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Des Moines Register

Tariffs Aren’t As Simple As Trump Believes

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The school year is finished, but whether we like it or not, Iowans have been sent to summer school this year. Randy Evans
STRAY THOUGHTS
Randy Evans is the executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council. He is a former editorial page editor and assistant managing editor of The Des Moines Register. Opinions are his own. Visit the Iowa Freedom of Information Council website at: http://ifoic.org/

The subject for our summer education: the economics of foreign trade and tariffs.

Foreign Trade

Whirlpool/Maytag Deal Has Foreign-Trade Lessons

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Whirlpool’s $1.7 billion acquisition of Maytag, a storied Iowa brand of home appliances, offers a fascinating window into international trade and tariffs. At the time of the 2006 deal, Whirlpool was the largest appliance maker in the United States. Maytag was its biggest competitor. Together, they built about half of all washing machines sold in the U.S.
Federal regulators worried about their new dominance, but the company said foreign competition, primarily from South Korea’s Samsung and LG, would keep Whirlpool’s market clout in check. That certainly occurred.

Uncategorized

Court docs: Riverlife investor owes $559K in Iowa civil case

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A judgment for $559,335 filed in Iowa against a development partner in the Wausau Riverlife Village project has been transferred to Wisconsin, according to court documents. The decision, recorded March 20 in Iowa and transferred June 7 to Walworth County, Wis., names Michael D. Frantz and Frantz Ventures, LLC, as defendants. Spring Haven, LLC, an organization in Iowa, is listed as the creditor attempting to collect the debt, which has not yet been satisfied. Under the state’s Uniform Enforcement Of Foreign Judgments Act, a judgment from another state is generally enforceable in Wisconsin. The filing is the latest in a series of financial struggles for the partner in Riverlife Village, even as city officials are actively seeking new partners for the highly anticipated development along the city’s east riverfront.

Iowa business

Podcast: What Iowa Needs To Do To Build Business

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Iowa faces a workforce shortage, uncertain markets due to tariffs, and an increasingly complicated global connection. That got us to thinking: Where are the points for optimism? We asked business leaders that question for this IowaWatch Connection podcast. For more on the IowaWatch Connection, and where you can hear it on 19 Iowa radio stations every weekend, GO TO THIS LINK.

Davenport Daily Times

1920’s Iowa Senator Gains Notoriety for Rejecting Political Dress Code

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“He represents the backbone of genuine men of Iowa; we are people who raise corn that makes hogs. I’m surprised the senator doesn’t go to Washington with overalls and cowhide boots,” Burton Sweet, a Republican congressman from Iowa, said about his colleague Republican Senator Smith Brookhart in 1923. Iowa History, a weekly column, appears at IowaWatch on Saturdays. Cheryl Mullenbach is the author of non-fiction books for young people. Her work has been recognized by International Literacy Association, American Library Association, National Council for Social Studies, and FDR Presidential Library and Museum.

Bernice Brown

Iowa Woman Tours Europe, Writes Eye-Witness Accounts of First World War

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“…the sea was so rough that we all agreed to go down with the ship rather than try to freelance it with a lifeboat.,” Bernice Brown jokingly wrote about her voyage from New York City to France on the liner, Rochambeau, in 1918. Luckily, she didn’t have to get into a lifeboat; and she didn’t go down in the ship. She arrived safely at her destination in Europe. Iowa History, a weekly column, appears at IowaWatch on Saturdays. Cheryl Mullenbach is the author of non-fiction books for young people.

crime

Tax-Cut Effects Go Beyond Our Pocketbooks

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When Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the large tax-cut bill into law last week, she talked about how the legislation will allow hard-working Iowans to keep more of their paychecks. What the governor did not mention was how there are other real-life consequences for the people of Iowa that go beyond paying less in state income taxes. Randy Evans
STRAY THOUGHTS
Randy Evans is the executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council. He is a former editorial page editor and assistant managing editor of The Des Moines Register. Opinions are his own.

Under The Gun: A Report On Gun Violence At Schools

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Journalism students at Buena Vista University who ordinarily report on the university’s KBVU radio took their questions about why gun violence continues in schools, and how to stop it, to several Iowans.