BY DAR DANIELSON

RADIO IOWA – Preliminary information from the National Weather Service has confirmed eight tornadoes were part of Tuesday night’s storms.

The weather service rated two of those tornadoes as EF-2s on the scale which classifies zero as the weakest and five as the strongest. Those were east of Bradgate and the other ran from Palmer to Gilmore City. There was an EF-1 southwest of Rutland, and one in Mason City.

There was an EF-0 in Kanawha. Mitchell and Howard County saw three tornadoes — with two rated EF-1s and the other an EF-0.

Many buildings, houses, and trees were damaged — but there were no deaths or injuries reported following Tuesday’s outbreak.

BY O. KAY HENDERSON

RADIO IOWA – Iowa Supreme Court justices are being asked to resolve a question that has sparked a legal challenge and has the potential to boot Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Abby Finkenauer from the June Primary ballot.

“Does a signature on a nominating petition missing a date get to be counted?” Attorney Sam Langholz asked the justices during a hearing this afternoon.

Langholz argued the list of disqualifying errors in one section of Iowa law does not mention the date on a petition’s signature line. Langholz represents the State Objection Panel, which allowed three nominating signatures for Finkenauer that had a zip code instead of a date, had the wrong date and had no date listed at all.

“Ordinarily these cases don’t reach this court because ordinarily candidates file more signatures than they need to and that’s why we’re here. You don’t come in right at the line,” Ostergren said. “Inevitably some signatures are not going to county.”Alan Ostergren is the attorney representing two Republicans who challenged those three signatures, arguing there’s another section of state law which says a date is required on the signature line.

Gary Dickey, an attorney for Finkenauer’s campaign, was asked by a justice if the two Republicans who filed the challenge had legal standing to do so. “Before the district court, they didn’t allege any injury…They didn’t claim they’d register as a Democrat,” Dickey said. “What is their personal interest in the judicial review?”

The court has not indicated when it might rule on the case. State election officials say the printing deadline for the Primary ballot is Monday at 5 p.m., so absentee ballots can be mailed by April 23rd to overseas voters. If the Supreme Court’s decision doesn’t come before then, the district court ruling that knocked Finkenauer off the ballot will be in force.

Finkenauer is one of three Democrats who’ve been running for a change to face Republican Senator Chuck Grassley in the General Election. Mike Franken and Glenn Hurst have been cleared to have their names printed on the Primary ballot.

BY O. KAY HENDERSON

RADIO IOWA – President Biden has taken a temporary step to ensure E15 can be sold year-round.

“The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to issue an emergency waiver to allow E15 gasoline that uses more ethanol from homegrown crops to be sold across the United States this summer, in order to increase the fuel supply,” Biden said this afternoon in an ethanol plant in Menlo, Iowa, drawing cheers from a crowd of invited guests.

The White House had announced the decision hours earlier, described as part of the Biden Administration’s agenda to build energy independence in the long term and make fuel more affordable in the short term.

“With this waiver on June 1, you’re not going to show up at your local gas station and see a bag over the pump that has the cheapest gas and you’re going to be able to fill up with E15 and it’s going to solve a whole problem,” Biden said, “but it’s not going to solve all our problems, but it’s going to help some people.”

Biden said energy prices are the major driver of inflation right now.

“Your family budget and your ability to fill up your tank — none of it should hinge on whether a dictator declares war and commits genocide a half a world away.”

Emily Skor, executive director of Growth Energy — a trade association for ethanol producers, said the president has made a commitment to find a permanent fix.

“We’re talking, actively working with the administration on things the EPA could do. There’s also an opportunity for a congressional fix,” Skor said. “The good news is we’ve got 12 months to figure it out and drivers will be covered this summer at a time when theyre’ still experiencing pain at the pump.”

In 2019, the Trump Administration moved to allow nationwide E-15 sales from June to mid-September. A federal judge ruled in favor of the oil industry’s challenge of that move and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case. That means the litigation path for addressing this issue is closed and Skor said the industry is pursuing two options: EPA action or passage of a bill in congress.

“We’ve got bipartisan legislation introduced, active conversation with our congressional champions and we’re also in active conversations with EPA,” Skor said. “One of those two avenues needs to come through for us because this is a fuel of the future. It’s lower cost. It’s lower carbon and it can be used on current cars on the road today.”

Iowa Farm Bureau president Brent Johnson said ethanol is a major market for one of Iowa’s main crops and Biden’s announcement helps stabilize the ethanol industry.

“E15 — it’s an excellent solution to some of the energy conversations that are being had right now in the entire world situation,” Johnson said. “It’s good for Iowa, it’s good for Iowa producers and we’re excited that the president came here to make this announcement.”

Biden made the announcement in a storage barn for dried distillers grain, a by-product of ethanol production and hosts left a 300 ton pile of it inside for the event.. Michael Walz is a V-P for POET, the company that owns the facility Biden visited.

“We have been pushing very hard to get year-round E15,” said Michael Walz, a vice president at POET, the company that owns the facility Biden visited. “We’re very excited about the president’s announcement and we think it’s going to be a win for consumers who’re going to see lower prices at the pump and we think it’s going to be great for American energy.”

POET operates 33 ethanol plants in eight states.

The Iowa GOP purchased billboards on Biden’s route out of and back to the Des Moines Airport with messages about inflation and high gas prices. Republican office-holders issued written statements generally praising Biden’s move to promote E15, but they raised other issues. Congresswoman Ashley Hinson called for more security at the southern border and Senator Chuck Grassley called it a crisis situation. Governor Reynolds issued a “thank you” to the president for what she described as “welcome news” on ethanol, but Reynolds said the Biden Administration has more to do to address high energy costs.

By DAVID PITT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A state court judge has ruled that Democrat Abby Finkenauer cannot appear on the June 7 Iowa primary ballot for U.S. Senate because she didn’t gather enough petition signatures, potentially knocking off the candidate considered by many to be the party’s best chance to unseat Republican U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley.

Judge Scott Beattie, a 2018 appointee of Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds, filed a ruling late Sunday that overturned a decision by a three-member panel of state elected officials. The panel concluded last week that Finkenauer’s campaign staffers had substantially complied with Iowa law that requires candidates to obtain 3,500 names, including at least 100 signatures from at least 19 counties.

Finkenauer plans to appeal the decision and the Iowa Supreme Court scheduled a hearing Wednesday with a promise to rule on the matter by the end of the week to meet deadlines for sending ballots to overseas voters.

Two Republicans challenged Finkenauer’s petition papers, saying signatures from at least two counties did not have the required date accompanying them.

In the past, the panel, which includes the secretary of state, attorney general and state auditor, has found petitions to be in substantial compliance with the law even though signatures were missing or difficult to interpret. Attorney General Tom Miller and Auditor Rob Sand, both Democrats, voted to allow Finkenauer’s petitions citing past precedent for giving deference to campaigns that used the proper forms and made efforts to comply with the law. Secretary of State Paul Pate, a Republican, voted against Finkenauer’s petition.

Kim Schmett and Leanne Pellett, former Republican county elections officials, challenged the signatures and then filed a court appeal of the Iowa Objection Panel’s decision last week.

Beattie concluded that the panel’s legal interpretation was wrong and that the law clearly says each signature should be accompanied by a date. His decision knocked signatures from Allamakee and Cedar counties off of Finkenauer’s nomination petitions, which meant her campaign failed to submit at least 100 signatures from at least 19 counties as required.

Beattie said he took no joy in the decision.

“This court should not be in the position to make a difference in an election, and Ms. Finkenauer and her supporters should have a chance to advance her candidacy. However, this court’s job is to sit as a referee and apply the law without passion or prejudice. It is required to rule without consideration of the politics of the day. Here the court has attempted to fulfill that role,” he said,

Finkenauer accused Beattie of doing the bidding of Grassley and his allies in Washington.

“This misguided, midnight ruling is an outrageous and partisan gift to the Washington Republicans who orchestrated this meritless legal action,” she said. “We are exploring all of our options to fight back hard against this meritless partisan attack, and to ensure that the voices of Iowans will be heard at the ballot box.”

Finkenauer said her petitions had more than 5,000 signatures and she’s confident she has met the requirements to be on the ballot.

Beattie promised last week he would file a decision by midnight Sunday to give either side time to appeal to the Iowa Supreme Court. He filed the decision at 10:49 p.m. Sunday. Pate has said he must know whether Finkenauer qualifies for the ballot by Friday to give him time to have ballots printed and sent to overseas voters who must get their ballots by April 23 to comply with the law.

Finkenauer, who served one term in the U.S. House from 2019-2021, seeks to be on the ballot with Democrats Mike Franken, a retired Navy admiral, and Glenn Hurst, a doctor and Minden City Council member. The primary winner will face Grassley, who is seeking an eighth term in the Senate.

Federal fundraising data and statewide polling indicate that Grassley, who turns 89 in September, is well positioned to retain the seat he has held since 1981 for another six years.

Grassley has raised more than $4.7 million, Finkenauer about $1.9 million and Franken $1.8 million. Hurst raised just over $66,000. Republican state Sen. Jim Carlin, who will be on the Republican primary ballot opposite Grassley, raised $282,151.

The Des Moines Register/Medicom Poll published in November gave Grassley a lead of 18 percentage points over Finkenauer.

Alan R. Ostergren, the attorney for Schmett and Pellett, said the judge’s decision is a victory for the rule of law.

“Iowans expect candidates to follow state law and to follow the same rules as the hundreds of other candidates who successfully qualified to be on the ballot,” he said in a statement. “Anyone who has ever been involved in a political campaign knows that you can easily avoid problems by turning in more than the bare minimum number of signatures. Abby Finkenauer didn’t do this for some reason and got caught short.”