Hello everyone and welcome to my blog.

With the 110th Congress underway I would like to let you know what I’m doing in Washington to represent Iowa. Even though I’m not home in Iowa with all of you everyday, technology allows us to maintain communication.

The lobby reform bill was the first item of business for the new Congress and we worked in bipartisan fashion to pass the bill 96 – 2. Included in this is a provision to ban secret holds. These secret holds allow a single senator to hold up legislation or a nominee without being identified. I think it’s only right that senators notify each other as well as their constituents what they’re doing. To learn more about this issue, check out this link.

One of my top priorities since the new congress started has been to make sure people know the success of the new Medicare prescription drug law. There’s been a lot of rhetoric on this law and I wanted to set the record straight. This law has given seniors access to much needed medicines. And, we’ve heard story after story of seniors who have benefited from the new benefit.

Please take the time to look at the speeches I gave on the Senate floor so you can see them all  here. If you check out http://finance.senate.gov you can see additional charts on the issue.

In addition to my work with prescription drugs I am diligently working as the top Republican of the Senate Finance Committee to repeal the Alternative Minimum Tax. By introducing my bipartisan AMT repeal bill on the first day of the 110th Congress, I hope to build upon the bipartisan momentum and spirit of cooperation pledged by the new Democratic majority.

This week Senator Salazar and I introduced a Senate resolution that says “By 2025, America's farms, forests and ranches will provide 25 percent of the total energy consumed in the United States, while continuing to produce safe, abundant, and affordable food, feed and fiber.” The 25 x ‘25 initiative does not prescribe a way to achieve the goal. Instead, it recognizes the benefit of implementing supportive policies and incentives to stimulate the development and use of renewable energy.

This week I also questioned Attorney General Alberto Gonzales when he testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee. I asked him about the FBI, False Claims Act and ag concentration. You can see my opening statement here.