2nd District candidate drops out of debate after claiming attack by sponsors

UPDATED: Christopher Reed of Marion, one of four candidates for the GOP nomination in Iowa's 2

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District, has dropped out of debate April 29, claiming he had been attacked by the sponsors, Young Americans for Liberty, “for having conservative principles and a desire to defend this nation.”

“I have never backed out of a debate and I have a personal policy of ‘any questions, anytime, anywhere' but at this time, I feel it is a matter of integrity that I will not attend,” Reed said.

So far, Republicans Steve Rathje, Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Rob Gettemy plan to participate in the debate at 7 p.m. at Seamans Center for the Engineerintg Arts & Sciences.

Reed offered several examples of comments by YAL, a college-based off-shoot of Ron Paul's Campaign for Liberty, including these:

• “America is to blame for much of the crisis in the Middle East.”
• “We were attacked on 9/11 because of America's foreign policy.”
• “America is not the most benevolent country God ever gave man.”
• “We should sit down with the world's ruthless dictators and find out what we have done to make them hate us.”
• “America is the aggressor government that has caused civil populations to suffer.”
• “America is attempting to form an empire abroad.”

That sort of “blame America first” approach made Reed decide not to participate, he said.

Ani DeGroot, president of the UI YAL, said Reed misunderstood questions chapter members asked him during a discussion at the 2

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Disrict convention April 24. She and other YAL members share a non-interventionist philosophy. They don't believe that is the same as a “blame America first” philosophy.

DeGroot suggested that showing up for the debate would have made a stronger statement on Reed's part than skipping it.

Reed said he didn't “discredit” his opponents for participating, “But, as a red-blooded American patriot who has proudly served this nation in the military, including deployment to the Middle East, I cannot in good faith attend any such forum and lend credence to the group putting the forum together.”

Reed served in the Navy for five years.