Dems are giving Middle America the ‘middle finger,’ says Iowa pol

New proposed changes to the Democratic presidential primary calendar effectively give the Midwest “the middle finger,” an Iowa pol said Sunday.

“I’m sorely disappointed that the Democrats chose not to have Iowa as their first-in-the-nation caucus,” Republican Sen. Joni Ernst said on “Fox News Sunday.”

Last week, the Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee voted to make South Carolina the first state in the union to hold its presidential primary, instead of Iowa.

President Biden backs the change, saying it would enable “voters of color” to get an earlier say in the process of picking a presidential candidate.

“For 50 years, the first month of our presidential nominating process has been a treasured part of our democratic process, but it is time to update the process for the 21st century,” he wrote the DNC last week.

That has not sat well with Iowans.

“We have seen a number of pushes in the past to change this,” Ernst said. “I’m glad that Republicans are staying the course. I feel Democrats have really given Middle America the middle finger.”

Under the Dems’ new plan, South Carolina would hold its primary on Feb. 3, 2024, with New Hampshire and Nevada following on Feb. 6. Iowa and New Hampshire have gone first for years.

Along with Ernst, Iowa Democrats are rankled by the proposed changes.

“Democrats cannot forget about entire groups of voters in the heart of the Midwest without doing significant damage to the party for a generation,” Iowa Democratic Party chair Ross Wilburn stated last week.

Speaking alongside Ernst on Sunday, Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine tried to stay out of the fracas.

“They can do what they want,” he said. “I don’t have a dog in this fight.”

With News Wire Services