Miner Queries: Ernst puts Iowa at the butt of joke: Seriously?
Seriously?
That was my first reaction to watching State Sen. Joni Ernst’s new campaign ad last week.
My second reaction was: “Here we go again.”
As a new member of the 3rd District, I am still celebrating that Steve King is no longer my representative in the House. King’s narrow-minded, uninformed and ridiculous comments leave the rest of the country with the impression Iowa is populated by ignorant yokels.
Queue Ernst’s ad, in which Ernst presents herself as a grassroots hero who will take her down-to-earth farm experience castrating hogs to D.C. to cut government and bring back American greatness. In other words, it’s just more manufactured campaign-speak that says nothing. And it presents Ernst, who in person is an amiable and well-spoken woman, as a caricature.
It’s simply an outrageous attempt to garner lots of national attention, and it begs the question: Is all publicity good publicity?
I, for one, don’t think so.
Once again, Iowa is the butt of a host of jokes. Here’s a partial list: The Colbert Report, Tosh. O blog on Comedy Central, The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and E! Online’s The Soup.
And while Ernst gets national attention to build her name recognition with big-money funders and low information voters who think cutting government will solve our problems (even though they rely on government programs), the rest of us are tarred with the same brush.
Count me out.
Like Ernst, I grew up on a family farm. And my chores included some down-to-earth work like shoveling manure. But that does not mean I am a one-dimensional stereotype, and I don’t appreciate being portrayed as one. As an Iowan, I take pride in our history of quality education and political activism, including our first-in-the-nation status during presidential elections. So, I think we deserve thoughtful, effective representation.
Candidates for public office should campaign on their experience, record of service and vision. The work of representing citizens in government is important work; it’s serious. Instead, Ernst has opted for spectacle.
In my book, Ernst failed the first test by representing Iowa voters, and herself, as little more than a cartoon character. If this is what we can expect from our local candidate, color me big “D” disappointed.
Or if you happened to like Ernst’s ad, let me put it this way: “I’m Cherie Miner, and I grew up on a farm shoveling manure. So I recognize crap when I see it.”
Cherie Miner is a local parent, community volunteer, freelance writer and artist. In a former life, she was a corporate writer and public relations professional. Contact her at news@redoakexpress.com or on Facebook.