The Republican Party of Iowa’s move to set the Iowa caucuses for Tuesday, January 3, cleared the way for news organizations to decide when and where to hold the last few presidential debates in Iowa. Invited candidates will debate three times in nine days during mid-December. Details on dates, locations and sponsoring organizations are after the jump. Because more than two weeks of holiday season festivities will separate these debates from the Iowa caucuses, a strong performance or gaffe may not be make or break for the presidential hopefuls.

This is an open thread. What’s on your mind this weekend, Bleeding Heartland readers?

President Barack Obama announced yesterday that the last remaining U.S. troops in Iraq will leave that country by the end of 2011. All the Iowa Democrats in Congress welcomed the news and commended war veterans for their service. Senator Tom Harkin expressed regret only that the end to this “misguided” war “did not come sooner.” Representative Bruce Braley (IA-01) similarly described the war’s end as “long overdue.” Representative Dave Loebsack (IA-02) pledged to “closely monitor the safety of our troops” as they leave Iraq. Representative Leonard Boswell (IA-03) called for working “towards this end in Afghanistan as soon as possible.”

After the jump I’ve posted the president’s comments on the troop withdrawal as well as the full statements from Harkin, Braley, Loebsack and Boswell. I will update this post if I see comments from Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, Representative Tom Latham (IA-04) or Representative Steve King (IA-05).

The National Organization for Marriage has started spending money supporting Republican candidate Cindy Golding in the Iowa Senate district 18 special election. After the jump I’ve posted the first direct-mail piece from the group, which puts a questionable spin on Golding’s comments about marriage.

For now, NOM has pledged to support Golding “with a series of mailers and other activities” before November 8. Bob Vander Plaats’ FAMiLY Leader organization will also be involved with the independent expenditures. NOM spent heavily on the 2009 Iowa House district 90 special election, paying for television and radio commercials as well as direct mail. Those efforts didn’t stop Democrat Curt Hanson from winning by a narrow margin.

A full year has passed since Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller became leader of a 50-state working group to investigate mortgage fraud. In recent months, seven Democratic attorneys general have broken away from efforts to reach a broad settlement with major lenders, as the flaws in Miller’s approach to negotiations have become more clear. This week news broke that the AG working group are offering new concessions in order to reach a deal with financial institutions.

Miller should give up this charade.  

The State Central Committee of the Iowa Democratic Party voted unanimously last night to hold the 2012 caucuses on January 3, beginning at 6:30 pm. I’ve posted the IDP’s press release after the jump. The Republican Party of Iowa set their caucuses for January 3 earlier this week. Traditionally Democrats and Republicans have coordinated their caucus schedule to prevent voters from gaming the system by participating in both parties’ events.

Iowans can change their party registration on caucus night. Former State Representative and Congressional candidate Ed Fallon has encouraged Democrats to become Republicans for a day. I recently ran into one active Democratic volunteer in my precinct who plans to caucus for Representative Ron Paul in January.

I would advise Democrats to stick with their own party’s caucus. It’s a good way to meet like-minded people in your neighborhood as well as an opportunity to influence the party machinery. Precinct caucus attendees elect county convention delegates and approve platform resolutions.  

Libyan forces captured and killed Colonel Moammar Gadhafi today in the former dictator’s hometown of Sirte. Representative Bruce Braley (D, IA-01) welcomed news of the “victory for freedom-loving people” but added that “With Gadhafi out of the picture, it’s time for US involvement in Libya to end.” Braley has been an outspoken critic of the Obama administration’s open-ended intervention in Libya. He has voted against authorizing military action there and repeatedly demanded a cost accounting of our mission.

Representative Dave Loebsack (D, IA-02) reacted to today’s news with a statement calling on “international organizations to step forward and help the Libyan people” so that the U.S. can “focus on creating jobs here at home.” Loebsack sits on the House Armed Services Committee but has generally avoided commenting on the U.S. mission in Libya. In June, he voted against authorizing the intervention but also against defunding it.

The full statements from Braley and Loebsack are after the jump. I will update this post if other members of Iowa’s Congressional delegation comment on today’s events. UPDATE: Added reaction from Leonard Boswell (D, IA-03) and Steve King (R, IA-05). King and Boswell supported authorizing the Libya intervention. King was one of only five House members to vote against barring federal funding for U.S. ground troops in Libya.

SECOND UPDATE: Comments from Tom Latham (R, IA-04) and Senator Chuck Grassley are below.

Only 20 days remain before the special election in Iowa Senate district 18. Both parties are spending heavily on the race, judging from campaign finance reports released yesterday.  

Senator Chuck Grassley got the word out yesterday: he won’t endorse any Republican presidential candidate before the Iowa caucuses.

Transportation for America released a new report today examining structurally deficient bridges in U.S. metro areas. Among communities with a population between 500,000 and 1 million, the Des Moines metro ranked fourth-worst with 24.3 percent of area bridges in the structurally deficient category.

UPDATE: Representative Leonard Boswell’s comments on this report are at the end of this post.

Democratic State Senator Tom Hancock announced on Monday that he will not seek re-election to the Iowa Senate in 2012. His decision means that fellow Democratic incumbent Tod Bowman can hold over in the new Senate district 29 until 2014, but it also means that Democrats must field a candidate in the new Senate district 49 next year.

District maps and background on Hancock and Bowman are after the jump.

Seven Republican presidential candidates are debating in Las Vegas, Nevada tonight. CNN invited eight candidates, but former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman declined to participate “because of a dispute between New Hampshire and Nevada election officials over the date of Nevada’s primary.” His absence will leave a bit more speaking time for former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, Texas Governor Rick Perry, Representatives Michele Bachmann and Ron Paul, former Godfather’s Pizza CEO Herman Cain, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum.

If you watched the debate, please share your thoughts about winners and losers. Anyone else should feel free to comment on the GOP primary race in this thread.  

Catching up on news from last week, the U.S. House approved a bill seeking to limit the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to regulate how coal ash is used. Iowa Democrat Leonard Boswell (IA-03) joined Republicans Tom Latham (IA-04) and Steve King (IA-05) in voting for the bill, although his votes on some key amendments suggested that he was not fully behind the legislation’s goals.

The Republican Party of Iowa’s State Central Committee voted unanimously last night to schedule the next Iowa caucuses for 7 pm on Tuesday, January 3, 2012.

Federal Election Commission reports for the third quarter of this year were due on October 15, and President Barack Obama continues to build on his money advantage over the Republican field. On the GOP side, Texas Governor Rick Perry outraised former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney for the quarter and has slightly more cash on hand, while all other candidates lag far behind.

Highlights from the presidential candidates’ FEC filings are after the jump.

October 15 was the deadline for Congressional candidates to file reports on their third-quarter fundraising with the Federal Election Commission. Follow me after the jump for highlights from the filings for incumbents and challengers in Iowa’s four new Congressional districts.

I’m covering the districts in reverse order today, because based on second-quarter filings, political junkies are most closely watching the money race in IA-04 and IA-03.

The Iowa Court of Appeals held a ceremony yesterday to mark Chief Judge Rosemary Sackett’s retirement after 28 years of service. Meanwhile, Senator Tom Harkin cleared the way this week for the first woman to be named U.S. District Court judge for Iowa’s southern district.

A general assembly of the Occupy Iowa movement decided Friday evening to move their 24-hour protest to a Des Moines city park rather than risk another round of arrests on state Capitol grounds.

The U.S. House has approved a bill to limit private health insurance coverage of abortion services. All Iowa Democrats opposed the new restrictions, while Republicans supported them.

State Senator Bill Dix lacked the votes to follow through on his recent attempt to replace Paul McKinley as Iowa Senate Minority Leader, but he doesn’t appear ready to abandon the effort. On Wednesday State Senator Rick Bertrand publicly called for McKinley to step aside.

Iowa House and Senate members have plenty of work to do during the next legislative session, scheduled to begin in January 2012. Governor Terry Branstad wants to pass a big education reform package as well as commercial property tax cuts he wasn’t able to get through the legislature this year. Lawmakers also face a deadline for adopting a new system for funding and delivering mental health services. Disagreements over the state budget pushed the 2011 legislative session two months beyond its original adjournment date, and I doubt Democrats and Republicans will find it easier to agree on spending priorities in 2012. Election years aren’t typically the most productive times at the state capitol.  

As if there weren’t enough contentious issues on the table, the governor’s transportation advisory commission will urge legislators to approve an 8-cent to 10-cent gas tax increase.