(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Republican Party chairman Jeff Kaufmann says he and the G-O-P leaders of New Hampshire, South Carolina AND Nevada are wholeheartedly united behind maintaining the same sequences for presidential caucuses and primaries in 2024 that was used in 2020. “I am unwavering,” Kaufmann told Radio Iowa. “I am granite…Iowa is going to be first-in-the-nation and we are going to hold a Caucus.” The Democratically-led Nevada legislature passed a bill on Monday that seeks to change that state’s Caucus to a Primary and schedule it as the opening event in the presidential nominating process.

“Iowa has proven time and time again that this is a good place not to pick the president, but to start the process,” Kaufmann says. Earlier today, Kaufmann spoke with the Nevada Republican Party’s leader, who has publicly opposed a first-in-the-nation Nevada Primary, as the state could lose its delegates to the national conventions held by Republicans AND Democrats. “He sees everything that the Democrats in Nevada have done as pure politics,” Kaufmann says. “I mean this is a Harry Reid power play.”

Reid is the former Majority Leader in the U.S. Senate. Reid and other Nevada Democrats argue the state has a diverse population that mirrors the country’s demographics. The Iowa G-O-P’s chairman says the history of the caucuses shows candidates from diverse backgrounds can compete and win in Iowa like Barack Obama did in 2008 and Ted Cruz did in 2016. “I believe wholeheartedly and sincerely that Iowa Democrats, like Iowa Republicans, are practiced, they’re seasoned,” Kaufmann said, “and I think both parties can provide candidates that absolute best way to introduce themselves to the rest of the country.”

The Republican and Democratic National Committees approve the dates for state primaries and caucuses that help determine each party’s presidential nominee.

(Radio Iowa) – The president of the board that oversees the three state universities says they are looking forward to resuming regular operations this fall. Mike Richards has already lifted the emergency order that went into place on March 18th of 2020 at the height of the pandemic. “Campuses will return to offering in-person academic coursework to the same extent prior to the pandemic with no social distancing or masking requirements.

Faculty and staff will return to the campus beginning July 1st 2021,” Richards says. He says students at the University of Iowa, Iowa State University and the University of Northern Iowa will NOT be required to be vaccinated to return. “Though vaccination is not required to return to the campus — all members of the campus community are strongly, strongly encouraged to receive a vaccination,” according to Richards. Richards says they will continue the effort to help students deal with COVID-19.

“Each of our institutions will make vaccines readily available for those who want to receive their shots. The vaccines are safe and effective, so please, everyone get vaccinated,” Richards says. “In short, Iowa’s public universities will embark on a welcome return to traditional campus activities this fall,” Richard says. And he added that will include full football stadiums. The Board of Regents met in Iowa City, and Richards announced the late adjournment of the legislature would require them to delay the first reading of proposed tuition rates.

“We will call a special meeting in June to hold a first reading of rates. As is our practice, we will not vote on rates in the June meeting. But our expectation is that we will hold a vote to approve rates at a meeting in late July,” he says. The Iowa Legislature approved a budget that gave no increase in state funding for the universities. The Legislature originally proposed a tuition freeze, but backed off that.

“Our universities need an appropriate amount of resources to continue to provide high-quaity education. But we also want to keep our universities accessible and affordable as possible for Iowans,” Richards says. “There are many factors to consider — and we will be thoughtful as we move forward in this process.” The Regents approved a salary increase for Iowa State University president Wendy Wintersteen to move her salary 590-thousand dolalrs to 600-thousand dollars. That puts her salary to the same level as new University of Iowa president Barbara Wilson, who begins July 15th.

They also approved continuing a 100-thousand dollar yearly retention bonus each year through 2023 for Wintersteen if she stays at the school. They approved a 105-thousand dollar annual retention bonus through 2023 for Board of Regents Executive Director, Mark Brown, while holding his salary at the same level.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office (Thursday), reports the arrest in Carson, Wednesday evening, of 23-year-old Ethan Ray Rankin, for Driving While Revoked/Habitual Offender. Late Wednesday morning, 43-year-old David Harold Burgess, of Council Bluffs, an inmate at the Pott. County Jail, was served with a warrant for Violation of Probation. He was then returned to the custody of Corrections Staff.

At around 9:15-p.m. on May 31st, a Pott. County Deputy conducted a traffic stop in Council Bluffs on a vehicle with an expired registration plate. The driver, 45-year-old Jason Vaughn Young, was subsequently arrested for Driving While Barred/Habitual Offender. On May 29th, at around 6:50-p.m., a traffic stop on an SUV in the Crescent area, resulted in the arrest of a passenger in the vehicle. 38-year-old Amanda Sue Franks was taken into custody on a warrant for Violation of Probation.

And, on May 28th, at around 9:35-p.m., 43-year-old Sheila Leigh Dunn was arrested following a traffic stop on the I-29 northbound ramp from Old Morman Bridge. She was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant from another county in Iowa.

One person died during a motorcycle accident Wednesday afternoon in western Iowa’s Monona County. The Iowa State Patrol reports a 2014 Jeep Cherokee driven by 78-year-old Barbra Rice, of Moorhead, was traveling, a 2009 Harley Davidson motorcycle operated by 68-year-old Stephen Hendricks, of Columbus, Nebraska, and a 2012 Peterbilt semi driven by 25-year-old Derek Henschen, of Ute, were all traveling north on Highway 183 a little after 2-p.m., when the semi began to pass the SUV in the southbound lane.

The motorcycle also began to pass the Jeep in the southbound lane. The Patrol says Hendricks didn’t realize the semi was passing, and struck the passenger side of the truck, causing the motorcycle to go out of control. He died at the scene. The other two drivers were not injuried.