Both of Iowa’s U.S. Senators voted to acquit former President Donald J. Trump of the impeachment charge of Incitement of Insurrection Saturday. After the vote, Senator Charles Grassley said he did not believe the Senate had the authority to try a private citizen like the former president, and that Trump was not afforded the protections of due process of law in the matter. Senator Joni Ernst agreed that the trial was not constitutional, and expressed frustration at the on-again, off-again plan to call witnesses which played out Saturday. Ernst graphically told a New York Times reporter it was a “total, total s-word show” and called the entire proceeding “a tool of revenge” against Trump.
The mayor, police chief and current and former city clerk of a small town have been charged with a string of felonies and misdemeanors after a multi-year investigation uncovered embezzlement and other abuses. The Emmett County Sheriff’s Office announced Friday in a news release that the Iowa Attorney General’s Office filed the charges against Armstrong Mayor Greg Buum, police chief Craig Merrill, city clerk Tracie Lang and former city clerk Connie Thackery on Thursday. The sheriff’s office said the investigation uncovered “misappropriation of city funds, the presentation of fraudulent public records, deploying a TASER against a civilian in exchange for cash, and falsification of ledgers to conceal embezzlement.”
Iowa City Police are looking for three people after a deadly shooting. It happened just before 8 p.m. Friday at a home in the 600 block of South Governor Street. Police found a man dead from a gunshot wound. A witness told investigators three men came into the home, shot and killed the man, and ran off. Authorities believe this was a targeted killing, and say they do not believe there is any threat to the general public.
Black Hawk County Public Health has announced vaccination efforts for K-12 teachers and staff will begin this week, although vaccine allocations remain limited. Public health officials say if vaccine allocations stay at projected levels, efforts should be completed in about a month. Black Hawk County school districts will be notifying their employees with information about vaccinations. This is part of the tiered Phase 1B distribution.
And the Iowa Department of Public Health says it hopes it won’t need a Phase 1C vaccination level…that would be for people younger than age 65. Phase 1B includes people over 65 years of age and front line workers like first responders, teachers and child care staff. Phase 1C would start in the middle of this year and include people under 65 with underlying conditions and other essential workers. But IDPH Director Kelly Garcia said federal officials tell her this phase may not be needed. She says Iowa should start to see widespread vaccine distribution that can keep pace with demand by April or the start of May.
Gov. Kim Reynolds’ administration announced Friday it would not award a contract for an outside vendor to operate a call center to help residents find information about coronavirus vaccine appointments. The Iowa Department of Public Health informed several companies that had submitted emergency bids for the contract last week that it would not select any of them and was “continuing to evaluate call center solutions.” The department’s notice did not elaborate but cited an administrative rule that allows for bidding processes to be cancelled when in the state’s interest. The call center was to field inquiries about coronavirus vaccines, including helping screen residents for eligibility and set them up with providers to make appointments.
A state senator from Sioux City will announce today that he is running for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. Charles Grassley. 58-year-old state senator Jim Carlin filed documents with the Federal Election Committee Friday and says he’ll make the announcement at the American Legion post in Sergeant Bluff today. Carlin made headlines last week when he proposed a bill requiring the state Board of Regents to survey university employees to determine their political affiliation.
