A Council Bluffs insurance agent was recently selected to become a member of Republican Mitt Romney’s Iowa Presidential Leadership Team. Steve Cates, a former Pottawattamie County Republican Party chairman says he was approached by the Romney team to join the group because of his support of the former Massachusetts governor and businessman’s presidential campaign in 2008.
Cates says Romney is a “Proven leader,” and “Everything he has done has been successful.”
Other members of Romney’s leadership team include Bettendorf resident Brian Kennedy, a former state GOP chair; House Rep. Renee Schulte of Cedar Rapids; Polk County Republican Organization chair Connie Schmett; GOP activist Alan Lucken of Akron; and Rose Kramer of Dubuque, a former state GOP Central Committee member.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Untreated wastewater is being released from an Omaha water station into the Missouri River. The city announced Sunday that it was closing isolation gates at the Monroe Street Lift Station as the river surged. The move will allow the release of some untreated wastewater.

Omaha’s Public Works department urges people to avoid wading or swimming in the river near the Veterans Memorial Bridge in south Omaha and for several miles downstream until further notice. Officials in Nebraska and Iowa have been monitoring the swollen river. Flood gates were installed Sunday at Lewis & Clark landing to keep water from seeping into downtown Omaha.

The river is expected to crest near Omaha at record levels between 30 and 35 feet in late June after more water is released from upstream reservoirs.

Sheriff’s officials in Montgomery County say a Red Oak man was arrested Saturday night northwest of Red Oak, following a pursuit that wound through the western parts of the county. 49-year old John Wayne Strait, of Red Oak, was charged with eluding, failure to have a valid license and/permit, and speeding.

Officials say the incident which led to his arrest began just after 7-p.m., Saturday, when deputies clocked a motorcycle going well above the posted speed limit, near the intersection of Highway’s 34 and 48. When the deputies tried to initiate a traffic stop, the cycle took-off, heading westbound on Highway 34 for about two-miles, and onto the secondary roads.

The chase continued through the rural areas of Montgomery County until it eventually came to an end in the 16-hundred block of 180^th Street, when Strait decided to surrender, and was taken into custody without further incident.

Strait was being held in the Montgomery County Jail in lieu of bond.

It’s been a busy past few days for Deputies in Adams County. The Sheriff’s Department reports five people have been arrested. Saturday evening, 33-year old Monica Currin, of Prescott, was arrested at Lake Binder, on a charge of Driving Under the Influence (DUI), and late Saturday night, 32-year old Nicholas Brule, of Malvern, was arrested at Lake Icaria, for Possession of Marijuana and Possession of drug Paraphernalia. The arrest was made after Brule was allegedly found to have been smoking a controlled substance.

As we reported earlier, early Friday morning, Adams County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested 37-year old Aaron Andersons, of Corning, on a charge of simple assault, following an incident which allegedly occurred at Lake Binder. And, Thursday night, an unidentified man was arrested for disorderly conduct following an altercation outside of a motel in Corning. The man gave authorities several aliases, and they are still trying to learn his true identity.

And finally, the sheriff’s department reports 33-year old Michael Miller, of Corning, was arrested last Tuesday night, on a charge of Domestic Assault, after he allegedly struck his father.

Each of those individuals were brought to the Adams County Jail, and held pending an appearance before the magistrate.

Among the Memorial Day activities taking place around the Nishna Valley on Monday, is the dedication in Avoca, of the Veteran’s Monument, at 2-p.m.. The monument is a part of the Pottawattamie County Eagle Project, and includes a “Pledge of Honor.” Organizers say its designed to recognize those who have served and those who will serve.

Neola artist Russell Christensen was commissioned to design and create the bronze eagle sculpture series to serve as veterans’ memorials in Avoca and 11 other communities in Pottawattamie County. Each community raised $25,000 to help pay for the statue, which stands about 36-inches tall and is perched on a granite pedestal. The effort to bring the bronze eagle to Avoca began with the formation of a committee, in May of 2006.

The Veterans’ Plaza dedication ceremony will take place in downtown Avoca next to the courthouse. The ceremony begins at 1:30 p.m. with the USAF Heartland of America Brass Quartet and a community chorus, followed by a 2 p.m. dedication. Among the guest speakers them is Darlene McMartin, Administrator for Pottawattamie County Veterans Affairs.

The ceremony will also include the presentation of the veterans’ plaza to the City of Avoca, and a 21 gun salute by American Legion Post 227, and the playing of “Taps,” by an Air Force bugler.

Officials say they expect a crowd of over 400 people to be in attendance. Following the Veteran’s Monument dedication, everyone is invited to attend a reception at the Avoca Legion Hall.

Sheriff’s officials in Page County are investigating the theft of eight large, coffin-sized American Flags from a cemetery in Coin. The theft was reported today (Saturday), at around 8-a.m.

Authorities say the flags — which were set in-place Friday afternoon for the Memorial Day weekend — were stolen sometime late Friday night or early Saturday morning. Most of the flags are stenciled with the name of a soldier. They were each on a 16-foot section of pole, which are also missing.

The Sheriff’s office is asking anyone who has information about the case to contact them at 712-542-5193. Page County Crimestoppers is offering a reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the thief or thieves.

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office reports two Missouri residents were arrested after they allegedly drove-off without paying for gas at a convenience store in Sidney, Friday night. The driver of the car, 36-year old Ashley Franken faces charges for multiple traffic offenses, while her passenger, 27-year old Aaron Nichols was charged with 5^th degree theft and possession of drug paraphernalia. Both are from St. Joseph, Missouri.

The Sheriff’s department says they received a call just after 10-p.m. Friday about a gas drive-off at the Caseys General Store in Sidney. Employees at the store reported a gray Izuzu Rodeo drove off after paying for only part of the gas pumped into it. The occupants of the vehicle told employees they were trying to get to St. Joseph, and had asked for directions.

Deputies in Fremont County stopped the vehicle at Highway 275 and 250^th Street, and took the pair into custody. Franken was being held on $566 bond, while Nichols’ bond was set at $300.

The City Council in Audubon will hold a special meeting Tuesday evening (May 31^st). During their 7-p.m. session at City Hall, the council will discuss and/or act on: A Mid-American Energy Franchise Agreement; applications for hiring, and a resolution to hire, a custodian; and, applications for hiring, and a resolution to hire, part-time Summer help.

The top Democrat in the Iowa Senate says he doesn’t want to “take away a woman’s control of her own destiny” when it comes to terminating a problem pregnancy. Senate Democratic Leader Mike Gronstal is from Council Bluffs, the city where a doctor who performs late-term abortions intends to open a clinic. The Iowa House has passed a bill that would ban abortions after the 20th week of a pregnancy. Gronstal and the other 25 members of the Iowa Senate took a different route, passing a bill that sets up a state permitting process for such facilities, with rules written in such a way that it would be hard for Dr. Leroy Carhart to open his clinic in Council Bluffs.

“I believe the surest way to keep Carhart out of Iowa is for the House to pass the bill the Senate passed,” Gronstal says. The Senate proposal would require a “free-standing” late-term abortion clinic like Dr. Carhart hopes to open to be near a hospital that has a special unit for premature babies, and Council Bluffs doesn’t have one.

“I believe that’s the surest way to keep (Carhart) out of Iowa, without taking away a woman’s control over her own destiny,” Gronstal says. Gronstal is critical of the House proposal which would ban abortions after the 20th week of pregnancy. It would allow abortions in cases when the woman’s life is at risk, but Gronstal says that exception may not have applied to the six women who got late-term abortions in Iowa in 2009.

“It said that a woman had to be in imminent danger of death,” Gronstal says. “Basically, it says that unless the woman is hemorraging and about to die, you can’t do the abortion even if there’s no way the baby can’t survive outside the womb.” If the Republican-led House and Democratically-led Senate don’t agree and pass a bill dealing with this issue, Gronstal isn’t willing to say that’s an open door to Carhart.

“I don’t know that it means that. I don’t know that Carhart is going to come to Council Bluffs,” Gronstal says. “We’ve got a bill that I believe is the surest, quickest way — after much discussion with a lot of people in the senate and in the attorney general’s office and a host of folks — after much discussion, we’ve got a bill that we believe much more effectively than the House bill will keep Carhart out of Iowa. The House ought to pass it.”

Gronstal made his comments Friday during taping of the Iowa Public Television program “Iowa Press.”

(Radio Iowa)