Daughter of the Heartland by Joni Ernst

Author:Joni Ernst
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Threshold Editions
Published: 2020-05-26T00:00:00+00:00

I was very touched by McCain’s support, and by the way he helped turn a negative attack into a promotion for our National Guard. After that, Jacobs took the AWOL claim off his website.

The insult cut me because I saw myself as the opposite of disengaged. For my entire life I’d been learning the importance of hard work in every arena—from the farm to the military to political office. My parents had a principle that stuck with me: “If something needs doing, do it yourself. Get in there and pitch in.” It offended me to be accused of slacking by people in pressed suits who’d never think of hauling themselves up onto a tractor.

I had been a long shot in the five-way race, and I felt confident I could outdo my opponents. But there was a catch. If the winning candidate didn’t get at least 35 percent of the vote, the nominee would be picked by a statewide Republican convention. On primary day, I prevailed with 56 percent of the vote. There would be no convention.

It was a very emotional moment as I stood on the stage in a ballroom in Des Moines with my family gathered around me. There were tears in my eyes. “Whether you voted for me today or someone else, I promise you I will work every single day to earn your trust and support.”

A month after my victory in the primary, I headed out for my annual two-week National Guard training—what my former opponent had called being “AWOL” from the senate. Before I left, I taped the Republican weekly radio address from the senate, explaining, “I’m recording this message a few days early, and by the time you hear this, I will be on active duty.”

As battalion commander, I had all my units together at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, my old stomping ground. This time there was a special experience in store for me.

One of the planned exercises was Taser training, which involved soldiers actually being tased. Beforehand, a sergeant first class in the military police who was up for reenlistment said, “The only way I’ll reenlist is if I get to tase the battalion commander.”

I said, “Okay, you can tase me as long as you’ll be reenlisting.” So I joined the company commander, who insisted on going first. We both thought it was good for the soldiers to see the leadership being tased. I figured that the young soldiers would realize that if the older lady could do it, so could they.

My campaign was a little freaked out when they learned I was going to be tased. I think they were worried that someone would take a video and it would be spread on the Internet. But I reassured them that no cell phones would be allowed.

There was a mattress covered with plastic sheeting on the floor, because some people lose bladder control. A soldier stood on each side of me, bracing me. When the current from the sergeant’s Taser hit me, it was horrible. My muscles seized up and I stiffened.

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