Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) demonstrated precisely why her own constituents are turning against her on Monday by bizarrely defending President Donald Trump’s obstruction of justice as merely part of his “brash demeanor.”
During a town hall event in March, several of Ernst’s constituents slammed her for failing to stand up to Trump time and time again.
“Is there no line Trump can cross that would cause you to break ranks with him?” one constituent asked.
Apparently not, because Ernst is literally defending Trump’s multiple instances of obstruction of justice as outlined by the Mueller report.
While speaking to reporters on Monday, Ernst insisted that bringing in Special Counsel Robert Mueller to testify in Congress is unnecessary.
“Really the House seems all over this, I know that we will continue to work on judges as a primary concern in Judiciary,” Ernst told us this AM
“I don’t know that that’s necessary, we have the report so we can go from there,” she said of Mueller testifying https://t.co/tQ9eK6NqcJ— Manu Raju (@mkraju) April 22, 2019
Then she went on to defend Trump’s crimes by referring to them as simply part of his “brash demeanor.”
Asked if she were alarmed by Trump’s behavior as outlined in the report, Ernst said: “I think we all know who the President is, he has a brash demeanor, that’s about all I can say.” https://t.co/EByEjYs5lv
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) April 22, 2019
Seriously. That is not the definition of standing up to someone. It’s the exact opposite.
Trump committed at least ten instances of obstruction, which is a serious crime and an impeachable offense. Arguing that it’s just something to ignore because it’s part of Trump’s demeanor just doesn’t cut it. It just demonstrates that Ernst has no spine and will try to protect Trump no matter what he says or does.
Iowa is not exactly a red state. Prior to Ernst taking office, her seat had been occupied by longtime Democratic Senator Tom Harkin. Former President Obama won the state in 2008 and again in 2012. Trump’s own poll numbers in the state are dropping. And Ernst is increasingly tying herself to him. It’s doubtful that Iowa voters are going to look kindly upon Ernst defending obstruction as just a quirky personality trait instead of the serious crime that it is.
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