Harkin Institute
- Thread starter Cysmik
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DistrictCyclone
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You mean the state that is now struggling to find a way to spend a surplus?
To the cave!
Weird, I don't recall mentioning the state once. I did talk extensively about the Board of Regents, which you did nothing to refute.
Branstad has his stooges running the Regents now so no way they would let the Harkin Institute do anything.
JMO, but I think ISU (more importantly Leath messed up here), you have an alumni who has had many years involved with policy making who wants to put a research venue on your campus and you put in place restrictions on what they can research. If I was Harkin I too would say f u and go find another school who would welcome a research venue.
I love those who blame branstad for injecting politics into this.... that happened the day the regents slipped through naming a center after a sitting senator. That was a bad idea from the beginning.
Leath was right in his decision, and i'm glad he stood up for ISU rather than caving.
Leath was right in his decision, and i'm glad he stood up for ISU rather than caving.
Haven't all of Branstad's Regents appointments been people that gave money to his campaign? Same with a guy he put on the Supreme Court after Vander Plaats went after them.
This was 20 years ago... and yes i think leath would have made a big issue about it if we had it today, as today it could be a great asset to the university.
I dont know nearly about the issues as they stood 20 years ago though, as far as the projected value of the station then, the sale value, etc.
A lot of it was because U of I didn't have a similar station, and add in the fact, had he gotten his wish, Iowa State would be U of I-Ames.
The center wouldn't have existed without the sitting senator and the ability to raise funds in his name. Can you articulate why, exactly, it would be such a bad idea to name this center after him while he's still in office?
Because it's someone of a different political ideology. So it's automatically bad, bad, bad! I mean it's not like Harkin is retiring in 2014 or anything.
I'm about 98% sure you're exactly right. If someone wanted to create a Branstad Center at the University of Iowa I'm sure the Republicans would be up in arms about that, right?
In fairness though, this center was approved before it was known Harkin was going to retire. Though I've always thought the creation of the center was a pretty big smoke signal that he would not seek another term - but nobody seemed to pick up on it.
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Nope. I wouldntve found it right to have a grassley or branstad institute either. But yes, feel free to continue. Or maybe its you that has the opposite bias- youre only ok with this because its named for someone you politically agree with.
I don't really care for politicians as esteemed and established as Harkin or Grassley. It's not like they're two-term House members or something. You still haven't offered up any reason why this is such a bad thing.
Cyclonepride
Thought Police
Surpluses are embarrassing. It means they were ineffective at blowing money.
