State trooper Zach Dieken announced his candidacy for Iowa House on Monday morning. Dieken sent a press release to media throughout the district, which is a basic task for anyone running for public office.
In the release, Dieken called himself a “courageous Christian conservative.” He spoke out against abortion, in defense of gun rights and in support of parental rights in education.
He also said he was concerned with the growing federal government and the erosion of personal rights and liberties seen through the last two years.
It all prompted a brief reply from a reporter called Mari Radtke, who is with the O’Brien County Bell-Times-Courier.
“So who protects us from state official overreach,” Radtke asked.
Dieken took the time to respond to Radtke. His response initiated another message from Radtke.
This time, Radtke dissected Dieken’s words and pressed him further. Radtke sliced Dieken’s words, like this:
DIEKEN: We are seeing this across the county with school board elections. Has nothing to do with being protected from state legislators.
RADTKE: Are you in favor of a legislature overturning elections?
And…
DIEKEN: Parents are protecting themselves (and their children) by standing up for what is right.
RADTKE: Are you opposed to simple public health measures like masks? Are you in favor of selectively teaching students certain facts by limiting content learned by students? Shouldn’t those parents learn curriculum and then choose (and pay for) private school if they don’t like the content?
Perhaps the most absurd and obscene thing Radtke said was this…
“So are you a reasonable Republican or a Trump Republican?”
Whiskey. Tango. Foxtrot.
Does Radtke realize she lives in a county that gave President Donald J. Trump 77.3 percent of its vote? That’s a lot. Is Radtke saying Trump supporters are not reasonable? Would this mean Radtke believes 77.3 percent of O’Brien County voters are not reasonable?
How can anyone continue to believe there is not a liberal bias in journalism. And it isn’t just NBC, CBS, NPR, The Des Moines Register, etc. It’s also in small-town Iowa. Even in towns where 77.3 percent of the people may support conservatism.
One might ask Radtke if she is a reasonable journalist or a far-left radical liberal journalist. But I think we know the answer.
