1. United States
2. Iowa
3. Letter

I’m old enough to remember when Iowans looked out for their neighbors—because that’s what decent people do. I’m also old enough to remember when Republicans claimed to stand for small government, individual liberty, and opposition to government overreach. So I have a simple question: what changed? Because what I’m watching from Iowa’s Republican delegation is a surrender of the principles you claim to represent—paired with a disturbing comfort with government power being used to intimidate, detain, and terrorize human beings. I’m knowledgeable enough to know what Jesus actually taught: feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, care for the sick, clothe the poor, show mercy, and treat others the way you want to be treated. Jesus didn’t preach cruelty or “only help the deserving.” He made it clear that faith without action is empty—and that how you treat “the least of these” is the measure of your character. So why do you, while claiming Christianity, support or enable actions that directly contradict those teachings? I’m educated enough to understand how this country is supposed to function: the Constitution, the rule of law, and three co-equal branches so no one person becomes a king. Yet you’re watching those guardrails get ripped up—and you’re either applauding it or pretending not to notice. I’m also educated enough to know what happened in 1930s Germany: democracies don’t collapse overnight. They erode—through normalization, scapegoating, “just following orders,” and officials who stay silent because it’s easier or politically convenient. So again: what changed? Why aren’t the people representing Iowa standing up for our neighbors in Minnesota? Why have Republicans flip-flopped into being fine with government messing with people’s lives—citizens and non-citizens—through intimidation, unaccountable enforcement power, and “trust us” authority? And why do you keep wrapping yourselves in “Christian values” when words don’t make you a Christian—actions do? Right now, your actions show cowardice and compliance. You are willing to look away while people are taken and harmed under the cover of “enforcement,” while accountability disappears behind masks, badges, and silence. And for what? To cover for Donald Trump and this administration’s lawlessness? Your silence is not neutrality. It’s permission. Here’s what I expect from you—as an Iowan, as your constituent, and as someone who still believes elected officials should do their jobs: • Use every constitutional and legal tool available to stop abuses of power. • Defend separation of powers instead of surrendering it. • Stop enabling actions that violate civil liberties and human dignity. • Speak up—clearly and repeatedly—against intimidation and unlawful detentions.