Capitol Notebook: Second Iowa National Guard helicopter to deploy to help with hurricane response

Members of the Iowa Army National Guard delivered food and water by helicopter Monday, bringing much-needed supplies to Western North Carolina, where residents have been stranded by washed-out roads in the wake of Hurricane Helene.

Seven members of the Iowa Army National Guard’s 248th Aviation Support Battalion out of Davenport delivered 12,500 pounds of food and water to Glenville, NC, Monday using their CH-47 Chinook helicopter, said Jackie Schmillen, Iowa National Guard public affairs director.

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With roads completely submerged, the community is cut off from essential supplies, Schmillen said.

“We are getting necessary supplies to communities completely surrounded by water,” she said.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds announced the deployment Monday in a social media post on X, formerly Twitter. Reynolds asked people to join her and her husband, Kevin, "in praying for all those impacted" by the hurricane. At least 133 deaths in six states have been attributed to the storm, according to the Associated Press.

Helene, which made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane in Florida, produced devastating winds, catastrophic storm surge and torrential rain that caused major flash flooding and record river flooding in the Carolinas and Tennessee — inflicting damage from Florida’s Gulf Coast to the Appalachian Mountains in Virginia.

Reynolds also authorized the deployment of a swift water rescue team comprised of swimmers and divers from the Sioux City and Cedar Rapids fire departments that draws additional membership from fire and rescue professionals from across Iowa. The team was authorized and approved to deploy pursuant to North Carolina's request for assistance, but was later declined after officials determined they had sufficient resources, according to Reynolds’ office.

The state also offered nurses, but was declined for the same reason.

The seven Guard members will be deployed until Oct. 8, unless extended. The costs will be reimbursed by the state of North Carolina, according to the governor's office.

North Carolina officials on Tuesday requested the Iowa National Guard deploy another helicopter, which Reynolds has authorized to be sent, her spokesman said.

Reynolds on Tuesday also issued a disaster proclamation to ease restrictions on the transportation of materials and repair crews to storm-damaged areas. The proclamation temporarily suspends certain restrictions on hours of service, weight limits and registration requirements for electrical repair crews and drivers as part of the disaster response.

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More than 500 people had been rescued from floodwaters in the Tar Heel State, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety.

In total, more than 5,900 National Guard members from multiple states had rescued hundreds of people and cleared roads across the Southeast in the wake of Hurricane Helene, according to the Air National Guard.

In North Carolina, more than 400 Guard members, supplemented by Guardsmen from Maryland, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, cleared roads, transported commodities and conducted search and rescue missions with eight helicopters. More helicopters and personnel were expected from the Ohio, Iowa, New York and South Carolina Guard.

Iowa joins appeal of Massachusetts' pork restrictions

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Republican Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird is leading 21 other states in supporting an appeal of a district court ruling that upheld Massachusetts’ restrictions on pork sales within the state.

The law, the result of a successful 2016 ballot initiative, prevents the sale and transport of pork in Massachusetts unless producers comply with strict hog-housing regulations. Bird argues Massachusetts’ law threatens Iowa’s pork industry and could force family farmers to face additional costs or be excluded from the Massachusetts market.

Iowa is the top pork producer in the United States, where hogs outnumbered humans more than 7 to 1. There were 25.2 million hogs and pigs on Iowa farms as of March 1, according to the latest U.S. Department of Agriculture data.

“The Massachusetts pork ban is absolute hogwash,” Bird said in a statement. “… With this ban, Iowa farmers are left with two drastic options: pay the extreme costs to comply with red tape that could drive them out of business or be banned from selling their pork. Either option is a loss for Iowa’s hardworking family farmers and pork producers, but I won’t let that happen.”

Bird, alongside 21 other state attorneys general, argues the ban violates the U.S. Constitution. The coalition asserts that regulating interstate commerce is the federal government’s responsibility, not states’.

A similar animal welfare law in California was upheld in 2022 by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Massachusetts Question 3, also known as the An Act to Prevent Cruelty to Farm Animals, was a ballot measure approved in 2016 that prohibits the sale of pork and other meat from animals that are confined in ways that prevent them from standing up, lying down, turning around, or extending their limbs. Exceptions include temporary holding cells for transportation, fairs, medical research, veterinary exams and other purposes.

Like California’s Prop 12, it bans any uncooked whole pork meat sold in the state that does not meet specific sow housing requirements, regardless of where it was produced. Bird contends Massachusetts’ law goes further by also barring the transportation of whole pork through the state that do not comply with Massachusetts’ requirements.

“This means that even if Iowa-produced pork meets all Iowa and federal safety and quality standards, but not Massachusetts’s new restrictions, they cannot do business in that state,” Bird said.

Bird demanding info from Democratic fundraiser ActBlue

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Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird is among 19 Republican attorneys general who have signed a letter denouncing the Democratic digital fundraising platform ActBlue over suspicions of potentially illegal donations.

The attorneys general are demanding proof by Oct. 23 of ActBlue’s donation verification systems and accuse the nonprofit of failing to properly vet donations. Bird said that could lead to unintentional donations or others donating in someone’s name against their wishes.

Since its founding in 2004, the digital fundraising platform has processed more than $13 billion raised for Democratic candidates and campaigns from more than 250 million individual donations.

The allegations raise concerns about "smurfing," in which donors break up large donations and submit them under different names to skirt state and federal campaign contribution limits, the letter states.

“It is essential that we know whether political donations — particularly in such large volumes — are being solicited, made, and processed consistent with campaign finance, consumer protection, and other state and federal laws,” the letter states.

It doesn't provide a source for reports of potential unlawful activity by ActBlue.

“With an election just around the corner, it is more important than ever that we be vigilant and set safeguards in place to secure our elections,” Bird said in a news release Tuesday. “I am deeply concerned by reports of suspected illegal straw donations through ActBlue’s platform that, if left unchecked, may allow donation schemes, including from foreign countries, that will tip the scales of our elections."

The attorneys general did not make similar demands of WinRed, the official digital fundraising platform for Republican candidates.

ActBlue says on its website it reports and lists a donor's name and information for every federal donation to the Federal Election Commission, and only U.S. citizens are allowed to donate through the platform.

Gazette-Lee Des Moines Bureau