DES MOINES — This week, the nation watched an unprecedented assault on our democracy and the rule of law unfold through a violent riot at the center of our government. In response, Iowa Republicans have repeated false rhetoric that sows doubt in our democratic elections while refusing to hold those who committed seditious acts accountable.

  • Governor Reynolds immediately sought to absolve any member of her party for their role in inciting the violence – even after Trump encouraged their insurrection only hours before – saying that we should not point fingers.
  • Senator Ernst and her allies spent millions on an abhorrent ad campaign saying that a mob was seeking to overthrow our country, without any concern or responsibility for its violent implications. Then, after her party lost the White House, she entertained conspiracy theories that Joe Biden’s victory was fraudulent – advancing the very ideas that empowered a mob to siege the U.S. Capitol.
  • Congressman Feenstra wasted no time in proving himself just as bad as the white supremacist he replaced, echoing Trump’s “nice people” comment after Charlotte by saying a “wonderful group” of peaceful protesters got carried away.
  • Mariannette Miller-Meeks joined ranks in continuing to advance abject lies that the presidential election was invalid – while refusing to support efforts to count every vote in her own election.
  • While Rep. Ashley Hinson tries to distract from previous comments and didn’t object to the election certification, she continues to push false claims about the results of the election and signed a letter in which members of Congress said they are “outraged at the significant abuses in our election system resulting from the reckless adoption of mail-in ballots and the lack of safeguards maintained to guarantee that only legitimate votes are cast and counted.”
  • The Republican Party of Iowa rushed to try to absolve their own role in sowing doubt in our democratic process, ignoring how their years-long embrace of the very worst of politics played a contributing role in the violence on Wednesday.
  • In a Facebook post, the Henry County Republican Party called the assault on the U.S. Capitol “the next shot heard round the world” and encouraged Republicans to take up arms in preparation for a Civil War of Red vs. Blue.
  • Republican State Rep. Dean Fisher repeated false claims about the results of the election and conspiracy theories that absolve the GOP of any responsibility for the political environment they created in a series of now-deleted Facebook posts and comments, including “our side has the guns.”

“At a time when our state and country need unity to rebuild our democratic processes, Iowa Republicans have chosen to perpetuate insurrection with double-talk that fuels conspiracies about election fraud based entirely on Trump’s provenly false claims,” said IDP Spokesperson Mandy McClure. “In the face of the worst attack on our capitol in over 200 years, Iowa Republicans have no interest in accountability, seemingly because it would implicate their political party. For the sake of our country, every single Iowa Republican needs to publicly denounce the charged, threatening rhetoric from members of their party. They need to acknowledge the results of multiple state recounts, dozens of court rulings, a U.S. Attorney investigation and the U.S. Supreme Court decision: Joe Biden is the legitimate President-elect who will lead our nation forward in 12 days.”