Pictured: Sen. Grassley during his visit to St. Anthony Regional Hospital in Carroll in August.
U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley has completed his 45th straight year of holding meetings in all 99 Iowa counties, finishing the 2025 circuit on Thursday. Grassley, who is currently the eldest sitting senator at 92 years old, concluded his tour in West Bend with employees at Country Maid. Grassley, a Republican, has held at least one meeting in every county each year since joining the U.S. Senate. Grassley says, “Representative government is a two-way street. I’m one half of the process, and the people of Iowa are the other. My 99 county meetings allow me to meet with a large cross-section of Iowans from different walks of life, including students, manufacturers, health care providers, and more. These meetings guide my policy priorities in Washington, and I appreciate the chance to meet with my constituents face-to-face and hear their concerns. Since I’m not able to meet with over three million Iowans individually, I always encourage people to share their views by writing a letter, sending an email, or calling or stopping by one of my offices.” Grassley adds that his ongoing efforts to strengthen rural health care, increase transparency in fertilizer pricing, and reduce prescription drug costs originated directly from concerns raised at these meetings. Other common issues discussed during these meetings were pharmacy benefit managers, the Farm Bill, taxes, immigration, biofuels, and energy. Stops in the region this year included Black Hills Energy in Crawford County, St. Anthony Regional Hospital in Carroll County, TNT Industries in Audubon County, Lundell Plastics in Sac County, Stewart Memorial in Calhoun County, Jefferson Matters in Greene County, and Adair-Casey-Guthrie Center High School in Guthrie County.
