Congressional candidate Scholten stops in Latimer

Quiet weeknight streets and an intimate setting were fit-ting for the purpose of Congressional District 4 candidate J.D. Scholten’s stop in Latimer.

The Sioux City-based Democrat, who narrowly lost to incumbent Congressman Steve King in the 2018 General Election, visited the Latimer Community Center as part of his “Don’t Forget About Us” tour through District 4.

This tour, Scholten said, is to reach communities with a population of less than 1,000 people in the district’s jurisdiction. While those communities are small, he said, they are made up of underrepresented people who have issues that need to be addressed.

“What we realized is that if you show up at these communities and you listen, word of mouth gets around and folks appreciate you showing up in these areas that are often forgotten,” he said. “They (voters) appreciate folks who put in the work and continue to show up.”

Before turning the meeting over to the crowd for questions, Scholten explained his approach to the campaign this year is a method of “Fix, Fight and Secure.”

“We want to fix healthcare, fight for an economy that works for everyone and secure democracy,” he said.

The fix portion, he said, is to come up with a version of healthcare that is universal in nature with a public option, the reduction of Medicare to a 55-plus requirement and to help ensure smaller businesses can offer healthcare.

Fighting for an economy, he said, is to ensure an economy that benefits people of all economic stature and make sure taxes are paid by major corporations to ensure that institutions and infrastructure receives the funding it needs.

“We need a fairness,” he said. Sixty-one Fortune 500 corporations paid zero tax-es…and that revenue that’s lost is going to hurt us down the road.”

The final step, secure, he said, is to allow all people a chance to succeed in the Unit-ed States.

“The pharmaceutical companies have money that pay for lobbyists that pay for a lot of these votes and that’s wrong," he said. “I believe we need to get this back to a government that’s of the people, by the people and for the people.

“We need some rules set up so we can allow our democracy to be a true democracy,” he added.

After explaining his plan, Scholten allowed the audience to ask questions, which ranged from how small businesses could afford minimum wage if an increase is mandated, how to increases resources for prenatal care and addition-al concerns regarding healthcare.

Scholten said that the conversational style of these meetings allows him to see the situations that affect people and hear stories that allow him to relate prominent issues to the people who live in his district.

“So much of what we’re able to do is listen and hear what’s on the ground,” he said. “I don’t care about poll-ing, I want to go out and listen to folks and hear what they have to say.”

He added that these stories allow him the opportunity to learn more about issues facing Iowans and

“It’s really just understanding these communities,” he said. “There are a lot of similarities but there are differences as well. Being able to understand all these different areas and understand the needs of all these areas, that goes in with what the job requires.”