A retiring member of the Iowa legislature has left the Republican Party over President Trump’s remarks in Finland.
Ken Rizer, a two-term member of the Iowa House, is the former commander of the home base for the president’s plane, Air Force One. Rizer said in a Facebook post that President Trump’s performance in Helsinki was the last straw and he is now a registered “no party” voter.
Republican U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley said it’s important for U.S. presidents to be “clear-eyed” and Grassley said Vladimir Putin isn’t a friend to the U.S., the western world or our values. Iowa’s other Republican U.S. Senator, Joni Ernst, said she has the “utmost faith” in America’s intelligence community and their assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 election. She also said Russia “has never been a friend to the U.S. and they continue to pose a threat to America.”