Letter to the Editor: "Presidential Election Choice Key to Defining Iowa Values'

(The following Letter to the Editor has been submitted by Jodi Enos-Berlage of Ridgeway):

After reading about the latest sexual assault of a young woman in Decorah, I cannot shake the thought that our state is poised to select a presidential candidate that has bragged about sexual assault, consistently demeans and degrades women, and treats them like property.  What message does this send to my daughter and my two sons, to women who are assaulted, or indeed, to the numerous people and groups on the receiving end of the mockery, bigotry, hatred, and fear brought into the open by the Republican presidential candidate, and literally applauded by thousands at his rallies?

Make no mistake, this culture has permeated into our schools, buses, and classrooms, including that of my eleven-year old son, and it is ugly.  Imagine how this climate affects a child in a crucial state of development—who witnesses adult support for a candidate that treats human beings in this way--like it is normal or acceptable or in any way excusable.  

Yesterday on my son's bus, a student was being chastised and taunted by peers not only because he didn't support the Republican candidate, but because he did not belong to an acceptable religion.  In profound irony, a message that sits atop a local damaged sign for this candidate makes a plea for tolerance.  This is my son's first memorable election; this is his first and only experience with national politics--an election in which the Republican candidate has set a new standard for behavior—a bar that apparently has no minimum set point.  It is startling that these are the circumstances in which our state will likely turn from blue to red, a stain that will no doubt earn us national recognition.
 
With great sadness, I have watched the Republican party and people very close to me evolve into something over the past 10 years that I no longer recognize or know how to relate to--a culture no longer governed by critical thinking, credible evidence, and careful evaluation of information and sources, but instead by paranoia, anger, and conspiracy theories.  The current presidential candidate is the appropriate leader for this movement, which has been well-cultivated by the puppeteers of right-wing media and the online forums of one's choosing.  While the birtherism hoax, racially-biased voter regulations and intimidations (developed under the evidence-less guise of curbing voter fraud—the real rigging of the election), and Fox Newsroom banter have long laid the groundwork for the bigotry now on full display, the 'passes' given to this candidate on things the Republican party used to stand for now stand out.  A party historically supportive of Christian values now supports a leader that is the antithesis of Pope Francis.  A party that values business acumen now supports a 'businessman' who might best be described as a con artist.  A party that prides itself on upholding the constitution is now led by a candidate that has little understanding of or respect for it, and in fact, has exhibited such alarmingly authoritarian tendencies that a large group of conservative and libertarian constitutional legal scholars do not trust the candidate to respect the constitutional limits of his conduct in office, or to nominate qualified judicial candidates (Washington Post, Oct 17, 2016).  

Further, a party that has defined itself with attention to defense is now supporting a candidate whose deep-rooted insecurities and lack of self-control pose real threats.  His vulnerabilities are now exposed to the world, and all one needs to do to exert control is distract him with a critique-- to send him into a 3am and week-long twitter tirade--or alternatively, massage his fragile ego in just the right place.  There is no evidence that the candidate is capable of studying a complex issue, such as foreign relations, or of choosing quality advisors, or listening to any advice, upon which all of our security depends.   The mere prospect of his election has altered America's place in the world and generated deep anxiety across the globe.  Alarmingly, the party seems ok with Vladimir Putin controlling the communication strings, as long as the information is damaging to the opposition.

And yet, our state Republican 'leaders'—Branstad, Grassley, Ernst, Blum, etc.--actively support this candidate.  Kim Reynolds continues to stand by her man.  Shame on them, and let this cowardice be part of their legacy. 

Stunningly, the real leaders in the Republican Party are being demonized and cannibalized by the party's own members for standing up, at both the national and local level.  Take, for example, 13-year Iowa State Senator David Johnson from Northwestern Iowa, who changed his status from Republican to 'no party', in protest to the Republican presidential candidate's racist remarks (a last straw for Johnson) and eventual nomination (Des Moines Register, June 7, 2016).  Iowa Republican leaders swiftly denounced his decision, stripped his committee assignments, and declared that Johnson had 'recklessly abandoned' the party (Nwestiowa.com, Aug 28, 2016).  Senator Johnson stands as a beacon of light in this otherwise dark election season—it is my firm hope that this conservative lawmaker runs for governor someday. 

What happened to doing the right thing—for human decency, the women of Iowa, and the girls and boys of Iowa?  Have we all been sold out for party loyalty and maintenance of power?  For the Governor's broader goal of one-party control of house, senate, and governor's office?

Though I have been appalled by the behavior of the democratic national committee and the remarkably bad decisions of the democratic candidate, one cannot critically evaluate these two candidates' 'lows', including the manner in which they have run their campaigns, and conclude that they are even on the same scale.  They are not.  In this regard, I urge my fellow Iowans, my friends and neighbors, to make the time to vote, and to firmly reject this Republican presidential candidate and all those candidates who support him.  We need the contributions and diversity of perspective brought by the Republican party to solve the many challenges we face, but this platform is not it.  I look forward to the day that the Republican party authentically welcomes and provides opportunities for all Americans, including women, people of color, and the 99 percent, and, importantly, takes an approach to governance that is focused on problem-solving and evidence rather than fear.  My real fear is that I will have to wake up the morning of November 9th and tell my children that this ugliness is what Iowa values.