DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Republican Rep. Steve King says he asked Minnesota Democratic Rep. Keith Ellison — a Muslim — about Muslims working in Iowa pork processing plants. In an interview posted Friday by Breitbart News radio, King says he didn’t know whether Muslims would handle pork, so he “talked with Keith Ellison about that, who would be the lead Muslim in Congress.”

King says he learned an imam would need to grant someone a “special dispensation.”
He adds that it would be OK because “as long as they’re preparing this pork for infidels, they’ll send them to hell and it must make Allah happy.” King adds that, “I don’t want people doing my pork who won’t eat it.”

A spokesman for Ellison didn’t immediately respond to a request for a comment.

Cleanup of an oil spill caused by the derailment of nearly three dozen oil tankers in northwestern Iowa has begun. Lyon County Sheriff Steward Vander Stoep says between 30 and 40 semitrailers containing cleanup equipment had arrived at the scene near Doon, Iowa, this (Friday) afternoon.

Tank cars carrying crude oil are shown derailed about a mile south of Doon, Iowa, Friday, June 22, 2018. (Tim Hynds/Sioux City Journal via AP)

BNSF spokesman Andy Williams says 33 oil tanker cars hauling crude oil from Alberta, Canada, derailed around 4:30 a.m. Friday just south of Doon. Williams says some of the tankers were compromised, causing the oil to leak into floodwaters and eventually into the rain-swollen Little Rock River, but officials don’t yet have an exact number of tankers that leaked oil.

Williams says clean-up crews are working to contain the oil as close to the derailment as possible using containment booms, skimmers and vacuum trucks. City public information officer Travis Olson says the wells were shut down as soon as Rock Valley officials were told of the derailment and oil spill north of them early Friday morning.

Olson says Rock Valley’s water towers also will be drained as a precaution. In the meantime, the city is getting its water from the nearby Rock Valley Rural Water system, which Olson says is not in danger of being contaminated by the spill. Olson says the city will use the rural water supply until testing by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources confirms the safety of the city’s drinking water. He did not know when that testing would be finalized.

Officials with the Southwest Iowa Transit Agency (SWITA) said Friday (today) that Taxi rates will decrease effective July 1st, 2018 through June 30th, 2019.  SWITA taxi service is available in Atlantic, Glenwood, Harlan, Red Oak, Missouri Valley, and Shenandoah. The new rates will be $2 per ride for seniors (60+), and $2.50 per ride for general public.

Additional companion rider rates will remain $1.00.  Previous rates were $3.00 for elderly and $4.25 for general public.  In order to receive the senior rate, individuals must complete paperwork for the Connections Area Agency on Aging, who generously help support the taxi program for seniors.  The Connection forms are available from the taxi driver, except in Atlantic where they are available at the SWITA office.

SWITA’s mission is to break down barriers caused by a lack of transportation options or access to transportation.  The SWITA taxi is a vital piece of that mission, especially for members of the community without access to a car.  Decreasing the cost of a taxi ride is one way that SWITA seeks to promote the use of the taxi and make it accessible to all, and to help southwest Iowa communities grow and thrive.

Mark Lander, SWITA Transit Director said “We have many individuals that utilize the taxi service on a daily basis and love it.  But many others don’t realize that it is available for anyone to ride, or the cost was a barrier.  Reducing the rate was the most obvious and immediate way we could see to make the service more visible and useful to our area residents, and we hope people take advantage of this great value.”

SWITA is the public transportation agency for the eight counties of southwest Iowa; Cass, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page, Pottawattamie, and Shelby operated by Southwest Iowa Planning Council.  For more information on SWITA please visit the website at www.swipco.org or call the office at 800-842-8065.  SWITA/SWIPCO is an equal opportunity employer, lender, and provider.

City of Audubon officials informed KJAN Friday afternoon that the Boil Water Advisory for the community has now been lifted. All necessary tests have now been completed and passed so the advisory is no longer needed.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports two men were arrested on separate charges this (Friday) morning 30-year old Kenneth Alan Cline, of Coin, was arrested for Driving Under Suspension, following a traffic stop at around 1:18-a.m. near Highway 71 and Upland Avenue. Cline was unable to post the $566.25 bond and is currently being held in the Page County Jail pending further court hearings.

And, at around 5:11-a.m., a traffic stop in the 2300 block of Highway 2 in Page County, resulted in 22-year old Brandon Alexander, of Clarinda, being arrested for OWI/1st offense.  Alexander was also charged with Driving under suspension, Possession of drug paraphernalia, Possession of controlled substance, and a prescription drug violation. He was transported to the Page County Jail where he is currently being held on $3866.25 bond pending further court proceedings.

Brandon Alexander

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — Several affiliates of Planned Parenthood are suing the Department of Health and Human Services over its efforts to impose an abstinence-only focus on its Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program that has served more than 1 million young people. The lawsuits were filed today (Friday) in federal courts in New York City and Spokane, Washington, by four different Planned Parenthood affiliates covering New York City and the states of Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Nebraska and Washington.

Planned Parenthood says the lawsuits are intended to protect the future of the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program from what they termed an ineffective abstinence-only curriculum. The Trump administration has announced that it would end funding for what Planned Parenthood called science-based portions of the program. The agency has said it has the right to change its funding priorities.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) — A Council Bluffs shelter has begun work on a $3.6 million expansion that will allow it to help more women and families. The Daily Nonpareil reports that the Micah House announced the public part of its Shelter Reimagined campaign Thursday. The nonprofit raised $2.1 million in the “quiet” phase of the campaign, leaving $1.5 million left to be raised to reach the final goal.

The organization serves as an emergency homeless shelter for single women and families. The nonprofit says it provides shelter, meals, case management services, health care access and budgeting classes.
The expansion is already under construction. Shelter officials say it will accommodate an additional 250 women and 24 families annually. The shelter served almost 60 women and more than 200 families last year.