We beat Valero and BlackRock!

The Navigator CO2 Pipeline — brought to you by the warm-and-fuzzy corporate duo of Valero and BlackRock — is officially dead. That’s right. We, the People, beat two Fortune 500 companies!

CO2 pipeline proposals by Summit and Wolf remain live rounds. But landowners along the Wolf route haven’t heard a peep from Wolf since March. And Summit just announced its pipeline would be delayed by two years. These developments are encouraging.

Here’s my analysis as to why we prevailed against Navigator and will eventually defeat Summit and Wolf: Continue Reading →

Marijuana: Legalize it!

During my 38 years as a politician and activist, I’ve frequently been out of step with mainstream opinion on controversial issues. One of those is cannabis. After meeting Carl Olsen in 1992 during my first legislative campaign, I agreed to help push legislation to legalize marijuana.

Carl’s my guest on the first segment of this week’s program — and a veritable encyclopedia of weed wisdom. Carl has spent his adult life pushing to decriminalize marijuana. He understands the ins and outs of federal and state drug policy better than anyone I know.

With Carl’s guidance, in 1993 I was one of ten House members — nine Democrats and one Republican — who introduced HF 404. That bill would have authorized the lawful possession of marijuana for therapeutic purposes. Not surprisingly, in the Republican-controlled Iowa House, it went nowhere. Continue Reading →

“Dear President Biden”

For me, the film brings back so many memories of Bold Iowa’s 2019/2020 “Climate Bird Dog” effort leading up to the Iowa Caucuses. Dang, we did  good work! Over 200 activists statewide, hammering home the urgency of the climate crisis day after day to candidates in every nook and cranny of the state.

How did the President respond to Bold’s bird dogs? CLICK HERE TO VIEW THOSE INTERACTIONS. What do you think? Is Mr. Biden following through on his commitment to treat climate like a crisis? Continue Reading →

Climate Crisis Parade challenges mainstream media

A coalition of 37 organizations just announced a major climate initiative, to be held a couple days prior to the Iowa Caucuses. Scheduled for Saturday, February 1 at 12:00 noon, the Climate Crisis Parade calls out the mainstream media for ignoring the urgency of the climate crisis.

Here are three things you can do:
1. Join the effort on Facebook and share it with others.
2. Sign-up to participate through Eventbrite and we’ll keep you posted with updates.
3. If you’re with a group that would like to join the coalition, email communications@climatemarch.org or call 858-35-MARCH (858-356-2724). Continue Reading →

Politics: Steyer sinks as Iowa women rise

Dear Friends, I caught the tail end of Tom Steyer’s bait-and-switch press conference yesterday. With great flair and grandiosity, Steyer announced he wasn’t running for President. Instead, he’ll invest his Continue Reading →