Opening day speeches at the Iowa legislature are often filled with boring platitudes. But Senate President Jake Chapman dispensed with cliches about bipartisan work for the common good in his welcoming remarks on January 10.
Instead, the chamber’s second-ranking Republican called on colleagues to “take a stand” against what he described as a “sinister agenda” by the media and teachers, “who wish to normalize sexually deviant behavior against our children.”
Chapman’s broadside made headlines across the state and quickly inspired a new RAYGUN t-shirt: “Just another SINISTER TEACHER who’s passionate about education.”
Many conservatives have applauded Chapman for his crusade to remove books he considers “obscene” from public schools and create a felony offense for teachers and librarians who disseminate such material. But Iowa’s new political map put the Senate president in a swing district for the first time. He hinted last month that he will seek re-election there, rather than moving to a solid Republican district nearby.
Conspiracy theories that play well in some GOP circles could drive suburban moderates toward Democratic State Senator Sarah Trone Garriott, who is already running in Senate district 14.
“THE ATTACK ON OUR CHILDREN IS NO LONGER HIDDEN”
For those who missed it, here’s Chapman’s January 10 speech in its entirety, taken from the Iowa Senate’s official video feed.
I’ve enclosed the full transcript at the end of this post. Key excerpts:
Colleagues, the time has come to take a stand. It has become increasingly evident that we live in a world in which many, including our media, wish to confuse, misguide, and deceive us, calling good evil and evil good.
One doesn’t have to look far to see the sinister agenda occurring right before our eyes. The attack on our children is no longer hidden. Those who wish to normalize sexually deviant behavior against our children, including pedophilia and incest, are pushing this movement more than ever before.
Our children should be safe and free from this atrocious assault. Our students should be learning about science, and mathematics; they should be learning about engineering and innovation.
Instead, we have some teachers who are disguising sexually obscene material as desired subject matter and profess it as artistic and literary in value. The literature being pushed on our students should disturb all of us, and if you aren’t disturbed, I can only hope it’s because you have not actually heard or seen the content. […]
We must hold those who distribute this repulsive and criminal content to minors accountable. Let us not forget the quote on the first floor of this capitol which reads, “nothing is politically correct [right] that is morally wrong.” In other words, we can’t be right by doing the wrong thing, and doing the right thing can never be wrong.
The books Chapman objects to are not assigned reading in classes, but merely available in school libraries. So no agenda, let alone a “sinister agenda,” is being pushed on students. Several of the titles have won awards for adolescent literature, so they clearly have literary value.
In an interview with conservative radio host Mike Devine last week, Chapman falsely claimed the allegedly obscene books promote sexual abuse or incest. They do not. Rather, some feature characters who have survived abuse or incest.
Chapman complained in a Facebook post on January 11,
Sad but predictable that the mainstream media has mischaracterized my words! Iowa has some of the best public teachers, that is why my children attend public schools. However, it is undeniable that there are some who are pushing this agenda, it is also a fact that we have had multiple teachers charged this year with sexual contact with their students. I will always stand up for what is right! I will always defend and protect our children!
Of course, Iowa law already prohibits teachers from having sexual contact with students. That abuse of power has nothing to do with which books are available in school libraries.
REMARKS PROVOKE BACKLASH AMONG EDUCATORS, ACTIVISTS
Not surprisingly, professional educators have strongly objected to the accusation that they are harming children. Some have penned guest columns in Iowa newspapers. Others have quietly begun making plans to leave the state. The day after Chapman denounced the “sinister agenda,” Iowa Senate Minority Leader Zach Wahls shared a text from a dismayed small town superintendent, part of an email from a principal who already had a teacher request a letter of recommendation for a job outside Iowa, and a message from a teacher in a small city.
Even Republican State Representative Dustin Hite, who chairs the Iowa House Education Committee, told the Des Moines Register he disagreed with Chapman’s comments about teachers.
Last Monday, Trone Garriott denounced Chapman’s “divisive stunts.” And after Governor Kim Reynolds echoed complaints about “X-rated” material in school libraries during her Condition of the State address, the Democrat said in a written statement, “Teachers are not the enemy; they are our friends, neighbors, and community leaders […] These culture wars promoted by Gov. Reynolds and Jake Chapman are hurting Iowans and have to stop.”
Trone Garriott added, “Talented, beloved educators and administrators in my community are resigning. It’s heartbreaking. I wish the Governor would spend some time visiting with our educators – too many are on the verge of leaving.”
UPDATE: Radio Iowa’s O.Kay Henderson asked Reynolds about Chapman’s remarks and published her response on January 19.
“I’m not going to take any ownership of that. I hope he just misspoke and he’ll correct that,” Reynolds said during an interview with Radio Iowa. “But I think everything that I say, that I’ve said and done — not just said, but done — should let teachers know how much I appreciate (them) and especially appreciate them being in the classroom when so many other teachers across this country did not.”
Reynolds said there are individuals who hurt the reputation of many industries. “There’s bad politicians. There’s bad cops — every sector,” she said. “There’s bad media people.”
But Reynolds said she isn’t accusing teachers of having a “sinister agenda” and pointed to her support of teacher leadership and compensation program and the $1000 retention bonus for teachers she just announced last week.
If you listen to Chapman’s January 12 interview with Devine, it’s clear he didn’t “misspeak.”
Long before last week, Chapman was among the most deeply disliked state lawmakers in Iowa Democratic activist circles. Trone Garriott’s latest filing with the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board shows she raised $38,610.54 during 2021 and ended the year with $39,214.19 cash on hand. Individuals gave most of that total; political action committees provided only about $4,000.
The report shows numerous donations came in after Trone Garriott announced on December 1 that she would move to the Dallas County portion of her current district so she can seek re-election in the new Senate district 14, where her presumed opponent will be Chapman.
The latest fundraising reports don’t include money received after December 31, but in a January 18 statement, Trone Garriott’s campaign said more than 300 contributions came in last week, and more than 700 individuals (71 percent of whom hadn’t given to Trone Garriott before) have donated to her campaign since December 1.
At this writing, Chapman’s campaign finance disclosure for 2021 isn’t available online. Top leaders in the Iowa House and Senate typically receive lots of PAC money, and Chapman has many fans on the conservative wing of the GOP. So he may have amassed a large war chest. I’ll update this post after the Republican has filed his report on January 19.
UPDATE: Chapman reported raising $152,900 during 2021. Only about $22,400 of that total came from individual donors (many of them lobbyists); the vast majority came from PACs. He ended the year with $142,574.45 cash on hand.
Money can’t change the fact that Senate district 14 is far different from the Dallas County district Chapman has represented since 2013.
A SWING DISTRICT WITH A “NEVER TRUMP” FACTION
Bleeding Heartland previewed a potential Trone Garriott/Chapman match-up here. To recap briefly: Senate district 14 covers the southeast portion of Dallas County.
About 80 percent of the new district’s residents live in suburbs Trone Garriott already represents: Waukee and portions of West Des Moines and Clive. Chapman currently represents the other 20 percent of residents, who live in rural areas or in the smaller cities of Adel and Van Meter.
Voters in Chapman’s current district favored Donald Trump by more than a 20-point margin in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections. They backed Kim Reynolds by more than 15 points in the 2018 governor’s race.
In contrast, a map Josh Hughes created in Dave’s Redistricting App indicates that Joe Biden outpolled Trump in the new Senate district 14 by 49.8 percent to 48.1 percent. Voters here favored Republicans Joni Ernst and Reynolds, but by small margins (50.4 percent to 47.1 percent for Ernst in 2020, 50.2 percent to 48.2 percent for the governor in 2018).
In other words, this district appears to be purple, with quite a few moderate Republicans or GOP-leaning independents who drew the line at Donald Trump.
Will those voters believe Iowa teachers are perpetrating a “sinister agenda”? Will they embrace Chapman’s black-and-white thinking (“Right is right, all of the time, and wrong is wrong, all of the time”), and his conspiracy theories about media seeking “to confuse, misguide, and deceive us, calling good evil and evil good”?
A slate of conservatives fell short in Waukee’s November 2021 school board elections, even as like-minded candidates ran the table in the Johnston and Ankeny school board races. Among other things, the Waukee candidates had attacked teachers and supported Chapman’s call for a criminal investigation related to LGBTQ-themed books in school libraries.
Turnout in this year’s midterm will be far higher than in the 2021 local and school elections. And Republicans may have the wind at their backs if Biden’s approval rating in Iowa doesn’t improve. But if the 2020 election result is any guide, a sizable contingent of Senate district 14 residents who generally favor Republicans may find Chapman too extreme.
The GOP will surely try to paint Trone Garriott as a far-left radical; one website operated by a Republican political consultant is already on the case. Getting those attacks to stick against an ordained Lutheran minister who works for the Des Moines Area Religious Council is another matter.
Final note: While Chapman suggested last month that he will run in Senate district 14, he hasn’t yet made that official. He has a few more weeks to declare his residency for purposes of the 2022 election. Assuming he stays, he and Trone Garriott will compete this November to represent Senate district 14 for two years (the remainder of a four-year term). The winner will be up for re-election in 2024, when all even-numbered Iowa Senate districts will be on the ballot.
If Chapman decides to move elsewhere in his current district, Iowa law stipulates that Trone Garriott would hold over until 2024, so there will be no midterm election in Senate district 14.
Appendix: Opening remarks by Iowa Senate President Jake Chapman on January 10, 2022, as delivered
Friends, family, colleagues, and to our newly-elected senator, it is my honor to welcome you to the 2022 legislative session. I have always enjoyed the first day of session. It’s a time in which friends and colleagues are reunited, hope and excitement flourishes, and optimism for the future resonates.
Colleagues, the time has come to take a stand. It has become increasingly evident that we live in a world in which many, including our media, wish to confuse, misguide, and deceive us, calling good evil and evil good.
One doesn’t have to look far to see the sinister agenda occurring right before our eyes. The attack on our children is no longer hidden. Those who wish to normalize sexually deviant behavior against our children, including pedophilia and incest, are pushing this movement more than ever before.
Our children should be safe and free from this atrocious assault. Our students should be learning about science, and mathematics; they should be learning about engineering and innovation.
Instead, we have some teachers who are disguising sexually obscene material as desired subject matter and profess it as artistic and literary in value. The literature being pushed on our students should disturb all of us, and if you aren’t disturbed, I can only hope it’s because you have not actually heard or seen the content.
Nobody, regardless of their race, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or occupation has the right to expose children to obscene material. It is for that reason that this body should use this session to address this very issue.
When students are subjected to this violating content, we need to ensure parents have the ability to protect their children by removing them from that district. We can and must tear down the financial barriers that prevent parents from making that decision.
We must hold those who distribute this repulsive and criminal content to minors accountable. Let us not forget the quote on the first floor of this capitol which reads, “nothing is politically correct [right] that is morally wrong.” In other words, we can’t be right by doing the wrong thing, and doing the right thing can never be wrong.
Since 1973 nearly 70 million Americans have had their voices silenced. Their lives were taken in the so-called name of “choice.” We have courageously stood for and defended those who could not defend themselves. I am proud of the work done by this body to give a voice to the voiceless. As the United States Supreme Court takes up this important issue, we stand ready to take whatever steps necessary to defend the dignity of life.
Colleagues, because of your dedication to being fiscally responsible, we come into this legislative session with our economic reserves totally full. Our revenues are at a historic all-time high, and our ending fund balances are flourishing.This economic prosperity has come from sound fiscal policies and reducing taxes on Iowans.
When individual economic freedoms abound, economic prosperity follows. Yet, let’s not forget that there will be some who will wish to spend this money on expanding government. Our focus must be to return these dollars to the rightful owners: the taxpayers. Now is the time to take a bold stand. We have come a long way in reducing taxes on Iowans, but it’s not enough. Let’s keep our eyes set on the total elimination of income tax.
Now is the time for action, now is the time to be bold! We cannot allow another year to go by sitting on the sidelines, while other states are aggressively reducing taxes. This is the year to take action.
Lastly, may we always remember that the work we do here in this building will impact the lives of millions of Iowans and future generations to come. Let’s make 2022 a year to look back on with humility and thanksgiving for the bold stand we took to give greater freedom and liberty to Iowans, where we stood for parental choice in education, where we lifted the crushing weight of tax burdens on Iowans, and where we stood for what is right, even among those who call it wrong. Right is right, all of the time, and wrong is wrong, all of the time. May this body choose to do what is right.
God has so richly blessed and prospered our state, may we recognize Him and His hand in all we do. May He continue to bless this great state, and may He bless each of you throughout this legislative session.