Patty Judge Tests the U.S. Senate Waters
Late last week, Patty Judge, Iowa’s former Secretary of Agriculture and Lt. Governor, indicated that she was considering a run for U.S. Senate challenging incumbent Republican Chuck Grassley. Grassley, as everyone knows, has served in elected office for 57 consecutive years and if you’re keeping track that means he came into his first elected office the same year as Alaska and Hawaii were formally admitted into the United States, Fidel Castro assumed power in Cuba, and the film Ben Hur was released into theaters. Although the field of possible candidates on the Democratic side of the aisle is somewhat crowded at the moment, Judge’s possible entry is a welcome sign for the party as it seeks a credible voice to challenge Senator Grassley, who in addition to being in office since the television show Bonanza first appeared has made obstructionism his core governing philosophy.
The race is admittedly uphill. Having run and won 17 elections, Grassley is almost certainly the most successful politician in the state’s history. He is currently the fourth most senior member of the U.S. Senate. He is chair of the Judiciary Committee, where you get the added perk of not having to work every fourth year. Without a law degree, I was not aware of that clause of the Constitution but Grassley assures us that it’s there. He also maintains a significant fundraising advantage having reported more than $4.3 million cash on hand at the end of 2015.
I had the pleasure of working for Patty Judge throughout 2006 and several months in 2009 and 2010. Based on that experience, I can say that she is a thoughtful public servant, an incredibly hard and reliable worker, trustworthy, and eminently capable. She no doubt understands and appreciates the challenges inherent in a race against Chuck Grassley but is savvy enough to run a well-financed, smart campaign that puts the incumbent through his paces. She can challenge Grassley in areas that have traditionally been his strengths, namely his ability to authentically connect with Iowa’s rural communities.
Again, no one is arguing that Grassley enters this race as anything but a prohibitive favorite. In addition to combating Grassley’s strong favorability ratings, Judge will also need to collect 2,104 signatures and meet a minimum threshold in ten counties and do so in less than three weeks. That’s not an easy proposition. Without the caucuses, I question whether other candidates like Ray Zirkelbach or Bob Krause would even have the infrastructure in place to gather that number of signatures. Moreover, Judge will need to raise millions of dollars and unlike her previous state races she will have to do so within the contribution limits placed on federal candidates.
Regardless of all those factors, Patty Judge represents a significant upgrade in our congressional delegation and I hope she throws her hat in the ring. If nothing else, she will shine a bright light on Grassley’s childish conduct of blind obstructionism and reckless partisanship.
