(Radio Iowa) — Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is on a “tailgate tour” of Iowa’s three state universities, speaking to supporters who backed his 2016 bid for president as well as students who’ve just become old enough to vote in 2020. Sanders spoke on the University of Iowa and Iowa State University campuses Sunday. He’ll be on U-N-I’s campus in Cedar Falls over the noon-hour today (Monday). During a speech in Ames, Sanders drew big cheers with his proposals to cancel college debt and make public colleges and universities tuition free. “Your job is to work with me to make it happen sooner rather than later,” Sanders said.

Edson Lopez, an Iowa State student from Arkansas who is paying out-of-state tuition, is a Sanders supporter. “If Bernie gets elected, I’m hoping he can make college cheaper, then I don’t have to pay like $30,000 to come here,” Lopez said. Sanders used a barnyard epithet as he told the students they must get involved in politics if they want problems solved. “We have a president who believes that climate change is a hoax,” Sanders said. “Well, in my view, Donald Trump is a hoax.”

Most of the crowd’s largest cheers were for this and other Sanders’ swipes at Trump. Richard Phelps of Mingo supported Sanders in 2016 and will again in 2020. “I like what he says,” Phelps said. “…and I don’t think he’s too old.” Phelps volunteered that opinion about Sanders’ age. Sanders turned 78 on Sunday.

(Radio Iowa) — Former South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford announced Sunday that he is challenging President Trump’s bid for reelection. Sanford says it’s time for a debate about what it means to be a Republican. “As a Republican Party, we’ve lost some of our ways,” Sanford said. Sanford says Trump has embraced protectionism when it comes to trade and is leading the party to disregard scientific evidence that the climate is changing. “As to my primary beef, I think it is, in fact, the degree to which he has called himself ‘The King of Debt’ and has led the party in the wrong direction on debt and spending,” Sanford said.

Sanford has been a long-time supporter of tougher immigration measures, including construction of a wall along the southern border and penalties against businesses who hire people who entered the country illegally. Sanford says Trump “is good at recognizing problems,” but tends to make situations worse. “And I think there are real questions of tone and humility and adherence to truth that I think cause people to doubt what he says next,” Sanford says, “which then undermines our standing in the world and domestically.”

Sanford made his comments during this weekend’s “Iowa Press” program on Iowa Public Television. Former Illinois Congressman Joe Walsh and former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld have also said they intend to challenge Trump in G-O-P primaries and caucuses.

(Radio Iowa) — G-O-P leaders in South Carolina, Nevada and Kansas are cancelling presidential nominating contests in their states — but the Republican Party of Iowa WILL be holding Caucuses on February 3rd. Iowa G-O-P chairman Jeff Kaufmann says party leaders here have never considered cancelling. “We want to show once again that Iowa is capable of doing this,” Kaufmann says. “We can do it in a transparent way. We can get the results back. Those results can be audited.”

Kaufmann says it’s about protecting the Caucuses as the first voting event in the presidential selection process. “I want to keep Iowa front and center and anytime anybody in the RNC or, as far as that goes, in the country thinks of Iowa, I want them to think of a Caucus,” Kaufmann says, “and we’re going to make ’em think about it again in 2020.” Kaufmann suggests cancelling might give ammunition to critics of the Iowa Caucuses. “We’re going to run this caucus as if our state livelihood depended on it,” Kaufmann says.

Kaufmann does not expect next year’s caucuses to be competitive — meaning there’s little chance Republicans challenging President Trump will gain traction here. Three Republicans have said they plan to run against Trump. Two of them — former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld and former South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford — made trips to Iowa in August.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office has issued a report on recent arrests. A traffic stop at around 8-p.m. Sunday in Avoca, resulted in the arrest of 25-year old Jacob Dwayne Jens, for Driving While Barred/Habitual Offender. At around 2:15-a.m. Sunday, 54-year old Marion James Constant was arrested for OWI/1st offense, following a traffic stop at I-29 and the Old Mormon Bridge, near Crescent.

Late Saturday night, 25-year old Mark Francis Wilsey was arrested for OWI/2nd offense, following a traffic stop in Council Bluffs. At around 2-a.m. Saturday, 31-year old Jordan M. Ely was arrested for OWI/1st offense, following a traffic stop at the Old Mormon Bridge and Pokamoke. Friday night, 55-year old Robert Herman Boeck was arrested in Avoca for Domestic Abuse Assault/1st offense – causing bodily injury. He was arrested following a call about an incident of alleged Harassment.

Friday evening, 25-year old Kyler Jay O’Brien was arrested for Driving While Barred/Habitual Offender, following a traffic stop in Minden. And, early Friday afternoon, a traffic stop in Council Bluffs resulted in the arrest of 62-year old Pamela Lynn Varnell, for OWI/1st offense. None of the offenders mentioned were listed as being in the Pott. County Jail, this (Monday) morning.