2018 General Election Elected 49 — 47
Sharp Elbows for the public good
The Des Moines Register endorsed Cynthia Axne https://cindyaxneforcongress.com/ for the Democratic nomination for Congress. It said:
“It’s not policy, but problem-solving that makes Axne stand out. In 2007, when her son was starting school in West Des Moines, she learned that only half the children in the district were selected at random to receive all-day kindergarten.
‘So I got busy. I couldn’t help my own son, but I could sure help the kids coming after him,’ Axne said. She said she worked for about eight months to push a plan for all-day kindergarten up through the administration to the school board, including putting together data showing the inequity in education. The board approved, and all-day kindergarten expanded to all students the following year.
‘I’ve got pretty sharp elbows when it comes to doing what’s right,” she said.’
Cynthia Axne was fired from her job in the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. We don’t know the details. She has kept her mouth shut, which is probably an indication of integrity. She had worked for nine years in state government in both Democratic and Republican administrations. She worked in the Department of Administrative Services and later the Department of Management under two Democratic administrations. She worked at the Department of Natural Resources as administrator of the management services division from which she was fired in a Republican administration.
We don’t often get stories about internal state agency disputes when there is no scandal. We can surmise, though. Sharp elbows had something to do with it.
Cynthia Axne was a back of the house person. She focused on budgets, personnel management, technology — unglamorous work. “I made sure state agencies had proper processes and strategies in place to implement their services in a tighter fashion — making sure they used taxpayer dollars wisely.”
“It’s not policy, it’s problem solving.” That may be true for the Democratic Primary — not for the general election. Cynthia Axne‘s sharp elbows may determine what kind of Congresswoman she will be. The policies she supports and opposes will determine what kind of life we lead.
Cynthia Axne‘s views are very different from those of the incumbent David Young. Two of her criticisms have gained traction. At a time when people in Iowa and all over the country identify health care as their most important issue, Axnegains ground when she criticizes Young for voting to abolish the Affordable Care Act.
Guns are another issue. Research suggests that Democrats are now gaining when they criticize opponents position on gun safety. Cynthia Axne criticizes Young for being the third largest recipient of NRA support in Congress. Cynthia Axneinsists she supports the second amendment, but does not see why people who have demonstrated that they are dangerous should have access to semi-automatic weapons.
Young is seeking his third term in this southwestern Iowa district. He searches for ways to sound moderate. He says, for instance, he supports Planned Parenthood receiving non-governmental funds. But he opposes federal payments to Planned Parenthood for any purpose as well as the use of federal funds for abortion. He has expressed support for permanent residence for the DREAMers but “is not quite there” on citizenship. In 2016, he supported an executive order to prohibit federal contractors from discriminating against LGBT employees. He continues to oppose same sex marriage.
We need a Democratic victory in nearly all of the Toss up seats to gain control of Congress. Iowa’s Third needs a clear voice. Cynthia Axne https://cindyaxneforcongress.com/ decries the loss of four Planned Parenthood facilities in Iowa. She promises to retain federal funding for Planned Parenthood. She promises a path to citizenship for the DREAMERS and to defend the rights of the members of the LGBT community which “are now under attack in Washington.” Provide her some help. We need her in Congress.
