Ernst Spends Her Week in Iowa Dodging Voters, Refusing to Answer for Her Push to Gut Health Care and Retirement Security

After she was caught secretly pushing massive cuts to Social Security and Medicare and refusing to stand up against the proposed $1.5 trillion in cuts to health care, Senator Joni Ernst is conspicuously absent during her week in Iowa. In fact, in the seven days since the Senate adjourned, Ernst has refused to hold a single public event where she could answer questions from Iowans.

Whether she’s off fundraising anywhere but Iowa, or camped in an office illicitly plotting with the dark money group she and her top aides founded, Ernst continues to avoid at all costs explaining why she’s pushing an agenda “behind closed doors” that would undermine the health care programs and services Iowans rely on.

“It’s no surprise that Senator Ernst refuses to face voters, because she knows they won’t like what they hear: a push to gut health care and hard-earned retirement benefits in order to protect the profits of the corporate special interests bankrolling her re-election,” said Jeremy Busch, Iowa Democratic Party spokesperson. “If Senator Ernst committed as much time listening to Iowans as she does to her special interest donors, maybe she wouldn’t be the third-most unpopular senator in the country.”

Senator Ernst continues to duck and dodge to avoid answering these questions:

  1. Does Ernst agree that Washington should “look at” cuts to Social Security and Medicare, and believe that these programs are “out of control” and need to be reined in?

  2. Is Ernst supporting Senator Crapo’s pharma-friendly prescription drug bill – backed only by Republicans who are drug industry allies – because Big Pharma has contributed $120,000 to her re-election campaign?

  3. Does Ernst support President Trump’s proposed budget, which would cut Medicaid and Medicare funding by $1.4 trillion?

  4. What is Ernst’s explanation for why she and her top aides broke campaign finance law by founding and illegally coordinating with a dark money group they’re using to help cover up her record of voting against Iowans’ health care?