Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism (https://iowawatch.org/tag/chuck-grassley/)
Foreign investors acquired at least 1.6 million acres of agricultural land in the United States in 2016, the largest increase in more than a decade, a Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting of the latest available federal data shows.
I’m not sure you can get Republicans and Democrats to agree on many things these days — not even on motherhood and apple pie. Some people believe a wall along the border with Mexico is a national security priority and is necessary to stop the movement of migrants into the United States. Others think the $5 billion at the center of the border wall dispute could be better spent on additional border agents, more drones and sophisticated new security technology. Randy Evans
STRAY THOUGHTS
Randy Evans is the executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council. He is a former editorial page editor and assistant managing editor of The Des Moines Register.
Small family-run farms that raise organically, without genetically modifying crops or by reducing their use of pesticides and antibiotics, are such a small part of the federal government’s definition of a family farm that they often are lost in the crowd when it comes to government and industry support.
A law requiring foreign investors to report transactions of farmland to the U.S. Department of Agriculture has been on the books for almost 40 years. But, this Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting investigation reveals, little has been done to enforce the law.
A big money gap marked the U.S. Senate race between incumbent Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley and his Democrat challenger Patty Judge, according to the latest campaign disclosure reports available earlier this week at the time of production. Grassley’s campaign had $5.2 million on hand back in May, 22 times more than Judge, who had $229,000 as of June 30. Add to that $59,300 in bills that Judge’s campaign owed at that time.
Some are advocating major changes in how we handle crime and criminals. But is that being soft on crime, or smart on crime?
An in-depth look at presidential hopeful Rick Santorum as he makes his way campaigning through Iowa.