A Democratic candidate running for Congress in Iowa will reportedly not be allowed to speak at a local Democratic Party fundraiser allegedly because of her foul mouth, and she is claiming that the party is censoring her.
The Polk County Democratic Committee voted not to invite Congressional candidate, Democrat Heather Ryan, to speak at their upcoming steak fry due to her tendency to use foul language in her stump speeches, the Des Moines Register reports
Kimberley Boggus and Lindsay Paulson, the committee’s co-chairs, reportedly stressed to party members in a letter that the event was meant to be a “family-friendly” affair.
“The committee wants to make sure all people feel comfortable attending, including parents with young children,” they wrote in the letter.
Ryan, who is running for a congressional seat in Iowa’s third district, created a Facebook video in response to the party’s decision, claiming that she is being “censored.”
The video even comes with a disclaimer at the beginning noting how many times the foul language is used in the video and warns viewers who are not comfortable with her “salty language” to stop watching.
“The party that tells women to sit down and shut up is not supposed to be the Democratic Party,” she said. “I may not be refined, but I’m real. The polished turds that they continue to shove down our throats as politicians are still turds.”
In the video, she claims the local party banned her from speaking at that particular event because she called her Republican challenger, Rep. David Young (R-IA), an “asshole” at a recent party function.
Ryan is very open about her use of profanity. In a video announcing her campaign, the Navy veteran turned businesswoman talks about her generous use of swear words while describing her views as “slightly left of Jesus.”
The Polk County Democratic Committee chairman told the Register that Ryan is still welcome to come to the steak fry even though she’s not a speaker and that she can speak at other events in the future.