Iowa state Rep. Andy McKean cited President Donald Trump’s upcoming reelection battle and the rightward lurch of the Republican Party as reasons for his defection to the Democratic Party during a press conference on Tuesday.
McKean took a 15-year break from public service after a three-term stint as state senator, winning election to the state House in 2016.
“I’ve found a very changed Republican caucus,” he said. “Although I have great respect for the speaker and majority leader and appreciate their efforts to find a role for me in the caucus, I have found myself increasingly uncomfortable with the stance of my party on the vast majority of high-profile issues and am often sympathetic with the concerns raised by the minority caucus.”
“I might have limped along, attempting to work within my caucus in what I thought was the best interest of the people I represent if it hadn’t been for another factor,” he continued. “With the 2020 presidential election looming on the horizon, I feel that as a representative, I need to feel like I can support the standard bearer of our party. Unfortunately, that is something I am unable to do.”
He cited Trump’s “reckless spending,” “destabilizing foreign policy” and “disregard for environmental concerns” as policy areas McKean could not abide.
He said that Trump constantly sets a bad example “by personally insulting often in a crude and juvenile fashion those who disagree with him, being a bully at a time that we’re attempting to discourage bullying, his frequent disregard for the truth, and his willingness to ridicule or marginalize people for their appearance, ethnicity or disability.”
“If this is the new normal, I want no part of it,” he said solemnly. “Unacceptable behavior should be called out for what it is, and Americans of all parties should insist on something far better in the leader of their country and the free world.”
The writing was on the wall for McKean’s party switch. He had crossed the aisle on several significant votes, including on gun control and judicial selection measures, sometimes being the sole Republican to do so.
He said that he currently plans to run for reelection as a Democrat when he’s up in 2020, but that he’ll see how he feels at the time. He added that he thinks Trump should be booted via the ballot box rather than impeachment.
“The time comes that you have to be true to yourself and follow the dictates of your conscience,” he said. “For me, that time has come.”
Listen to his press conference via Radio Iowa here.
