AMAC Exclusive – By Eleanor Vaughn
Every four years, the country’s attention turns to the Iowa caucuses, the first of the presidential contests. Then, when the caucuses are over, the candidates (and the attention of the political media) leave Iowa until the next election. But for the more than three million people who live in Iowa, the state doesn’t simply disappear. And now, under the leadership of Republican Governor Kim Reynolds, the country – and Republican politicians in particular – may do well to pay a little more attention to the Hawkeye State outside of campaign season.
Reynolds was first elected in 2018 after serving two terms as lieutenant governor and serving as governor for a year after her predecessor, Terry Branstad, was confirmed as President Trump’s Ambassador to China. A native Iowan, Reynolds has served her state as a county treasurer, a state senator, and now, as Governor – the first woman to hold the post in the state’s history. She has guided Iowa through the pandemic and every other crisis of the last four years, and, though her efforts have not been widely publicized, they have been commendable. Her recent Condition of the State Address provides a window into what Iowa—and Governor Reynolds—are doing right.
Reynolds particularly focused on education issues in the speech, which, as a contest for Virginia Governor showed last year, have captured voters’ attention. In light of the proliferation of Critical Race Theory and other left-wing ideologies in schools, Reynolds called for transparency from schools about what they are teaching and what materials students have access to. She specifically raised the issue of explicit books with “X-rated” content being allowed in elementary and middle-school libraries. She further said schools should address parents’ concerns, not ignore them (a seemingly simple enough request, although not one that many on the left agree with). “Enough is enough,” Reynolds pledged. “Parents matter, and we’re going to make sure you stay in charge of your child’s education.”
Reynolds also spoke directly to parents on the issue of school choice. While appreciative of the Iowa public school system, she recognizes that practically speaking, it doesn’t work for every child. So, she discussed a new initiative to increase school choice, promising legislation that would create “an individualized educational plan to receive a portion of the ‘per pupil’ funds allocated annually by the state to move their child to the education system of their choice.”
Reynolds’ policies are built on the principle that parents should be informed about what schools are teaching, and should be able to choose what school and learning environment is right for their child. At the same time, with more choices available to students, Reynolds argues that schools will have an incentive to improve to compete for students, which will ultimately raise the overall quality of the school system.
However, Reynolds does not plan to pit parents and teachers against each other. She also announced a plan to award a $1,000 bonus to teachers who have stayed in their jobs throughout the pandemic, despite the many difficulties. With so many teachers throughout the country resigning or fighting with their school districts, Reynolds’s plan to encourage and support Iowa’s teachers is an intriguing experiment, in a similar vein to Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin’s promise to raise teacher pay and then demand that schools perform better.
Reynolds also outlined an ambitious apprenticeship program for high schoolers interested in education or healthcare. This program would have high schoolers working with professionals in their field, getting paid, and jump-starting their careers before graduation. With college costs at an all-time high, apprenticeship programs like these could offer an attractive alternative for students who don’t want to take on the debt associated with four-year colleges.
The struggling economy is, of course, the most important issue for many Americans. Iowa is doing well on the jobs front, with 1.54 million workers employed as of November 2021, almost 80% of pre-pandemic numbers. Notably, Reynolds refused to lock down as strictly as many other states during the onset of the pandemic in 2020, and as a result, her state has been able to recover more quickly than most. Reynolds is encouraging this rebound, with a statewide grant program for childcare facilities, making it easier for parents to go back to work, as well as a proposal for a flat 4% income tax rate. After running a historic $1.2 billion surplus last year, Reynolds and Iowa Republicans believe the state is taking too much in taxes, and that a tax cut is in order– including a complete repeal of tax collected on retirement income.
Some of Reynolds’s other accomplishments of the last four years include the “Back the Blue” bill, a law designed to punish rioters more strictly, a repeal of the death tax, an expansion of telehealth services, and a program to expand broadband access, especially to rural areas. Her actions appear to have been rooted consistently in common sense and conservative principles. She has not been deaf to public criticism, but she has not been intimidated by mobs.
With all of these achievements aimed at creating a place for working families to thrive, it’s no surprise that U.S. News and World Report ranked Iowa the number one state for an opportunity in 2021. Iowans seem to agree, as well. Reynolds’s overall approval rating is 51%, with 56% approving of her handling of the economy. The approval for both her educational policies and her COVID policies is 52%.
In a state that went 52% for Barack Obama in 2012, such numbers are significant, and perhaps have something to do with Donald Trump’s landslide victory there in 2020. In Washington, politicians often pursue policies that must be everything to everyone and end up being nothing, which contributes to plummeting approval ratings for Congress. Meanwhile, Reynolds’s more grounded, practical approach has proven both popular and effective.
Governor Kim Reynolds is an excellent example of what can be done, rather than what politicians say they will do. During her four years as governor, she has been effective in leading her state through crises that the country and the world have been shaken by. As we enter the midterm season and creep ever closer to campaigns for 2024, candidates should remember the Reynolds record in Iowa as an excellent example of what it means, after the election is over, to be a proven conservative leader. And all of us—candidates and voters—should remember that elections aren’t the end, but the beginning—and that governing is even harder than winning.
Eleanor Vaughn is a writer living in Virginia.