about SCHIP is that it is not like Medicaid or Medicare. It is not a permanent program. Medicare and Medicaid are permanent programs. They are entitlements. SCHIP isn't. Now, there were some who wanted to turn SCHIP into an entitlement program. The House bill would have lifted the cap on the national allotment for SCHIP and extended the program forever. I fought hard to maintain the block grant for SCHIP and to ensure that the program did expire, so that in the future, Congress can evaluate and improve SCHIP, just as we are doing now. So, despite the best efforts of House Democrats, under the compromise bill when the program expires, it truly ends.

SCHIP is an expiring program. Let me say that again; SCHIP is an expiring program. While I know most of us in this chamber would