Grassley giving president a chance

U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley backed President Donald Trump on a number of issues during a town hall meeting in New Hampton on Friday.But he also urged the president to let Special Counsel Robert Mueller complete his investigation into allegations that Russia tried to influence the 2016 election.“The president is a businessman; he hasn’t been in politics or in the military,” Grassley said, “but I still think that he is wise enough to know there’s going to be a big explosion if he fires Mueller, and I think the president thrives on controversy and he’s going to continue to do what he’s doing.”And the president’s non-traditional way of conducting business came up several times Friday as Grassley met with more than 50 area residents during his “Every County, Every Year” tour stop at the Chickasaw Wellness Complex.Grassley said as a businessman, Trump is more inclined to go to the “brink” when negotiating, and he said that can be seen in the heated rhetoric when it comes to trade relations with China. Trump has proposed placing a number of tariffs on Chinese products, and Grassley said that he worries about how that will affect agriculture exports.— For more on this story, see the May 8 Tribune