(Radio Iowa) — Republican Congressman Steve King says if Mexico fails to stop a caravan of asylum seekers from Central America who’re headed north, then President Trump must follow through on his threat to send troops to seal the southern border and prevent their entry in the United States. “It’s one of those promises that has to be kept,” King says. “I think about when Ronald Reagan said to the air traffic controllers: ‘You have a chance to come back to work, but if you don’t, I’m going to fire you.’ And some said: ‘He doesn’t have the nerve to do that,’ but Ronald Reagan had to do that if he wanted to maintain his presidency and this is one of those kind of circumstances, too.”

Recent reports indicate the caravan, which started in Honduras, has swelled to a group of four-thousand making their way through Guatemala. King says President Trump must also carry out his threat to end U.S. aid to countries along the migration route if the caravan reaches the U.S. border. “That adds up to quite a bit of money,” King says. “I think (Trump) should say further that we’ll redirect those funds into building a wall.” King, who is seeking a ninth term in the U.S. House, has long advocated building a wall along the southern border — and he has strongly opposed legislation to provide a pathway to citizenship or some sort of legal residency status for immigrants who’ve entered the country illegally. This past week, King sparked controversy by commenting on Canadian politics. King tweeted his endorsement of Faith Goldy, who’s running for mayor of Toronto. “I support her because she won’t back up, she takes a stand and she holds it and she has been badly abused by the establishment in Toronto,” King says.

King’s tweet, calling Faith Goldy “pro-Western Civilization” has drawn more than a thousand critical comments describing Goldy as a white nationalist and citing her comment that Canada is undergoing a “white genocide.” King says Goldy is a legitimate, “pro rule of law” candidate whose advertising wasn’t aired and who was not invited to debate the other two candidates running for mayor of Toronto. King says that’s a violation of her freedom of speech. “She has been completely muzzled,” King says, “and when I see that happen, I know that freedom has been damaged dramatically.”

King’s Democratic opponent, J.D. Sholten, of Sioux City, says “once again, Steve King spends more time supporting far-right leaders in other countries than he does focusing on the needs of the people of our district.”

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Hy-Vee has recalled six meat and potato products for possible salmonella and listeria contamination. The company says the potential danger was discovered when McCain Foods, a Hy-Vee supplier, announced it was recalling its caramelized mushrooms and fire-roasted tomatoes, which are ingredients used in the Hy-Vee products.
No illnesses have been reported.
The Hy-Vee products are:
— Hy-Vee Bacon Wrapped Cowgirl Chicken Grillers — 8 ounce each, UPC Code 023092600000
— Hy-Vee Fire Roasted Tomato, Spinach, Mozzarella Twice Baked Potato — 5 ounce each, UPC Code 023755400000
— Hy-Vee Cowgirl Chicken Griller Patty — 6 ounce each, UPC Code 023100200000
— Hy-Vee Gourmet Steakhouse Mushroom & Swiss Burger — 6 ounce each, UPC Code 023168400000
— Hy-Vee Ground Beef Sliders Mushroom & Swiss — 2 ounce each, UPC Code 023164300000
— Hy-Vee Ground Beef Sliders Mushroom & Swiss — 12 count, 30 ounces, UPC Code 023266600000
The products have a “best if used by” date of Oct. 22, 2018, or sooner.
The items can be returned to Hy-Vee stores for a full refund.

Officials with the Iowa National Guard have announced 19-year old Private 1st Class Matthew A. Cox, of Leon, died while swimming at a Naval Station Guantanamo Bay (NSGB) beach Tuesday, October 16th. Cox, a member of the 186th Military Police Company, Iowa Army National Guard based at Camp Dodge, Johnston, Iowa, was deployed to Cuba in support of Joint Task Force-Guantanamo (JTF-GTMO) at the time of his death.

PFC. Matthew A. Cox

Cox and four other service members were swimming at Cable Beach when he was overpowered by the strong current. NSGB dispatched first responders to the scene to begin search and rescue operations using divers, boats and aircraft. The operation continued until the afternoon of October 17, when searchers recovered his body. The four service members with Cox at the time of his death were not injured.

The search and recovery operation was a joint effort involving members of all military services including the U.S. Coast Guard, fire, law enforcement, and medical first responders from NSGB, Naval Hospital Guantanamo Bay, and JTF-GTMO. An investigation is underway into the incident.

Cox was born in Des Moines. He was active in the Civil Air Patrol, Des Moines Police Explores and enjoyed farming with his grandparents, Fred and Linda Cox, near Leon. Cox enlisted in the Iowa Army National Guard on October 11, 2017 as a Military Police Soldier with the 186th MP Co. His awards include the National Defense Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon.

Cox is survived by his parents, Jason and Beth Cox, and brother, Mark Cox, all of Hartford, Iowa.
Funeral arrangements are pending.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CDT

CLEAR LAKE, Iowa (AP) — Deidre DeJear is Iowa’s newest political star _ even if she hasn’t yet won an election. Cory Booker recently made his inaugural trip to Iowa by headlining a fundraiser for DeJear. Bernie Sanders will stump with DeJear on Sunday. And Kamala Harris will make her Iowa debut Monday alongside DeJear. Even by Iowa standards, this is a lot of attention being paid to a 32-year-old African American who was not yet won her campaign for secretary of state.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Officials at Des Moines’ Blank Park Zoo say the attraction’s youngest giraffe, Lizzy, has died, just weeks before what would’ve been her second birthday. The Des Moines Register reports that the zoo made the announcement Thursday; Lizzy died Tuesday. Officials say initial results from a necropsy showed the giraffe had ‘internal abnormalities” and had also recently suffered from a minor gastrointestinal illness that may have contributed to her death.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new survey says farmland prices are expected to continue their decline in parts of 10 Plains and Western states. The latest Rural Mainstreet survey shows that on average, bank CEOs in the region estimated farmland prices declined by 4 percent over the past 12 months. Bankers from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming were surveyed.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Judicial Branch has started tracking a legal deadline for judge appointments amid uncertainty over whether Gov. Kim Reynolds made two picks on time. The governor has 30 days to appoint a judge once the names of finalists have been submitted by a nominating commission. The liberal blog Bleeding Heartland reported last month that Reynolds informed Judge Jason Besler of his appointment after the deadline. Now questions are being raised about the timing of a second appointment.

(Radio Iowa) — Vice President Mike Pence is scheduled to be in Des Moines tomorrow (Friday) afternoon to campaign for Republican David Young, the incumbent in Iowa’s third congressional district. Cindy Axne, of West Des Moines, Young’s Democratic opponent, says Young should use the occasion to lobby Pence.

“I think it’s an opportunity for David Young, candidate David Young, to step up and be a congressman and ask this administration to put a stop to these junk health care bills that they’re putting together,” Axne says. In July, Young wrote a letter to the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services to register his opposition to so-called “skinny” health plans that will not cover individuals with pre-existing conditions.

Young said people with serious illnesses need access to affordable policies. Axne says Young needs to go further and pledge to vote for legislation that would overturn the Trump Administration’s extension of what she calls “junk plans” that deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions.

“I hope he stands up and does what’s right,” Axne says. “He’s said on the trail as a candidate that he supports coverage of pre-existing conditions and that would be a step to do it.” Axne and Young are in a tight race in Iowa’s third congressional district. Pence will be making his second campaign stop for Young tomorrow (Friday). President Trump publicly endorsed Young at a rally in Council Bluffs last week.

(Radio Iowa) — Scores in Iowa are slipping on an exam used to measure the readiness of students for college. About 68-percent of Iowa students in the graduating class of 2018 took the ACT last year and they averaged a composite score of 21.8 out of 36. That’s slightly better than the national average score of 20.8, but the data released by the Iowa City-based ACT organization shows scores in Iowa have now dropped three years in a row.

The percentage of Iowa students meeting math benchmarks has dropped from 48 to 44-percent since 2014. Just 45-percent of Iowa students who took the test last year are considered ready for college-level science, according to the ACT report. Thirty-percent of 2018 graduates in Iowa met all four ACT college readiness benchmarks.

A total of 24,208 Iowa students took the ACT last year. Twenty-six (26) of those students posted perfect scores.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new survey says farmland prices are expected to continue their decline in parts of 10 Plains and Western states. The latest Rural Mainstreet survey shows that on average, bank CEOs in the region estimated farmland prices declined by 4 percent over the past 12 months. They expect farmland prices to fall by another 3.2 percent over the next 12 months.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says the survey also shows the farm sector is being weakened by negative impacts of tariffs and low agriculture commodity prices.

The overall economic index for the region increased slightly to 54.3 from 51.5 in September. That score still suggests growth because it is above 50, while any score below 50 indicates a shrinking economy.

Bankers from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming were surveyed.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Officials at Des Moines’ Blank Park Zoo say the attraction’s youngest giraffe, Lizzy, has died, just weeks before what would’ve been her second birthday. The Des Moines Register reports that the zoo made the announcement Thursday; Lizzy died Tuesday. Officials say initial results from a necropsy showed the giraffe had ‘internal abnormalities” and had also recently suffered from a minor gastrointestinal illness that may have contributed to her death.

Lizzy was born at the zoo on Dec. 6, 2016, to Uzuri. Uruzi’s pregnancy was unexpected because she was older, at 19, and was thought to be unable to conceive. Blank Park Zoo spokesman Ryan Bickel says the zoo now has five giraffes: one male and four females.

A former accounting clerk for the City of Council Bluffs was sentenced to prison Wednesday in U-S District Court, for his role in the distribution and receipt of child pornography. 35-year old Jamin C. Fletcher, of Council Bluffs, appeared before United States District Court Judge Rebecca Goodgame Ebinger and was sentenced to 108 months (9-years) in prison, and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine, $200 to the Crime Victims’ Fund, and serve ten years of supervised release to follow his prison term. Fletcher has served as Council Bluffs’ accounting clerk from 2008-to 2017.

On April 20, 2018, a jury found Fletcher guilty of Distribution and Receipt of Child Pornography. The charges were the result of an FBI investigation on BitTorrent, a file sharing program used on the Internet. FBI downloaded child pornography from a shared folder on BitTorent that identified an IP address subscribed to Jamin Fletcher of Council Bluffs. A search warrant was served on Fletcher’s residence where agents located a desktop computer, laptop computer, and cell phone that contained images of child pornography.

The investigation was conducted by the Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Iowa Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

A Red Oak woman was arrested on Thursday following a traffic stop on East Hammond Street in Red Oak. Red Oak Police witnessed 25-year-old Amanda LeeAnn Solt of Red Oak operating a 1995 Ford Explorer. A traffic stop was conducted and Solt was charged with Driving Under Suspension and Failure to Provide Proof of Insurance. Solt was also in possession of .082 grams of marijuana during the stop. Solt was taken to the Montgomery County Jail and booked in on $1,000 bond.