Category: IA-Senate

Senator Joni Ernst seemed to suggest today that a major driver of high student loan debt is students borrowing more than they need in order to spend it on personal costs. She related a story about a college friend spending his loan money on his girlfriend’s rent as an example of the problem facing indebted students. While at one of her town hall forums in Davenport this morning, Ernst was asked by a single mother what she planned to do about college affordability. “What are you actively doing to reduce the cost and the interest rates to be able to […]

Nine years after the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into law, there is much to celebrate regarding the progress made in American health care. The uninsured rate has been cut in half, insurers can no longer deny, drop, or limit the care you get because of a pre-existing condition, out-of-pocket spending has dropped by double digits, millions of people benefit from tax credits to pay for coverage or no-cost preventive care, women can no longer be charged more than men, and millions of young adults can stay on their parents’ plan until age 26. It’s no surprise, then, that […]

Iowa Senator Joni Ernst was spotted yesterday morning walking into the Monocle Restaurant in Washington, D.C., for a high-dollar fundraising event with the healthcare industry. In a video captured by American Bridge, Ernst heads into the upscale steak and seafood restaurant, where she was reportedly joined by Senator Chuck Grassley for a fundraiser for her campaign and PAC. “Excuse me, Senator Ernst, why are you raising money from the healthcare industry instead of fighting for healthcare for Iowans?” the person taking the video asks to no response from Ernst. To join Ernst, attendees had to write some large checks. An […]

A guest post from Ashley Burns. Senator Joni Ernst is bad for Iowa women. Aside from being the first woman elected to the Senate from Iowa, she has done little to advance the progress of women in our state. In fact, Senator Ernst actively uses her legislative power against Iowa women and their families. Her numerous votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), her vote to seat Supreme Court Justice Kavanaugh despite allegations of sexual assault, and her actions to defund Planned Parenthood only further hinder the progress women in Iowa have been trying to make. When the ACA […]

Who’s brave enough to run against Joni Ernst? The first-term senator should be a top target for Democrats nationally, but she begins the 2020 cycle with an all-time high approval rating. The Des Moines Register found Ernst had a 57% job approval last week, a noticeable jump from the 43% to 51% rating she’s hovered around for most of her time in office. Democrats worry that if she survives her first reelection, the 48-year-old Ernst could settle into a very long tenure in the Senate, especially in a state that historically likes its incumbents. Former Governor Tom Vilsack, her best-known potential […]

Senator Joni Ernst starts out her 2020 reelection effort in a strong position, garnering a 57% approval rating in a poll released by the Des Moines Register last night. She’s spent her first years in D.C. largely unscathed by major controversy or any sustained opposition criticism, but that mostly free ride will soon come to an end as the election year nears. One new effort to make her a one-term senator kicked off this week, with Eddie Mauro launching a new PAC aimed at defeating Ernst and helping local Iowa candidates for the Statehouse. The Midwest Victory PAC (or “MVP”) […]

Senator Joni Ernst had a busy Thanksgiving break, forwarding her national political ambitions at the expense of Iowa’s reputation. Ernst spent part of Sunday in Mississippi, campaigning with Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith in the runoff race against Democrat Mike Espy. Hyde-Smith has come under significant scrutiny in the final weeks of her campaign over recent comments where she said she’d attend a “public hanging” if one of her political supporters asked her to. Considering her opponent is African American and that Mississippi has a long history with racism, including public hangings of black people, the remarks drew widespread outrage and […]

The postmortems of the 2018 election are still being written, but that’s not stopping anyone from speculating and planning for Iowa’s 2020 Senate race. That’s actually typically what happens immediately after any election – winners plot out their next longterm moves and losers consider if they still have the fire in them to make another run. Senator Joni Ernst will be a difficult incumbent to beat, but there’s some reasons for hope. Iowa voters seemed much more upset at national politics than they were at state politics this year, electing Kim Reynolds while also sending Abby Finkenauer and Cindy Axne […]