WASHINGTON, July 20, 2012 - On Monday, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will travel to Iowa to meet with producers, industry and business leaders. The Secretary will discuss the ongoing drought, USDA's efforts to assist producers, and the innovation and resilience of rural Americans in tough times such as these. He will also discuss some of the strengths shared by producers and rural communities that better position us to face this drought now than in years past - new technologies, lower debt, and the continuing strength of export markets.

As of July 20, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has designated 1,055 counties across the country as disaster areas due to drought. According to the most recent U.S. Drought Monitor report, 88 percent of our nation's corn and 87 percent of our soybeans are in drought-stricken areas.

USDA recently announced a final rule to simplify the process for Secretarial disaster designations -allowing a quicker response to drought. USDA also reduced the interest rate for Farm Service Agency Emergency Loans, lowering the current rate from 3.75 percent to 2.25 percent, and lowered the payment reduction for Conservation Reserve Program lands that qualify for emergency haying and grazing in 2012, from 25 to 10 percent.

Monday, July 23, 2012

10 a.m. CDT

WHAT: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will give remarks on the Resilience of American Agriculture?Innovation, Diversity and Growing Markets

WHERE: Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance

501 First Street SE

Cedar Rapids, IA

11:30 a.m. CDT

WHAT: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will tour drought damage at Eric Cress' farm.

WHERE: 4681 Heines Rd

Center Point, IA

4:15 p.m. CDT

WHAT: Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack will give remarks on the Resilience of American Agriculture?Innovation, Diversity and Growing Markets

WHERE: Soy Energy

4172 19th Street Southwest

Mason City, IA

Protecting Whistleblowers

Friday, July 20, 2012

The value of whistleblowers to the public good, and the need to protect whistleblowers, is clear as ever.  Whistleblowers within federal government agencies have courageously and patriotically stepped forward to point out waste, fraud and abuse of tax dollars.  A famous whistleblower decades ago said whistleblowers are guilty of "committing truth."  We're all better off for the truth whistleblowers commit, and they deserve our respect and support.

Click here for audio.

Here is the text of the address:

The value of whistleblowers to the public good, and the need to protect whistleblowers, is clear as ever.

Without whistleblowers, the public probably never would have known about the operational tactics in the federal government's Fast and Furious program that might have led to the murder of United States Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry.  That's why Congressman Darrell Issa and I have asked the head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives to clarify his remarks to employees about reporting concerns within the agency.  His ominous comments are likely to chill whistleblowers from reporting legitimate problems and undermine very necessary efforts to make improvements in the agency.    The message sent by the acting director of the ATF is unacceptable.

Another federal agency - the Food and Drug Administration - is also demonstrating the kind of intense retaliation whistleblowers can face.  The FDA started an aggressive campaign more than two years ago to spy on protected, personal email messages of certain agency employees.  Then the FDA retaliated against these agency whistleblowers after they raised concerns to Congress about the safety of drugs and devices approved by the FDA.

What the FDA has done has serious implications for the right of federal employees to make valuable protected disclosures about waste, fraud, abuse, mismanagement, or public safety to Congress or anyone else.  This kind of communication is protected for good reason.  The scope and tone of the surveillance effort reveals an agency more concerned about protecting itself than protecting the public, which ironically is the agency's mission.  I will continue to dig in and pursue information and accountability from the FDA.

Finally, this week the Judiciary Committee, where I serve as Ranking Member, held a hearing on improving forensic science in the criminal justice system.  I renewed my request for information from the FBI about the scientific integrity of its crime lab, and from the Department of Justice about its review of past prosecutions.

The Department of Justice is conducting an expansive review of criminal cases where defendants may have been wrongly convicted because of flawed forensic work in the FBI crime lab following investigative reporting by The Washington Post that indicated that "sloppy" and "unreliable" work may have led to the incarceration of hundreds of innocent people.  This review needs to avoid mistakes made by a previous task force, so that the forensic science system in this country is as good as it can be.

Today's problems in the FBI crime lab follow improvements made 15 years ago, after a crime lab scientist named Dr. Frederic Whitehurst risked his career to come forward with allegations about wrongdoing in the FBI crime lab.  At that time, the scientific integrity of the lab and thousands of prosecutions that relied on evidence it processed were in question.  Dr. Whitehurst was retaliated against by the FBI, as well.  Ultimately, after a lengthy fight, Dr. Whitehurst's disclosures resulted in an independent investigation that recommended lab changes, including accreditation by an outside body.  Today, again, work needs to be done to safeguard the integrity of the FBI lab.

I stand up for whistleblowers through legislation to empower and protect them, and through congressional oversight of the federal agencies they legitimately, and importantly challenge.  A famous whistleblower decades ago said whistleblowers are guilty of committing "truth."  We're all better off for the truth they commit, and they deserve our respect and support.

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(DES MOINES) - Gov. Branstad today encouraged farmers to harvest grass in the state highway right of way as a way to help combat this summer's drought.

"Under the hot and dry conditions that the state is and has been experiencing, farmers are searching for alternative ways to feed their livestock. Harvesting grass along the side of state roads is an efficient and economical mean for farmers to maintain their livestock levels," said Branstad.

Farmers are allowed to legally mow and bale grass on highway right of ways only during certain periods of the year as established by the Iowa Department of Transportation.

Persons interested must have a permit, granted by the Iowa DOT, before mowing. The permit form can be found here. All work should be performed between 30 minutes after sunrise and 30 minutes before sunset.

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The Board of Trustees of the Muscatine Art Center is pleased to announce a public forum to meet the candidates for the position of Director of the Muscatine Art Center.  A reception will be held on Thursday, July 26, 2012 from 6 to 8PM in the Stanley Gallery of the Muscatine Art Center.

The candidates who will be present are Allison Sheridan, who currently serves as Collections Manager and Communication Coordinator at the University Museums at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, and Michael Schonhoff who is the Assistant Curator, Exhibition Management and Community Outreach at H & R Block Artspace at the Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, Missouri. Visitors will have the opportunity to meet the candidates for the Director's position and provide feedback to the Muscatine Art Center's Board of Trustees.

Parking is available on Mulberry Avenue and in the parking lot behind the Stanley Gallery.