greener. welcome to iowa in focus.we're here each week giving context to what you see happening on the campaign trail and in the news.that process starts with the barnstorm. barnstorm. last week was a bususone for congress.after a month of uncertainty about who would take over for the departing speaker john boehner -- wisconsin representative paul ryan stepped up. up.before ryan officially declared his intention to run for the spot -- iowa's first district house representative rod blum said that he was backing daniel webster from florida.webster was a favorite of blum's freedom caucus.but after paul ryan meeting ith the caucus -- blum was backing the eventual winner. "if you're in government, you have to be pragmatic. i think you have to be a realist and i think you also have to realize you're not going to get everything you want. so it's idealism vs. realism in this situation." situation."blum says that the freedom caucus was getting too much blame -- and credit t r the role that it was playing in the process.

before the vote on the new speaker -- party leaders on both sides rammed through a budget deal to raise the debt ceiling for two years. years.this was something that blum and many ototr republicans wwe not going to bend quite so easily on.all the republicans who represent iowa in congress voted against the deal.democrat dave loebsack voted for it -- but said that the way it was created -- mostly behind closed doors -- was wrong.blum agreed. "that's not giving us a voice in the process. this is exactly why the freedom caucus and many other, are, were upset with the way the house is run. this isn't about blocking every piece oflegislation that there is. not at all. quite contrary. we just want to have a v vce. i just want to make sure eastern iowa has a voice." voice."president obama signed the bill into law on monday -- right before the debt limit deadline on tuesday this past week. republican presidenenal hopeful rick santorum held a tough townhall in davenport. davenport.he was talking to

the scott county republicans and was allenged on everything from his opposition to gay marriage to the viability of h h tax plan.he waded through the voters questions for about an hour -- and he says that's the kind of exposure a future president should have. "the last thing we need to have in a republican primarar process is to protect a candidate who's not capable of taking on hillary clinton and the machine that they're going to havto take on. they have to be tested. i know the republican party y kes to prprect thier candidate. candidate.santorum says all that has gotten the party so far is a large field with candidates who aren't willing to field some of the tough questions he got in scott county. after the last debate -- hosted by c-n-b-c -- the republican campaigns are grabbing a bigger role in the set up process before they all gather again in milwaukee. milwaukee.the campaigns decided d sunday night that they would work together to set up the format of the debates while leaving logistics to the republican national committee

the campaigns -- not exerting power over them.the c cpaigns want opening and closing statements -- and an equal number of questions for all candidates. "the questions that were being asked were more gotcha questions and i don't think that's what the american people wanted and that's not what they tuned in for." for."but -- some campaigns aren't necessarily behind the effort -- saying that some of the other demands are petty. also -- donald trump's camp says it will continue to negotiate with the networksks privately even if the campaigns come together on collective requests.their next debate is tuesday -- november 10th. just a few days after that -- the democrats take to the stage again in des moines on saturday. saturday.but first -- hillary clinton was in coralivlle -- talkikng to voters about gun corol.she referenced the coral ridge mall shooting over the summerer- that happened just down the road d om the park she was talking in.she says it starts partially making the gun industry accountable for how their products are used.

that we face. i understand that. but it starts with all of us making up our minds we are going to be determined and committed and we're going g make this a vototg issue just like the other side does." does."gun control is also a focus of the martin o'malley campaign.he's rolled out a seven-point plan to reduce gun violence based ononis work while mayor of baltimore and governor of maryland. helping us understand what it means for candidates to come together and control a debate -- and [hy there are still so many republicans in the race -- we bring in our political science experts in class notes. notes. we're joined by ui poli sci professor tim hagleif we could talk about the straw poll. it didn't happen in august, , e

now? i was in favor of the straw poll to start with. it helps to winnow the field. we've seen that in years past. there are reasons ople don't like it but it does help to focus the campaigns on the organizational side of things and we regret not havingngt because it could havav elelinated a few of those candidates early on and see the better early on and eliminated a and we regret focus the seen that in effects now? now? come point plan to and we're making up our that. but it battle that we used.she says it the summer -- gun control.voters about gun control.she referenced the coral ridge mall shooting over the summer -- that happened just down the road from the park she was talking in.she says it starts partially making the gun industry accountable for how their products are used. "i know it's a tough face. i understand starts with all of us minds we are going to be and mmitted and we're this a voting does." does."also a focus o'malley out a seven-reduce gun while mayor and governor what it means candidates t t together and debate -- and still so many republicans in the race -- we bring in our political science experts in class notes. notes. oanationas othgs- are less than three months out

and it's getting to be difficult to makchoices. choices.what effecdoes this have on caucus naght? night?there will be more choices to make what you might find is the caucuses might last a little longererecause more representativ es from the candidates will speak. folks like gilmore and pataki won't have manan representatives in many precients if any. you've got to tally the votes and with a higher number to count from, it can make it difficult. difficult. what does it mean that the campaigns are working together to take on the networks who put on the debates debatesit's hard to say what's

going on. the candidates did not like the cnbc debate because the questions were disrepectful. the cnbc folks in the early debate did fine but it's good for the candidtes to flex their muscles a little bit so that they aren't at the mercy of the netwtwk or the rnrnthat organizes so it's sort of that ti-etababshment part but at some point, it starts to devolve into one candidate wantone thing and anoher wants another thing but they are competing with each other r so there's no surprise there." every week -- we'll be going inside iowa politics -- talking about the people not trying to move into the white

house. is week -- people across the nation went to the polls for an off-year election. election.no federal offices were decided this year but one major issue was in ohio.that state was considering legalizing marijuana for both medicinal and recreational use. they'd be following in the footsteps of states like colorado and washington -- who have gradually built a large and legal network -- selling the drug like any other product.but ohio said no and for some -- that's a big problem. "there are people that have a chronic illness. they need the compassionate care that medical marijuana provides." provides."possession and use of marijuana is still a federal crime -- but federal authorites allow it to be bought -- sold and used in have legalized it. with turbines harvesting the wind and more solar panels being put up on farms across iowa to harness the power of the sun -- iowa is alrey setting an example for the rest of the nation for how to make een energy work.steffi lee takes a look at the latest

move in the hawkeye state to continue that trend -- this time -- with how ethanol is created. created. call it an ongoing project... project....."something that's extends well beyond this plant, well beyond the technology that's here."for the world - starting in the hawkeye state. state. "ethanol production today is much more efficient and less energy consumption and less water consumption and more bioproducts."this 225 million dollar dupont cellulosic ethanol plant is hailed as the largest in the world.the operation ll use harvest leftovers - cornstalks, aves and cobs - in a six step processto create fuel that's used in cars. cars."of the domestic, domestically produced fuel that goes in gas burning cars, 24 pepeent of it - i did the math - came from out of the fields here in the cornbelts."

ethanol supporters say this plant is the key to making@ iowa the silicon valley of agriculture. agriculture."iowa's biofuel and wind energy industries are creating good jobs, revitalizing our rural economy, boosting farm income." income.""that's the kind of innovation and creativity and drive that created agriculture that in iowa, we create more corn than all but three countries in the world. the ethahal plant goes into full production next year and aims to produce 30 million gallons annually. we're not done with clean energy...coming up next -- steffi lee talks one on one with former leutenant governor patty judge about how iowa can lead the nation in developing

just before the break, we showed you the new plant in nevada that is using leftover mamarials from harvest season to create ethanol.now --

steffi lee talks with former lieutenant governor patty judge -- technology is so important. important. two shots 11:25:35 "with the opening of this plant, what do you expect for iowa's political future, especially with 2016 just around the corner?"patty judge one shot 01:28:07 "of course we believe that this is a peek at the future. iowa has been on the cutting edge of renewable energy from the first day. so we know this is going to be an important part of the elececon. we are going to be looking at what candidates have to say about renewable energy and we're excited."two shot 11:26:13 "with iowa as such a battleground state, what do you hope candidates push forward and what do you hope their message is?"patty judge 01:28:44 "we hope that they will commit to renewable energy, that they will commit t to continuing their newable fuel standard"patty judge

us an access to the market, that without it we're not going to have, we aren't going to be able to move our products out of iowa."patty judge 01:29:07 "we want to make certain that candidates coming again to iowa understand that."papay judge 01:29:29 "it's part of our job, all iowans, to educate those candidates, make certain they understand that importance and that they're with us on that." two shot: 11:27:18 "any misconceptions people have out there in this political season in terms of ethanol, in terms of renewable fuels in generara" patty judge 01:29:50 "there is still a perception - a lot of the candidates come into iowa saying that they don't support

mandates, that they don't think this is a place for government to involved."patty judge 01:30:06 "we have to be certain that they understand first of all, the oil industry has enjoyed subsidies from the united states government for over 100 years. ethanol is a very new player. and this is not subsidy. this does not involve the government giving the ethanol industry money." patty judge 01:31:19 "we have come lightyears, absolutely lightyears and it is important that we continue that. we talk about this as an iowa issue because it's involving iowa jobs, it's involving iowa's research and d development, and the future e for ououstate"two shot

11:28:25 "what about some people saying that ethanol isn't as important as it was before? everyone here today was definitely praising the opening of the cellulosic ethanol plant."patty judge 01:31:41 "we have to be serious about the fact that we have got to lessen the dependence on foreign oil, we have got to o looking or alternative sources of energy to power our country and this

that."critically important with each election." coming up next...we go back three years to retrace the affordable care act -- from the first open enrollment to year three of the landmark

welcome back.this is the real story -- we're going to take the time to give context to some of the events that will go on during the 2016 race for the white house.sometimes we'll have to go back a few days -- weeks or months -- or even years that are still relevant. relevant.this week k take a look at everything leading up to year three of open enrollment under the affordable care act. less than a year after@taking the oath of office in january of 2009 -- president obama and his adminsitration pushed through the affordable care act. act.the idea was to make health insurance much more affordable to people by forcing everyone to signp on on the samesystem -- or pay a pentaly for being uninsured.

help the 46-million uninsured americans at the time and would have guaranteed insurance for people even with pre-existing conditions. opponents said it was a government take over that would add to the budget deficit. "some day our grandkids will ask us if there was really a time when america discriminated against people who get sick because that is something this law had ended for good. that affefes everybody with health insurance, not just folks who got insurance through the affordable care act." act."the bill passed largy alg party lis.the democrats controlled both chamamrs of congress -- and the e fordable care act got no republcian votes in the senate and only one in the house. almost four years later -- october 1st 2013 was the firs day of open enrollment -- when americans could try to sign up for their insurance plans on the marketplace the law created.it did not go well. well.the website that the govement had years to build couldn't handle the traffic on day one -- or for many of f e days after that.the first open enrollment period even had to

problems at the start.we follow one woman in eastern iowa trying to get insurance for her family. we started at 10:30 this morning and for the rest of the morning and part of the afternoon, .we weren't ablet to get past the very first step -- creating an account." account."when it was all saidid and d donene- about eight-million people were enrolled that first year.still -- katherine sebilius -- the secretary of health and human services -- the department in charge othe rollout -- resigned. year two saw increased penalties to create an increased need for people to sign up for coverage.but a henry kaiser family foundation study found that when the 2015 open enrollment period was about to begin -- nine of every ten uninsured americans didn't know about open enrollment -- and two-thirds of uninsured americans said they knew little or nothing about the entire marketplace system. when people did know about thth affordable care act -- they generally didn't like it.a lot of that was blamed on a constant barage of attacks -- many from republicans --

towards the legislation. legislation.they talked about how it added to the budget deficit -- and how many people were promised that they'd be able to keep their doctors if they liked them -- only to be forced to see doctors that fit within their new plans.the law even ended up in front of the supreme court on a challenge thatatould have severly limited the program's subsidies that make insurance for many americans more affordable.in a major blow to the law's opponents -- the court led that the subsides should be available to all americans. they were afraid of the impact it would have on the bill. but it is not the cot's job to determine what the impact might be. they're job is t t simply interpret whether the law has been followed. followed.: i think scalia had a good point that words no longer have meaning if you're going say they don't mean what they say. say.: after multiple chalalnges to this law before the supreme court, the affordable care act is here to stay. but now -- in year three of the affordable care act --

people signing up *are seeing higher premiums.how bad the increase is depends on the state.some of it will be offset by subsidies -- but the penalty for not being covered is also increasing again. again.on the bright side -- after three years -- only about nine-percent of american are still uninsured -- that's a historic low -- down from about 18-percent in 2013. 2013.those kind of statiscs have saved hospitals about 7-point-4 billioiodollars in uncompensated care that they would have spent before -- when more patients couldn't afford to pay. coming up...the latest way that politics has taken over social media -- after the

welcome back -- we'll close the show each week taking a look at what happened on social media... media...ohio voted against legalizing marijuana -- t in iowa -- supporters of the cedar rapids public library was asking tax payers for more money to keep it opperating seven days a week with all of the programs it offe right now.on election day -- voters defeated that levy.we posted it on n ce book -- craig said -- "why is it cedar rapids has to build taj mahals, this goes to show you how our city government works. the budget for this building should have been made long before the building was built." built."anne said -- "sad.. the library is such a great place, for kids and adults. more books need to be picked up than phones and tablets. the

world is youryster.. just think about it. yoy ca travel, meet people you never knew, laugh, cry, go on an adventure.. all from a book! great lessons and wonderful things come from literature!" now -- we look at their voice -- what the candides and their campaigns are posting on social media. media.plenty of folks s lk about how congress doesn't work -- but one freshman senator did it on the floor of the senate.nebraska's ben sasse tweeted out much of his speech -- filled with quotes like this: "no one in this body thinks the senate is laser-focused on the most pressing issues facing the nation. no one."the response from other folks on twitter and even his fellow lawmakers was pretty positive. you can follow along on twitter and facebook all week long.you can find all our content on our website -- go to either cbs 2 or fo28 iowa $- - dot - com and search for "iowa in focus." every week we'll end with the week ahead... ahead...it's a chance for you to see what different campaigns have scheduled. scheduled.this week -- both parties take to the debate stagesfirst -- the republicans

are on tuesday.then the democrats debate on saturday in des moines.the day before that -- ted cruz is also in des moines. thanks for joining us.come back next week -- to get the

focus we are fox sports. captions paid for by the fox broadcasting company 2>> ben roethlisberger just woke up and looking to pick up his first win after coming back from that knee injury. tom brady, tommy terrific is