Branstad Bunch: Same names, same games

Guest commentary by Current Resident.

My mail box has been crowded lately with campaign materials for and against Terry Branstad, Republican primary candidate for Governor.

“Terry Branstad was a liberal’s liberal.”

“Liberal Terry Branstad would make Bill Clinton, Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi proud.”

“One of the best liberal governors this state has ever had.” David Yepsen

And then the Former Governor has sent out his own materials to let me know that he “will stand strong for TRADITIONAL IOWA VALUES.” Also, that he is the “REAL conservative change that Iowa needs now.”

The unflattering materials have a “Paid for by Iowans for Responsible Government” return address. Some checking finds information about this group via the Iowa Independent.

The liberal front group is going after Branstad and the Branstad bunch is not happy about it. Payback time for anti Culver ads.

The calls for disclosure echo those by Democrats in regards to the conservative nonprofit Iowa Progress Project. The group, which is registered as a 501(c)4 nonprofit, does not have to disclose its donors, something Democrats have taken exception to, calling the group “a secret political slush fund that lacks the honesty or integrity to reveal their campaign contributors.”

Iowa Progress Project has close ties to a number of current and former Branstad aides.

And after more reading I have decided my mail box is being stuffed due to a battle of Democrats against the moderate, establishment Republicans at work.

This site takes you to this site which takes you to the Iowa Democrats  Face book page.

Some of the information from Iowa Knows Better:

May 5, 2010
Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Michael Kiernan released the statement below following Terry Branstad’s comments regarding open records and transparency in state government to the Des Moines Register editorial board this morning.

“Branstad should be familiar with self-dealing cronies after his own Chief of Staff Doug Gross made millions lobbying the state government. Or maybe Branstad’s memory isn’t serving him well anymore; he ‘forgot’ about ever discussing the Clarinda prison project with Gross.

“Branstad’s administration was one of the most cozy, back-scratching operations in the history of state government. His appointees mirrored his donor list.

State Paid $160 Million Over Five Years To Clients of Law Firm Of Branstad’s Former Chief of Staff “The ethics investigation was accompanied by the release of a report by (State Auditor Richard) Johnson and (state Treasurer Michael) Fitzgerald, the state auditor and treasurer, on state government contracts with businesses represented by the Brown Winick firm as well as direct payments to the firm for legal services.  In all, the state paid more than $160 million over five years to clients of the law firm. Most of the money—$96 million—was paid to MFS Technologies for construction of the statewide fiber-optic network. The state spends a lot on private contractors. In 1993 alone, Iowa spent more than $200 million just on service contracts.”  (Des Moines Register, September 22, 2002)

The Iowa Knows Better group has done their homework on Terry Branstad.

It is a rather tangled web. Tangled up are names like Doug Gross and Mitt Romney and Terry Branstad. These three names and probably more names are all the more reason for Iowans to do their own research. Yes an important incentive for Iowa primary voters to really understand who comes along for the ride with Terry Branstad.

More of the same names and same faces from the last go around.

No thank you.