By Doris Welle - Performance Reviewer

The incredible Marilyn Maye made her annual summer trip to Okoboji last week to entertain not one but two nights at the Pearson Lakes Art Center. The incredible part is the fact that she is 94 years old and still going strong!

A recent letter to the editor inspired this particular cartoon.

Mike Franken's own character is revealed in a recent fundraising letter to supporters. He makes character assassination on our own Sen. Grassley, Iowa's longest serving U.S. Senator. Franken needs a civics lesson.

By John Wills - Speaker Pro Tem

By Randy Feenstra - U.S. Representative

By Chuck Grassley - U.S. Senator

Q: What’s wrong with the so-called “Inflation Reduction Act?”

By Joni Ernst - U.S. Senator

American strength and prosperity require our leaders to boldly stand with our friends and deter those who wish to inflict damage to our people and our homeland.

By Brad Hicks - Publisher

Oil company profits are through the roof. Natural gas prices are rapidly rising.

CBS News reported last week that Exxon Mobil had $17.85 billion in profits in the second quarter of this year. Chevron made a record $11.62 billion. Shell also broke its profit record.

By Joni Ernst - U.S. Senator

Despite what the White House says, our economy is in a recession, and inflation is the highest it’s been in over 40 years.

Washington Democrats keep telling us not to worry and that the problem is only temporary, yet every month the mountain Americans have to climb to make ends meet keeps getting steeper and steeper.

The reason is simple – President Biden’s tax and spend agenda.

By Chuck Grassley - U.S. Senator

Q: What’s contributing to the postpandemic rise in violent crime in America?

By Father Tom Early - St. Alban's Episcopal Church

When my wife and I were involved with a young adult community in Cedar Falls called Simple Supper, our friend suggested a game called Rose, Bud, Thorn. It was an icebreaker of sorts. We each went around the table and named a good part of our day, a bad part of our day and something exciting yet to come — a rose, a thorn and a bud. This became one of our favorite parts of our time together.

By Seth Boyes - News Editor

I've been thinking a lot about the words of two U.S. Senators.

One is Iowa's own U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, who recently visited the country's southern border to see first-hand how the country monitors said border and — ideally — prevents people from illegally entering the United States.

Sen. Ernst described what she saw as horrific — and I can't deny that she's right.

Rev. Barb Dean, Living Word Outreach, Spencer

By Doris Welle - Performance Reviewer

The Association was a highly successful band from back in the ’60s and continues to perform today. The famous musicians were on stage at the Pearson Lakes Art Center last Wednesday evening.

By Joni Ernst - U.S. Senator

Late on the evening of July 14, we landed in McAllen, Texas. It was well past nightfall. Soon after touching down, we climbed into a row of vehicles and headed a few miles further south to the far edge of our nation’s border with Mexico and into the heart of what’s known as the Rio Grande Valley sector.