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"Our main focus has been on the job loss that Iowa has suffered over the past nine years," said Paul Reed, student coordinator of the event. "It's a concerning number to a lot of college students who are looking for jobs when they leave college and enter the working world."
Reed said the town hall meeting will not advocate against globalization, but rather raise awareness of fair trade policies and argue for a level playing field so America can compete fairly with other countries when it comes to agriculture and manufacturing.
"This isn't a protectionist movement at all," he said. "It's not anti-globalization. It's recognizing that a lot of jobs are leaving and questioning whether there is anything we can do to help spell this and keep more jobs available to the American worker."
The four student groups behind the event are ISU Democrats, ISU Republicans, the ISU Engineering Leadership Program and ISU Collegiate Future Farmers of America.
The keynote speaker for the event will be Dan DiMicco, president and chief executive officer of Nucor Corporation, one of the largest steel-producing companies in the United States. DiMicco is an advocate for pushing the U.S. manufacturing sector to prominence in America.
Likely the most recognizable face in the room will be that of Republican presidential hopeful Sam Brownback, R-Kansas. He is scheduled to speak at the event after opening his Ames-based headquarters at 5:30 p.m.
The event has been promoted for weeks as a nonpartisan effort to raise awareness, but that neutrality was questioned last week by a Tribune reader who was unable to verify that any group other than the ISU Republicans behind the event.
Keynote speaker DiMicco has shown some partisanship in his campaign giving, though he has supported both parties. Since the 2000 election cycle, he has given $13,500 to Republican candidates, $3,500 to Democratic candidates, $200 to the Republican National Committee and $10,500 to PACs, mostly the steel PAC.
The Tribune raised the question of partisanship to representatives of both campus Democrats and Republicans.
Reed said the event was organized solely by the four student groups - which represent liberals as well as conservatives - and denied any allegation of organizing a partisan event.
"It's just really not (a partisan event)," he said. "It is just an open issue that we are looking for anyone to address."
While Brownback, a Republican senior senator from Kansas, will be the only presidential candidate appearing at the event, Reed said an invitation was extended all major Republican and Democratic candidates.
Sarah Sunderman, a representative from the ISU Democrats who helped organize the event, agreed that there was no political bias in event planning. She said that members of the ISU Democrats have helped organize and promote the meeting and will have a presence at the event.
"I feel like we have done as much as any other group," she said.
William Dillon can be reached at 232-2161, Ext. 361, or William.Dillon@amestrib.com
