Joni Ernst Primary Night 2014 (247)-L
Gail Ernst watches his wife, State Senator Joni Ernst, give her victory speech after winning the Iowa U.S. Senate Republican primary.
Photo credit: Dave Davidson – Prezography.com

It is important that campaigns do opposition researchā€¦ on themselves and then deal with it or have a strategy to deal with it before announcing.Ā  Otherwise you leave it up to your opponents and troll they did.Ā  Democratic operatives trolled through Gail Ernstā€™s Facebook page to find items to feed the Des Moines Register.

And we wonder why people donā€™t want to run for office?

The remarks that Gail Ernst, husband of State Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) who is running for U.S. Senate, are more than a year old.Ā  From March 2013: “What do you do if you see your ex running around in your front yard screaming and bloody? Stay calm. Reload. And try again.”

ernst-screen-shot

ernst-hillary-clinton

Jennifer Jacobs reported a couple more instances:

And on April 19, 2013, Gail Ernst shared a photo of Janet Napolitano, then the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, with the comment: “And am I suppose (sic) to give up my guns? As if! Traitorous skank!”

His comment accompanied a photo circulating on the Internet that had this caption: “There is a nation-wide shortage of ammo because DHS has emptied the shelves, but when asked why her department is hording so much, her answer amounted to ā€¦ I take the 5th.”ā€¦

Democrats today showed the Register another post, dated Jan. 24, 2013, in which Gail Ernst called Clinton a “Lying hag!” That remark accompanied a Facebook post that disparaged Clinton’s comments about the deadly attack on a U.S. diplomatic installation in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11, 2012.

I canā€™t and wonā€™t defend Gail Ernstā€™s comments, but I can certainly empathize with what he is going through at the moment.

Gail Ernstā€™s statement to the Des Moines Register was appropriateā€¦ ā€œI would like to apologize for the inappropriate comments I have made on Facebook, which I deeply regret. It is not the respect that women deserve or the example I want to set for my daughters.”

Was it necessary for Joni Ernst to throw her husband under the bus?Ā  She told the Register, “I’m appalled by my husband’s remarks.Ā  They are uncalled for and clearly inappropriate. I’ve addressed this issue with my husband and that’s between us.”

And the issue should have stayed between them.Ā  Gail Ernst was responsible for the remarks, not Joni.

I thought that the charge that Bruce Braleyā€™s ā€œchickā€ ad was somehow sexist was ridiculous.Ā  What are Democrats trying, in response (they took the screenshots last year), to prove here that unless Joni Ernst condemns her husband that sheā€™s somehow misogynistic or supports misogyny?

Equally ridiculous.Ā  If I were advising Joni Ernst I would have encouraged her to say, ā€œGail made a mistake, he has apologized as he should.Ā  I love him mistakes and all, just as he does me.Ā  If Democrats have to troll through my husbandā€™s Facebook posts from a year ago they must be pretty desperate.Ā  Thatā€™s all I am going to say on this matter.ā€

Either that or not comment at all and let her husbandā€™s statement stand on its own.

Because does anybody seriously think she would approve of some of these comments?Ā  Nobody should be expected to throw their spouse under the bus, and itā€™s not a winning strategy. Ā So Joni, stand by your man.

Now can we move on to some substance?

You May Also Like

Jeb Bush Allies Plan to Attack Rubio for Pro-life Position

Right to Rise PAC, who supports Jeb Bush, plans to spend $20 million to derail U.S. Senator Marco Rubio including targeting his pro-life stance.

Fox News/Google GOP Presidential Debate Run Down

Shane Vander Hart runs down what he thought of each candidate’s performance during the Fox News/Google GOP Presidential Debate in Des Moines, IA.

Iowa GOP Launches ā€˜Two Faces of Theresa Greenfieldā€™

The Iowa GOP launched “Two Faces of Theresa,” highlighting what they say is Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Theresa Greenfield’s “blatant hypocrisy.”

Bruce Braley Admits Taking Lobbyist Money Violating Campaign Promise

INDEPENDENCE, IA — New disclosures revealed Tuesday by the Cedar Rapids Gazette…