I teach 2nd grade and occasionally have to settle arguments that take place on the playground. The incidents usually begin with 2 students disagreeing with each other over little things. Then the students will say they don’t want to be friends with each other and one says the other can’t play with them anymore.

This is basically what happened in the Iowa House last week when Minority Leader Christopher Rants (R-Sioux City) kicked out Walt Tomenga (R-Johnston) from the Republican Caucus debate on raising the cigarette tax. Tomenga favors a $1 per pack increase in the cigarette tax, a move that Rants has been working hard to stop.

Democrats found a lonely Tomenga in the lunchroom and invited him to speak at their caucus…

Tomenga said he accepted the Democrats’ invitation and took some ribbing from them about possibly changing parties. He said he has no plans to do so, even though he sometimes is out of step with Republican leaders. “I admit I’m probably an unusual Republican,” he said with a smile. “But you could make the case that anybody who calls themselves a Republican is unusual, so I fit right in.”

It is pretty easy to tell who Rants’ real friends are. Last year, Rants received $138,497 from RJ Reynolds Tobbacco’s political action committee. It doesn’t matter what side of the aisle you are in, when you have work to do on behalf of your largest campaign contributors.