Cole wrong about Democrat disdain

Althea Cole gets a “Pinocchio” for last Sunday’s column. Her column turns on a single comment Sen. Elizabeth Warren allegedly made to a reporter en route to New Hampshire after the 2020 Iowa caucuses. Apparently, Warren told the reporter that voters had said they would be more likely to vote for her (Warren) if she were a man, or in the words of the voter, if she “had a penis.”

Cole makes the huge leap to claiming Warren’s comment “reeks” of disdain for voters — “emblematic not just of Warren’s attitude, but that of the entire Democratic Party toward smaller, less populated states.” Cole rides this whopper into a corner speculating why the DNC is reconsidering Iowa’s “first in the nation” status — and the profitable goodies the caucus brings to the state. “What has Democrats so motivated to move beyond Iowa?” Cole asks. “Simple,” she says, “the disdain for Iowans … exemplified by Sen. Warren’s comments.”

Sorry, Ms. Cole. Democrats do not have disdain for voters. Warren made over 100 campaign stops in Iowa in 2019-20, wading through long lines of well-wishers to take selfies and exchange “pinkie fingers” with thousands of little girls. Other candidates made as many stops. No disdain reported. Admiral Mike Franken, Democratic congressional candidates, gubernatorial candidate Deidre DeJear, and legislative candidates have been in every community, engaging voters and promoting an uplifting platform. If anyone can find a single act of actual disdain, they’re welcome to offer it up for Cole to ballyhoo.

Gerald Ott

Ankeny