Q: Can you explain your "Eye on Government" program?
A: Last spring, I held my first "Eye on Government" program with the high school government class at Prairie City-Monroe. This new program takes advantage of the Iowa Communication Network by connecting me to a different high school government or history class each month via video conference while I'm in Washington. Since my annual town meetings in each of Iowa's 99 counties often happen when these students are in school, the "Eye on Government" program gives students their own opportunities to discuss what's on their mind with their elected representative. I conduct these video conferences just like I do my town hall meetings, allowing the participants to set the agenda with their questions. And just like my town meetings, we have an honest and open dialogue. I hope these conversations help students learn about the function of government and help them realize that their voice can make a real difference. I know I learn more about what's important to the next generation during these meetings.
Q: Will these video conferences replace any of your annual county visits?
A: This year I began my annual tradition of holding a meeting in all of Iowa's 99 counties in mid-February. I'm looking forward to hearing what's on the minds of Iowans as I continue these interactive sessions. The "Eye on Government" program does not replace any stops on my county tour. It instead serves as an extension of the county meetings and allows me to converse with more Iowans representing a broad range of interests. The video conferencing represents just one way I'm using technology to keep in touch with constituents. I use the social networks Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and YouTube to keep Iowans informed on what I'm doing in Washington and also use them to get real-time feedback. I also post weekly webcasts that outline the Senate's agenda and answer a few constituent questions on my website, Grassley.senate.gov. Another recent technology I started using last year is the telephone town hall meetings. These meetings allow me to call tens of thousands of Iowans and hold an interactive town hall meeting. I've held four telephone town halls, calling a different region in Iowa each time. Since I started these telephone town halls I've been able to talk with more than 14,000 Iowans. Representative government is a two-way street that requires dialogue between constituents and their elected leaders. While nothing can replace the face-to-face meetings I hold in Iowa, using these technologies increases traffic on the two-way street and helps make our system of government work as it was designed.