Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) said at a town hall that she doesn’t think Trump is a racist, and her answer was met with a collective groan from an Iowa town hall audience.
The Des Moines Register reported on Ernst’s answer when she was asked if Trump is racist:
“Deep inside, no, I don’t think he’s a racist,†Ernst replied, drawing groans from the crowd. “I think he’s brash and he says things that are on his mind, but I don’t truly believe that he’s a racist.â€
Brash is apparently the new Republican code word for racist.
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The fact that the crowd groaned in a state that is demographically custom made for Trump illustrated that Republican Party has a big problem on their hands. If Joni Ernst can’t get Iowa to at least consider the fact that Trump isn’t a racist, then Republicans are screwed. A secondary but almost as equally big of a problem is that Republican incumbents are now getting the chance to look like idiots in front of the people back home because they feel like they must defend their president.
If the heartland of America thinks that Trump is the racist, the GOP’s problems are worse than they realize.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
