Opinion

Restoring security at our southern border and delivering justice for Sarah Root

Nine years ago, on Jan. 31, 2016, tragedy struck the Root family. 21-year-old Sarah Root, who was driving home to celebrate with her family and friends after graduating from Bellevue University in Nebraska, was hit and killed by an egregiously drunk driver. Instead of answering for his crimes, Edwin Mejia—an illegal immigrant driving three times over the legal limit—posted bail, fled our country, and was not seen from again. Until recently, the Root family had been left without closure. However, on Feb. 27, Honduran law enforcement officials found and arrested the driver—Edwin ...

The power in giving back to your community

Throughout our lives, from childhood to adulthood, community is an essential part of everyday existence. Sometimes we don’t see or fully understand its impact, and sometimes we may think it is irrelevant. But for both rural towns and larger cities, community is vital in ways we can’t imagine. No matter where we grew up, it is almost certain that, in some way, your community contributed positively to your formative years. This is why it is so important to return these favors, and to give back, even in small ways. There are many ways of contributing to your community. Giving back ...

Pipelines remain hot topic

People needed to join the ranks of blood donors

The idea of getting poked with a big needle and having some of your blood siphoned out is not at all a pleasant one. However, people who are brave enough to get jabbed and allow some of their blood to be drawn out are a type of hero commonly called a blood donor. They save a lot of lives. Donating blood takes about an hour, according to leaders of Lifeserve Blood Center, which has a facility in Fort Dodge. In that hour, a blood donor can save three local lives, they say. Blood and blood products are needed by trauma patients, premature infants, cancer patients, organ transplant ...

Working to fully and permanently repeal the federal death tax

The core principle of the American republic is that it functions at the will of, and with the consent of, the people of the United States. This is outlined in the preamble of our Constitution. It’s a deeply American principle that the rest of the world has admired since our nation’s birth. In the 119th Congress, the people are making their voices heard. My legislation — the Death Tax Repeal Act — to permanently eliminate the death tax on our family farms and small businesses has been cosponsored by 176 of my House colleagues and received vocal support from many Iowans just the ...

Get out and vote Tuesday

Early March is not a typical time for a local election. That does not mean that Tuesday’s vote is unimportant. On Tuesday, the voters will decide if a property tax of 75 cents per $1,000 of taxable value should be levied to pay for emergency medical services throughout Webster County. It is estimated that the proposed tax will generate $1.6 million annually to be divided between all the communities in the county for providing pre-hospital emergency medical care. Currently, there is no designated tax funding stream to help pay for training and equipping ambulance services and the ...