J. D. Scholten, a Democrat who nearly toppled Rep. Steve King (R-IA) in a heavily Republican district in 2018, will announce on Monday that he will run again for the seat in 2020, the New York Times reports.
“His decision sets up a possible rematch with Mr. King, whose history of racist remarks has made him a pariah among Republican leaders, though not always with voters.”
Said Scholten: “Last time, we were hoping to win. Now, we are expecting to win. We know how to do it.”
“”For nearly two decades, Rep. Steve King (R-IA) pummeled Republican primary challengers, dispatched Democrats, even a former Iowa governor’s wife, and glided to victory in his conservative district. He spent little energy on fund-raising, put few controls on his racist language and made little effort to hold town halls with constituents,” the New York Times reports.
“Then in November he was re-elected by just 10,000 votes… two months later he was stripped of his committee assignments and rebuked by the House for comments that seemed to endorse white supremacy. Now the nine-term Iowa Republican is under attack from both the left and the right.”
“Far from folding, though, Mr. King is returning to basics, reasserting an aggressive presence in his northwestern Iowa district, scheduling events in every county and holding as many as three town halls in a week, where constituents pack in, then linger to take photos and shake hands.”
Rep Steve King (R-IA) now has three Republican challengers for his congressional seat in 2020, the Des Moines Register reports.
In addition, several top Iowa Republicans have said they will remain neutral in the primary rather than supporting King as they have in the past.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) signaled she’s lost her patience with Rep. Steve King (R-IA), “who won a ninth term in the U.S. House last week despite a firestorm of criticism for aligning himself with far-right European politicians and repeatedly making remarks critics have deemed racist,” the Des Moines Register reports.
Said Reynolds: “I think that Steve King needs to make a decision if he wants to represent the people and the values of the 4th District or do something else, and I think he needs to take a look at that.”
Rep. Steve King (R-IA) “has again bested Democrats who hoped they would finally knock him out of Congress,” the Des Moines Register reports.
“King has sparked national controversy with caustic comments about undocumented immigrants and with his support of right-wing politicians in other countries. Even some fellow Republicans have disavowed him.”
Rep. Steve King (R-IA) has barred the Des Moines Register from his election night event in Sioux City, the Des Moines Register reports.
Said Jeff King, who is Steve King’s son and a paid staffer of his campaign: “We are not granting credentials to the Des Moines Register or any other leftist propaganda media outlet with no concern for reporting the truth.”
Rep. Steve King (R-IA) said that he hopes Republicans will “have a 7-2 court” after the midterm elections, adding that if the party is lucky Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor “will elope to Cuba,” the Washington Post reports.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds’ (R) final rally of her campaign will be held with Rep. Steve King (R-IA), according to Iowa Starting Line.
“Mired in state and national controversy over the past two weeks for his history of racist statements, King has become radioactive to many leaders within the Republican Party. The chair of the NRCC condemned King for promoting white supremacy, while conservative opinion leaders from The National Review to the Wall Street Journal editorial page has called for King to go.”
Author Stephen King urged Iowans to defeat Rep. Steve King (R-IA), The Hill reports.
Said King: “Iowans, for personal reasons I hope you’ll vote Steve King out. I’m tired of being confused with this racist dumbbell.”
J.D. Scholten (D), the former baseball player challenging Rep. Steve King (R-IA), “has seen a last second wave of cash come his way as King has sparked new controversy this fall. Scholten raised over $641,000 on Tuesday and Wednesday alone,” Politico reports.
Meanwhile, a video of King getting angry at a questioner who asked him about last weekend’s Pittsburgh massacre went viral.
Rep. Steve King (R-IA) “rejected suggestions his re-election bid was in trouble after he was abandoned by Republican leaders and donors over his embrace of white nationalists and for rhetoric that has been denounced as racist,” Bloomberg reports.
“King said that his internal polling this past weekend showed him ahead of his Democratic opponent, J.D. Scholten, by 18 points. He dismissed a poll out Tuesday by the liberal firm Change Research that showed him leading by just one point.”
The National Republican Congressional Committee says it will not help out Rep. Steve King (R-IA), who has supported far-right causes and white supremacists, in the remaining days of his bid to win re-election to his Iowa 4th District seat against Democratic challenger J.D. Scholten, CNBC reports.
The NRCC cited King’s “words and actions” for its decision to sit out the race.
A new Change Research poll in Iowa’s 4th congressional district finds Rep. Steve King (R-IA) with just a one point lead over challenger J.D. Scholten (D), 45% to 44%.
The Sioux City Journal endorsed challenger J.D. Scholten (D) over incumbent Rep. Steve King (R) in the race for the U.S. House seat in Iowa’s 4th District:
We aren’t suggesting Scholten is a perfect candidate with whom we have no disagreements, but we believe the job of U.S. representative is more than casting votes. As a congressman, we believe Scholten would choose his words carefully, create no national controversies, bring no embarrassment to the district, seek to unite and not divide, focus his time and energy almost exclusively on issues directly impacting the lives and livelihoods of constituents, and hold regular town halls with the public. He represents changes we believe speak to the best interests of this congressional district as a whole.
The newspaper had endorsed King in every one of his previous races.
Kim Weaver (D) announced she is dropping out of the race to challenge Rep. Steve King (R-IA) due to threats against her, WHO-TV reports.
Said Weaver on Facebook: “I have received very alarming acts of intimidation, including death threats. While some may say enduring threats are just a part of running for office, my personal safety has increasingly become a concern.“
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
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