Greenwald sees shifting political winds

When Becky Greenwald decided to run for Congress against 13-year incumbent U.S. Rep. Tom Latham, she knew what she was getting in to. As a longtime Democratic activist in Iowa’s 4th congressional district, she has watched strong Democratic challengers fail to gain traction against Latham for years.

But this year, she thinks the tables have turned. “This is a year with a lot of interest in change,” she said in an interview with the Iowa Independent.

If 4th district voters find themselves more engaged in the congressional campaign this year than they have been in the past, it will be for good reason. Over the past two years, the 4th district has found itself at the epicenter of national debates about immigration, agriculture, and renewable energy.

In an hour-long interview, Greenwald discussed her policy positions and her strategy for defeating an entrenched incumbent who has won reelection six times.

Immigration

Since 2006, the 4th district has been home to two of the highest-profile immigration raids in U.S. history. A meatpacking plant in Marshalltown was raided as part of a nationwide immigration enforcement crackdown in 2006, and Postville’s Agriprocessors plant was raided only months ago, making immigration an even more complicated and passionate issue in the minds of voters than usual.

Greenwald, who agrees that “of course, we do need to follow the law,” supports comprehensive immigration reform. She said enforcement should deal not only with employees but also with the employers who hire them. She supports opening a limited path to legalization for undocumented workers that would require them to pay a fine and back taxes, putting her in the mainstream of Democratic policy-makers across the country.

She said the current immigration laws are intended to deal with higher-skilled workers, not agricultural and manufacturing workers who comprise the majority of the undocumented immigrant population across the country. Laws “should address more than just well-paid, skilled workers,” she believes.

She also thinks that her experience living near the city of Perry in northeastern Dallas County provides her a perspective on the more hopeful side of the immigration debate. About 40 percent of Perry’s population is hispanic, and Greenwald thinks that the way the small town has adapted to its changing population could serve as an example for other cities to emulate. Encouraging open dialog between different groups, she said, is the most important thing local leaders can do, she said.

She said Latham could have done more toward that end. After the Postville raid, she said, “I noticed Bruce Braley being out there. I noticed the Governor being out there. I did not notice Mr. Latham out there… And I thought his silence was interesting.” (The Iowa Independent has reported on differences in the ways Latham and U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley have reacted to the raid in Postville.)

Renewable Energy & Agriculture Policy

Greenwald sees many opportunities for economic development in the district focused on renewable energy. With high-profile pushes for wind energy and biofuels across the country, there are both environmental and national security reasons to expand our production of renewables. Greenwald’s goal is to “harness a lot of these alternative energy sources,” she said.

Wind, in particular, is high on her agenda. Iowa is positioned to become “the Saudi Arabia of wind,” she noted.

Although she is well aware of the toll high corn prices are taking on livestock producers and consumers alike, she does not think ethanol production or farm subsidies are to blame. If high prices are being caused by policies and practices specific to corn growing, “Why is rice so expensive?” she asked. “We don’t make ethanol out of rice.”

The biggest reason for high prices, she said, “is the transportation cost.” The real culprit is the soaring price of gas, she said, and discouraging the production of renewable fuels is not the way to tackle the problem.

Greenwald’s Chances

When asked why she thinks this year’s 4th district campaign could be different, Greenwald points to changes in the district’s party registration numbers over the past two years. There are now more Democrats in the district than Republicans, and Greenwald, a former supporter of Sen. Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, credits the enthusiasm surrounding the 2008 Democratic presidential candidates for much of the shift.

But the 4th district presents a unique set of obstacles to a challenger who will struggle to gain recognition. For one thing, it is expansive. Stretching from the suburban collar around Des Moines in the southwest to Decorah in the northeast, Greenwald’s chances depend on her ability to cover a lot of ground.

“I’ll spend a lot of time on I-35,” she said. She noted that although she is from Dallas County near Des Moines, she had a meeting in Decorah last week with good turnout.

But covering so much ground will require strong fundraising. A successful candidate must run advertisements in at least three television markets and even more smaller newspaper and radio markets. “I know that we’re going to raise enough money to compete and win,” she said, but she stopped short of predicting that she would raise more than Latham, a member of the powerful House Appropriations Committee. The most recent documents filed with the Federal Election Commission show Latham with a 10-to-1 advantage in cash on hand.

Still, Greenwald remains optimistic. “With the numbers and with the excitement,” she said, “the wind is really at our backs.”