DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – It’s the end of an era at Davenport’s Kraft Heinz plant. The outdated facility has just produced the last Lunchable box. Since 1989, the Davenport plant turned out hundreds of thousands of Lunchables every week. Over 700 jobs will be lost. The company also plans to move its Davenport bologna production next year. At one time, the plant made three million pounds of bologna every week. It was called the “bologna capital of the world.”
IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – More than 100 protesters shut down Interstate 80 in Iowa City last night. The Iowa City Press-Citizen reports they marched from downtown onto the interstate, blocking eastbound traffic for nearly 30 minutes to protest the election of Donald Trump. Iowa City Police and State Troopers stood by, holding back traffic and not interfering. Protesters dispersed around 5:30 p.m.
DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Law enforcement officials used ropes to drag three people from inside a 30-inch pipe as part of continued protests over construction of the Dakota Access oil pipeline. The Des Moines Register reports the three entered the pipe after 2 a.m. Thursday in Boone County. They crawled 50 feet to 100 feet inside the pipe, with food, sleeping bags and other supplies. When banging on the pipe didn’t drive them out, they were drug out with ropes.
DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The new Republican-controlled Iowa Senate has selected leaders for the next two years. Members of the chamber met privately Friday at the Iowa Capitol and selected Sen. Bill Dix as majority leader and Sen. Jack Whitver as president. The selections will be official in January when the legislative session begins. Republicans flipped six Senate seats in Tuesday’s election and now have a 29-19 majority.
BOONE, IA (IRN) – A same-sex couple with five children in Boone found their two vehicles keyed from headlight to taillight Thursday, according to KCCI-TV. The words “hashtag Trump,” and “die” were keyed onto the vehicles. The community has rallied around the couple, including one Trump supporter who has offered to help pay for the damage.