Another plume of smoke from Canadian wildfires is making the air quality poor in central Iowa. The Department of natural Resources says kids, the elderly and those with respiratory problems should be careful.… MORE
Category Archives: Homepage
Torch News 7-7: Clinton talks Greece, Iowa turkey farms getting new birds, Special session unlikely
Greece shouldn’t dissolve as a country because of its current financial status…at least according to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. The former Secretary of State spoke in Iowa City yesterday and talked about the need for European countries to work with Greece. It doesn’t look like state Democratic senators are getting their wish for a…… MORE
Torch Morning News you can use 7-7:
For the first time ever, the Republican Party of Iowa will be participating in the Iowa Black and Brown Presidential Forum festivities this year. The party’s Jeff Kaufmann says having forums that showcase candidates from both parties will further justify Iowa’s first-in-the-nation status. Republicans will host a forum at Drake University on December 3rd…while the Democrats…… MORE
Crops perking up
Warmer – and drier – weather last week helped out the state’s crop production. USDA says 82 percent of the corn crop and 78 percent of the soybean crop appear to be in good to excellent condition. Some of the crop had been lost due to previous heavy rains.… MORE
Dems push for special session
Iowa Democrats are calling for a special legislative session to override Governor Branstad’s last-minute vetoes of one-time education funding and funding for mental health institutes. Party members in both houses say they’ll join in the effort. Two-thirds of each chamber would have to sign a petition to convene a special session.… MORE
Republicans jump in to traditionally Democratic Iowa Black and Brown Presidential Forum
For the first time since its inception, the Iowa Black and Brown Presidential Forum (IBBF) is including the Republican Party of Iowa in its presidential forum activities this election season. Leaders from both parties, as well as honorary co-chairs Governor Branstad and Congressman Lobesack joined IBBF co-founders Wayne Ford and Mary Campos in announcing the…… MORE
Torch Afternoon News 7-6-15: Two presidential candidate forums announced, Gov. Branstad answers to education budget veto, Urbandale officials explain short fireworks display
The Iowa Black and Brown Forum, a minorities-focused presidential forum group, has announced two forum dates for the winter. For the first time in the history of the group, the Republican Party of Iowa will help organize a GOP event, which will be on December 3rd at Drake University. The traditional Democratic event will be…… MORE
Torch Morning News you can use 7-6:
Iowans are pretty split along party lines when it comes to some key issues, according to the latest Quinnipiac University poll. 70 percent of Republicans say the federal government should not pursue policies to reduce the income gap…but 91 percent of Democrats feel otherwise. 72 percent of Republicans want to send U-S ground troops to…… MORE
Major bust deters synthetic pot
Sentencing starts over the next couple of months for the last of six Des Moines store owners busted for selling deadly synthetic marijuana and laundering the money. The bust was a major operation for the police department, and there’s been a dramatic drop in reports of the drug since.… MORE
Major and minor cities battle nitrates
A state environmental report shows more than 60 cities and towns in Iowa have been battling high nitrate levels in their drinking water supply over the past five years. In fact, DNR says about 30 percent of the state’s municipal water systems are highly susceptible to becoming contaminated by nitrates and pollutants.… MORE
