Iowa GOP Chairman: Democrat Theresa Greenfield Will Need a ‘Backbone’ to Run for Senate

Iowa Republican Party Chairman Jeff Kaufmann told Breitbart News in a statement Tuesday that Iowa Democrat Senate candidate Theresa Greenfield will need a “backbone” to run for the U.S. Senate.

Iowa Democrat Senate candidate Greenfield has faced criticism over the weekend for refusing to answer questions from Americans that wish to record their questions for the public to witness.

In the latest instance, one Greenfield campaign staffer attempted to grab someone’s camera.

The Iowa GOP has compiled a collection of short videos in which Greenfield staffers have told those in the audience not to record her town halls.

Kauffman contended that Greenfield is terrified of answering the Iowa public’s questions and that she will have to get a “backbone” to run for the Senate.

The Iowa GOP Chairman told Breitbart News:

It’s clear Greenfield is terrified of taking questions from Iowans. Not only has she still not held a single town hall, but now her staff is aggressively shutting down questions. If she truly thinks she can stand up for Iowans in the U.S. Senate, she’ll have to get a backbone and make herself accessible to voters.

Shane Vander Hart of Caffeinated Thoughts said that Greenfield should not be running for office if she cannot “handle” the pressure of political trackers.

Vander Hart said:

If Greenfield can’t handle cameras as a candidate how will she handle the scrutiny as a U.S. Senator? Again, trackers are part of politics. Republican candidates have them following around as well. Are we to believe that the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) doesn’t have people following U.S. Senator Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, around? It’s just part of the process.

If she can’t handle it, perhaps she shouldn’t be running for U.S. Senator.

Greenfield’s relative lack of public appearances might serve as another instance of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) “windowless basement” strategy. Schumer reportedly said in September that Senate Democrat candidates should “spend the next 16 months in a windowless basement raising money and then we’re going to spend 80 percent of it on negative ads about Tillis.”

Greenfield has had a history of making seemingly bizarre comments.

In November, Greenfield called Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) a “socialist” for pushing policies such as President Donald Trump’s tax cut legislation.

Greenfield contended that because the Iowa conservative pushed for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, she advocated for socialist policies, as the tax cuts might have benefitted billionaires as well as middle-class Americans.

Greenfield told a Democrat at the forum, “I’ve had two reporters ask me that very question about being a socialist.”

She added, “I (told them) Joni’s a socialist. I run a small business. I provide jobs. I keep the lights on and every other Thursday, with pride, I sign paychecks. Joni votes for tax bills that give handouts to billionaires. That’s socialism.”