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Iowa State Sen. Rich Taylor is a Democrat who represents District 42. His seat is the most likely Democrat seat to flip Republican. (Most likely doesn’t mean likely, just means the most likely Democrat seat to flip of all the Democrat seats up for election.)

Taylor has been able to skate through his re-election effort without anyone bringing up something that voters deserve to know.

Rich Taylor is deceiving his constituents.

Now, Taylor may be deceiving his constituents for good reason. After all, President Donald J. Trump won Taylor’s district by 23.13 points in 2016.

Clearly, the district favors those who put America first.

So let’s get right into it…

Exhibit A – This mailpiece:

“Supported hiring Iowa workers instead of illegal immigrants.”

That’s sort of true, but it isn’t the full truth.

Here is what Taylor isn’t telling his constituents about his vote on mandatory E-Verify — he voted against it first. In committee, Taylor voted against the bill.

He flipped flopped on the floor of the Iowa Senate.

For what it’s worth, Democrat Sen. Tony Bisignano voted for the bill in the committee. So, if Taylor truly supported it and wanted to break ranks with the Democrats, he wouldn’t have been alone.

If he really supported hiring Iowa workers instead of illegal immigrants, why didn’t he support it in committee?

Why did he wait to support hiring Iowa workers instead of illegal immigrants until the bill was inevitably going to pass the Iowa Senate?

It isn’t the only time Taylor flipped his vote.

During a committee vote on adding Second Amendment language into the Iowa Constitution, Taylor stood with his Party. Taylor voted against the proposed amendment in committee.

Later, when the vote advanced to the full Iowa Senate, Taylor threw up the only yes vote of any Democrat.

The Iowa Standard emailed Sen. Taylor to seek clarification for his change on the E-Verify bill. After a few days, we have not heard back from him.

Taylor’s yes vote on the proposed amendment may be an effort to maintain some support with Second Amendment voters in that District that Trump won by more than 23 points.

But there is reason to wonder just how much Taylor understands the average Iowan who supports and appreciate their Second Amendment rights.

During a committee hearing on a bill that simply reinforced decades-old Iowa law on weapon bans in buildings owned by political subdivisions, Taylor said:

“I have a concealed carry permit, I don’t carry that often, I’m not that scared of people myself, but if I was and I couldn’t carry in this particular hardware store that I want to go in and buy something, I just wouldn’t go in that store.”

Typically people do not have much choice whether they enter a county or city building. There does tend to be a choice when it comes to entering a hardware store.

That’s a big difference. Well, that, and the fact that taxpayers own those political subdivision buildings. They do not own those privately owned hardware stores.

Comparing gun-free policies in privately owned businesses to buildings owned by political subdivisions just isn’t right.

It is also interesting that Taylor said he doesn’t carry often because he is “not that scared of people.” People who carry concealed do not do so because they are “scared of people.” They carry to protect themselves and those around them.

Another huge difference.

Remember that mailer we looked at earlier, I want to highlight one more line — well, maybe two more.

“Worked with Republicans and Democrats to get things done.”

That is the line used on a mailpiece sent to voters during a campaign. But is that truly how he feels?

Consider what he told The Iowa Standard earlier this year:

“The (last) four years, under total Republican control, I just saw too many people getting hurt. It didn’t matter what, I could have the best idea since toast and since it was a Democrat idea, it just wasn’t going to be heard. It wasn’t even going to be discussed. So, that really disappointed me and I saw how many people that the Iowa Republican Party was now hurting rather than trying to be helpful to everybody.”

Which is it?

Has Taylor been able to work with Republicans to get things done, or have Republicans hurt too many people the last four years?

These are questions voters in the district should consider prior to voting. We’ll be anxious to see what happens on Tuesday.
Iowa Senate District 42:

Author: Jacob Hall

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