Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds will deliver Republican response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address

Republicans say that Gov. Kim Reynolds’ leadership makes her the ideal choice to deliver the Republican response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address. Reynolds will deliver her remarks from Des Moines following Biden’s address.

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Grace Smith

Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds delivers the Condition of the State Address at the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines, Iowa, on Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2022. During the State Address, Reynolds spoke about childcare, Iowa teachers, material taught in schools, unemployment, tax cuts, and more.

Emily Delgado, Politics Reporter
February 22, 2022

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds will deliver the Republican response to President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address on March 1. 

Senate and House Majority Leaders, Sen. Mitch McConnel R-Ky. and Rep. Kevin McCarthy R-Calif. Announced the decision on Tuesday. They said Reynolds’ leadership in Iowa has made her a leader in the Republican Party. 

“While Washington Democrats fail working Americans, Republican governors are fighting and winning for their families. Governor Kim Reynolds’ brave, bold, and successful leadership for Iowans has put her right at the front of that pack,” McConnell said in a press release. 

Ahead of her speech to the nation, Reynolds says that the Biden Administration is governing on an agenda that constrain free speech, though and economic freedom. 

“The American people have had enough, but there is an alternative and that’s what I look forward to sharing on Tuesday evening,” Reynolds said in a press release.

Reynolds received praise from fellow Iowa Republicans on Tuesday as well.

“Under Governor Reynolds’ bold leadership, Iowa has smartly navigated the pandemic and economic fallout, promoting a safe and swift return to normalcy. Iowa’s path to continued prosperity is a roadmap for the rest of the nation,” Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa wrote in a statement released on Feb. 22. 

Reynolds has taken a largely hands-off approach to pandemic mitigation. She did not institute a stay-at-home order early in the pandemic, as many governors did, and Iowa never had a full mask mandate for indoor spaces. Reynolds ended the state’s COVID-19 disaster proclamation this month. 

Reacting to the announcement, Senate Majority Leader Zach Wahls, D-Coralville, shared Reynolds’ action on the workforce and education in Iowa. 

“Iowa is facing a workforce crisis that harms employees, small businesses, and consumers – the Gov’s policies make this crisis worse, making it harder for Iowa to attract and retain talent. We call it the #ReynoldsWorkforceCrisis,” Wahls tweeted. 

Wahls noted that Reynolds opposed the American Rescue Plan, one of Biden’s key legislative victories, and said she “hypocritically takes credit for the money she opposed when she awards money in our state.” 

Iowa Republicans say that Reynolds is the choice to highlight  Biden’s failing agenda. 

“Governor Reynolds is the best choice to illustrate the contrast between the failing, destructive Biden agenda and the successful, dynamic record of Iowa Republicans. The only solutions from the Biden Administration are more government, more reckless spending, and more of the same policies creating the worst inflation crisis in 40 years,” Senate Majority Leader Jack Whitver, R-Ankeny said in a Iowa Senate press release. 

Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, said in a press release that Reynolds’ handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and fight for the average American make her the ideal choice to deliver the rebuttal of Biden’s address. 

Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, delivered the rebuttal to then-President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address in 2015, garnering social media attention over an anecdote about wearing bread bags over her shoes on rainy days as a child.

“In Iowa, we have seen what proven leadership looks like under our governor and my friend, Kim Reynolds, someone who is cutting taxes, expanding opportunity, and standing up for our students and families. I can’t think of a better person to make the case for freedom and liberty and against the radical Biden agenda than Governor Reynolds,” Ernst said in a press release. 

Biden will deliver the state of the union to a joint session of the House and Senate on March 1, and Reynolds will be speaking from Des Moines following his address.