Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, a Republican from Red Oak, says she supports fellow U-S Senator Chuck Grassley in his decision to not hold a hearing on any nominee to fill the vacancy on the Supreme Court until after November’s election. “I agree with Senator Chuck Grassley on this. And do think that the American people will have a voice this fall when they go out to the ballot box,” Ernst says.

Grassley, who is the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee has been taking heat from Democrats who say the public spoke by electing the president in 2012 and he should be able to nominate someone. Ernst says she goes back to the most recent national election to determine what voters want. “In 2014 the voters had a voice and we now a Republican majority. And so we do have a Republican chair to the Judiciary Committee, we have a majority in the Senate and we believe the people spoke loud and clear in 2014 that they were not happy with what was going on,” Ernst says.

Ernst’s election in 2014 helped Republicans win control of the Senate. And her victory over former Congressman Bruce Braley was helped in part by a video of Braley telling a group of lawyers in Texas at a fundraiser that if he wasn’t elected then Grassley — “a farmer who never went to law school” — would become chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Ernst was asked if the decision to not hold a hearing on a Supreme Court nominee could backfire on Republicans. She says they are fully aware of the consequences of elections.

“In November if people are unhappy with the way that we have been governing in the United States Senate that they would speak out,” Ernst says. “But from what we have heard, people are excited about the opportunity to voice their opinion through the ballot box, whether they are Democrats, whether they are Republicans. Ernst was asked if the Supreme Court issue has hurt the ability for Democrats and Republicans to work together on other issues.

“I don’t know, I think that there are a lot of people who are intent on getting our work done here in the United States Senate,” Ernst says. She says they have a lot of work to get done, including the spending bills. “I really haven’t seen any detraction from that type of work so far. So, I do hope that we can continue on with the business of the Senate just as we did last year,” Ernst says. Ernst made her comments during her weekly conference call with the media.

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office says a Red Oak man was arrested today (Thursday) on a Pottawattamie County warrant. 25-year old Ian Anthony Clark was taken into custody at around 12:10-p.m., on a warrant for Sexual Abuse in the 3rd degree. Clark was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $32,000 bond.

And, at around 5:20-p.m Wednesday, Deputies in Montgomery County arrested 31-year old David Allen Shuffler, of Red Oak, on two warrants stemming out of Montgomery County, for Failure to Appear on original, Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, charges. Shuffler was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $1,300 bond.

Firefighters from Atlantic and Marne have been called to a tractor fire just across the county line in Shelby County. The tractor was on fire in the vicinity of Highway 173 and 200th Street. The call went out at around 12:28-p.m.

No other details are available.

Authorities in two states are on the lookout for two subjects involved in a high-speed chase late Wednesday night. According to reports, the chase began in Nodaway County, Missouri at around 9:30-p.m. The chase crossed into Page County (IA), where authorities were set-up to lay down stop-sticks, but the vehicle being chased was abandoned beforehand. Authorities say the subjects took off on foot, and remain at large. They reportedly do not pose a threat to the public, though.

The Cass County (IA) K9 unit, Page County Sheriff’s Office, officers with the Clarinda Police Department and members of the Iowa State Patrol were among the law enforcement agencies assisting in the overnight search.

No other details are currently available.

More than one hundred firefighters and law enforcement officials from across Iowa will stair climb for a cause in Downtown Des Moines Sunday, April 10th. Among the area fire departments that will send personnel to the event, are those from: Adair; Casey; Redfield and Winterset.

Participants will climb the EMC Insurance Companies (15 floors), Financial Center (22 floors), Hub Tower (16 floors), and Ruan Center (32 floors) for a total of 85 floors combined. It’s all part of the American Lung Association in Iowa’s 2016 Fight for Air Climb.

More than a 30 firehouses and police departments in all will be represented at the event. Firefighters will climb in 80 pounds of full fire turnout gear in honor or memory of a fallen firefighter, loved one or lung disease survivor. In addition, the firehouse and police department with the best finish time will receive the coveted traveling Firehouse Fight for Air Trophy and Police Department Fight for Air Trophy, respectively. Another trophy will be presented to the department that raised the most funds for the Lung Association.

They will join more than one thousand of Des Moines area residents and Iowans from across the state. The Fight for Air Climb is a unique fundraising event for the American Lung Association in Iowa. Climbers help improve the lives of patients across the country and locally in Iowa. Almost ninety cents of every dollar raised goes directly to education, research and advocacy.

Registration is open online at www.FightForAirClimb.org or by calling (515) 309-9507. Registration is currently $25 and will increase to $45 on April 3rd. If registering on event day, the total cost is $155 which includes both registration and fundraising totals.

CLIVE, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Lottery is ending sales of one of its instant scratch games.  Lottery officials announced Thursday that players have until May 26 to claim their prizes in the “5X” scratch game.  Officials say the move is a standard procedure and that games that end are replaced with new games throughout the year.

Players can visit Iowa Lottery retailors or lottery offices in Clive, Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, Mason City or Storm Lake to claim their prizes.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – The Iowa Corrections Department says an inmate who’d been listed as escaped from a work release facility is back in custody. Department spokesman Fred Scaletta said Thursday that Jacob Petty was caught by Sioux City police and is being held in Woodbury County Jail. The department listed Petty as escaped when he didn’t return Jan. 26 from an outpatient treatment program.

In October 2008 Petty began serving a 10-year sentence for robbery in Woodbury County. He was transferred to work release on Oct. 8 last year.

Does your mom or dad take care of a loved one (perhaps one cares for the other)? Do you know what your parents are going through? Your parent is in a new role of caregiver when helping a spouse with things he/she cannot do because of a medical condition’s disabling effects. How do you better support your parent during this time?

Caregiving Relationships: Conversations on Aging is a program for adult children supporting their aging caregiver parents. The session is scheduled for Tuesday, March 22, 2016, 6:30 – 8:45 pm at the Montgomery County Extension office, 400 Bridge Street, Suite 2, in Red Oak.

Research shows that spousal caregivers are more likely to provide care with help from adult children than to accept help from community supports or nonfamily members. Kim Brantner, Human Science Specialist in Family Life, says “The program helps adult children learn to recognize how caregiving affects relationships. It helps them discover their role in making decisions about their parents’ later life.” It also helps adult children build talking and listening skills and gain ideas on how to start difficult conversations.

A local coalition is working to bring resources to the county to address family caregiving issues. The next learning opportunities include The Finances of Caregiving, a series of five 2 hour classes beginning in April; and the Powerful Tools for Caregivers program, a series of six 2-1/2 hour classes designed especially for family caregivers. The series will start in May in Villisca.

For more information, contact Stephanie Langner, Montgomery County Extension, 712-623-2592.

The Shelby County Emergency Services Association, which is comprised of all Fire, Ambulance, Emergency Management and Law Enforcement services in Shelby County, is reminding land owners and managers about the upcoming Spring Field Fire Season. Emergency Management Coordinator Bob Seivert says Shelby County sees an increase in fire activity every year in the spring and fall when residents start igniting burn piles, or prescribed fires on CRP land to meet land management objectives.

Often times he says, fires are ignited on days when weather conditions are less than favorable. When those burns are started they can cause escape fires which put lives, environment, and property in danger. Seivert says the Shelby County Emergency Services Association, in coordination with local Fire Chiefs are asking you to call the Shelby County Emergency Management Office at 712-755-2124 to report your controlled burning projects.

When you call in you will simply be asked the size of your project, a number you can be reached at, start and stop times of the planned burn. The Shelby County Emergency Management Office will also ask that you provide the local fire chief with notification.  A burn plan can be used to assess the safety of all burns. The EMA office, can assist in completing these, and will have the form posted on their web site. wwwshelbycountyema.com

Fire Danger Rating Boards located in all communities will be updated twice a week. Most of them are located at your community fire station. If you are unsure where the Fire Danger Rating sign is located, contact one of the members of your local fire department, they will be happy to let you know where it is.

An electronic copy of the Fire Danger Rating Board will be available at www.shelbycountyema.com. The purpose of the system is to visually let the public know when the conditions are safest to carry out your burning projects. The system is not a permitting process or authorization to burn it just lets you know if conditions are favorable.

Shelby County’s cooperative system will allow the authorities to dispatch Emergency Resources immediately on report of smoke when the fire danger is determined to be HIGH or EXTREME. On HIGH days fire resources will be dispatched and make a decision on whether it is safe to continue the burning. If the Fire Chief or his designee think conditions are not safe they may extinguish the fire.

On EXTREME days all fires will be extinguished unless a permit or waiver has been signed by the Chief of the local fire department.