Category: Opinion

~by Senator Jerry Behn March 21, 2019 This week the Senate passed Senate Resolution 11 recognizing the 100th anniversary of the creation of the American Legion in Iowa. We had several American Legion members on the Senate floor with us as we passed the resolution. It was an honor to be able to meet these incredible individuals and thank them…

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~a column by Colleen O’Brien Today is the first day of spring. How this happened so early this year is the wonder. But by now the surprise is that I’m surprised by the swiftness of time as it marches on; I am merely old enough that time speeds up as my speed dwindles, and I should be used to it…

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~by Senator Jerry Behn March 14, 2019 Week nine in the Iowa Senate included some of the first major debate of this year. Just this week, we passed over 30 bills out of the Senate chamber. One of the bills the Senate passed this week was Senate File 274, protecting the freedom of speech on college campuses in Iowa. This…

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Rural Iowa big winner under House GOP budget plan ~by  Rep Phil Thompson March 15, 2019 Growing and supporting rural Iowa is a primary focus of the 2019 session. House Republicans have been working on several fronts to give our communities the opportunity to grow and thrive in the 21st century. The FY20 budget reflects that in two key areas…

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~a column by Colleen O’Brien This coming weekend, on Sunday, March 17, a good portion of the world will celebrate the wearin’ o’ the green. And the drinking of the green beer. And the singing of the lullabies of the green isle.

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March 11, 2019 FIRST FUNNEL This past week was the first “funnel” of the legislative session. The funnel is an important step in the legislative process because it’s the last opportunity for committees to consider house bills. If a bill didn’t pass through a committee by last Thursday, it can’t be discussed again until next year. More than 200 bills…

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March 8, 2019 Week Eight in the legislature was the first funnel week of the year. This deadline requires policy bills to be out of their originating chamber’s committee in order to be considered for the rest of this year. Imposing this deadline forces legislators to focus on priority bills and bills with enough support to pass the chamber. The…

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The discussion was lively when Sen Jerry Behn and Rep Phil Thompson met with constituents Saturday at a “Meet Your Legislators” event hosted by the Thomas Jefferson Gardens board. About 30 persons attended, with a near even split of known political affiliations. Behn and Thompson are both Republicans.

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Marianne Williamson has made leading people through personal transformation her career. As author of 13 books on transformational wisdom, she uses spirituality and psychology to help people tap into what it takes to change their lives for the better. Now, 35 years into her career, Williamson wants to transform the country in the same way. She’s running for the Democratic…

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~a column by Colleen O’Brien Who is it I know who lacks a sense of moral responsibility and social conscience? Not anyone I know personally, but I fear I read about a person like this more often than my health can tolerate. But there is something compelling about watching self-serving people and how they get away with it. Reading about…

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March 1, 2019 This was the seventh week of the 2019 legislative session, and a week busy with subcommittee meetings. Next week is the first funnel week of the year, meaning Senate bills need to be out of Senate committees in order to be considered for the rest of the year. This does not apply to bills that are in…

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~a column by Colleen O’Brien New York Times columnist Russell Baker died five weeks ago. For me to get his autobiography, Growing Up, from an interlibrary loan took a month, but I was happy to have it in hand, however belated. I’d read it when it came out in 1982 because he, along with columnist Ellen Goodman of the Boston…

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