On the Campaign Trail with Ed Tibbetts

U.S. Rep. Phil Hare, D-Ill., says he backs the idea of moving Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, detainees to the Thomson Correctional Center.

Hare, who had been non-commital, said on a conference call today, “I am not afraid of these people.”

Instead, what he is afraid of his continued economic decline in the area.

Charlie Cook, the respected political analyst for National Journal, changed his rating on Iowa’s 1st District congressional seat.

It’s one of five seats that Cook’s deemed more competitive since Saturday’s health care reform vote, according to USA Today.

The report moved off the “solid” list, meaning a sure bet that Braley would hold it, to the “likely Democratic” column.

From the report:

Braley’s eastern Iowa district isn’t a place where a vote for Democrats’ health care bill represents a politically unpopular move. But that hasn’t stopped Republicans from talking about this district in recent months, as personally wealthy businessman and Dubuque GOP official Rod Blum gears up for a race. Braley is a strong campaigner and fundraiser who should be fairly safe, but Blum’s spending capability and the larger political environment make the contest worth a peripheral look.

Incidentally, I met Blum at this week’s Scott County GOP fundraiser. He said he’ll make an announcement soon.

You may have heard already, but several thousand Republicans across the state have received robocalls featuring former Lt. Gov. Joy Corning supporting the same-sex marriage rights.

The call was done for One Iowa, the advocacy group that’s seeking to build support for the ruling.

Here’s the text:

“Hi, this is former Lieutenant Governor Joy Corning. Iowa has a well-deserved reputation for being open-minded and fair. That’s why I’m proud to be a supporter of One Iowa.  Our Supreme Court recently ruled in favor of civil marriage for committed gay and lesbian couples, continuing Iowa’s tradition of protecting the civil rights of all Iowans.  Please join with me to ensure that Iowa continues to move forward as a leader for fairness and equality.”

Of course, the call has turned into a problem for former Gov. Terry Branstad, who’s moving toward a bid for the GOP’s 2010 gubernatorial nomination. Corning was Branstad’s second for eight years and isn’t a favorite with social conservatives.

Bob Vander Plaats was quick to jump on the issue.

Also, the Iowa Family Policy Center says it’s a reminder “why it is such a bad idea to compromise with political figures who do not promote Iowa values,” a not so subtle dig at Branstad.

Tim Albrecht, a Branstad spokesman, tells the Des Moines Register, “what’s remarkable is, despite disagreement on this fundamental issue, Joy is willing to put that aside to support Governor Branstad.” The Register also said, however, that neither Albrecht nor a top aide would say how Branstad would vote if there were a referendum.

And just as I was finishing this post, I see The Iowa Republican has received a statement from the Branstad campaign, which answers that last question.

Here’s the statement:

“Governor Branstad supports the definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman and is the only Iowa Governor to have signed the Defense of Marriage Act. He will work to break the legislative roadblock that prevents Iowans from having an opportunity to vote on a constitutional amendment to define marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Should such a constitutional amendment ever be placed on the ballot, Governor Branstad will vote yes on its passage.”

Earlier this week, I posted a video that showed U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley being jeered on the floor of the House last Saturday when he argued against a Republican maneuver to block a vote on the health care bill.

I didn’t get a chance to ask Braley’s reaction, but Aimee Steffen at the Waterloo Courier talked to him about it Tuesday.

Braley said he felt “abused,” according to the Courier article, which was posted last night.

More from the article:

“It’s very uncommon, because there’s supposed to be decorum on the House floor,” Braley said during a stop at Waterloo’s Alpha Express Inc. on his Health Care Reality Tour. “But it made me very proud to be speaking up for patient safety, and to talk about what is not being talked about on the other side of the aisle.”

Iowa Sen. Roger Stewart, D-Preston, said this morning he won’t seek re-election next year.

First elected in 2002, Stewart said he’d planned on two terms and now will bow out.

“It’s not something that came overnight,” he said. Stewart, who is 78, says he’ll keep busy at a local bank and on his son’s farm.

He lists expansion of health care, raising the minimum wage and balancing budgets as accomplishments.

There probably will be a number of suitors for the seat, which includes the city of Clinton and parts of Clinton, Jackson and Dubuque counties.

Remember all the flap over John Edwards’ $400 haircut? For a while in the spring of 2007 it generated a lot of talk in Iowa, and of course the media. Turns out, Barack Obama’s presidential campaign was the source of the story, according to Ben Smith, the Politico writer who broke it.

Smith tells the story here, noting that Obama campaign manager David Plouffe’s writes in his new book, “The Audacity to Win,” that it was their campaign that found the haircut expenditure.

For what it’s worth, here’s my story in the Times today about Plouffe’s visit to Iowa City on Thursday to promote his book.

Of local note, Davenport Mayor Bill Gluba rates a mention.

I hadn’t planned on blogging tonight’s Scott County GOP fundraiser, but here’s a bit of local political news:

Ross Paustian, the Walcott farmer who lost a high-profile race to state Rep. Elesha Gayman, D-Davenport, is going to give it another go, according to Brian Kennedy, who is the emcee at the dinner.

You may recall the Paustian/Gayman race last year turned nasty toward the end. We’ll see if there’s a repeat next year.

An abortion amendment added to the House’s health care bill has roiled the debate, but U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, expects changes to be made in the Senate. He added he doesn’t think the highly charged issue will stop passage of the measure, which faced an uncertain future even before the abortion language was added.

Harkin told reporters on a conference call today the House provision, which backers say is aimed at preventing federal funding from being used for abortions, goes farther than that and actually rolls back existing law.

Democrats in the House allowed the amendment in an effort to woo moderates to vote for the bill.

Since then, pro-choice groups and lawmakers have objected. Some Democrats have even said they won’t vote for a bill with the provision.

Harkin, who chairs the Senate’s health committee, said he didn’t think the party would have to go as far as the House did in getting moderate Senate Democrats to sign on.

“People will jockey for position and they’ll try to get things done, but in the end we’ll have the votes,” he said.

Harkin said the House’s abortion provision could be construed to prohibit people who receive any federal money, including a housing subsidy, from getting an abortion.

He didn’t go so far as to say he’d vote against any bill that included the provision, however. In fact, he said legislators shouldn’t draw lines in the sand. “I’m not drawing lines,” he said.

Really interesting video of U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley, D-Iowa, being targeted by Republican catcalls late into the health care reform debate Saturday night.

Braley was chosen to respond to a Republican parliamentary maneuver that would have blocked a vote on the health care reform bill.

Republicans were arguing for caps on lawsuit awards, and Braley, a Waterloo lawyer, was the Democrats’ choice to respond.

Shortly into this remarks, Republicans began catcalling him, chanting “trial lawyer.” For a time, he had to stop and wait for order to be restored.

The parliamentary maneuver, called a motion to recommit, was defeated 247-187.

U.S. Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack will be the featured guest at Rep. Bruce Braley’s annual Bruce, Blues and Barbecue fundraiser in Waterloo. It’s this Sunday in Waterloo.