Veterans from across Iowa came to the State Capitol to meet with legislators and enjoy a full schedule of activities, including a special ceremony in the rotunda honoring their service.
They also had the opportunity to meet Brig. Gen. William DeHaes of the Iowa National Guard; Brig. Gen. Jonathon McColumn, Commanding General of the 103rd Expeditionary Sustainment Command, U.S. Army Reserve; Commandant Jodi Tymeson of the Iowa Veterans Home; and members of the Iowa Commission of Veterans Affairs.
The commitment of Iowans to serve our country has always been strong, which is why veterans make up a higher proportion of our population than they do in many other states.
In Iowa, we have made it a priority to thank those who’ve served and sacrificed. We want Iowa to be a great place for veterans and their families, to become the home of returning service members, and to offer the education, job opportunities, health care and quality of life they deserve.
Recent successes include:
- Protecting the parental rights of military members while they’re deployed.
- Making sure all veterans get a proper funeral with military honors and a final resting place.
- Investing in improvements at our military and veterans’ facilities.
- Ensuring service-disabled veterans who own their own business are “targeted small businesses” eligible for low-interest loans, grants and consideration when the state seeks bids for goods and services.
- Establishing a “one-stop shop” to access information on veterans’ preference for public employment.
- Requiring disclosures by private providers who charge a fee to help veterans access their benefits.
- Authorizing a veteran designation on Iowa driver’s licenses and identification cards for honorably discharged U.S. military veterans.
Mason City listening post:
January 21 @ 10:00 am – 11:30 am
Mason City Public Library, 225 2nd St SE
Sen. Amanda Ragan and Rep. Sharon Steckman will host a legislative listening post at the Mason City Public Library
Ive known Steve for many years. He takes everything he does seriously, giving his all to do the best he can. If he decides to run he will bring many years business and government experience to the table.
Politics is a multifaceted endeavour requiring many skills. Being able to communicate with all generations is a unique ability Steve has gained through his business and personal relationships.
He is extremely outgoing and any lack of statehouse experience he has he will easily be able to quickly rub shoulders with others he would come to know in des Moines , as well as in the district.
Many think Steve just fell into money in a high margin business, but its a bit more competitive than most realize. Through the years under his guidance, he has turned the business into a bright spot for this area. Something he could also do as a state senator.
@ Tyler, Amanda has never been up against someone like Steve Minert. He will get the votes of lots of people who don’t usually vote Republican, or even vote, period. Minert has friends from all walks of life. He could do like Trump did. Ragan would lose, just like Hillary. Look what happened to Urdahl and Dougherty, and Amanda’s fellow Senator Mary Jo Williams. Booted. People, they are in a mood to throw out the one’s have been in, so long. Career politicians don’t solve problems, only help themselves. If I was Amanda Ragan, I would not even run if Minert decides to go for it. Because she will get beat.
As soon as the public finds out where most of Minert’s money really comes from, it’ll all be over. It’s not from selling Harleys, either.
Where do you think it comes from?
That is just a rumor started by jealous people.
Yeah, sure it is.
You want proof that Amanda Ragan is just a self-important, chatterbox professional politician? Okay. So she puts out this press release last week. She says she wants “to turn things around.” WTF? She acts like we don’t know she has been a Senator for 15 years. Turn things around, huh? Yes, WTF. In that same press release, which is here on NIT, Ragan tells us she will make “sure that all the communities” in her district “get their share of state resources.” Um, excuse me, lady, but isn’t that your job? Ok, so then she says she wants to help create jobs. Amanda must think we are a special kind of stupid to believe she knows the first thing about creating any jobs. Sorry, Senator, but running a soup kitchen that our taxes pay for and getting a state salary down in Des Moines is not creating jobs for anybody but yourself and the flunky’s that work for you and your fellow career politicians in the state government.
That’s where Minert knows a lot more than Ragan ever could. He does create jobs and keeps workers employed. Steve has to meet payrolls, and he does. After five elections in 15 years, I say it’s time we put Amanda Ragan out to pasture. Time for some new blood, time to elect somebody who is not a professional politician that draws two salaries at the same time, paid for by our taxes.
My two cents. Goodnight.
@ community, you nailed it. Just got off work, midnight shift. Guys like me, we want results. Politicians like Ragan don’t know when to quit. Her, create some jobs? Yeah right. It is like, who is she kidding? That’s some BS right there. I work nights for better take home, don’t get a pension like she does. How can she make more then me from that soup kitchen and then draw a salary, IPERS, ect, from being a legislature? One goverment job at a time, folks!! I have met Mr. Minert, he has gave good deals to my brother on Harley’s and a couple dudes from my work. Steve is a nice guy, he gets what I am saying here. Hope he beats Ragan, she’s wore out her welcome like you say, shes a joke, saying she can create any jobs. Go, Stevie! You got my vote.
I don’t think I can eat dinner now, after reading these comments. People who can barely write have absolutely no business voting Republican. But here you are, you little know-nothing, hateful deplorables. Shame on the lot of you. Amanda may not win, but I know her, and she will fight, right down to the last vote. Believe me, she will, and I will knock doors for her. The travesty last November showed me that this isn’t the country I thought it was. And now, it is clear that this part of north Iowa also is not. I do not wish to even breathe the same air as you deplorables. To even consider replacing Sen. Ragan with Steve Minert is decadent. But, then, you people are decadent. You can all just go to H-E-double toothpicks. This is all I have to say, besides shame on you people.
Hey, proud Liberal, your friend Amanda should of been out protesting against President Trump. Isn’t that what all the fat white women that don’t have black baby’s were doing?
My, will you look at this outbreak of Deplorables who seen to think Minert should replace Senator Ragan. You scumbags aren’t worthy of washing Amanda’s dishes, or carrying her purse.
hey, proud Liberal, your friend Amanda should of been out marching against Trump. Isn’t that what all the fat white chicks that don’t have black baby’s were doing.
If Stevie runs, Stevie wins. Bye, bye, Amanda! LOL
@ anonymous, yes, I am quite certain Mr. Minert is accustomed to getting what he wants, and always has been. Well, Steve will find out that not everything can be bought, and that selling motorcycles isn’t a path to getting elected to the state senate. Do you work at Harley Davison? Ciao, now, you child.
@ goddess, how about you learn to spell, and then come back?
So, child, you’re unfamiliar with the term I used? Look it up. It’s spelled C-I-A-O. Trust me, it is correctly spelled.
Hey, “goddess”, the joke is on you, beotch. The correct spelling is Davidson, not Davison, like you misspelled it. So get lost, beotch.
“MINERT for Senate”
We have a grandson that lives in heaven now. But when he was sick, our little angel got to go to Disney World with his parents. This was because of the Minerts, they paid for everything, they do this thru Make a Wish. So if Steve runs, he will have our votes, and our kids’s votes, and our little angel’s brothers and sister’s votes.
See now, that is the difference here. When Amanda dishes up that food, she don’t buy it. Not with her money, gets paid the big bucks to dole it out. What Minert done for your grandson, well that was on him. Yes I will vote for Steve to, Amanda is old hat. Never done nothing but take our money. Hey can we find out how much she gets, I mean from that soup kitchen and down to the capitol. I bet between them two she gets $75,000 a year. That is just plain wrong.
Reading these comments, I am as appalled by the semi-literate, crude bigotry contained therein as by my worry that such remarks are being posted by people who, if they were smart, would never vote for a Republican. I shall alert Senator Ragan to this forthwith. She needs to go on high Neanderthal alert.
@ NIACC, yes, agreed. The other thing is, Amanda holds substantial seniority. She has served, made us all proud, for longer than any other Democrat currently serving in the Iowa Senate. This is a big advantage to all of north Iowa. For nearly 16 years, she has looked out for her constituents. Throwing her out would be a big mistake, not unlike electing Donald T rump. But north Iowans were dumb enough to vote T rump in, so I suppose they would be stupid enough to elect as their Senator a Harley hick. If this happens, we will move to a more civilized part of the state, perhaps to Iowa city.
Please move and don’t wait for her to be defeated.
And she will lose. I will ask my prayer group to help in this. What do you bet, she voted for Hillary. I can see this just by how she wears her hair.
Wow, just wow.
Are you really that ignorant?
Her hair? You say her hairstyle is how you know she supported Secretary Clinton? Well, now, you’re just like a 21st century, north Iowa, female Sherlock Holmes, aren’t you, dearie? I’m sure there’s a place for you on the Minert campaign. You will fit right in.
Hey, Einstein, seniority only matters when you’re in the Majority. And Amanda isn’t. Any more bright ideas?
Been to Rookies a bit too much, eh there little buckaroo.
A few too many dead brain cells, you may want to cut back on the booze.
If Minert runs, his slogan can be: Deplorables are US. Based on these comments here, not a single Minert fan made it past the 8th grade. Yikes!
Yeah, us “deplorables”, AKA the ones who elected our President. Buzz off, loser.
Isn’t Mineart the one LVS and the others have called out for his ties to bookemyer and the other city council members? Taking money from the city to “upgrade his business.
@ anon – yes he did. So? Minert’s have spend lots of millions of dollars over lot’s of years they help people around here. My ex use to work for Ron that is Stevie’s dad, they are nice people. Stevie, he does alot of good things for lot’s of people, not only his customer’s to, other ones, I am talking about. Until Trump, I never voted for no Republican, not a one. But I would vote for Minert against Ragan, she should of never got in. I think he would beat her to.
Damn, you are ignorant just like all Democrats. Nothing but losers.
No he didn’t. Don’t make up lies asshole.
@ JD, so now were gun crazy rednecks that ride Harley’s have kids with our cousins. Well aren’t you nice, you POS. Your a bad person, no wonder your for Ragan. GO, MINERT!!!!!
I don’t know who you have had kids with Lori, but I would wager that your parents were brother & sister.
All you have to do is read the so called & ill written comments by MC Frank, 9th & N. Adams and Terri to see three classic examples of the dumbing down of America.
So, who the H are you William your making fun. Not nice. Ok may we dont write so good, some people work, dont have time like you do to write so good. Your schooling dont make you no better then us, did you know. We will get the loudest laugh tho see. We will throw your friend Ragan out come next year. Go, Stevie!!!!! you sure got our votes!!!!!!! Our friends to.
@ William, I have supported Amanda in every election, all five times, so we are on the same side. But don’t ridicule people over how they express themselves. Amanda will have a hard enough time next year without her supporters alienating any voters. She represents a Republican district that Minert could win. His financial advantage alone will be a problem for her, and incumbents are not popular now. Our new party chair, Derek Eadon, will unite us progressives for the common good. Yes, the stupid people you named are probably gun-crazy rednecks who ride Harleys and have kids with their cousins. But their votes count, too.
Progressive’s are a thing of the past and must be defeated again just like we did with Hillary.
Time for this old hag to go, been in to long, just spends our money it keeps her in. She loves Obama Hillary and all them commies that would of make us broke if they had their way. Get her out. She is also a liar, to my face she is.
@ Frank, your right she does lie, lied to me on the smoke banned. She should of not ever got in. Heard last week up to the Kozy, Ron Minerts boy the one runs the Harley, he wants to go up against her. He does, he get’s my vote the wife’s to. We think Minert would win.
@ adams, we heard the same thing some guys was saying this up to the Candy bar. My bf use to work for Stevie, we will vote for him. Miss Ragan been there long enough, yes.
Minert is like 20 years younger then Amanda, run’s a good shop. Amanda just takes our money to run that kitchen, then more of it down @ state house. Time for somebody don’t need the money to be our guy down there. We are Democrats that would be for Mr Minert if he does run.
She lied to me too and I have never trusted her since.
Stevie will clean her clock.
Amanda could get lucky, Republitard’s might put up Barb Hovland. Bwahahaha ha ha ha ha ha!!!!!!! LOL
@ proud Queer, figure’s your for Ragan, she is for gay wedding’s.