Purple Matters

Thanks for checking in on "Purple Matters" our internet radio show on Tuesdays at 8pm central on www.desmoineslocallive.com.

Former U.S. Attorney Matt Whitaker talked about his old life and new life. Now that he has left his post, he talks about the behind-the-scenes decisions about that raid on a Swift meatpacking plant in Marshalltown. He said, despite media reports, officials gave very serious attention beforehand to make sure children wouldn't be separated from their families. He said they even planned out how to care for animals that might be caught up in the process before they made it through to slaughter.

Whitaker also talked about running for office. He said it became clear to him a while back, though, that Terry Branstad would run and would be a force. He also expressed concern about "the bench" for Republicans in Iowa, not that there aren't people on the bench, but rather that the people on the bench don't get a chance to get in the game.

AFSCME Council 61 President Danny Homan also joined us. He thinks it's ridiculous that critics say state workers make too much money. And he doesn't see how Governor Culver or state lawmakers can come back next year and ask state employees to give up more.

Here's the link for their part of the show:

http://bit.ly/8SW7mu

Christian Fong dropped out of the race for governor. He said it was all about the money. He won't rule out joining Terry Branstad's ticket or any other candidate, for that matter. Fong also wouldn't rule out running for office again. In fact, far from it. He also talks about what will be the best thing about leaving the race.

Here's the link to his appearance on the show:

http://bit.ly/5CPpr4


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