Charles Bruner was a state legislator from 1978 through 1990 and ran his campaigns as an advocate for children and families, turning his Senate district blue after two decades of Republican representation. He is a volunteer for VoteKids2024 which is hosting a special webinar August 15 on this caregiving agenda. A blurb about the webinar is below. You can register for this webinar at this link.
Iowa Democrats and the policies they propose do a good job of addressing the concerns of almost all the families on the list above, but too often Democrats are silent in speaking to the concerns of that first group: working class, Christian, “traditional” husband and wife families worried their way of life is no longer valued, and government is leaving them behind.
Republicans do the opposite. In her response to President Joe Biden’s 2022 State of the Union Address, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds emphasized that Republicans believe that “parents matter” and are leading a “pro-family revolution.” She, Moms for Liberty, the FAMiLY Leader, and Iowa Republicans in the state legislature and Congress have persistently promoted these families, calling for policies to focus on them and protect them from government overreach.
Polling from Parents Together clearly shows that Democrats have lost ground with parent voters. Since 2020, parents’ views have shifted; overall, parent voters now see Republicans as more aligned with parents and their rights relative to Democrats.
When parents are asked what is most a part of their own identity, “values” and “family” head the list (89 and 88 percent respectively). “Friends” (44 percent), “what you do for work” (42 percent), “gender” (37 percent), “religion” (36 percent), “political views” (34 percent) , and “racial and ethnic background” (26 percent) are much further down on the list. Similar figures apply to grandparents.
That family represented in the first box may not agree with many of the specific Republican proposals that supposedly defend their rights. But it is easy to see why they may feel Republicans (not Democrats) speak to them and value them.
The polling from Parents Together also indicates that the core concerns parents express today relate to the economy and rising costs, which are stressing household budgets (particularly the price of groceries and food). They are looking for policies that will make their jobs as parents easier. Parent rights to school choice and vouchers and against teachers indoctrinating their children—prominent themes in Republican messaging—actually represent big concerns with only a small share of parents even in that first category.
Further polling questions show parents are more persuadable in terms of changing their votes than voters overall, again particularly around issues that speak to providing them the support they need to raise their children.
My message from all this to Democrats is: Don’t cede the “pro-family” and “parents matter” space to Republicans. If Democrats are to regain the position we had in Iowa a short decade ago, we must be clear about how we support all families—including those in that first category of families.
Through what has been called the caregiving agenda, the Kamala Harris-Tim Walz ticket is championing an agenda that supports parents and can as easily be called a “pro-child” and “valuing families” agenda: expanding the child tax credit, establishing paid family leave, making child care affordable, and providing home and community-based services for those with special health needs.
Through her Helpers for Bohannan county team effort (helpers@bohannanforcongress.com), Iowa Congressional candidate Christina Bohannan is working to engage, educate, and energize voters on the importance of government making such investments. At the grassroots level, groups like MomsRising Together are emphasizing precisely these issues, because that is what their members consider most important.
The fact is, all voters, candidates, and political parties agree families are the foundation of our society, and government has no responsibility greater than ensuring they can raise the next generation to succeed.
At the same time, there now are two very distinct conceptions of what a “pro-family” agenda is and which “parents matter” in doing so. Iowa Republican leaders only check that first box and want government to be exclusive in its support of that one type of family. Democrats have the opportunity to provide a much broader and more inclusive message and agenda.
If Democrats want to make inroads in getting back the votes they have lost over the last decade, we need to be explicit in checking that first box. Many of these votes were lost in white, rural, working class communities and in significant measure from these very families.
This doesn’t mean abandoning our support for all families, but it does mean being clear how our agenda supports traditional, caring, hard-working, Christian, husband and wife, working class families.
Paid family leave gives families the opportunity to be at home for their newborn and to care for a family member who has become ill, something traditional families see as particularly important. The child tax credit recognizes the additional expenses families with children have and. Whether both parents work or one stays at home to care for the children, it means $170 per month more in their bank account monthly to meet family needs. When families have a loved one with special and complex needs, home and community-based services provide that additional care so the family is not overextended and those loved ones can live in dignity.
These policies may not address all the needs for protecting and preserving these families, but on a real level, they offer much more real support than what Republicans propose.
Iowa Democrats also need to propose state-level actions to do so to complement the federal ones. In fact, Governor Tim Walz includes in his administration’s signature accomplishments expanding Minnesota’s child tax credit, creating paid family leave, expanding child care and nutrition services, and providing home and community services. Iowa Democrats should make sure our policy agenda and candidates’ talking points include those ideas.
Most importantly, Iowa Democrats can speak to their “traditional family” friends, co-workers, and neighbors about a pro-family agenda.
VOTEKIDS2024 CHILDREN AND THE 2024 ELECTION WEBINAR – Thursday, August 15, 2024, 1:00 p.m. central. Learn how the federal administration’s caregiving agenda (endorsed by Vice President Kamala Harris) addresses children and families in a special webinar, “Children, Caregiving, and the 2024 Election” on Thursday, August 15, at 1:00 p.m. central. Four national experts—Bruce Lesley from First Focus, Mayra Alvarez from the Children’s Partnership, Donna Norton from MomsRising Together, and Jamie Worker from Caring Across Generations—will provide insights on the caregiving agenda for children, families, caregivers, and communities. Register for this webinar at this link.
Top image is by GoodStudio, available via Shutterstock.