Maybe the name “Hoover” is our jinx.

The only president to be born in Iowa so far was a terrific human being. Herbert Hoover had an exciting and lucrative private career, then climbed even higher to become an outstanding government official and one of the greatest international humanitarians of all time. Then he got elected president. At exactly the wrong moment.

Now when people think of our state’s No. 1 politician, they think of the Great Depression.

Then there’s Maytag Corp. A homegrown, small-town company that became a huge success, a household name, an icon for reliability – or at least its ad campaign became an icon, which is practically the same thing – and a symbol of no-nonsense, fiscally conservative Midwestern values.

Then it bought The Hoover Co.

As one business writer put it a couple of years ago: “Unfortunately for Maytag, Hoover has been a problem for some time. Business was bad in the first half of 2003 amid pricing and market share declines, results were mixed in 2002 as the division saw mixed success from its products, and sales fell in 2001.”

Not enough dirty carpets in America, apparently.

That and other things have gone so badly for Maytag that once-reverent observers now scoff at its business decisions and wonder if management is handling the pending buyout with the help of a Magic 8-Ball. One rating company ranks Maytag’s senior unsecured debt at junk level.

Saddest of all, at least from the Central Iowa perspective, the manufacturing plant in Newton seems to be doomed. The Town That Soiled Fabrics Built is centrally located, sits on a major interstate, has a workforce with a strong Midwestern work ethic — and looks to be in danger of emptying out like a washing machine during the spin cycle.

If a writer or filmmaker wants to capture the essence of America at the start of the 21st century, they might check into a charming little room at La Corsette Maison Inn on Newton’s main drag and start looking around for leading characters. Perhaps someone who’s unemployed and wearing a NASCAR cap.

As the 20th century drew to a close, the Jasper County seat still had hopes of continuing as a healthy company town. As this century gets rolling, the city’s leaders are hoping that a big racetrack will solve everything.

If we can’t make money building things, they figure, we’ll just dive into the sports entertainment game.

Sounds awfully familiar, in a time when Tony Stewart is making plenty of money with left turns, but your own particular job just might be headed around the bend.

From this point in history, it looks as if Franklin Roosevelt became a hero by adopting a lot of the ideas Herbert Hoover suggested.

Maybe the decline and fall of Maytag will look different someday, too. But right now, it looks as if Newton is holding an armful of blue-collar shirts and waiting for a repairman who will never arrive.