Featured Stories
– Lisa Bluder announces retirement as Iowa women’s basketball coach
– Iowa DNR asks Attorney General to seek penalties against co-op that caused massive fertilizer spill
– Iowa AG Bird attends Trump trial in NYC, expresses support for former president
Episode Transcript
Welcome to the Tuesday, May 14 edition of the Gazette Daily News Podcast. This podcast gives quick bites from the latest headlines coming out of The Gazette newsroom. I’m Bailey Cichon.
First, Lisa Bluder is retiring. After 24 years, the Iowa women’s basketball coach announced her retirement Monday afternoon. Longtime Assistant Head Coach Jan Jensen has been named head coach, effective immediately.
63-year-old Bluder is ending her coaching career with a record of 884 wins and 396 losses in 40 years. 528 of those wins and 254 of those losses were at Iowa. Plus, the Hawkeyes’ last two seasons ended in the championship game of the NCAA tournament.
Bluder said quote, “It has been the honor of my career to be a part of the Iowa Hawkeye family, and to lead a women’s basketball program filled with so many talented and remarkable young women, who have gone on to do great things in their careers and, more importantly, in their lives.” end quote.
Former players Kate Martin and Megan Gustafson shared the same reaction: shock. Despite that initial reaction, Martin said quote, “but I’m really happy for her. She’s had an amazing career.” end quote.
Read the full story by Jeff Linder at the link in this episode’s description or thegazette.com.
Next, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources wants the Iowa Attorney General’s Office to seek penalties against a co-op that caused a massive fertilizer spill. That spill killed about 750,000 fish on the East Nishnabotna River in March. The DNR is asking the Environmental Protection Commission to refer the case to the AG at its meeting next week. That way, higher penalties can be imposed.
Here’s some backstory on the spill. Around March 9, a hose valve at the NEW Cooperative in Red Oak was left open. This caused about 265,000 gallons of liquid nitrogen fertilizer to leak into a drainage ditch that went into the East Nishnabotna River. On March 11, an employee noticed the spill and alerted the Iowa DNR.
On March 28, the DNR reported that the spill killed nearly all of the fish in an almost 50-mile stretch of the river to the Missouri border.
At lower levels, nitrogen fertilizer can deplete water of oxygen and kill wildlife. But because the spill was such a large amount of the chemical, Iowa DNR fisheries biologist John Lorenzen told the Iowa Capital Dispatch that the chemical more than likely killed the fish from acute toxicity, killing cells at the gills. Lorenzen also saw dead frogs, snakes, mussels and earthworms. He said it’s a situation he’s never dealt with before.
The DNR can pursue civil penalties up to $10,000 whereas the Iowa Attorney General can pursue penalties of up to $5,000 per day, per violation, for National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit holders.
It’s rare for the DNR to request the AG’s office to seek penalties. Plus, the Environmental Protection Commission doesn’t always follow DNR staff recommendations.
Last month, 63 Iowans from 18 counties signed a letter to the DNR asking for a formal investigation into the fertilizer spill and for the case to be referred to the AG.
The commission will hear the DNR’s request about the NEW Co. referral at a May 22 meeting.
Find a timeline of the fertilizer spill investigation in the story linked in this episode’s description.
Next, Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird showed support for former President Donald Trump on Monday by attending his hush-money trial in New York.
A spokeswoman for the AG’s office said no Iowa taxpayer dollars were spent on Bird’s trip to New York. In a statement provided by her office, Bird said she was in New York quote “to stand with President Trump” end quote.
Trump faces 34 state counts in Manhattan Criminal Court for falsifying business records to hide a payment of $130,000 to a former pornographic film actress to ensure her silence over an alleged affair between her and Trump in 2006. The alleged affair took place shortly after Trump’s wife Melania gave birth to their son.
Separately, Trump also faces charges relating to allegations of removing classified documents from the White House and attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia. In total, Trump faces 91 state and federal felony counts according to tracking by the Associated Press.
The former president is also facing a number of civil actions. This includes a New York case where a judge has ruled Trump and his companies must pay $355 million for a scheme to deceive lenders by offering financial statements that overstated Trump’s wealth. That case is on appeal.
In a statement, Bird said quote, “It is clear that (President Joe Biden) and his far-left allies will stop at nothing to silence President Trump’s voice and keep him off the campaign trail by keeping him tied up in court. It is wrong, it is election interference, and our country deserves better.” end quote.
Bird endorsed Trump in the 2024 Iowa caucuses.
The Gazette wants you, our listeners, to know The Gazette’s Daily News Podcast will suspend production after Wednesday, May 15th. Thank you for listening. You can still get the latest local headlines from The Gazette by subscribing to our Daily News Briefing newsletter. The Gazette’s On Iowa Politics podcast and newsletter are also great ways to keep up with all local and state political news. Or head to thegazette.com to get all the latest headlines.
Now let’s take a look at the weather in Cedar Rapids. Today it will rain. Expect a high of 65 degrees and a low of 47 degrees. Wednesday will be partly cloudy. Expect a high of 75.
Thank you for listening to the Gazette Daily News Podcast. Stay updated with the latest Eastern Iowa news at thegazette.com. I’m Bailey Cichon.
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