End Citizens United group hosts roundtable supporting Turek’s Senate campaign

Iowans supporting Josh Turek’s U.S. Senate campaign said at a Monday roundtable they believe the Democratic candidate would be more effective than Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson at limiting corporate influence in politics.

The event, hosted by End Citizens United in Des Moines, brought in community members and advocates for Turek’s Senate campaign to speak about the need to elect someone to Iowa’s U.S. Senate seat who will advocate for working and middle class Iowans during a time of rising costs.

Turek was not at the event in person, but in a news release said he supported ECU’s work to tackle money in politics in the Iowa U.S. Senate race.

“It’s working class Iowans that are bearing the cost of Washington’s corruption,” Turek, a state representative from Council Bluffs, said in a statement. “Congress has refused to crack down on these powerful interests for too long because politicians like Ashley Hinson are bought and paid for by billionaires and corporations. We have far too much money being poured into our political system, and our communities are getting left behind. I’m grateful to End Citizens United for taking on Big Money and hosting this roundtable to center the voices of everyday Iowans.”

Tiffany Muller, the president of End Citizens United, said their organization was formed in the wake of the 2010 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. FEC. She said many of the higher costs Americans are seeing at the grocery store, gas pump and in healthcare are caused by the “unlimited and undisclosed money flooding into our system” allowed by the 2010 ruling, which removed limits on corporations’ direct spending in support of a political campaign.

“What we see right now is a pay-to-play government where we have basically legalized corruption, and this wasn’t inevitable, right?” Muller said. “These are policy choices, but right now in Washington, we have far too many people who won’t stand up to the corporations who are gouging consumers, and instead just allow that to continue to be passed on to the people. So that is why we are here.”

Mandy Newton Rosenow, a Democrat running for Iowa House District 46, said she does not believe Iowa voters, or most Americans, are “anti-corporation” — she said instead, she believed most voters were “anti-‘being ripped off.”

“We’re anti-being the product, right? Like, I don’t like that corporations are able to mine whatever I click and look at, and then sell that to someone else without my permission. And I’m guessing most people feel that way, but someone is paying to allow that to continue to happen because … it’s productive for them. And you know, I think Iowa does great, and we’ve got a wonderful business sense and a business history. But it gets to the point where the big guys get big, and then they squash everything else. And when people take donations in large amounts, they feel beholden to that, obviously. And I think that’s where the balance is off. And when this court case of Citizens United went through and changed how those were funded, we saw those big changes.”

ECU endorsed Turek in June. As people at the roundtable discussed what would make Turek an effective legislator in Washington, D.C., to tackle issues related to corruption, they also criticized Hinson, his general election opponent. Muller said Hinson is an example of a politician who benefits from corporate spending in politics, pointing to a criticism levied regularly by Democrats that her personal wealth grew significantly since she first entered the U.S. House in 2021.

“Iowans have been squeezed by rising cost, but her own personal wealth has grown up to 10 times since going to Congress,” Muller said. “That’s not a coincidence. That is a rigged system working exactly as it’s supposed to.”

Muller said Hinson has taken more than $2 million in funding from corporate political action committees, “including over $600,000 from big pharma and the healthcare industry.” She also criticized Hinson for her husband retaining private stock in an business he formerly owned, meaning the business’ stock is not traded on public exchanges.

Hinson has said she does not trade stocks, and she would support banning all members of Congress from stock trading. She voted in July in support of the Stop Insider Trading Act, which would ban lawmakers in Washington, D.C. and their families from purchasing stocks while serving, but still includes certain exemptions for stocks owned before taking office and for private stock.

Hinson and supporters argue the increase her family’s increase in net worth is because her husband sold his insurance business in 2021.

Nathan Sage, a former U.S. Senate Democratic candidate who has endorsed Turek, said “at the end of the day, actions speak louder than words.”

“Iowans want to see things done,” Sage said. “And you know we’ve seen Ashley Hinson, we’ve seen our (legislators) being in Washington make more money. She’s increased her net worth 10 times. … We want people that are that are actually not just going to say the words, but live by those words, and that’s what we’re talking about with Josh Turek, because that’s who Josh is.”

Billy Fuerst, Hinson’s campaign communications director, criticized Turek in a statement responding to the event for getting support from a super PAC during the Democratic primary.

The VoteVets super PAC, which supports Democratic veterans and is affiliated with Senate Democratic leadership, spent money on ads supporting Turek during his primary election campaign facing Iowa Sen. Zach Wahls.

“Chuck Schumer spent more than $10 million to buy the Democrat nomination for Turek,” Fuerst said. “Now suddenly Josh wants limits on spending? What a hypocrite.”