(Radio Iowa) – Republican presidential candidates Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswamy say it’s concerning that America’s top military official was hospitalized, but neither the White House nor congress were notified. “The idea that the secretary of defense is in intensive care and the president doesn’t know about it and the administration doesn’t know about,” Haley said during an interview on KSCJ. “You are putting every man and woman in the military at risk.”

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who is 70, had an elective surgical procedure in late December, but after experiencing severe pain, he was hospitalized New Year’s Day. The president and other top foreign policy officials learned about it three days later. Haley said the deputy defense secretary who was notified she was on call was on vacation “and it’s everything that’s wrong with this administration.”

Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley campaigning in Iowa in 2023. (RI file photo)

Ramaswamy said secrecy is “the new norm” in government. “I’m sorry to say that this is actually not just a Democrat issue, but a Republican issue as well,” Ramaswamy said during an interview on KSCJ. Ramaswamy made four campaign stops yesterday and posted a message on social media that his campaign vehicle got stuck in a ditch on the way back to Des Moines, but an Iowan had helped move it back on the roadway. Haley cancelled an appearance in Sioux City due to the weather.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa G-O-P chairman Jeff Kaufmann says the Republican Party’s Caucuses next Monday will start at 7 p.m. — whatever weather Iowa is experiencing at that time. “It’s going to go on, no matter what,” Kaufmann said. “…(I’m) putting the faith in people’s passion to get there.” There are more than 16-hundred precincts in Iowa and each is hosting a Caucus. The Republican Party has reserved countless meeting sites around the state for next Monday night and it would be a scramble to rebook or final alternative sites for a different night. “Hundreds and hundreds of hours just to get to this place,” Kaufmann says.

The forecast for next Monday night indicates temperatures will be below zero. Kaufmann says subzero temperatures aren’t likely to dampen turnout as much as an ice storm would. “I don’t think cold keeps people away — and I’m talking about a major, major ice storm that would almost load up transportation workers and it sounds like right now it’s going to be fine — so tentatively fine,” Kaufmann says. “I think it’s kind of cool that some of the national reporters like from Florida get a little below zero weather. I think it builds character.” The Iowa Republican Party’s Caucuses in 2016 set a turn-out record, when about 186-thousand Iowans participated.

Jeff Kaufmann, chairman of the Republican Party of Iowa, speaks with reporters in Des Moines after a party fundraiser on Jan. 8, 2024. (RI photo)

Kaufmann says he’ll get a sense at Iowa G-O-P headquarters next Monday — during the day — whether that record will be broken. “If we start getting a bunch of calls of ‘I’ve never Caucuses before’ and ‘How do I go about doing this?’ ‘Where do I go?’ And just nerves: ‘Am I going to fit in?’ The amount of people who call who are Democrats or independents asking…how to re-register as Republicans — those kind of calls, just the volume (of them),” Kaufmann says. “In 2016, we couldn’t even handle the volume starting at nine in the morning.” Kaufmann says he expects turn-out for the 2024 Iowa Caucuses to be “robust,” if not a record due to the precinct-level organizing he’s seeing from two leading campaigns. — which he’s declining to name.

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa’s largest electric utility is reporting scattered power outages as the first statewide snowstorm of the season is blanketing much of Iowa with a layer of heavy, wet snow. MidAmerican Energy spokeswoman Tina Hoffman says they dispatched dozens of tree and line repair crews to strategic locations on Monday, before the storm hit. “When we know that we have events like this coming in, we take extra measures to make sure that we do have crews positioned to where they need to be,” Hoffman says. “That eliminates those travel concerns so we don’t have to worry about our crews driving to where they need to be in unsafe conditions. We get them there ahead of time and so they’re ready to go if we have any system issues.”

Photo by Mike Tenney in Johnston.

In some outages, there were equipment failures, but Hoffman says in many cases, the outages are being caused by tree limbs snapping under the weight of the snow, taking out overhead power lines as they fall. She says motor vehicle collisions with utility poles are another worry. “We’re hoping that everybody stays safe out on the roads, and those sorts of things, traffic accidents, cars versus poles, those are of concern and we’ll continue to watch for that,” Hoffman says, “but right now, this system has really held up very well and we’re hoping that it holds throughout the day as the winds pick up.”

When strong winds hit power lines that are coated with heavy snow or ice, those lines can sometimes “gallop” in gusts and snap. Forecasters say wind gusts may reach 40 miles an hour later in the day.

Des Moines – Officials with the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau report a Davis County man, 44-year-old David Lee Gordy, of Bloomfield pled guilty last Friday (January 5th), to one count of fraudulent submissions (a Class D Felony), following an investigation by the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau.

David Lee Gordy (Photo courtesy of the Davis County Sheriff’s Office.)

The investigation began on October 27, 2022, after the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau received information indicating Gordy had presented a written document in support of payment to an insurer knowing the document contained false information.

Gordy was arrested on April 15, 2023.  Following his guilty plea, Gordy was placed on supervised probation for five years and ordered to pay a civil penalty of $1,025.

Iowans with information about insurance fraud are encouraged to contact the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau at 515-654-6556.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Montgomery County Auditor Jill Ozuna reports, “DUE TO INCLEMENT WEATHER: The Montgomery County Courthouse will be closed today (Jan. 9th) for Non-Essential Services.  The doors will remain unlocked, but some departments may not be open.” Please call ahead. 712-623-6625

CANCELLATIONS/CHANGES

• BOARD OF SUPERVISORS REGULAR MEETING CANCLED TODAY – MOVED TO JANUARY 10, 2024 AT 8:30 AM
• BOARD OF SUPERVISORS BUDGET SESSION CANCELED TODAY – MOVED TO JANUARY 10, 2024 FOLLOWING THE REGULAR MEETING
• BOARD OF SUPERVISORS BUDGET SESSION FROM JANUARY 10 WILL MOVE TO JANUARY 11, AT 9 AM..

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic School Board will hold their regular monthly meeting Wednesday, beginning at 5:30-p.m. The meeting will be held in the High School Media Center. Discussion items on their agenda include

a. Review scope of needs for facilities study (D3 goal)
b. Review next year’s school calendar
c. Change date of February’s Board meeting

Action items are expected to include:

a. Out-of-State Trip for Speech team
b. Modified Supplemental Amount (MSA) for Dropout Prevention, At-Risk Students (E1 goal)
c. Board Policy updates, first reading Board policies: 401.13, 401.13R1, 502.07, 605.06, 605.06R1, 605.08, 605.08R1,
701.01, 701.02, 701.03, 701.04, 703.1, 703.2

When it comes to the Consent Agenda, the Atlantic School Board is expected to approve:

c. Open Enrollment-In Applications
i. 11th grade student in from AHSTW school district
d. Resignations For current year:
1. Aya Hamanaka, 6th – 12th Grade, ELL Teacher, effective end of 23-24 school year
2. Traci Luke, Suburban/Car Driver, effective 12/29/2023
3. Aliyah Jordan, Elementary Sped Para 1 on 1, effective 01/10/2024
4. Linda Nichols, Home School teacher, effective end of 23-24 school year
5. Jessica Burcham, effective 01/10/2024
ii. Approve resignations of Early Retirement Incentive Policy:
1. Terry Hinzmann, HS History teacher, effective end of 23-24 school year
2. Kathy Hobson, HS teacher, HS Girls Golf Coach, TLC Mentor effective end of 23-24 school year
3. Janice Dickerson, Elementary Librarian, effective end of 23-24 school year
e. Contract Recommendations and/or Letters of Assignment
i. Kendra Henningnsen, Boys Golf Coach, Spring 2024 season
ii. Heath Kelley, Junior High Boys Track Coach, Spring 2024 season
iii. Aliyah Jordan, Middle School Library Para, effective 01/11/2024
iv. Jessica Burcham, High School Nurse,effective 01/11/2024

g. Fundraising Requests: I-Jag Fundraiser; Speech & Debate Club Fundraiser.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – Montgomery County Auditor Jill Ozuna reports the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors may be attending a Regional Board of Supervisors meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 10th, beginning at 7-p.m. The meeting takes place at the Griswold Community Building. Ozuna says “There is a possibility that there will be a quorum. No official county business will be acted upon during that time.”

This notice is informational only.