Regional directors from the Sen. Joni Ernst’s office visit the Iowa City Public Library to hear constituents’ concerns, ranging from voter-ID laws to health care.
By James Geerdes
For Iowa City liberals, party lines have become increasingly clear.
When the regional directors for Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, hosted traveling office hours at the Iowa City Public Library, 123 S. Linn St., on Tuesday morning, discussions ranged from voting rights and accessibility to the future of health care in Iowa and in the United States.
Sam Pritchard, a member of Ernst’s office, led the event, which was held because “Iowans know what Iowa needs,” said the event website. Ernst’s office will host three of these events in each of Iowa’s 99 counties this year.
Ernst did not attend the meeting, but the attendees were told all concerns would be passed along to the senator. Approximately 30 community members were present.
“My role here is to take your concerns and comments and share them with the senator and the rest of her team,” Pritchard said.
In May, Iowa became one of 33 states to enact voter-identification laws, which are set to go into effect by June 2018. Signed by then-Gov. Terry Branstad, HF 516 requires voters to present driver’s licenses, military IDs, passports, or state-issued voter-identification cards at the polls. The law also drew audience attention.
“I’m really concerned about voting access and voting rights, now that we have a new voter ID law in Iowa. The rollout is looking confusing,” UI graduate student Brynn Bogert told Pritchard. “I’m really concerned about people who don’t have Iowa driver’s licenses and when they’ll be able to get their alternate IDs.”
RELATED: Iowans back voter ID laws
The meeting took place amid the Senate’s standoff on the GOP’s proposed replacement for the Affordable Care Act. On Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., announced it had failed.
“It’s got to be horrible for the doctors to figure out how to get care for their patients, and how to get it paid for, let alone just doing the right thing for their patient,” said Holly Sanger, a U.S. veteran.
Despite Sanger’s political affiliation, she said, she still expects Ernst to work in her favor.
“I know [Ernst] is a Republican senator from Iowa, but she represents all of us,” Sanger said. “She took an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. It’s time for her to do that.”
For two-time cancer survivor Barbara VanRheenen, affordable treatment is also a concern with the GOP’s efforts to repeal the ACA.
“When my husband and I got married, we decided to do the grown-up thing and get life insurance. But unfortunately, I had a pre-existing condition, and I was in the high-risk pool,” VanRheenen said. “No insurance company would give me life insurance, and when I finally did find one, the premiums were too high for me to afford.”
