(Radio Iowa) – Challenges have been filed with state election officials, claiming the Libertarian candidates running in three of Iowa’s congressional district are not qualified for the 2024 General Election ballot. Residents in the first, third and fourth congressional districts have signed petitions which allege Libertarians did not hold county conventions as required by law, so the three Libertarian congressional candidates were not properly nominated. The Libertarians say they did have county conventions, just not in every county.

Nicholas Gluba of Lone Tree, the Libertarian candidate in the first congressional district, says the challenges show Republicans are terrified of how Libertarians are appealing to voters. “They want to attack our ability to be on the ballot. They want to attack Iowans’ ability to vote for who they choose. We have to fight against that,” Gluba said. “…When the Republicans decided that they needed to take on the Republican Party, that was an admission of fear. They’re afraid that we’re going to take out the death grip that Republicans hold on the State of Iowa.”

Marco Battaglia of Des Moines, the Libertarian candidate in Iowa’s third congressional district, says Libertarians did have county conventions, they just didn’t have one for each of Iowa’s 99 counties because there were no Libertarian delegates in some counties. “Most of our population is in, like 12 counties,” Battaglia says. “What are we supposed to do in a county that’s never voted Democrat in their life? Why do they want to register as anything else if they want Republicans to keep winning?”

Battaglia says the Republican-led legislature and Republican Governor Kim Reynolds have repeatedly changed election laws to put Libertarians at a disadvantage. “If we’ve got to take this up further up the court system, I think we can kind of dismantle this kind of unfair, rigged game that they’ve got going,” Battaglia said.

Charles Aldrich of Clarion, the Libertarian Party’s candidate in the fourth congressional district, says there was county participation — from counties that have Libertarians. “What they’re saying is inaccurate,” Aldrich says.

The Libertarians were among six congressional candidates who appeared this weekend on the Des Moines Register’s Political Soapbox at the Iowa State Fair. Democratic candidate Ryan Melton of Nevada, who’s running in the fourth congressional district, says voters deserve as many choices as possible and the G-O-P attempt to toss Libertarians off the November ballot is awful.

(Radio Iowa) – Republican Congressman Zach Nunn of Bondurant says he’s running for a second term in the U-S House to ensure congress has an “America First” mindset. “One that really puts our priorities at the top of the line,” Nunn said. Nunn, who represents Iowa’s third congressional district, says there is no greater threat to the U-S than the situation at the southern border.

“Too many in Washington are treating it like this is every day business,” Nunn said. “…Eight million illegals coming into our country is a direct threat to our nation. In fact I don’t think there’s a more direct threat to our country…We have to secure our border before we can talk about any kind of immigration reform.” Nunn says he’ll have three priorities if he wins reelection: securing the border, lowering taxes and opposing changes to Social Security and Medicare.

“Let’s keep our momentum in Washington with real leaders out there and not move backwards to the way that we’ve been,” Nunn said. “This is doing to be a competitive election year…This is an opportunity for each of us to stand up for things that are important.” Nunn made his comments on The Des Moines Register’s Political Soapbox at the Iowa State Fair.

Nunn is facing Democratic challenger Lanon Baccam, who’s scheduled to speak at the fair late this (Monday) afternoon.

(Radio Iowa) – The number of exhibitors in dairy cattle shows at this year’s Iowa State Fair is nearly identical to last year — despite new bird flu testing requirements for milking cows entered in the contests. Mike Eilers is the superintendent for dairy cattle at the Iowa State Fair. “There was definitely an increased number of heifers. At some of the farms, their heifers happened to be on a different location didn’t have to be tested if they didn’t have cows in that location,” Eilers say, “but there still was roughly 120 to 130 cows here at the show which is pretty good given all they had to go through with the testing and stuff.”

Eilers grew up on a dairy farm and showed Guernsey cattle, but has what he describes as an office job now. Eilers says for the past decade he’s been managing the State Fair dairy shows to stay connected to the industry and make sure kids, in particular, have a place to showcase their work. “Just to be able to come here and compete to see the quality of the animals they have and compare it to everybody else in the state and the other animals, and just to meet and hang out,” Eilers says. “There’s a lot of families and kids from all over the state that get to become friends just because they come to the fair.”

2024 Iowa State Fair Youth Dairy Show (RI photo)

Mike and Rhonda Guy of Newton were in the State Fair Livestock Pavilion this weekend, watching their granddaughter show her Brown Swiss heifer in the youth dairy show. “The value of this is tremendous. It teaches them a work ethic,” Guy said. “It’s nice to see them do things that we did as well — carry on a tradition, to some extent.” Rhonda Guy grew up on a dairy farm and showed Brown Swiss cattle as a kid. Watching her granddaughter in the show ring was a thrill. “It’s fun to be at the top of the class,” she says, “but just to be in the class at the Iowa State Fair is a big deal.” Mike Guy and his brother shut down their milking operation about 20 years after deciding they either had to expand or get out of the dairy business.

According to the latest data from the U-S-D-A, there were about a thousand dairy farms in Iowa in 2022.

(Iowa News Service) – Thirteen students, ranging in age from 14 to 21, have just graduated from the Iowa Developmental Disabilities Council Youth Leadership Academy. The program’s goal is to develop young leaders who learn skills that build their confidence.  A dozen students from Iowa welcomed one from Illinois who is attending school in Iowa. Together, they learned during the weeklong academy how to be more effective advocates for their communities.

That’s exactly what 21-year-old Andrew Allen, who has been diagnosed with ADHD, autism and severe separation anxiety, was looking for when he applied.

The annual academy teaches students ways to advocate for themselves, become more civically engaged and to be of service in their communities. 19-year-old University of Iowa student Jackie Corless, who said she has an intellectual learning
disability, also took part in the Youth Leadership Academy. She said the topics ranged from advocacy to communicating, and lots of useful skills in between.

The Youth Leadership Academy is a partnership between the Iowa Developmental Disabilities Council, Disability Rights Iowa, ASK Resource Center, the University of Iowa Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities, and Access to Independence.

The CAM School Board is set to meet Monday evening, in Anita. Here is the agenda:

PACIFIC JUNCTION, Iowa – The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation reports two men from Nebraska died Saturday night during a shooting incident at a concert near Pacific Junction. Authorities say at approximately 8:59- p.m. on August 10, 2024, the Mills County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting at the I-29 Speedway in Pacific Junction. An outdoor concert was about to begin when the shooting occurred in the parking lot. Two men, 28-year-old Marcus L. Johnson, and 27-year-old Charles A. Williams Jr., both from Omaha, Nebraska, died as a result of the shooting.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office is being assisted by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Iowa State Patrol, Omaha Police Department, and several surrounding law enforcement agencies. Law enforcement is asking anyone who has information about the shooting to contact the Mills County Sheriff’s Office at 712.527.4871. This is an ongoing investigation. No additional information will be released at this time.

Previous report by KJAN…

(Pacific Junction, Iowa) [UPDATED 7-a.m. 8/11/24]- Two people are now confirmed to be dead, and at least one person was critically injured during a shooting at a concert at the I-29 Speedway near Pacific Junction. One of the subjects was flown by LifeNet 1-1 from near Loess Hills Harley Davidson to Bergan-Mercy Hospital. The incident occurred at around 9-p.,m., during the concert that followed “The Pull Up Car Show and Music fest,” featuring musical acts Lil Bossie, Rob49, Rich the Factor and others.

The concert was cancelled just before 10-p.m. It was scheduled to end at 11-p.m.  Emergency crews staged near Agri-Vision while law enforcement was working to secure the scene. Authorities were looking for at least three suspects, reportedly in a black Mercedes sedan. Omaha Police helicopter ABLE-1 was requested to conduct a FLIR (Forward Looking Infrared Radar) [Heat seeking]  search of the area.

As of 10:10-p.m., a heavy law enforcement presence was still on-the-scene. At least two-thousand people were leaving the scene as the concert closed down, according to law enforcement. They were being stopped at gate checkpoints to look for possible suspects and/or witnesses.

Additional details are currently not available. The area was still an active crime scene late Saturday night.

(Pacific Junction, Iowa) [UPDATED 7-a.m. 8/11/24]- Two people are now confirmed to be dead, and at least one person was critically injured during a shooting at a concert at the I-29 Speedway near Pacific Junction. One of the subjects was flown by LifeNet 1-1 from near Loess Hills Harley Davidson to Bergan-Mercy Hospital. The incident occurred at around 9-p.,m., during the concert that followed “The Pull Up Car Show and Music fest,” featuring musical acts Lil Bossie, Rob49, Rich the Factor and others.

The concert was cancelled just before 10-p.m. It was scheduled to end at 11-p.m.  Emergency crews staged near Agri-Vision while law enforcement was working to secure the scene. Authorities were looking for at least three suspects, reportedly in a black Mercedes sedan. Omaha Police helicopter ABLE-1 was requested to conduct a FLIR (Forward Looking Infrared Radar) [Heat seeking]  search of the area.

As of 10:10-p.m., a heavy law enforcement presence was still on-the-scene. At least two-thousand people were leaving the scene as the concert closed down, according to law enforcement. They were being stopped at gate checkpoints to look for possible suspects and/or witnesses.

Additional details are currently not available. The area was still an active crime scene late Saturday night.

(Red Oak, Iowa) – A man from Union County was arrested early this (Saturday) morning on a warrant out of Missouri for Failing to Register as a Sex Offender. The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office arrested 48-year-old Theodore R. Barrett , of Creston, after a deputy stopped to assist a motorist near the Adams/Montgomery County line, at around 12:19-a.m., Saturday.

Barrett also goes by the aliases of “Mustafa Hussein Bin Beyyette,” “Beyyette H Bin,” and Mustafa Hussein Beyyette. Barrett was convicted in Nov., 2001, of having Incident Contact with a female 12 years of age or younger, in Clarinda.

“Mustafa Hussein Bin Beyyette.” Missouri State Hwy Patrol Sex offender Registry photo from 2012.

Following is arrest this (Saturday) morning, he was transported to the Montgomery County Jail where is awaiting extradition to Missouri.

WEBSTER COUNTY, Iowa — The Webster County Sheriff’s Office says an animal neglect investigation has resulted in the seizure of dozens of dogs and puppies from a residence near Badger. WHO-TV reports the investigation began on July 29th when Webster County Animal Control contacted WCSO about a possible case of animal neglect in rural Webster County. Investigators determined a property owner possessed around 25 dogs and puppies that were malnourished and not receiving veterinary care.

The WCSO said two of the puppies were released by the owner to Animal Control and taken to a veterinarian. They were found to be emaciated, underfed, and had a severe worm infection. The veterinarian’s report showed the puppies’ body condition was listed as a two out of a nine.

A search warrant was executed by the Webster County Sheriff’s Office on Thursday and 29 dogs and puppies were seized from the rural Webster County residence. The Animal Rescue League of Iowa and Webster County Animal Control assisted in removing and relocating the animals.

The WCSO says the investigation is continuing and there are criminal charges pending in the case.