Monday, July 16, 2012

Here is information about Senator Grassley's schedule this week.  The Senate is in session.

Senator Grassley will meet with Iowans from the Conservation Districts of Iowa, Cedar Valley Hospice, Christians United for Israel, the Iowa Corn Growers Association, the National Downs Syndrome Congress, and  the National Association of Elementary and Secondary Principals.

He also will meet with Iowa students from Waverly, Spirit Lake, and Carroll.

Senator Grassley will meet with Iowa families visiting Washington from Ankeny, Treynor, Pella, Nevada, Cedar Rapids, Oskaloosa, Knoxville, Pella, Randalia, Auburn, Waukon, Goose Lake, Altoona, Waterloo, and West Des Moines.

Senator Grassley will be a guest this week on public affairs programs hosted by Mike Savage on KBUR Radio in Burlington, Jim Fischer on WOC Radio in Davenport, and Fred Hoffman of KCPS Radio in Burlington.

On Tuesday, July 17, at 10 a.m. (ET), Senator Grassley will participate in an Agriculture Committee oversight hearing regarding the Dodd-Frank financial reform enacted two years ago.  Gary Gensler, the Chairman of the Commodities Future Trading Commission is scheduled to testify.  Senator Grassley will question the Chairman about the CFTC's oversight of Peregrine Financial in Cedar Falls, which has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, with $215 million in customer funds missing.  The CFTC is responsible for regulating commodity markets, and the Agriculture Committee has legislative and oversight responsibility for the CFTC.

On Wednesday, July 18, at 10 a.m. (ET), Senator Grassley will participate in a Judiciary Committee hearing on Improving Forensic Science in the Criminal Justice System.  Senator Grassley is Ranking Member of the Judiciary Committee.  In 1997, Senator Grassley took on the cause of Dr. Frederic Whitehurst, a whistleblower who exposed problems with the FBI crime lab, which had lost accreditation due to its shortcomings in forensic science and led to landmark reform recommendations from the Inspector General for the Department of Justice.  Today, Senator Grassley is questioning the FBI and the Justice Department to obtain more information about what has led to the present-day largest post-conviction review ever done by the FBI due to flawed forensic work in federal and local cases nationwide.

On Wednesday, July 18, at 10 a.m. (ET), Senator Grassley will participate in a mark-up by the Finance Committee of international trade legislation, including the Enforcing Orders and Reducing Customs Evasion (ENFORCE) Act; Citrus, Cotton and Wool Trust Funds; amendments to the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), technical corrections to the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR) ; Burma Sanctions; and Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) for Russia and Moldova.

On Wednesday, July 18, at 2:30 p.m. (ET), Senator Grassley will participate in a hearing of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control about Responding to the Prescription Drug Abuse Epidemic.  Senator Grassley is co-chair of the drug caucus.  According to a recent survey by Monitoring the Future, a University of Michigan study of U.S. students and young adults funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, prescription drugs are the second-most abused category of drugs after marijuana.

On Thursday, July 19, at 10 a.m. (ET), in Dirksen 226, Senator Grassley will participate in the Judiciary Committee's weekly executive business meeting.  The nomination of Frank Paul Geraci Jr. to be United States District Judge for the Western District of New York, Fernando M. Olguin to be United States District Judge for the Central District of California, Malachy Edward Mannion to be United States District Judge for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Matthew W. Brann to be United States District Judge for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, and Charles R. Breyer to be a Member of the United States Sentencing Commission may be considered.  In addition, S.285, a bill for the relief of Sopuruchi Chukwueke, and S.3276, the Federal Aviation Administration Sunsets Extension Act of 2012 may be considered by committee members.

Companies Team Up to Deliver World-Class SIP Solution

DAVENPORT, IA - June 28, 2012 - Clearfly Communications, the premier carrier and leading national provider of  SIP trunking, announced today the formation of a strategic partnership with Midland Communications, a leading unified communications provider. The companies have aligned in order to provide small and medium size businesses in under-serviced suburban markets with "large business" like voice, data, and mobile services at a cost that is affordable and in a package that is manageable.
SIP is an IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force), internet based protocol originally designed for call set-up and control.  According to the SIP RFC, the protocol defines how two or more end-points can negotiate to set up and control a communications connection that suits the capabilities of the devices and the needs of its users.  In simple terms, SIP supports any form of real-time communication regardless of whether the content is voice, video, instant messaging, or a collaboration application.  Additionally, SIP enables users to inform others of their status, their availability, and how they can be contacted before a communication is even initiated.
SIP trunking may deliver a myriad of benefits, yet the driving factor behind its widespread adoption is the substantial cost savings which it provides to entrepreneurs and enterprises alike. Several smaller organizations can leverage SIP trunks in order to gain access to new features and functionality, such as Caller ID, Local DIDs, etc., which were previously excessively expensive or reserved exclusively for large companies. SIP is leveling the playing field and has successfully brought enterprise-class solutions to small to mid-sized business (SMB) looking to compete with larger companies in their industry.
Many larger enterprise sized companies have taken note and are also taking a hard look at SIP trunks. With many large organizations looking for new ways to increase profitability and secure a strong foothold in their industry, SIP is coming under the microscope quite often. SIP improves efficiency and consolidates cost across all areas of an organization's network which makes it much easier for companies to focus on mission-critical areas of the business, rather than funneling money to business communications systems.  In fact, many enterprises are harnessing the power of SIP in order to edge out their competitors and secure their spot at the forefront of their industry.
"Midland Communications is an outstanding match," said Chris Hunter, North American Sales Director for Clearfly Communications.  "Midland Communications is an exemplary organization and we're proud to be working with them. They understand how important it is to provide their customers with quality service and we believe that's why they've been so successful over the past several years."
As a leading provider of Unified Communications solutions, Midland Communications offers an array of technology that helps their customers achieve their strategic business objectives. Now an authorized dealer for Clearfly Communications products, Midland Communications will drive SIP IP PBX sales in the region.

ABOUT MIDLAND COMMUNICATIONS
Midland Communications began more than 60 years ago in 1946 as the Worldwide Marketing Arm of Victor-Animagraph Projectors. In 1977 a communications division was formed due to a partnership with NEC America. Today, As a distributor of NEC America, for 33 years, Midland Communications has a customer base of more than 3,000 satisfied customers that include general businesses, government agencies, Universities, colleges, hospitals, and hotels.
Midland provides a wide range of communication services including VOIP, PBX and key systems, Wide Area and Local Area networking, computers, Computer integration, voice mail, CCIS, and video conferencing and paging systems. Our philosophy is simple, provide quality products at a fair price, backed by an average emergency response time of twenty minutes, and the best service in the industry. For more information on Midland Communications, call (563) 326-1237 or visit www.midlandcom.com.


ABOUT CLEARFLY COMMUNICATIONS
Utilizing the most advanced voice services technology, Clearfly provides SMB (small-medium business) customers with communications service packages that include local, long-distance, toll-free, fax-to-email and Internet access. We also provide our customers with easy to manage services, simple to understand bills, and low flat rate pricing for predictability. For more information please visit www.clearfly.net or call (406) 794-0223.

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WHEN: 6/30/12

TIME: 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

WHERE: David R. Collins Writers' Conference Book Fair, Rogalski Center Ground Floor, St Ambroase University, 518 W Locust St Davenport, IA 52803

WHAT: Dorris, a resident of Davenport, IA, will be available to sign copies of his book, Life is Too Short: Life Is What We Make It.

For more information, contact Jim Miller at 888-361-9473 or jim@tatepublishing.com

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MOLINE, ILLINOIS - WQPT, Quad Cities PBS is pleased to introduce their 2012 WQPT/PBS Ambassadors, an elite volunteer corps made up of college students.

The program is entering its eighth year and provides college students the opportunity to represent their local public television station at a variety of events throughout eastern Iowa and western Illinois and acquire leadership skills.  "Past Ambassadors have gone on to be named "Leaders Under 40" and have moved on to jobs as a direct result of their time in the Ambassador Program" said WQPT Special Projects Coordinator, Bea Brasel.

The 2012 class of WQPT/PBS Ambassadors are:

Front Row:                                         Back Row:                          
Alicia Domino - WIU                            Gaia Iaccarino - Scott Community College
Elizabeth Stemlar - UNI                       Adam Sandoval - Black Hawk College
Irene Cruz - NIU                                  Nic Hoepfner - Augustana
Karri Foks - WIU                                 Celia Brasel - Black Hawk College
Grace Brasel - Augustana                 Melissa Gravert - WIU
Jana Hergert - WIU

Not Pictured: 
Michele Moreno - Black Hawk College and Onder Badur - NIU

"Our Ambassadors are extremely important to WQPT. With a staff of only 11, the Ambassadors serve as an extension of the staff," said Ms. Brasel.

WQPT is the public media service of Western Illinois University - Quad Cities located in Moline, Illinois

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