3.21.16

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Monday, March 21, 2016 | Volume 211 | Number 118 | 40 cents | iowastatedaily.com | An independent student newspaper serving Iowa State since 1890.

NOT SWEET ENOUGH Iowa State Daily

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, will face four Democrats in the Senate race.

Dems to focus on SCOTUS nominee in Senate race By Alex.Hanson @iowastatedaily.com Iowa’s U.S. Senate race — once an easy win for Chuck Grassley — may now be a referendum on the national fight over a Supreme Court nominee. And Grassley, chairman of the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee, has to deal with four Democrats who want his seat in Washington and are making Senate Republicans’ plan to not hold hearings on the SCOTUS nominee a central part of their campaign. Grassley is in a unique position: while other Senate campaigns with vulnerable Republicans across the country will likely have discussions about the Supreme Court, Grassley himself has the power to hold hearings for Merrick Garland, a federal judge chosen by President Barack Obama to replace Antonin Scalia. While Grassley cannot schedule a floor vote to ultimately confirm Garland, Grassley and Senate Republicans have worked together to come up with a strategy — instead of holding hearings, saying Americans should “have a voice” by electing a new president who nominates a replacement. “This is a huge issue,” said Steffen Schmidt, university professor of political science. “It will excite voters in both parties. I think this is what could unify the voters in each party because it is such an important and longterm issue.” Schmidt also said the fight could have implications in the 2016 race, including voters coalescing around whoever is nominated on the GOP side — even while party insiders look to deny front-runner Trump the nomination — just to stop Democrats from winning the White House. Grassley, on the other hand, said with votes already cast for the next election and the implications of a justice nominated by a Democrat, hearings and confirmation should wait. “A lifetime appointment that could dramatically impact individual freedoms and change the direction of the court for at least a generation is too important to get bogged down in politics,” Grassley said in a statement last week. “The American people shouldn’t be denied a voice. Do we want a court that interprets the law, or do we want a court that acts as an unelected super legislature? This year is a tremendous opportunity for our country to have a sincere and honest debate about the role of the Supreme Court in our constitutional system of government.” Back in Iowa, the inaction from Grassley caught the eye of former Lt. Gov. Patty Judge, who late last month expressed interest in run-

SUPREME COURT p8

Cyclones confident they can advance past Sweet 16 By Ryan.Young @iowastatedaily.com DENVER — Two years ago, former ISU coach Fred Hoiberg and the ISU men’s basketball team punched their ticket to the Sweet 16. But there was a piece missing: Georges Niang. Niang, a sophomore at the time, suffered a fracture in his right foot in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, sidelining him for the season. The Cyclones went on to fall in the Sweet 16 to UConn, which went on to win the NCAA Tournament that year. That trip to the Sweet 16 doesn’t count, though. At least not in Niang’s mind. “I was joking with Naz [before the game, and he said], ‘you didn’t earn the last Sweet 16 you were in,’” Niang said. “[After the game] I made sure to tell him I earned this one.” Niang led No. 4-seeded Iowa State to a 78-61 win against No. 12-seeded Little Rock on Saturday at the Pepsi Center in Denver, giving the Cyclones their second Sweet 16 berth in the past three years. “I said ‘stay the course’ a lot,” Prohm said. “A lot of people laughed [and] didn’t think that really would work. The character in the locker room is really, really good. I can’t be happier for our guys.” -This season was nothing short of a rollercoaster. The Cyclones were ranked in the top-10 nationally before the season started. Things started out smoothly. Prohm seemed to be a good fit after following in Hoiberg’s footsteps. All was well and expectations remained extremely high. Then things turned south. The

BASKETBALL p4

Lani Tons/Iowa State Daily

Georges Niang drives in for a layup against Arkansas-Little Rock on Saturday during a second-round NCAA Tournament game.

Blood drive returns to save lives By Mollie.Shultz @iowastatedaily.com Members of Iowa State Blood Drive committees believe the opportunity to save not only one life, but potentially three lives, should be incentive enough to donate blood. The Iowa State Blood Drive will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday in the Great Hall of the Memorial Union. It is open to ISU students, faculty and members of the Ames community. This semester’s theme for the blood drive is Blood Drive Bootcamp. Each day of the drive will honor a different branch of the military. Pierce Fieldsend, junior in political science and one of the three co-directors of the blood drive, said members of the military came to speak to members of the blood drive committees. Fieldsend said the military members told many stories about life-changing experi-

Noah Cary/Iowa State Daily

ISU graduate Lynnely Parker donates blood at the ISU Blood Drive on March 27, 2014. The Blood Drive will return Monday.

ences that they had witnessed and experienced. The military members further stressed the importance of blood donations

because they know firsthand the power of a single donation. “I think the reason it’s so impactful is there is no substitute

for it,” said Tarin Phillips, senior in kinesiology and another

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Iowa candidates prepare for federal, state legislature races By Alex.Hanson @iowastatedaily.com Now that the presidential election is long gone in Iowa, political eyes are on several federal and state races in Iowa ahead of the June 7 primary. This year, 249 candidates filed the necessary paperwork to get on the ballot in either federal races or state legislature races, according to documents made available Friday from the Iowa Secretary of State. Iowa’s U.S. Senate race — once thought as an easy shoe-in for longtime Sen. Chuck Grassley — now has the attention of national Democrats during the fight over a Supreme Court nominee. Iowa House races promise to be interesting as well, with tossup races in Iowa’s 1st and 3rd

Courtesy of Grassley’s Office

U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-iowa, is running for re-election in 2016.

districts, and conservative firebrand Steve King getting a primary challenge from a Sioux City state

senator. Here are the candidates who have filed to be on the ballot and what to watch for in each race: Iowa’s U.S. Senate race Incumbent: Chuck Grassley, RNew Hartford. A staple in Iowa Republican politics, Grassley has easily won re-election to the Senate six times, but national Democrats are now targeting the seat because of Grassley’s powerful position on the Senate Judiciary Committee, which is charged with holding hearings for the Supreme Court nomination of Merrick Garland — President Barack Obama’s pick to replace the late-Antonin Scalia. Challengers: Four Democrats are fighting to get on the November ballot against Grassley, most notably former Lt. Gov. Patty Judge, or “The Judge Grassley Can’t Ignore.”

Judge, who served alongside former Gov. Chet Culver and as Iowa’s first female agriculture secretary, looks to have the backing of national Democrats, as evident with a trip to Washington D.C. just days after announcing her intentions. Speaking to reporters on a conference call last week, Judge tried to tie Grassley to Republican frontrunner Donald Trump, saying Grassley does not need permission from the billionaire businessman leading the party’s nomination fight while also stirring controversy. “I’m well aware of Chuck Grassley’s opposition to hearings, but I strongly urge him to reconsider this position,” Judge added. “He is the only person in Washington with the power to make hearings happen. For 35 years he has waited

to become the chairman of the Judiciary Committee. Now that he has the job he also has the power that comes with it. That power includes scheduling a hearing for Judge Garland.” State Sen. Rob Hogg, D-Cedar Rapids, is also on the Democratic ballot. Along with making the Supreme Court fight a campaign issue, Hogg has been campaigning across the state declaring that Iowa deserves better than dysfunction in the nation’s capital. Also on the ballot: Former state Sen. Tom Fiegen, D-Clarence, a bankruptcy attorney and outspoken supporter of Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. Former state Rep. Bob Krause, D-Fairfield, who also ran in the 2010 Democratic primary,

CANDIDATES p8


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