Iowa Republicans have an on-again, off-again relationship with Donald Trump

Former President Donald Trump’s rally in Des Moines this past weekend was a family reunion of sorts.

The one-term, twice impeached former president has held a few events since leaving office but this was the first one featuring a big cast of Republican officials. The state GOP chairman, the governor and three of the state’s six federal legislators came out to show their support.

Trump took the opportunity to give his “complete and total endorsement” to U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, who recently announced plans to seek an eighth term in the Senate.

“He was with us all the way, every time I needed something,” Trump told the crowd before inviting Grassley on stage.

When Trump really needed them — when he needed them to subvert the election process by rejecting legitimate results put forth by the states — Iowa Republicans weren’t there for him

Clearly, Trump has a short memory. Lucky for him, so do his Republican toadies.

When Trump really needed them — when he needed them to subvert the election process by rejecting legitimate results put forth by the states — Iowa Republicans weren’t there for him. Grassley and the rest of the Iowa delegation — five Republicans and one Democrat — all voted in January to certify the 2020 election results.

Several months ago, Grassley was one of few national Republicans issuing clear and strong statements condemning Trump’s election fraud fantasies and the violence they stoked.

“To date, 78 lawsuits have been filed alleging election irregularities in various states. They have had their day in court but none of them was successful in changing election results in any state,” Grassley wrote in January.

Grassley in February called the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol “a direct, violent attack on our seat of government” and that “everyone involved must take responsibility for their destructive actions that day, including the former president.”

Less than a year later, though, Grassley thinks associating with Trump is the “smart” thing to do. Grassley this weekend took the podium for about 20 seconds to accept Trump’s endorsement.

"I was born at night but not last night. So if I didn’t accept the endorsement of a person that’s got 91 percent of the Republican voters in Iowa, I wouldn’t be too smart. I’m smart enough to accept that endorsement,” Grassley said, referencing a recent Des Moines Register Iowa Poll showing post-presidency Trump is more popular in Iowa than ever before.

Trump backers at the Des Moines rally initiated a “Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Barrett” chant, the three Trump appointees on the U.S. Supreme Court. Grassley took a lot of heat overseeing two of those confirmations as judiciary chairman. The crowd apparently hadn’t checked to know the justices are on the outs with Trump right now.

Just a few months ago, Trump was quoted in a book lashing out at the justices, Brett Kavanaugh in particular, after they rejected a lawsuit seeking to challenge the election results.

Conservative court appointments have been one of the biggest selling points for Trump. To him, though, they are simply pawns, valuable only insofar as they are useful for preserving his political career.

Iowa Republicans are forgetting how fickle Trump’s favor is. He will praise you one moment and cast you aside the next if you think about crossing him.

(319) 398-8262; editorial@thegazette.com