By David Sterling, Iowa City
Ross Nusser started this campaign season sounding like he aligned with Iowa City’s progressive values, but his push to “work with” the harmful Republican agenda should raise red flags. Our community values will never “go along with” the state’s Republican legislature, Trump’s federal administration and armed ICE agents marching into schools.
Iowa’s Republican-led state government is pushing a dangerous agenda: a total ban on abortion, the dismantling of public education, the forced imposition of Christian doctrine into law, and attacks on civil rights protections for trans people. At the same time, ICE continues to terrorize immigrant families, separating them, subjecting them to neglect and violence, and even forcing sterilizations in detention centers. Nusser’s rationale for going along with these policies is that they might secure our state funding, but it begs a question: Who will be left to spend it on?
This isn’t just a matter of abstract politics. Nusser’s campaign is also heavily funded by some of Iowa City’s wealthiest landowners — people who stand to lose the most from progressive policies. His signs are frequently found in the yards of renters who may not share his views but are only following the interests of their landlords. Summit Street, an area known for its wealthy, Republican-leaning residents, has been especially saturated with Nusser’s campaign materials. Many of the letters to the editor praising him come from those who would be least affected by his policies, and are most willing to prop up the status quo.
Iowa City faces another question: Which candidate will be a stronger ally in protecting our values? One candidate, Weilein, has a history of non-violent activism, earned overwhelming primary support, and values inclusion and compassion. The other, Nusser, is a wealthy, well-connected figure with a history of appeasing powerful interests rather than standing up for the marginalized and vulnerable, having gained only 27 percent of primary voters in the district this council seat will represent.
As Mayor Bruce Teague rightly pointed out this week, the recent bill to roll back trans rights “has no place in our state’s laws.” We need a leader who fights to keep these dangerous ideologies at bay, rather than compromising with them for political gain.
Nusser’s intent to compromise with the MAGA agenda is a threat to everything Iowa City stands for. He doesn’t have to be a bad man to be dangerously ignorant.
