IA-SEN 2020: Ernst megathread

[MAINEiac4434]

It depends on if she wants to keep her married name.

I doubt she wants to

She might keep it for strategic reasons, not wanting to confuse voters.

I agree, it’s her professional name. Most likely she keeps it until she remarries and takes her new husband’s name.

Or if she doesn't remarry, she returns to using her maiden name after the 2020 election.

[pbrower2a]

She is certainly moving to the middle and moderating her image.  She is associating herself with Capito, who unlike Collins, was unaffected by voting for Kavanaugh.

We need polling to see if she is vulnerable

PPP had her approval at 45%, which means that she will need to run a spirited and competent campaign just to be re-elected. She will have to distance herself from Trump in a state that usually splits about 50-50 D/R.

Warning signs abound. The vote for House races in Iowa was awful for Republicans in 2018. Iowa usually does well for incumbents, but a move of two of its Congressional districts from R to D bodes ill.

A divorce does not help any incumbent. This one looks excusable by most standards, at least according to her press releases.

There will be some tough votes that could define her either as a hack or as a vacillator, neither of which is good for re-election in a moderate state. Above all, there will be the Trump campaign attempting to extend the marketability of a failure.  Trump is not so much a politician as a self-promoter.     

[SnowLabrador]

Scholten should be making his announcement now. It's past 10:15 in Des Moines. Is he running for Senate or President?

[_]

Scholten should be making his announcement now. It's past 10:15 in Des Moines. Is he running for Senate or President?

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/politics/2019/01/23/jd-scholten-2020-running-office-house-senate-steve-king-joni-ernst-working-hero-iowa-nonprofit-eitc/2656030002/

Non-Profit for the Earned Income Tax Credit apparently.  Leaving open 2020 options.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

The husband is retaliating with claims of infidelity on the part of Joni:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6619997/Husband-Iowa-Senator-Joni-Ernst-claims-affair-soldier.html?ito=social-twitter_dailymailus

Obviously if she had infidelity that's very bad and her fault but this complaint from her husband sounds ridiculous:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

It's his wife. As long as no one else was present, why is he complaining? Not that I have a desire to see Joni Ernst naked of course, but he is married to her.

[henster]

The husband is retaliating with claims of infidelity on the part of Joni:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6619997/Husband-Iowa-Senator-Joni-Ernst-claims-affair-soldier.html?ito=social-twitter_dailymailus

Obviously if she had infidelity that's very bad and her fault but this complaint from her husband sounds ridiculous:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

It's his wife. As long as no one else was present, why is he complaining? Not that I have a desire to see Joni Ernst naked of course, but he is married to her.

I presume both are born again evangelicals so I guess is a big thing also would explain the husband not being supportive of her political career. Evangelicals are big on the whole women being at home concept.

[DINGO Joe]

From the Daily Mail article:

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[libertpaulian]

The husband is retaliating with claims of infidelity on the part of Joni:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6619997/Husband-Iowa-Senator-Joni-Ernst-claims-affair-soldier.html?ito=social-twitter_dailymailus

Obviously if she had infidelity that's very bad and her fault but this complaint from her husband sounds ridiculous:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

It's his wife. As long as no one else was present, why is he complaining? Not that I have a desire to see Joni Ernst naked of course, but he is married to her.

I presume both are born again evangelicals so I guess is a big thing also would explain the husband not being supportive of her political career. Evangelicals are big on the whole women being at home concept.

They're ELCA, which isn't exactly a bastion of evangelicalism.

[Alabama_Indy10]

Her husband may be the only guy I know that’s named Gail.

[Progressive Pessimist]

Her husband may be the only guy I know that’s named Gail.

Well, there is the slightly differently spelled, Gael Garcia Bernal.

[Indy Texas]

This is no one's business but hers and her husband's.

[Sestak]

This is no one's business but hers and her husband's.

Apparently it is now:

Republican Senator Joni Ernst Says She Was Raped in College (Bloomberg)

[SnowLabrador]

I still don't think most voters will remember this by November 2020. Also, if Scholten doesn't run, I hope State Auditor Rob Sand does.

[100% pro-life no matter what]

The husband is retaliating with claims of infidelity on the part of Joni:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6619997/Husband-Iowa-Senator-Joni-Ernst-claims-affair-soldier.html?ito=social-twitter_dailymailus

Obviously if she had infidelity that's very bad and her fault but this complaint from her husband sounds ridiculous:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

It's his wife. As long as no one else was present, why is he complaining? Not that I have a desire to see Joni Ernst naked of course, but he is married to her.

I presume both are born again evangelicals so I guess is a big thing also would explain the husband not being supportive of her political career. Evangelicals are big on the whole women being at home concept.

Let me ask you this- how many Evangelicals do you know?  I go to an Evangelical church and hang out in Evangelical circles and have never once heard this expectation.

[MAINEiac4434]

The husband is retaliating with claims of infidelity on the part of Joni:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6619997/Husband-Iowa-Senator-Joni-Ernst-claims-affair-soldier.html?ito=social-twitter_dailymailus

Obviously if she had infidelity that's very bad and her fault but this complaint from her husband sounds ridiculous:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

It's his wife. As long as no one else was present, why is he complaining? Not that I have a desire to see Joni Ernst naked of course, but he is married to her.

I presume both are born again evangelicals so I guess is a big thing also would explain the husband not being supportive of her political career. Evangelicals are big on the whole women being at home concept.

Let me ask you this- how many Evangelicals do you know?  I go to an Evangelical church and hang out in Evangelical circles and have never once heard this expectation.

Tbqh, the only Evangelicals I know (it's New England after all) are the neighbor family. The wife is staying with the husband as he continues to serve out his term at a federal prison for child pornography distribution (out in March). Her parents even paid for his lawyer and pressured her not to leave him.

[Free Bird]

I still don't think most voters will remember this by November 2020. Also, if Scholten doesn't run, I hope State Auditor Rob Sand does.

Can we please put a moratorium on candidate speculation until she resolves and overcomes her personal issues? I don't even think she may run for another term. The farthest I'll go is this: the IA GOP could probably easily call Branstad back from China in an emergency for a one-term deal if need be, giving Joni a sabbatical so to speak until Grassley retires (should she want to make a comeback then).

[Free Bird]

The husband is retaliating with claims of infidelity on the part of Joni:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6619997/Husband-Iowa-Senator-Joni-Ernst-claims-affair-soldier.html?ito=social-twitter_dailymailus

Obviously if she had infidelity that's very bad and her fault but this complaint from her husband sounds ridiculous:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

It's his wife. As long as no one else was present, why is he complaining? Not that I have a desire to see Joni Ernst naked of course, but he is married to her.

I presume both are born again evangelicals so I guess is a big thing also would explain the husband not being supportive of her political career. Evangelicals are big on the whole women being at home concept.

Let me ask you this- how many Evangelicals do you know?  I go to an Evangelical church and hang out in Evangelical circles and have never once heard this expectation.

Tbqh, the only Evangelicals I know (it's New England after all) are the neighbor family. The wife is staying with the husband as he continues to serve out his term at a federal prison for child pornography distribution (out in March). Her parents even paid for his lawyer and pressured her not to leave him.

LMAO there's literally one Evangelical family in my town. They homeschooled their kids sans a couple of high school classes, named their youngest kid Abraham, you never see any skin from them besides their necks, heads, and wrists in public, the whole works. Needless to say, in my town, that's casually Catholic at most, they come across as total aliens.

[Free Bird]

And it's, say, August 2019 or thereabout. Ernst withdraws her reelection bid to properly deal with her divorce and the grief surrounding it. She strongly suggests that she'll probably run for Grassley's seat in 2022 when he likely retires, but she just needs a break. So, you have carte blanche to nominate whoever you want as an emergency substitute without worrying about damaging the 2022 bench.

Who do you nominate as this emergency substitute? I'd immediately try and call Branstad back from China personally. Yes, he'd be a one-termer most likely but hopefully by 2026, there's a non-Steve King Congressman that can step up to the plate as a strong candidate in what is likely to be a Republican year anyway.

[Technocracy Timmy]

Give the base what it wants.

[aaroncd107]

See if you can get Randy Feenstra out of the IA-04 race.

[Pollster]

Probably Lt. Gov Adam Gregg - very young, could hold the seat for decades, held Tom Miller to one of his weaker wins, won statewide in a tough environment in 2018

[Virginiá]

The husband is retaliating with claims of infidelity on the part of Joni:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6619997/Husband-Iowa-Senator-Joni-Ernst-claims-affair-soldier.html?ito=social-twitter_dailymailus

Obviously if she had infidelity that's very bad and her fault but this complaint from her husband sounds ridiculous:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

It's his wife. As long as no one else was present, why is he complaining? Not that I have a desire to see Joni Ernst naked of course, but he is married to her.

It's refreshing to know I don't disagree with Ernst on everything.

This man is crazy (or so thoroughly dedicated to his affair that seeing his wife naked felt like a betrayal to his girlfriend!)

[BundouYMB]

Yeah, as much as I hate Ernst I can't see this guy as anything but crazy. He was upset that his wife got in bed naked with him? WTF? How could the marriage not fail?

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

The husband is retaliating with claims of infidelity on the part of Joni:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6619997/Husband-Iowa-Senator-Joni-Ernst-claims-affair-soldier.html?ito=social-twitter_dailymailus

Obviously if she had infidelity that's very bad and her fault but this complaint from her husband sounds ridiculous:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

It's his wife. As long as no one else was present, why is he complaining? Not that I have a desire to see Joni Ernst naked of course, but he is married to her.

It's refreshing to know I don't disagree with Ernst on everything.

This man is crazy (or so thoroughly dedicated to his affair that seeing his wife naked felt like a betrayal to his girlfriend!)

And to be honest as much as I'd hate to admit it, Ernst isn't exactly terrible looking for her age and the guy is 65 so she'd actually still be young to him. Him complaining about that instead of loving her for it is crazy.

[RINO Tom]

The husband is retaliating with claims of infidelity on the part of Joni:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6619997/Husband-Iowa-Senator-Joni-Ernst-claims-affair-soldier.html?ito=social-twitter_dailymailus

Obviously if she had infidelity that's very bad and her fault but this complaint from her husband sounds ridiculous:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

It's his wife. As long as no one else was present, why is he complaining? Not that I have a desire to see Joni Ernst naked of course, but he is married to her.

I presume both are born again evangelicals so I guess is a big thing also would explain the husband not being supportive of her political career. Evangelicals are big on the whole women being at home concept.

Welp, dumb presumption, LOL.