Bill Dix (file photo)
Governor Kim Reynolds is asking for a meeting with the Republican leader in the Iowa Senate after an online video seems to show the lawmaker kissing a lobbyist in a bar.
The video was posted on the Iowa Starting Line blog this morning. It shows Senator Bill Dix, a married father of three, with a statehouse lobbyist in a Des Moines neighborhood bar. Governor Reynolds spoke with reporters this morning during her weekly news conference.
“With what little I know, I’m certainly disappointed in what I’m hearing. I don’t know all of the facts,” Reynolds said. “…I’m hoping to meet with Leader Dix this afternoon and better understand what the facts all are.”
Dix was a central figure in a sexual harassment scandal at the statehouse. Dix fired a woman who used to work for Senate Republicans shortly after she complained of a toxic workplace. She won a $1.75 million judgement from the state.
Governor Reynolds told reporters she wants to “know all the facts” before she comments about the senator’s future as a leader in the legislature and in the Republican Party.
“I’m going to sit down with the leader later today,” Reynolds said. “…Iowans expect us to lead. They do hold us to a higher standard and we need to hold ourselves to a higher standard as well.”
A spokesman for Senate Republicans has not responded to a request for comment.