The Branstad who ran Donald Trump’s 2016 general election campaign in Iowa has left the Trump Administration and is returning to consulting work. Eric Branstad is the oldest son of Terry Branstad, the former Iowa governor who Trump named U.S. Ambassador to China. Eric Branstad had been serving as White House liaison to the U.S. Department of Commerce since Trump took office. His wife and children remained in Des Moines.
Branstad left his D.C. job several weeks ago. Branstad is joining Mercury, a “public strategy firm” that has companies and politicians as well as other COUNTRIES as clients. Eric Branstad will be a managing director and will open an office for the firm in Des Moines.
Branstad’s move was first reported this (Thursday) morning by Politico Playbook, a daily newsletter. Eric Branstad had worked as a political consultant before he joined the Trump campaign in the summer of 2016.
(Radio Iowa)
Tax reform and how it will affect the bottom line were topics addressed at Wednesday’s John Deere annual meeting in the Quad Cities. Sam Allen, chair and C-E-O of Iowa’s largest manufacturing employer, was asked about the 900-million dollar hit Deere reported in its first quarter earnings due to tax reform. Deere spokesman Ken Golden says in the long run, the drop in federal taxes will be good for the company, for Deere dealers and for farmers. “Each year until the new tax reform law went into effect, depreciation was an annual decision,” Golden says. “We saw customers waiting to make their decision on buying equipment based on what was going to happen to the law. The permanence is really what Mr. Allen was talking about in smoothing out this kind of impact that depreciation has on large equipment purchases.”
Deere opened the shareholders meeting with a video celebrating the 100th anniversary of entering the tractor business. Tony Knobbe is one of the organizers of this year’s Gathering of the Green. He invited Allen and the audience to next month’s convention for John Deere tractor collectors. Knobbe is very proud of the theme the group selected — “Legend, Made Legacy.” “If you look in their annual report, on the second page you’ll read, ‘The Hundred Year Legacy of the John Deere Tractor’,” Knobbe says. “And down here, it says ‘The Legend Runs On’. I know we didn’t steal it from them because this wasn’t produced when we produced our theme.”
During the meeting, Sam Allen quoted an old letter from a Deere board member. It was written before the company bought the Waterloo Gas Engine Company in 1918, and said, “The tractor will never replace the mule.”
(Radio Iowa)
A traffic stop at around 2:30-a.m. today (Thursday), resulted in the arrest of a man from Coin. The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports a Ford F-150 pickup was pulled over about two-miles west of Coin, near the intersection of 260th and F Avenue, for a traffic violation. During the traffic stop the driver, and only occupant, 37-year old Gary Dean Williams, Jr., of Coin, was found to be under the influence of Alcohol. Williams was arrested for OWI 1st offense. He was transported to the Page County Jail where his bond was set at $1,000.
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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A business conditions index for nine Midwestern and Plains states rose over the past month, pointing to continued improvement in regional economic conditions, according to a report issued today (Thursday). The Mid-America Business Conditions Index hit 59.7 in February, compared with 57.3 in January, the report said. The December figure was 59.0. Good news abounded in several economic sectors, including manufacturing, the report said.
Creighton University economist Ernie Goss, who oversees the survey, said “At this point in time, according to our surveys, Mid-America manufacturing firms are outperforming their U.S. counterparts. However, government data indicate that U.S. non-manufacturing activity is exceeding that of Mid-American non-manufacturing firms.”
The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score above 50 suggests growth in that factor. A score below that suggests decline. The February employment index jumped to 59.4, from 52.3 in January. Goss said “Sixty percent of firms in our survey expect to add workers in the next six months.” The wholesale inflation gauge continued to reflect inflationary pressures, climbing to 82.0 from January’s 74.5. According to Goss, “Both our regional wholesale inflation index and the U.S. inflation gauge are elevated” and are expected to showing up at the consumer level, Goss said. “As a result, I expect the Federal Reserve’s interest rate setting committee to raise short-term interest rates by one-quarter of one percentage point at its next meeting on March 21st.”
Looking ahead six months, the business confidence index dropped to a still strong 74.5 from 80.5 in January. Goss says “Healthy profit growth, still low interest rates, and the recently passed tax reform package pushed business confidence into a range indicating vigorous business confidence.”
A woman from Glenwood has announced her bid to become the combined Mills-Fremont County Attorney. Republican Naeda Elliott said in a statement “I have proven to be tough on crime in Mills County. I will carry that philosophy to the Fremont County Office. As an experienced prosecutor, I know the devastating effect crime has on its victims. My main priority is to seek justice and to give victims a voice.” The current Mills County Attorney intends to run for the newly created multi-county office after Fremont County Attorney, Brenna Bird, announced she is not running for re-election.
Her bio says Naeda Elliott grew up in Southwest Iowa and obtained her law degree from The University of Iowa College of Law. She has served as the Mills County Attorney since June of 2016. She previously prosecuted for six years in Johnson County, Iowa. Shortly after being elected Mills County Attorney, Elliott says she successfully prosecuted the man responsible for the murder of a 19-year-old Glenwood resident. Since that time, she has sent numerous sexual predators and domestic abusers to prison.
Elliott says she has built bridges with multiple agencies across the State of Iowa to ensure our communities are safe. Those agency relationships, she says, will assist each county with their unique challenges and opportunities. She said also, that she will continue to make Mills and Fremont County the new standard for law and order in the state of Iowa.
Adair County ISU Extension has rescheduled their ‘On-Farm Research Coffee & Conversation’ event, for Monday, March 5th at the Warren Cultural Center’s Green Room on the east side of the town square in Greenfield. The program will begin at 10:00-a.m. Aaron Saeugling, ISU Extension’s Field Agronomist, along with Jim Rogers, ISU Research Farm Specialists will be speaking about current agronomy practices and demonstration trials across Iowa. The is a free event and open to the public. It’s sponsored by the Iowa Corn Growers Association. For more information contact Adair County ISU Extension at 641-743-8412.
An Iowa-based ag business is getting a new name next year. DuPont Pioneer will unify with DuPont Crop Protection and Dow Agrosciences to become Corteva Agriscience. Jim Collins will be the division’s chief operating officer. “It’s an opportunity to unify three great businesses under one new name and establish a new brand in the industry,” Collins said. Corteva is expected to become a standalone company in June 2019. “What that means is 100 percent of our 22,000 employees will wake up every day thinking about production agriculture and all of our resources, as a standalone pure agriculture company, will be focused on helping growers improve their productivity around the world,” Collins said.
Seed giant DuPont Pioneer is based in Johnston and currently employs about 2,600 Iowans. According to Collins, the name Corteva means “heart” and “nature” and represents what the new company will try to create. “One that puts growers productivity at the absolute center of what we’re doing, but also focuses on consumers and the sustainability of agriculture going forward,” Collins said.
The merger was introduced two years ago and “closed” this past September. The new company will be headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware.
(Radio Iowa, w/Thanks to Amie Sites, Brownfield Ag News)
The Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce kicked off the 2018 Total Resource Campaign (TRC) this week. This is a six-week fundraising campaign supported by YGM and lead locally by Chamber staff, business professionals and dedicated volunteers. Bailey Smith, Executive Director at the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce said “TRC has allowed the Chamber to offer more business resources to members and increase community activities. Last year’s campaign raised over $90,000 that goes towards business-based activities as well as community events like AtlanticFest and Christmas in Atlantic. We’re excited to offer our membership new opportunities as well and surpass last year’s total to keep serving our membership in a positive way.”
YGM is a professional consulting firm that works closely with non-profit organizations, specifically Chambers, to help increase fundraising efforts and build better memberships. The company offers sales training and innovative web-based technology to assist volunteers, business sponsors and chamber staff throughout the entire campaign. Joyce Powell, YGM consultant, said “The Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce is one of our smaller clients but has done a fantastic job offering diverse sponsorships covering all markets.”
The first TRC in Atlantic was held in 2012 and since has more than doubled the normal sponsorship dollars and streamlined many of the Chamber’s efforts, transforming it into a better organization. The Total Resource Campaign wouldn’t be made possible without the dedication of volunteers. Volunteers help connect with the membership and drive the campaign’s success. Volunteers serve as advocates for the Chamber and community. Bailey Smith said “They meet and network with other volunteers from our area’s leading businesses. These dedicated volunteers share their enthusiasm for the great work the Chamber does for the area. They meet with Chamber businesses to help them find the best sponsorship for their business needs. We couldn’t do it without them.”
The Total Resource Campaign is going on now till April 11th. Contact the Chamber with any questions regarding sponsorship for the campaigns at 712.243.3017 or at the Rock Island Depot, 102 Chestnut Street.