DNC Statement on Kim Reynolds’s Endorsement

In response to Iowa governor Kim Reynolds endorsing Ron DeSantis, DNC spokesperson Rhyan Lake released the following statement:

“From one extreme MAGA governor to another, Kim Reynolds’s endorsement of Ron DeSantis makes perfect sense – America’s two most unpopular, anti-abortion governors are sticking together. Reynolds and DeSantis have been in lockstep on their failed MAGA leadership – signing extreme abortion bans, allowing book bans, and handing out tax giveaways for the ultra-wealthy and big corporations at the expense of hardworking families. Unfortunately for them, doubling down on their shared MAGA agenda won’t revive DeSantis’s  floundering campaign.”

DeSantis is an anti-abortion extremist who is running his campaign on an extreme MAGA agenda that includes a national abortion ban.

Tucker Carlson: “You signed a ban on abortion after six weeks in Florida. Would you do the same as president, nationally?”

DeSantis: “Well, I’m very proud to say Kim Reynolds is here and she signed a great heartbeat bill today. We were able to do that in Florida. We had a lot of opposition to that. I’m proud to have been a pro-life governor and I will be a pro-life president, so of course I want to sign pro-life legislation.”

New York Times: “DeSantis Says He Would Sign a 15-Week Abortion Ban as President”

ABC News: “In an easily missed moment during Wednesday night’s chaotic GOP presidential primary debate, Gov. Ron DeSantis said he would sign a federal 15-week abortion ban.”

Radio Iowa: “On Saturday at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition event, you said as president, you would support abortion restrictions at the state and the federal level. Would you sign the nationwide 15-week ban that the Faith and Freedom Coalition supports? 

DeSantis: “So I’ve said from the beginning of this, as president, you put pro-life legislation on my desk, I’m going to look favorably and support the legislation.”

DeSantis: “As president, I’m going to welcome pro-life policies across the board at both [state and federal] levels.”

DeSantis: “Dobbs returned the issue to the elected representatives of the people. And so I think that there’s a role for both the federal and the states.”

DeSantis: “I’m proud to have been a pro-life governor and I will be a pro-life president, so, I mean, of course I want to sign pro-life legislation.”

Like Reynolds, DeSantis also this year signed an extreme law banning abortion in Florida before many women even know they’re pregnant – and a different abortion ban he signed last year has already created a horrifying reality for women in Florida.

NBC News: “Ron DeSantis quietly signs Florida’s 6-week abortion ban into law”

Tampa Bay Times: “Late Thursday night, in a private ceremony in his office, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill to ban most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. … His office announced the signing in a highly unusual news release sent out after 11 p.m., then updated his schedule to say the ceremony happened at 10:45 p.m.”

Orlando Weekly: “Middle school-aged incest victim was turned away from Florida abortion clinics under 15-week ban”

Washington Post: “Two friends were denied care after Florida banned abortion. One almost died.”

CNN: “Florida law allows abortions after 15 weeks if two doctors confirm the diagnosis of a fatal fetal abnormality in writing, but doctors in Florida and states with similar laws have been hesitant to terminate such pregnancies for fear someone will question whether the abnormality was truly fatal. The penalties for violating the law are severe: Doctors can go to prison and face heavy fines and legal fees.”

DeSantis and Reynolds have both pursued extreme agendas, allowed books to be banned from schools, and attacked LGBTQ+ children.

Politico: “New Florida teaching standards say African Americans received some ‘personal benefit’ from slavery”

DeSantis: “Yeah, I would eliminate the federal Department of Education if we can. I don’t think that – the federal government was never envisioned to have really any role in K through 12.”

NBC News: “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed four bills Wednesday restricting LGBTQ rights, including a measure that expands what critics have called the state’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ law and another that will ban transition-related care for minors.”

Des Moines Register: “Kim Reynolds signs sweeping Iowa education law on book bans, LGBTQ teaching. What it does:”

Iowa Starting Line: “Here’s What’s Different About Gov. Reynolds’ Newest School Voucher Bill”

“For the third legislative session in a row, Gov. Kim Reynolds has introduced another version of her private school voucher bill, but the latest proposal is her boldest, biggest, and most expensive one to date.”

DeSantis and Reynolds have lined the pockets of the ultra-wealthy and biggest corporations with tax giveaways at the expense of hardworking families.

News Service of Florida: “Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday quickly signed a bill aimed at helping shield businesses and insurance companies from lawsuits. … The heavily lobbied bill includes a series of steps to try to limit litigation against businesses and insurance companies.”

Politico: “Rising cost of living in not quite so free Florida”

CBS News: “Florida is the least affordable place to live in the U.S.”

WINK: “Florida has the highest percentage of cost-burdened renters nationwide”

CNN: “Florida is now America’s inflation hotspot”

Des Moines Register: “‘Iowa has become the Florida of the Midwest,’ threatening small-town insurance businesses”

Common Good Iowa: “Huge Iowa tax cuts nothing to celebrate”

“[Reynolds] touted a nearly $2 billion tax cut that undermines Iowa’s values by tilting the system even more in favor of the top 1 percent and wealthy corporations, at great cost to ordinary Iowans. … This law will make it harder for future lawmakers to deliver for ordinary Iowans, especially kids and those struggling to make ends meet, so that the wealthy can get another tax break.”

Des Moines Register: “Iowa’s corporate tax rates will drop if the state takes in more than $700 million per year in corporate income taxes. Those rates could begin to lower as soon as 2023. After every year that corporate tax receipts are higher than $700 million the surplus will be used to lower the top business tax rate — which is currently 9.8% — until all corporations pay a 5.5% tax. The corporate tax cuts are estimated to reduce state revenues by $229.4 million when fully phased in.”

A poll last week found that DeSantis and Reynolds are the two most unpopular governors in the country.

Newsweek: “Morning Consult released its quarterly U.S. Senator and Governor Approval Ratings report on Tuesday, showing that 45 percent of people in Florida disapprove of the job DeSantis is doing as governor, with 51 percent approving. The rating places DeSantis second in terms of highest disapproval ratings, with Iowa’s Republican Governor Kim Reynolds in first place at 47 percent (49 approve).”